I woke up with the normal hunger pain in my stomach. I looked in the fridge that no longer had a purpose in keeping food in because it no longer worked, just like the stove, the heater, the water, the electricity or anything that could help. I cried as a rotting apple and half a water bottle stayed in the fridge just like yesterday. I didn't know what to expect, some food to magically appear the next day? No one is probably alive. Execpt me...
I grabbed a blanket from my closet since the damn scavengers stole my coat. I went into Trevor Woods behind my house to see if there was anything I could eat. I heard leaves ruffing. Could it be....a person?
"Hello?" I called out. To my surprise a dog jumped on me and I was pinned to the ground. It bit me in the arm and I cried out in pain. I pushed the dog off me and threw a rock at it. It ran away.
I cluched my bleeding arm and cried. I suddenly stopped when I smelled smoke in the air. I ran toward the smell. A girl about my age (16) came up to me slowly. She had weapons and clothes on, I mean good clothes. Her hair was up in some werid hat and her eyes were dark brown.
"Miss, are you okay?" Her voice was kinda scratchy but soothing.
"Um, a dog bit me" I didn't know what else to say. I haven't talked to a person since my parents were alive.
"Follow me to my camp" she said leading the way. I followed.
We went through some small trees and followed a path you could barly see. After walking for a bit we were at the camp. A bunch of tents were up making a large circle around a fire with a few people sitting at it. She lead me to a tent. "This is where the doctor is" she said to me then she poked her head in the tent. "Ruby, we have a new member, she got bit by a dog"
"Come in" said a smooth voice from inside the tent. I went into the tent and saw a girl wearing all leather on and was sitting on the ground in the middle of the tent.
The tent was fairly big and had bunk beds all around the perimeter. "Hey" said Ruby "Go sit in a bunk bed" I did what she said. She picked up my arm and looked at the bite. She suddenly poked her head out of the tent. "Scavengers, please go find some litter or anything you can find, thanks!" She yelled out.
She grabbed a baggy and a full dish soap bottle from a box sitting in the corner of her tent. She filled the baggy with the green soap and threw it outside. She's crazy.
Then she grabbed a stick and went outside. "I'll be right back" she said. I waited for a while. I was shaking of fear and happiness. She came back what it looked like spider web wound around the end of the stick.
"This might hurt a bit" She said then dabbed the spider web on my bleeding wound. I winced but the web soaked up the blood pretty fast. She had the baggy in her hand with soap in it.
"Press that against your wound like an ice pack" she said. She went over to a bunk and was mashing up some kind of plant. She put it in some water then walked to me. . She wrapped some toilet paper around my arm then she wrapped leather over it. "There" she said.
I looked at her confused about how she knew all this stuff. She looked in my eyes and I felt my heart jump. She's beautiful.... Wait no, she's a girl I'm not gonna have a girl crush! "The plant I just put in the water helps with small scratches if you ever need it" she said to me "you will be staying in here for a couple weeks like all new members do. I'm Ruby. You are?"
"Um...uh- i - I'm - you can call me...I'm Bella" I studdered. She nodded her head and gave me a small smile in amusement.
A twenty year old man walked in and gave Ruby lots if bottles and trash. "Thanks Redd" she said to him and he left. She took out a knife that looked like it was a really sharp rock and cut a Budlizer in half. Then she took a hammer and smashed one into the other. She took a push pin and poked small holes into it. Then she poured oil or something in it. She stuck a match and lit it. It made five small fires. She then put a pan over it and boiled some water.
"Why don't you go get food from the blue tent while I make some medication. I walked out of the tent and went into the blue tent.
A older man was in there. He shook my hand. "What would you be have'n today?" He asked me.
"Some food" I said. He laughed.
" what kind of food dear?" I blushed. He handed me a bowl of fruit. I ate it all in about a minute. I was full for the frist time in years. I thanked the man a strolled back to Ruby's tent.
"Did you eat?" She asked me as she dropped a few small flowers in the boiling water.
"Yes" I said. She took the pan off and put the flowers or a wooden plate. "Eat that it will help with the pain" she told me
"What is it?" I asked picking it up and looking at it. It looked like a small sunflower. Is this eatable? I ate it and it tasted like grass.
She started drying some blossoms with a rag. She put some oil in a cup then put blossoms in it and mashed it up. She put the lumpy mixture in clean jars and kept them outside. "Go get some clothes in the tent that is the smallest" Ruby said to me.
"Okay" I replied and walked outside to a small brown tent. I poked my head in and saw clothes, jackets, boots, hats and gloves hanging on the walls of the tent.
"Hello" a girl said. She was about twenty year old She had a very high voice and brown hair that was showing from one shoulder. "I'm Rachel" she said smiling
"I'm Bella" I told her "I need clothes"
"Sit down on that bench" she ordered. I did. She took out a small log that had numbers marked on it. After about an hour of her measuring my feet, my stomach, my head, my legs, my chest (if you know what I mean), my arms and my hands. Then about two hours of her fitting shoes, pants, coats, vests, gloves, hats, socks, she gave me underwear, she gave me a bra and shirts. I was all dressed with new clothes. She gave me a stack of clothes extra.
I walked to the doctors tent and it was dark.
"Go to sleep" Ruby whispered in her bunk to me. I nodded and found a empty bunk.
