'So, little Greenie's stuck?'
'Yes.' I've got sick of trying to deny it. 'And I'm gonna try get down now, so leave. I don't need to be more embarrassed than I already am.' 'You're gonna hurt yourself.' 'And you give a shit?' 'Not really. Just thought you might wanna know.' 'Why are you still here? Surely you've got better things to do.' 'Do you want me to help you get down?' 'I'm gonna get down but I don't need your help, so why don't you go fu-'
My sentence gets cut off my the tree violently shaking.
'That help?'
'Once I'm back in the ground, Gally, I will murder you.'
'You'd get banished.'
'Honestly, I'd prefer a picnic with the Grievers than another day with you.' I say with as much confidence as I possibly can while still clinging on to the branch, knowing that it's only a matter of seconds before my hands give up and I fall to the ground. God, I need to exercise.
'Aw, that's harsh.' And I can tell by the tone of his voice that he's grinning.
I cling on to the branch as hard as I can, try to reach up and grab another. But I need to get down and my hands are slowly failing.
Fuck it.
I release the branch and fall through the tangle of trees before I land on the ground with a hard thud, trying to land gracefully, yet that proves impossible.
I yelp in pain and close my eyes, feeling a pounding headache. I can feel my heart beating faster.
Rose.
The word comes out in a whisper, barely there. So quiet that I convince myself I must have just imagined it.
Rose.
The word raises it's volume. Whatever voice it is, it's getting more intense.
I hear it again, four times, five, six-
ROSE,
Until it's a shout. I sit up abruptly and clear my hair away from my face.
Rose. That's my name.
I'm... Rose.
'Are you a dumb shank or what?'
'I am.'
'You just dropped how many feet?'
'I don't know.'
'Why did you-'
'Stop. Gally, thanks.'
He stops and looks at me as if I've suddenly grown another head. 'Thanks?'
'Yeah. For nothing.' 'What are you talking ab-' 'Stop questioning everything!' I rake my hair back from my face and sigh. 'I mean thanks for nothing. Genuinely, and I'm not being sarcastic. Thank you for not helping me because if I hadn't fallen there, I wouldn't have known what I know now. Thanks for being an asshole.' I explain.
'Where did that come from?' 'The fall literally had a hard impact on me.'
It was pretty hilarious barely explaining things, leaving him to figure out what the hell I was talking about. I felt a weird sense of satisfaction, knowing that I had confused him for once rather than him taking advantage that I barely knew anything and scaring the hell out if me in the first five minutes I got here.
Gally shakes his head, and I decide to confuse him just once more time. I offer my hand.
'How are you, Gally? It's great to meet you. I'm Rose.'
