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_05_theplan_

i can't believe that kid, is one of ryan's first thoughts waking up today.

after his last time talking with thomas, someone he'a barely known a couple days, ryan is a little unsettled. worried, even. the last thing they talked about was the city and "escaping" it? ryan pondered how the boy could've ever jumped to such a conclusion out of the blue. they talked about their shared oddities such as dreams about things that lie outside of the city. ryan had always pushed them aside, because although they were oddly specific and frequent in occurance, there was no way they actually meant something. but though he didn't want to admit it, ryan had recently started to question the possibility of them being memories, eepecially now after meeting thomas.

thomas worried him though, he appeared to be thinking up some great scheme, ryan hopes -god he hopes- not an escape plan.

ryan admires thomas, enjoys his company. but he's gotta admit, thomas seems far more reckless and adventurous, more daring than ryan could ever dream to be. but daring could lead to trouble, something that scared ryan just thinking about. he didn't want anything to happen to thomas or himself.

ryan rolls over and pulls himself out of his bed, hands on his head and wracked with anxiety. how was he supposed to focus on getting his work done today when all he could think about is thomas finding a way for them to escape?

escape. that word has always been so foreign to ryan, he never thought he'd ever have to think it, much less potentially do it. for as long as he can remember, this city has been his home. he never thought he'd ever leave.

he grabs a shirt from his stack of clothes on the table and pulls it over his head, trying to get over his worries. he hates being stuck in his head about things when they're probably not anything big at all, so he convinces himself it'll all be fine as he slips into his work shoes, setting off to start another day in the fields.

•••

after he left from their conversation the previous day, thomas had taken immediately to scoping out the city. he had to get a good idea of the perimeter of the city, all its quirks and flaws, to try to figure a way out.

as he was skimming the walls, he was thinking of possibly climbing them. but as he looked up and up and up, he was starting to shove that idea aside. there's no way he'd be able to scale a thirty foot tall wall. thomas starts to trek his way back through the neon graveyard, as it's almost past sundown. he looks at all the graves as he passes through, each of the glowing stones reflecting in his eyes, seeming to call out to his soul.

he stops, feeling something almost tugging at him. pulling him back. almost as if the souls in the graves are trying to tell him something. he decided to go back to the wall he was just over at, walking along it, running his hand along the stone. as he walks further, he begins looking up. eyes scanning, he finds one part of the wall on the south side of the city that has a crack in the top of it. he couldn't tell from the ground how big the crack was, but it was worth taking a chance on the plan that was forming in his head.

sure, it seemed impossible to scale the walls. but thomas was gonna do it. was it a stupid idea? yeah. would ryan ever agree to it? unknown. but thomas is hoping he'll be able to convince him.

•••

unbeknownst to thomas, he had been spied on while he was out scheming by the wall. watching thomas walk back into the city from a secluded spot, the figure turns around and starts walking back to their place of residence, red cloak flowing in the wind behind them.

•••

ryan sticks his shovel into the ground, bringing it back up a second layer and throwing dirt out of the hole he's creating. once it's big enough, he throws some seeds into it, about four or five. he doesn't even know what the seeds are meant to grow, as there is hardly any sign of actual life on the ground anywhere in the city. the color palette here is very bland; it's mainly just grey. buildings, dirt, the pavement, even their clothes- black, grey, and white articles of clothing. no saturation whatsoever.

there you go again questioning things, he tells himself, shaking his head. ryan can't tell if he's just paranoid or confused, but he doesn't know where his own head is at right now. it's like he's having an existential crisis; nothing makes sense. the city, the possibilities of what lie outside of it, if there even is anything out there...no, he can't keep wondering things that could get him in trouble. just get back to shoveling.

•••

ryan looks around at the inner the walls of the courtyard, awaiting thomas' arrival. he looks down at his feet, shuffling them and kicking a couple loose pebbles across the gravel. a few seconds later he hears footsteps approaching, and soon enough the curly-headed boy enters the courtyard with a grin on his face. ryan smiles back, a nice feeling, he realizes. has he ever smiled before? even to himself? he can't remember, but he likes it.

ryan has the first word. "okay man, it's good to see you again but listen, you gotta tell me what you've been cooking up in that head of yours; let's get straight to it." thomas lets out a small chuckle. "okay okay okay. to get straight to the point, we're gonna escape. tomorrow after sundown service." he states.

ryan was right. he didn't want to be, yet here he is, having just been told what he didn't want to hear. "we're actually gonna escape? how? don't you think that's like...really risking it?" "hey, of course i've thought this through. it's risky, yes, but only dangerous if we fail. we make it over that wall ryan, and we're free men. free. they can't punish us beyond that point."

ryan doesn't know what to say. part of him really wants to side with thomas, but he's still unsure that taking the risk will be worth it. yes, they would be free. if they succeed. there's a bigger possibility they don't, though, and that's what's holding him back.

"think of it ryan, there's a whole world behind these walls. one that we have yet to explore, one that's calling to us. we can't just sit and stay here hiding in this confinement forever. we have to do something." thomas explains further, still keeping his voice at a whisper to keep the secrecy between them. ryan sighs. "i don't know, man. what if we fail?" "we won't. trust me. listen, i found a pretty big crack on the top of the wall on the south side of the city. i tied some ropes together and i'm gonna throw one end up there, so i can lodge it between the crack and make it secure. then, we can climb the ropes up and over the wall." thomas explains to ryan, who can't believe what he just heard.

"you're saying we're going to CLIMB the thirty foot wall???" "i know it sounds scary and like probably impossible but i tried already, i was able to get my rope over the wall, so i know it works." "dude, how many ropes did you tie together to get them to go that far?" ryan says with somewhat of a laugh. thomas laughs back. "i knotted ten ropes together, each about five feet in length, and that thing wasn't easy to try to toss over the wall, but i did it eventually." he bragged. ryan shop his head, smiling.

"you're insane man, this is insane." "yeah, maybe it is. it's just what i'm willing to do to fight for my freedom."

ryan smiles at thomas. he admires how brave and confident he is. ryan wishes he wasn't so fearless and cowardly, but that's all he is. he worries too much and scares himself into never doing anything to change his bad situations. maybe this is a good thing. thomas was the counterpart that he needed to be able to do something heroic.

"okay, i'm in."

••||-//••