I'm Just A Kid

Chapter 11: Drowning Hope

The forest seemed to stretch endlessly around us.

We had been searching for the pod for what felt like ages, although I knew it probably had not actually been that long. After a while, everything began to blur together. Trees, bushes, mud, more trees. The same twisting branches and uneven ground seemed to repeat themselves no matter which direction we walked, and I was beginning to wonder if we were somehow walking in circles. My legs already ached, and my broken arm was becoming increasingly uncomfortable in its cast. Every time I accidentally knocked it against a branch or moved too quickly, a sharp burst of pain travelled through my arm, making me suck in a breath and immediately regret whatever movement had caused it.

I tried not to complain. Mostly because Clarke would probably just give me that look. The one that said, I told you that you shouldn't have come. She had not actually said those words since we left camp, but she did not need to. I knew exactly what she was thinking. Honestly, I was starting to think it myself. I had fought so hard to come with them, refusing to be left behind simply because I was younger and injured, but the deeper we travelled into the forest, the more I began to question whether that had been such a brilliant decision.

Clarke was walking ahead of me, constantly looking around as though she expected something to jump out from behind every tree. I stayed close beside her. Normally, I might have wandered ahead or deliberately annoyed her by running off somewhere I was not supposed to be, but the forest felt different today. Too quiet. After everything that had happened recently, I was beginning to understand that quiet was not always a good thing. Sometimes silence was peaceful. Other times, it simply meant you could not hear whatever was coming for you.

Finn eventually stopped near a steep slope and looked between the different paths ahead of us. "Should we split up?"

I immediately looked at Clarke. Splitting up did not sound particularly appealing, especially considering everything we knew about the woods. Finn looked towards one direction through the trees and gestured towards it.

"Yeah. You go that way." Clarke nodded, following his gaze.

Then Finn started towards the lower ground. "Okay."

Clarke immediately started moving in the opposite direction, and I instinctively followed her. She had barely taken a few steps before she glanced over her shoulder at me. For a second, I thought she was going to tell me to split up and covet more ground. Instead, she simply waited for me to catch up.

I appreciated that more than I wanted to admit.

The forest floor became increasingly uneven as we continued, forcing me to concentrate on every step I took. One badly placed foot could send me straight into the mud, and with one arm already broken, I did not particularly fancy finding out what falling would do to the rest of me. Clarke was quiet beside me, and that alone was enough to make me nervous. Usually, even when she was worried, there was always something for her to focus on. Someone who needed help. A problem that needed solving. But now she just kept walking, her eyes moving constantly between the trees.

I wondered whether she was thinking about Bellamy. About the radio. Or about whatever she had meant when she said she had let herself get distracted.

I wanted to ask her what was wrong. I did not.

For once, I knew when not to push.

Then, suddenly, I heard something.

A sound from somewhere ahead of us.

Clarke stopped so abruptly that I nearly walked straight into her. I caught myself at the last second and stared at her back.

"What?" I whispered.