The World is After Us

Chapter 12

After leaving the office, I could barely contain my excitement. I feel immensely relieved that I am not being placed in the camps like Ander had originally planned. On my way back to the Murdochs' home, I pass Jexton on the street, and he gives me a slight nod and smile. I stop walking and look around to see if anyone is keeping their eye on me, then head toward him. 

"Hey," Jexton says, and I reply with the same greeting. I squint up against the sun as we stand in silence for a few moments. 

"Ander just told me," I begin, and Jexton nods. "Thank you."

"No need to thank me," Jexton shakes his head. "We both should have ended up in there. I'm lucky he's my brother or we could both be dead right now."

"I should get back," I change the subject awkwardly. "Gotta pack up."

"Let me help you." Jexton offers, and I smile. We begin to walk back together in silence. 

As we approach the front door of Robert and Lydia's house, our pace gradually slows. I can't find the courage to turn and look up to Jexton, and knock on the door as opposed to just walking in. 

"Come on in, Farrah. . ." Lydia's voice calls through the intercom. "And Mr. Jexton." she says attentively. The door latch unlocks, and with a light push, slides open. Jexton and I walk through the glass hallway, and I watch the beautiful flowers pass by like each time I walk through here. 

After opening the door to enter the actual house, Jexton and I remove our shoes and greet the Murdoch family warmly. Robert and Lydia are sitting across from each other at the kitchen table sipping cups of tea or coffee and sharing a plate of crackers. 

"What brings you in, Jexton?" Robert asks smoothly, and Jexton nervously smiles. 

"Well, I ran into Farrah on her way out of Ander's office and offered to help her pack and move into her new apartment."

Robert forms a half smile, half frown with his lips and nods. He takes a sip of his steaming beverage and leans back. "So you have been granted independent living." he says monotonously. I chew my lower lip and nod. 

"Yes, sir—er, Robert. Ander gave me full warning and asked for your regards."

"Lovely." Lydia says happily, not making eye contact with any of us. 

"Well, don't be in a rush, kids." Robert exclaims a little harshly. "You still have a home here if your situation doesn't work out." 

"Aoyb es tut nisht arbetn aoys." Lydia says, and Jexton blurts out a laugh. I furrow my eyebrows and look at him, then back to Mr. and Mrs. Murdoch as if they think I didn't understand what they had just said. 

"Thank you for your concern, but I think it will work out." I mention mostly in direct to Lydia's statement of if my independency will work out. I then turn away from the giggling couple and head down the stairs to my bedroom. Jexton hesitates, but eventually follows me. He walks into my room just as I am opening a dresser drawer. 

"Hey, do you even have a suitcase?" Jexton asks. WIthout looking up, I sigh and say, "Nope."

"Why are you so upset right now?" he asks. I stop what I'm doing and slam my hands on my thighs and look up at him. 

"Because, Jexton," I raise, then lower my voice out of fear that they can hear everything I'm saying. "I'm stuck here. I don't have a choice. I either live here, or I die. And I feel like a prisoner. I'm lucky they're even letting me live by myself even though I'll probably be monitored 24/7 still."

Jexton furrows his eyebrows and presses his lips together tightly. He shifts his weight and lets out a long breath that I hadn't known he'd been holding. "Mind you, I'm in the same position as you." he says, and I roll my eyes. I go back to removing clothes from my dresser and setting them in piles next to me. 

"Yeah, but you're blood. I'm not. As the ringleader's brother, you have a hell of a lot more freedom than I do."

"Yeah, that doesn't mean anything. I'm still in as much trouble as you are."

"You know, it's annoying that people talk about me in a language that I understand, thinking that I don't understand it."

Jexton chuckles, and I roll my eyes again. "I don't think that was their intention." he says, and I say nothing in return. I continue to unpack my dresser, trying not to look at him. "And Ander told me that I have to be the one to monitor you." it is then that I look up. 

"You're kidding, right?" I ask with a slight smile on my face. Jexton keeps his lips pressed together and shakes his head. He pushes his body up off of his leaning position on the wall and keeps his arms crossed as he begins to pace the room. 

"You have a really nice room," Jexton says. "I wouldn't want to leave if I was you."

"Don't say that," I blurt. "No one would want to be me. I don't even want to."

"Honestly, you got yourself into this mess, you know."

"Yes, Jexton, I know that." I answer rudely. "If you're just gonna stand here and remind me of everything I've done wrong, then you can just leave."

"Oh! Throwing me out of your room already?" Jexton asks amusedly as he tosses himself on my bed. I sigh angrily, ignoring him. "Look, Farrah, I know you're mad, but honestly, we're in this together. You get me in trouble, I get you in trouble. Neither of us would be in this if we hadn't run into each other."

"Yeah, and none of this would have happened if you didn't get in the way of my mission. I could've had this whole thing solved if I was just on my own."

"Wait a minute," Jexton responds seriously. "Now you're blaming all of this on me?"

I stop pulling clothes out and turn around to face Jexton. "Yes, I am. And you wanna know why? Because you tricked me into thinking that you were there to help me when in reality you were there to get me caught and killed. Not to mention that you did it more than once."

Jexton stares at me with furrowed eyebrows and growing angry eyes. "And did I not apologize and make up for it? After all of the tricks I still went with you. I helped you hide, I protected you, I lied to my people to keep you alive. I killed people for you. Is that really the only thing you can remember from our adventure?"

"Hah, adventure." I say, then turn around and continue folding my clothes. 

"Yes, Farrah, it was an adventure," I hear Jexton stand up. "Not a childish one, but everything we've been through together, could you think of a better word?" I say nothing, my ignorance makes him more upset. 

"Look, I don't want to fight because we're in the same boat here. Neither of us gets to check out and no one else can come in. We're really all we have, you know." Jexton says and I nod in agreement. 

I stop what I'm doing and rest my hands on my thighs with a t-shirt in them. "Yeah, I guess you're right."