The Ball Night

Inbetween

Jacks P.O.V

"And the rabbit said to Alice-" An explosion interrupted my reading...again.

Crumbles felled from the ceiling by the explosion  against the page of the book and Catherine dusts it off. She urges me to continue to read and I tried to find where I left off.

"The rabbit tapped his stopwatch before jumping in his rabbit hole. Alice, with curiosity of a child, following the rabbits steps and-" Again, an explosion cuts me off, however this ones  twice as worse as the last.

A part of the wall bursted and dust filled the room. I waved my hand, coughing as I bookmarked the page and closed the book. It's impossible to read as we're taking shelter from a bomb raid.

"Jack Pierre!" A man shouts my name as he approaches closer to us.

I can't believe Lieutenant Daniel placed Catherine and I near the god damn castle, me as a soldier and Catherine taking care of the artillery.

1 month ago, January 2

Catherine, Levin, Matthew, Anne, Philip and I were huddled around the campfire, drinking coffee and catching up.

"You know, I wouldn't be surprised if you came back as a general, Jack." Exclaimed Anne as she looked up at the rainy sky.

"I have to agree, more or so say I betted my ass that you would come back as the head leader of the other kingdom, guess I lost." Matthew spoke then mumbled near the end.

I just simply laughed and drank coffee, even if the world was ending, spending it with those who I love feels like heaven on earth. I turn towards Catherine, who was laughing and chatting away with Levin.

I needed a stretch, I got up and began to walk back to my tent. I grabbed my cap and began to head towards the woods. As I expected, everyone else questioned as I was making my way into the woods.

"My legs are about to cramp up if I stay there any longer, I'll be back in a couple of minutes." I waved them off and finally I was in the woods.

To my surprise, as I walked farther, I wasn't ambushed, no bullets were shooting at my direction. No, everything seemed...still. I stopped, the smell of fresh pine filling in my lungs as the mist of my breath clouded in front of me.

Then, it hits me. I blinked and looked at my arm. I got a glimpse of white before it went away, then another right in front my nose. I gazed up at the clouded sky, little by little, ever so slowly, it began to snow.

Shit, as if the war wasn't hard enough already. I decided to head back to camp, wanting to see the others reactions.

"Finally, hey he's back!" Shouted David as I stepped out of the trees line and into the camp.

Catherine stepped out of her tent and approached me. I stared at her, wondering how's she feeling. Ever since she's been with me, I've always wonder and ponder of the thought of her emotions. What is she always feeling, and how will she express it towards me?

She smiles, looks up at the snowing sky and says," Seeing this snow firsthand, out of the castle, feels as I met you back at the ball."

I chuckled," Admiration?"

"Wonderstrucked." She says.

My eyes stared up at the sky now, wonderstrucked? I've never heard of that word, but it suited this moment of silent peace. I closed my eyes, an unfamiliar yet extraordinary feeling washed in my heart. The numbness of my fingers from the freezing cold is the best way I could describe this feeling.

Yeah, that sounds about right. Just me, the crying sky and her by my side is all I ever need to continue to live.

"If I were to say my worst torture I've ever witnessed and felt, it would be a world without you." I whispered, still staring up at the sky.