project.utopia

Chapter 8 - The Journey Begins(The Inn)

"Everything in?" Ben asked Nera as she hauled the last bag of potatoes into the back of the hooded carriage.

"Yup, everything's in," Nera responded.

It was early the next morning and the sun hadn't even risen, when the whole of Ben's household, except for his grandmother, Jillian, got ready for a long journey ahead of them. That morning, once Ben had gotten ready, he asked if either Nera or Aditya wanted new clothes to change into. Aditya denied the offer, but Nera agreed and Ben handed her a pair of his old clothes(a faded green t-shirt and a pair of loose, brown cargo pants). Once everyone had gotten ready, including Lily, Ben's little sister, they all went outside. Nera helped Ben load the supplies and materials they needed as Aditya held Lily in his arms, letting her rest for a little while longer. Finally, once they were done, Ben and Nera went to sit at the front of the hooded carriage as Aditya went in the back part of the carriage with Lily still in his arms.

"You guys in?" Ben asked as he looked back at his little sister and Aditya.

"Yup, we're ready," Aditya answered, not looking at Ben, but rather trying to catch Nera's eye, hoping that she would acknowledge their conversation late last night. But, instead, she was staring at the road in front of them, as if she were hoping to get out of Wasa as quickly as possible.

Ben nodded and turned back around to face the road just like Nera was. He leaned close to Nera and whispered, "You ready?" A wide smile appeared on her face as he spoke to her and she nodded eagerly as he hit the reins of the horses, making them lunge forward in action.

And off they went, the four of them about to begin a long journey to Neskarta. At first, they were surrounded by the same, old city around them. But, soon enough, they made their way into the outskirts of Wasa, the rural part. There, they were surrounded by large pieces of land on which cows, and horses wandered freely and homes were separated by long, flat lands of hay or grass or crops, be it corn, or wheat. Every once in a while, they passed by fruit farms, where hundreds of thousands of people worked to pick strawberries, tomatoes, peaches, and so many other fruits. As they passed by these farms, they could smell wildflowers, honeysuckle and the fresh, fresh smell of beautiful, sweet, ripe fruits. Everytime they passed by these farms, Lily would crawl up front, sit in Ben's lap and, with her eyes glazed over in amazement, would stare at all the fruits they passed by. But, finally, they had passed by even the rural parts of Wasa and were miles and miles away from the city. Now, they were faced with the dark green emblem of the forest, which wasn't Lily's favourite, but it certainly was Nera's favourite. She watched and took in every sight she saw and every scent she smelt, be it the crispiness of the pine trees or the musty, rich smell of the decomposing leaves. And Ben watched as she did this, smiling to himself slightly.

From the back, hooded part of the carriage, Aditya watched the two of them, jealousy burning in his eyes as he noticed how Ben stared at Nera. His heart burned with anger as Nera turned back around, finally, done with staring at the forest, and began to initiate conversation with Benigno.

"So, Benigno's an interesting name, " Nera began to say. "What's it mean?"

"It means benign or kind I guess. My dad named me that," Ben responded as he smiled politely at Nera.

"Your dad, wow. You never talk about him. What's he like?" Nera asked as she inched closer to Ben.

"He-" Ben began to say, but then cleared his throat and continued, "He's dead. He passed away a couple days after Lily was born."

Nera widened her eyes in shock and whispered, quietly, "I am so sorry for asking that. I should have been more-"

"-No, it's okay. People always get so tense when I tell them that. That's why it's not a very good conversation starter," Ben responded, the slight smile still on his face.