M3RG3

Chapter 8

Sunday

"Today, we're taking you to see the outside of the Republic. The Wastelands, where the poor live, and how we can hopefully try to amend their problems in the future." Matthew muttered, looking far from happy to be babysitting 23 teenagers.

We were all crammed into a locomotive cabinet. Most of the unathletic people were seated while the rest tried to maintain their balance as the cabin wobbled and screeched to a few stops. After a while, Lyla lent her seat to Jamie, who couldn't stop stumbling and tripping as he sent her a thankful smile before sinking into the wooden seat.

"For those of you in my class, try to jump off the locomotive once the doors open. It's scary at the start, but it makes escaping much more efficient." Simultaneously, the doors screeched open as the air whipped around my face wildly. Matthew grabbed the side rails and leapt off the train with a flip, landing on the ground on both feet. Showoff.

The others also tried. Of course, none of them could land as perfectly as Matthew. My throat constricted increasingly as I inched closer and closer towards the opening gap of the doors.

"Aren't you going to jump?" Kyle was right behind me. It took me this time to realize that I was supposedly the next person to jump. Lauren scoffed and snorted in an unladylike manner. "Allow me to demonstrate." She gave me an exceptionally hard push before reaching towards the edge of the train.

"Stop." The locomotive was still moving rapidly as the doors swung wildly. "I'll jump." I couldn't care less, whether I would fracture my arm, my leg or any other part of my body. I just wasn't going to care whether Lauren would make my life hell for the rest of this month. I just couldn't care any less.

I leapt off the moving locomotive, feeling the wind whip around my hair and the sickening feeling stir in my stomach. I watched the ground get closer and closer until my feet hit the ground with a sturdy thump. The dizzying feeling was still there, an aftermath of the massive momentum shuddering through my entire body. I could still feel my stomach churning loudly, like the roar of a wave in a tsunami.

"You okay?" Lyla and Natasha were behind me. The locomotive had finally stopped as I sent them a woozy grin.

"Yup, totally-" The churning had increased to a maximum. The train, the jump, it was just too much. I retched, throwing up the breakfast I ate a few hours ago onto the floor.

I heard some girls scream in horror at my vomit. Natasha took a few steps back as Matthew's face wrinkled in disgust. Kyle scrunched up his face as his eyes flitted to the vomit then back to me.

"Hey, you okay?" Jamie was crouched down next to me, surprisingly unbothered by what just happened.

"Peachy," I mumbled, still crouched on the floor. "Just peachy."

"Someone clean this mess up!" Matthew barked. "Otherwise, this field trip doesn't continue."

I stood up again, about to clean up my own mess, when I stumbled due to my drunken stupor. Fortunately, two arms shot forward and steadied me before I hit the floor. Kyle didn't release his hands until I could stand properly and gave my shoulders a reassuring squeeze before releasing them.

"Jamie and I'll clean it up," Kyle replied, nodding at Matthew. "You stay put," He muttered before sauntering away with Jamie.

After that one humiliating stunt, I mentally made a pact to never vomit in front of my classmates again.

We trotted along the poorly built roads and houses. I knew that my home wasn't the poshest place in the Republic, but this was worse than I had anticipated.