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THE WALK TO HIGHWAY 20 WAS LONG.
The pair were exhausted, hot sweat now rolling down their faces and their shirts now stuck to their backs. Natalia's backpack straps dug harshly into her shoulders and collar, a strained pounding in her muscles. Her feet hurt from the uneven terrain and her boots were nearly falling apart, hair plastered to her face in the heat.
"Natalia," Archie panted, a stumble in his steps as they trekked through the dense trees. "Do you think we could take a break? My damn legs are about to fall off."
Worn-out and feeling as though she might melt under the blistering sun, the young woman peered down at the crinkled map clutched in her hands, the lines of red and blue hard to make out due to the faded condition. She traced the tip of her fingernail along the forest before looking up to the blinding sun, trying to pinpoint their location with strained eyes.
She sighed. "We have only a mile or so to go, we can rest when we get there."
After tucking the map safely into the pocket of her black jeans, which were torn not from the style of them but the beating they had taken, Natalia began to hike through the forest once more. She heard the vicious curses flying from Archie's mouth as he complained about the beating sun, the mud their shoes slushed through, and the vegetation that pricked their clothes.
Listening to his panting and looking at the boy matted in blood and sweat, Natalia's eyes flickered in worry, her heart swelling in her chest. She suddenly stopped her trek, flinging the backpack off her shoulder and tearing the zipper open.
"Nat, what are you doing?"
Ignoring her companions questioning gaze, the girl rummaged through her things, past the nearly empty box of ammo, her small revolver that had belonged to her father (the only gun the pair had), the granola bars that were their last remnants of food, until she finally found what she was in search of.
Natalia snatched the bottle of water from her bag, shooting a smirk Archie's way before tossing it to him with a simple command of "catch!". The boy shot her back a smile that glistening with pure relief and thanks, ripping the cap off of the bottle before gulping down the warm water as though it was the best thing on the earth (and to him, at that moment, it was).
"Go easy on it," she chuckled, wiping the sweat off her forehead while taking a deep breath of fresh air. "It's the last we have from the stream."
Archie took a final sip before screwing the cap back onto the light blue bottle, adjusting the navy baseball cap on his head that shielded the sun from his hazel eyes. "You think we will find more at the highway?" the boy asked as he gently threw the water bottle back to Natalia.
