Breathing Fear

Chapter 3

The picture on the right is Avery's sundress that she wears to the ball <3. I wrote the design a bit more different though...>>>

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Chapter 3

The next morning I was eating breakfast when there was a knock at the door.

          “Come in,” my mother said.

          The door opened and in came Clara, gasping for breath, it was evident she had been running. I looked at her questioningly, and she held up a gesture that she needed to catch her breath. Finally she regained composure and walked in front of me.

          “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me last night!” she managed to exclaim.

          I rolled my eyes, and my mother looked up from the dishes she had been washing in her big bowl. I heard stories that there was once such a thing called ‘plumbing’, where you could actually get water to come out of your wall or something… how convenient that would be.

          “Tell her what?” she asked.

          I was just about to tell mother the whole story before Clara had come barging in here.

          Clara looked at my mom excitedly, catching on that I hadn’t told her the story yet, “Avery saved Caroline from falling into the ridge and in the hands of The Dead!”

          My mom’s eyes widened, “Little Caroline? Patty’s child?” she asked, turning to me.

          I nodded.

          “What in the world happened to make her come close to falling off the ridge?” she asked me.

          I shrugged, “I’m not sure. By the time I made it; because Patty was screaming for help, she was close to falling, and just barely hanging off the edge. I had to reach down and help pull her up.”

          My mom shook her head, “This is exactly why they should ban children from going on that bridge.”

          We both knew that a contributing factor to her opinion was that I had come close to falling too, when Nicholas, The Ruler, held me above the ground. She still resented the society for prosecuting my father.

          “Avery, you’re practically a hero around here now. Everyone is talking about how you saved Caroline; her mom was telling everyone how you came and saved the day.”

          I couldn’t help but feel surprised. I wasn’t a hero; I was simply at the right place at the right time. Anyone could have done what I did. I took a nervous sip of my tea and said honestly, “But I didn’t do much, if anyone were there, they could have easily done what I did.”

          Clara shook her head and said, “Everyone knows you’re very efficient… I think that if I were in your situation I would have panicked.”

          After a bit of talking, Clara left and I finished breakfast before heading outside to find her again. I didn’t even make it ten feet from my house before a man I didn’t recognize, but was sure to be one of The Rulers, walked over to me. I had resentment towards them like my mother; but this Ruler seemed somewhat friendlier.

          “Are you Avery Winters?” he asked me.

          I looked at him, unsure of what to expect, but nodded anyways. “Yes, yes I am.”