TWDG\\II-South State

FOURTEEN

Clementine
I lifted the wood above my head, my muscles convulsing as I did so. I placed it carefully on the timber shelf, and stepped back.
The shed I was in smelt like pine and rust; only a little bit of sun filtered through the tinted windows. Sweat clastered under my thighs, and foreheard, and under my armpits as I bent down to lift another one. I let out a tired sigh; I was not in the best mood.
I had just about cried my eyes out to AJ last night; I wasn't in the right headspace either.
And I might need to apologise to Violet; she seemed really pissed when she left our unit last night.
I looked around the room; I was by myself. Jerome insisted I continued doing his dirty work for him, but he cut off the guard supervision. That meant I could rest somewhat. I sat down on a plastic red stool, and rested my arms and legs. The pile of wood to stack never seemed to get smaller. I examine my blistering hands, and sighed. I really do wonder where AJ is. Somedays I get up earlier before him, and leave the unit to do some job, and he's by himself. I reach over to get my half empty cup of water, when I see a figure guarding the outside of the window. I flinch upwards, an unnerving and familiar pain coming from beneath my prosthetic. I thought it was a guard, maybe coming to check on me, when I realised that that was a face I knew all too well.
"Gabe!" I cried, and rushed to the door. I opened the door to the shed, and there he was, standing there.
And oh god, he did not look well.
His clothes were torn and stretched in some places, his face marked with some some of scratches; thin red lines that have seemed to have just pierced his skin.
Since the shed door was on the South side of the Camp, facing the barrier, no guards could've seen him. I didn't have time to examine the emotion on his face any longer, when I dragged him into the shed quickly.
"Clem!" He sighed, and he hugged me, a stench catching my nose as soon as he lifted his arms. I ignored that as I returned the hug, and sighed.
It was too unreal.
"I thought you were dead!" I gasped, as I pulled away. "Are you... are you okay? Where the fuck have you been?!"
Gabe nods. "I was...I waited out a while...out there."
Gabe vaguely pointed outside. I could only imagine the harsh hell he had gone through over this week and a half. The cold, the rain, even the harsh heat at some points.
"Oh god..." I spoke, and sighed. "That...that must've been terrible."
"Yeah..." Gabe spoke. In the breach of that moment, my eyes caught sight of a crisp, brown leafy, tangled in his dark hair. I leaned up, and fished it out of his hair with my two fingers. It was awkward then, as I bit my lip. Gabe just grinned, his familiar dorky smile abstaining the moment.
"So, uh, where were you?" I asked. I mostly used the question to break the silence, as well as genuinely wanting to know where Gabe had ventured off to.
"All over; I've been hiding in a lodge not far from here. It's wiped clean, South State picked it clean!" Gabe sighed. "I was trying to find a way to sneak and save you, but I knew you'd get us out of here if I found you."
"We don't have a plan, yet." I said. "But so far, we're gaining supplies and possibly hijacking one of the truck's in the garage at the back."
"I saw that." Gabe nodded. "Seems...good. When and how were you guys planning to escape?"
"We're not sure." I said. "Still...kinda figuring that out."
"Okay." Gabe shot me another grin, and, as embarrassed as I felt at that moment, I felt heat in between my legs. I shifted to my legs to my fake foot. God. What was happening? "Well, I can't be seen. Not just yet. But tell Javi to—"
"Javi?" I asked, the name still raw as I grieved it. Oh...Javi...
"He told me to run, and maybe to help you guys." Gabe said, confused with my questioning.
It dawned to me that I might have to explain to Gabe that Javi, his only family left, was indeed dead.
I visibly gritted my teeth, and Gabe noticed it.
"What?" He asked, anxiety present in his voice.
"Javi..." I choked, and I sighed, looking away from Gabe's face to save myself from crying again.
"He's..." Gabe pressed, but then it must've clicked at that moment. "He's dead."
It wasn't a question. And it wasn't even false. I looked up at him, and I noticed moisture build up in his eyes as his chin trembled.
As well as I didn't want to see my best friend in pain, I pulled Javi into a tight hug, wrapping my hands around his shoulders as his tears sunk into the collar of my jacket. I didn't hear his cries, thank god, but when he spoke, his emotion was heavily imprinted into his voice.
"Why?" He asked. "How?"
He whined at the end of his question, and I awkwardly rubbed his shoulders as he looked at the cement ground. He wiped his nose, and stared at me directly in the eyes, his usually dark pupils dilated into a light brown.
I hugged him again, only this time, as I leant forward, I planted a kiss on his cheek. A friendly, mourn kiss.
And it seemed like we stood there and hugged for a long, long time.