Rise From the Ashes

Chapter Nine: The Plan

(NARRATED BY TRAVIS GUILDER)

After packing our things and saying goodbye, the five of us immediately left for Flagport with the Brotherhood. Sarah and Elli were both keen on riding with me, so of course this started a fight. Yes, girls were fighting over me, but it wasn't flattering in the least—only annoying. They even ignored the driver's many pleas to keep things moving. Eventually, it came to the point where I just volunteered to sit between the two. This gave me little elbow room, but at least the driver was satisfied.

However, the tension didn't stop there. For miles filled with unsettling silence, the two girls exchanged nothing but hostile glares. And every time I heard Sarah think, she was hatching some sort of plan to kill Elli, who eventually fell asleep pretending to be asleep on me. This allowed Sarah to break the silence:

"So, you've never been to Flagport, huh?"

"That's right," I replied in a hushed voice. "Why do you ask?"

She beamed me a smile. "If it's all right with you, I'd like to take you out and show you around town sometime. It'll be just us. You'd love it!"

"'Take me out?'" I echoed. "You mean, like... on a date?"

She laughed with discomfort, "No, it doesn't have to be like that."

"But didn't you say it would be just the two of us?"

She nodded.

"So, I can't bring Levi or Elli along?"

"No."

"How come?"

"Levi would ruin the mood," she explained, "and Elli would just... get in the way."

"How is that not a date, then?" I asked.

"What, would you rather it be a date?"

"Would you?"

She began to toy with the strands of her hair. "Not if you don't want it to be...."

"What if I do?"

"Do you?"

"No."

"Then I don't either."

I knew that another awkward silence would follow if I didn't say anything, so I forced out a question: "What's your favorite color?"

Sarah seemed slightly amused by my discomfort. "It's purple. Nothin' special."

"And... what kind of food do you like?"

"Anything that isn't spicy, I guess."

"What was nice about Flagport?"

Her gaze sank. "Pretty much everything except the people I knew...."

I cringed. "Sorry to hear that."

"It's okay...."

"What kind of flowers do you like?" I asked, trying to rebound.

She looked up at me and smiled. "I absolutely adore Aridian water tulips. They remind me of my home back in Flagport. I'd take white roses as a gift for a date, though."

"I'll, um... keep that in mind."

Sarah cleared her throat. "So, what do you like, Travis?"

"Me?"

She nodded beckoningly.

"Well, I always enjoy working with my father in his workshop. Exploring the woods is pretty fun, too. Oh, and learning different languages has always been a thing of mine.... And, uh, I also like long walks on the beach, rock-climbing without a harness, and saving orphan children from the streets."