Beyond The Sea Blue Light

Never Know If You Don't Know Try

I would've roomed by myself but I hate being alone. So Oli offered for me to room with him. Honestly, it was the only choice—otherwise I'd have to room with Craig. Jack and Alex are sharing, of course, the two of them inseparable as always. But Oli is nice.

He's never been at the facility. Frank and Gerard rescued him when he was on the way there, just a few weeks ago and he's been with them ever since. He was there, the night of the escape, helping us fight.

There are five bedrooms in Frank and Gerard's house, the same number that were in the Facility. But these are so much more homely. Wood paneled instead of cement walls. Paintings and rugs decorate the rooms. There are two twin beds in my and Oli's room. I run my finger along the windowsill, letting the cold air wash over my skin. The view of the forest is amazing, the pine trees towering overhead, the green lawn stretching out in front of us, blue-gray mountains looming in the distance. It's so nice to be able to see the sky and the stars again.

But the best part about it is the door. It's open and locks from the inside. I can open and close it as I please, venture out into the hallway whenever I want to.

"Enjoying it?" I hear a voice behind me and see Oli come in.

"It's great," I say, fiddling with the sleeve of my jacket. It was so nice to change out of the uniforms into something that I got to choose to wear.

"You don't need permission to leave," Oli says, making me jump. "It's not the Facility. You're free here."

"I know," I say, but I still don't move. A part of me is still hesitant to leave, the what ifs plaguing my mind.

"I'll take you around if you want," Oli offers, a small smile on his lips. "It's quite a big place."

"I'd love that," I say shyly.

"C'mon then," Oli tilts his head, beckoning me forward.

The house is beautiful. It's three stories, bigger than it looks on the outside. Surrounded on all sides by forests and mountains, we're practically unreachable. Oli takes me up to the top floor first, where the hallway ends at a wood paneled door, a whiteboard hanging on it. Several names are written on it, but I don't get a chance to read them as Oli pushes open the door, revealing a brightly lit small room.

Windows stretch across the front half of the room while screens stretch across the back half. The sound of electric guitar and drums blast through the room out of a tiny pair of trembling speakers on the side table, but I can hear the sound of saxophones blaring from a pair of headphones plugged into the computer in the center of the room. Every so often, the screens flash, a beep echoing through the rooms, as if the cacophony wasn't enough as is. Seated in the center of the room, oblivious to the noise and furiously typing away is Frank.

"Frank?" Oli yells. Unsurprisingly, Frank doesn't seem to hear us. Oli rolls his eyes, giving me a little shrug before he crosses the room and taps Frank on the shoulder.

Frank spins around, pushing the headphones off. He taps another key on the keyboard and the music shuts off.

"Hey," he says, giving me a little wave. "Giving him a tour?"

Oli nods. "Thought I'd start here first."

Frank grins. "The most amazing room in the house," he says. "Or the worst, if you ask Gerard. I think he hates the weirdness of the music."

"I don't understand how you can listen to all of it at the same time," Oli sighs.

"I need something to keep my brain active," Frank jokes. "Not like all of your slow ones."

Oli rolls his eyes, choosing to ignore the comment, turning to me instead. "Frank's keeping watch," Oli explains. "Someone is always up here at all times. Just so we're not ambushed or anything. Usually it's Frank though. I spend a lot of time up here, mostly cause Frank hogs the speaker and all the music." He shows me the camera footage, showing grainy black and white images from random parts of the forest. "We'll be able to see anyone coming from miles away."

"So there's no sign of guards?" I ask.

Frank shakes his head. "Nothing. There's no sign of them at all. We're in the clear I think."

My thoughts immediately flash to Vic and I feel guilty again. Is it really fair that I'm having a good time while he's gone?

Oli seems to notice my change in expression. He grabs my hand, tugging me out of the room.

"Nice seeing ya, Frank," he calls. "I'll show Kellin the rest of the house."

Oli does a good job distracting me as he leads me around the rest of the house, showing me where everything is. The second floor is mostly made up of the bedrooms, the layout of each about the same as Oli's and mine. Alex and Jack give me a little wave from where they're sitting in the living room. I can't believe how homely it is and how comfortable I feel here. It's been so long since I felt like I could belong somewhere other than cold gray walls.

"So, do you like it?" Oli asks at last as we're standing in the backyard, the sound of cicadas and crickets chirping in the setting sun.

"I love it," I say, grinning. "I really do."