The Black Envelope

Chapter 13: Hiding

Chapter 13: Hiding

The fire created a soothing heat that hit Gage’s exposed skin and burned his hands. But he didn’t care. Anything to get the memory of his brother out of his head. He had thought about Sam so much by now that every event of those past years was crystal clear in his head. And he hated it.

Fay was leaning against his shoulder, dozing off again. When her eyes started to really droop, he nudged her and gestured back to the tent. She shook her head.

“No, no. I want to talk more. I can’t fall asleep with your… imagery in my head.” Her voice shook and she looked away.

Gage stiffened and sighed. After a moment he turned back to her. “So what about your family? I know about Elsie and your parents, but anything interesting about them I should know?” He smiled a little for the first time in the hour.

Fay smiled too. “Well Elsie’s a pain, but she’s sweet. You know, she had this obsession with clocks when she was little…”

They talked for an hour. Crazy stories about Fay’s family and Gage’s friends. They stayed away from touchy topics like Jackie and Gage’s parents, but otherwise laughed and swapped memories together like old friends. Times like when Fay’s sister climbed a tree to chase a squirrel and couldn’t get down; and when Mera got obsessed with anything Greek for a month and recited all the myths to Thad and Gage until they knew them by heart. Otherwise not very interesting topics, but mostly told to cover up the events of the earlier evening.

At around ten, the fire started to dim and neither Gage nor Fay felt up enough to run out into the forest to get more wood. So they put out the fire with some rainwater they had gathered and turned to the tent. Gage coughed as he noticed the size of the tent again. Barely three feet across by six feet long, it was tiny. Not nearly big enough for both Gage and Fay to sleep in comfortably. Feebly, Gage tried to volunteer to sleep outside again, but Fay argued, saying they already put out the fire and it was way too cold.

She climbed in first and got settled, then moved her hands in Gage’s direction with an impatient huff. He sighed and got down on his knees, crawling on all fours into the small slit of an opening. Fay was curled up in the corner, trying to give him as much room as possible.

Gage snorted, “You know, I’m really not that fat.” He rolled his eyes.

Fay blushed and stuttered. “I- I know that. I just wanted to give you some room.”

Gage scrambled in and settled down on the edge of the tent, leaving plenty of room for Fay. She stayed stubbornly in the corner. Sighing again, Gage grabbed her reluctant hand and pulled her down so that she was laying comfortably on her back, with enough room around her to be as modest as she wanted.

“Do you really not like me that much?” Gage asked, only half joking.

He couldn’t really see her in the dark, but he imagined she was rolling her eyes. “No it’s not that. You just smell bad.”

He lightly punched her on the arm. “You don’t smell like a field of lilacs, either.”

She snorted softly. “A field of lilacs? Very manly thing to say there, Gage.” She yawned.

Gage thought for a second and was about to say something when he realized Fay’s breathing had evened out. He sat and listened to her breathe for a moment and then he too fell asleep.

The morning came quickly and shined dimly through the partially opened tent flap, which itself was currently fluttering in the early morning breeze. Gage was sleeping on his side, and when he woke up he turned to see that, in her sleep, Fay’s head was resting in the dip of his stomach. He barely breathed so that he wouldn’t wake her and scooted back a little. The small movement startled Fay and she jumped up so fast that her hair whipped around her face and hit Gage in the mouth. He spluttered, spitting hair out of his mouth as she looked around.