DON'T LET ME GO ► BELLAMY BLAKE

05

Loxy gently placed a hand on the shoulder of Clarke, one of her only best friends. The blonde-headed girl as she placed two fingers on Jasper's neck. "His pulse is three eighty," she stressed, running a few fingers through her hair.

Jasper began to let out loud moans of pain, squirming where he lay. Loxy felt a pang of empathy for him, knowing how much pain he was in.

"Go back to sleep!" A tired delinquent screamed, while another yelled at him to be quiet.

Listening to their complaints, she bent down and began running her hand through his hair, which was drenched in sweat. "Don't listen to them. You're gonna make it through this, okay? I promise." She whispered to him.

"Why don't you get some rest, Loxy?" Clarke said, giving her a warm smile.

"Yeah, okay. But you should get some too." She replied and climbed down the ladder, giving Monty a quick nod before leaving the drop ship. The night air was crisp but warm, inviting her closer to the woods.

"No! No! No!" A girl screamed, breaking into the silence of the night.

Loxy quickly walked over to her, finding a young girl sprawled out asleep against a tree trunk. Before she could yell out anymore, she gently shook the young girl awake. She recognized her somehow. "Hey, it's okay. It's okay. It was just a dream. You're Charlotte right?"

The girl gave a timid nod, pushing herself up to a sitting position with her elbows.

"I'm Loxy. Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, sitting down next to her whilst giving her reassuring looks. When she didn't respond, she took Charlotte's hand in hers. The child looked up, her brown eyes sparkling under the starlight.

"It's okay to be afraid sometimes, Charlotte. Fear is what makes you grow stronger. The more you overcome it, the harder it will be to knock you down." Loxy whispered, leaning back against the tree trunk.

"It's...my parents." Her voice faltered slightly, causing Loxy to naturally wrap an arm around her. "They were floated and...I see it and my dreams and I..."

"I understand," Loxy murmured, looking into Charlotte's sad eyes. "My parents were both floated when I was born."

Her head slowly rose to meet Loxy's warm and welcoming gaze.

"So how'd you end up here?" She questioned, changing the subject.

Charlotte inhaled and exhaled slowly before speaking. "We were taking my parents' things. And I kinda lost it. They said I assaulted a guard."

Loxy squeezed her fingers around the girl's arm. "I can't blame you. For as long as I've been confined I've learned that those guys are complete jerks."

After a peaceful moment of silence, she lifted her head up and pointed at the sky. "See that bright star up there. That's the Ark, orbiting above us." Loxy turned around to face the child.

"Listen to me, Charlotte. Whatever happened up there, the pain, the loneliness, it's over. Anything that happened on the Ark, it stays on the Ark. Being on Earth, it's like we've been given a second chance."

Charlotte wiped her nose before looking back up to the Ark. "Do you really believe that?" Her voice was so innocent, and full of youth. It broke Loxy's heart having to answer that question.

"I'm trying to."

~

Loxy woke up the next morning, Charlotte still bundled under her arms. Without disturbing her, she got to her feet and began heading to the drop ship. As soon as she got there she was greeted by Wells, who looked as though he didn't get much sleep.