Rebel Red Hope

14

     Putting my stuff away, I could feel Alex's questioning eyes starring through my soul from the corner still, 

     "You have questions,"

     "I guess?" they almost nod,

     "Ask."

     Alex seems to forget all the questions they wanted to ask but manages to get one out:

     "Who are you?" they squint slightly, "And how did you find my unit?"

     My body and mind freeze for a moment. How does one answer a question they don't truly know the answer to? And how do you answer it if it's about you?

     "Arlyn," I simply respond after a bit of hesitation. Not a lie, but probably not the answer they wanted, "And I know someone who lives in the same district as you so I know how to get around the units."

     Alex gives a small confused nod before continuing,

     "Your jacket doesn't have tape like the in the stories," they say squinting a bit more while gesturing to my bare green jacket next to me, life seeping back into their voice. Not a question, but I know where this is going,

     "No, I took it off last time I got snatched," I explain, my eyes moving over to my bare jacket with the yellow hoody tangled in it, "I did have tape." Alex nods again as if taking mental notes,

     "So do you know the banditos then?" they ask,

     "I think so?" I answer with an almost questioning smile to match my almost questioning tone, "A few," There was Clancy, Tyler, and Josh, but I don't know them well. Sure, Clancy helped me escape and Tyler and Josh were so familiar, but do I know them? There was also Nigel, but he's still a complete stranger to me.

     "Are they anything like what the Bishops say?" Alex asks. The question somehow catches me off guard. Taking a seat on the now-empty rock bench to collect my thoughts, I rest my elbows on my knees, 

     "I've only been to the camp once that I can remember," Alex straightens up as I talk, their eyes spark, that fire in their soul building more and more, "Reisdro always told me they would take away everything I know. All the order, peace, safety." I pause and look up at Alex with a smile, "but they are the most amazing group of people I've ever met," my eyes move back to the ground as memories of the sort time I spent there start to come back, "Always celebrating, singing, dancing, happy~" my voice trails off,

     "Are they safe?"

     I give them a comforting and genuine smile,

     "They feel like home."

     Alex slumps back against the wall, probably still a bit tired from our sprint,

     "We should get some rest," They state while closing their eyes and tilting their head back to rest on the cavern wall,

     "Want my sweater as a pillow?" I ask. Their eyes open,

     "Actually, that would be nice," they chuckle as I toss them the bunched-up yellow hoody from the inside of my jacket, "Thanks," they smile placing it behind their head and closing their eyes again, eventually drifting off to sleep.

~ ~ ~

     Sleep didn't come for me. While watching the night take over through the cavern entryway, my mind wanders through the things that it would run through in Dema. All the memories, the words, the phrases, the scars, the ceremonies. It all seems so horrible from the outside, but while you're in it, it seems so normal. Normal and safe in a sick and twisted way.