Lost between realities

Chapter 5

Once again I was the first one up. Heading into the bathroom I washed my hoodie in the sink, the blood wouldn't fully come out but it wasn't as red as it had been. The dirt did come off after a bit of scrubbing.

Leaving it to dry I sat back on the sofa and curled up into a ball waiting for someone else to wake up. Mr Chair was sat up sleeping in an armchair and Pewdie had gotten to sleep in the bed.

There had still been no sign of Stephano, not a single clue. I just hoped he was okay, and that we would find him soon. If he were with us, we probably would've escaped the castle already, he seemed like he would make an excellent leader.

I cleared my mind, my thoughts had begun to go down the path of feeling hopeless and I didn't wish to have such thoughts if I was going to get through the day in one piece.

"Good morning." Mr Chair had just woken up.

"Morning.."

"Are you cold?" He had noticed I was shivering, I wished my hoodie would dry faster.

"What? Oh, yeah, a little."

He came over and sat down next to me. Bringing the tattered red quilt that had been on the armchair with him and pulling it over us both.

"Did you sleep well?" He asked me.

I nodded.

He let me lie on him, putting his arms around me and resting his hands on my stomach.

He sighed, "We really need to make some progress today. God knows why it's taken so long... I think, at least -  how long've we been here again?"

"I don't know, but a month sounds about right."

"I'm not going back alone, I can't leave you here."

He sighed, the conversation died down for a few moments before he spoke again, "What's your life like? As in, before you came here."

"It wasn't all that bad, I mean, I had a few friends - I never saw the need for lots of friends. My family life is pretty dull, school's pretty dull. I mean - life in general was pretty dull. Though that doesn't mean I don't miss it."

"Surely it isn't that dull, come on Charlotte I'm trying to be social here, tell me about yourself."

"I don't know what there is to say. I mean, to most people back home I'm practically invisible. People make fun of me, guys date me for a joke, it's not the worst life but it gets boring being nobody."

"But you're not 'nobody', you're you. I don't understand why people treat you like that, it's stupid and I'm sorry that happens to you, but it doesn't matter because to me you're the most important person I know."

I was lost for words, "Alexander I... I- thank you," I nuzzled closer to him, pulling the blanket up to my chin. A few moments of comfortable silence passed between the two of us.

"When should we get going? If we keep resting for too long Barrel's troops will probably capture us."

"We need to wait for Pewdie to wake up first, and I'm sure that if they were watching us they would've gotten us when they took Stephano."

"True, but Barrel isn't usually like that. His plans are unpredictable."

"Oh God. So they could jump out and nab us at any minute?"

"Pretty much, yes. Though Barrel's plan are always well thought out. He will have a precise moment planned to take action. It'll be when we least expect it."

"When we least expect what?" Said a very sleepy Pewdie, who'd just sat up, looking quite disheveled.

"We were just saying that Barrel is probably planning to capture us or something," I explained.