A World Without Trust

Chapter Four

Harry’s plan to get us to LA safely was to venture along the main highways and aim for all the main cities in each state. He reassured me that it would be safe, but I still feel as though it would be safer laying low in the bush and avoiding as many main cities and towns as possible.

After much debate I let myself agree with Harry, more so because I couldn’t be bothered to have an argument. We were about a mile out of Tallahassee headed along the highway towards Mobile, Alabama when Harry lost his cool with me. I decided to double check as to whether he was a spy or not because something about his plan just didn’t feel right.

“I swear to God I am not a fucking spy Essie! Stop asking me that. If I was I am pretty sure I would have killed you by now.”

“You just seemed so keen to come along with me to save my brother from the camp and this plan of yours to pretty much expose ourselves to every living thing seems a little odd. I mean either you are a spy and I have been stupid enough to trust you, or you don’t know the first thing about survival. How do I know you aren’t just leading me into a trap? Why do you feel so safe with me? Like, I could be a spy for all you know!”

“Can we please just drop this?”

“After you answer my question.” I reply stopping dead in my tracks to look at him properly. I long sigh leaves Harry’s mouth and he tilts his head looking back at me with that stupid smirk he does growing bigger on his face.

“Do you know what it is like to be alone and scared?” I almost burst into a full belly laugh.

“Seriously Harry?”

“Yes I am, so obviously you do know what it feels like. Now take a second and think about how that made you feel? It’s not very fun crying yourself to sleep every night, constantly feeling scared shitless and hungry, is it? So when you find someone that you feel you can trust, you hold onto that hope by doing whatever you can to stay by their side. Because if you let them go, you go back to feeling scared and lonely.” He was only inches away from me now and I had to try and hold all my different emotions in to prevent me from breaking down. His words hit me hard and I finally got his reason for being so clingy. I never let my feeling of loneliness in before but now, in this moment, I never want to let this boy out of my sight. All of a sudden I wrap my arms around Harry’s neck and I feel his arms do the same wrapping tightly around my waist. We stand like this for a long time before separating and continuing to walk down the highway in silence.

Two weeks later after non-stop walking and endless games of eye-spy to pass the time, Harry and I were only a few miles out of Memphis when I spotted a supermarket in the distance. Lately it had been getting harder and harder to find decent food that wasn’t either expired or un-recognisable. The hunger pains where getting worst every step we took, so both of us said a little prayer for there to be food to eat in this building now only one hundred metres away.

“A big, juicy steak would do me.” Harry announced as we cautiously stepped through the hole on the wall which used to be glass doors. The crunch of the broken glass sounded extremely loud against the airy silence that I was so used to. Since the attacks, most shops had been stripped bare of supplies by people trying to survive, so I try not to get my hopes up due to the fact that this place looks pretty empty.

“Essie, over here!” Harry half shouts. I turn towards him and see him holding up a large packet of crisps. “They aren’t expired.” He gleams opening the packet. I sprint over to him and shove my hand into the packet pulling out a handful of cheesy smelling crisps, wasting no time shoving them into my mouth and chewing as fast as I can. I wave of relief washes over me as I fall to my knees and take in the cheesy flavour that this food item possesses. Harry joins me on the ground holding out the packet to me.