The Pearl

Stage 13: Lost, and Almost Dead

I think about stopping Lynn (by now I know we're far off track) and saving the day. The idea sounded so ridiculous that I nearly burst out in laughs and guffaws.

Me. Keilani Vuair. Saving the day.

I accidentally let out a snort, making the group give me questionable stares. Lynn is the only one that doesn't acknowledge it; I'm honestly not surprised. She probably wants to make sure that she doesn't lead me into leading us in the wrong way. I feel a chill down my spine as Lynn lets out a quiet, small, but malicious giggle. Her darkness emanates off of her and onto everything and everyone around her.

"Hey is it getting colder?" Jett asks as he visibly shudders to prove his point. Lynn quickly draws back her dark aura and replaces it with a warm one. She looks up to observe if everything was okay, then averts her eyes back to the task at hand: guiding me to...well, somewhere. I try to focus on my breathing to calm me. We got one of the daughters. Only two more; it's okay.

"Yeah," I mutter to myself. No one else hears me but Lynn, who nods in my direction absentmindedly. Her hands drop, so I stop moving. Jett bumps into the both of us, but he instinctively grabs us by our shoulders in order to keep us upright.

"You guys okay?" he questions sincerely. I nod after a few seconds of hesitation; it's been a while since Jett showed concern openly. Lynn on the other hand does nothing, but I feel a bubble of nervousness form in my gut. I glance at Lynn and notice that her face had gotten ten times paler and was continuing to do so. Her once flushed cheeks lost its rosy color and the blood that made her skin look warm drained from her body. She slowly travels her eyes from her frozen hand to my face. An emotion that I knew all too well smacked me in the face like how my dad used to when I was late for school.

This new thought of my dad pushed away the feeling that Lynn had washed off onto me. I remembered him-not just him-but what he acted like. I momentarily forgot the bad position we were in and mentally gave myself a pat on the back.

But my gleefulness was ruined by one other thought: we're lost. I know that's what Lynn was feeling. My victorious mood turned sour and gloomy.

I shift my eyes to meet Lynn's and cautiously mouth, "Are we lost?" She stands frozen for a while. I refrain from gripping her by the shoulders and shaking her until she answers. I-we need to know. Then she shakes her head left to right. Shock paints my face.

No? Then what was Lynn feeling?

My face contorts slightly at my last thought; my inner pervert is showing. Agh, get your mind out of the gutter Kei.

I cock one eyebrow at her and try to do my death stare, but she doesn't flinch at all. I exasperatedly heave a sigh. Even if Lynn doesn't think we're lost, I do, and I'm the one leading my friends. "Guys," I say in a voice nothing more than a whimper, "I think we're lost." I shut my eyes and brace myself for the gasps and yells of frustration that were sure to come.

One...two...three...

...

Or maybe not. I slowly raise my eyelids and meet the faces of three others. One looked bored, one looked like they were going to slap me awake, and the other had a what-are-we-gonna-do-with-her-now expression.

"Ummm," I say, waiting for them to say something. Anything. I hate feeling guilty; I need them to hurry up and talk so this pain can go away. Biting my lip, I realize how selfish that was of me, so I put another reason to slap myself into my jar of reasons why I should be slapped (repetitive, I know).

"Did you just fall asleep?" Iimura asks uncertainly. She looks like she's on the brink of laughter.

"Yassss girl same," Jett says as he fakes a snotty voice, "I need to get my beauty rest too!" He syncopates the last few words with a goofy grin. This lightens the mood and puts a smile back onto my face, which had probably not been the prettiest sight a few moments ago.