18

Outside

I had to escape, I could no longer be in this house that was no longer a home. Everything that I had ever known or loved had been ripped callously from me by these repulsive creatures. They may not have physically taken that shard of glass to my sister's wrists, but they may have well of done, they drove her to the point of not wanting to be in this world anymore they took her from me.

My legs were as if they were about to collapse any given moment as I ran down the stairs holding tightly to the banister for extra support just to keep myself from falling. Reaching the big light mint door that led to the outside world I did not hesitate to throw it open as the cold night breeze washed over me as it gave me a sense of comfort. I knew I could get myself killed being outside when our curfew was far from over. They allowed us twenty minutes a day between 1pm and 2pm to step outside and see what they had done to our beautiful town. Sure, it may seem the same by eye, but it wasn't. We were not allowed to speak to anybody else, if we did, you would be taken and never to be seen again, but right now, I didn't care if one of them did see me a dark urge inside longed to be removed from this cruel world.

My bare feet felt incredible on the long grass that tickled them as I walked all the way to my garden gate. This time I did hesitate as my hands trembled touching the latch. I looked back to the house as I pictured Jessica lying there all alone. What was I doing, this is why she took her life because she couldn't bare to be alone and now here I was selfish and thinking only of myself as she lay alone in there. My heart was breaking as I knew I had to go back and hold her in my arms once more.

"Miss, what are you doing outside." I froze as the voice behind me was rasp as it spoke with a low snarl. His tone was cold, as if I had disturbed his night with my rebellious action of being out here. "You need to get back into your home now before someone else sees you out here." This time he spoke with an urgency which caused me to cautiously turn to face him as I gasped silently. It was him, the one who I secretly longed to see on a Wednesday now here he stood finally speaking after two long years of silence.I looked to the ground as his black boots were shining reaching up to his calf's. He wore military style black trousers and his torso was covered in a dark blue metallic kind of vest that looked to be bulletproof. He held a large gun poised in both hands, as I swallowed back my fear, wondering if that would be the weapon of my diminish. "Eleanor, you need to step back inside right now." This time as he spoke, my eyes found his. They were a rich chocolate colour but being this close I could see specks of green that flecked through the outer circle just like a painting, something about them was truly mesmerizing. But not only that he spoke my name, how did he know who I was? "Is that blood on your hands?" His brows knotted tight as his berry lips twitched slightly, causing his top lip to curl just over his front teeth. Looking down at my hands as I panicked at the sight of Jessica's blood on them as I began to rub them together anxiously trying to remove it as a nauseous feeling hit me hard. "Eleanor are you hurt?" His stance did not change, but his voice seemed to have a hint of sympathy as I looked up to him, my hands now sore from the constant rubbing.

"No." It was all I could manage to muster as my heartbeat wildly causing my chest to heave.

"Then why do you have blood on yourself?" His head lifted as he looked to be sensing something in the air, his eyes now darting back and forward to me and the house. "Is somebody hurt in there." He nodded towards my house as I nodded back to him, now feeling the cold on my skin as tiny bumps rose all over it, making the hairs stand. "Is it your sister?"

"Yes." I closed my eyes for a long second then opening them as a warm tear tricked down to my lip. I could taste the saltiness from it as I wrapped my arms around my body for a sense of comfort. Right now, I just wanted to be held, but I had no one left in this world to comfort me.

"What has happened?" His voice had a hint of a southern accent as his weapon now dropped hanging loosely by his side, his hands pressing onto the top of the white gate his long fingers flexing open and closed. "Eleanor you have about five minutes to explain what is going on before the others get here and trust me when they do you do not want to be standing outside. They will not be as lenient as I am being."