Find Me--Chapter 2 ~Skye~

I’ve never felt so clueless, so afraid, in my life. I had no idea where we were. Or where they were.

As night was rolling in, a nurse who came to check on Marcus ordered me and Dillon out and back to our own rooms. When we reach mine, Dillon stops me after I open the door.

“Wait.”

“What?” I ask him. He brushes the hair off my cheek and plants a kiss on it. Before I can say anything, he’s gone.

I climb into bed, trying to ignore the pain from every open wound that had been stitched shut. I close my eyes, only to find that sleep is out of the question. Scarlet seemed nice, but I just couldn’t trust her yet. Trust. Happiness. Love. They were all being contradicted by the fear that was eating my insides. I realize how much I didn’t want to be alone. How much I fear something will happen to Olivia, Marcus, or Dillon and I wouldn’t be there to save them. Like Rose.

I feel so trapped in my tiny room. Trapped, but still as vulnerable. My body complains as I start to pace around the room. My head most of all still throbs with pain. For the first time, I notice my backpack thrown on a chair and that my necklace is no longer around my neck. As I sort through its contents, and thankfully find my necklace, the door creaks open. I turn with a start.

“Just me,” Marcus whispers.

“What are you doing here? I ask him. He limps over to me, trying to hide grimaces of pain. He kneels down on the floor so that we’re face to face.

“Isn’t it obvious?” he asks with a faint smile. “I wanted to see you.” His eyes train me. They follow as I look across his face; from his matted chestnut waves to his lips that had once touched my cheek. I look down at the necklace.

“Allow me,” he says softly. He slides behind me and sweeps my blonde hair in front of my shoulder. Then he grabs the necklace from my hand, drapes it in front of me, and fastens the clasp. As I turn to face him, he gathers up my hair and lets it loose down my back. Marcus’s face, illuminated by the moonlight shining through the small window, holds a look I can’t exactly define. Compassion, maybe.

“Does Dillon hate me?” he asks.

“No,” I answer truthfully. “He just loves me.” I couldn’t look at him when I uttered those words.

“What about you? How do you feel?” he tilts my chin up and I have no choice but to lay my eyes on him.

“Deathly afraid,” I whisper. He pulls me into his arms and holds me tightly as I do the same.

I didn’t remember getting back into bed or falling asleep. But the next thing I know, the sun’s rays replace the moonlight. My head rests on Marcus’s good leg. I didn’t remember him staying either.

“Did you sleep last night?” I ask him.

“I think it’d be better if I didn’t answer that,” he says. That meant no. The clock beside me flashes 6:30.

“You still have time to get some rest.”

“I’ll be fine. Actually, I should go back to my room. Olivia might worry.” I slowly lift my head, which still pounds with pain. I let him lean on my shoulder as we slowly hobble back to his room.

“See you later,” he says outside the door. He gives me the lightest of kisses on my forehead before stepping inside.

When I get back to my room, a tray with a bowl of oatmeal and a glass of water sits on the bedside table. I shovel down spoonfuls of oatmeal and take swigs of water until the bowl and glass are empty. The oatmeal didn’t have much flavor, but was food nonetheless.

I lie down on my bed and stare at the ceiling. What if we weren’t brought here? What if none of this ever happened? If I were still living with Rose, three doors down from Marcus and Olivia, across the way from Dillon. If we hadn’t encountered the men from the other village. If Rose and everyone’s parents were still alive.

In the midst of my thoughts, I find sleep.

“Skye,” Olivia says in a loud whisper as she gently shakes my shoulder. When I open my eyes, it’s nine-thirty.

The four of us find our way to the headmistress’s office. We exit the infirmary and walk down many maple wood door lined halls. There’s no one around. After wandering around for quite a while, we find her office on the top floor of the building.

“There are over two hundred kids here,” the headmistress says once we’re seated in her office. Her name is Evangeline Baumann, but we are to call her Headmistress Baumann. She had long, flawless black hair that swept behind her like a cape when she walked from Marcus to Dillon. From one side to the other. “All orphans or runaways. All without parents. All alone.” Her strong voice. The stiff expression on her face. The fact I didn’t know where we were. The fact I was about to find out. It all scares me. “We put you to work so you have a purpose here. Please fill these out for your records.” She shoves four papers and pens toward us, then steps out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

All the forms asked about was our name, age, birthday, where we lived, and why we were alone. Then, we waited restlessly for her to return. Work? What kind of work? How long were we supposed to stay here? The door clicks open and Headmistress Baumann glides in holding a cup of coffee. She scoops up our papers, takes a quick glance at them, then places four new sheets of paper in front of us.

“Here are you room numbers, the schedules for each day, and some rules. Now go get your things and find your rooms. Lunch is at twelve sharp.

