Vestige | The Society

Fourteen | Tea

To say everyone was on edge was an understatement. A murderer somewhere in the town. They could walk past them in the street. Say 'hello' to them as they pass. Could work with them in their jobs. Grizz had walked into the home soon after She found the journal. Mid-panic attack. She was thankful that Grizz had turned up, otherwise Sylver might have had a heart attack. She was glad to walk into a new house, a new start.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Sylver asked Alex again. She rested her head against his chest, swaying side to side with him.

"I'm alive. So, I'm doing the best I can. It's easier with you around, anyway," They stood around the table in Allies house, eating and listening to Will's speech. People hadn't turned up for work, had been stealing food. Anarchy was rising again. Fear made people do selfish things. Selfish. The one person means more than the group ideal, rampaging through the town of teens.

"We need to be careful right now. What we say, what we do. Less than half the kitchen showed today. And nobody even bothered to call," Will said. Everyone had been skipping their duties. Some to afraid to leave their homes. Some were just lazy. And other's couldn't care less anymore. Their leader was gone, dead. No one was pitching to take her place. They were all scared to end up like Cassandra.

"It's not just the kitchen staff. No one picked up the garbage all weekend," Grizz said.

"It fucking reeks," Jason added. It had started to smell. It was painful to walk outside without a whiff of rotting food attacking your nose.

"If we don't follow the work schedule we're screwed,"

"And if the kitchen collapses, people will go after the food," Alex held onto Sylver's hand, squeezing and releasing. Grizz had taught him the movement which helped her to calm down. The pattern helping to ground her to the moment.

"They're already raiding the cafeteria pantry," Will added on, "Broad daylight. Nobody gives a shit."

"What do you want us to do about it?" Luke asked. The truth was no one knew what to do. No one knew how they could make people work. Could they? Was it ethical? Did it matter?

"We might have to enforce the work lists,"

"What? Us against everyone in the town? It's hard enough getting boys to listen to me, their ego's are getting bigger everyday," Alex argued. It was true. She had been mocked for being on the 'police force' of the town. Most telling her that she should go work in the kitchen. A few of which had gotten a black eye.

"You mean we would have to enforce the work lists. The guard," Luke added agreeing with her point.

"How are we supposed to that? Andrea's right. There are six of us," Clark responded, to Alexandrea's surprise. That increased when he agreed with her. Something the two did very few times.

"Someone out there had a gun," Jason argued. Everyone went quiet as Allie walked down the stairs. Alex gave her a smile, knowing she at least deserved that. They weren't good at not acting suspicious. Allie already had enough on her plate.

"What?" She asked. The silence filled with tension.

Will cleared his throat before speaking. "We were... We were talking about how nobody... came to work today,"

"It's getting really bad out there," Alex wanted to walk over to her, cover her ears and force the girl back upstairs. She was still mourning her sister, and now had this piled on her.

"Yeah. No shit. Something terrible might happen," She responded. No one knew how to act. What to do. They couldn't keep her wrapped in a bubble of safety for much longer.

"We were just saying how... Work lists are falling apart,"

"It's bad enough without her. We can't let the rules go, too," Alex wanted to shout at them all to stop. Little bit at a time would have been fine, but they were piling it on.

"I just wanted some fucking tea," Allie said, starting to walk off. Alex stopped her,

"I'll make it you. I have my special lavender and lemon blend," Allie let the genuine smile on her face, gladly accepting the hug from Alex. She then continued upstairs while Alex began making the drink, knowing the girl needed something calming. "Way to go guys. You couldn't have made it a little bit more sensitive?"

"She needed to know, Alex. We can't treat her like a baby forever," Will said, only to receive a glare in response.

"She just lost her sister. The least you could have done, would be a little bit more sensitive towards her. You have no idea how that affects you?"

"Oh, but you would because of something that happened years ago?"

"Yes when I relive it every night. Every time I see a gun. Every time someone mentions anything around the subject, something as simple as..." She trailed off taking a deep breath and finishing the drink. Everyone was quiet, letting her go upstairs. Grizz followed her, feeling bad. He would her the hushed shouting coming from Sylver downstairs.

"Cat,"

"What Grizz?" He didn't say anything, but took the cup from her, putting it down, then pulling her into a hug. She wrapped her arms around his waist. The smell of pine that radiated off him making her smile. She missed his hugs. The way that he'd run circles on her back to calm her down. "Thank you,"

"No problem. Now go downstairs and I'll give Allie the tea. Okay?" She nodded her head and made her way down the stairs to see Sylver waiting for her.

"Ravenclaw,"

"Slytherin,"

"Seriously guys?"

"Shut up Clark," Both of them said, ignoring him and jus holding each other's hands. Squeeze. Let go. Squeeze. Hold. Let go. She then nodded to tell Sylver she was okay. He kissed her forehead, happy to know she was happy.

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I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and remember I love any constructive feedback on my work as it helps me to improve my writing and ideas.

See you all soon,
Paige xx