It was dark by the time I walked back into my cabin. The wind blew lightly between rows and toyed with my hair as I walked. Nighttime had settled, and all around me people were prepping for slumber. A few people lingered outside chatting, but most were in their cabins.
Jacob was sitting outside of mine when I returned. A small smile crossed my lips as I greeted my friend with a hug.
“Hey,” he said, resting his chin atop my head. “What happened?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
Jacob was silent, choosing not to respond. He must’ve sensed that I had been crying as the hug lasted longer than anticipated. I was grateful for it. The comfort of another human being overrode the depression I had felt earlier.
A few moments passed before we pulled away.
Jacob kept his hands firmly gripping my shoulders as he studied my face. “Are you sure you don’t want to talk?”
I nodded and pulled away. Slowly, I walked into the cabin with the younger boy following behind me. The cabin mimicked the other ones I had passed by; a few people were tucked in their bunks already, while others were clustered in groups whispering. My eyes scanned the room. On my right, Cassandra and Red sat together giggling. On my left, Eddie and Nat talked in hushed voices.
It seemed none realized my return.
“Are you going to sleep?” Jacob asked.
I shrugged. “I guess so. I should at least try to get some sleep before tomorrow.”
Jacob watched as I crawled to my top bunk. Fate must’ve had a sick sense of humor to stick me on the same bunk as Nat. Jacob stood at the edge, studying me. I ran a hand through his soft hair with a sigh.
My eyes moved to where Nat sat on Eddie’s bunk. He sat cross-legged with his back exposed to the cabin. Eddie leaned against the wall, eyes closed, nodding understandingly. I could hear Nat’s deep voice speak, but failed to make out any words. His body was slouched forward solemnly, and his head hung low.
Jacob’s eyes followed mine. “He was pretty angry when he came back. Much worse than when he left.”
I nodded. I could imagine why. I was just as upset as he was, but my emotions came out in a different way.
“Wouldn’t talk to anyone for a while,” Jacob continued. His attention returned back to me, but he spoke the words distantly as if his mind was elsewhere. “Finally, Eddie managed to coax him into small talk about the…”
My eyes flitted to Jacob’s at the break. He mouthed the word ‘rebellion’, and I nodded in confirmation.
“Anyway, they’ve been talking for at least an hour now.” Jacob shrugged. “I tried to figure out what was going on, but Eddie told me to beat it. I figured I’d wait until you showed up.”
“I’m glad you did,” I said softly. “I needed a hug.”
He grinned proudly. “Anytime, Eva.”
“Thanks, Jacob.”
He must’ve known that everything wasn’t ok, but Jacob wasn’t an idiot. He pulled back from my bed with one last glimpse before saying, “I’m always here for you. Nat’s moody with you, but that’s no different from how it’s always been. He’ll get over whatever his problem is eventually and come around. Just give it some time.”
I nodded, but the words didn’t faze me. They floated in one ear and right out the other. Jacob bid me goodnight, which I returned half-heartedly. My eyes followed his retreating figure until he claimed his top bunk above the one Nat and Eddie currently occupied. I turned myself over to face the wall next to me, closing my eyes.
Sleep quickly arrived.
~*~
“We don’t know what those things are,” a deep voice rumbled angrily. “For we know, they could be government experiments gone wrong!”
A condescending chuckle from across the room filled the air. “Please. These are ethereal creatures. There’s something wrong about them.”
“You can’t prove this!”
“Does it really matter if I can or can’t?” The second man growled. “You don’t know what you’re up against. Neither do I. Neither does anyone. We’re all screwed. Those bastards are coming for us, and no one can save us now.”
“The government’s sending their own ships into space to attack!”
“A good use that is.”
I watched the two men go back in forth. Arms were wrapped tightly around me in a protective embrace. My back rested against the chest of a woman who was gently rocking back and forth. Familiarity toward the first man ran through my veins, but I wasn’t sure why.
The second man brought with him trust, but consciously he was a stranger to me. Sunlight seeped in through the broken boards. The small shelter was only temporary. Everyone knew that, but no one was ready to leave.
