Human Error

BOOK 2 // TEN: Eye of the Storm

            We had no choice but to come out of the water, with Nova's eagle eyes watching our every move. As the water level dropped, revealing first my chest, then my stomach and the top of my legs, the air stung my skin with its icy chill. Uncontrollable shivers racked my body, and I was trembling so hard I could barely find my feet on the uneven ground. If coming to the lake had ever seemed like a bad decision, it now swelled around us like a fatal mistake.

Back on land, our major oversight came to light: we didn't have any way to dry ourselves. With no towels, or even anything remotely warm, all we could do was try to shake off the worst of the water, put on the extra layers that lay discarded on the floor, and hope we wouldn't freeze on the walk back.

Although perhaps that would've been more bearable than enduring Nova's ice-cold shoulder.

"I don't know what you were thinking," she said, once we were fully clothed. The second-hand sweatshirt I'd been wearing earlier did nothing to warm me up, not when I could already feel the dampness from my wet skin seeping through, but I tried not to think about it. "You know there's a storm on the way? It's completely irresponsible to disappear without telling anyone."

"But we—"

"I don't want to hear it," Nova snapped, depriving me of the chance to get past those two words. "Let's just make sure we get back before we caught in the storm."

As she marched ahead, leaving Jace and I to trail behind, I felt like a scolded puppy walking back with my tail between my legs. I didn't even think it was justified. In an ideal world, the sensible option probably would've been for Jace and I to tell somebody we were heading out – but somebody probably would've just talked us out of it. Or the information would've somehow found its way back to Nova, only for a couple of extra jobs to coincidentally land in our schedules.

Keeping quiet was the only way to ensure the moment was truly ours.

Except now it had been tainted anyway, in the worst way possible.

I didn't even know how I survived the walk. The journey was nothing short of agonising, with the absence of conversation capable of more damage than even the worst words. Awkwardness resounded with each step, and though I badly wanted to sneak a sideways glance at Jace, I didn't dare with Nova one pace ahead.

I couldn't risk making things worse.

Would there be punishment for this? Extra work to drill it into us that we shouldn't sneak off? A rework of the schedule so we were left with the least desirable jobs? It didn't seem likely; the group here didn't seem the type to enforce strict discipline, especially when taking into account Art's frequent scavenging trips. Then again, I'd never seen anything quite like the look of anger on Nova's face. I wouldn't stake my life on her not making an exception.

It was kind of an overreaction, and I maintained this opinion even when our steps took us back into the city, after the walk had given me time to think. So Jace and I had ventured out a little further than normal – but it was hardly the most dangerous thing in the world. It wasn't like we'd jumped behind the wheel of one of the trucks and taken them out for a spin. We weren't even trying to be rebellious. It was just a shot at a moment's peace, someplace to claim as our own in a city that was feeling increasingly small. Perhaps we should've held off on this afternoon if we'd known about the storm, but still – a little rain wouldn't kill us.

Nova's reaction was completely unfair. And yet I had a feeling that it was more than the weather that had got her riled up – what she'd stumbled upon at the lake might've had something to do with it.