Between sun and storm

chapter 16

In between the trees, a small car is speeding at its full capacity, while three black cars are chasing it at full throttle.

Dante drives furiously, trying to lose them, because he knows the situation could traumatize Lila for life. Ahead of him are two paths, and he doesn’t know where they lead. Worse, the fuel is running low as he speeds along the road.

He decides to blend in between the trees to save Lila, then make a move once he’s lost them. "We’ve lost them for now, but they’re not far behind. I’ll stop the car nearby, and then we’ll have to run to the main road. The fuel’s running out. You’ll need to hitch a ride to your house, and I’ll find my way," he tells her his plan.

Though she’s not satisfied with this plan, Lila decides that getting away from him is better for her. After all, they both need to go their separate ways eventually. "Hmm, I understand," she responds.

Suddenly, he makes a sharp turn. The car starts to descend from the road into the trees, and then crashes into a tree. Dante quickly protects Lila’s head by placing his hand on the dashboard. Lila bumps into his hand. "Ouch! But why doesn’t it hurt?" she exclaims and looks up to see his hand there, with blood flowing from the back of his palm.

Dante checks her head, relieved that there’s no injury. But he stiffens when Lila holds his hand. Even in that moment, he doesn’t mind his injured hand. He looks at what Lila is examining and thinks, "It’s worth it if I get hurt rather than her". He shakes his head, trying to get rid of such thoughts.

"Let’s go. We can’t stay here. We need to leave before the sun sets and find our way," he says, pulling his hand away from her and starting to unfasten his seatbelt.

Lila climbs up on the seat and opens the passenger door. "Open the trunk," she orders him. Dante looks at her, dazed. "She’s ordering me? Ah, let’s just go with the flow" he thinks, raising an eyebrow but deciding to follow her command.

She walks to the trunk, opens it, and pulls out her first-aid kit. Dante stands behind her, trying to figure out what she’s doing. "Are you hurt?" he asks.

"No, Dumbo. It’s for you. You’re hurt, look!" she points to his hand.

"It’s nothing, just leave it," he says, trying to walk away. But she grabs his sleeve.

"Don’t do that. You know how dangerous it can get. First, you’ll get an infection. Then it’ll get worse, and your hand could get so bad they might have to cut it off! Imagine—do you want to live without a hand or with both?" she tries to scare him, but Dante remains unfazed and finally offers his injured hand to her.

She starts bandaging it quickly, and once she’s done, she snaps, "Why are you still standing? Let’s go! Those cars are still following us. Do you want us to get caught? What a useless person!" She starts walking.

Dante shakes his head and follows her. For the first time in his life, he’s following someone, when usually everyone follows him—but he doesn’t mind.

In one hand, Lila is holding the first-aid kit, which she didn’t put back. "Why are you taking that with you?" he asks, pointedly looking at the box.

"I don’t know. It’s just instinct, so why not?" she answers without turning back. She herself doesn’t know why she did that, but her mind is telling her something might happen, so she’d better be prepared.

Both of them walk aimlessly, searching for the main road. "Aaahhhh! I’m exhausted... I can’t walk anymore," Lila says, breathing heavily. Dante makes a frustrated face at her comment, but then he hears footsteps approaching them.

He quickly turns around and presses Lila against a tree. Her back hits the trunk, and before she can protest, Dante covers her mouth with his hand. "Shhhh! Someone’s here," he whispers, looking around for any sign of movement. Lila's eyes widen at his words, her heartbeat racing, but she tries to stay calm.