The Story of the Wild Ones

Chapter 14

The next day, I woke up to see I was still in the ruins. It slightly surprised me, as I would normally wake up on Earth, but I was grateful. I couldn't leave them again.

Not now.

I walked into the main quarters to see Andy, Ashley, Jinxx, Jake and CC all sitting on the floor, discussing something. "Look who's up!" CC said with mock entusiasm as I entered. "Shut up," I told him, getting a drink of water. I sat down next to them, in between Jake and Jinxx. "How are you, Jake?" I asked him. "Hell of a lot better than being in the cell," he answered. "Has anyone caught you up on everything that's been going on?" I asked. Looking confused, he shook his head. I bit my lip, not wanting to be the one that told him. Andy noticed my unwillingness and stepped up to explain to him the fire, Legion of the Black, the Wild Ones and our plan of attack. Jake had an unreadable expression on his face. When Andy finished, he slowly nodded. He took in a deep breath and sighed. "It's not like I can say no," he said, cracking a smile. We all smiled and patted him on the back. "You'll be fine," I told him. He smiled at me.

I opened my mouth to say something when a woman burst in through the door. I immediately recognized her as Andy's mother. Andy stood up, confused. With wild eyes, she gripped her son and asked in barely a whisper, "Where's Ellie?"

We all froze. Andy gave her a confused look. "I told her to stay..." he started, but trailed off as a look of realization and horror crossed his face. "No no no no no," he mumbled, dashing out of the hut and high speed. His mother followed him out, but slowly, realizing what had happened as well. The rest of us stared at each other with wide eyes and gaping mouths.

Ashley was the first one of us to speak. "I didn't even see her..." he whispered. "She must have snuck behind us and stayed in the back," Jinxx said. "Do you think she..." I started, but Jake cut me off. "We can't think negatively. At best, she's hiding out somewhere, maybe a little injured. Or maybe she got taken captive. Even if it is horrible, it's better than dying," he said. "Oh God, she means the world to Andy. If she got hurt..." Ashley started. No one continued, we all knew that Andy would burst.

~

"Andy!"

"Andy's back!"

"Look, it's Andy!"

I sat up and looked over the edge of the metal bridge to see a tall figure walking towards our huts. My stomach dropped as I saw he was carrying someone in his arms.

Ellie.

I raced down the stairs and ran to meet him just as he entered the ruins. He laid her down gently, as if to not disturb her.

More people gathered around as Andy just crouched on the ground next to her, examining her for any last signs of life. The wound in her stomach, however, proved that there were none. Jinxx approached us and put a hand on Andy's back. Andy looked up at him. "Do you want to stay?" Jinxx asked. Standing up, Andy nodded.

Through Ellie's burning ceremony, Andy didn't say a word. His facial expression hasn't changed since he entered the ruins. It was like an unreadable mask. This was scaring me, because I knew once this actually sunk in, it would hit him hard.

Later that night, I heard a shuffling from outside the hut. I peeked out and saw Andy's form walking away from our hut. As quiet as a shadow, I snuck out and began following him. He traveled a long way to an old house at the front of Hysteria. It was still intact, so I guess the fire had burned out before it reached the house. I stopped for a second as I realized that this was Andy's childhood home. He and his parents moved out after Ellie was born. Why he would come here, I don't know. I saw him enter the house and silently followed behind him.

Andy began climbing up a flight of stairs. I followed behind him, stepping on a wrong board, resulting in a soft creak to emit from the floorboards. He froze for a minute, but sighed and shook his head before continuing up the stairs. I followed him into a ratty child's bedroom with large holes scattered in the walls. I stood in the door, wondering how the holes got there until I saw Andy turn around and punch a hole in the wall. I didn't have to see his face to see the look of fury on it. He pressed his back against it, sinking to the floor. He hugged his legs and put his forehead on his knees. I listened quietly until I heard sobs coming from him. I snuck in and sat next to him, putting my arms around his thin frame. He leaped to his feet, a frightened look in his eyes and ready to attack, until he realized it was just me. "Willow...did you follow me?" he questioned. I bit my lip and nodded. He sighed and sat back down next to me, allowing more tears to fall. He leaned his head against the wall, loud sobs escaping his throat.

"I'm sorry," he gasped. "I don't let people see me like this." I wrapped my arms around him again. "Don't be sorry, Andy. No one can be strong forever, not even you, no matter how much you act like it," I told him.

Andy nodded then yawned. "Come on, Andy. Let's go home," I said, standing up and offering him my hand. He took it, and I helped him up and together we walked back to the hut to go to sleep.

**Author's note**

I'm probably not going to update until tomorrow. I'm considering a chapter, but I'm not too sure I'm going to write it. When I'm done contemplating I'll upload.

I'm also considering a sequel to this story. What do y'all think? Leave a comment, your opinion means everything :)