Sleep

The Refuge: Part 1

"Alisha, get back!"

The bridge disappeared in a gale of wind and snow, the sharp ice drifting into the enclosure. Tom lifted his sleeve to his face in desperation and pushed himself into the corner of the ridge.

Alisha yelled. "Grab my hand!"

He stretched forward and grasped her hand, which had turned raw and frozen. She pulled her scarf tighter on her face, but the snow dampened the fabric and made her even colder.

"Take my goggles."

Alisha threw the goggles at him, and, in a frenzy, he shoved them on his blistering face. The bridge was no longer visible, but he spotted upended trees that had been dragged out onto the road.

"Ow."

Tom screamed at her. "What are you doing!"

She pulled the tourniquet off her arm, casting it beside her. She gasped and held her arm to the wind, grasping it with her other hand.

"Alisha, stop!"

When she pulled it back, her arm had turned purple, and the skin flaked off the cut, but it had stopped the bleeding. She stuffed the wounded arm beneath her and sighed in relief.

"Gotta slow the bleeding somehow," Alisha said.

Tom squinted at the wind. "What time do you think it is?"

"I don't have a watch, dingus."

He placed his hand on the wall and grunted.

"We could make a run for it," Tom mumbled.

"Sure, and then get dragged off the cliff. Look, it's already slowing down."

He grabbed at the goggles and pulled them off. The wind had stayed the same, but the ice had stopped cutting his face. Grabbing his backpack, he sprinted out from the ridge.

"Tom! Oui, idiot!"

Alisha kicked off the wall, her scarf swinging behind her, and ran after him,

"Damn."

She leaned on Tom with her other arm and stared out into the distance. The bridge was covered in slick ice that had frozen to the cement, and the fog had cleared. She stepped forward.

"Looks dangerous. Good choice."

Tom glanced at the cars stuck to the road, and he followed her across the bridge.

"You think one of these still works?" Tom asked.

Alisha scowled. "It's been 10 years. The gasoline has probably evaporated, or it won't work."

He spun around, gazing at the once-bustling highway, and he found remnants of traffic lights and crushed telephone poles.

"Watch out."

He averted his eyes to avoid the plethora of deceased bodies that were dangled out of car windows or the people that had tried to jump last minute. His stomach furled as he spotted a family huddled together in the middle of the road, their figures frozen and lifeless.

"I can't do this."

Tom crouched next to the railing of the bridge and sighed. "We don't know what's at the refuge."

Alisha hurried over to Tom and grasped his face. "Look at me. It's our best chance. You found it, Tom. I don't think that's a coincidence."

She stood up and pointed towards the end of the bridge.

"See that? In the distance?" She drew out the map from Tom's backpack. "There it is."

She laughed and hauled Tom to his feet. "We've only walked, what, 15 miles?"

"I've walked more than you," Tom grinned.

She stuffed the map into her pocket. "Onward we go," Alisha exclaimed. She took a step forward and almost screamed.

The bridge had split down the middle, revealing a 70-foot fall to the water below. Sewage pipes jutted out of the thick concrete, almost connecting to the other side of the ravine. Where there were no pipes, chunks of rock fused together to create a short platform inches below the railing. Alisha fixated towards the pipes, planting her foot on the edge of the pavement, and crept forward.

Tom moved towards her. "Alisha, don't."

It was too late. Alisha sprung up and jumped over the bridge, her body landing over the narrow pole. She slipped down and gripped it with her hands, cautiously inching herself across.

Tom ran off the road, catching himself with one of the other poles and forcing himself up.

"You have to go sideways, Tom."

Sweat dripped down her face as she gripped the pole harder. Tom focused on the cliff, and he took a deep breath. He looked down to try and lift one of his legs, but the height scared him, so he regripped and shifted his sight at Alisha.

"Tom!"

The pipe creaked and tilted with Alisha still holding on. She went the opposite direction and shrieked as her arm slipped, dangling over the gorge with one hand.

"Alisha, reach!" Tom screamed.

She flailed and grabbed at the pipe, but her hand was too clammy, and she slid again. The pipe scraped against the bedrock and sunk forward, shoving Alisha in Tom's direction.

"I need you to jump!"

Alisha was starting to slide down. Breath quickening, she panicked and gaped at him.

"Do it now!"

She let out a bellow, and she swung herself forward, her body soaring through the air. She landed on her stomach beside Tom, clutching the pipe with her arms. Alisha dropped to her hands again, and the pipe rattled under their combined weight.

"Okay, slowly," Tom breathed.

The pipe ended a few feet away from them. Tom swayed and put his leg over the metal, gradually pulling himself up to stand. Legs wobbling, he stuck out both arms for balance. Alisha copied him and prodded to the edge. He reached the end of the pole, quivering, and yelled.

Alisha had leaped and rolled onto the dirt.

"Just a few more steps," she shouted.

Tom reached down instinctively, crawling across the pole. He rose up, and he swiveled his feet sideways on the narrow surface, exhaling sharply. He took a deep breath, shut his eyes, and jumped.

"Crap!"

He nearly landed on top of Alisha. Tom extended his arms as he lunged forward, and he tumbled sideways in the dirt.

Alisha hollered. "We made it!"

"Okay..." Tom gasped. "Okay."

The snow was gone. They stood in an open, ravaged desert with no trees or signs of life. Piles upon piles of trash and scraps of junk and debris were scattered across the wasteland.

Alisha hurried forward. "Look."

In the distance, a large metal building glistened in the sun. There was a gate, patched crudely with plates of rusted metal and there were tents, secured to the ground in the middle of the compound. They ran together, bound for the sign that was buried deep in the sand.

"Something's wrong."

Tom and Alisha tugged the sign out of the ground. The word "refuge" was crossed out and charred, and they looked at each other.

"There's no one here."