Refuge

Chapter 13

By the time the guard yelled, "Finish up!" The room was filled with the scents of freshly baked pasta without sauce, some off-the-cob corn, homemade fried tomatoes; fresh dinner rolls, and mashed potatoes without the parts that make them good. Ahem, butter.

It was an odd choice of combos but they were probably told to make enough to feed however many they could. $&@* if I know though I was outside making friends and doing some hard $&@* work.

Interrupting my thoughts, the guard quickly ushered us out of the building into the grass. He ordered us to run across the grass alongside another guard on a dirtbike. They ordered us to run up to the building where another guard waited for us. If I'm not mistaken it's the same building we had slept in last night.

They ushered us inside and I recognized it perfectly. I had Katie run ahead to secure our bed and potentially a second one above or next to it. No one tried to get to our bed although now the darker-skinned man from earlier now claimed the one above it.

I dismissed him and sat down on our bed alongside Katie. I decided not to tell her what I found out about my hair color earlier and to not tell her about Yatrinya and Mark. I don't want to embarrass myself in front of my friendly acquaintances because of something Katie said or vice versa.

"How you holdin' up?" Katie asked, breaking the silence.

"Better than I thought but I can't think of any foolproof jailbreak ideas; anyway how about you? Your bruises seem to have faded slightly but not by much. Do they hurt?" I asked, for once showing my soft side for her in my voiced concern.

"Just a little sting. Yesterday was pretty bad though. I managed not to shed a tear though so I'm getting better" I kind of feel responsible that she feels like she has to hide her emotions like this but at the same time, that a girl!

"Just don't get too good at it," I warned.

"Well, why not?"

"You'd struggle to smile, you'd be closed off and too reserved for your own good, and you just wouldn't be the sweet person you are today"

"What's so bad about being the things you are?"

I paused for a moment realizing she was mostly right and said, "Because I'm the cool one, you're the not rebellious cool one"

Then I heard the door open and I watched three people coming in with trays on their hands and heads. I welcomed the break from the awkward conversation and watched them walk in. "Line!" The guard commanded.

We all followed his command and got in a single file line across the middle of the room. Me and Katie were more towards the back of the line but I was glad I at least wouldn't be the first guinea pig in the bunch.

"Card!" The woman without a tray yelled to the first in line.

"What do you want me to do?" He stupidly asked.

"Card!"

"What can I do for you?"

"Next!" she yelled with a coarse voice. The man was pulled away by a guard and placed him to the side. She yelled once again, "Card!"

The woman she was talking to didn't understand what she meant either and the same thing happened. "I think she means the cards they gave us earlier," a man beside me thought aloud. That's it!

I pulled out my card and Katie did the same, realizing that's the necessary action. More and more of the people were sent away clueless but we were ready. If I had told someone things may not be so bad for that person but who cares am I right? I don't even know them!

The woman edged closer and reached a young woman beside the man who realized what needed to be done and he told her, "The card they gave you earlier!"

"Card!" the woman yelled. The girl handed out her card and the loud woman pulled out a hole puncher and marked her card. "Finally a less %#@* stupid rat," she mumbled. The man held out his card and she did the same to him. Pretty soon everyone remaining in line had a hole in their card. Just before the loud woman had finished her trip at the end of the line the other two new people with the trays walked by the line giving each of us a bowl.

When she reached me I could see a faint strip of purple hair coming out from underneath her hat. Her face was unnaturally red and her hand trembled when she handed me a bowl filled with our pasta and fried tomatoes. She lightly stumbled on my chain and I had to pull it backwards before her chain intertwined with mine. That'd be embarrassing and her nerves look shot.

If I even moved my chain to get it off of hers if that had happened she might've punched me by accident. I do not want to punch her back right now and risk spilling my food. It's probably past lunchtime and I've waited all day for this.

Katie received her bowl as well and as soon as everyone in the line had been given food we were released from our line. Those who hadn't figured it out were left without food and stared longingly at ours. It's not my fault they're stupid.