SOMEDAY ❖ Thomas (TMR)

Before The Maze [ 1 ]

November 26, 2021
5 years old

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CLENCHING HER MOTHERS hand, the only thing she could hear were the screams from the children surrounding her. Perhaps in the distance there was the faint sound of an engine coming from the train in front of her, but it was barely audible over all the other noise.

She wasn't sure what was going on.

Families were rushing in from every direction, parents carrying their kids on their shoulders to keep them from getting trampled by the ruckus. Light snow was flaking down on the crowd, grazing their heads with specks of white. Deafening screams plague the scenery, drawing out any words her mother was trying to speak to her, and she could feel her lungs beginning to close up.

She had just come from getting ice cream, so as of now her spirits were still raised. Her mother had told her that they needed to go somewhere important afterword and that to treat her she would get desert before hand. Sitting at the booth in McDonalds she hadn't realized what was about to come. She didn't realize the painful look that was plastered on her mothers face the whole time they ate their sweets.

Next came the guards. Men and women in black uniforms pushed past the ambush of individuals to grab children. She watched as a boy with brunette hair got handed to one. He cried out to his mother, reaching for her hands, but in return she did nothing to stop the guard from taking her child away. Then she realized what was actually happening. Attempting to squirm away she rounded the back of her mother, trying to hide from the anonymous faces.

"Lily."

She clung to the back of her shirt, as the same guard who had taken the other boy moved to reach for her. At that moment, everything became so distant. It felt like all the atoms were separating and she was left to float in the air. She felt like she was in space. Humming sounded in her ears, making all other sounds go blank. She couldn't make out what her mother was mouthing, or that the boy next to her was lashing out in pain.

Everything was just blank.

The next few moments were the worst. Snatching her from behind, the guard gripped the collar of her shirt and pulled her out of her mothers grasp. Lily felt herself being picked up, but no part of her body was allowing her to do anything about it. Glancing to her left she saw the same boy was tucked under the man's other arm, rustling around in his grip. He looked around her age. Five maybe? It didn't matter-she just wanted to get one more look at her mother.

But when she tried to peer back, she was nowhere to be seen. Her mother had left her.

Then the real tears came.

Making eye contact with the brunette next to her, she saw that he was having the same reaction. Fresh drops of liquid fell along his cheeks, dripping onto the concrete floor. His face was red from all the screaming, and she was sure she looked about the same. They held each other's gaze, coming to a silent understanding of the situation they were in.

The guard continued to carry the two of them tucked under his arms until they made it onto the loading pad of the train. There, he finally dropped the two of them off, and waved them inside, commanding them to take a seat immediately.

Next to her the boy let out a whimper, a side effect from all the crying he had been doing. Lily turned to him and gave him a small smile. Taking his hand, she led him over to a couple seats at the back of the train. Her lungs still felt as if they were going to collapse in on her at any second, but holding his hand gave her a sense of security that she knew they both needed at that moment.

Lily sat down next to the boy, not taking her hand off his. In front of them two other kids around their age with blonde hair took the seats across from them, them too tightly holding onto each other.

"Hi." The younger blonde hair girl whispered. She too looked like she'd been crying. When nobody answered she tried again. "Im Lizzy, and this is my older brother."

"Hi." He waved.

Both Lily and the brunette boy returned the gesture, before glancing at each other. She felt him grip her fingers a tad tighter. "You guys too?" He asked. The blonde haired kids nodded, a solemn look on their faces.

Suddenly the train shook, and she felt the wheels begin to move from beneath them. This time it was her gripping the boys fingers tighter. Together the four of them sat in silence, not a single word or gesture being exchanged the whole ride. The first sign of motion from any of them was when Lizzy gently rested her head on her brother's shoulders, letting herself drift off into sleep.

Lily had the faintest clue to what was happening, or where they were going, but seeing someone be able to rest like that in this type of situation was able to calm her nerves. Not a lot, but still. For a moment she debated whether or not to try to fall asleep herself. Would that help? Her mother always said sleep helped with everything. But then again her mother had just let her go...

However when she felt the weight of someone's head on her shoulders, she quickly found herself leaning back into them. Small snores sounded from the boy next to her, and for some reason they comforted her. Soon, everyone but her was fast asleep on someone else, a peaceful look resting on their faces.

In the midst of all the craziness happening around them, it made her happy. Lily had only known these people for barely an hour, but she already felt a strange pull to them, and seeing them like this gave her some hope that things would be okay.

She squeezed the brunete's fingers once more.

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MAE's FUN NOTES-
Depressing first chapter I know