"Love is never wanting to lose faith, never wanting to give up, and never truly moving on. Love is knowing and praying in the deepest part of what's left of your heart that they feel the same" ~Courtney Jo Wright
Chapter Six- Escape
July 27th 3012, 6:00am
"Wake up." A gentle voice pulled me from my sleep.
I peeled my eyelids open and blinked against a blinding light. A second later, I heard a click and the light was gone. Bright balls of radiance remained in my line of vision for a while. I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them to see Jaxon leaning above me. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as a smile lit up his face.
"Come with me," he said, not sounding the slightest bit tired.
His hand held out a small white pill for me. I took it and swallowed without a second thought. A moment later, I could feel my head tingling and my eyes growing heavy. I was absolutely exhausted but Jaxon, on the other hand, looked as if he could run a marathon.
"Where are we going?" I asked, sounding groggy.
"We're going out," he answered, taking my hand in his.
"What do you mean? We can't go out." I yelled in a hushed whisper.
I thought about the warning Daniel had given me when I first arrived. I didn't want to get shot down by the resistance members, and something told me they wouldn't hesitate to kill me. Plus, where could we possibly be going? He was a human and if he was caught he would probably be killed. There were nothing but woods for miles, or so I had been told. I suppose Daniel could have lied to sway me from leaving but still, what could be out there?
"Listen, I was thinking we hadn't really had any time to ourselves, so we," he said pulling me gently out of the room and into the silent hallway. "Are going out." We ran quickly, silently, hand in hand, through the hallway and to the only door.
My heart was beating faster than I ever thought imaginable as he released my hand to place it against the door knob. He raised a finger to his lips as a sign for me to be silent. I nodded and he opened the door just slightly. A cool breeze brushed past me and caused goose bumps to form on my exposed skin. I smiled to myself as I saw him move the door an inch at a time to keep it from squealing. With the door open to the point that we could both squeeze out, his hand found mine once again.
Outside, the sun was just starting to rise. The sky was a gorgeous orange red color and in the distance, I could hear birds chirping. In the new lighting, Jaxon's hair held strands of red and his eyes gleamed brighter than ever. It was as if he was being returned to the one place he belonged. When he caught me staring at him, the loose grip he had on my hand tightened. A genuine smile spread across his face before the playful smirk took over once again.
"I'll race you,” he said.
"To where?" I asked looking out to the distance for some kind of landmark or structure.
"The edge of the woods," he said and began stretching his legs out. "That is unless, you're too scared."
I raised an eyebrow as his smirk increased.
"You're on." I said flashing a smirk of my own. "On three?" I asked.
"On go," he corrected, just for the sake of him being in control.
I rolled my eyes as we both got down into starting positions.
''On your mark," he started.
Oh, god. I have never really run before.
"Get ready," he said, the smile clear in his voice.
What if I trip? What if halfway, I get too tired to continue?
"Get set," he said.
My heart was pounding and at the last second I turned to see Jaxon already looking at me. His eyes were practically glowing as he nearly whispered the last command.
"Go."
With that, he took off. A moment later, I regained my senses and took off after him. I pumped my arms faster to pick up speed. He used his long legs to practically fly over the cracked concrete that surrounded the mall. After a second, the concrete turned into soft ground and weeds. The high grass slowed him down a bit, giving me the opportunity to catch up with him. I focused on my breathing and set my eyes on the edge of the woods.
The sunlight was streaming down on the long grass that the breeze was rocking gently. My hair flew behind me as my legs hungrily took stride after stride, conquering one step after another. The distance between the woods and myself was shrinking rapidly and Jaxon was steadily gaining on me. I could hear his steps just a fraction of a second behind me.
I willed myself to run faster, for my breathing to become steadier, for the woods to come closer and closer until I could practically reach out and touch the nearest tree. My hand reached out and slammed hard against the rough bark of a tall pine. A second later Jaxon, tagged the tree beside mine. My breaths came short and fast. I leaned against the skinny trunk and looked back at the mall.
From so far away, it wasn't as eerie as it was up close. Instead of looking like an abandoned building, it looked like nature had simply taken back what man had stolen from it. In a way it was tragic, like no matter what effect we think we have in this world nothing will matter. However, in a completely different way, it was fantastic, like no matter what interferes, everything will work out like it should.
My breathing had evened out again and I could hear Jaxon moving behind the tree I was leaning on. He stood beside me with his forearm pressed against the bark and dazed off to the mall. We stood there for a little while, just watching the sun rising slowly and waiting for someone to notice that we were gone. I felt his fingers lace in mine.
"Come on, I want to show you something," he said softly.
I tore my eyes from the scenery in front of me and followed Jaxon into the woods that he navigated so easily. Luckily, almost all of the trees were pines, which meant there weren't many bushes or low hanging branches to have to dodge and move around.
After walking for a while, we came to a clearing. A small gasp escaped my lips. In the middle of a forest of tall skinny pine trees there was one ginormous oak tree with branches that spanned out in all directions and were as big around as a house would be. A small pond stood a few yards from the tree. The pine needles had been swept away and contained by the clearing, and instead, there was green grass, small dandelions and wildflowers of all colors. Little yellow ones dotted the space, white ones bunched up and growing tall on a stem, and purple ones that grew in thick groups. I had never seen anything so amazing in all my life and I knew that I loved this place instantly.
My gaze drifted over to Jaxon. His eyes were shimmering as he studied my reaction. Once he knew that I had caught him, he looked back at the scenery.
