When Ty opens the latch to the top of the train, I have to squint to let my eyes adjust to the bright light. Snow drifts in with the wind, goose bumps rise on my arms. "We should be close to the entrance to the camp. That is, if the train is on normal schedule," Leo exclaims as he hands us bags to sling onto our backs. We shuffle around for a bit, Ty boosts himself up out of the train. His hand hangs down, ready to help someone up. Grabbing on, he yanks me up. I kneel beside him and offer my hand as well. Nina grabs on, Ty and I work together to hoist her up.
Once everyone is out, Leo begins fastening the latch back shut. Suddenly, the train begins to rumble beneath us. "Get off! Hurry! It's gonna start going!" Damon directs, motioning for everyone to jump. I look from him to Leo, still fastening the latch in a rush. They begin jumping off one by one, motioning for the next person.
"C'mon Leo, hurry!" Ty screams before jumping off. My heart begins to race, I don't know what to do. The train is moving now, my friends run along the side to keep up.
"Jump!" voices call with urgency.
"Just go. I'll be fine," Leo orders me.
"I'm not leaving you. Just let it go," I call to him, snow crashing into my face. I don't care that my whole body is freezing or that the train is leaving. Finally, the latch clicks. I grab his arm, yanking him off. I feel the wind pick up as we crash into the snowdrift. Breathless, I roll over. I must've let go of him along the way, my hand is empty. I scramble up, brushing off my clothes in hopes of not drenching them completely.
"What is wrong with you, Kendall?" Zane asks me breathlessly.
"I couldn't just leave him," I answer, shaking snow from my hair.
"You didn't leave," Leo stares at me, amazed.
"Of course not," I shake my head.
"You could have both been killed if the train went any faster," Zane stares at us with amazement.
"I'm sorry," I sigh.
"It's fine, don't apologize," Zane smiles lightly.
"Are you kidding? You could have been killed. Seriously," Leo raises his voice, anger flashing in his eyes.
"I didn't mean..." I trail off, biting my lip as he storms ahead.
"It's okay. Just give him some time. You didn't do anything wrong," Ty assures me.
"It's cold as balls out here," Alaska shivers, a few snickers come from a few of us.
"Better than sweaty balls," Zane shrugs with a grin.
"How about we don't talk about balls anymore," Nina giggles.
"What's wrong with balls?" Ty goes along with it, smiling widely.
"Oh my god," I laugh, thankful for the humor as we trudge through the snow.
After walking for a bit, Ty stops in front of a tree stump.
"Well, here we are," he welcomes us.
"Here as in where? It's a stump..." Damon turns his head in every direction in search of anything.
Ty kneels down, brushing snow off of another latch door. "There wasn't that big of a layer of snow on it. Someone must've been in or out not too long ago," Ty observes, undoing the latch. The wind screams around us as my stomach growls angrily. I sigh, pretending I don't hear it. The latch door swings open, dark brown hair reveals itself as a guy pops his head up. He has to be around our age. He has brown eyes and as tan of skin someone can have in the winter. Probably Mexican.
"Leo? Ty? Oh my god, is that you?" He asks in shock.
"Wren Montgomery," Ty smiles happily.
"And who are they?" Wren glances around. After everyone introduces themselves, Wren is very welcoming and eager to get us inside. It turns out, Wren is another one of Ty and Leo's best-friends. Soon enough, everyone is sliding down the hole beneath the latch. The only ones left are Leo and I.
He avoids my gaze at first, following along with everyone else. "Wait, Leo," I stop him before he goes inside.
"What?" he asks me.
"Did I do something wrong back there? You seem like you're mad at me," I shrug.
"You shouldn't have waited for me. It was stupid, you could have gotten yourself killed," he states blankly.
"I'm sorry for caring..." I trail off, unsure of what to say.
"Yeah," he shrugs.
"You're actually gonna get mad at me for staying with you?" I cross my arms, the wind blows my hair from my face. He raises his head, looking me in the eyes. I hesitate to say something, but he cuts me off. He places his hands on my cheek, our lips connect.
My heart quickens.
When he breaks away, he shakes his head. "I already lost a friend. I don't want to lose you already," he sighs. I stand in silence, still uncertain of how to react. Everything starts making sense. Ever since the first time I had seen him, I just felt something. I felt alive. It is nothing like what I had with Mark, maybe the connection is even deeper. Maybe as a best friend, a boyfriend, whatever he is meant to be, I just know it is right. And with that, he slides down the hole.
Once inside, I slide down a tunnel for a few moments. Eventually I end up landing in a dimly lit room, revealing a hallway to an elevator. I catch up with the rest of the group just before the elevator closes. The ride is full of laughter and voices talking over each other. "We just got another group earlier today, people similar to you," I overhear Wren say to a few of my friends. A tiny glimmer of hope flashes through my chest but fades quickly. There is no way it can be who I hope.
The elevator doors slide open, my heart drops. Arizona, Ivy, Hazel, Yvoni, Lazaro, Cole, Chase, Mark, and a few other unfamiliar faces stand wide-eyed just outside. Emotions swell in my chest, screams and tears bursting out in the air as we all run to each other. Tears pour down my cheeks, unable to catch my breath as I fall into Cole's arms. My uncle. All of us, together again. Blotchy faces pass by, each one of us exchanging hugs. Nina flies into Chase's welcoming arms. "I knew you'd be here," she sputters into his shoulder as he wraps his arms around her. I have never felt so much happiness and pain all at once. Love. I love them all. This moment, it will forever be a part of me. My vision is blurry, my heart races as we all gather together in a clump of hugs and cries of joy, laughter, everything in flashes. Until I stop by Mark.
I look into his eyes, a deeply rooted brown just as I remember them. They are the same eyes, only different. They reveal more pain than before. We stop in front of each-other, breathless and unable to find the right words. I close my eyes, bringing him in for a hug. I don't feel in love with him, I just feel like I know how it should feel. We love each other but we weren't in love with each other. Friends, a word I can get used to. His fingers run through my hair as if he is searching for the feeling again, I feel his heart beating against my chest. My eyes blink open, meeting with Leo's. He flashes me a smile from behind Mark. Seeing Leo there, I gather my senses. I have been hugging Mark for a long time. Finally letting go, our eyes meet again.
"What are we now?" He pursed his lips.
"I think we both know the answer, we just aren't ready to say it," I bite my lower lip.
"It's not the same anymore," He shakes his head, lowering his gaze to the ground.
"It's okay. Friends?" I ask him, my hand reaches for his. He grabs onto my hand, squeezing it once and letting go. I let my arm return to my side.
"Friends," he says aloud, letting a breath of air escape his mouth. We exchange smiles, our eyes meeting again. He returns to the group as I stop in front of Leo. He smiles, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
"It's okay if you still want to be with him," he hesitates before smiling.
"I don't," I shake my head, feeling relieved that Mark and I can work it out like this. Mark and I aren't who we used to be, things are different now.
Soon enough, I get introduced to Pen, Holland, and Maria. I introduce Ty and Leo to the rest of our friends, Wren joining in. As it turns out, our group is growing quickly. Six more people to care about, six more people to escape with. We all room together, spending time getting to know each-other. It is as if I have known them all my entire life, we just click. Just like that, everything is falling back into place. I have never been more hopeful than that night. With them, all of my friends. My family, even.