GLOWING (Joel Miller)

8 | The Interview

I caught up with Tess and Ellie, ignoring Joel, who was trudging a few metres behind me. We climbed a few flights of stairs,  emerging on the top level in a dark corridor.

"Come on," Ellie exclaimed as Tess leaned against the wall. I rolled my eyes, my breath heavy and quick after the climb. "It wasn't that bad."

Tess turned to me and I chuckled slightly. "You try climbing ten fuckin' floors with our knees." She walked past Ellie and I, making room for Joel to enter the room. He walked straight past us, without a word. "See how you feel."

Ellie giggled as I tried to get my breath back. I shot her a playful glare, before ushering her after Tess. "Not my knees."

We filed into another corridor, this one more visible thanks to the large windows at the end. Glancing down to the other end, I sighed in frustration. A large pile of furniture and other random items barricaded the hallway. "Shit," I muttered, squeezing past Ellie to stand beside Tess. "How do we get around?"

Tess shrugged. "Dunno." She stopped in front of the wall. "Wasn't here last time we came through."

I stared up at the light streaming in through the gap at the top of the barricade. It looked like a way through, but Joel definitely wouldn't be able to fit—not that I was too upset at the idea of leaving him behind.

Joel and Tess tried the doors on either side of the corridor but none would budge. Clearing my throat, I pointed up at the light. "Could we get someone up there?" I turned to Tess. "Unlock one of the doors from the other side."

Tess nodded, stepping forward to peer up at the gap. "Well, I mean, maybe I could climb up there, work my way around to that door." She pointed to the one on our left. "Good idea."

I beamed at the praise, but Ellie's voice interrupted. "Well, I'm the smallest, so it'd be easier for me to get through."

"Mhm," Tess mused with a shake of her head. "But, you die and we get nothing. You stay." She turned to Joel. "Can you give me a  hand?"

I grabbed Ellie's shoulder and pulled her back, out of the way. "This might take a minute."

"You good up there?" Joel called out and I listened carefully for Tess's response.

"Yeah, uh, it's a bit of a mess, so I'm gonna need a few minutes."

Tess went silent and I sighed, stepping back and leaning against the wall. Without much thought, I let my back slide down the plaster and I sank to the floor, resting my elbows on my knees. A few seconds later, Ellie slid down beside me, while Joel sat on a ledge on the opposite wall.

We waited in tense silence, until Ellie removed the knife from her bag and began throwing it in the air and catching it. I watched quietly, my eyes on the blade as it almost cut her skin, every time she caught it.

"Nice knife." I glanced up at Joel, his gaze on the blade in Ellie's hand. I watched him, analysing his face as Ellie continued throwing it. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

"The circus."

I rolled my eyes at the girl's dry humour, my gaze still on Joel's shadowed face. He looked away in frustration, letting out a long sigh. I pressed my lips together. "You ever been to a circus, Ellie?"

I turned to face her as she sheathed the knife. She side-eyed me, clearly unimpressed. "No." I made a sound of acknowledgment. "I want to. What's it like?"

I let the back of my head rest against the wall as I turned slightly to face her. "It awesome," I exclaimed, a small smile creeping onto my face. "There's clowns and little horses, people who swing from the ceiling and even a fire eater!"