"There used to be a small cabin here for a family of three. You see, the mom had lived in the city her whole life, and was tired of all the hustle and bustle of the people, so when she got pregnant, her husband planned to build them a cabin in the middle of nowhere. He searched high and low when finally he found this oak tree. The husband and wife fell in love with it, so the husband built their home right here. When the mall was built, the family moved away, because their peace had been disrupted." Jaxon explained, gazing out to the tree. "Then something happened and the family had to gather up and hide That's when the dad remembered the cabin he had made and he remembered reading something about that old mall closing down, so he packed up his wife and his kid, and he got a group of people together, and he moved everyone into the mall. One day, the dad took his oldest son out to see the cabin he had built for him and the boy's mother, but when they got here, the house had been destroyed by a storm. All that was left was the old oak tree, and the pond."
"You actually lived here?" I asked in awe.
He turned his head and looked at me, a smirk stretched across his face.
"Who said anything about me?" He asked.
I rolled my eyes and pushed him lightly. He lied down on the grass and looked up to the sky that was turning bluer and bluer by the moment. I took my spot beside him, lying so close to him that I could feel the heat radiating off of him, that's exactly what it felt like; my spot. It was as if he and I were made to be like this.
"Won't we get in trouble if the resistance members wake up and we're not there?" I asked him.
"I wouldn't worry about it." He shrugged. "Let's play a game."
"What game?" I asked turning my head to see the side of his head.
His eyes were locked to the sky, his lips pulled up into, what I was beginning to think, was a permanent smirk. His hair fell from his face. I found the urge to run my fingers through his hair growing stronger. He turned his head and his eyes connected with mine and all at once it was like a million bolts of electricity had hit every part of my spine. In that one moment, it was like flying and falling, like feeling your world fall apart, only to have it replaced by something better, a world more beautiful then you thought you could imagine. I thought of all the old books I had ever read, the old songs I just so happened to stumble upon, and none of them could ever compare to this feeling. None of them would ever be like the real thing. This is what it felt like to fall in love, and it could only be described as one thing; beautifully terrifying.
"Would you rather?" He offered. I stayed silent, trying to figure out what the game could mean. He caught on to my silence and began to explain. "I'll give you two options and you choose the one you would rather do."
"Do I actually have to do it?" I asked.
"No, I'll show you," he said and rolled over onto his stomach. "Would you rather, lose a foot or lose a hand?" He asked. My brows furrowed.
"Neither," I answered.
"You have to choose one," he insisted.
"Foot," I answered him, not liking the thought that I would ever lose a foot.
"Okay, now you ask,” he said.
We played the game until we ran out of questions, never getting into the heavier topics. We chased each other around until neither of us could hardly breathe. Jaxon threatened to toss me in the lake after I made fun of him for being slower than me. We climbed as high as we dared on the oak tree and just talked for what seemed like forever about things that didn't matter. We finally settled down and took a seat on one of the sturdy branches of the tree and Jaxon took my hand in his. We sat, with our feet dangling, about twenty feet above the ground. I wasn't concerned about falling or about anything really. I felt completely safe with him. This sensation of security and warmth was beyond everything I could have ever imagined. It was as if I finally understood. Now, I could grasp why my mother got the gene. I got why the resistance members risked everything to feel.
Jaxon let out a sigh of reluctance.
"We should get back," he said.
My heart sank at his words but, regardless, I nodded in agreement. The last thing I wanted was to get Jaxon in trouble with his resistance members.
We climbed down and walked slowly through the trees and back to the field we had raced on. We moved slowly now, neither of us really wanting to go back. I wanted the grassy plain to stretch on forever, or a few more miles at least. Much to my dismay, we eventually reached the side door and Jaxon opened it slowly. I stepped in front of him and started to walk through the door, but his hand on my arm brought me back outside. My eyes grew wide as he backed me against the side of the mall. Jaxon's eyes filled my vision and behind him the once red sky had been replaced by a blue that didn't even come close to being as brilliant as Jaxon's irises.
"I'm going to kiss you," he warned me, pausing for a moment to make sure I was okay with the current situation.
I couldn't speak, and even if I could, I wouldn't have told him to stop. Instead of saying anything, I just nodded. Jaxon nodded in response, seeming confused that I didn't push him away, but in no time, he pushed the confusion away and lightly placed his lips on mine.
I could feel everything around us intensify. The air got warmer, the sound of my heart increased, the feeling of his hands on my cheeks became more apparent. It was as if, all my senses were heightened just for this one moment, just so I could feel like I was truly alive. I moved my lips against his and felt something remarkable building up in my chest, just to explode in quick bursts of pure satisfaction.
Then, the feeling of euphoria started to melt away, slowly but surely. The pill was wearing off, the emptiness was consuming me once again. I tried to fight it. I tried to resist. I thought, maybe, some part of it was mental and if I could just, imagine feeling what I felt with Jaxon over and over again, then eventually it would become permanent. However, the void within me grew greedily, consuming all the space that the pill had opened, and the growing didn't stop until it was all that was left.
Jaxon pulled away, and instead of looking disappointed, as I expected, he looked panicked.
"Oh shit, seven o'clock," he announced and took my hand, pulling me into the building.
We ran quickly, but quietly, through the building until we reached my room. He gave me a quick peck and told me to get a little sleep before everyone else woke up. I lied down on the mattress and closed my eyes, prepared to do just as he told me, but there was something inside me that wouldn't allow me to drift off. I closed my eyes, but the image of Jaxon's eyes just kept appearing instead of the darkness I needed in order to sleep. Thankfully, after a while I was able to get a grasp on myself and fall into a peaceful slumber.
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Pic>>>>Brantley
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