Coup D'état *Discontinued

Day Ten

                There was a reason.

                Closing my eyes, I tried to focus on sleep, but naggings thoughts of tonight’s adventure continued to hound my mind.

                ~*~

                The morning passed suspiciously normal. There was a thick tension in the air as we gathered for breakfast in the surprisingly clean mess hall. The food served consisted of the same as yesterday, and the silverware lacked any damage. Chatter consisted largely of any who hadn’t been in the raids the previous evening.

                Those that had sat in silence and fear.

                How had they managed to transform the cafeteria from the wreck it had been into the perfectly normal building once more? I hadn’t seen the total damage done to it, but Nat had informed me last night that it had been one of the hardest buildings hit. Many had abandoned their designated location for the mess hall.

                I wasn’t sure how to feel about this.

                As I collected my tray of barely edible food, Nat led the way back to the table that we had sat with earlier. Neither of us spoke, the atmosphere enough to convey our emotions.

                The table seemed less crowded today. Nat took up his normal seat while I squished in between an unfamiliar man and my roommate. The men around began to eat immediately. As I slowly downed the food, I came to realize how accustomed I had become to the vile leftovers that were fed to us.

                A few more people joined the group before anyone made a noise.

                “This is just strange.” I recognized the voice to belong to a Hispanic man that spoke often. I felt embarrassed that he was speaking English for my sake.

                The surrounding members nodded their head in agreement.

                “Have you guys seen any of the other buildings today?” the same man asked.

                “We just woke up, José.” Nat snapped, “Do you really think we’ve gotten the chance to see any others?”

                He sent Nat a dirty look, “How am I supposed to know unless I ask? Just because your little girlfriend’s here doesn’t mean you get to keep that dick shoved up your ass.”

                My face lit up at his comment, but Nat brushed it over completely.

                “Don’t waste our time with stupid questions. Think before you speak next time.  ¿Comprende?” He hissed.

                José slammed his fists on the table, standing up angrily, “Listen, muchacho, I could kick your little culo blanco any day. You mock me with my own language one more time and I’ll rip your puta madre conjones off!”

                Despite not understanding a third of his sentence, even I sat back in fear at the angry Hispanic towering over the table.

                I glanced worriedly to my side to where Nat sat, impassive to the threat.

                “Sit down, José.” Nat said, sounding irritated but otherwise unaffected by his words, “You’re making a scene.”

                The Hispanic glowered for a moment longer before collapsing into his seat. He crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at Nat.