SOJOURNER (III): tmr gally

13: I should have known

Leo 13

I wake up, the sun streaming in the windows. The soft light is a pleasure I have missed. The sun was gone for so long, and then it was blazing, and then it was gone again. Now, it gently kisses me awake.

I wish Newt was hear with me.

I sigh, sitting up and forward. It seems so peaceful for the Scorch. Part of me wants to sit and relax, but I can't. I know where we are going. I know what we must do.

When I look to the door, I notice Sonya fast asleep. The front door is ajar. No one else is awake yet. I rustle out of the bag, spinning around. There was no one on guard last night except for her. I was supposed to be next. Why didn't she wake me up?

"Leo..." Teresa groans from where she sleeps next to me.

"Sorry," I manage, moving away from her. I head to the door, moving towards Sonya. I place a hand on her shoulder, and she violently shakes awake.

She gasps for air, before looking up at me. "Hey Leo." She always has such a pleasant smile on her cheeks. It reminds me of Newt's.

"Good morning," I manage, leaning down next to her. "You slept well."

"I hope you did too," she offers, her cheeks still tinged pink.

"Why didn't you wake me?" I ask softly. I was supposed to be the next watch.

She yawns, looking up out the windows. "Ella told me she would keep watch for you."

I stop, glancing around the room. Ella isn't here. I vaguely remember her nudging me last night while I was sleeping, but then she began talking to Teresa. Maybe she was trying to wake me up.

I move to where I left Ella, curled up tight to keep her warm. The spot is empty. I glance around at the rest of the girls, scanning the sleeping bags for any sign of her. If she is here, she is hiding in one of the doors branching off from this room.

I go to the first door, opening it. Inside is a simple closet. The next is the same, and the next as well. I run down the stairs, heading into the basement. All the doors are unlocked, except for one, and if I can't get into it I doubt Ella is in there. Still I bang on the door.

"What the bloody Hell are you off about?" Sonya is on the stairs staring me down.

"Ella isn't here," I turn around, letting my hand, curled up into a fist, slowly lower down off the door. The steel is cold against my hand. Cold and unrelenting.

Sonya darts back up the stairs hopefully to get Harriet, or Teresa, or someone else with some responsibility. I still have no place amongst their ranks, and while I hated the responsibility in the Glade, the lack of it here is driving me crazy.

"Ella!" I call out, banging on the door. I don't know why she would go down here. It's a concrete wasteland. There is exposed piping for shuck's sake.

Michelle comes up behind me, with her hammer, and smashes the doorknob. It clangs, rolling on the ground, and with her spare foot Michelle kicks the door open. Down underneath, is the tunnel we've been travelling through. No Ella.

I charge back up the stairs, pushing through the girls that have crowded on them. Everyone is staring at me. I can feel their eyes penetrating my skin. My arms start to itch, and I fend against the need to scratch them. Everyone already thinks I'm crazy.

"Ella's gone," I peer around the room. Talking to myself. Maybe trying to rationalized the fact that I somehow managed to let a sick girl disappear from beneath my fingers in a shucking desert.