Hello there, sorry to repeat this chapter and load a new mass of confused readers, but I've come up with a plot, no longer doing this chapter by chapter!
I hope this leaves you excited for the upcoming events :)
There are a few changes made to this chapter for you to be aware of- I may or may not have added a bit of romance for the two love-birds ;) sorry William & Eden fans XD
Enjoy~~
I decided to walk in the gardens later afterwards. The air was thick with tranquillity that was so rare to me. I hadn't been in a state of peacefulness as this for a long time before today. I looked around the coiled bushes holding desperately onto the flowers, peeking out from the sharp thick stacks. It seemed odd, out of place from all the feculent, brash grounds that appeared rebelliously uneven with one another.
Back at the school, everything was lurid- too bright and controlling to bear. The girls and the toddlers I became attached to and built joyful relationships. I had to admit, the school was not too bad. It managed to take care of us, our health, encourage the polite behaviour. Just as the world should be, so why wasn't I keen on it?
The trees, without leaves to hold it's hope onto, had perished in the skylight. It was rooted to the dirt, caged to the hard, tarnished ground.
I have no regrets and I am more than pleased to have reached this far. I'm doing this for the girls, setting them free and living a life of their own is my one and only goal. Leaving William, the first man whose caught my attention and why I had left him- it was all for the girls. I would have took him with us. Oh, that would have been wonderful.
But life isn't that just- it's a cruel place where emotions and strength are tested day in and day out. There's no running from it or you'd be foolishly running around in circles. You need to march to its core and fight it. Putting an end to all the negative aspects and finally throwing away the pressure it had sprawled on your shoulders. I would know, I learnt it the hard way after my three rounds.
Suddenly, I wasn't in such a good mood anymore. As life played its role, I walked to the bench, surprised finding it unsullied and sat, making sure my gown doesn't hit the dirty ground as I exhaled into the air.
I looked to my left where a glimpse of the market was in view, half of it was blocked by the main building, capturing the rest of the scenery. And from the small view, I could make out the rush of footsteps, that splattered in the small puddles on the muddy path. But that hadn't drawn people's attention; they were busy with the grocery to feed their children who were possibly used to salvation.
A problem on top of another was about to rise. I wasn't going to allow that. I sensed a shift of fragment brush past me and was immediately aware someone has made their presence clear. My theory proved correct when I turned to find Ethan- with a shear of weapons consisted of all types of knives all shapes and sizes- coming to my direction.
"Hey," Ethan sat beside me, the rattling of his sheath was heard. "Are you okay?"
I looked towards him and drew a small smile, my shoulders were tense from what happened beforehand. I saw that he was wearing dark, solid, sleeveless clothing, drawing out his muscular chest that would have made Delia weak at the knees. His hair was messy; We were taught that being untidy will not gain us any desire and thus having a hygiene, tidy and immaculate habit is a must. But Ethan was the living evidence that seemed to throw that theory out the window. His broad shoulders and sharp jawline seemed to draw my attention- but not the heart.
"I'm fine." I locked my gaze into his deep ones. "What's gotten you out here?"
Ethan managed a laugh, surpassing the tension between us. "You truly are a strange woman."
"No, just fabulous, really."
This seemed to make him laugh more, his white teeth showing against his almost tan skin tone.
"Where are you from?" I asked, curious.
He knit his thick brows together as he looked at me profoundly, until his face lit with realisation, and I have to say, it was adorable. "Me, Michael and Ferlando are all from the Safe House."
I nodded, breathing into the cold, icy air. "How is it? The Safe House, what's it like?"
"For a young lady, you ask a tonne of questions." He narrowed his eyes playfully.
I shrugged "Anything to survive."
Ethan shook his head in disbelief as he let out a low, seducing chuckle. "It's pretty much bottled up, icy, yet warm from the inside. Posh is the best description for it." He paused before he spoke. "Although my high rank is held within the Safe House, I do enjoy stopping by here time to time again. As you can see, it's affected me idiomatically!"
He exclaimed and I laughed truly with him.
The day went by too fast as by the time we had nothing left to say, the sky had brushed a pint of pink, as the painted colours hovered high above us and drifted by. We watched in silence as the sun set, facing us from the opening gates, not fully in view. The markets were now almost closed and I had only realised that there were no other people out but us.
The realisation suddenly came to me and I rummaged through my thigh knot beneath my gown, it always worked up to its worth. Ethan's attention still remained on the east side where the sun hid behind the gate. I smiled as I predicted his surprised reaction when he sees what he'll have in store.
