After the End [ The 100 ]

36. Questions and more questions

we are grounders part 2

——[eiden]

I never cared about proving myself to anyone, but for some reason I steel my jaw and keep my eyes ahead and keep walking. It's not like the destruction of my people is happening right above our heads.

Just keep looking down. Don't look up. Whatever is happening has nothing to do with you. Not yet. Just keep on the path.

"Okay, let's stop."

Oh, thank God.

My eyes widen when she turns around. Without giving me a chance to say yes or no, the Grounder plops onto the ground. I settle down slowly, feeling the ache in my leg from walking, as she digs through her pack.

She throws something to me that I catch while still keeping my head down.

"You used to live up there."

A frown settles between my brows as I eat a small red berry. "Yeah," I say with a shake of my head.

My eyes flinch closed at the faint impact behind me to the right. A piece of the Ark finally hit the ground.

They're all dying up there. That means mom and Jediah, Jaha and Abby — a shudder runs through me — Brook.

"I can handle this," I reiterate.

"I know," she says with a nod once I look up. "It happens. Sometimes we lose the people closest to us. There's no escaping that—"

"Can we just go, please?"

Add it to my list of things to run from. I don't care. It's too painful knowing that my entire family along with everyone who was ever my classmate is dying right now. What even happened? Why is the Ark separating so quickly? Did they not want to go slowly and die when the oxygen ran out? Did it already?

I'm surprised that she actually does stand up, using the tree for support. Bending down to zip up the pack, her brown eyes look up at me through stray hairs. "Yeah."

And then I'm back to following her. I actually do get a few minutes of silence, having pocketed the berries so my sides don't cramp.

"Sure you're up for this?"

What. The. Hell.

My fists clench on their own. My thumb feels like it's tearing off of my hand as my fingernails dig into my skin. Ouch, but it's better than swinging at the back of her head. She doesn't deserve it anyway. She's doing everything she can right now, and it's a million times more grace than I should be getting right now. At the end of the day, I still can't lose her.

Maybe talking will help. "You were right. One of those ships that blew up was my home. The people here on the ground — most of them I only just met. It's the people I call family that are gone now. My mom, stepdad, my Aunt Abby."

Obviously no one has real aunts or uncles because no one is allowed to have siblings. I don't know the deal with Bex and Zoe, but we weren't close enough for me to ask either of them. I'm sure it's a similar situation to me and Abby but more coincidental with the last names and everything.

"There's less and less of my people coming to help my friends," I chuckle lightly. "With the winter, this random war—"

I feel like I can't say anything else. After all, she is a Grounder. Not a lot of wiggle room when it comes to offending her.

Suddenly, she stops and turns to me. Now I really do almost flinch because she takes my shoulder. You'd think after days traveling with her, I'd be over this. Maybe I said something wrong?