I couldn't sleep. No matter how hard I tried, I just had too much energy built up inside of me. I slipped out of bed and threw on the cream oversize sweater I had found in the dresser. I put on my ragged old pair of skinny jeans and with that slipped on my shoes and closed the door of the room behind me. Avery was sleeping on the couch in the main room and I quietly snuck past her so I wouldn't wake her. The boys were in the room over. Finally I made it outside and closed the door gently with a creak. Stepping onto the deck, I breathed in the cool night air and closed my eyes, relishing the feeling of the gentle breeze on my face. For the first time that night I felt completely at ease, and my tense muscles finally relaxed. I looked out at the vast number of trees outlooking the small cabin and breathed in more deep lungfuls of the crisp mountain air, allowing my mind to become completely calm. Suddenly, a voice interrupted my thoughts. "Couldn't sleep either, could you?" I whipped around, startled and off-guard. Carter was sitting in a porch chair gently moving it back and forth with his feet on the deck. I was glad it was dark because my face immediately flushed, my heart pounding loudly in my chest. I can't believe I walked out here and didn't even know he was there! After I caught my breath, I stared at him accusingly and said,"You scared me!" My voice came out a bit shaky and I hoped he thought it was was from me being almost scared to death. That was partly it, but mostly it was his presence. He smiled that cute little lopsided grin he did when he was in a joking mood, and motioned for me to come sit next to him. "I knew I was intimidating, but I didn't know I was that scary." "Ha-ha" I said sarcastically and walked over to sit next to him. He laughed and moved over a bit so I could sit down. We sat in comfortable silence just listening to our breathing. "What are you thinking about?" He asked me. "Mmmhm..." I turned to him, mockingly posing as The Thinker. He laughed and said, "Ok, the suspense is killing me, I just have to know what's going through your head now." I smirked at him and replied, "Well if you have to know... I was thinking about the stars." He looked up at the glimmering sky, obviously surprised at my answer, and the sudden change in the mood from sarcasm to genuinity. I continued, completely letting my guard down and getting carried away with my thoughts. "They are millions of miles away from us, yet somehow, the light still manages to reach our eyes." He smiled and murmured, "I guess I have never appreciated them like that before." We were again silent, just staring up into the heavens. We stayed that way for what seemed like hours, until I started to feel my eyelids droop. Suddenly I found my head on his shoulder. He stiffened for a moment, then relaxed his muscles to fit my head into his shoulder. In the midst of my drowsiness I thought I heard him chuckle, and felt his lips press against my hair. He gently ran his hand over my messy hair and I smiled as my thoughts became jumbled. Even if this was a dream, I never wanted it to end.
My eyes squeezed shut, trying to block out the blinding rays of sun filtering in through the cabin window. Wait, the window? Suddenly I remembered last night and jolted my eyes open, sitting up hurriedly. I was back in the room I had been in. Carter must have carried me back here after I fell asleep on his shoulder. Oh my goodness! I fell asleep on him! My face immediately grew hot and I pressed my hands against my cheeks, blowing the air out slowly. Did that actually happen? Or did I just let my crazy fantasies get the best of me? Maybe it was my extreme sleep deprivation from the past week combined with my inept ability to dream things up. I sighed, and ran my fingers through my knotted hair. Whatever it was, I couldn't let that fog my brain up further. Jumping out of bed, I padded out into the living room. Avery was already up, and cooking something that smelled delicious in the kitchen. Seriously, that girl was a miracle worker. She could make anything taste good. I followed the smell and found the kitchen. "Good morning sleeping beauty"! She exclaimed, hearing my bare feet against the hardwood floor. "Hey Ave." I said, trying to wake up my brain. She turned and saw the dark circles under my eyes. "Are you still having trouble sleeping?" She asked, taking in my current state of ruffled clothes and matted hair. "I slept a little better last night, mostly because I kind of accidentally fell asleep on Carter" I said sheepishly. She smiled knowingly and laughed. "When are you going to admit that you are completely falling for him?" I blushed again, embarrassed."Shhh what if he's awake!" Laughing again she shrugged and continued making breakfast. "Wow that smells amazing Avery! What is it?" I asked, trying to change the subject. "I found a pan in the old cupboard over there and just had to go rinse it out at the creek. I can't believe that their was still gas in this old stovetop! These are just some mushrooms I picked up on the way from the creek and some of the dried meat we have left over. I even managed to find some spices in the cabinet." She sounded very proud of this concoction, and for good reason. We were running short on food supply and it was hard to get a good meal. "You're the best" I replied appreciatively. I was a little afraid of the mushrooms, but I just had to trust that Avery knew what she was doing and I wouldn't fall down dead from mushroom poisoning. That would be a stupid way to die. I heard voices down the hall, it was Henry and Carter smelling out the food source. "Morning you two!" Avery exclaimed with a smile. Immediately Carter looked my way and I was suddenly very conscious of my appearance, I sort of looked like a hobo right now with my teared jeans, tangled hair, and dirty face. I had to stifle a laugh as I realized that we actually were hobos, a lonely group of nomads searching for places to stay where we could be safe for a time. We could only stay at this little cabin for a while, because the longer we stayed in one place, the more likely we would be found or tracked down. Reading my thoughts, Henry started to debate how long we should stay here. "We can probably stay for a few more days, but government surveillance aircraft are coming closer to the area and searches are becoming more and more frequent. We will have to keep moving soon." We agreed, and decided that we could stay for four more days. Then we would head southward where the surveillance planes had already searched. Suddenly, as if the conversation had jinxed us, the sound of a plane roared overhead. They had found us.
Dread filled my entire being as Carter started to yell for us to get under the table.
The whole building shook as I dove head-first for the table. Carter was already on the ground and grabbed my waist, rolling me under him to guard me from the blast. I heard Avery and Henry shouting for us to move, but everything sounded slow and far-away. The last thing I remember sensing is the beating of our hearts thumping rapidly together as our bodies clung to each other, and the white-hot heat wave exploding feet from our trembling mass.
