Squishh.
"Careful, little guy. One more inch and you might merge with the car."
The child pressed his face against the window, determinedly trying to inscribe every single detail of the place into his memory. Michael chuckled at the sight.
"First time, ay? I was like that when I first came, too. Metropolis is really something."
"It's truly a miracle he survived beyond the walls," Eunice said, her brow furrowed in concern. She gently pinched his face. She had always wanted children, but had been unable to conceive. Seeing the boy reminded her of what she was missing. "Oh, you sweet thing. How did you manage to get all the way out there?"
Her husband's voice turned grim. "If I had to guess… I'd say someone 'dropped' him off."
"You mean.. he was abandoned?" Eunice gasped. She clutched the child closer, a fierce protectiveness rising within her. The child yawned, oblivious.
"Ask him."
"Did someone drop you off, little one?"
The child paused, looking slightly confused. He thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Oh, Honey!"
SKREEEEEECH.
"Hey, hey! Don't grope me!" Michael panicked, taking hold of the steering wheel.
"No, no, it's just--- can we keep him? Just for tonight? He's freezing, and he needs help!"
"No." He replied immediately, but his voice lacked conviction. He knew Eunice's soft spot for children.
Eunice blinked at the quick reply.
"Wh-- why not?"
Michael cleared his throat.
"Ahem.. His parents may have abandoned him, but he might have relatives somewhere. We should get him to a police station for now. It's the right thing to do, Eunice. We can't just take in every stray we find."
"Oh.." She knew he was right. But still...
"And.. I want our first child to be our own."
"Sorry, what was that?"
"N- nothing. I just don't want us to get into trouble. We barely make enough to feed ourselves. Imagine a child on top of that!"
The child, completely oblivious to the tension in the car, continued to stare out the window.
Bzzzt..
"Attention, citizens--"
The child jumped, looking around wildly. Michael laughed.
"It's the evening announcement, kid. Listen."
The child strained his ears.
"Warning: Gate closure commencing at 22:30 hours. Please expedite your movements-- Bzzzz.. 22:30 hours-- gates, closed. Bzzzt. Thank you for your cooperation.. Or not-- Bzzzt. Whatever."
Bzzzt...
"That announcement never gets old," Michael chuckled.
The child looked out the window, trying to pinpoint the source of the loud noise. Eunice stroked his head, a sad smile on her face.
Creaak.
"Ha.."
The child's blue eyes sparkled like diamonds.
There was color everywhere he looked. Neon signs bled onto the wet streets, and holographic billboards dwarfed the buildings. Bizarre wares-- floating boards, 'high-jump' sneakers-- spilled from countless shops, each one of them trying to outshine the other. Countless vehicles drove in front of them.
But the child's eyes lingered not on these, but the people. People filled almost every space; And very odd-looking ones, too.
The child was startled to see a man walking with what seemed to be a metal leg. He waved, but the car soon sped up.
Vroooom..
Disappointed, he looked at the man and woman and pouted.
"We're here."
A few minutes of driving later, they arrived at an odd-looking building, it's entrance lit in a green light.
Michael and Eunice stepped out, the child cradled in Eunice's arms. He looked at the building with curiosity. It was painted blue and white, with bizarre structures he couldn't explain sticking at the back of it. Smoke filtered through a hole at it's roof. It looked symmetrical, but at the same time, it wasn't.
The lines didn't quite meet-- and the proportions were all off.
Shff.
"Gaa..!"
The doors opened by themselves. The child stared, amazed.
They approached the front desk, where a woman in a blue striped uniform waited with a weary expression.
Her eyes flickered to Michael and to the child.
"A lost kid?" she asked, surprised.
He nodded. "Yes. We found him wandering by himself in the middle of the Highway-- outside Metropolis."
"Goodness! How was he able to get there?" The Officer reached for a form. "Name?"
Michael and Eunice exchanged a look.
"We don't know," he admitted. "He hasn't said a word. What's your name, kid?" He asked.
"Aga aga!"
After a moment of silence, they realized the child wasn't able to speak.
"..It looks like he's unable to."
The child stared up at the adults, trying to understand what they were talking about. After listening for another minute, a wave of boredom washed over him.
He started to look around the odd building.
His eyes scanned the freshly painted walls and the bright overhead lights. He looked up and saw that there were screens with moving pictures in them.
He watched for a moment, interested, then looked to his left and spotted a huge bulletin board. It had many pictures plastered onto it. One was a crudely drawn sketch of a man with a comically large nose and ears, underneath the word 'WANTED.'
A giggle escaped his lips, which he quickly muffled with his hands.
His gaze drifted to a corridor behind the front desk.
Two burly officers in dark uniforms were escorting a man in handcuffs. The man looked tired, his shoulders slumped as he was led along. The child watched, mildly curious, as they reached a door at the end of the hall. One officer pushed the door open, and the man was shoved inside.
"Hek--"
The child giggled--
Suddenly, a bright, circular, blinding light flared from the ceiling of the room, illuminating the prisoner.
!!
The child trembled.
"Hak-- Hak--"
"Hm? What's wrong, honey?" Eunice asked, her voice laced with concern. She patted his head again, but this time, the child didnt calm down.
The child didn't answer. The three adults looked at him, their faces etched with worry.
Eunice looked at him with sudden understanding. "Are you perhaps unco--"
"Hic-- AAAHHHHHH!!"
In one swift motion, he forced himself out of Eunice's arms and bolted out of the police station