I walk into the cafeteria and spot Beast and Shawn. I sit by them and Beast moves a bottle of water towards me. I nod silently and take it.
"Where've you been?" Shawn asks.
"Around," I reply.
"Trish visited us an hour ago wondering if you had stopped by our room," Beast said.
"What did you tell her?"
"That I had left you at your room last I saw you. I thought you were going to rest up?"
"There was a lot on my mind that kept that from happening," I say softly.
Trish sees me before I do. She sets her food down and sits beside me. I know she's still angry. I can feel it. I don't even know why. I mean I did walk out, but she was asking personal questions and she should has no right to expect an answer. Yet here we are, and she gets to be angry at me for some odd reason.
Beast picks up on the tension between us, but Shawn doesn't. He never does...
"Hey Zoe, are you gonna eat?" he asks.
"No, I'm not very hungry."
"Why not?"
When I don't answer Trish scoffs, "You just love leaving questions unanswered, don't you?"
I shake my head, "I'm not sure how to respond to that."
"You never know how," Trish mumbles.
"Why are you so angry at me?" I ask, knowing I should just leave it. I notice Beast's facial expression is giving the same advice.
"Why won't you tell me what happened?" She asks.
"Nothing happened."
"So the closet magically just body slammed itself?"
"You're fighting over a broken closet?" Shawn asks.
"No, idiot," Trish turns to him, "Zoe's hiding the fact that someone slammed her into her closet breaking it, and refuses to tell me who."
"Are you okay?" Beast asks me. His sudden concern makes me want to avoid his eye contact.
"Trish you shouldn't assume," I say.
"Well you won't tell me!" She shouts, "What happened then?"
"He didn't throw me," I mumble, "I threw him."
Trish and Beast's eyes bug out, "What?" They say in unison.
Shawn looks up, taking a moment to stop scarfing down his food to say, "She said she threw him."
"Who?" Trish asks.
"You guys won't even care," I say, but really I just don't want to tell them. I don't like the pressure. I hate attention, especially if it's a subject involving John.
"Of course we care," Trish says, "Who was it? How'd they get in there? Why?"
I sigh and look down.
"See why I'm mad?" Trish exclaims. She sits back in her chair, folding her arms.
"John, right?" Shawn says taking a sip of his soda.
I look at him, confused as to how he knew.
"Shawn?" Trish and Beast both look confused as well.
"What? She didn't want to say it," Shawn replies.
Beast looks at me, "Is he right? Did John show up?" I look down and he and Trish visibly seem unnerved.
"What did he do?" Trish asks.
"He didn't do anything," I say softly.
"Zoe," Beast says.
"What?" I look up, expecting to be angry with him for saying my name so condescendingly, but instead I end up frozen. I make eye contact for the longest time, drifting into his fascinating brown eyes. I don't know what to do. We lock eyes and whatever I felt seems suspended in the air, between us.
Finally I get up, breaking the contact Trish calls after me, but I cut her off, "Leave me alone."
"You can't say that to me!" She yells. I don't bother to answer. I just want to leave. I don't like this attention. It's unnecessary. "Zoe!" Trish shouts. She finally groans in irritation and I hear her pick up something.
Suddenly I'm turned around, catching a knife aimed at my eyes. I glance at Trish, her hands covering her mouth. I know she regrets it, I see it filling her eyes. The tables of kid around us are silent from witnessing the event in front of us.
"Zoe, I—"
"All those years, whatever John did to me...it never was a true threat to my life. But this," I hold up the knife. "Even he'd never do this." With that I drop the knife and walk away saying, "Unlike you."
I can't help but need to leave. Not just because of Trish, but the air in the cafeteria makes me feel like I'm suffocating. I walk out of the overcrowded loud room and into the quieter hallway.
I used to be a quiet girl, able to stand anything. No I would take anything. I couldn't stand up for myself. When I got here, I first met Trish. I originally wanted to befriend her, to be her vent. A good friend. What have I done now? I just caused more stress on her. I'm so stupid, she doesn't deserve me. She never has, and I will never be good enough for her.
I turn the corner and bump into someone, "Sorry," I mumble, and try to move away to get past the person.
When they move to purposely block me, I look up and chills shoot down my spine. It's the same chill I felt when I was watching the tournament matches with Phillip. I take a step back and the guy smiles, "Excuse me, Miss. I didn't see you there."
I nod and feel my nerves freezing up on me. Why do I recognize the guy? He isn't from the compound, but I've seen him before. His hair looks like salt and pepper, and is slicked back naturally. He's only got the beginning stages of wrinkles, and he still dresses like he's in his late twenties early thirties. In fact, his entire look defies the age his eyes tell me he is.
I walk past him and he stops me, "Is there any chance you can take me to this place's officer dorms? This compound is very confusing and I've seemed to have lost my way."
I'd really rather not, so I say, "I'm actually late for something, but if you go down that hallway, you'll run into the cafeteria and there you'll find lots of trainers to help you." He nods and smiles.
I start to walk away again and he calls, "I didn't ask for the cafeteria, Zoey."
I turn around, "Sorry, do I know you?"
