COVERED IN DAISIES

3. BACK TO WHERE IT ALL BEGUN

GAZA CITY

TWO MONTHS AGO.

"Go get it, James!" Hex, who was the leader of our mini group, yelled at me, because I refused to climb the wall and enter the house.

Holding his elbows wide from the body with his chest thrust out, he walked to me and pushed me towards the direction of the wall.

I stiffened and refused to move. I clutched my chest, and leaned against the wall.

As soon as Hex turned to join the others, I shrugged and extended my middle finger towards him. Hex certainly didn't see that, but the others definitely did.

Hex was slim and tall, and had the beard of a forty year old. His eyes sunk in whenever he was angry. His deep dry brown skin, and his broad chest and shoulders made him look more grown than he actually was.

Even though I'm a little muscular and taller than hex, there was no way in hell my 5 feet 10 inches tall body could stand against him.
My bushy and unkempt hair would make you think I was recently picked up from the rubbish dump.
Well maybe I was.

"If you don't get in there and do what I tell you to do, you're off this group and you're on your own" Hex swore.

I shook my head in hesitation. There was no way I could get inside that house. What if I get caught? The thought of that caused butterflies in my stomach... Negative butterflies of course.

"What! Why?" I asked.

"I can't believe you still have the audacity to ask me that," he raged and continued to speak.
"Everyone here has done this before except you. It's now your turn so shut up and get to work immediately" he ranted for a while and left me there and join the others.

Even after the brief intimidation from Hex, I was still reluctant to take the bold step and climb the wall. The house looked big, and the walls looked too tall in my eyes.

The height of the wall really discouraged me from climbing, as I knew it would be difficult to escape once I'm faced with a difficulty while in the house.
The wall of Jericho it is.

"Hey James! don't be scared everything will be alright trust me. There will be no danger once you're inside the house" said Jude the fattest boy among us, and the one with an unusual long nose.

"Trust you, says the guy who was nearly caught and lynched last week for stealing." I said and shook my head.

Jude is probably the last person I'll trust in missions like this. Even though I hadn't been with the group for long, I knew he was the coward and the wuss among us, because they mostly blame him whenever a mission fails.

With his head down staring at his feet, Jude left to join the other guys while I still stood beside the wall with a rigid posture.

I sat down on the clay bricks arranged beside the wall, scraping my hand through my hair and blocking any possible eye contact with Hex, whose eyes looked cold, his face reddened and looked like it could explode anytime soon due to the anger which flooded his veins.

I stood up once again closing my eyes and taking calming breaths. With short and jerking movements for a while, I finally spilled out the words I was fidgeting all along.

"Is that how it really works?" I said,and the atmosphere changed all of a sudden, as everyone turned towards my direction. I noticed my voice trail, but I spoke anyway.

"I just get in there and take whatever I find without anyone noticing me. What if I get caught?" My voice trailed off once again. I felt more confused and scared at the same time.