Captive Hearts

Chapter 19

"Malia!" Someone screams at me as they slap me across the face.

"Ow" I say as I slowly open my eyes to meet Amari's beautiful worried face. Ive never seen Amari in her full alien form, the way her skin twinkles with a white glaze like shimmer over her skin is beautiful. I smile instantly seeing her.

"Let me help you up. We need to leave before more guards get here!" She says as she begins grabbing my jello body to try and stand me up but I keep falling down as my legs are so weak they can't hold any of my body weight.

"Amari. I can't" I explain nervously.

"She can't move!" Amari screams out.

I look over in the direction she was screaming in to see Augustus killing off the last of the guards. He rips off the last weapon from the weapon wall, his favorite sword, and quickly runs over to me.

"We need to leave, right now!" He orders. Augustus quickly hands Amari the sword, Amari holds it like she's never touched one before, the way a person that hates babies holds a baby that's crying.

Augustus quickly sweeps me up into his arms and begins running out of the arenas dirt, with Amari following right behind him. Aliens run a lot faster than us humans so I begin feeling slightly queazy. Knowing right now isn't the time to need to throw up, I place my head into Augustus's chest as he runs through the arena trying to find an escape rout without guards on post.

Once we make it out of the arena successfully we all feel a sense of relief like we can breath again. I finally look up from my head being tucked into his chest.

"So now what? We have no where to go since we are all criminals now" I say as Augustus continues walking with Amari following close behind.

"I know somewhere we can go" Augustus says. "Why'd you wait so long?" He says looking down at me in his arms.

"What do you mean?"

"You know I would kill anyone in that arena easily Malia. Why'd you wait until the lever was pulled"

"Augustus can't kill a human without permission from someone in the same species" I hear Amari say from behind me which immediately confuses me.  "He needed you to give permission. That's why he's upset you waited so long"

"I- I'm sorry" I say.

"It's fine. You're safe now" he says, pushing my head back into his chest. The next hour is spent with Augustus and Amari sneaking through the city, with me in Augustus's arms.

We eventually come up to the boarder of where the city ends and we all stop and stare at the openness of the desert before us. It's crazy to think what a nuclear bomb can do to a planet.

Augustus takes a few steps into the desert sand as he begins walking, Amari still behind him as expected.

"What are you doing! We will die out here" I say trying to wiggle out of his arms.

"I know where I'm going Malia" he says, lowering my legs to the desert sand ground. "Do you want to try and walk?" He ask.

I feel my feet hit the sand but as Augustus begins letting go of my body weight I slowly start to fall back into the sand. Before my body can hit the ground though Augustus sweeps me back into his arms.

"I don't get why I can't walk" I say frustrated as Augustus begins walking again in a particular direction. 

"Your air supply was cut off for a long time. I'll have a doctor check you out soon" Augustus states.

"Doctor? Where are we going Augustus. There's nothing out here" Amari responds frustratedly.

"I know where I'm going" he states.

Augustus and Amari walk for two whole days straight. They never once stopped for any breaks, just for me to pee occasionally but that was it. Amari had to hold me up while I peed. It was a very embarrassing process. But we have definitely bonded more because of this.

Augustus has carried me the entire time since my legs aren't working, without complaining once. I've slept through the nights while they continue walking to get us wherever Augustus is taking us. 

I was beginning to get really thirsty but Augustus swears to me that we are almost there and I'll be able to eat and drink all I want.

Finally Augustus sets me down into the desert sand when we come upon a sand dune.

"This is it" he says. I look at him skeptically. Has this man lost his mind. This whole time he was taking us to a little pile of sand?

Augustus sets me down in the sand and begins digging quickly and Amari joins in. I wait patiently to the side unable to help.

They finally reach something and Amari instantly covers her mouth in shock.

"How- what- when did you-" she says in shock. She turns to look at me quickly and her eyes look so big they might explode. I see a tear slip from her eye as the shock wears off.

"What is it?" I ask curiosity getting the best of me.

"It's a space ship" Augustus says while Amari is still freaking out.

"What!" I yell.

Amari and Augustus dig the spaceship fully out of the sand in a few hours time.

Amari picks me up and take me inside and grabs me water and food while Augustus works on the controls to make sure everything is still okay.

"This was a emergency back up plan space craft incase anything went wrong" Augustus says hitting some buttons. "It's pretty old now. But it'll do the trick"

Amari walks away to go look around the small spaceship, curiosity always getting the best of her.

Once everything was good on Augustus's end he quickly comes over to me. He places a stand of hair behind my ear as he looks me over.

"I thought I was going to lose you" he whispers.

"Me too for a moment" I say back looking at my lap. The eye contact making me feel vulnerable.

He takes my chin in hand forcing me to look up at him.

"I have a regret" he says

"What is it?" I ask confused scrunching my eyebrows together.

He takes his thumb and quickly smooths over my forehead getting me to release the tension. He gets closer to me, and I can feel his breath fanning over my face.

"I should have kissed you in the barracks when I had the chance" he whispers.

I look up at him as I suck in a breath from his words.

My eyes immediately fall to his lips as I think about kissing them.

Augustus's hand immediately grabs onto my throat gently pulling me in impossibly closer, crashing his lips onto mine. I immediately go stiff in shock but quickly begin kissing him back matching his passionate kiss