After I got my backpack and the others got their things, we set off to find our rooms. The boys’ rooms are on the fourth floor and girls’ rooms on the third. Olivia and I push open the door to room 326, but I didn’t want to go in.

I wanted to go home.

Find Me--Chapter 1 ~Dillon~

It seemed like yesterday I was riding the train home from the orphanage. Then they attacked our village, chased us, fought us, and they’re still out there. As long as they’re after us, we will never really be safe.

I sit on a bed with sheets that I suppose were once a flawless white, but were now had stains splotched on them. We were brought to an infirmary when we got here; a massive, gray concrete building which was surrounded by rows of farmland, grassy fields, a forest, and if you went far enough, a twenty-five foot fence. But I still had no idea where we really were.

The nurses had tended to all of us. They put stitches in the wound in my wrist and the cut on my back. We were instructed to stay in our tiny rooms and rest, but I wanted to find Skye. I ignored the ache that shot through my back as I stood up and wandered through the halls. From one open door, I saw a sweep of long golden hair rest on the pillow. It had to be her. I slip in the room and click the door shut. As I walk to her bedside, I see she’s still asleep. I slide my hand into hers and run my fingers through her hair.

After a few minutes, her eyelids flutter open.

“Dillon,” she says groggily, still under the effects of the anesthesia. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to see you,” I say simply. But after the words leave my mouth, I realize that there’s another reason. She tries not to wince as she eases herself up and props herself against the wall. Seeing in Skye in pain almost hurts me more. She moves to the far end of the bed and motions for me to sit next to her instead of kneeling on the cold floor. I see her try to hide a grimace as I press my shoulder against the stitched up wound on hers.

For moments, I just gaze into the distant look of her blue eyes. I wonder what she was thinking about. Probably about how stupid I acted. Then I break the silence.

“Explain to me,” I whisper as I cup her cheek in my hand. First she blinks as if my voice broke a spell that was cast on her. Then she turns away from me and looks out the window at the night sky rolling in. I take her cheek again, facing her toward me. “I’m listening. I promise.” A tear wells up in her eye, but she swipes it away before I can.

“It’s not that I don’t like you, because I do,” she starts. “You have no idea how much you and Olivia and Marcus and…” she trails off and I know exactly who she’s thinking about. I tip her chin up.

“It’s not your fault,” I remind her. She shakes her head and then continues.

“You have no idea how much you guys mean to me. It’s not that I like Marcus more than you. But it’s like the situation we’re in. It was just forced upon us. We weren’t ready at all. I’m not ready to love someone. Not now. Ever since Rose died, I’ve been drowning in fear. Fear that will continue to drown me until I know they’re gone. Until I know we’re safe.” I realized how afraid she really was. And how rash I was for getting mad at Marcus.

I pull her in my arms, forgetting about any pain she might be in.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper in her ear again, meaning it more now that I knew the truth. I feel her bury her face in my shoulder which I take as her forgiveness. The door slides open, sending a beam of light from the hallway into the dim room. Skye recoils, though it’s only Olivia who steps in. Her long auburn hair is in knots.

“Hey Skye. Hey Dillon,” she says, not really surprised I was there. I climb off the bed.

“Where’s Marcus?” Skye asks.

“In our room,” Olivia replies. “He’s still a bit hazy and can’t walk well. He wanted to see you guys.” Skye threw off the sheets and stood up. She was a little unsteady on her feet, so I put my hands on her shoulders. We walk silently through the hall, the tile floor cold on our bare feet.

We go into the room Olivia leads us to. It is identical to mine and Skye’s, but has two beds crammed in the small space. Marcus lies sleeping when we approach. Olivia leans over him and touches his cheek with her lips.

“Marcus,” she says in a low voice. He stirs, and then looks over at Skye’s swaying figure. Then at me supporting her. His lips form her name, but I don’t hear him speak. She gingerly breaks my grip and walks over to his side. I saw the pain in her eyes as they found the thick bandage wrapped around Marcus’s ankle. She strokes his cheek with the back of her hand, but nothing more. Tears well up in her eyes and she’s soon crying. Marcus leans on his elbow and lightly touches her arm. I move to her side, maybe with a little too much urgency, and put my arm around her.

“Skye,” Olivia says, coming up to her other side. “What’s wrong?”

“What are we going to do?” she says between sobs. “They’re still out there, after us.” I wish they were gone for good. So we wouldn’t have to worry. So maybe she could love me.

“Where are we anyway?” Olivia asks minutes later. Marcus shakes his head.

“Hopefully someplace where they can’t find us.” I hoped that was true.

Olivia, Skye and I are sitting on Olivia’s bed when the door opens.

