His Game

Chapter 14

A couple days passed that was all the same. It included Angel and Nia bringing me food to eat three times a day. They took turns giving me water and helping me get my strength back again every day. Nia ignored me for those days and refused to talk to me when I tried to start a conversation. Angel felt the tension between us, but didn't comment on it. During those days, sometimes it was just Angel and I or Nia and I as the game continued. I wasn't forced to play since I was still recovering.

On the fourth day, it was just Angel and I. I was in the bathroom washing up as best as I could. I didn't have enough strength yet to return to taking showers. When I was finished, I opened the bathroom door and Angel was standing right outside. Her arms were crossed and she was poking her hip out.

"I need to know what's going on between you and Nia." She stated.

My mouth opened a little in shock and I closed it, nodding once I regained my composure. 

"Um, yeah sure," I pointed to the beds. "Lets sit."

I sat on my bed and she sat on hers. We faced each other for a couple of minutes. She was trying to find all the answers to her questions in my eyes and I began fidgeting with my fingers.

"What is it do you want to know?" I broke the silence.

"Why is she ignoring you?" She started.

"I think she's mad at me."

"Why?"

I sighed. "It's complicated."

She scoffed. "You're speaking like you're in a relationship with her."

I chuckled then cleared my throat. "No. She's mad at me for what I told her. That's all."

"What did you tell her?" 

"Did you actually leave the checkpoint?" I challenged her.

She frowned. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Cause you ignored Nia when she asked you," I accused her. "Did you do it or not?"

"I don't think you should be making accusations you can't prove," 

I leaned forward. "Listen here and listen closely. I'm not afraid of you or Durst but if you really want to get out of this as much as Nia and I do, then you need to be trying to help us."

"You can't tell me what to do," She smirked crossing her arms over her chest again. "I can play his game the way I want to because I don't need you or Nia to get me out of here."

I frowned."How could you be so selfish?"

She laughed. "Selfish? Ha! I'm not being selfish, sweetie. I'm just playing the game right."

"And what's that? Being a selfish, little drama queen that expects everything to be done for you?" I was beginning to get heated. "By leaving your teammates to fend for themselves?"

'We were never a team in the first place," She yelled at me. "Open your eyes, Celia and stop trying to play the hero."

"The only thing I'm trying to do is stay alive," I retorted crossing my arms over my chest.

The door opened and we leaned back from each other's faces. Nia walked in the room and looked at us suspiciously. She waited at the door after she closed it behind her.

"What's going on?" She asked quietly.

"Angel decided she wants to go solo," I said.

Angel smacked her lips. "I've never been apart of this makeshift team y'all decided to create in the first place. Why can't y'all see we were never in this together as a team?"

"Angel, if we act as a team though we'll be stronger than working alone," Nia said.

She shook her head. "You might be right, but I don't want to take the risk. You've seen Celia and how she is now for trying to enact that crazy plan of hers. I don't want to have to go through what she's been through."

Nia stepped forward and fell to her knees in front of Angel. "I know you're afraid. It's nothing wrong with being scared. You have to stop letting your fear stop you from what's more important and that's getting the hell out of here."

Angel paused. I could tell she was shocked from her behavior and the harsh tone of voice she had with her towards the end. I didn't have anything else to say that was already said. I faded more into the background as I witnessed all that just occurred. 

"Just give this a chance," Nia urged.

"Fine," Angel sighed. "But if I have to go through something like what Celia went through, I am out."

Nia nodded and sat cross legged on the floor. "Completely understandable. Which is why we can come up with a better plan to escape."

"Which is what?" I intervened.

"By ditching your plan," Nia said like she was dusting something off of her shoulder.

I held my hand to my heart. "That hurt."

Nia giggled. "I didn't mean it like that. It wasn't a bad plan. We just need a better plan that would have less risks than that plan."

Angel nodded her head. "I agree."

"Fine, fine," I held up my hands in surrender. "What can we do?"

"This is going to sound crazy," Nia sighed. "We have to do nothing like you said the first time, Celia."

"We can't just do nothing," Angel spoke up first after the short pause.

"If we play his game and not disobey any rules, he will began to relax with us. He'll be more open to tell us about the fourth player and what she could have done." Nia raised an eyebrow and waved her hands. "Once we know, we'll know what we're dealing with and we can plan from there."

I nodded my head in respect for Nia's intellectual mind. She shocked me. She was the quietest out of all of us and when we first arrived here, she was the weakest. I know I wasn't so kind to her in the beginning, but I wanted to protect her as though she was my daughter. She was fragile and pure in my eyes. I'm proud of the woman she's become in the past week or so that we've been here. I lost track of counting the days that I wasn't sure anymore how long we've been here exactly.

This was all my fault. If I would have continued with what I've been doing, this could have turned out better. I let Durst get into my head with all of his nonsense. I shouldn't have let that happen. 

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

They frowned. "Why are you sorry?" Angel asked.

"I let y'all down." I started. "If I wouldn't have allowed Durst to get into my head like that on that one night I was frozen, I would have stuck with the original plan. The plan Nia is proposing now, but hers is a little different."

"Different or not, you don't have to be sorry." Nia squeezed my hand then took Angel's hand. 

"Ladies, we have to put everything aside and be all in this together."

Angel nodded and I nodded as well smiling a little. Things were perking up for us again and I was excited. This team effort felt more better than what we tried before.