My dream was filled with darkness. Pure darkness. I heard a faint calling. Someone I knew maybe? The calling got louder gradually.
My eyes burst open. Hannah was leaning over me, gently whispering my name.
"Evelyn? Are you awake?" Hannah breathed.
"Yeah." I responded, rubbing my eyes.
We were still on the couch, I noticed. Had we fallen asleep here? Or had I just fallen asleep here?
"It's daylight." Hannah whispered.
I nodded. Daylight? Already? But then again, trains run in the daylight.
"Stay here with Atlas and Henry." Hannah ordered softly, rising to her feet.
"Why? Where are you going?" I breathed.
"I need to get water from a nearby creek, so we bathe. Unless, you want to go on a train smelling like rotten bread?" Hannah said matter factly.
Hannah spun around and left. Bathe? I was embarrassed, as I forgot all about bathing. I looked at my reflection in the old tv screen. My hair was matted and dirty. Mud was caked around my face. Eye bags hung below my eyes. I didn't look all that nice. Small footsteps sounded towards me. I glanced over my shoulder. Atlas was now standing beside the couch. She looked daunting, but a cheery smile was plastered on her face.
"Where's Hannah?" Atlas asked brightly.
"She went out to get water to bathe." I smiled cheerfully.
"Bathe? Why would we bathe?" Atlas plopped down on the couch next to me.
I froze. Should I tell her? That we're leaving?
"When you lived with your family, did you bathe everyday?" Atlas began to question before I could respond.
"Yes, I did." I placed my hand on her shoulder.
"Why? Why would someone need to bathe everyday?" Atlas wondered out loud.
"Because without bathing people can start to smell." I said blandly.
"Start to smell? Like a gross smell? That's ridiculous! If it's just you and your family, why should they care?" Atlas spat.
"No need to get mad!" I said quickly.
Atlas only stared at me. Her eyes filled with sorrow.
"What's wrong?" I prompted gently.
"I miss Granny. She wouldn't let us fight. She said siblings love each other and take care of each other." Atlas whispered.
I hugged her close to comfort her, feeling even some of my own comfort at the fact she called me her sibling.
"Hannah always bosses us around, but I know she's trying to protect us. Maybe when I'm big enough, I'll be able to watch Henry. Since Granny's gone, someone ought to do it. Or maybe now. I could stay with him, while Hannah goes to clean Kilen's house." Atlas sounded sad.
"Hannah cleans Mr. Kilen's house?" I asked dumbfounded.
"Yeah. She helps the other people clean it. Most days anyway. He gives her money. Some days I used to go and help. Granny said it's better that way. So I'm not trapped in here. I helped and helped. Sometimes I cleaned a whole room by myself! But Hannah never got no more money! Kilen said he already pays her too much and I'm just there to help. He assigned me as much to clean as everyone else though. When I couldn't get it done, he got mad. But Hannah always cleaned up my area without him knowing." Atlas looked at me sadly.
"I'm sure you did a bunch." I reassured.
Atlas only looked at me. How mean was Mr. Kilen? To say a 6 year old can't do anything? Especially when she's only trying to help! I got angry at him. How dare he use a kid for free labor? I knew he was mean but never this mean! The door opened quickly. Hannah hurried in, carrying a large tub of water. A man and two boys followed her, each carrying a tub. The man had dark brown shaggy hair, and brown eyes. He was tall too. The older boy looked like the man, probably around 13 years old. The younger boy was probably about 10. He had light brown hair, and big brown eyes. I stood up quickly. Atlas sat up on the couch.
"Thank you Sir Porter." Hannah smiled softly.
"Anytime Hannah. Visitor?" The man-or Sir Porter gestured towards me.
"That's my cousin, Anna." Hannah responded without missing a beat.
Anna? Was that some type of code thing, or just a name so Sir Porter doesn't find out my identity.
"Hello Anna, nice to meet you." Sir Porter greeted.
"Nice to meet you." I forced a smile.
"Hey Atlas. How's Hannah treating you?" Sir Porter seemed to care.
"Good." Atlas mumbled.
"Well, introduce yourself to Anna, boys." Sir Porter ordered sharply.
"H-Hello. I-I'm J-Jamie!" The younger one squeaked.
"Hello, I'm Coda." The older boy smiled politely.
"Well we ought to go! Let's go boys!" Sir Porter announced, ushering the boys out.
He turned around, and dipped his hat to us before leaving.
"Gosh I hate him." Hannah muttered before lifting a tub of water on the stove.
"He's a rich snob!" Atlas exclaimed.
Hannah didn't bother to scold her for name calling
"He's really rich! All he does is keep all that money!" Atlas crossed her arms against her chest tightly.
"Aka he's the official that kicked Granny out of her house. It was long before we came here though." Hannah clarified, looking depressed at the mention of Granny .
I only nodded. What else could I do? Add in my own thoughts?
