Thread: The wrong neighborhood (Claire and Holdthedoor)

Chloe was walking at a decent pace, but the cold winter air was undoubtedly rather biting, and certainly made the walk a little less pleasant. But the truth was, the run down neighborhood, the lack of foot traffic, and the ways the shadows were beginning to creep across the wide avenue told the attractive young brunette that it might not be somewhere she wanted to linger for too long. Grant Cross was certainly not the sort of place that girls like Chloe Schmidt wouldn't normally wind up indeed it was a part of town which was primarily home to low-grade housing estates, welfare projects, and old brownstones which had mostly laid empty since the 2010 crash repossessed by opportunistic lenders and bought up by speculators and investors like Michael Schmidt - Chloe's father! Grant Cross had, at one time, been an up and coming area, and it had promised much for the new Italian, Irish and African-American residents who'd moved in to take up jobs in the large port and nearby steelworks. But, soon enough the place had gone downhill the fat cats in city hall had withdrawn all the investment, the money and the jobs evaporating along with the opportunities for the now predominantly black community. Chloe didn't like the look of the district, and as she strode down the wide decrepit boulevard she did reflect that her dad was right about the run-down district, perhaps the lazy people who lived there did need to take responsibility AND they needed to accept the investment from people like her family, and her dads friends and partners! Despite dressing down rather substantially - in her casual tight pink abercrombie and fitch t-shirt, her tight black and pink yoga-pants, classic half-length black leather jacket and her short brown leather ankle boots - Chloe looked out of place. Even from a distance Chloe knew that it was obvious that she didn't fit in Grant Cross was not the sort of place that she'd ever normally be caught dead. The sort of people she'd seen milling around - when there had been people - were simply not the type that Chloe Schmidt cared to be around. Now, she simply wanted to get the hell out of there... as the light was fading she only had one thought... Shit, where the hell are all the goddamn taxis? why are there no fucking buses even? she muttered, wanting to swear as she suddenly heard the van pulling up behind her... Shit... what now... The haughty young city girl mused as she turned briefly shot her gaze sideways to take in the surprisingly well-maintained gray van. It almost rolled alongside Chloe as she slowed her pace just a little a little and clutched her iPhone and her small pink purse both a little tighter, her hands stuffed firmly in the pockets of her nice and rather form-fitting black leather jacket. Erm... hi Chloe retorted to the shouted greeting, slowing her stride just a little, and casting her eye over the large black guy who was leaning out of the window, then towards the other two occupants of the big gray van... one of them - rather curiously - with a small video camera, and the other on the wheel. You know, no offense, but I'm pretty sure I know where I'm going! It's not far up here anyways... Chloe added. She hated herself for the thought, but she didn't really have too much time for all the black guys she had met they always had a little too much attitude, a chip on their shoulder, and some stupid opinion that the world owed them something. It certainly didn't help that her father had always had nothing but bad dealings with them and he'd shared his opinions on more than a few occasions... but the van kept rolling beside her, and finally Chloe was forced to turn and deal with it... Eugh... this is the last thing I need she figured, gritting her teeth and turning towards her new traveling companions. You know, I really do appreciate the concern, but I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna be around here any longer than I need to be! Juuuuust gonna find a taxi, a bus or a metro and get the hell outta here! Chloe intoned, finally taking her hands from her pockets and turning to look at the van as it rolled to a stop 5 yards in front of her, aligned with the curb, giving her a much better look at the occupants... All 3 of them were black, and they seemed to have the look of the confident, entitled, cocky, annoying athletes that Chloe had often bumped into back in college and even back then they had never impressed her all that much, even if one or two of her friends had joked that they might be her type but she just didn't know it. Chloe had never had the nerve or the honesty to admit that black guys just couldn't be her type, even in the most liberal company! She hated it, but she knew that deep down she didn't really agree with that sort of thing, but she certainly didn't consider herself racist... it was just, well, different. The metro is just up here! Chloe bluffed, figuring she could at least give an air of confidence, and send the guys on their way.