My stomach growled loudly. Three pairs of eyes darted to me.
“She needs to eat,” the woman behind me said. “It’s been so long since any of us have.”
“Eat what?” The second man was full of pessimism. “In case you haven’t noticed, none of us have anything to give her.”
“We have to find something soon.”
The second man sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly. “I don’t know how to solve this. We can’t go out right now. It’s too dangerous.”
“As soon as it’s safe.” The woman clutched me tighter.
Both men nodded in agreement. Silence filled the room. In the faint distance, I could hear the cries of a small child. Hands moved over my ears in a vain attempt to muffle the sound, but I still felt myself shuddering.
The ground beneath me began to rumble, and I could feel the body behind me tighten. Everyone seemed to tense in a preparation for something. My limbs vibrated back and forth violently. My chest began to swell as fear bubbled up. The air wasn’t coming in quick enough.
I began to take frantic breaths.
A bright light filled my eyes, and a loud crash sounded to my right. I jumped, a scream ripping through my throat.
The woman curled around me let out a mimicking scream, “Shi—!”
“Eva!”
My eyes flew open, and I sucked in a deep breath, freezing. My fingers were curled tightly around the thin mattress, and my body was rigid in fear. Darkness filled my eyes, blinding me temporarily.
Taking in slow, steady breaths, I tried to bring my racing heart back to normal. A few moments passed before I turned my head to the side to see who had pulled me from the nightmare I had been experiencing.
Moonlight outlined his head, but failed to detail the face. He stood at my bedside, gripping the mattress near my fingers.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered softly.
“Are you OK?”
I nodded my head. “I think so.”
“Come on.” He pulled away from the bed, heading toward the door. Carefully, I slipped off of my bed, following Nat out into the fresh air. He shut the door quietly behind us before grabbing my wrist and leading me away.
The chilly air blew gently against us as the rows of cabins disappeared. A few clouds crossed over the moon, causing its light to flicker slightly. Nat didn’t release me from his grip as he pulled me into the fields.
“Where are we going?” I asked as we cut through the clearing used for the gatherings. Nat continued through on a determined mission.
“Somewhere private.”
I was tempted to roll my eyes. We were wandering through the middle of a field out of range of anyone else. How much more private could we get?
My question was answered when a large, steel fence appeared before us. It slashed through the stalks, looming quite a few feet above the tops of our head. The steel was solid and glinted from the moonlight. Nat walked with purpose toward it. A few dents decorated the abnormal wall, hinting at a strong history of escape attempts.
He took a sharp right and walked us parallel to the barrier.
A few yards away, there was a hole. As we approached, I realized it was intentionally made presumably by Nat or another rebel.
Nat squatted down onto his knees and finally released my wrist. Without looking at me, he lowered himself even more to his stomach. The boy shimmied across the ground. He used his elbows to pull himself forward and through the tight hole.
Once Nat’s feet disappeared, I crouched down to peer through. His face met mine. “Get down on your belly.”
“I don’t think I’ll fit…”
He rolled his eyes. “I made it through, didn’t I?”
“Yes but…”
“Eva,” He whispered, looking at me. “Do you trust me?”
My eyes moved around the perimeter of the tight hole. It would be difficult, but he had a point; if he got through, surely I could too. I glanced down at my hips, pursing my lips slightly. That would be a little bit more difficult.
Slowly, I lowered myself to the position he had put himself in before. An amused smile teased at the edge of Nat’s lips as he watched me do so.
“Now use your elbows, your knees, and your hips to pull yourself through.” Nat pulled back a little to give me some more space.
I did as instructed, pulling my front half through. The ground scraped against me as I shimmied over it slowly. Nat watched me as I did so, holding back laughter. I shot him a nasty look, pulling my hips through. The sides of the fence scratched against my hips.
If I had any more meat on my bones, I wouldn’t have made it.
Once through, Nat offered a hand to help me up. “That wasn’t so bad, now was it?”
