Storm

Chapter Thirty-Six

We were back where we started.

It was like nothing had even happened. Poof. Right back outside the school, staring at its brick walls and wondering what on Earth had just happened.

We'd just been let out...right?

"You know, they're probably sending spies after us or something...," Max mumbled. He'd been ranting about how much he did not trust these schoolkids since we'd walked out the front doors.

"Sure, but for what? They have their own worries to deal with," Asten replied, seeming a little exhausted. He looked worn down...like too much had happened and he was finally done.

I thought back to what he'd said when we were still in the glass. It disturbed me. I didn't think right now would be the right time to talk about it...

Or talk about what had happened right before our capture...

We had one thing to focus on right now: getting our friends back.

"How are we going to get anywhere...?" I mumbled, realizing how bad this was going to go. Our last transport option had been completely luck-based, and we didn't have any nearby vehicles to use. Well, other than the run-down car we'd slept in, but I doubted it had a working engine.

We'd managed to walk back to our little campfire where we'd been at before everything had happened. Max had dropped his pack there before getting captured (fortunately, mine had stayed with me the whole time).  Some granola bars had also been left by the dead fire. 

I focused instead on packing all that up, knowing that the situation we were in was pretty hopeless. 

"Walking...I guess," Asten replied belatedly. "Maybe find a populated area. Try stealing a car..."

"Really? That's the master plan? That sounds like a ninety nine percent chance we'll die. We can't just walk in there with barely anything and steal a car Grand-Theft-Auto style. That's insane," Max ranted, eyes wide. His hair was disheveled and there were some dirt stains on his face. It reminded me that we all probably needed a bath of some sort.

"What else do you suggest? Walking back in there and asking them for transportation, too?" Asten asked, eyebrows raised.

I sighed and shoved a handful of granola bars into my backpack. "Actually, yes."

Asten stared straight at me like I'd lost my mind. "Excuse me?"

"I said yes, we should do that."

He narrowed his eyes. "I thought you were on my side."

I rolled mine. "There are no sides. But we need to survive. And we don't have anyone else to turn to, nor anywhere else to go."

There was nothing else to do. Even though a strong side of myself screamed against walking back in there, I knew we had to. I knew that we might get locked up by little kids again, but what else could we do?

Asten crossed his arms. "I don't think that's a good idea."

Max just seemed pensive. "Eh. As long as we won't die."

"They have guns. We could easily die."

"Then, let's also bring guns. It'll be fine."

Asten didn't seem like he was going to budge. He stared at me incredulously as if I'd betrayed him or something. "You've got to be out of your mind. I'm not going back in there."

"Okay, then tell me what to do? Leave our friends behind? Wander the woods alone until we end up back in the freezing cold and die?" I snapped back. I don't know why I was suddenly in a bad mood. Well...it probably had to do with me simultaneously hungry and hopeless. And suddenly remembering that this wasn't going to be easy...and we definitely were screwed.