𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞

PTTF - Chapter 8

Ready?" I croaked.

Cleo and Aiden—or should I say, Shruthi and Michael nodded their heads nervously, as the three of us waited in the car park till the other scientists arrived.

I shuffled, an awfully empty pit punctured deep into my intestines, and all my tension seemed to be filling up in there. Michael tossed his phone between his hands, muttering his new character background under his breath. Shruthi leaned against a car looking agitated as ever, biting her nails from time to time pleading to get this over with.

The floor was shaking all around us, which meant that the earthquake was near. And we had to work, fast.

Cracking my knuckles, my phone rang for about the tenth time within the same hour with another message notification, which I clearly ignored once again.

This waiting was taking forever, and if the others don't arrive any sooner, this planet would be better off dead.

"What's our excuse again? You know, for being here before the others." Shruthi squeaked.

"Trust me, when they get to the doors, just follow suit. They may be scientists, but ignorance is a part of their nature." I growled. My deep cracked voice was awfully uncomfortable for my vocal cords to handle, and Aiden made sure I had practiced with it well enough before we continued to work according to our plan.

Shruthi nearly dropped her phone in apprehension, but still scrolled down the home page of Snap Saol.

A few minutes later, a white mini bus drove into the dull grey car park, and circled around the place until it found a spot near the town's entrance. We immediately hid behind a fleet of black AVs. The doors of the bus finally opened with a slight creak, as people in white lab coats clambered out of the vehicle, the glittering holograms in their hands. I gave a sigh of relief, while the other two held their breaths even tighter as it took me three solid minutes to get their systems working again.

The guests all gathered at the large metal door, waiting for a someone to open it from the other side. Taking this chance, we creep up behind them, our hearts racing in our chests, and stood at the back of the crowd.

They all bustled into senseless conversations about the terrible weather and the aloof car park. The three of us decided to bury ourselves in our phones, texting each other on how the first step of our plan was going pretty well.

At last, the door opened with a loud creak, as we all walked through it without a word and found ourselves in the dark passageway that led to the old rusty elevator.

It was only a few weeks ago when Chantelle, Bryce and I had just walked through here the first time we moved in, leaving all the horrors that took place back in Shaniea behind us. It was unbelievable to think that my sister was pregnant at the time, and her behavior towards me, and all the crying and mood swings were just hormones in action. The way she fell into Bryce's arms and promised her that he'll keep us safe...

Shaking all those thoughts out of my head, and focusing on what was ahead of us was my number one priority.

Shruthi began to bite her broad fingernails again, and this time I pulled her hand away from her with a look of disapproval. To my dismay, her hand crashed into the metal grate, and I had to stuff my fist into her mouth to stop her from howling in pain. Thanks to Michael's incredible height, we were very well covered.

After the pushing the elevator gates open, we confronted another towering door, the one that opened with the handprint recognition.

Then one single memory flashed through my mind.