RETREAT .

H _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Everyday, we wake up at 3 pm, and everyday it irritates me. People were working, dying and living on Earth right now. And we're slowly drifting towards an endless guilt trip. If starvation didn't kill us, self-hatred and regret would destroy us at our core.
Nobody would be home with their loved ones to die in peace. No one would kiss their sons on the head and hug their wives before they died.

I stare at the wet concrete colored ceiling, listening to the beds creak under the lessening weight of waking bunk-mates. They leave at their leisure, stomachs aching.
The corner of my bed dips under the weight of someone. I turn my head, sitting up slowly. The space spins, but my eyes focus on the face.

6'3". Dark hair. Freckles.

"How many will live," he breathes. "To how many will die." Those blue eyes plead me, to tell him what he aches to hear, but I shake my head.

"You know the answer." He stands, jaw tightening. Eyes changing. I bite my lip.

"Breakfast is being served, let's go." He walks for the door, broad shoulders squared. I throw my legs over the bed's edge, but I hesitate to stand.

"What's your name?" He turns his head, eyes slowly looking sideways to meet my own. I wait. I have nothing to loose.

"Theo."
The door hums closed after him. I smile to myself, and slip on my shoes. Perhaps this trip will be much more bearable with Theo to accompany me.
I follow quietly, listening to the grate clunk under my boots as it does day and day alike. Sometimes, I wonder if they will ever break. I ponder what is underneath. Where the tunnels lead in the crawl space.

It seems logical for them to lead to control centers and air management, but before I can plunge too deep into that topic, I hear the metal doors hum open in front of me. Sounds of different, inaudible vowels meet my ears. But a deep voice I'd only heard last night, reaches me clearly.

"So then, what's your name?" Is what he says. My eyes slide up the broad chest (He must work out a lot.) to the cream-skinned, dark-haired brute. Theo.

My thin eyebrows furrow, and I stare at him for a while. In silence.

"Which one?" Theo frowns, stepping towards me. The door closes behind him, cutting off the noise of the cafeteria, leaving only the sound of my heartbeat and our mixed breathing.
"Tell me your birth name." He growls. I stare back at him challengingly. "It's Miles."

There's a silence between us, waiting for the other to give in, to break. But I hold my ground.

His features let up, and he steps away, guiding me into the cafeteria with a word and we eat together for a second time. Only this time, I know his name.

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a/n: The chapters will probably be short, but depending on how long they are, expect 1-2 chapters per week! c: