Behind You

IV

Daya wasn't sure when she fell asleep. She just knew that when she opened her eyes, someone was sitting on the hood of the truck staring back at her.

She screamed and pushed herself back against her seat, waking up Bosco and Irene in the back and making the girl outside jump in fear.

"I'm sorry-" The stranger said quickly, practically falling off of the hood and stumbling to her feet. "I was just waiting for you to wake up- To like help and stuff-"

Daya stared at her before leaning forward, looking out the window at the unfamiliar surroundings. The trees were thick and their leaves hid small wooden houses in the branches, and swinging bridges had been built with ropes and planks and attached to other trees. Based on the set up, Daya knew they had to have made it to another refuge.

Bosco rubbed her tired eyes, oblivious to what was happening. "Where are we...?" She whispered, helping Irene sit herself up.

Daya watched the leaves rustle, another figure walking across one of the bridges in the trees. "I'm not sure..."

The girl outside had climbed on top of the truck now, peering into the windows. Her face was pretty scarred up, and a tattered pink bandana hung around her neck while a chain dangled from her belt. She tilted her head at the girls inside. "Wow. You guys look messed up. You came to the right place."

"Jasmine? You know not to get too close." A tired voice said. The figure that had been crossing the bridge climbed down the large tree, approaching the girl and grabbing the chain to hook the other end to her own belt. "You don't know where they could be from."

"They don't look infected." Jasmine shrugged. "I don't think they could drive if they were."

The other girl was silent, meeting Daya's eyes through the window. Daya felt like it was a challenge. A challenge to see if she was brave enough to move.

She had to be. She took a deep breath before she opened the door, stepping out onto the grass that was beginning to dry up and crumble away. Bosco laid a hand on Irene's shoulder, whispering for her to stay before she got out and walked up to stand beside Daya.

"We aren't infected. But I'm looking for someone who...might be." Daya said, expecting more people to be out to examine them by now. But it was only these two girls. "My name is Daya."

"I'm Bosco." The smaller girl said softly, her hand resting on the top of the knife strapped to her belt. "We're just...passing through."

The two other girls were silent. Jasmine glanced down at Bosco's hand, her eyes widening at the sight of the sharp knife it was resting on. She backed away against the other girl's side. "Maddy..."

Maddy followed her gaze, immediately becoming more alert. Her hand disappeared into her pocket, reappearing with a black revolver that made Daya stiffen in fear. "Drop the knife."

Daya looked down at Bosco, nudging her harshly when she saw what she was doing. "What's wrong with you?-" She said in a panic. "We're not trying to hurt them-"

"Well I didn't know who they could be. You clearly haven't been out here for very long." Bosco rolled her eyes. Daya was about to say something else until they heard the click of the gun being loaded.

"I said drop the knife." Maddy said in a more harsh voice, taking aim at Bosco.

Bosco got the idea now, her body freezing up. She pulled the knife out of her pocket with a hand that started to shake, dropping it to the ground and kicking it away. "O-Okay. It's gone. You can put that away now..."

Maddy glanced down at Jasmine, who gave her a small nod before she pocketed the revolver once more. The smaller girl came out from behind her, examining Daya and Bosco up and down.