Chapter 34: Chapter 034 [Alice]

Alice noticed something moving up above as the day was nearing its end. At first she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her, because she was fairly sure she saw an angel. It’d been for only a brief instant, a shadow of something passing overhead. The creature’s wings were a pristine white, and wide- at least three times its height. It was the silhouette of this creature that caused her to glance up at the sky and focus it in full.

Frowning, the young teacher covered her eyes from the glare of the sun and tried to confirm she hadn’t just imagined such a thing. Had someone else seen it? A quick look around, none of the others were looking upwards, so she figured it’d been only her.

But the angel was gone, or perhaps not there at all. Alice briefly wondered how it would feel to fly across the sky.

But idle thoughts were as far as things as she could let them go. She couldn’t bring herself to escape the current situation, no matter how hard she wished for it. Her eyes dropped back down to earth, to those that were arguing. The voices were loud, obnoxious, and aggressive. Many people were starting to feel the pangs of hunger from the rationing, their attempt to make their meals last longer.

Ricks’ name was tossed around, and the psychology teacher’s stomach tied into knots each time. There was a pit there, and an ache from something old that she thought long forgotten. Why was it coming back up now? Because of her concern? Alice ignored it, pushing herself to her feet. She marched her way into the bus, not wanting to hear another word from the spat the others were currently embroiled in.

Within the gloomy confines of the vehicle, the smell of blood and fear permeated the air. Alice only needed to take one glance to know things had not turned for the better. Those that had been worse off lay in the back, the teacher summoned her strength to approach. Or rather, she tried. Her determination faltered when she was close enough. For most of the injured, the wounds were closed, but for some, the first signs of infection were starting to show. Irritated and bloated red skin, a slight fever. A part of Alice ran over the list of medical supplies they had on hand- rubbing alcohol and peroxide on the wound had done nothing, and they didn’t have antibiotics.

They were going to be fully out soon, and what was left wasn’t exactly usable for this situation.

With a worried sigh, Alice sat down next to the young comatose student named Ryan. His fever had gotten worse compared to the day prior. It put an open pit at the bottom of her stomach, a chasm of coldness. Alice’s thumb slowly traced circles around the student’s warm palm. A curse of despair was spoken under her breath. She couldn’t even use a wet towel because the water they had left was too scarce. It would run out soon.

And that was a far bigger concern for everyone. You could live without food for several days, but without water? You’d be a goner and fast.

She exhaled and tried to relax her shoulders, to ignore the voices of concern in the back of her mind. The darkness of the bus was comforting compared to the shadows of the forest. Here she knew there was nothing hiding and waiting in every corner; here she didn’t feel like there were dozens of eyes peering at her. Alice leaned back against the metallic wall. Idly, a memory bubbled forth of sitting down and drinking coffee at the library early in the morning.

It was a recent memory, no more than a month old. Alice had helped Beatrice shelf and organize the books that were returned after hours the day prior. Whatever they’d been talking about, Alice had felt herself in a better mood for it. It was why she did not mind when Arnold had called to mention he’d be late for dinner that day.

Her boyfriend’s name caused Alice to sigh and shake her head. No, thinking about him right now wouldn’t do her any good even if there was little she’d wish more than to get home and share a warm meal. The young teacher pushed herself to glimpse around once more in search of something. Something to help her take her mind off of this drudgery of waiting that was eating at everyone’s nerves. Nothing had changed, and no one had moved, and yet her focus fell on May, Charlie’s younger sister. The young student kept her eyes closed, hugging her knees with her uninjured arm, and bobbing at the rhythm of some unheard music that was playing from her headphones.

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Alice hated herself for it, but she couldn’t really stay put and do nothing. She let go of Ryan’s palm, tucking it at his side, and moved to sit next to the young woman with chestnut hair. “Hey.” She gently placed a hand on May’s knee to draw her attention. The only response was of the student raising her eyes slightly. There was a silence that followed, and with a brief nod, she lowered her gaze again.

The action made Alice grimace, but she pressed on. “Can I listen to the music? Please?”

Another moment of pause, of consideration.

Then, May let out a sullen nod. The girl reached out for one of her headphones and offered it. The teacher smiled a little and scooted closer, sitting next to her and placing the device into her ear. May hit play, and everything turned into noise.

Alice held back from wincing at the volume, adjusting the earphone instead so it would be not quite as close into her head. The music was something surprisingly cheery, having an upbeat that thrummed with a catchy rhythm. The words were unintelligible though. The teacher was fairly sure it wasn’t English by any stretch, but the tune was a drum of electric flowers that just jolted their way up and down her spine. Without noticing, her head bobbed with the tempo. It reminded her of some sort of modernized folk song some place far away.

“What is this?” The question was only met with the younger woman showing the screen of her phone. “Adieu to this Lively Graveyard.”

Ok, so maybe not as happy as she thought it was. The teacher did her best to hold back the grimace, keeping herself next to her student while they both shared the song. One became two, and then ten. None of them were in English, but all equally carried a rhythm that made Alice want to just leave all her worries behind and dance.

That thought only made her groan inwardly, turning to look out of the bus. The others were in a similar situation, no doubt. She was fairly sure they were talking about heading out to brave the forest and see whether any food could be found. She didn’t want to know who’d have to head out, and she didn’t want to think of who wouldn’t come back.

The tightness within her chest felt like a claw gripping at her heart. She closed her eyes, letting the beat of the music wash her off into an unthinking place. Her hand reached out and grasped May’s. She squeezed in turn, and they both quietly allowed the melody to flow. It helped them ignore the hunger, thirst, and fear.

Neither of them heard the rumble of thunder in the distance.

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