Free Isobel and Emile by Alan Reed

does not know if there is anywhere to go.
    She wants there to be somewhere to go.
    She stands in front of the grocery store. She looks up and down the street. Both directions look the same in the dark. She walks down the street. It does not matter which way she goes. She does not know what the difference would be.
    She walks down the street. She looks for a place where the lights are still on. The street lights are on. The buildings she walks past do not have their lights on. They are dark. Her arms are wrapped around her body. She is cold.
    She walks from one street light to the next street light.
    There is a pub still open. It is on a street off the main street. Isobel sees the light coming from inside the pub. It is late. The pub will close soon. The people left in the pub are sitting in front of their drinks.
    They are drinking. They do not speak. They do not want to speak. They are drinking.
    Isobel walks down the street the pub is on. She stops in front of the pub. The lights inside are still on. She looks into the pub. She sees the people inside the pub. She sees them drinking.
    She stands in front of the pub. She does not go into the pub. She looks into the pub but she does not go into it.
    She wants to go into the pub.
    She has never been in a pub before. She does not know if she should.
    The people inside wrap their hands around their drinks. They lift their drinks to their mouths and then they put their drinks down. They do not let go of their drinks. They are hunched over and they keep their hands wrapped around their drinks. It is like they are afraid their drinks will be taken away from them.
    Some of them are smoking cigarettes. They hold their cigarettes in one hand and they hold their drinks in their other hand.
    They drink with one hand and they smoke with the other hand.
    They do not look at each other. They do not want to. They are drinking. Their eyes do not leave their drinks.
    Isobel stands outside the pub. She is under a street light. She looks into the pub. Someone gets up to leave. He goes towards the door and then he stands in the door. He looks at Isobel.
    He looks at her dress. It is not a warm dress. The front is cut low. He can see her breasts.
    The man standing in the doorway smiles. It is an ugly smile.
    Isobel looks at him. She does not smile. She crosses her arms in front of her. She scowls.
    The man shrugs his shoulders. He steadies himself in the doorway. He steadies himself and then he walks away from the bar.
    Isobel watches him walk away from the bar. He is wearing a shabby old jacket. There is a rip in one of the shoulders. There is stuffing coming out of it. His hands are in the pockets of his jacket. It is cold. He walks with his shoulders bent over.
    Isobel is not wearing a jacket. Her legs are bare. She does not go into the pub. She watches the man walk away from the pub.
    She watches until the man turns a corner.
    The pub is closing.
    The rest of the men are walking away from the pub. They are wearing jackets. Their jackets are also shabby and old. Their hands are stuffed into the pockets. It is cold. They walk with their shoulders bent over.
    They mutter to each other. Their voices are not loud enough to carry. They mutter and they walk from the light of one street light to the light of the next street light. Some of them do not mutter. They are alone. They walk from one street light to the next street light.
    Isobel is still standing outside the pub. They walk past her. They look at her when they walk past her. They look at her for too long. They do not smile. They are going to their homes. They are going to go to sleep.
    They have to get up in the morning. They need to go to sleep.
    Isobel watches the owner of the pub come to the door. She watches him lock it. She watches him move around inside the pub. He is cleaning up. When he is done he turns out the lights.
    Isobel walks away from the pub.
    She walks slowly. She is not going anywhere. She does not have to walk quickly.
    She