Lost {Ongoing:In Editing}

Losing Control

Chapter XXVII

NIGHT HAD ALREADY BEGUN to set, and the moon had settled into its position in the sky high above the clouds. It was hard to believe a day had already come and gone. Now out of the jungle and amongst spruce trees once more, snow fell from the sky and accumulated on the ground and trees quickly. Nearly everyone in the group had already thrown their jackets back on.

Joey stumbled over her own feet as they dragged in the ankle deep snow. Her eyelids grew heavy and her body begged for sleep, but still she pressed on. She shook her head, trying to clear her blurring vision and the thought of sleep from her mind.

Her heart raced rapidly against her breasts as a sudden whisper filled her ears. She couldn't quite make out the words, but the voice fluttered around her in the air refusing to leave. After a minute, the voice became clearer and it began spouting off the names of those around her.

"She thinks your weak," it said, and her eyes darted towards Ella.

"He doesn't trust you," came another whisper, overlapping the previous voice. "You should wiped him from the board before he turns on you." Her gaze shifted towards Alex and she shivered. Clenching her hands into fists, listening to the voice inside her head was tempting. After all, she knew it was only speaking the truth. Alex was a threat. They all were.

"You alright?"

She snapped her head around to find Chase walking behind her with his arms pressed tight against his chest, frozen from the cold.

Instantly, the voices vanished and the thoughts disappeared. Clearing her throat, she gripped the edges of her jacket and pulled them in closer. She then responded, "I'm fine." Gazing down, she could no longer see her boots as they vanished beneath the white powder, and she had to make high steps to even budge through the tall snow. It had definitely gotten worse since the night before.

"Her eyes were red again." Her ears perked hearing one of the twins small voices. "What are we going to do?"

"Shh, shh!" Someone cleared their throat from behind. "I gather that you don't sleep much."

She raised a brow and once again looked back at Chase. "What?" She wasn't sure what had brought up his remark. "What gave you that idea?"

He shrugged. "I'm not sure really. Maybe just the fact that I don't think you've slept at all since being in the Dome. What is that ..." He looked up as if to think. "Three nights? Four days?"

She rolled her eyes. "So? Weren't you sleeping during those times? Who's to say I didn't go to sleep after you and wake up before you?"

Chase held up his hands defensively. "Alright, alright! Maybe so. My bad! It's just that ... sleep is important for your body. If you don't get enough, it could eventually kill you." His face softened. "You do ... know that, right? It's not like that's something—"

"So, does having doctors as parents automatically make you an expert?" she snapped, and Chase arched a brow. "Or do you always just randomly diagnose people?"

He looked at her shocked by her response. "I was just making conversation," he said, harshly.

"Well, how about you go blabber your knowledge to someone who cares," she hissed. "Because you know nothing about me." By this time, most of the group had stopped to see what was going on.

"Hey, Joey ..." From the corner of her eye, she found Thomas staring at her. "Maybe you should just walk away. Give yourself some space."

Her head slowly rotated his way until she shot him a fiery glare. She wanted to pummel him for interrupting her, but as she stared at him, her face softened and she realized he was trying to help her from going too far. Her eyes ventured back to Chase, who stared at her angrily. She turned around and continued on her trudge through the snow when a soft 'tsk' rang through her ears, and she instantly knew who it was.