Beyond The Bridge [ONC 2023] // Longlisted

Chapter Twenty-Four

We stand in the darkness of the cave, listening to the sound of the stream behind us and the distant birds chirping in the nearby trees. A stillness falls over us. Levi wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his chest, resting his chin on the top of my head. I sink into the hug, soaking up the warmth of his body despite the dampness of his clothes.

For a moment, I forget that we must emerge from the cave and face the real world. Part of me wishes we could just stay in the cave forever, enjoy each other's company and not have to worry about anyone else, but we have been away for long enough. Mother must be going out of her mind with worry and the last thing I want to do is prolong that suffering, especially now that we have left the tunnels far behind us.

Levi squeezes me, letting out a loud sigh, and I know that he is thinking the same thing. The end of our adventure has now come and we must step out of the cave and face the world head-on, and that includes his Mother. She will be less than impressed with our development, but I hope that Levi being safe works somewhat in our favour.

After a few seconds, we untangle ourselves and Levi takes my hand. He gives me a reassuring squeeze. I'm not facing this alone. He's by my side as he has been the entire time we were stuck in the saves. Together we meander over the rocks, Levi having to rely heavily on me as he struggles to move his injured leg across the slick stones at our feet. The energy he once had to move on such an injury has all but vanished.

It takes us a few minutes to reach the mouth of the cave. I flinch at the bright light. The sun all but blinds me as we stumble out of the mouth of the cave and into the fresh air that we have been so deprived of for all that time.

"That's bright," Levi says.

"I forgot how warm and bright the sun was." I sigh, feeling the heat on my skin. "It feels nice to be back in the sunlight."

"I cannot remember the last time I smelt air as clean as this."

He takes a deep breath, squinting into the sunlight as we climb over the last few rocks and step onto the grass. I feel the difference against the soles of my shoes instantly. The grass is soft, comforting my steps as we stumble forward and stop. I squint against the bright light. The sun burns brightly, warming my face.

The two of us stand there and enjoy the sun on our skin for the first time in days. A light breeze tugs on my eye, whipping it around my face. I'd forgotten how warm the summer sun can be and how nice the wind felt on the warmest of days. The air smells clean. It smells of the grass beneath my feet, of the flowers that litter the ground, and of the trees that shake in the breeze nearby.

Levi drops to the floor, pulling me with him. He lies back against the grass and I follow him, sighing at the sensation of grass tickling my arms. It's a welcome relief to all those days we spent sitting on the hard earth and rocks of the cave. My eyes start to close, exhaustion washing over me as the reality of all the walking we have done finally sinks in.

"Hey, Gracie," Levi says, nudging me. "We did it."

"Yes, we did."

"We should find some help. Someone must be out here looking for us and I don't know if I can walk much further with my leg."

"We've come this far. We can go a little further."

"Not yet. For now, we have a victory strawberry tart to eat."

He sits up and reaches into his satchel. With all the food eaten and the candles burnt out, all he's left with is the now empty inkpot and two halves of a jam tart. I push myself up, the ground swaying beneath me as dark spots dance in front of my eyes. My head still aches a little and the bright sunlight only manages to make it worse, but we're celebrating.

I accept the jam tart half from Levi; the pastry crumbling under my fingertips after so long in Levi's satchel.

"To escaping the cave and newfound relationships." Levi holds the tart half up in a cheers gesture.

"To us," I say, copying his movement.

We laugh at the ridiculousness of it, the insanity of the past few days finally creeping in. As I nibble on the jam tart, I think of how lucky we are that neither of us had died or been more badly injured in the fall. Lady luck had been on our side and I would forever be grateful that it had all worked out.

"Let's get out of here. I really want to sleep in my own bed," Levi says, dusting the pastry crumbs on his trousers.

"Sleep sounds good."

I smile, standing up but struggling to keep my balance as the ground moves beneath me. Levi looks at me and frowns, but I don't offer him the chance to say anything and instead hold my hands out to him. He grabs them and I pull him to his feet, watching as he limps a little to test his bad leg, but it no longer supports him the way it had.

Once he is up, he leans on my shoulder a little and we start to walk away from the cave, but I'm the one who struggles to walk in a straight line. Dark spots dance in front of my eyes, the ground sways violently beneath me, and the ache in my head gets worse until it feels like someone is hitting me with a hammer.

"Gracie?" Levi asks as I stumble forward and he is forced to balance on his bad leg. "What's wrong?"

"I-I don't know." I squeeze my eyes shut and reopen them, but the dark spots are still there.

"Alright, sit back down. You are in no condition to be walking anywhere. I can go on and find some help."

"No." I grab his hand. "Don't leave me."

He squeezes my hand. "I'm not going anywhere, Gracie, I promise."

"I know, I'll be fine. Just give me a—"

~~~

First Published - March 17th, 2023