|48| • Everest
"Do you think we're going to make it?"
There it was again, Gabe and his questions, I found them hard to answer and this was no exception.
There was a glint of hope in his eyes, that kind of feeling which I forbade myself from indulging.
I forced myself into this position, I could have requested to be discharged, to go.
..home— if I could even call it that. But I chose to stay, and now, our base was attacked, and we were forced to start a war with them.
Shrugging my shoulders, I took the military pack, throwing it into the boiling water. He was the only one that came, the others were at a camp we'd managed to set out, I felt suffocated, so I came out...but he followed.
"Do you want the truth? Or shall I pacify you?"
Gabe chuckled at my answer, was it funny?
I couldn't help the bitter taste in my mouth.
Perhaps it seeped through my heart. Would it be better for Pa and Emily if I didn't just come back?
If they announced my disposal during the war?
I shook my head, eyeing the man I'd come to see as a friend.
He was staring right back with a sad expression on his face.
"Ah, as blunt as ever, Simon. How about a little bit of both?" Gabe responded, helping me stir the food with a wooden spoon. Being out here on its own was dangerous. If they happened to find us here, they wouldn't waste a second thinking, it would rain bullets and hand grenades.
Taking out the rice, I drained it before taking a spoon. It tasted bland, but it'd do for now. "Well, Gabriel. I think if the odds are with us, we would be able to subdue them with our firepower, or they'd come to a truce with us."
"And if not?"
"Then our corpse would be used as fertiliser."
I saw Gabe flinch from the corner of my eye.
"I'm sorry, was that too direct?" I asked, feeling a tad bit guilty.
I knew how much he wanted to return to his girlfriend and his best friend.
What was her name again? Penelope. Yeah, that was it.
Gabe sighed. "Whenever you call my full name, I get shivers. " He admitted.
I let him have a scoop of the rice, he munched on ur happily as though it was a delicacy. Hunger would do that sometimes. "Do you? Then I'll stick to Gab."
He smiled. "You...seem—" Gabe began but held his tongue. "Never mind, it can't be helped." Truly, I wanted to push further, to understand what was going on in that head of his, but I was far too drained. "But, Simon? I wish you happiness."
It came out of the blue, perhaps that was why my eyes widened like he'd revealed a secret to me. "I mean...if—when we win this battle,I hope you find someone...someone who'd love you. You know?"
Love?
I couldn't help but chuckle.
The only one I loved had to be sacrificed for me to be here.
Giving him a lazy smirk, I nodded my head. "And I wish you'd make up your mind on who to choose."
Gabe immediately became flustered. "W-what do you mean?" From the stories he told me, I was confused about where his heart really belonged. The more he spoke of his best friend — Penelope, the more I felt his heart yearned for her.
Shaking my head, I said nothing else.
"J-Just tell me, man—"
Before he could finish his words, a louder yell interjected. It was my second in command, and what he'd said struck fear in the heart of me and visibly- Gabe.
"We're being attacked!"
Guns blazing, smoke filling the area, we barely had time to react, as we tried to make a run for it, a sharp pain shot through my body from my ankles. My leg was trapped.
This was it, wasn't it?
Perhaps it would be better this way.
Little did I know, that Gabe would try and play hero, try to get my leg out and succeed, but almost lose his life will doing it.
The last thing I heard was an explosion, the for r slamming my body against a rock-hard surface, that was the last thing I remembered before blacking out.
"Shit!"
My entire body jolted upwards as though I'd risen from the dead. Beads of sweat-drenched my forehead and upper body, the tank top is sworn to sleep was soaked.
Looking around, I realised I was in an unfamiliar environment.
Panic set in, frantically I looked around searching for my phone.
When I saw the tiles, it clicked. This was my new apartment.
I was in my room. Staring blankly at the hardly familiar room.
My first night here and I was already having nightmares. How irritating.
The room was a bit bigger than the one in my family house — it was a master bedroom after all. The walls were painted a cream colour, with a wide varsity mirror at the centre of the wall, showing how pathetic and fearful I looked.
Brushing my fingers through my hair, I tugged on it.
This was annoying, why now of all times?
I thought I was slowly getting over this.
Scanning my phone, I saw that it was barely 3.
a.m in the morning, yet here I was a mess.
Chuckling to myself, I climbed down from the king-sized bed, stretching with a groan.
"Goodness, it feels lonely in here," I muttered to myself. The wooden floor of my bedroom creaked as I walked to the bathroom.
The water that rushed from the faucet was ice cold, just how I liked it. Bending my head, I let the water pour on my head, the feeling sending shivers down my spine. My breathing was heard in the eerie silence.
I couldn't wait for Amelia to come to stay here...
It would be less lonely then. Perhaps if the nightmares came, I could go cuddle her and fall back asleep. After a full minute, I turned off the faucet, letting the water drain into the sink. What was wrong with me? Why did I feel so...empty?