"Ethan, I found this back in the duke's residence." I started, holding out the key in both my palms towards Ethan.
His head snapped my way and looked down at the key I had snatched from William's office. He looked up at me, eyes full of shock and surprise. He mumbled something under his breath after a while.
"What?"
"This is it," He said, louder this time. "Eden, this is the key!" He said brightly as he lifted me up and twirled me around all over the place, eyes sparkling as he laughed.
The joyous moment was over before it begun, as the world around us stopped spinning and our eyes locked, vast onto each other. His hair was pure raven as the strands of hair shone from the sunlight behind him, illuminating his figure.
Ethan cleared his throat before placing me back onto the ground gently, I felt a pang of pain in my chest with the thought of him leaving. "Come, you haven't been given a tour." He looked away from the beautiful scenery and set his intriguing eyes on me instead. "I want to show you." He drew a massive smile on his lips before he led the way beside me.
As we walked out the tiny gap between the border tattered wires and the Main Building, Ethan took a glimpse at me with my now tattered gown where the ends had been ripped to shreds by the notched wires.
"Here, hold on." Ethan reached out his hand to me and helped me through the torture in the cramped space and as he pulled me to him, our body collided.
My break sucked in and held it as that as my eyes went vastly at our new position. Ethan's eyes widened as the tip of his ears turned a hot shade of red. He released his supporting hand from my back and retreated from me, clearing his throat awkwardly.
"Damn, Janet is going to kill me when she sees me like this," I grumble, easing or way out the uncomfortable silence.
"Come, what I want to show you will take time. Let's make the most of it." He smiled his dazzling smile.
Although we tried to avoid the muddy pitches, there wasn't much use. My gown was already worth the all the garbage there was. In a situation like this, a scene had suddenly rummaged through the other memories in the school and brought back to me at full speed.
The ground was thick with gooey patches of mud where the animals used to roll around on, the sky almost matched its reflection where the clouds began changed from white to dark orange where the sun had laid and the full breeze of the wind drove me to the other direction.
It was fun.
The ends of my knee-length dirty pink plotted skirt had flowed with the wind as I ran with a huge smile plastered on my face, tenderly looking at the creature that lay in front of me. 'Are you dead?' My voice was soft and smooth, marking my young innocent age. I bent over and pat its hairy head. 'You are okay now,' I observed its body, no wound marks visible. A smile emerged once again as it looked me into the eyes. 'Mummy said that a kiss is needed for your hurt to go away.'
It remained its ravenous, predatory eyes on me as I kissed it away.
I looked up to find Ethan ahead, looking to one direction. A hard gaze settled his expression as if he wasn't the one I had been talking to a moment ago. It drove me curious about what exactly he wanted to show, seeing as it alters his gaze.
He led me through the markets that had been scattered around the area, all holding onto some coloured tents above their caps. The products being sold were not locked away nor removed, it was merely covered by a cloth as if the wind would snatch it from their possession any minute.
The more we went ahead, the more I was dying to know what it was he was leading me to. The muddy pitches got worse and worse as we walked ahead. It was uneven and soft and mushy. Coiling my heel onto its spongy flab, I became restless.
"Where are you taking me?" I questioned as he didn't look back.
"We need to be quiet here, Eden. This is a sacred place to The Camp," he said. "You wouldn't want to find yourself in the Slammer."
My face scrunched up in confusion. "The Slammer?"
"Hmm, hoisting people with bolshie attitudes into an underground cubicle."
My heart hammered, it wasn't for me. It was for the similarity of Schools that The Camp had both consisted of. I didn't like this one bit; it was strangely off-putting.
"And has anyone been captured yet?"
There was a pause before Ethan answered. "Yes," His fists scrunched up. "Two prisoners actually, but we don't need to worry about them just yet. We're here."
I set my eyes away from his and forward onto an amazing architectural masterpiece a few metres from me.
It was not as almost compared to the others in The Camp, there was a wooden carved door where it wasn't like in the main building. Instead, it held an antique design where the corners were bent outwards delicately and held a darker touch of mahogany marking its importance. it was completely leading underground the dirt where the sides of the building were covered by the patchwork of soil yet delivering great importance somehow.
Ethan looked back and smirked his glorious smirk, turning back round to turn the knob with a creak. It revealed a dark setting where tunnels had led further down the ground and leaving behind a mystery.
"Where does it lead to?"