“We just broke out of the camp,” I said in amazement. My eyes surveyed the surrounding area. It mirrored it’s out half, but there was a different vibe in it. With wide eyes, I turned to my companion excitedly, “We’re free, Nat! We can escape! No more chopping down anything! No more threat of Isolation! We have to go back and tell everyone!”
Nat simply chuckled. “If only it were that easy.”
My excitement faltered. “What do you mean?”
“Only eight people know about this—nine now, including you.” He glanced back at the hole in the fence longingly. “We want to keep it that way.”
“Why? We could free everyone!”
“As soon as the Gliesians realize this is here, they’ll fix the entire fence. Any weak spots will be destroyed and made over with a new, tougher fence.”
I blinked, calming down once more. “Oh.”
“Yeah.”
“So I can’t tell Jacob about this.”
“Exactly.”
I gave Nat a skeptic look, crossing my arms over my chest. “So why have you told me about this then? What use am I to you?”
Something flashed through his eyes, and he looked as if he had a comment ready to spit out. Nat took a deep breath, changing his course of action, “Because I wanted privacy.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to apologize.”
I raised an eyebrow.
Nat grabbed my hand, pulling me through the wilderness and further into the unknown world. I followed without a fight. He pushed past the thick stalks that blocked our way until the fence was out of sight.
The sound of rushing water pierced my ears, and excitement bubbled inside me once again. Nat pushed through a thick wad of plants before motioning for me to enter first. Through the thicket, a stream flowed in a twisted curve. Water sloshed quickly past us without a second glance as it slapped against rocks. Leaves were pulled into the race, floating along without a care, and all around us the ground was mushy with water that had splashed out.
I stared at the natural beauty before me in awe.
Nat led us over to where a stalk had fallen down, sitting on it.
“Impressed?” He asked, nudging my shoulder with his.
I nodded eagerly, ignoring the teasing tone in his words. “Absolutely. Look how quickly the water is flowing. It’s incredible.”
“It usually doesn’t move that fast. Must be overflowing farther north.”
My eyes moved over the glinting water. It brought on a wave of serenity over me, and I could feel both of our bodies relaxing in its presence.
“What did you want to talk about?” I asked after a few minutes had passed in silence between us.
Nat sighed, leaning back on the stalk. “I’m sorry about earlier, Eva.”
I waited, wanting to see if he elaborated. Sorry for what?
“I don’t know what’s happening any more than you do. It overwhelmed me that I’d given into my urges so easily, and I guess I was angry with myself.” He ran a hand through his hair. “In case you couldn’t tell, I’m a fairly reserved person—so I’ve been told.”
I smiled gently. “It’s all good, Nat. I’m sorry for what I said too.”
He chuckled softly, shaking his head. “Jacob has told me about some of your thoughts on this coup d’état.”
I tensed. “Oh yeah?”
Nat gave me a sidelong glance. “Apparently, you don’t approve of me.”
“It’s not that—”
His hand covered my lips, permanently silencing me. Nat gave me a playful smile to show he wasn’t as offended as I had anticipated. What exactly what Jacob said? Surely, my comments that I had spoken aloud would have been enough to offend across from me.
“Can I talk?” He asked.
I nodded behind his hand.
“If you really think you have a better way of dealing with this situation than I am now, I want to hear it.”
My eyebrows rose.
“So tomorrow at lunch, come sit with us at our usual table, and lay out a plan for all of us. We’re all leaders of smaller groups like I am, but we collaborate with each other because of the mutual goal,” Nat explained. “If you have an idea, share it. OK?”
I nodded eagerly.
I had plenty of ideas.
And now was my time to shine.
************
I don't want to make this a pattern. If I ever take too long to upload, can someone message me and threaten to kick my ass if I don't? Because that's what I need. I need someone to tell me to sit down and type.
I get all these ideas when I'm driving somewhere, and as soon as I hit the computer, I find a distraction to occupy my time. I'm sorry for the wait. I love you guys for hanging in with me <3