On the way to town, Troy decided to take his bike rather than his car, so he offered a place to sit in the front basket. The sides were a tad tall to look over, but I managed. 

  For the first time in months, I felt the breeze. The coolness felt refreshing rather than stressing as it had in the past. The only time I had ever gotten to feel the breeze like this was whenever I was 'adopted', being taken in and out of homes. A sigh escaped my mouth as I breathed in the air. I couldn't help but close my eyes and take it in.

  "It's been a while, hasn't it?" Troy asked, his question pulling me back into reality. Though, I didn't turn to look at him. Instead I let myself smile.

  "Yea.. it has."

  After our short exchange, we both wound up silent. It was the kind of silence that felt peaceful. The atmosphere was oddly nice, and for the first time, I felt as though I was away from my own thoughts. Even the feeling of sleepiness was creeping up on me. The constant adrenaline seemed to be wearing off, and if I was honest, I wouldn't mind living in this moment forever.

  "We're here." Troy spoke as he brought the bike to a stop. Hesitantly, I opened my eyes to see the building ahead of us. It looked like a neighborhood friendly grocer, one of those family owned type places and it seemed so cozy from the outside.

  Once Troy finished locking up his bike, he reached his hand into the basket, allowing me to crawl on before lifting me up to his shirt pocket. Gently, he slid me inside and began to walk towards the building.

  The soft thumping of his heart right beside me was what I instantly focused on, but I quickly pulled myself out of the daze and grabbed a hold of the pockets rim. It was a struggle to keep balance, but soon I was able to peek out.

  Troy nonchalantly strolled through the aisles, waving at random people as if he knew them. Did he? I guess I never really considered other people a part of the picture.. However, if this really was a local shop, it would make sense. He could have also been really friendly towards everyone also.

  Being in this environment was very.. Interesting. I had never been to a store, especially one like this. It may have looked like a small local grocer, but they had almost everything imaginable here. In a weird sense, it was a tad overwhelming. 

  As I continued to watch the passing surroundings, I found myself focusing more on the aisles rather than the people. 

  "What exactly are you out to get?" I asked after a long time of silence. 

  "Ah.. some things for a friend. She is working on getting me some more space for you guys, but she's out of town and needs me to get the stuff for her." Troy started, "Though, I also needed to get some groceries."

  "Are you out of space?"

  "Oh, no. I just wanted to make it less crammed in there for everyone, plus if I continue to rescue, I will eventually run out of room.. I suppose I'm preparing for the future." He explained, suddenly reaching his hand up to 'pet' my head.

  A tad taken aback, I looked up at him as he did but it didn't seem like he was even paying any mind. Did he do that instinctively?

  "That makes sense." I muttered, letting myself slide down into the pocket, getting away from his hand. I shook it off and silently let out a heavy exhale, beginning to let my mind wander once more.

  The town. What a strange concept. Honestly the idea seemed so unnatural.. A human wanting to help borrowers like me? My inner self was just clawing at how wrong it sounded, especially from people I had experienced before.. Yet there hadn't been a single thing that's gone wrong, other than Kila and that really wasn't even the town itself. That seemed more like her own problem.

  Even then though, Kila wasn't really in the wrong. She's kind of justified. In fact.. She probably had it worse out with other humans than I did. I guess I'll never know for sure..

  Suddenly as if to read my mind, a gentle nudge came from the outside of the pocket.

  "Try not to think too much of the things you cannot control.. Some things just happen. I'm sure you'll see her again." Troy's voice held a tone of understanding.

 Oddly enough, his words helped. He was right. I might be able to see her again.. She may even decide to come back. 

  There was a small moment where I hesitated to respond, but instead I let out another sigh and pat against the fabric wall, letting Troy I was okay.

  "What do you think about getting some new clothes?" He asked abruptly. My brow raised at the question.

"New clothes?" I pondered allowed.

  "Yea, new clothes. If not, that's perfectly okay."

  I took a moment to think it over, looking down at the unidentified coat I had on. I didn't know whose it was.. but I was attached to it already. Though.. I also guess new clothes wouldn't mean I couldn't wear the coat.

  "Sure, I wouldn't mind that."

~~~

  It took a few minutes to get to the area meant for borrowers.

  Honestly, it was weird to think there was an entire section dedicated to the care of a borrower, though I wouldn't have been surprised if most things were just never bought. After the care I had been through, and the care of my friends, I began to suspect things were just too expensive for some people.

  I let out a sigh as Troy's hand suddenly picked me up out of the pocket. At first I was caught off guard, but it didn't last very long. He briskly set my feet on a guard metal surface which was directly in front of a door of my size.

  With hesitance, I turned my eyes towards Troy as if to wait for directions, but he leaned back against a wall and shot me a soft smile.

  "Take as long as you like. We aren't in a hurry. Just let me know when you're done."

  With that, I turned back to the door, reading the sign above it. 'Clothing CO."

  How creative.

  Slowly, I cracked the door open, my eyes darting around before I stepped in.

  The place was strange. It seemed so much like what people would call a thrift shop, but it was definitely selling new things. The feeling the shop gave was homey, with an interior that resembled a tree or a forest. The clothes ranged for anyone and everything was designed like normal people's clothing, rather than stitched up pieces of random fabric or leaves..

  Oddly, it was refreshing.

  I strolled through, looking for something that would fit the coat's aesthetic, soon stumbling upon a dark brown tee. Not too late after that, I found a pair of pants with pockets. The tag said they were cargo jeans and honestly, they were definitely my favorite part of my outfit. Who wouldn't love pockets?

  After trying the clothes on, I decided I had been wandering long enough and headed back to the front. Troy looked almost immediately as I stepped through the door frame, and shot me a smile.

  "Find anything?" He asked, stepping forward with his hand out for me. As I walked on, I nodded.

  "Yea. I think they're pretty cool" I smiled.

  Troy chuckled a tad and brought me up to his shoulder, setting me down before opening his hand to take the clothes from me.

  "That's good." I couldn't see it, but I could hear the smile in his voice. He set the clothes in the basket, before letting out a slight sigh. "Shall we go home then?"