Henry soon woke up, and each of us bathed. Hannah, Atlas, and Henry got into their nicest winter clothes. I dressed in the nicest thing I could find that I brought. The train was a big deal to them, and to me. I had only been on one 4 or 5 times. Normally, my family would travel by plane. They had never been on one. I knew it was going to be an adventure. Not just the train, but finding my biological family. I was ready though.
"Come on slowpokes!" Hannah yelled.
I quickly tucked my phone and the money in my pocket. Henry was sitting on the bed watching me intently.
"What happen?" He asked.
"Me, you, and your sisters are moving. We're going to a place called Iceland Town." I explained.
Henry only looked at me. His eyes were bright with wonder. I picked him up. His hair was neatly combed, or as neat as it could be. He wore a black shirt and coat with matching pants. He looked adorable! I walked out of the room. Hannah stared at me impatiently. Atlas stood next to her. Atlas's eyes were full of curiosity.
"Gosh Evelyn! You're so dang slow!" Hannah complained.
I only rolled my eyes.
Hannah placed her hands in her hips and glared at me.
"We might be late because of you!" Hannah scolded.
"And standing here talking about it won't make us late?" I shot back.
Hannah opened her mouth to say something, but I quickly whisked Atlas away, and headed out the door. Outside was wonderful! The ground was covered with a light layer of frost. The cold winter breeze blew my hair rapidly around.
"Cold! Cold!" Henry screamed, burying his head in my shoulder.
Hannah came out, giving me a playful death glare.
"W-Why i-is i-it s-so c-cold?" Atlas's teeth chattered.
"It's the same as always. We just don't have as warm clothes as we normally do." Hannah explained.
Atlas only shivered more. Hannah grabbed Atlas's hand, and began to walk. I held Henry and followed. We walked past all the shacks. Most of them were dark inside. I could see people watching us out the windows from the few with light.
"Nobody ever leaves this place." Hannah whispered.
"Why?" I whispered back.
"Because the people normally can't afford it." Hannah clarified.
"Oh." I sighed.
By now, we were out of the shacks. There was a small stretch of land, then the huge city. The small stretch of land was covered in frost. Atlas's lips were turning a shade of blue. Her face was so very pale. Hannah must have noticed.
"Let's race to the big city. It'll warm us up!" Hannah exclaimed cheerfully.
"N-No t-thanks." Atlas shivered.
"Come on Atly! Scared you'll lose?" Hannah teased.
Atlas shook her head.
"Atlas!" Hannah sighed heavily.
Atlas just looked the other way.
Hannah continued to try to convince Atlas to run.
"How you holding up?" I asked Henry.
"Cold!" Henry cried.
I sighed. It was very cold! But we were going somewhere new! Somewhere different! An adventure! We approached the big city. Luckily I could see the train station.
"It's so big!" Atlas sighed in awe.
"Big! Big!" Henry agreed.
We walked up the new wooden steps. People swarmed around us, yelling to each other. We approached a smallish booth. A lady with a huge nose ring, and brown bangs stared back at us.
"Where too?" The lady sounded bored.
"What do you mean 'where too'?" Hannah asked politely.
The lady sighed heavily.
"Why are you here? Where do you want to go?" The lady explained snarky.
"Do you have any tickets to Iceland Town?" I asked.
"Yes, but you gotta hurry. Train comes in 15 minutes." The lady said unsympathetically.
"Okay, we'll take those tickets, please." I smiled.
"Only you four?" The lady clarified.
I nodded.
"How old are you all?" The lady questioned.
"Me and her are both 15. Little girl's 6. Little boy's 2." Hannah replied.
Henry's 3! Why was Hannah lying? Or at least I thought he was 3.
"Kay' 2 year old rides free." The lady scoffs.
That must be why. Maybe she was trying to save money?
"2 year old free. 6 year old 17 dollars. Both of you 20 dollars." The lady hissed.
I handed the lady two 20's. She took the money. She gave me four tickets, and three dollars change.
"Thank you." I smirked, tucking the tickets in my pocket.
We wandered away, and found a food stand. I ordered four hot coco's, which was only 8 dollars. We drank hot coco's quickly, or I rushed them to drink it quickly. Surprise: Hannah, Henry, or Atlas never had hot coco before! Our train got here fairly quickly. We got in a line to board the train. A man in an old shirt and pants stood by the door.
"Tickets." The man ordered.
I gave them to him. He checked through them, made little marks on them, and handed them back.
"Board. Benches 5A and 5B." The man ordered. We hurried up the steps onto the train. The benches were fairly easy to find. I sat on 5B with Henry; Atlas and Hannah sat in front of us on 5A. People swarmed around us, desperate to find their seats.. Henry laid against me. He's breathing got shallower as he slowly drifted into a deep sleep. My eyes drooped as I quickly entered dream land.
"ALL RIGHT! ALL ABOARD THE TRAIN OFF!" A loud voice boomed.
My eyes burst open. What in the-? I looked out the window I was leaning against. It was dark outside, but the train was stopped.
Henry somehow was still asleep against me. Hannah turned her face to me. Her eyes were dropping. She must've not been able to sleep.
"Were you not able to sleep?" I whispered.
"Couldn't. Had to keep watch. You all were sleeping." Hannah yawned.
