Beyond The Bridge [ONC 2023] // Longlisted

Chapter Thirteen

I feel my straw mattress beneath my back, my blanket pulled up to my neck as I listen to the birds outside my window. In the other room, I hear Mother singing to herself the same tune and song she would sing every morning. My stomach groans and I feel a slight ache at the back of my head. Did she let me sleep in because I'm unwell?

"Grace?" Mother's voice washes over me, calling from the other room. "Gracie, come on, wake up."

She shakes my shoulder to wake me up, but all I want is to sink back into the depths of sleep until the headache is gone. My shoulder moves again and I groan, rolling my head to the side, hoping she gets the message and leaves me alone. I bat my arm out as my shoulder moves again. It makes contact with the hand shaking my shoulder.

"Look at me, Grace, please!" The voice isn't Mother's and whoever it is sounds worried.

I roll my head to the side, groaning again as I open my eyes, blinking into the darkness. I'm no longer in my bed. Instead, I lie with my head on someone's lap. The smell of dirt and dust fills the air and a few light spots dance in front of my eyes. Someone places a hand on my cheek, but in the darkness, I cannot see who it is.

"There she is. How are you feeling, Grace?"

"What happened to the candle?" I say, but the talking hurts my head and I squeeze my eyes shut.

"I blew it out. It didn't make sense to keep it lit when we weren't moving. We can relight it before we leave." Levi moves under me. "Here, the ink pot filled up when you were out, twice, in fact."

"We should save it."

"Drink the water, Grace."

It is then that I realise how thirsty I am with my lips feeling rough and my tongue dry. Levi helps me to sit a little, the floor swaying underneath me and the light spots returning, but this time I can blink them away. He holds the ink pot up to my mouth and I take a sip, allowing the cold water to trickle down my throat. It tastes earthy after running down the wall of the chamber, but I try to ignore it.

After I have taken a few sips, Levi takes the ink pot away and I feel him place it back under the drip to refill. We were nowhere near the drip when I collapsed and I wonder how long I've been out for if the ink pot has already been refilled and we've moved. The chamber hasn't changed in that time.

Without Levi's help, I push myself into a sitting position, once again blinking away the light spots. I rub my forehead. Heat radiates off my skin despite how cold it is in the chamber and the tunnel and the back of my headaches with a dull throb. Levi places his hand on the small of my back and rubs it lightly, which feels strangely comforting in the circumstances. In the darkness, I can just make out the split I put on his leg.

"We should get moving," I say, putting my hand on the ground and making an attempt to stand up.

Levi moves his hand onto my shoulder. "I don't think so. We can stay here for a little while longer, conserve some energy. The last thing you need to push yourself even more is because if you get seriously hurt, I cannot do anything about it and I don't want that to happen. You scared me, Gracie, really scared me."

"I'm sorry." I look down at my hands. "How are you feeling? Did you sleep?"

"Better now that you're awake, it wasn't very fun having only myself for company. I managed to sleep for a little while after I drank the first ink pot full of water, but I spent most of my time waiting for you. My ankle isn't too bad either. The splint you put on it is great, as is not walking."

"We'll have to move, eventually."

"I know, but we can stay here for just a little while longer whilst we wait for the inkpot to fill back up. For now, just take a moment to breathe, get yourself together, and put something in your stomach. We can light the candle and move on in a little while, but not yet."

"For once, you're right."

"Ouch. That stung, Gracie."

He laughs, and I hear him rummaging around his satchel once again. His hand finds mine in the dark, passing me a small piece of something which I swap into my other hand, keeping my left clasped in his. We lace our fingers together and sit in silence, listening to the slow dripping of the water as the ink pot fills up once again.

I slowly nibble on the food Levi gave me, allowing pastry and jam to fill my mouth. This time I'm determined to keep it down. The jam tastes sweet, reminding me of summer days at home with Mother on her afternoon off from my work. My mind drifts to where she might be right now, and how she is feeling.

Even though time doesn't seem to exist in the tunnels, I'm sure a full day must have passed since I left. I know she must be scared about where I am. Perhaps she already knows I'm with Levi and that that information offers her a sense of comfort, although he isn't known for being the most careful of people. We have to get out of the cave soon. I'm not sure how much longer I can go without seeing Mother.

Levi seemingly, reading my mind, removes my hand from his and leans over me and fumbles around for the inkpot. Once he has it, I hear him screwing the lid back on and searching for the candle and matches. In a matter of seconds, the small chamber is illuminated with the glow of candlelight.

"Do you think you're ready to get going?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Alright, but we're going to stop a little more regularly just to be on the safe side and if you feel dizzy or faint again, tell me immediately. No more hiding it, Gracie. I want to help you."

"I promise I'll tell you."

"Good." He smiles. "I looked at the tunnels whilst you were unconscious. We should take the tunnel straight ahead of us. It's much rockier terrain than the other one."

"If you think that's the one we should take, then let's do it."

"The adventure continues."

I cannot help but smile, even though the adventure has long since turned into a nightmare for both of us. Levi manages to pull himself up, balancing himself on one leg. He offers his hand to me and I accept it, letting him pull me up and keeping hold of my hand until the room stays still. Once we're both standing, he grabs the candle and the satchel.

We continue on into the darkness.

~~~

First Published - March 12th, 2023