𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘

𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑒

∘◦ ☆ ◦∘

Helping me sit down on the small one-person cot in the corner of the tent space, the two boys started shuffling around the drawers of a seemingly homemade wooden dresser, the only other thing filling the space.

Feeling the blankets lied on the bed with the palms of my hands, I realized that it was a dried deerskin, two hides were sewn together to make a dual-sided blanket. Clever if you had asked me.

"Found it!" Cayden exclaimed, his dark hair shifting out of place slightly as he triumphantly thrust a tin of something in the air, "Finally."

Swiping the tin out of his hand, Owen rolled his eyes and pushed the other boy out of his way as he came to sit beside me. Twisting the lid off of the tin, he stuck two fingers in the muddy paste before lifting them up to the side of my neck, "This is a cooling salve, used some of the mint leaves I found and it seems to help with pain. Just thought I'd try it."

Brushing my light hair away, he applied the paste, a tingly cooling feeling left behind in its wake.

The boy's black hair slightly fell into his eyes and desperately needed a cut. Watching him for a moment, I spoke my wonders, "Why are the other boys so nasty?"

"They've been brainwashed. Pan likes to enforce the idea that we can do anything we want, which is a total lie," Owen spoke spitefully, furrowing his eyebrows as he focused on the salve.

Sitting down on my other side, Cayden tipped his head to the side and cracked the air out from between the bones, "Everything we do is on Pan's terms, to benefit his agenda... Plus, none of us have seen a girl in decades!"

Letting out a quiet scratchy laugh at his excitement, I rolled my eyes playfully, "Oh, really?"

"We seem to have lost our etiquette..." Owen laughed as well, closing the lid back on the tin and setting it beside him on the cot.

☆

I must have fallen asleep, the lul of slumber obviously overtaking my exhaustion. When I opened my eyes, my body felt more energized and the light that had been shining in the tent was now dim and golden.

Sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I could hear the chatter of the lost boys right outside the tent. Watching the crack of sunlight under the bottom of the tent, I could see a couple of pairs of feet shifting their weight as if they were anxious.

Keeping quiet, I strained my ears to listen to what they were whispering about, their voices worried and uncertain, "No! What do you think this is? Pan is going to kill them, you know that."

"Good thing Pan isn't here now."

"Or Felix... How do we get them out before they get here, huh? We'll just be throwing ourselves into the crossfire."

"You guys are idiots, I'm going to talk to her."

"Noah--"

There was a scuffle and the tent flap opened, bright sunlight flooding into the dim, musky space. Noah stalked right up in front of me, his eyes blazing with annoyance and a little bit of amusement. Looking me up and down for a split second, his eyes flickered up to my own, seemingly trying not to be obvious.

Glancing down at myself, I noticed that my dress had ridden up to my mid-thigh, exposing half of my bare leg. Feeling my face heat up, I turned my head to the side to hide it, just then realizing that both Cayden and Owen had fallen asleep beside me. Both were curled up on their sides, their faces peaceful and a small whisper of a smile gracing their lips.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered, my face heating up a tad bit more. The embarrassment was rushing through my veins, making my heart race at an unnerving speed.

He paused for a second, huffing a laugh through his nose. I couldn't tell if it was from a place of anger or humor, "What am I doing here? Better question, what are you doing here?"

I couldn't answer in a way that wouldn't make me feel ashamed, so I went for the approach of my native language, knowing that he wouldn't know anything I said, "Je me suis fait botter les fesses."

"Coralie, English," Noah rolled his eyes, frustration now lining all of his features, everything else overtaken by it. Huffing to himself, he strode up to the cot and gripped my upper arm in a strong hold, pulling me to my feet until I was face to face with him, "If Pan found you in here sleeping with two boys, do you know what he would do? He would mutilate everyone in this camp! He claimed you as his property!"

I could feel his angry breath on my face, the faint smell of blueberries lingering within. I tried to swallow my own, my heart and head beating and spinning, "If I'm his property, then why are you manhandling me?"

A flicker of surprise flashed across his features, briefly giving me a once over before releasing my arm. Taking a step back, he let out a quivering sigh, "I'm just trying to get you to realize the situation. The lost boys don't care about what happens, but Pan does. When one of the boys does something, and they will, he takes it out on all of us. So, just be careful. Please."

"Noted," I murmured, rolling my eyes at the same time and brushing past him to exit the tent. Pulling up the tent flap, I came face to face with four other boys, their eyes wide in envy.

One of them smiled and chuckled quietly. Standing straighter, he puffed out his chest, "Did you have fun with those two, girl? Maybe I could be next?"

Another boy smacked him as hard as he could on his chest as a response, giving him a disgusted look, "Dude."

Stalking past all of them, I strode straight through the camp and past the linen tents; striding into the dense bush of the island jungle. I wouldn't go too far, I just wanted to get away from the overwhelming environment.

The trees provided shelter from the bright light and view of the boys. Taking a deep breath, I sucked in the fresh air of the forest, watching where my feet were placed as I stepped off of the dirt path.

Walking in silence for a while, I went deep into my thoughts; Does my Maman even realize I had gone missing? Did the man I was betrothed to already move on? I realized that I would probably never get the answers to any of my questions. I was stuck here until Pan told me I could leave.

Stopping for a second, I glanced up from my feet and did a double-take. I realized I didn't know exactly where I had taken myself, the surroundings were unfamiliar and the trees were thinning out among the brush. Spinning in a slow circle, I couldn't find anything that I recognized, no landmarks that told me which direction was even north.

Squinting, I noticed a little alcove in the distance, water sounding from the same direction. Watching for a second through the holes in between the trees, I realized there were people there; ones specifically with long hair.

More girls.

━━━━

I'm back!! Finally! I hope you liked this chapter, its more of a filler, but leads to more conflict, just you wait! ;)