The dark circles in my eyes showed from the mirror, I needed to sleep, it just didn't come back after such a dream. When I reached my bedroom, I sunk into the bed, throwing my head back.
After much contemplation, I let my thoughts win, taking my phone to call Amelia. I must be a selfish prick, what if I woke her up from her sleep? Just because of a nightmare?
"Hello?"
Shit, why did he have to answer. Her voice was groggy, I'd definitely woken her up. Words couldn't leave my mouth, now I felt bad. Perhaps if I hung up now, she'd fall back asleep.
"Evie?" Amelia sounded more awake now. "What is it? Are you okay?" She sounded worried. My heart warmed at that, she really did care about me, didn't she? So...did that mean she wouldn't mind me being a bit vulnerable with her tonight?
"Baby, talk to me."
She just called me baby, a bit of burden just lifted from my shoulders. "Amelia?" I sounded weak, I didn't like that. "What's wrong?"
"I...I can't sleep. And...I had a nightmare."
I didn't know how she'd reply to this. Would she tell me to grow a pair? No, she wouldn't possibly say such, right? Nibbling on my lips, I realised I was getting nervous. I heard a shuffle from her side of the line. She was coming over today, why couldn't I just wait?
"Do you want to talk about it? Or do you want to forget about it?"
I felt stricken by her question, I never thought about it like that. Did I want to talk about it? With her, yes I wanted to.
"I...I think so."
"Okay Evie, I'm listening."
"I don't want to disturb your sleep, we can just talk about it later." It was the right thing to say, right? She had to rest, today was the day she was going to be applying to Gaston's Culinary Dream. What if she didn't get enough sleep all because of me? Fuck, when did I get so selfish?
"Everest. You already woke me up, it's okay. Don't worry, I slept in the afternoon anyways. Please, talk to me."
"But—"
"Evie, I want you to feel better, and I know talking about it does that. I'm listening." Goodness, my girlfriend was so thoughtful of me. The words 'I love you' nearly slipped out of my mouth. I held it in, breathing out.
"Okay..."
There was a brief silence.
"I...dreamt about my time in the military. The day some men attacked us, the day I got my legs stuck and Gabe decided to help me. The day he almost died because of my carelessness."
She remained quiet, simply listening. "What was even more messed up, was that when he was trying to get my feet out of the trap, I thought only of myself, thought about...dying there. I didn't even have the will to live Amelia..." I didn't know I was tearing up until a croak sounded in my voice.
"Evie..."
Ha...I wasn't even crying yet but here she was, sobbing. "I didn't want to live yet he was so determined to put his life on the line and save mine. What kind of man am I? Really?" A tear rolled down my cheeks.
"O-One that w-was hurting."
I chuckled, tears rolling down more, I guess that was one way to put it. Hurting...why was I hurting? Because I felt alone? Even with the number of friends I had in camp.
Cassandra.
Gabe.
Diego.
Samuel.
I was still hurting, wasn't I? Even with such good people around me, I still had the audacity to hurt inside. "Everest!" Amelia called loudly, pulling me back. I hummed, sniffing.
"It's okay to hurt you know? I was hurting in high school, even with an awesome big brother behind me. And y-you thought me that it's okay."
"I did?" When did I teach her that?
"Yeah, you did. In your own way. So, please don't be so sad anymore. A-and don't blame yourself for what happened to Gabe."
"He—"
"Let me finish!" Goodness, this woman was snappy.
"Okay baby, I'm listening." I sighed, wiping the tears from my face. I crouched into the bed, resting my head on my knees. The sound of her voice made me feel a bit better. The thought that she was here, listening to me, consoling me...it made me feel good.
"Gabe chose to do so because he cared for you. He cared so deeply for you that he wouldn't leave you behind. Even though you felt like...l-like leaving this world, you shouldn't blame yourself for that. You're two independent people."
My heart warmed at her words.
"And guess what Evie, he's alive and well. He even has a girlfriend he loves! So it turned out good in the end, didn't it?"
I chuckled, admittedly amused.
"I guess it did." She was right. Even though he was in a coma for months on end, he woke up, Penelope was there for him, I tried to be there for him...he was alright now.
I was the only one breaking.
"So please, don't be so sad."
Those words were able to make me feel less like a mess. I smiled, nodding my head even though she couldn't see me. Was this the Amelia everyone thought was so childish? She seemed more mature, more in touch with the world now.
I was glad.
"My baby..." I trailed off unknowingly.
"Y-yes?" Amelia's stutter gave out the fact that her face was most likely heated right now. I missed her. I wanted to feel her in my arms, to litter her body with kisses. Sighing, I leaned against my bedpost.
"My sweet, sweet baby, thank you."
She was quiet for a second, then giggled lightly. "You're welcome, Evie. Anytime."