“Oh, you’re all here,” a girl with loose red curls says. “The headmistress told me to tell you that she wants you guys in her office tomorrow morning at ten.

“Okay,” I reply. “Thanks uh…”

“Scarlet,” she finishes for me. “And you are?”

“Dillon,” I answer.

“I’m Olivia,” Olivia says. “And that’s my older brother, Marcus.” He gives a faint nod. “And that’s Skye.”

“Hi,” Skye says, wiping the tracks her tears left behind away.

“Nice to meet all of you,” Scarlet says. “I better go. See you guys tomorrow.” She slips out the door into the hall

“She seems nice,” Olivia comments. We nod.

I hoped she was as nice as she seemed. I’m tired of being around enemies.

Coming soon...

It seemed like yesterday I was riding the train home from the orphanage. Then they attacked our village, chased us, fought us, and they're still out there. As long as they're after us, we will never really be safe.

I sit on a bed with sheets that I suppose were once a flawless white, but now had stains splotched on them. We were brought to an infirmary when we got here. I knew that we were in a massive, grey, concrete building which was surrounded by rows of farmland, grassy fields, a forest, and if you went far enough, a twenty-five foot fence. But where exactly were we?

Coming in September, is the sequel to Hold On. The little excerpt above is the first sentences of the prologue. That's all you get for now. Not even the title because I'm still debating between three possible ones, but I should have it narrowed down by the prologue or first couple chapters. I have the basis of the story planned, but once again, need an ending.

A couple of you said you were sad that the story was over (which flattered me), but I thought about doing a sequel during like chapter eight and started getting ideas around chapter eleven. As for length, I picture it being the same number of chapters, but a little longer, seeing as in Hold On, the first chapters were really short compared to the later ones.

♥Skittlez

Thank you!!!

I just wanna thank everyone who read my story. I honestly didn't think I'd stay committed to this, but when people told me that they wanted more, I felt it would've been a shame to not continue. Do you know how many chapters I thought this would be when I thought of the idea? Seven or eight. Yes you read that right. And I ended up with seventeen chapters and an epilogue. That means I either am a really bad guesser at this sort of thing, or just got so into it that I kept writing more and more. Actually, I think it's a combination of both. :) I had so much fun writing this. Anyway, thank you for reading! I couldn't have done it without you!

That was sappy...whatever. :P

♥Skittlez

Hold On--Epilogue

There’s a constant stabbing pain in my head that can’t be ignored which tells me I’m alive. I let out a low moan. A hand strokes my hair. I don’t have to look to know that it’s Dillon. The tumbling sensation sticks with me, but when I open my eyes, I find that I’m actually moving. Marcus, Olivia, Dillon, and I are crammed in the backseat of a car.

My cheek is pressed against Dillon’s shoulder. When I sit up, he leans closer to me and kisses me on my cheek. His lips linger by my face until he whispers,

“I’m sorry.” Something in me knows that that is what he mouthed to me before. I pull him into a hug, and for the first time in a while, I see him smile.

Olivia is encased in Marcus’s arms next to me. Her eyes flicker open as he gently shakes her awake.

“Skye,” she whispers. “You’re okay.” The relief in her voice makes my heart throb. She grasps me in her arms.

“What happened?” I ask.

“Well some officials came,” Marcus begins.

“And they somehow knew or figured out we were orphans,” Dillon says. “They shoved us in here about half an hour ago.”

“What about the men?” I ask, trying to hide the fear in my voice.

“They disappeared when they heard the sirens,” Olivia explains.

“Where are we going?” I question. No one answers. No one knows.

I open my backpack which rests at my feet, but my bow and arrows are nowhere to be found. The officials probably confiscated our weapons. An empty canteen, a still full sack of coins, and my father’s tie. I rub the material against my cheek and think of my father. Teaching me how to hunt, gazing at the sky with me. His laugh, his strong arms, his blue eyes so similar to mine. I clench my mother’s necklace, thinking of her. Packing picnic baskets full of stew and baked goods and berries, trying to coax me to learn how to sew. Her smile, her nimble fingers, her long golden hair that I shared with her.

I steal a look at Marcus and he holds my gaze. He shakes his head. I know what he means. It wasn’t okay.

My eyes fill with tears as I fill my head with memories that I want to hold on to. Talking with Olivia on the train. That morning with Marcus. Rose’s birthday. The dance with Dillon.

I’m many miles from the village, which has been attacked, and my home, which has been destroyed. My mother and father and Rose are dead, but I’m not alone. The men are still out there though, searching for us. Hunting us down.

Wherever we end up, I can’t let go of the memories of the past nor those who are the closest thing to family I have. I have to hold on.

The End