All But I

Chapter 3

It's not every day you wake up to the sound of footsteps and a branch snapping.
I was quickly snapped out of my sleep and hurried outside trying to be sneaky.
I saw someone creeping around my base, looking around trying to find something,
It had a human-like figure but I knew it couldn't be... No one else was left, I must still be dreaming.
A branch snapped from under my foot, the figure stopped and looked directly in my eyes.
I pinch myself trying to wake myself up.
The wind blew on my face so slightly, sending shivers down my spine.
The figure took one step towards me, lead by another.
"Are you- are you real?" his voice was shaky and I was shocked, I had so many different emotions, I could only force out one word.
"Y-yes" I gulped down on my own breath.
His hand reached out and poked my arm, his eyes widened as he stumbled backwards but quickly regained his footing.
"I'm going mad" He quickly spoke, sitting down on the damp floor.
He looked up at me, his green eyes looked at mine before looking around with a puzzled expression "How long have you been here...?" He asked me.
"5 years... This is the first place I've been since everyone.. you know?" I pointed into the distance at what remained of my home which was now overgrown with weeds and trees, houses that have fallen down were still obvious "I came from there, I thought I was the only one left"
He looked down at the floor, rubbing his hands together and his leg shaking, trying to process this new information.
"I'm sorry." His voice was gentle "I've been walking for days, I don't even know how long anymore, I've lost count" He still hadn't looked up from the ground yet my eyes were still glued to him.
He was slim, a good head taller than me, his hair was a dirty blonde and he's very attractive.
His hair was greasy and the black lines under his eyes made me aware of how much sleep he hasn't gotten. The life in his eyes was gone and he looked malnourished.
We didn't speak for a good few minutes, a knife could have cut through the thin silence.
"I... I don't get it. Where did they go, what happened, why weren't we taken with them" The worry in his voice was clear and he was choking back his tears. I sat down next to him and gently put my arm around this strangers back, if everything were normal, this wouldn't be something I'd do.
All I could say was "I don't know" this boy was broken. Feeling helpless, I just rubbed my hand on his shoulder, I didn't know what to do. A few moments pass and he looks at me, I removed my hand and put a distance between us.
"Adam," He says.
"What?" I gave him a puzzled look.
"My names Adam" He sighs.
"Oh, sorry. I'm Eve" I replied to him with a soft tone.
Apart from me didn't trust Adam, I never trusted other people easily. But I wanted to. Knowing I'm not the only person alive puts out a fire in me that relaxes me a bit.
"How old are you?" as soon as these words came out of my mouth I held my breath.
"16," He said after a moment's pause "You?" he asked.
"According to my not accurate calendar... I've just turned 16."
He lets out a chuckle and I smiled at him.
"Not so accurate" he repeats my words while giving me a cheeky grin.
I elbow him and laugh. He does too.
Adam stands up and turns around, checking out the view as he lets out a sigh.
My base was facing the sunset, so I got a nice view of it every night whilst enjoying my daily feed of either squirrels or rabbits and the occasional small bird and berries. I didn't starve, my stomach was used to it now and knows my strict food limits, too much and my food source would go dry, which I then realize that with an extra mouth to feed things might get a bit tricky.
"What do we do now" Adam spoke, still looking out at the view.
"I have no idea" I answered truthfully because I don't know what to do.
He finally turned around and his eyes met mine.
"What do you normally do around here... for fun?" He asks.
'Not much, I'm always on my feet doing stuff, though I do take a swim in the lake nearby, swimming isn't much fun to do alone."
Adam looked at me with a weird look painted on his face "Well what are we waiting for? Relax a little and let's go for a swim" He laughed
I let out a sigh and stood up, and ventured into the woods with him on my tail, it wasn't a long walk. Maybe for 5 minutes.
"What do you eat around here," Adam asked.
"Squirrels, rabbits, the odd bird and some berries if I'm blessed. I would have planted some vegetables but it seriously did not strike my senses when I was in town" I replied.
"Don't you get bored of the same things...?" Adam carries on his conservation.
"Yeah, I guess. But I don't really want to starve to death." I laughed.
"Fair enough I guess. If I'm being honest it's the same for me too. I might get the odd deer which would last me two days"
This was vital information to me, we talked about how we hunted, cooked, and we agreed that he hunted and I cooked - which I didn't mind. I loved cooking.
We spent the night talking about that day when our whole lives crumbled around us.
A week flew by very fast, we worked together well and enjoy each others company. We built another room for Adam, a place for him to be alone.
I found myself staring at him... a lot. When he locked his eyes on mine, butterflies bounced around in my stomach, no boy has ever made me feel this way.