Sanctuary

Chapter 3

"So, what happened when I wasn't hear?" I ask my group of friends.
"That bloody pour excuse for a leader came!" Aran snarls, her Irish accent getting thicker the more angry she got.
"Really, why did he come, what did he say?!" I ask, worried.
"He came and congratulated us on our harvest....but said it wasn't enough." Katherine admits, her head hanging low and looking at the ground .
"What!....But I thought that we had just enough!" I feel my heart beat fast in my chest.

We aren't the only community like this, their are others like our Sanctuary. Every year, every community has to produce a certain number of crops and items. Or else we won't go into the afterlife. The souls that live in these communities on earth are only, as the humans call it, in limbo.

If a community makes a certain amount of crop consistently throughout the years, then when the leader says they are free, they can go to "heaven". If they don't, then when they do finally make the goal, they have to wait how many years they failed to finally be free, if that makes sense.
"Well, I guess it wasn't bloody enough for that man!" Aran snarls angrily, squeezing her fists until her knuckles turned white. Pete comes back with our treats and places them down in front of us. The dead don't really need to eat, but it is nice once in a while.

Pete only has this shop because when you become free, you get to eat, say, do, whatever you want! With who ever you want, if they agree to it, of course.

"What you guys talking about?" Pete asks.
"The harvest problem." Meg admits, her head drooping.
"Oh, yeah, it sucks."
"What will we do, last year we also failed to bring the total crop in, our people are already down two years, now three?" My anger rises as the words spill out of my mouth.
Aran rips off a big hunk of her bread and stuffs it in her mouth. I also take a bite of my bagel.
"We will have to wait an eternity if this keeps on going." Katherine argues, taking a lick at the white frosting on her cupcake.
"I'm lucky I even have supplies to make my treats." Pete says with a sigh.
"It's because they favor your food!" I giggle.
"If the the snobs didn't like your baking I bet you wouldn't even be here!" I say, with the snobs being the people that cheated in to heaven, they do this by either promising full loyalty to the Leader, or by working for the Leader. I absolutely hate it.
"Well, that's not a reality I want to live in, cause then I wouldn't be able to see you guys!" Pete chuckles.

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"The sun will set soon, we should get back home." Meg scolds us when she finishes her cake with one last large bite.
"Yes, mother." I tease Meg. All of us jump off the stools and yell "Bye!" to Pete as we all exit the shop.
"Bye! Be safe!" Pete yells back with a wave and a smile.

"See ye tomorrow?" Aran asks.
"Yup!" I chirp.
Aran and Meg walk away with a cheerful "Ok! Bye!" towards their homes, since they lived very close to each other. Me and Katherine live near each other as well, so we also walk together.
"So what do you think about all this?" I ask, looking over at Katherine.
"I don't know what to think, it's all too complicated." She answers, I hear some sadness in her voice, which makes me sad as well.
"Yeah, I know how you feel." I retort back.
"Well, see you tomorrow." I wave at her as I jog up the hill I live on.
"See ya!" Katherine waves back, showing a small smile as she turn a corner and disappeared.
I slow down to a walking pace. My thoughts wondering through my brain like bees in a beehive.