Lost

19

Tobias Eaton, July 6th, 12:35, 2015

"See? Those don't look too bad on you" she says, jumping on the bed.
I look down at my pants, and black t-shirt.
While it is cleaner- and comfortable- I'm not sure if this is such a good replacement for my mandatory uniform.
But, I still have my old clothes washing and drying, so I'll wear these until those are done.
"I wasn't sure if you wanted pepperoni or cheese, so I got a slice of both"
I eye the pizza, and she chuckles.
"Not a pizza fan?"
"Forgot what it tastes like" I say, grabbing the cheese by the crust.
"What? What do you even eat?"
"Hotdogs, most of the time"
I fold the pizza in half, and bite into it.
I chew.
"Well?"
I moan, "Oh my god this is so good!"
She laughs, "I know, it's great. When you're done with that one, have the pepperoni"
"You don't want it?"
"I already ate"
"Suit yourself"
When I finish with the cheese, I start on the pepperoni.
"Is it good?"
"Magnificent"
She smiles.
When I finish I ask, "Where's your boyfriend?"
She suddenly frowns, "Uhh, he's touring the city"
"Without you?"
"I didn't want to go"
"Because of me?" I ask.
"Well, I can tour New York anytime, but I can't see you everyday"
There's a brief silence.
She breaks it.
"What happened to you? After I got away?"
I blink.
Should I lie or tell her the truth?
"After you got away...." I start, "I, uh, um..."
"Tobias, please don't lie to me"
Darn.
I take in a breath, "After you escaped, the men who chased us- well, they took me in. Like one of their own. They raised and trained me. So, here I am"
"Did they train you to steal?"
I draw my eyebrows together, "I never said that"
"I know. But you were in jail for stealing. I put the puzzle pieces together. So, did they?"
Gosh, this woman is so damn smart.
"Yes" I say, "I couldn't think of any other way to live. I didn't want to go back to my father, I didn't want to be in the foster system"
Her eyes flick towards mine, "Cool"
"You think it's cool?" I ask, astonished by her reaction.
"I'm a writer. Anything against the rules is cool. It's like an inspiration"
"So, you're a writer now?" I ask her.
She nods, leaning back in the bed frame.
He looks so angelic, like a gift from the heavens- that's how beautiful she is.
I smile, "That's a lot better than what I am"
She smiles at me, "May be"
"Come on. You get the fame, the fun-"
She smiles, "So do you. Your fame might be wanted posters but at least it's fame"
I laugh, "Of course"
"And plus, it's not that much fame" She says.
"You kiddin me?" I ask.
"Well-"
I search her room, looking in the shelves and on desks.
"What are you doing?" She asks, smiling.
"You don't have a single copy of any of your books in here?"
"I just got here yesterday, give me a break" she says, not shifting.
"Well, I was going to hold it up, read the reviews on the back, praise it, and then worship it. But oh well"
She smiles, and hops off the bed, zipping and unzipping something.
She hands me a copy of Lost.
With a girl on the cover. Looks like Tris. Almost.
Just older.
"Praise it" she says, crossing her arms.
It shakes me out of my fantasy.
I smirk, "OH GREAT AND POWERFUL BOOK, YOU ARE GREATER THAN ME. PLEASE ACCEPT THE CRUST OF MY PIZZA"
And with that she's laughing. She's laughing so hard, she has a little snort in her laugh.
And then a vibration ruins it all. A vibration coming from the counter.
Her phone.
Her smile fades when she sees the name on the screen.
But yet, she still picks it up. "Yeah?"
I can't hear the other side of the line.
"What? Why would you-?"
Silence.
"Well, I can do whatever I want....I don't think so....well....No, I don't....Sure"
She hangs up.
She sighs.
"Was that your boyfriend?" I ask.
"Yeah" she says, placing her phone on her nightstand.
"You don't seem to thrilled"
"Its complicated. We're both so busy"
"Did he need something?"
There's a beat of silence.
"No" she says, the corners of her lips turning up, "Is there somewhere you want to go?"
"What?"
"Like a sightseeing place"
"Well, it's nearly two in the afternoon..."
She grabs her phone, pressing on it.
"What are you doing?"
"Calling for an Uber Taxi"
"Why?"
"Because we're going somewhere"
_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

After an hour taxi ride, we pull up in a deserted area- nothing but crops and crops and crops for endless miles.
But then I recognize it.
The corn maze.
The one we went through as children.
The same lady sits on the stool, a stack of coupons on her table. Wrinkles kissed her face while we were gone. She must be in her forties.
We exit the Uber Taxi.
"Tris?"
"I know. Thank me later"
Without taking my hand, she strolls towards the lady.
I follow behind her.
"Two, please"
"Hey, weren't you kids here a couple years back?" She says, smiling.
Tris glances at me, and I at her.
"Maaaaaaybeeee" she says, dragging her vowels.
She smiles at us, taking some buttons and coupons.
"You kids have fun. Such a cute couple"
I peek at Tris to see her reaction- her mouth opening like she's going to object- but she doesn't.
Instead, we walk into the corn maze.
Together.