Halo | 18+

chapter seventeen

- AURELIA JONES -

After the medical exam, I was deemed fit and cleared to train. Thankfully.

Jace on the other hand was dehydrated, starved and had low blood pressure.

"I'll be fine Ariel, thanks for the warning but I can handle a little blood pressure."

Ariel gave him a disapproving look. "I don't care if you think you can handle yourself, it's a serious thing. And if collapse in the middle of something dangerous, I would never forgive myself."

"Take it easy today and come see me tomorrow." She stared.

He nodded, "Yes boss."

Ariel smirked, "Good."

"As for you - a clean bill of health aside from that headcold." She pointed. I sniffed and shrugged, using my sleeve to rub my nose.

"I'll leave you two alone." Ariel said, removing her gloves before exiting the room.

Once she left, Jade's demeanour vanished, and he smiled at me.

"What happened out there? With the gunshots?" I asked.

Jace was leaning against the bench, his hands holding him steady. "I don't know. We scoured that place for months. There was never any sign of people."

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah well, those people did a good job at protecting their territory."

"If you call shooting at unmarked civilians a good job, then you're mistaken." He said gruffly. He had a lot on his mind, I could tell.

I frowned, "Sorry, I just- nevermind."

My eyebrows furrowed, suddenly I didn't feel the warmth from Jace anymore. The distance was so far, and I felt him slipping.

"I better go, freshen up before dinner." I said quietly, quickly leaving the space I felt confined in.

"Lia wait." Jace said immediately, moving to reach out for me.

"I'm sorry for being hostile. I just feel like I'm failing everyone here. We barely have enough food for a month."

I knew the circumstances were bad but I didn't realise how bad.

"Then we'll go out again. We'll grow crops, harvest from the land. There are so many ways we can make this last until we figure out a more permanent solution."

Jace stood still, not saying anything. He just kept his head down and stared.

"I mean we did it in the bunker, with vast resources. We didn't even have sunlight-"

"Don't talk to me about that bunker." Jace said angrily, standing over me with an angry expression.

I stepped back, "I'm sorry- I was just talking about the crops we produced."

I shrugged, "Forget I said anything. I'm sure you'll figure it out." I said to him.

He looked up at with eyes darker than any color I've ever seen.