The Clean Ones

Chapter 8

"Only two months," he assured me. "That's how far forward we went. See? Nothing drastic. I told you it'd be okay! God, are you always this shaken up after traveling?"

I sat on the ground with my arms and legs wrapped protectively over my body. Every single part of me trembled like a beaten puppy. Every time I tried to stand up or even untangle my limbs from their wrapped position, I would immediately flop to the ground and start trembling again. What was wrong with me?

Cale tapped his foot to no particular rhythm at all and let out a forced sigh. If he had been wearing a watch, I was almost positive he would've checked it at least five times by now.

"Alright," he sighed. "We don't got all day. C'mon, we need to get going." He bent down and scooped my contracted, shaking body up off the ground. "At this point, me carrying you will be faster than waiting for you to calm down from this episode."

"I'm sorry." I mumbled.

"It's fine, we just need to keep moving."

"Just where are you so anxious to get to? What, are you going to meet your girlfriend for dinner or something?"

He snorted. "Girlfriend, right, that's funny."

"It's a possibility. I mean, I've known you for barely two days... Who knows what kind of information you could be hiding from me!"

He laughed, "Information?"

"Yes!" I insisted. "Like, maybe you like to snorkel, or you have a weird foot fetish...or... I don't know!"

"Weird foot fetish? Where on earth did that come from?"

"Cale, you know what I'm trying to say."

"Okay, okay! But to answer your questions: no, I don't like to snorkel, I find fish to be quite disgusting creatures. I do not have a weird foot fetish, or any fetishes for that matter, and I do not have a girlfriend."

"See, that wasn't so hard!"

"Okay, miss hypocritical. Aren't you the one who wouldn't answer any of my questions the first day you woke up?"

I felt heat rushing to my cheeks. "Oh, I...uh...well..."

"Thought so!" He exclaimed.

"Hey, that isn't fair! The circumstances were much different."

"But were they really?"

"Yes." I stated.

"I beg to differ..." He mused. Even though I knew he was just playing, it was becoming exceedingly annoying.

"Alright, fine, it wasn't and I should have answered you before. Now will you just please tell me where we're going?"

"Here." He stopped walking and pointed ahead at a large... Machine? I couldn't place a name to what it was. Bright orange and so shiny that I could practically see my full reflection in it. The color appeared smooth and perfectly placed that it fit the machine as well as any mortal being fit inside the cocoon of their flesh. It was tall and wide, with a short front and a lock back, and appeared to be made of a solid, impenetrable metal. Four large, black circles rested on all four of the respective sides of it.

"What is it?" I asked, partly in fear and partly in awe.

Cale placed a hand on my shoulder. His touch was gentle, comforting, even; a drop of water on a sprouted leaf. "No need to worry, it's just a truck." He walked over and opened the door of it. "See?"

"I'm trusting you. If I die today-"

"Which you won't...."

"Then you'll have to take the responsibility-"

"Oh, for God's sake, just get in the car already!"

"Fine!"

I hopped into the open door of the truck and slammed it behind me. The truck shook and rumbled, evidently effected by my abrupt action.

Cale hopped into the opposite side of the car and shut his door with much less force than I had. He looked over at me and laughed. "You okay there?"

My arms were crossed firmly over my chest, and I'm certain that I must've been scowling at him, or sporting some sort of foul look. It was an improvement over the copious amounts of vulgar language I wished to throw at him.

"Never been better."

"Aww, come on! Why are you so upset? I was only teasing."

"It's nothing...."

"Perri." He said sternly. "Come on."

"Why should I? Look, I can't seem to get any straight answers out of you. I haven't been able to since I wound up here. So, for your information, I'm kind of pissed because I can't seem to get any information from you! Do you even understand how hard this is for me? Being in a place I don't know, in a time period I don't know, surrounded by all these pestering questions and curiosities! I haven't been able to think for myself in God-knows-how-long, and yet here I am, lost and confused, and the one person who kind of knows me won't even give me any answers! It may be all a joke to you, Cale, but you have to understand that it's more than just a joke for me. I've been here for two days. Two days! Can you please just help me out a little bit? I think you owe me that much."

"Owe you? Darling I don't owe you a damn thing. If you think I owe you anything then you are truly out of your mind. If anything, I was trying to help you out! Did you ever stop to think that maybe, instead of telling you where we were going, I had to show you? You of all people should understand that sometimes things just cannot be communicated through words. If you'd just stop being so impossible for a minute, you would've realized this. I have to take you somewhere, and you aren't going to like it. I've been trying to avoid this place for years, but since you're here now, I guess I have to go. We have to go there, or they're going to come here. Don't you get it, Perri? He's going to kill us if we don't go." His voice broke at the end, and trailed off into no more than whispers of small sobs.

My breathy sobs followed his, though he wouldn't have noticed; through the all the tears that escaped his body, he pushed them aside with his hands and drowned out the sound of mine with the slick purr of the truck's engine.