US (Formerly The After Effect - Book 2)

12 - Cliques

a/n: long overdue I know! please read and tell me your thoughts. please mention any discrepancies if you see them! thnx, xoxo//

As united as I wish for the group to be, unity is far-fetching reality. To be honest, everyone here hates each other. There's zero trust among us. People like who they like and that's it. The more we walk, trek, and trudge through the dense forest, the more I notice the divide. It's almost as visible physically as it is in people's minds. Even the tightly knitted bonds are becoming fragile as frustration sinks in.

Miles pass us by and the grunting begins. Each sapling that's awkwardly in the way or thick branch we all have to duck under is all it takes for the nerves to run out. Talking has reached an all time minimum, which consists of Travis splurting out directions and people murmuring opinions in both slang tongues and native. And then of course there's the mind comments from any of the Five. Brink has a lot to say mentally whenever Travis decides to speak up.

The remaining Five mostly keep to themselves along the way, though an occasional out loud conversation relating to nothing in particular will rise up. Only to last a few seconds.

Bare trees gradually become a blur in the background as the surroundings take on a new meaning—setting and not scenery. As the sun plummets to the west, my fascination with the environment degrades. Hills become a chore rather than a beautiful sight. The small, pebbled creeks carved into the mountainsides are more of a nuisance than pleasant, frozen surprises. When you're tired, the last thing you want to do is jump over patches of ice.

Thus far, we've had no accidents. No one has majorly tripped, slipped, or slid. We've been cautious. The snow is pretty crunchy, signaling that the temperature must be leaning toward the slightly warmer side of winter weather today, ranging in the forties or so.

I've yet to hear one person complain about the cold; if anything, people are too warm. I've been sweating beneath my lent gear for the past couple hours at least.

The nice thing about the special suits the Five wear is the added benefits of its internal technology. Though most of it no longer works or is out of sync due to travel, much is still intact. The clock, compass, temperature gauges remain within those who've been only lucky enough to keep theirs in one piece. I only know this because every hour Stella will telepathically share an update with me on each component because I've been jipped out of the luxury. It was her idea, and I appreciate her including me, as minor as it sounds.

I've chosen to walk among the middle of the crowd, next to no one in particular. I've avoided being among the other Five for a reason; I don't want to be categorized as such in the way the revolutionaries see them--us. Plus, I don't enjoy the idea of secluding myself. I don't belong to one group. I'm not just Number Five or a revolutionary or an average joe. I'm all and more, as so many of the people here are. And yet the splits among us are severe. And when the revolutionaries around me choose to speak in their own funky ways so that I don't completely follow, I feel bummed out. I wish more than anything that I could read their minds; I'd love to hear their perspective.

Up ahead, Travis leads the pack, chatting with Jada like they're the best of friends. Travis certainly has a lot of stories to tell her, stories I've probably never heard before. It's difficult for me to get past the petty high school conversations and drama setting with the multitude of exclusion and cliques, but it eats at me. I feel like one of those girls who's always been so misunderstood, and now stands on her own, jealous and anxious. I don't like this new version of me.

"Four pm eastern. Forty-three degrees. Continuing north," Stella announces nonchalantly. It's clear the hike isn't affecting her whatsoever. In fact, none of the other Five appear at all exhausted. The training certainly has helped. Normally, I would've breaked a few times before getting to where we are now, which is nowhere in particular. Despite my training, the lack of temperature-adjustment seems to be wearing me down.