Road to Survival

A Night in the Life of a Fugitive

The night went on smoothly from there. No one was particularly hungry so that just really saved us some rations for later. We had divided up the rooms between us based on my placing. The sophomore and junior were placed in one room, Ethan and Matt in another, Skylynn and Rose together, Kat and myself, and Major for a room to himself. The rooms themselves were nothing too fancy. Each had three cots with thin, but cushioned, mattresses. Two battery powered lamps were placed on top of small dressers with three drawers in two of the corners of the room and a rectangular rug was placed in the middle of the floor. There was a different type of rug in all the rooms, to add a little colour to the dull place. And to protect bare feet from the otherwise smooth, cold cave floor. There were paintings in the rooms as well. Ours was one of a field of sunflowers, which happened to be my favourite flower in the world. They were just so bright and happy in such a horrible and ruthless place known as Earth. Plus, I had personally hand picked each rug and painting for the Base.There aren't any clocks in the Base but the sun was setting when we came in so it's probably well after dark now. Everyone is pretty tired. It's been a rough day for them. Me? I've had rougher days.

Kat has found the some of the sheets we had stored in one of the drawers in the room and had started to make her bed. She was using the blue and red ones while she had left me the dark green ones. They were just regular sheets but I know that we had some comforters somewhere for when it gets cold. I exit my room, which is on the right side of the hall, as is Rose's and Sky's, and walk down the hall in the opposite of the 'living room' and make my way to the so-called bathroom. It was mainly just a room that had a shower head that was connected to a lake miles off that came through filtered and a halfway working toilet. It was mainly for looks and to make the place feel more at home really. There was no water in it and it was kinda just hole that went straight down. We do have toilet paper though. Theres also a closest in here filled with towels and, like, twenty packs of bars of soap. It also had enough comforters for each bed. I grab the whole pile the best I can and carry them out.

I go to the first door that's on my right, which is left,the boys side of the hall, and knock on the door with my foot. I'm greeted by a sleepy faced sophomore. I offer him a smile and manage to hand him two of the thick blankets without dropping the rest. He gives me a tired smile and turns to back inside. Before he shuts the door I can see that the freshman has already fallen asleep. Next I go to the room across which is where Rose and Sky are. I can hear their voices only slightly through the shut wooden door. I again knock with my foot and wait a few split seconds before I'm greeted with Sky's face, unusually gloomy. I wordlessly hand over the next two blankets on top to her. She, too, gives me a small smile, one that doesn't reach her eyes before she wishes me a goodnight and closes the door.

The next room I go to is Major's. When I knock no one comes to the door. I don't knock again, as to not wake him up if he even is sleeping. So I just set a comforter in front of his door and go to my room and give give Kat one and place another on my bed that she had so kindly made for me. I take the last two and head to the room that Ethan and Matt were sharing. I'm able to knock with my right hand now and I can hear something going on in the room. I knock a second time and was about to knock a third time before Matt opened the door quickly. I could see that he had started a very light sweat and that his hair was tousled and his clothes messed up. Glancing behind him I see Ethan is sitting on a bed and that his hair and clothes were also messed with. Matt opens his mouth but I bring up a hand to stop him. I give him a smile and over the two blankets and make the motion of zipping my lips and locking them. He gives me a reassured smile and a nod of thanks before going back in and shutting the door.

I debate on whether or not to go back to my room and sleep. But, for some reason, I find myself make my towards the living space. I head to the kitchen area and start opening all the cupboards and drawers, making sure everything was here. I don't really want to sleep right now. My nerves are still on edge. I'm afraid that if I fall asleep something will happen to us. No one has ever found this place, and probably never will, but we can't stay here for forever. We don't have all that much food and we can't be all that safe here for too long. They'll be looking for fugitives soon enough.

I let out a sigh and plop down on the big sofa and just lie there, one arm slung over my eyes as I think about all those others times in my life I've thought the same thing before. All those years of running, hiding. Being scared that we were going to be captured, taken away from each other, tortured. A shudder runs through me and I rub my face with the palms of my hands. Why couldn't I have a normal life? Well, to me it was normal but it would have been nice not to have to be on the run since day one of life.

Rolling over to my side a scan over the two bookshelves and see my old CD/stereo and box of CDs next to it. I get up and go over to it, stopping a bit to clear up my head and eyes from the rush of standing and the tunnel vision. I've got to remember not to get up so quickly. I take down the box and the stereo and search for a good CD. I always made new ones and Dad would bring them with him to the Base when he went to check on it. I find one that I know will lift me up, hopefully. I pop it in and wait for it to load. The first song comes on soon after, Bloom by The Paper Kites.

I let the lyrics take me over and let me float through the bliss it offers. I smile at the same lyric he sings. Can I be close to you he sings and his voice lifts me up and swallows me as I drift off to sleep on the couch in to the world of dreams with open arms and a singing heart.

"Bloom"

In the morning when I wake
And the sun is coming through,
Oh, you fill my lungs with sweetness,
And you fill my head with you.

Shall I write it in a letter?
Shall I try to get it down?
Oh, you fill my head with pieces
Of a song I can't get out.

Can I be close to you?
Ooh-oo-oo-ooh, ooh
Can I be close to you?
Ooh, ooh.

Can I take it to a morning
Where the fields are painted gold
And the trees are filled with memories
Of the feelings never told?

When the evening pulls the sun down,
And the day is almost through,
Oh, the whole world it is sleeping,
But my world is you.

Can I be close to you?
(Ah) ooh (aah), ooh (aah).
Can I be close to you?
(Ah) ooh (aah), ooh (aah).

[whistling]

Can I be close to you?
(Ah) ooh (aah), ooh (aah).
Can I be close to you?
(Ah) ooh (aah), ooh (aah).

Can I be close to you?
Ooh, ooh.