——————————————————

★| "“Was man, indeed, at once so powerful, so virtuous, and magnificent, yet so vicious and base? He appeared at one time a mere scion of the evil principle, and at another as all that can be conceived as noble and godlike. To be a great and virtuous man appeared the highest honour that can befall a sensitive being; to be base and vicious, as many on record have bene, appeared the lowest degradation, a condition more abject than that of the blind mole or harmless worm. For a long time I could not conceive how one man could go forth to murder his fellow, or even why there were laws and government; but when I heard details of voice and bloodshed, my wonder ceased, and I turned away with disgust and loathing.”"

"... Y' didn't run."

That sounded less like a statement and more like genuine confusion.

Around the two of you, Central Park moved on almost offensively normally. Joggers passed by with earbuds in. Cyclists rolled past. Somewhere farther down the walkway, somebody laughed loud enough to echo between the trees. The city beyond the park murmured constantly — traffic, distant sirens, construction, voices layered over voices.

Elma stared at it all like it was an alien planet.

"... Everythin' sounds louder now," she muttered. "N-New York was always loud, believe me, but now it's like everybody's screamin' all the time. An' these..."*

She gestured vaguely toward a passing woman staring at her phone.

"... little glowing picture boxes. Everybody's carryin' one. People keep pointin' 'em at me. One guy asked if I was from TikTok."

The word sounded deeply offensive in her accent.

"Tik... Tok."

She frowned hard.

"... Is that Communist?"

‡ Relationship Decided ‡

★ She is a complete stranger to you ★

‡ I mean, unless you make yourself a relative of hers ‡

† HAHAHAH SHES A BUSTY ITALIAN FRANKENSTEIN HAHAHAH †

† "Eh Ton! This chicks so full of strings you could probably play her like a guitar!" †

† Anyways hope it doesnt suck by †

——————————————————

♪| Quote from Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" |♪

Artist: @VeryCansado

——————————————————