The moment my mind starts to regain consciousness is the moment I feel my body start aching. My joints are stiff and throb with small waves of pain rushing in over and over again. I can barely lift myself upwards, but somehow I'm able to force myself into a seated position. Slowly stretching and moving my arms around, I take a look around me to see where exactly I've landed. I can barely see, only a few torches scattered around light up the room I'm in. Even with how dark it is, it's not hard to tell that I'm surrounded with dirt and rock.
My ears pick up the slight sounds of groaning somewhere near me. Surprised, I frantically look around the area, only to see what was making the sound when I direct my gaze downwards.
"nHHHHhhh..."
"Oh shoot." It seems that I've landed on Gino. "Dude! A-Are you- Ow! Are you okay?!" I say, struggling to stand up. I do my very best to lift him up from the ground as well, but the immediate pressure on my already sore limbs make me drop him instantly.
"OW!" He says.
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry but my arms feel like jelly! I don't think I can help you with this, you're on your own."
Gino struggles, but soon enough he's able to get up as well. Definitely took him less time than I did. "Where are we?" He asks me, rolling his shoulders back.
"I don't know, but I remember we fell into the damn tree! How is that even possible?!" I say, leaning back on the wall and moving my limbs around as much as I can.
"It was a doorway that we somehow opened." He replies.
"A doorway in a tree... Huh, definitely the least crazy thing that exists in this world. How far down did we even fall?" I ask.
"Couldn't have been far, our bodies would be in way worse condition if it was. Looks like we're somewhere underground."
I squint my eyes to try and get a better look at the room around me, but with how dark the room is, it's no use. My gaze trails the underground walls until it lands on a torch. I carefully pick it up from the wall. 'This should be helpful.'
"AAAHH THERE'S SOMETHING ON THE GROUND?!" Gino suddenly shrieks from behind, making me jump.
"W-What?! What is it?!" I quickly run over to him. His arms wrap around my waist as he decides to take cover behind my body. Without thinking, I point the torch on the ground and light up the area in front of us to find...
"Gino..."
"Y-Yeah?"
"...It's just my water bottle."
"...What?"
"It's just my water bottle..." I repeat with a sigh. Picking up the metal canister, I show it to Gino and he exhales in relief. Inspecting the flask for a quick second, I immediately notice a giant scratch among the black paint, revealing the natural white color of the steel underneath. 'Damn it, it got scratched! I paid so much for this one too...'
"Wait, you brought a water bottle with you?" Gino asks me.
"Yeah... I mean we need it to survive, won't we?" I respond to him. I'm about to put it in my bag when his hand reaches out to grasp my wrist, stopping me.
"C-Can I have some...?" He asks rather shyly. "I-If only you don't mind! You don't have to give me some if don't want to! I'll be fine either way!"
I let out a chuckle and shake my head at him. "You know it's not a big deal right? You can ask for it anytime, so don't worry about it!" I uncap the bottle and pour some water in the cap, surprisingly to Gino's astonishment.
YOU ARE READING
The Gems of Element
FantasyI lived a simple life. I'd wake up every morning and eat breakfast with my Dad before heading to school. I'd arrive there, do my work, walk back with my best friend, then come back and sleep all of my worries for tomorrow away. It was my routine, it...
