Attacca ─ Five Hargreeves

07. Somebody to Someone

Genevieve hated being alone.

Despite frequently moving houses, and transferring from one school to another, the girl always managed to make friends. It wasn't a hard task for her to socialise, however, she understood her situation better. She never got intensely close to anyone outside her family since she knew she wouldn't stay long. But it didn't matter, at least she was never alone. There was always clamour in her life, warm fuzzies that brightened the day, chatter that made her thrilled for the next dawning.

Then, this happened.

The future was supposed to be packed with new things, which drove her feelings eager to brim her charm, instead of just barren surfaces and a dead atmosphere. Earth wasn't in a critical state when she last saw it, there had been signs from scientists or forecasters, but they kept saying it wouldn't happen any time soon. Or perhaps soon in their measurement was seventeen years after she went to sleep. She honestly did not know, it was no longer monumental considering that the apocalypse had already happened.

"Four months, and it'll be winter again," said the girl as her eyes were drawn to the smouldering fire that was scorching the woods, she glanced at the mannequin in the wagon, sighing heavily. "What did Five do when he was alone?"

The result of that day was a complete mess.

Five believed that her abilities would be channeled if something triggered her state of mind, and according to him, it was fear. Her power would spring up when fear drained her entire vitality, it would push her to the edge until all her firmness of purpose was in desperation to cease the torrential drip of blood. And he was right, the only detailed concept surrounding her head at that moment was to not let him die. Tears immediately swarmed her eyelids, and her body severely quivered when she observed so much blood spurting from the gaping wound.

But Genevieve eventually did what Five believed she could do.

On spur of moment, the ablaze silverish-white gleamed across her hands as formidable dread pumped throughout her body, and it happened before the two youths' eyes. The beams of light fell onto the wound, devouring nearly his entire arm, seemingly knitting the affected nerves and exposed skin back together. It didn't take long for the blood to stop pouring and dry up, it really worked like magic, the incision had no scars at all. And if the situation had been different, she would probably have been swallowed up in amazement. But no, she was scared to death, she could only feel wrath afterward.

Genevieve hated the boy for forcing her to recall her abilities in a way that scarred her wretched mind, hated him for hurting himself only to prove that she did have those powers within the brittle physique. Because at the end of the day, she didn't care about any power, she cared more about his life. Waking up suddenly in the middle of the future, presented with absolute solitude if only he wasn't there at that time, really, the apocalypse became quite bearable with his presence. She couldn't have him die just because he needed to confirm the truth of the ability his father gave her.

Five undoubtedly knew the whole method would shake her up, that was why he offered her the choice, either she wanted him here or she wanted him gone. It made her even more infuriated, he couldn't just require her to choose after what he did. Because it was going to be anger that did the talking, and she scornfully asked him to leave. His facial feature was a shade of defeat, she remembered vividly—a lustre of sorrow glutted his eyes, but the compulsion to etch a simper on the tip of his lip remained. She was still a fourteen-year-old girl, of course, she would get annoyed if someone toyed with her feelings.

But finding the spot next to her empty the next morning, leaving only the ghost of him to look after her, she burst into tears. She had never been entirely alone before entering the cryogenic state, losing him felt similar to the moment she found out the hibernation phase had excluded her from the life she was meant to live, felt the same as realising the apocalypse had taken her entire family. Seeing how he simply abandoned the wagon, taking only a trickle of canned food and a bottle of water, even leaving Delores in her possession, completely wrecked her inside, causing her to blame herself for opting to send him away.