The Breaking

Chapter 4: Pity

Alessi woke up first again, and it was just what she wanted. She had a few things to do without Team Invictus.

First, she had shed a total of twenty-three tears before sleeping the night before. Of course, she didn't let the others know about this. Her previous school experience had taught her weakness was never an option. But it disturbed Alessi how easy it was to cry now. She had already passed her record for the most tears, which was a mere 12. It was a record she took pride in. She couldn't cry; they needed her as the leader of the group.

As a leader, she decided that she needed to get rid of something that was in her way. She pulled out her beloved bronze hair accessory that had saved her from her old school days, and carefully put it next to her, wary of its sharpened tip. Gathering her jet black hair in a ponytail, she took the pocketknife she had in her supplies.

Pressing her knife against her hair, she sliced off half of its length, leaving her with neck-length hair. She let it loose again.

She looked at pale self in the mirror by the sink of the classroom. Good. She gave a blank face. This is what a real leader looks like.

Sticking her hair accessory back on, she stared into her own eyes in the mirror. No more tears. She reminded herself. Just keep it to yourself.

Alena came up behind her. She wiped a strand of hair away from her tan skin. "How are you holding up?"

"Fine." Alessi slammed her hand onto the desk and then turned to walk to the other side of the room.

Alena looked back at her and then turned to the mirror herself. She soon turned and went into the corner to write in her journal. She wrote so furiously she broke two pencils before she could get past the 4th sentence.

Kalera roused and sat up. Tears still remained in her sunken eyes and she quickly wiped them away before getting up and raiding the closet for supplies.

The next one to stir was Caroline. As soon as she awoke, she grabbed her sketchbook and quietly sat in a corner, drawing away.

Kalera looked at her for a second, about to ask what she was drawing, but didn't dare disturb her state of mind.

"What are you drawing, Caroline?" Alessi asked.

Caroline slowly looked up. Heavy bags hung under her eyes, partially hidden by her stained glasses. She didn't mention anything about how her hair looked strangely off and simply looked back down and silently sketched more. "A monster."

"Can I see?"

Caroline didn't respond, so Alessi came over herself.

It was a self portrait.

Alessi backed away and went to the computer, trying to get it to work. "Ugh, they must have turned off the electricity. That's why there's no light."

When no one responded, she cleared her throat, her voice cracking. "Let's just rest today, and in the afternoon we'll go out again for supplies. Does that sound good?"

Everyone nodded silently.

She swallowed and took out a horror book from the shelf, and began to read.

After finishing her drawing, Caroline went to the desk and continued to work on her crossbow. She inserted her "arrow" (The inkwell of the pen) and shot it through the shaft (The hollow plastic case of the pen). It flew through the air and struck the wall, sticking into it. Satisfied, she retrieved the "arrow" and began to make more.

Alessi, as always, was first to speak up. "Look guys, I know a lot has happened over the last few days, but that was just the beginning. We need to stop thinking about the past and put it behind us. It's not like we can revive loved ones from the dead. Just face the truth of their deaths, and focus more on surviving ourselves. That doesn't mean we don't look out for each other. We'll always have each other's backs no matter what."