Stargazer (Write Awards 2013)

Chapter 15 (Write Awards 2013)

"June come on!" Aaron snatched me away from the man and his arm. He was frozen, his eyes watching my every move. I'm sure my eyes were as large as plates, but I couldn't stop staring long enough to move. Words formed inside my numb brain but I couldn't move my mouth for form them.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice thin and frail, even to my ears. In the distance I could hear the squealing of tires but it was a dull background noise. The man opened and closed his mouth a few times, trying to say something and as the seconds ticked by, I failed to see, or hear, the van as it pulled up next to us. Aaron jumped out and grabbed me by my collar and hauled me up into the van.

Someone jumped out from the front seat and drew his arm back, before letting it go and hitting the man with the side of the paint guns. The man fell to his knees, unconscious and I could see that the attacker was the rude kid, Corey.

"Get him in the van and tie him up," Aaron commanded as he reached behind him and pulled out some thick corded rope. Together they dragged the man into the van and Corey jumped into the front seat and drove off, leaving Aaron to tie him up.

"June, get away from him," Aaron warned as I knelt down next to the man, leaning up against the side of the van. I ignored him, sitting up straighter when the man groaned and rolled his head. When he opened his eyes, a thin film of white covered his eyeball, the only evidence of drowsiness.

Aaron made a noise of disgust when he saw the man and his eyes, trying to pull me away from him.

"Who are you?" I asked the man again. He groaned something and I had to refrain myself from repeating the question. Drowsiness was something that no one at home took well. It was like being unable to control your body. Watching through a haze, and let me tell you this: it sucked.

A few seconds later the white started to clear up and the man seemed to hold his head up, so I asked again.

"Six-four-one," he groaned. Oh please no. Something must have happened because Aaron yanked me backwards and held my arms with his. It only registered that I was about to claw at him, but I found I didn't care. There was only one word that bounced through my head.

"You're a Guard," I whispered, causing Aaron to tighten his hold on me. The Guard nodded and wriggled around and found himself restrained. My whole body was shaking from the fear that tore through me. He mustn't get loose. Guards were trained to kill with anything they had available, including their fists.

"June, he's not going to break free of the ropes," Aaron told me but before I could say 'I doubt that', the sound of the ropes snapping proved him wrong. The Guard rolled away and a small knife shone in his hand; the severed rope sat on the floor. Aaron yelled something to Corey and the van jerked to the side, causing Aaron to stumble as he reached for something in the front, leaving me unmoved and staring at the Guard.

He was breathing hard and fumbling for the door lock. Somehow, I felt compelled to blurt out 'There's no handle." The Guard glanced over his shoulder in confusion but realizing he was trapped with us. He turned and held out the knife, blade up. Aaron came up next to me, holding one of the paint guns in his hand.

The three of us had a stare down, the Guard glancing at me every few seconds. The silence that filled the van was as loud as sound, and I realized that Corey had stopped the van. I didn't risk glancing over my shoulder to see what he was doing, in fear of something happened when my head was turned.

The Guard slowly put down the knife, before raising his hands in surrender.

"I don't want to hurt anybody," he said and I felt suddenly homesick when he spoke. His ascent reminded me of home, and it was only know did I really hear the difference between the two voices.