Survivor

Exposition

My head nested under a patchy blanket though I had long become accustomed to the four concrete walls that kept me safe. It's broken chunks that lie on a firm wooden floor. The delicate cracks that had formed over time and the icy air that slipped through from...From 'outside'.

'Nothing exists beyond our orphanage. Nothing ever has.' It's a phrase me and the other recruits have been taught since we were young. Though I couldn't help but try to look beyond the cracks in the wall.
The shared doormroom I lived in was mostly silent, consisting of, the occasional faint snore. It was the only sound I could hear for a while, but I still kept my ears open. Startled, I froze as a creak escaped from the bed next to me.

"Hey, Sally are you awake?" Bennett asked in a hushed tone. Bennett was a close comrade of mine. He was always looking out for me and knew more than me. To me, Bennett was the smartest person ever.
"Yes." I answered, lowering the blanket. Bennet paused
for a few seconds, squinting at a crooked wooden door as he did so.

"lieutenant.M isn't on his way yet, we still have some time."
I gulped before replying with a shaky "Okay."

Yesterday, after boot camp, Bennet and I had agreed to look through a lengthy crack next to the bottom of my bed. He managed to compose himself while thinking of a plan, I on the other hand couldn't contain my smile. Smiling had always been a bad habit of mine.

With caution, I rolled partially off of my bed, avoiding any noisy floorboards. I planted my feet, one at a time on cooper-coloured planks, placing my shaking hands not far infront. Bennett did the same, his right shoulder beside my left one. Our heads slowly turned to each other, unsteady breaths in unison. I offered Bennet an encouraging look and he returned with an unsteady smirk. Wary with anticipation, we both reach out our hands moving the fist-sized chunk of concrete that blocked our key to freedom.

It was...Frosty.bright.deserted. Although strangely familiar, though I couldn't recognise anything that I saw. What I now know is called 'snow' fell from the 'sky' at the time. Grey puffs of cold air slipped from our mouths, but we were too distracted by the sooty objects (rubble, abandoned buildings) and sleeping people (corpses) to notice. I was too stunned for words, Bennet on the otherhand was stating intently at a specific body, only a few feet away. The body was that of a middle-aged woman, it had an uncanny resemblance to Bennet. Messy auburn hair, a pale complexion and light brown freckles strewn across her body. I wanted to ask why she looked like him so much, why she was sleeping in the cold. How she was sleeping so peacefully. As I drew a breath Bennet silently placed his hand on mine. An unrecognisable look on his face melted into pity. A white shine in this eyes. I brushed it off back then, thinking it was just a spur of the moment thing. It wasn't. He knew then, that she was dead. Yet I hadn't known about the concept of death at the time.

It hit me. Like  All of a sudden. The smell. I covered my nose instinctively. Bennet tried to help me, although by the time he had reached out his hand, the smell had shot through him too. Gasping through our mouths erratically, we tried to erase the horrific odour, carelessly pushing the rock near where we found it.

Bennet suddenly stopped, as if he had become a statue. I could feel a rush of anxiety well up in my stomach, heart pulsing through my chest.
"He's c-coming, h-his footsteps. I can hear his footsteps." Bennet blurted. Tears prickling at his widened eyes, filled with worry and regret. Scrambling like rats we climbed onto our beds not caring about the creaks from below us.

I returned to my usual sleeping position, but didn't get a chance to check on Bennet before the door swung open with the force of a bull. An icy breeze wasn't the only thing that entered the dorm. Heavy stomps clattered around before halting at the space between me and Bennet's beds. The last I heard was a muffled gasp and a jumbled tread until the door slammed shut making a deafening slam.

As the other recruits begrudgingly rose from their slumbers I took my chance. "That was close wasn't it Bennet?" I uttered, a relieved grin on my face. As my expression faded I waited for Bennet to answer, hooking onto to every breath, sniff or word mumbled. Steadily, I opened my eyes and...nothing. Nothing was laying in the bed next to me. I remember that day vividly, it was the last time he ever smiled. Bennet.