"You didn't have to keep watch. You could have slept." I told her.
Hannah violently shook her head.
A man came up to our bench. He's black hair was smoothly brushed back. He's bright hazel eyes stared at us.
"You ladies getting off?" The man asked loudly.
I glanced around. We were the only ones left on the whole train.
"Yes, we are." Hannah responded.
"Good, good. It's 10 pm. Yes, no?" The man looked at us respectfully.
"Uhh Yes." I smiled; I had no clue what time it was.
"Late night for little ones?" The man motioned towards Henry and Atlas, who were both fast asleep.
"Yeah. We traveled a lot today. They haven't traveled much." Hannah explained.
"Oh I see. Do you need ride?" The man asked.
"No. We'll be fine. We're meeting some people." I lied quickly.
"Well alright then." The man smirked at us before turning around and starting to walk away.
I stood up, and gently picked up Henry. Hannah did the same with Atlas. We hurried out of the train. The wind hit us immediately, it was cold! Henry fidgeted and groaned. I held him closer. We hurried down the steps of the train station onto a sidewalk. I looked at all the building signs ahead of us. A grocery store, a sports store, a toy store, a hotel.... Wait, a hotel? I squinted at the hotel sign. The word open was shining in bright, blue letters. I rushed towards it, hearing Hannah following me. We approached the front. The hotel was oldish, but looked pretty decent.
"H-Hotel?" Hannah seemed confused.
"You do know what a hotel is, right?" I asked.
"Of course I do! I'm not an idiot! I just never stayed at one! They're probably just expensive! I'm sure we can sleep under a bridge tonight, and find your parents in the morning." Hannah hissed.
A cold breeze seemed to blow through us. Henry let out a shiver.
"Sleep under a bridge? Come on Hannah! It's way too cold for Atlas and Henry. Plus, if we're only here one night it's fine!" I agrued.
"Fine." Hannah shrugged.
I grabbed Hannah's arm, and dragged her into the hotel. Suddenly warmth hit us as soon as we entered. We were in a small lobby. A few couches, some tables. A desk was in the very front. A tall man with a friendly smile was sitting at the desk.
"Good day ladies, what can I do for you?" The man smiled.
"We need a room." I smiled back.
"Ok! Come here!" The man motioned at us to come.
I hurried over, Hannah right behind me. The man flashed us a sympathetic look when he saw Atlas and Henry.
"We just need a room with 2 queen beds for one night." I told him.
"Alrighty! That will be 50 dollars!" The man beamed.
Only 50? I know we don't have that much, but isn't it normally more expensive? I felt Hannah stiffen beside me. I happily pulled out a 50 dollar bill, and placed it on the counter.
"Thank you! Room 254, second floor. Elevators working. Breakfast is free." The man smirked, tossing a key onto the counter.
I nodded a thanks, while grabbing the key. I lead the way past the desk. A sign greeted me. Straight- dining hall, right- floor one rooms, left-elevator and stairs. I turned left, and marched up the stairs. It only took a few seconds to find 'Room 254'. I used the key, which didn't fit quite right, to open the door. The door flew open to reveal two queen beds. The beds were a nice clean, crisp white. The bed were made incredibly neatly. The walls were painted a nice off white. There were nature paintings too, and a small table with chairs! A door that led to what I assumed was a bathroom was on a wall. We walked in. Hannah smiled at the beds.
"They're so nice! Do you think we should sleep on the floor? I don't want to get these sheets dirty!" Hannah exclaimed.
"No, we should sleep on them. That's what hotels are for." I explained
Hannah nodded. She gently laid Atlas on a bed; she then pulled the covers of the other bed down. Hannah picked up Atlas, and laid her on one side of the bed. I laid Henry next to Atlas. Hannah pulled the blanket back over them. She smoothed it over gently with her hand. Hannah turned around, and looked at me.
"Is that other room a bathroom?" Hannah asked.
"Yeah, most likely." I nodded.
"Okay, I guess I'll go wash up then." Hannah shrugged.
I only nodded again; Hannah shuffled awkwardly to the bathroom. I took off my heavy clothes: sweater, shoes, fuzzy pants. I was only in my light long sleeve shirt and some light leggings. I slid into the other bed, and took out my phone. I pulled open Kylie's profile. I clicked on the message icon. I needed to message her, I needed to let her know I was here. I heard the running water of the bathroom sink, and the splashing of it hitting Hannah's face. I began to type out a message for Kylie. Hey I'm here! Where do you. My screen went black. I pressed the power button. A battery symbol popped up. Great! My phone is dead! Now there's no way to contact Kylie! I slipped deeper in my bed, groaning with frustration. I dropped the phone on the floor. Pure frustration swarmed me as I slipped off into a deep sleep.
~Note~
Thank you so much for reading this far! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I did writing it. I'm sorry that it's out late and so long. I really need to make my chapters shorter... Anyways, have a amazing day!
(P.S if you want updates/spoilers/ Q&A's and stuff like that, go follow my Instagram RandomPerson2862!)