A very Human summer

What Lies Ahead

Eventually, sleep did come and Luz awoke the next day to the weak spring sun shining down on her face. She lazily rubbed her eyes and stretched out her arms and legs. Her body felt sore and her head heavy. She half expected Hooty to come soaring through the window, but then she remembered where she was.

Luz lay on her back for a few minutes, staring up at the underneath of the top bunk. She gazed up at the glow-in-the-dark stars and planets she'd stuck there with her dad as a young kid. She smiled at the thought. When she saw the pale yellow star pinned closely to a purple crescent moon her mind wandered elsewhere to the Collector. Her mind raced as she saw King being pulled away from her and into the Collector's outstretched arms. She shook her head. Don't think about that.

She rolled onto her side and saw a pair of bright golden eyes staring back at her.
"Morning" Amity whispered.
"Morning" Luz replied, her voice still groggy from sleep. "Did you get any sleep?" She asked the violet-haired girl.
Amity propped herself up on her elbow and answered "I think I drifted off for a while but I kept waking myself up every 5 minutes".
Luz watched her girlfriend, a small frown forming on her face. "Nightmares?" She asked, trying to keep her voice low. Willow's snores echoed around the room.
"Yeah" Amity sighed "And you?".
"Same, I can't stop thinking about what could be happening to Eda and King" Luz got out, her breath hitching on the last word. She tried to hide it with a short yawn.
Amity reached a hand up and place it atop of Luz's, gently stroking the warm skin there. "We'll find our way back" She stated calmly "And remember that they're strong and they're smart, they'll be okay" Amity repeated Luz's words from last night. Luz responded with a weak smile. Her stomach let out a drawn-out groan of hunger.

"Breakfast?" Luz asked, kicking away the blanket and swinging her legs over the edge of the bed.
"Breakfast" Amity answered, wriggling out from her cocoon of blankets within the sleeping bag.
They held hands and crept out of the room, making sure not to close the door too harshly behind them.

As they clambered down the last few steps they both sniffed the air hungrily. The sweet scent of sugar filled their nostrils. They both exchanged a glance before racing to the kitchen, skidding across the tiled floor and falling to a heap.
"Oh good you're awake Mija" Camila turned and chuckled at the sight of the two girls sprawled out in front of her. She reached down and pulled the girls to their feet, kissing Luz on the cheek before picking up a spatula and flipping over the pancakes. Amity stared at the sugary treat sizzling away in the pan, eyes wide and mouth-watering. Luz watched her with a playful smirk growing on her own face. When the other girl finally caught Luz watching her, she playfully stuck out her tongue. Luz let out a muffled laugh, holding a hand to her aching stomach. Happy with this reaction Amity turned back to the pancakes, face full of wonder and delight.

Luz walked over to the fridge, opened it and retrieved a large carton of orange juice. She moved over to the countertop and grabbed a cup from the overhead cabinet, carefully pouring the juice into it. Lifting the cup to her mouth, she took a long savouring sip. The sweet liquid soothed her dry throat. She took another gulp, glancing out the window dreamily.

"Mija" Camila called from behind her. Luz glanced over her shoulder "Yeah Mama?" she answered.

"Be a dear and set the table for me please?" Her mom asked. She flipped the pancakes over before turning to Amity "Could you go and wake the girls? I'll wake the boys myself when I've finished serving up breakfast" Camila said.

"No need" A croaky voice stated from the door "We're already up". Camila, Luz and Amity turn to see a stretching Willow stumbling into the kitchen, Vee slithering in lazily behind her. "Ah good" Camila beamed at them.
"In that case" she looked back around at Amity "Please go and wake the boys".
Amity nodded, eyeing the sizzling pancakes one last time, before hurriedly skipping out of the room.