The Unknown

A Rude Awakening

We kept walking till the sun set over the hills in the distance. Once the sun was no longer visible, we found a slightly hidden place under a bare tree and decided that this was a suitable spot to sleep. We used our stale backpacks as (barely) pillows. Delilah passed out nearly the second her head hit her full bag. I, on the other hand, was not as fortunate to be able to sleep so easily knowing that anything could kill you at any time.
Some time passed before I started to drift off to sleep. My body started to relax as my eyelids grew heavier. The snap of a twig instantly woke me up fully. It came from behind. I looked over at Delilah, she was still asleep. I slowly grabbed my blunt axe and flash light, maybe I could catch them by surprise I thought. Once my trusty axe and flashlight were readily in hand I moved to a standing position. I felt like everything was moving in slow motion. I flicked on my light and pointed it to the direction from which the sound came from. A small man with spindly arms and legs grunted at being blinded by the light and shielded his face with his hands. This time it was actually a guy. He was unarmed so I didn't immediately bury the axe into his boney face. "Please no! I just wanted some food! I don't want to hurt you!" Cried the boy, he had a deeper voice than I expected. He had long scraggly red hair. You could tell that he hadn't eaten in a while, he literally looked like skin and bones. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you," I said as I sat him down next to the tree. I woke up Delilah who's reflects decided that I should take a fist to the stomach. Once I caught my breath I explained the situation. She looked over at the quivering boy who was almost crying. Delilah opened a can of beans and gave it to him. "So where are you headed?" Questioned Delilah. The boy sat in silence for a moment before speaking out, "I'm just trying to survive." Delilah looked at me, and I shrugged then nodded. "Why don't you join us?" Delilah offered. The boy looked like he was experiencing every emotion all at once. He quickly nodded his head. We all exchanged names. His name is Gordon. After that ordeal we all decided to get some rest before we head on our way.