Beyond the Border | ✔

26 | rule 51

RULE 51: RESOURCES ARE LIMITED IN THE BORDERLANDS. YOU MUST NOT USE MORE THAN YOU ARE RATIONED.

✷ C H A P T E R T W E N T Y - S I X ✷

Theo's words lingered on my mind. I let them sink in, marinating for hours on end. No matter how I processed what he said, I couldn't help but be doubtful. It was far easier to fall prey to my pessimistic thoughts than the alternative. I mean, there was so much depth laced in his words — I chose you —  so many feelings for someone he didn't know all that well. How could I know he wasn't saying the right things to get what he wanted?

    That's what he's doing, I tried to convince myself. I felt so shaken by Memphis being kicked out of the Borderlands that I wasn't sure what I should believe anymore. Was the Borderlands really the idyllic place I thought it was? Were they really protecting us from the Outside?

    Did any of this truly matter, though? My family was back in the Borderlands, and that was all that truly mattered to me. My family.

    I closed my eyes and groaned. Last night was the best night I had outside of the Borderlands. Even when things picked up a bit, I was still having fun at the bar. Now that yesterday was over, I had to be grounded back in the reality that the timeline to procure a witch was narrowing down. I had — hopefully — spent more time on the Outside than I had left out here, even if I had nothing but some vaccinations to show for it.

    Shaking my head, I finally decided to get out of Theo's bed. I was still dressed in the clothes from the night before. Theo left a change of clothes for me at the foot of the bed. It was a pair of shorts and a flowing tank top. Quickly, I dressed, neatly folding up my clothes from the night before. I used what I presumed was Theo's hairbrush and splashed some water on my face before making my way out of his bedroom.

    Walking down the stairs, Theo was sitting at the kitchen island. I took a seat next to him while he slid a plate of eggs, bacon, and pancakes towards me.

    "Eat," he told me while he shoved his own food into his mouth. His words reminded me of the first morning I woke up on the Outside after being kidnapped. Of course, he tried to convince me he had not in fact kidnapped me; his words fell on deaf ears, however.

    I briefly wondered if Theo cooked the food. It would have made me slightly impressed if he had made this feast– I knew how much time and effort went into such a meal from watching and sometimes helping Gran in the kitchen –  but then I remembered Theo had quite a few people working for him, so I could not be certain either way.

Peering over at Theo's overflowing plate, I almost gagged. His plate was filled with raw meat.

    "Shouldn't you cook your food before you eat it?" I asked, nervously eyeing the food on my own plate as if it suddenly was unsafe.

    "Don't need to," he turned towards me, picked a piece of raw meat up with his fork, and then smiled when he proceeded to eat it. I scrunched up my nose and scooted my chair away from him. "Want to try?"

    He playfully jabbed his fork towards me, but I leaned to the side to distance myself, even more, my hair invading my vision. After a small chuckle, Theo took his fork out of my direction, and I was safe to resume eating my own food. Of course, I kept a watchful eye on Theo at all times.

    Meanwhile, silence hung over us as the clinking of silverware filled the room; the scratching of my fork on the ceramic plate sent an uncomfortable shiver down my spine. I would periodically glance over at Theo longer than needed as he scarfed down the food I was positive would make him sick. Despite my repulsion for the food on Theo's plate, I tried to eat as much of mine as I could manage, but I was not used to such large portions. While Gran liked to cook and while she liked to cook a lot, food in the Borderlands was portioned out. You could grow your own food — it was even encouraged. But, a lot of the staple foods like meat or spices were often rationed.