Ethan responded by grabbing hold of a torch which had already held its flames. "Let's see, shall we?" He walked over the end of the room, just standing behind the stairs, and looked back. "Are you coming?"
I quickly walked up to him as he descended the stairs. I was glad for the torch, or it would have been completely dark as we cascaded the ground made stairs further down without holding onto any stair handles that would have adjusted our balance on the uneven steps.
Once we had reached the bottom, Ethan fiddled around the wall to find that he placed the torch onto one empty hanger. I looked around the room as the flame stood tall beside the marked wall.I walked to it and observed its explicit writings. Names were carved onto the wall thickly and roughly. With the warm light heat and the welcoming bringing of names in the wall gave a wonderful implication overall.
Mark. Venus. Andria. Yolanda.
There were names of all alphabets and meanings. I moved along the wall with my hand feeling the curves along the way. I stopped after a moment where the light had dimmed on the area but I felt a large carved name in the middle of the wall.
Suddenly flames of all directions came to life, igniting the oxygen around. I looked at Ethan who carried a lighter and placed his mischievous eyes on mine placing his finger on his lips indicating me to hush. "Don't tell anyone."
I turned back to the name.
Ambrosia.
"Ambrosia," I said, bringing the word to listening ears.
I felt Ethan close the distance as he now stood beside me and gazed the names on the wall. "This is a very special and sacred place for them, it's a place of tribute to welcome new members to the group and treat them as their own," He explained.
I thought about it for a moment before turning back to it. "Where is your name?"
He chuckled and came to stand beside me, holding the torch high in his hand. "I'm not part of this troupe. Some of us are just allies who aren't too keen on each other but need to make the most of it and end the legislation."
"I see." I nodded in understanding.
In the shimmer of the torchlight, as if it were a mass of mystical, gentle fireflies, surrounding us, locking us away in a world of our own, separate from the destruction and death and the unjust world.
He bent down, placing the torch on the ground, his piercing, forest green eyes still attached to mine like a magnet. The lights dimmed at our eye level, as he moved closer. The beat of my heart was so loud, I feared he'd be able to hear it, popping out of my chest as my breathing hinged once I could feel his breath by my neck.
"I want to tell you something," he said, inching back to control himself. "You have me wrapped around your fingers, Eden."
A smile formed on my lips, as he said my name.
"From the first day I met you, weeping on the pavement I couldn't take my eyes off of you," He announced boldly, leaving me flushed. "After our last session together at the auction, where you proved yourself strong, I couldn't stop thinking about you, I did whatever I could to get you out of that bastard's arm-length. I'm sorry I came too late."
My smile tampered due to his declaration of William. I wanted to ask why he behaved so oddly at the time, why he seemed to as if know William's existence where not even the city people know if it yet. But I remained quiet for the time being, I decided to keep it noted to ask him later.
"You came," I responded, smiling a sad smile at his guilt-ridden expression. "That's what counts the most. And I don't know how to thank you enough for that."
He chuckled, he was so close I could feel the gentle rumble of his chest, leaving a fuzzy feeling. "Oh, I'm sure there's something." He played. Then he leant closer, and closer. Until I could almost feel the touch of his soft lips against mine.
'Hey, who's down there.' A voice suddenly erupted through the ancient building.
Ethan clutched back onto the torchlight, blowing the light away. He then grabbed hold of my wrist and half-dragged me to the corner of the room, where we were consumed in the darkness. The sound of footsteps brought themselves to my ears, now descending the stairs. A head popped out from the end of the staircase but didn't move much more than that, as if he wasn't allowed access himself.
I felt Ethan press closer to the wall beside me and we were both smiling foolishly together at the situation we brought upon us.
'This is your fault.' I mouthed up at him, a wide playful grin playing across my lips.
He held the same ravishing grin, his green eyes sparked in the dark as he look down at me. 'I'll make it up for you, I promise.'
By then, the light coming from the guard was no longer visible and has now left the building. Yet, we were both equally transfixed on each other, despite the darkness, I could feel his aura all around me. His dark wood, spicy scent was all over me, alluring me into his arms and wanting to caress me.
But Ethan took a step back as his eyes grew more profound and contemplated. "I uh-- I think we should go, now."
"Yeah." I said, barely a whisper to the soul, yet I still found myself smiling at his modesty and hesitation.
Ethan nodded, stealing a look my way before leading us both back out. He grabbed the torch and ascended the stairs after I made my way up.