I'm Just A Kid

Chapter 19: No Return

Two days had passed since the sickness had swept through camp, leaving behind an uncomfortable silence that seemed to hang over everything.

Some of the kids hadn't made it. I tried not to think about them too much, but that was easier said than done. Every now and then, a face would surface in my mind, and I would quickly force myself to think about something else. There was nothing I could do for them now, and dwelling on it only made the heavy feeling in my chest worse.

Most of us had recovered surprisingly quickly, although it had taken longer for some than others. Eventually, I had made it through the sickness too. My body still felt weak, as though I could sleep for an entire day and somehow still wake up exhausted, and my broken arm continued to ache with a constant, miserable throb. Still, I was alive.

After everything that had happened since we came to Earth, simply being alive was starting to feel like an achievement.

The days that followed were filled with preparation. Blowing up the bridge had stopped the Grounders from attacking us, at least for now, but nobody was stupid enough to believe they had simply given up. If anything, we had probably made them even angrier, and the thought of what they might do next lingered in the back of everyone's minds.

The camp changed because of it. People spent their days building defences and reinforcing anything that might offer even the smallest amount of protection. Guards took turns watching the trees surrounding us, constantly searching the forest for movement, while groups were sent out to hunt for food. Nobody was allowed outside the camp alone anymore.

Everyone was nervous.

Everyone was waiting for something to happen.

The previous night, I had gone to bed early because my body still desperately needed rest. I hadn't slept properly since the sickness had begun, and even though the worst of it was finally behind me, exhaustion still seemed to cling to me.

So when I woke the following morning, I knew immediately that something was wrong.

At first, it was the shouting. Voices echoed through the camp, overlapping with one another in a frantic mess that I couldn't quite make sense of. Then I smelled the smoke.

I sat upright so quickly that pain shot through my broken arm, but I barely acknowledged it. My stomach twisted as the smell grew stronger, thick smoke filling my nose while a horrible sense of dread settled over me. I shoved my shoes on as quickly as I could and pushed open the flap of my tent.

Then I froze.

Our food shack was completely engulfed in flames.

"Oh, shit."

People rushed frantically around the camp, shouting instructions and throwing themselves into whatever needed doing. Smoke filled the air and made my eyes sting as I stared at the fire, but I couldn't seem to move.

All I could think about was the food.

That had been all of our food.

"Well, now what the hell are we going to do?"

I turned towards Octavia, who was sitting on the ground a short distance away with ash smeared across her face and clothes. She looked exhausted, and judging by the state of her, I had a feeling she had been considerably closer to the fire than I had.

"That was all the food," I said again, my voice quieter this time.

She didn't answer. There wasn't really anything she could say.

Instead, I made my way towards Harper, who looked as though she was already trying to figure out how we were supposed to recover from this.

"What the hell happened?"