Our Broken World

Chapter 5

Dylan is standing in front of me, smiling with that attractive smirk of his that I thought I'd never see again. I thought I'd never see him again.

He's the same as when I last saw him, but at the same time he's changed so much. I step closer to him and notice that he's still got eyes as endless as the universe. And brown, like oak.

His body is so much stronger and more muscular from when I last saw him. I have to take into account that he was 21 then, which means he's about 25 now. During all this time, he'd first been training in the army, probably getting deployed at some point and after getting back home, he had to survive out here, in this broken world. The wars and the world after them changed everyone; I mean, God knows it changed me completely. Looks like he's changed too. But not completely.

He still has those annoyingly cute dimples, and that extremely seducing smile, because of which I wondered how the hell did he end up loving my nerdy self, instead of being snatched up by some crazily sexy girl.

''Dee?'' I utter his nickname in response, because I cannot believe what I'm seeing. ''Is it really you?''

He nods slowly, like he himself is not even sure if it's him.

I'm positive I hear him let out a faint laugh as he says: ''I thought I'd never hear anyone call me that again.''

I smile now, completely sure it's him if I wasn't sure before. But the truth is, I was. I was sure the moment I saw his face.

I step closer to him, my eyes wide open in astonishment, and instinctively put my arms around his neck. Within a moment he responds by putting his around my waist and pulling me close.

My body is pressed against his and I can feel the warmth emanating from it. I close my eyes and savor it for a second. I breathe in his smell, relaxing in his embrace. We might be completely at ease with each other for a moment, like we've done this a thousand times before, but the next second we part awkwardly. Because we haven't done this a thousand times before.

We pull away and each take a step back. He breaks the silence by saying: ''What ... What are you doing here?''

''Nothing, I'm ... travelling. Gotta keep moving, or I'm dead.'' I say, not revealing my true goal yet. I don't trust the others. It's been so long, I'm not even sure I trust Dylan. I mean, it's been years since we last saw each other.

''Who is she, Ghost? You know her?'' Says the man with the darker complexion.

Ghost – Dylan – looks at him and says: ''Yeah, she's my ...'' He trails off and then looks at me and says: ''A family friend.''

His gaze then turns to Jonah. ''She's off limits.''

Jonah nods slightly, and it seems as though there's fear in his eyes. Or maybe respect, I'm not really sure.

I look at Dylan and see a darkness in his eyes. He's not Dee anymore, or even Dylan. He's Ghost now. The moment he looks at me again, though, he's once more my Dylan. Just the way I remember him, even though he's changed so much.

''What are you doing here?'' I return the question.

''We came back from Iraq about a year ago. The military was ... disbanded after the wars. Chaos ensued even in the army and there was no one left to command us soldiers. We've been roaming around the U.S. since then.''

There's a sadness in his gaze, like he misses the army. I can't imagine what it must've been like for him losing that part of his life. Even though I never wanted him to go, I can only imagine how important it probably must've become to him.

I nod and say: ''Did you go home?''

He nods and replies: ''Found my mom and dad. They're gone. I went to your house, too. I was looking for you. I knew I probably wouldn't find you there, but ... I had a glimmer of hope. And here you are.''