The Songbird

To survive in a world full of chaos, one must learn to embrace it.

It was hard— Callie knew that awfully well. She lived in a city where guns were easier to acquire than medicine, and where violence was the answer to everything. A place that the government has forgotten about and where the police worked for infamous crime lords.

To survive amid chaos was hard, and Callie was only barely able to hold her head above water. And with each passing day, she feels herself sinking further and further, deeper into the filth.

“Ugh, can you believe this?” Sienna asked with a sigh. She and Callie have been friends since they were teens. Now, they go to the same community college where the bulletin boards are riddled with dozens of warnings, curfew notices, and missing person posters. “You would think living so far away from the Ashen City would protect us from the scum that live there—” Sienna shook her head in disbelief. “But no, we still live in a nightmare.”

Callie looked away from her beautiful friend, whose blonde hair she had envied for a long while. “It’s not so bad,” she said. “I mean, it’s been pretty mellow these days.”

“Not so bad?” Sienna asked in disbelief, whipping her perfectly styled blonde hair around to face Callie fully. “Callie, people have gone missing, and you work as a courtesan servicing those scum I just mentioned. I don’t say this to belittle your work or anything, you know I love you. It’s just that—”

“You don’t approve of my clients.” Callie smiled softly at her friend, before tilting her head endearingly, her luscious chestnut-colored hair swaying with the action. She knew Sienna was only worried. “I don’t like them either, but they’re tolerable, and they’re paying for my education, thus if not for them, I wouldn’t have met you.”

Callie never resented her work or her Uncle Jimmy, who owned the brothel slash club, Euphoria. He took nine-year-old Callie in when her parents died in a tragic car accident, fifteen years ago, the same year of The Great Burning. Sure, the man was a sleazy old businessman, but he loved Callie’s dad in his own way, so he couldn’t give Callie up.

He was a shit father figure, but he provided for Callie’s basic needs. Once Callie was old enough to bus tables, he made her work at the club. It wasn’t until Callie was thirteen that she decided she wanted to work as a singer. Then, fast-forward six years later, Callie wanted to go to college. She would never have been able to afford it if she didn’t work as a courtesan.

Nobody ever forced her to sleep with men for money, Callie did it to survive and further her education. In these dark times, a woman must learn to survive. And what Callie needed most was a way to escape this rotting place.

Sienna sighed and reached for her friend’s arm, giving it a little squeeze. “You make a great point.” Sienna slides her hand down Callie’s arm to hold her hand. “Still, be careful, okay? I worry about you. And I don’t trust your uncle. No offense.”

Callie giggled, amused at Sienna’s expression. “I’ll be fine. Thank you, Sienna.”

“Love you. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Sienna replied, letting go of Callie’s hand before heading in the opposite direction. “Don’t forget to buy our tickets for the senior party at the club next week! We may live in bleak times, but we deserve some fun!”

“Love you too, take care!” Callie waves goodbye now left alone among the dozens of pairs of eyes staring at her from the countless wanted posters on the board.

“Why bother printing these when the police have the mafia lining their pockets?” Callie muttered to herself, annoyed at how shitty the authorities were handling these cases.

Several people have gone missing in the past week, some of them were Callie’s classmates. Though she tried to sound optimistic for Sienna earlier, Callie knew that things were looking bad for all of them living near the Ashen City.

It has been fifteen years since the Great Burning took place in the middle of the city of Santa Barbara. No one knows precisely what happened that fated day. Some say it was an accident, while some say it was done by terrorists. But there’s one story people believe the most—the one where a man burned the city for revenge. Parents started to use it to scare children who liked to stay out late, saying a dragon would descend from the skies to burn and punish them.

Since then, the city was renamed the Ashen City after what was left. Hundreds died during the fire and every year, families would light candles around the perimeter of the city to honor those who died. But even then, the city and the surrounding areas became a hotspot for criminal activities. Some managed to flee, but not everyone could afford it. And those that remained, learned to live in dire circumstances.

With a sigh, Callie adjusted her backpack and starts to head home, her mind swimming with worry.

It usually took Callie twenty minutes to walk back home from school, but today she felt as if something was dragging her feet to go slower. But Callie knew she couldn’t be late, she had a client coming in tonight.

The apartment that Callie and her uncle live in wasn’t in the best neighborhood, so Callie didn’t think much of it when she bumps into a heavy wall of a man. There were no thoughts in Callie’s mind even as she falls to the ground, overcome with fear. She doesn’t even bother fixing her white dress when it rode up to the tops of her thighs.

“I’m so sorry,” said Callie. Striking blue eyes met her brown ones, and she immediately lowered her head to show submission. She proceeded to apologize profusely when she noticed the man dropped his cigarette. “Please don’t hurt me. I’m sorry, I’ll pay for it.” Though she knew the brand might be worth more than what she earned in a week, Callie offered anyway.