The Versatile
Chapter 20's
Unused empty sidewalks still decorate the street. Buildings that have been consumed by time are still perched firmly. Although some of the glasses have been broken and the walls are hollow. Houses that have lost their roofs as well as dead plants because they have never been watered by their owners. They left this place and parts of it were destroyed. Only partly.
“Hey!” someone called and a voice echoed in this desolate street.
Spencer turned his body in all directions to see who was speaking. “Who? Who is talking? Is there anyone else here?”
There's no answer.
A few seconds later the man spoke again. “Yes, are you from downstairs?”
Spencer kept going around looking for the source of the sound. “Yes. No, I mean I'm from downstairs but I don't live there.” Maybe telling them that he's from the past is open to trouble, but not for now.
“Then where do you live?” that voice again.
Spencer analyzed the sound. It's not very clear, but it's definitely a female voice. Maybe he was eleven years old. And he asked me that he was from downstairs, meaning there was someone else living up here.
“Will you show yourself? And I'll tell you everything,” pinta Spencer.
No more answers.
A minute later a girl emerged from the rubble of the building. The girl was wearing a faded green shirt, with shoes that were worn but still fit. A hat adorned her hair tied with ribbons.
The girl approached Spencer, as she had expected, looking like she was a child. “Hai.” Greet the girl. His face was dirty from the dust. “I've shown myself, now it's your turn to tell the story.”
Spencer was silent for a moment. “Sorry, yes. But will you tell me too?” ask Spencer.
“If that's what you want, of course.”
They walk in the middle of the sidewalk. It is not a problem because there are no cars or other vehicles passing by.
“I am from down there. But I don't live down there. I ...” pause for a while, “I stay above just like you guys. It's just a different time. The building still stands well and there are plenty of vehicles everywhere. Even everyone lives above. They use underground only for certain places.”
“Wait! All this time the top is always quiet and below it is crowded. Are you from the past?”
Spencer didn't answer, he wasn't sure about this kid. “I think so.” Spencer put his hand in his pants pocket.
“Great. What year do you live?”
“2017. Is there anyone else living up here?”
The girl's face suddenly turned moody. “Aplenty. The people who live up here are the ones who can't afford to buy a house down there. That was a long time ago. Our ancestors were vagrants who had no money.” Her voice softened.
“At that time a new era began. Scientists think if we live below then there is no more weather that is too hot or the weather is too cold, even storms. So they decided to make a place underground. Twenty years later construction was complete, people who wanted to live down there had to pay hundreds of millions to get a comfortable place to live. They promised harmony and equality between peoples. Our ancestors who couldn't buy stayed up here, continuing to live off the remains.”
They stopped right in front of a partially destroyed statue. There's a circular place that looks like a former fountain. But the water is dry now. Spencer sat on his side, the girl followed by sitting next to him.
“Means the people down there have been lied to. They say they have all achieved equality. Butwhat? There are still many people like you who live with a lack of.”
The girl looked down, Spencer looked at her. “By the way my name is Spencer.” Spencer held out his hand.
The girl greeted him. “Goddess.” The goddess smiled at Spencer.
“Then how is your life here? are you in school?”
“Of course, we have a school. It's not as good as down there, but at least our knowledge is quite extensive. Besides if we don't learn, where can we use your language.” Now they continue their journey. “Actually it is not just us who live here, there are still many people from various worlds who live here. They were very friendly and we learned their language. Compared to many years ago now people here have closeness and make us know each other.”
The dusty road was gone, now the road was paved and some people were beginning to be seen. Everyone looked at them, but they did not look like disgust or anger, but wanted to know and wanted to be friends.
“Almost everything, I still can't master Greek, Thai and Japanese. A little hard to read.”
“Wow, that's cool. So why don't you guys just use English?”
“We don't think it's just English we have to learn. Therefore to achieve similarity, we learn all languages.”
They were headed for a house with a roof that had been broken. The goddess knocked on the door and someone appeared from there. Wearing a hood that covered her hair.
“ Where have you been? I told you you should help me tidy up ..” his words were cut off when I saw Spencer.
“I'm just walking around. This is my new friend Spencer. Spencer this is Nissa, my sister.”
Spencer reached out his hand, they were briefly acquainted. Nissa looked at Spencer with a strange look because she knew this man was not from above. “What do you want here? Do the upper class care about us now? Or they just want to take some of their treasures left above here?” the question felt so bad.
“So he's not from down there. Spencer is from the past. Even the people down there do not know that there is still life up here,” Dewi explained.
“You from the past? Then you can change everything so we don't have to live like this anymore,” said Nissa.
“No-no. Waitaminute! I may change the future but I have no right to change it, only time and all of humanity can determine this. I think this is a joint decision.”
Nissa let Spencer in, this girl doesn't look old. But from his mature nature he looked like he was seven or sixteen years old.
“How old are you?”
“What care you?” syndicate Nissa.
“Only ask.”
“Sixteen. You alone?” Nissa asked back.
“Twenty-three.”
“You don't look that old.” Nissa picked up some old magazines and read them.
“What are you wearing? the one covering your hair?”
“It's hijab. To cover my hair. I'm muslim.”
Spencer doesn't know much about religion. But he knew Muslims were the name for Muslims. They haven't spoken for a while. Nissa's brown eyes reminded her of Thania. His character is different from Hazel. Although they differ by one year, but Nissa looks more graceful and more mature. Contrary to Hazel who looks rude and hasty.
The goddess took a glass of water and two slices of bread. “Sorry we only have this to serve. We never had any guests from down there. So we don't know how the food is down there.” She almost disappeared into the kitchen when Spencer took her glass. “And sorry if it's not tasty.”
Spencer gulped down the water which felt very cold and fresh. It's fresher than the water he's drinking in the water reservoir that belongs to the people down there. “It tastes better than water from down there.”
“True, how the food. Do they have any new food?” nissa asked as she took down the magazine she was reading.
“Yes, the food is very new. Until we can't chew it. You'll just feel the steam fill your mouth and boom you're full.”
This time Nissa closed her magazine and was intrigued by Spencer's words. “Really? Just steam and you're full?”
“Of course. But chewing it is more delicious.” They both laughed together.