Ruin and Revival

Chapter 8: Twisted Glory

CALVIN

I awoke from a deep, reviving sleep and stretched out my sore limbs. I turn my head to see that Arika isn't there, the sheets on her side already cold. Panic arose inside of me. What if she had been kidnapped or even worse, killed? I jumped off the bed.

"Arika! Arika! Where are you?!" People give me strange look as they walk by but I couldn't care less.

"Relax dude. She went to see if her family was here. My girlfriend is showing her around. She's fine. I am Jake and we're the tent that lives next to you so uh, neighbors?" He sticks out a hand which I firmly shake as relief bubbles inside of me.

"Thank you so much. I don't know what I would do with myself if something had happened to her," I heave, out of breath from the previous moments of panic. He chuckles.

"I know how you feel. Wanna come in for some water," I nod for no harm in making a friend in dark times like these. Turns out he came from Sacramento and was also a sophmore in highschool. We both miss those street basketball games and eating hotdogs with ketchup. Both of our households were pretty rich but we were dating middle class girls. Were Arika and I dating though?

"Calvin, I'm back," I hear Arika's voice. I stand up.

"Well that's my que. Good talking to you," we both nod before I exit the tent. I enter mine to see Arika making the bed and tidying our meager belongings. I run up to her and squeeze her tight, never wanting to let go again.

"You scared me so bad. Tell me next time where you're going okay," I peer into her eyes.

"I am really sorry. It's just you were drooling in your sleep and you looked adorable," She giggled. I blush, crossing my arms, pretending to look annoyed. Despite her laughing, I sensed something was wrong. She seemed slightly down, even though I could tell she tried her best to hide it. I grab her by the shoulders and force her to look at me.

"Hey, what's wrong? You can tell me," She turns her head away.

"I'm sure it's nothing. I think I am just over analyzing," Frustration coursed through me.

"Arika, look at me. You can tell me anything. We are boyfriend and girlfriend now, partners in crime. I need to know what's wrong!" I say sternly.

"I just couldn't find my family. Maybe they haven't arrived yet. But I am so glad to be your girlfriend now," She leaned up and kissed me on the lips, the first time she had ever taken initiative. I melted into her soft lips, running my hands through her hair.

"Guys, dinner is being handed-" poor Brianna's face turns chalk white.

"Um, sorry to interrupt. See you around," with that she was gone, fast as lighting. Arika and I were still frozen in our positions before we both burst out laughing, like wild animals. Tears still streaming down my face I manage to say, "I think we should head out. Don't wanna starve to death," Arika nods, finally starting to calm down. We walked out of the tent and strolled over to meet Jake and Brianna getting four boxes of food.

"What's up dude,," we high five, "Bri here told me you two had some business to attend to, which I can completely get, so we got you some food," He winks at us. Arika and I share knowing looks. We sit on the ground in Jake's tent and eat out warm chicken and corn. We wolf down our dinner, finally able to eat a warm meal in what felt like eternity.

"Man, is this what a warm supper feels like," I say with food still in my mouth. Everyone bursts into laughter.

"It feels so good to finally not have to worry about what to eat next or where to go next!" Bri exclaims excitedly. After we finish our dinner, I go outside to throw away our trash. The stars were already out in the sky. I stand still for a few minute, closing my eyes and savoring the breeze that cooled the heat of this world.

"You look like an idiot you know," Arika says. She looked so beautiful. The night's shadows brought out her soft features. Her eyes twinkled under the stars and her hair came down in long, endless waves. I walk over to her and pull her into an embrace.

"When do I not look like an idiot," Her small hands caress my face, a warm smile illuminating her face.

"You'll always be my idiot," she whispers softly. We stand there for what felt like hours, enjoying each other's presence. I feel Arika shiver.

"Let's head in," She nods. We bid Jake and Bri a goodnight and climb into bed, laying down, relishing the cool sheets.

"What do we do now?" Arika asks as if she were talking to herself.

"I think we should get some sleep," I whisper.

"Don't you think things are going too well right now. Like this place is too perfect. Why is there a curfew from 8am to 8pm? Why of all places is the refugee camp here? Something isn't right," Arika rambles on, ignoring the previous remark. I chuckle and pull her down with me.

"Just accept peace and enjoy it while you can," I whisper softly, sleep already taking over and making my eyelids heavy. I wake to a loud bang. Groggy with sleep, I rub my eyes and stretch. Another bang goes off. My mind clears like fog as I realize guns are going off as screams permeate the air. Arika springs up, her head turning frantically.

"What the hell is going on?!" Her voice rises over the screams.

"Pack your bags right now. Let's go find Jake and Bri. We have to leave," I instruct in a strangely calm voice. We went into survival mode. Stealthy as ever, we stuffed everything into our packs and creeped out. Jacob had already come out followed by Bri. They motioned to us and started jogging steadily towards the exit. Suddenly, bandits appeared to our left, dressed in similar clothes with pieces of clothes covering their faces, rifles firing. A grown man with graying hair aimed and fired at Arika, her back toward the man, unaware of the deadly bullet. In that moment, time slowed ten fold. Arika just turned around, her eyes wide, as I sprinted, full speed. Pain bursted on the side of my stomach, my vision blackening and blurring.