(6)
"Mazy. Mazy, come on we are leaving." I slowly open my eyes to see my mother standing above me. "Make sure you have everything you need and meet us downstairs," she says and leaves my room. I sit up and look around my room, I hate that I must leave this all behind. I slide on my jeans and a t-shirt then my sweatshirt and leather jacket. I grab my bag and throw a couple last minute things in before walking out. When I reach the kitchen, I notice a can of pears sitting on the counter with a fork in it. Next to it is a beanie and a pair of gloves.
"Eat up quick, we need to get a move on. Your mother left those for you, it snowed last night." my father says as everyone finishes checking their bags and gets ready to leave. I finish off my pears just as Enzo makes his way down the stairs. I just leave the can on the counter, grab the beanie and gloves, then join the rest of them in the doorway.
"Now that everyone is here, let's go over the plan. We have seven days till the Republic soldiers reach Hibbing. It'll take us three and a half days to reach it, meaning we will only have three and a half days to convince them to trust us, pack their things, and get a head start on the Republic soldiers," he pauses, glancing around to be sure everyone gets it so far. "Today we must make it to Cass Lake, tomorrow Deer River, the next day Nashwauk, and on the fourth day into Hibbing. Enzo says the refugee camp is just outside the city limits."
"Something that should be brought to your attention, these people are very protective. I doubt they will just let you walk in and talk to their leader." Enzo says from behind me, my father nods and sighs.
"I was afraid of that, but we will cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, let's just get a move on. Nolan and James are both armed, they will be in the back. Dirk and I are armed as well and will be in the front. Try to stay next to someone, don't want anyone getting left behind or lost."
We all pile outside and one by one people start pairing up. My father and Dirk in the front, followed by my mother and Jenna, then Griffin and Carla, and Franklin and Bree. Alec picks up Maya and turns to me as I put the beanie on, followed by the gloves.
"I guess we are walking buddies," he says with a small smirk.
Before I can reply Enzo falls into step on the other side of me. "It seems to me like you have your walking buddy right there," he says and motions to Maya who has already fallen asleep in his arms. "But I don't have one and Mazlynn, I believe you're the only one who wouldn't mind walking aside me," he flashes me a small smile before looking back at Alec.
I hear Nolan and James snickering from behind us, "It's kind of like watching two toddlers fight over a shiny new toy." James says, causing Nolan to chuckle. Alec rolls his eyes then adjusts his hold on Maya, mumbling something to himself. "Aw I think we hurt his feelings," James adds, chuckling.
"You guys are assholes." I say shaking my head and adjusting my bag on my shoulders after zipping my jacket up. For the most part our walk is silent, only the crunch of snow below our feet can be heard. The parents talk amongst themselves, but we've fallen a little behind, so nothing is audible.
"Do you think Sam is okay?" I ask to no one in particular.
"She's tough Mazy. Sam will be fine." Alec says looking ahead. His brows furrow slightly like he's trying to convince himself of it as well. "You remember her grad party?" He asks looking at me with a smile. I shake my head and chuckle. "You thought the mimosas were just orange juice and downed like 3 cups," he chuckles, "you got on the table and started dancing to 'Apple Bottoms' and spilled your mimosa on Sam's grandma." he says, grinning ear to ear as his laughter grows louder. I hear Enzo and my brothers start to crack up as well.
"It was an honest mistake! They put it back in the orange juice bottle! Stop laughing you assholes." I say and shove Alec a little walking ahead of them. I can't help but smile as I recall the day. I hear Alec continue to tell stories about me as I walk ahead of them. I rolls my eyes as I feel a small hand slide into mine. I look down and see Maya smiling up at me.
"Alec's being too loud, I can't sleep." She says, swinging our hands. "How much longer are we going to be walking?" She starts to skip causing me to pick up my pace to keep up with her.
"Awhile sweetie, we have to get to the lake by tonight."
"Well why don't we drive? Then I can sleep in the car." She giggles and starts jumping, trying to hang from my arm.
"Hey Maya, do you want to go back to sleep?" Alec asks, catching up to us. Thankfully stopping her from trying to rip my arm from its socket.
She nods and jumps into his arms, "but no more yelling mister!" She says laying her head on his shoulder. I smile at them before looking ahead again. James and Nolan start to talk about different TV shows they use to watch. I listen to their debate as we walk, chuckling every time one of them gets frustrated and tells the other that they are "just plain wrong."
As it starts to get dark, my dad calls back that we are almost there and that we should get closer together, so we don't lose sight of one another. Every part of me aches as we finally reach the cabin my family use to go to every winter to go ice fishing. We stop at the office to get the keys to the cabin only to find the door locked. Nolan tries to break it down, but the door doesn't budge.
"Just break the window, I'll give you a boost in." James says, rubbing his tired eyes. Nolan nods and picks up a large rock before throwing it through the window. James and my father push him through the window and with a loud crash he is in. He comes around to the door and unlocks it for us. On the wall is a map of the entire campground.
"There," my father says pointing to the closest cabins. The symbols on the board express that one of the cabins has three beds instead of just two. "Grab the keys for one through four Nolan." My father instructs as we all make our way out of the office and toward the cabins.
My dad stops in the middle of the four cabins. Each pair of cabins is separated by a door. They each have a kitchen, a lounge area with a couch, a bathroom, and two bedrooms. Some pairs have one room with two twin beds and a king-sized bed, but most have king beds in each room.
"Alright, those over there should have one cabin with two king sized beds and one with a king-sized bed and one with two twins. Dirk and Jenna, why don't you, Franklin and Bree share the cabin with the two kings. Griffin and Carla, why don't you take the other, that way Maya and Alec can each have their own bed." My father suggests pointing to the cabins to our left. They all nod in agreement and make their way to the cabins.
My family and Enzo make our way to the other cabins. "So, it seems to me that Mazy and Enzo are the two who won't be sharing a bed." My mother points out as we unlock the first cabin. My father hands me the other cabins keys and instructs me to open the door on the other side. I enter the cabin and I'm greeted with a surprising warmth. I open the shared door and join the others in the first cabin.
"I'll take the couch," James offers, dropping his bag and falling onto the couch, "goodnight." My mother chuckles softly before pulling a blanket from the closet and laying it on top of him.
"Well that works." Nolan says walking into a bedroom and shutting the door. My parents kiss my head and instruct me to leave the adjoining door open before heading to bed as well. Enzo and I walk back into the other cabin after I turn the light off for James.
"Which room do you want?" I ask as we stand between the two doors.
"It doesn't matter to me," he says. I'm about to protest but he speaks up, "I'll take this one." He says and points the one closest to the outside. "Goodnight Miss Mazlynn."
"Goodnight," I say, as we walk into our respective rooms. I take off my skinny jeans, jacket, and hoodie and slide between the covers. It feels as though as soon as my head hits the pillow I drift off.
YOU ARE READING
End of Days
Teen Fiction"Trust you? Are you kidding? I think it should be pretty evident to you that we don't trust you." "Henry, I would like to speak to you alone." Cyrus says, now ignoring Nolan. My father shakes his head slowly, "if you want to talk say it here. I'm n...
