Cold

Chapter Sixteen

I couldn't believe my ears. Is it really? Could it be? But....

"Hey Summer. What did I miss?" It can't be him. He would never talk like that.

"Lucas?!? But I thought you were working with the enemy" said Justin. Drey immediately stood up and pointed his gun at my brother's head.

"Yea. About that. Something came up so I can no longer work with them. I got fired for sticking up for my sister" he said, pointing at me.

"So this is your brother?" asked West. I didn't say anything. I just stared at my plate. My empty plate. That's how I feel right now: empty. Like nothing makes sense, nothing matters. Emptiness is what is in my heart since he 'died'. Emptiness is what I felt watching his body hit the floor. But none of that mattered because he didn't really die. He didn't really suffer. He is here, now. Torturing me.

"Summer?" asked West, touching my shoulder. I shook his hand off and walked past my brother to a different room. I locked myself in and sat against the door. Not even a second later, I started crying. Not silent crying. I was wailing. All of this was too much for my brain to handle.

"Summer, are you ok? Let me in." Someone was talking to me. It could be anyone. I didn't care who. I didn't even notice who it was. I just wanted to be alone. I didn't want anyone to know how I felt. I wanted to die in that moment. To just be set free.

***

ENOUGH OF THIS!!! You must convince your sister to stop messing with Summer.

"I'm surprised you even care that much, given everything you did to her"

Losing our feelings, are we?

"My feelings are none of your business. I don't care what you do anymore. I quit"

***

A few hours has passed by. I stopped crying a while ago, but I can't here anything coming from the other side of the door. No talking, no footsteps, no sounds, nothing. I was lying when I said I wanted to be alone. No one wants to be alone. What I needed was someone to hold me. To never stop trying. Because eventually I would break and everything in my head would become known to all my friends. I could get help. I could be saved. But I have a feeling they all gave up.

"Summer" said someone. It was Justin. Has he been just outside the door this whole time?

"I don't know what happened. I thought I knew what you were feeling. I thought I knew what was going on. But I don't. In order for me to know, I need you to tell me. So please, let me in so we can talk" he said calmly. His voice is like an ocean. So calm, so quiet. Waiting for a wave to crash into the shores. I stood up and turned around.

"I don't know how to tell you without crying" I said.

"Then cry. I'll be your shoulder. I won't tell anyone unless you want me to" Justin said. I opened the door, pulled him in, and locked it again.

"There's something I've been keeping a secret. Remember when I collapsed and cried in the storage room?" I asked.

"Yea" he said.

"Well, I cried because of Lucas. You see -" I was interupted by a loud bang. Justin looked to the door and went to open it. I put my hand on his, stopping him.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I don't think that's Lucas" I whispered. The door flung open from a blast and pushed both Justin and I back onto the ground. Justin stood up and ran to me, helping me to my feet. Lucas had a gun and was pointing it at us.

"Justin, move over there" he said with a voice that wasn't his own. Justin moved to the wall with his hands up. Lucas walked over to him and put the gun to his head.

"Answer me correctly, or he dies" he said. I recognise that voice.

"What's the question?" I asked. He looked at Justin.

"What were his first words?" asked Lucas.

"Whose first words?!? Lucas or Justin?" I asked. I am the only one whose head the mountain can't see inside. Hopefully this works.

"Ok. Sure. We'll play that game. Both. What were both of their first words?" he asked.

"Why do you want to know?" I responded.

"ANSWER THE QUESTION OR YOU'LL BE FISHING A BULLET OUT OF JUSTIN'S HEAD" Lucas yelled. I caught a glimpse of something moving out of the corner of my eye. I slightly looked to the door and saw Drey standing there with a gun. He put a finger on his mouth. I looked at Lucas again. I have to stall him for whatever the guys have planned.

"I don't know" I said. I looked to the door again and saw Reed and Bullet behind Drey, each of them carrying a gun. I looked at Lucas.

"Fine. Next question. When was Lucas born?" he asked. Why does the mountain want to know when he was born? I slowly started walking towards Lucas.

"Get out of my brother" I said. I don't care what kind of plan the guys have up their sleeve. I can't take it anymore. I can't watch my brother's body be used by the mountain. I just can't. It hurts too much.

"You're making a big mistake" said Lucas. Everything from that point on happened in slow motion. He was about to pull the trigger, but I moved in front of the gun. As I waited the bullet, I noticed that Lucas had moved the gun to his head while I was running. I grabbed the gun, and we tugged it back and forth until someone pulled the trigger. It was me. I turned around and watched as Justin fell to the floor, gripping his stomach tightly as blood ran out. I let go of the gun to run up and help, but the moment I did, Lucas shot my leg, and I fell to the floor. I crawled over to Justin and instead of holding my wound, I held his. I was so caught up in saving Justin that my brother falling to the floor with a bullet in his head didn't even phase me. West ran up to me and held Justin's stomach and yelled at me to go with Reed to the infirmary so I can get help on my leg. But I didn't. Tears were flowing down my face as I was crying over Justin's now unconscious body, fearing what was to come next. West picked up Justin and ran out of the room, Drey close behind. Reed tried to help me but I fought back. Bullet eventually had to come and knock me out. I caught a glimpse of Seth standing at the door just before I passed out in Reed's arms.

***

There was a girl. A perfect girl. She wore dresses and talked with animals. She was a Queen. She brought ten warriors together. It was these ten warriors that gave their life protecting the kingdom. Those same ten warriors grew into nations, armies capable of defeating the one person that brought them together. They used their power to grow evil, and they wanted revenge on their Queen for forcing them to attack innocent people, when they themselves were innocent once. They formed a bond with each other. One that declared they would forever be friends, no matter the cost. Two in particular caught the Queen's eye. They had formed a bond stronger than anything in the world. Those two were doomed, however, as they each had four friends who wanted revenge more than love. The Queen was terrified of this. She knew that eventually the friends would turn on each other and wage a war, and the two lovers would run away, bringing the war with them. The Queen, in her fear, created a loop, trapping each of the warriors in their bodies in different times, hoping they would see their mistake, and the war and thirst for revenge would cease to exist, along with their memories.

That is the truth, Summer. That is where you came from. You and Bullet were granted with the ability to see beyond the curse, and know that someway, somehow, you all were once connected. I let you know that story so you can learn the other half, and end this suffering once and for all. So please, do what you must. Call it redemption, or whatever you must call it, but I want to see you win this time, as all the other times, you have failed. You must not fail again, as the Queen of Sayanar has banned that from happening once more. Or else everything will disappear, and all your friends will suffer, as they watch you die and fall to ashes.