The Earth Underneath Us

Ch 8: Questions

                          We've been walking for hours. I would ask to take a break but I don't. I can tell Ethan's getting tired too. 

Most of the way, I've been thinking about the old man. How could he just end his life that fast? Did he not have a family or people he cared for? It all didn't make sense. Mainly what was he talking about. Who is 'they' that he is referring too? What are they going to do that is worse. I had so many questions with no answers.  

"How are you holding up?" Ethan asks me eating a breakfast bar.

"I'm okay." 

"You don't seem okay." 

"Well, I'm not 100% okay. I can't stop thinking about what just happened." I say looking down with tears in my eyes.

"Yeah, I understand." He says looking as upset as me. I wonder what he was thinking about. Did he really understand how bad this was? 

"I just wish we had more answers. Like, what was he talking about? Who was 'they'?"

 "I really don't know, but he seemed to know what he was talking about." 

"And that note, maybe it tied in with who he was talking about...who ever wrote that note was probably the 'they' he was talking about." It made sense. The note did say we made it through, so if this is an experiment, this is only the beginning...he said whatever they're going to do next  is going to be even worse. I felt sick thinking about all of this. 

"You could be right, that's the only thing that makes since right now." He says looking up at the sky. 

It was getting dark, so we decide to lay down by a curb and rest. We lay down next to each other and stare up into the open sky filled with stars. 

"Just look up there," I whisper. "An open space that goes on and on for who knows how long. Something so big that looks so peaceful."

"Yeah. It is real big out there. Just look at those stars, peacefully floating in space, looking down at us." 

"I wonder if who ever put us in this experiment is looking down at us too." There was a silence between us for a few minutes until he finally said, 

"Can I tell you something?" He sits up and looks down at me.

"Yeah, go ahead." I look back at his sorrowful eyes.

"So you know how you asks me why I didn't take it as hard as you did when that guy,..." He paused for a minute. "...killed himself?"

"Yeah, what about it?" 

"Well I didn't take it as hard because I've been through this before." He clears his throat holding in tears.

"What are you talking about?"

"...I...I saw my mom die." He said with such sadness in his voice. Oh my god, he saw his mom die? I could never live to see my mom die. Never. He kept going, "She was walking across the street and without anyone noticing, a big truck hit her. The careless truck driver was taken to jail." His face turns into anger. "She was such a wonderful women. She cared for me more than anyone in this world." His angry face turned into a little smile. "We were in New York over summer break 3 years ago, and that's when she died. My dad took it harder than me. He cried for weeks, never leaving the house. I had to order food and care for myself for awhile until he gave up. He told me how sorry he was for all of this and how he was going to take care of me and be there for me no matter what." He wipes his eyes and lays back down. "It's just something I can't forget. So yeah, I know exactly how you felt at that gas station, except worse, it was my own mother." My mind was spinning. Sorrow and guilt filled my stomach even though I wasn't the one that killed her. 

"I'm truly sorry. I really am. I never...knew you went through that. I could never imagine how hurt you must have been, still are." I sit up and look him in the face. He can tell I really cared because he leaned in and kissed me. His warm lips touch mine like it was meant to be there. I let go and look into his eyes. 

"Thank you." He says. 

"No, thank you."