"That's the question, isn't it?" He crosses his arms and smiles at me.
"Why are you here?" I ask, trying to back away slowly. "Who are you?"
"Well if you must know, I'm here to meet with Mr. X. He and I have been waiting for a time that involves both of us to...talk," he leans on the wall. "As for who I am, well, you don't really need to know that."
"If you need Mr. X, then you won't find him in the officer hallways. You'll find him in his office."
"How do you know?" Because when I first got here, I figured out that he spent most of his nights in there. The man sighs, "Well, for your information, he specifically told me not to meet him in the office."
"Really?"
"Yes, he told me not to even go near the office throughout my entire visit here."
Then how'd you get in? "Well, he's in the cafeteria right now—"
"Where are the officer rooms, Ram." His smile fades.
"Excuse me, do you need help with something?" I hear someone's voice come from behind the man. For a second relief floods me, but it dries up once I see who it is. Jack smiles politely, "I'd be happy to direct you to wherever you need to go."
The man, seeing that his time with me is up, turns to Jack and says, "I think I know where I am now, thanks to this wonderful child in front of us. Thank you for the offer though. I'll be on my way now," he bows his head to Jack a little and walks away.
Jack looks at me and for a second I feel my nerves rising even more than what the guy had brought. Jack walks towards me and without a falter in his step, he grabs my arm and pulls me down the hallway to my left.
"Hey!" I shout, but he covers my mouth quickly and pins me on the wall. I start to squirm but he shushes me.
"Can you be quiet for a second?" I squirm a bit more but finally nod. He takes his hand off my mouth and whispers, "Who was that?"
I step away a bit while saying, "I don't know."
He stops me and says, "He seemed to recognize you."
"He may look a little familiar," I say trailing off when Jack gives me a concerned look. "What's wrong?"
"I don't know. Something about this compound has changed, and I don't like it," he shakes his head and looks down the hallway the guy disappeared in. "Keep an eye out Zoe, you'll see what I mean."
"I already do," I mumble.
"What have you seen?"
"Just minor things, but they still seem unsettling."
"Like Mole suddenly arriving when he did."
"And the ambush that his team were caught in," I continue.
"Not to mention he was barely even hurt."
"While others died."
Jack sighs and moves to lean on the wall, "What happened to this compound? I used to like it. I mean, did I just get old enough to realize that things aren't as they seem? Was my whole childhood a lie here?"
"This place used to be good," I say to him. "When my mom worked here she loved it, and she wasn't the kind that would be fooled."
I glance over at Jack, and he seems ready to say something, but then footsteps catch our attention. "Shhh, someone's coming."
We wait for the footsteps to fade, but they only get closer. We both back away from the corner and I jump when Beast turns the corner quickly. "Zoe?" I sigh, happy it wasn't the guy. Beast looks at Jack and at me, "Everything okay here?"
"Why don't you mind your own business, fleabag," Jack insults.
"Zoe," Beast motions for me to come to him and I do. "You alright? You're hands are shaking," he says gently letting his own hands skim mine. He glares at Jack, "Why do you always have to pick on her?"
"For your information I was actually just talking with her this time," Jack explains, sounding insulted that Beast would dare say that.
"Zoe?"
"He actually was. There was this weird guy I ran into in the hallway and he wouldn't stop questioning me until Jack showed, then he backed off. I'm fine, don't worry."
Beast glances at Jack and Jack rolls his eyes, "Whatever, see ya."
"Come on," Beast says, but I stand still.
"Hey Jack," he pauses and looks back at me, "Thanks for the help."
He nods casually and walks off.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Beast asks.
"I'm supposed to be mad at you," I say walking in front of him.
"Does that mean you aren't?" Beast's asks, following me.
"It means I should be, therefore I am."
"Why?"
"Why?" I turn to look at him, "Because I don't get why you and Trish always push me. Enough, okay! I'm tired of the constant pressure you guys put on me to speak."
"We don't mean to make you angry," Beast responds, "We're just trying to help."
"That's the thing," I sigh, "I've gotten through my life without any help from family or friends, and that's how I'm expected to deal. I don't know how to comprehend something when I have people invading my space and asking about it."
"I'm sorry."
"Stop," I say, "I told you not to say sorry to me. Remember that?"
"Then tell me what to say," Beast replies.
"Nothing! Don't mention it."
"We don't know how to do that!" Beast says, "You say you weren't raised for that kind of interaction? Well neither were we. Trish kinda of had her mother. And me? Well you know how that went," he runs his hand over his hair, "My point is that we learned how to trust each other, and that's why we can open up. That's why we want you to. We know how strength grows through bonding."
I stay silent for awhile before replying, "I never looked at it that way." I lean on the wall again, sliding down so my knees are tucked in the tightest they can be in my chest.
"You may have the ability of sight," Beast sits beside me, "But that doesn't mean you can see everything."
I smile and look at Beast. He smiles back and I lean my head on his shoulder. "You're a good friend, you know that?" For a second I think I feel a little tinge of pain, but Beast lets go of it. I ignore it and end up falling asleep on his shoulder.