While We Fall (The Eva Series #2)

Chapter Thirteen

“Let’s go see our new home!” Jo smiled as she grabbed Ben’s hand and started pulling him towards the house. Wyatt and I followed quickly behind, finally feeling free from danger.
We ran up the stairs and burst through the front door, with Dixon pushing past us and barking as he sped through the house.
It was just as beautiful inside as it was on the outside.

The hard-wood floor had been dotted with intricately patterned rugs, a long brown couch and a spotless wooden coffee table sat upon the largest one in the room, with the biggest flat-screen television I had ever seen perched proudly on the wall. An eight-seater polished dining table sat to my left, the open kitchen with a breakfast bar was just beyond it. A hallway adjacent to the kitchen led to what I assumed were the bedrooms.
Warm, glowing sunlight filled the room, shining through the floor to ceiling windows on each side of the house, blessing me with endless 360 degree views of the rainforest.

“Woah! Xbox! Friggin’ sweet!” Said Ben as he started rummaging through the video games on the television cabinet. He jumped onto the couch, turned the television on and started flicking through channels, all of them static. “Damn.”
“Only one bathroom? For five people? We’ll need to make a shower schedule.” Jo said as she opened the first door in the hallway.
I stepped towards the window next to the dining table to admire the view, and was pleasantly surprised to see the bright turquoise ocean sparkling beyond the trees.
“Not bad, huh?” Wyatt asked as he stood next to me.
“It’s perfect.” I sighed, relieved to finally feel safe again.
I turned and hugged him tight, and he reciprocated by wrapping his arms around my waist and lifting me off my feet.

Over his shoulder, I noticed a photograph on a bookshelf near the front door.
Wyatt lowered me to my feet and I walked toward it to get a closer look. In it were two little blonde boys at the beach, one taller than the other. They both had their arms around the other’s shoulders and were smiling widely. They looked so happy.
“Is that you?” I asked Wyatt, pointing to the shorter boy in the photograph.
“Yep. Me and Elliot.” He replied.
“You look like best mates.” I said, looking at their smiling faces.
“We were.” He said quietly, sadness in his voice.
“Hello, hello!” A voice rumbled from inside the house.

Elliot appeared from the hallway, freshly showered and wearing only a towel. Jo gasped in surprise at the sight of him. Without all that mud on his face and camouflage gear, he looked quite handsome. He had a big smile on his face as he clapped his hands together, “So, how are we all? Good?”
“Brilliant.” Jo smiled as her eyes took in the sight of his muscles. He looked like a body-builder or pro wrestler with his bulging arms and tanned six-pack.
“Where’s Mum and Dad?” Wyatt asked, looking around.
Elliot’s smile faded instantly.
“I haven’t heard from them in days. They called to say they were coming, but…” he trailed off, not wanting to finish that sentence.
Wyatt didn’t say a word. He didn’t even breathe.
“It’s ok, Wyatt,” Said Ben. “They’re probably still on their way up.”
Wyatt shook his head. “They only live an hour away. They would’ve been here by now.” He sighed, closing his eyes. “I need some air.” He muttered as he stormed out the front door and ran down the steps.
I moved to run after him but Elliot moved faster, stepping in front of me and closing the door.
“Leave him. He needs to be alone.”
I didn’t like the idea of Wyatt out there alone and upset, but Elliot knew him better than I did. And something told me Elliot didn’t like it when people disobeyed him, so I stayed put.

“Anyway guys,” Elliot said, clapping his hands together as if to snap us out of our sadness for Wyatt. “There are three spare bedrooms. Mine’s the one furthest down to the left, you can take your pick of the others. Two have King size beds, the other has two twin beds so two of you will have to share.”
“Well,” Smiled Jo as she placed her hands on her hips. “Us girls need our privacy, so the boys can share.” She said matter-of-factly.
“Fine.” Muttered Ben, knowing there was no point arguing with her.
I felt relieved to have my own space to go to, after all the craziness of the past few days and spending hours upon hours crammed in that RV, I needed some alone time to process everything that had happened.
“Twin beds are in the room furthest down the hall and to the right.” Elliot said without even looking at Ben. “Ladies, your sanctuaries await!” he smiled and gestured down the hall.
Jo walked down the hall and inspected both bedrooms carefully.
“I choose this one!” She grinned as she stepped into the room on the left, next to the bathroom. I popped my head in and knew instantly why she chose it. Floral curtains and matching bedding made this room seem perfect for her tastes.
“I guess this one’s mine then.” I winked at her and entered the room on the right side of the hall. The curtains and bedding matched in this room, too, only they were a deep purple, much more suited for me.
“Ugh,” said Ben under his breath as he opened the door to the bedroom he would be sharing with Wyatt. “This room is tiny.”
I peeked in behind him to see it was half the size of mine and Jo’s rooms, and patted him on the back in sympathy.
“Oooh! There’s clothes in here!” I heard Jo say in from her room as she slid her mirrored wardrobe door to the side.
“Yeah,” Elliot said as he leaned casually against the doorframe. “They’re from the ex-girlfriend pile. I assumed they might come in handy when the end of the world came and all those people who called me nuts flocked to me for help. Looks like you were the only ones who made it, though.”

I pushed open my wardrobe door to see there were clothes hanging in there, too. Some were my style, which was perfect because I had been wearing the same outfit for days and needed more clothes.
I quietly closed my door and went to the window to look for Wyatt. Even though I had an amazing view of the garden, rainforest and ocean in the distance, I couldn’t see him anywhere.
I sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, hoping he was okay.
“If anyone needs me, I’ll be in the shower!” I heard Jo call from the hallway.
A few seconds later, the sound of the shower gave me a sudden curious thought.
Elliot was wearing a towel before and was dripping wet from a shower, but when Jo had opened the bathroom door and complained that there was only one bathroom, he wasn’t in there.
Where did he come from? I wondered.
I got up and slowly opened my bedroom door, making sure the hallway was empty before I stepped out into it. There weren’t any ensuites in our rooms, but maybe Elliot had one. I don’t know why I felt so suspicious of him, but I crept up to his bedroom door anyway, knocking lightly. “Elliot?”
No answer.

Slowly, I turned the doorknob and pushed the door open to peek inside. It looked pretty much the same as my room, only the colour of choice for the curtains and bedding was a dark green. No ensuite here either. But where was Elliot? Didn’t I see him walk down here before?
I closed the door, about to turn around when I noticed another door at the end of the hallway. Opening it, I saw a set of stairs leading to yet another door.
I looked around to make sure no-one was around before climbing up the stairs and opening the door to see rows and rows of vegetables growing in rectangular wooden boxes. It was the rooftop garden I saw from outside earlier.
“Elliot?” I called, but still heard nothing.
He had completely disappeared.

I went back downstairs and crept back into my new bedroom.
Maybe he went looking for Wyatt, I wondered as I fell onto the bed and closed my eyes. It felt so good to be in a warm, comfy bed again.
That still didn’t explain where he came from before, but as my breathing became heavier and I drifted off to sleep, it didn’t seem to matter.

All that mattered was we made it.

Wyatt, Jo, Ben and I were here.

We were together.

And we were safe.

For now.

________

Author's Note:

Thanks so much for reading!

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