Troublesome ~ Bellamy Blake [1]

XVII. The importance of reading a map.

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S E V E N T E E N | THE IMPORTANCE OF READING A MAP

As Carter worked intently on taking apart the broken wristband, a sudden rush overcame her and left her confused at the sudden U-Turn her life had seemed to take.

She wasn't a so-called 'model citizen' on the Ark, but she followed the rules-- sometimes-- and even though she had adopted the habit of disappointing her father on a regular basis, she wasn't a bad person. She just had issues with being told what to do.

When she was on the Ark, she wished for something adventurous to happen. Anything would have sufficed. She just wanted to know she was living for a purpose and not just for the sake of existing.

Although, being on a planet full of undiscovered secrets and a danger around every corner wasn't exactly what she had in mind...

Carter considered it a good thing, though. Being on Earth did give her a purpose. Sure, it wasn't without its downside, but it was a hell of a lot better than the Ark. The U-Turn her life decided to take, was probably the best thing to ever happen to her.

Earth had molded Carter into a better person. She was more aware, more focused. She wasn't as vulnerable as before. Even with Raven and Finn by her side, Carter often felt alone. Like she was just an isolated figure with no real future. But on Earth, so was part of a group. Yes, they were criminals, but that was their title on the Ark. Down on the ground, everyone was the same and everyone treated each other with the level of respect they deserved.

A few days ago, Carter witnessed a guy convicted of murder hugging and consoling a girl who was crying because she missed her parents.

That was all the conviction she would ever need. She was part of their group, there was no point isolating herself because of the grief she felt for Charlotte's death. She had a whole bunch of people she could turn to, which is more than she ever had on the Ark. And on Earth, she did have a future. They all did.

Survival.

"I don't think I've ever seen anyone think as hard as you." Carter's eyes widened at the sound of the voice and she jumped, startled. Her head shot up to see Monty smirking at her and her face scrunched into a glare.

"An announcement of your arrival would have been nice." She murmured, glancing back down at the tiny fragments of wristband.

"That was my announcement," Monty shrugged unapologetically. He looked down at the little progress Carter had made on the wristband and quirked eyebrow. "You're still working on that thing? I thought we agreed it was useless."

Carter sighed and looked back up. "Yeah, but I needed something to keep me busy. I have strict orders to not go after Finn and Clarke until they've been gone for an hour." She explained with a small hint of bitterness. She hated being out of the loop. "How long as if been anyway?"

"You have been waiting for a total of..." Murphy looked down at his watch and then back up Carter. "Thirty-five minutes."

"Dammit," Carter exhaled dramatically. Outside of the drop ship, it had gotten lighter where the morning sun had began it's slow rise, Carter noted. She thought she had been waiting for longer than an hour. Not thirty-freaking-five minutes. "Do you know what? Screw it. I'm going, I've never listened to what Finn told me to do before, I sure as hell ain't gonna start now."

Carter pushed the chair back and darted her way towards the water system in one of the tents outside the drop ship. Her mind was only focusing on finding that pod from the Ark. Her curiosity had eaten too much of the logical part of her brain and she was desperate to finding out what the Ark had sent them. She went through a small list in her mind of what they needed. Food? There was a large chance that it was food. Medicine? Carter thought there was a possibility although they were already tight when it came to medication on the Ark anyway. Weapons? Definitely not. Radio? Yes. There had to be a radio.