After over a century of living in an underground compound, structure and order are the only way for their community to survive. Everyone contributes. Everyone born grows up to take the place of someone else. Deviation from the status quo has proven...
The meeting continues at a swift pace, assigning everyone to groups and tasks. Everyone only has to wait for the signal to begin, then put their various parts into action. I can only hope that I figure out the system interruptions by then, or a lot of people will get caught long before anyone can escape.
Petra dismisses people in small groups, starting with those with living quarters furthest from the cave-in site. I wave at Jay as he leaves with one of the groups. Soon, it's only leadership and advisors left in the space.
"I hope you put all of your energy into this," Petra warns me loftily. "Everyone is counting on you."
I nod, too pissed off at her to speak. I still don't appreciate how she thrust me into the center of the rebellion. I'm angry I took the bait, too.
"Give the girl a break, Pet," Mabel says. "She's been through hell and held up strong. She'll get there." She gives me a reassuring squeeze. I've always liked Mabel.
"Alright, let's get going in twos and threes," Petra announces, ignoring her.
"We know the drill," Mabel says loudly. She joins Petra and they walk out of the cavern, bickering all the way.
At last, only West and I are left. I wish I could have gone with Mabel or Darla, but I think they're pushing us together, secretly hoping West and I will smooth out our differences. West included.
Well, too bad, I'm still not ready to make a decision. So our walk back through the tunnels is a quiet one, punctuated only by the sound of pebbles and shards of rock shifting under our feet. Surprisingly, West doesn't try to break the silence.
At first.
When we get to the little space where we first met, where we got to know each other, where we confessed our feelings, West reaches out to touch my arm. "Elia, could we stop here for a minute?" When he sees my hesitation, he adds, "it won't take too much time, I promise."
Hugging my torso, I tuck my flashlight under my arm so he can't see my face. Its light bounces off the wall of rock at an angle, casting eerie shadows. Wests sits and motions for me to join him on the blanket, but I remain standing. Sighing, he flips up the corner of the blanket and picks up the journal from underneath it. After he flips through it for a minute, he stands and walks over to me, holding out the journal to an open page. Our fingers brush as I accept it from him, leaving tingles behind. He rubs the back of his neck nervously.
I hold my light up to the page to get a better look. On it I see West's familiar scrawl, although it's not the list of names I saw earlier:
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I look up in confusion. West has...a diary? He grimly nods toward the book, urging me to keep reading. I'm all too ready to comply, to get this glimpse into the person before me.
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