Foxed [1st/2nd Draft]

Chapter 2: NWO

"Welcome to your life. There's no turning back--" Everybody Wants to Rule the World by Lorde

Two months later...

Kender Thomas, rebel fighter. I rolled my eyes at the comical tone of my thoughts. My name sounded like a soft-core stripper, not a rebel. At least the 'fighter' part is right.

Here I was. Alone in the room I used to share with Harper because it was all I had left of her. None of us had even been able to see her since he'd taken her. Momma called it a 'honeymoon' period we had to endure, but two months was too long.

Honeymoon? They weren't even married. He bought her.

The spider-web cracks in the mirror distorted my pale face as I pulled the holey black beanie cap over my head. Tucking the stray pieces of my dark purple hair behind my ears, I wrinkled my nose and leaned closer, inspecting my skin. Smudges of dirt covered my right cheek and streaked along the column of my throat. Sighing, I pulled on the sleeve of my gray sweater, and wiped the remnants of dirt off. The hard scrubbing caused a pale pinkish tint on one cheek; it almost made me look clean. I tried to make my other cheek match but the sudden onslaught of tears blurred my vision and I turned away from the mirror.

I hated crying, but it was happening a lot lately.

I stumbled towards Harper's bed and collapsed on the caving mattress, the squeal of rusted springs ringing in my ear. I hunched over my knees, and focused on catching my breath. Thinking about Harper hurt. It hurt most of the time. Some days were better than others. Some days I could distract myself. Today wasn't one of those day.

The gentle knock at the door kept me from hyperventilating further.

"Kender?" a small voice asked.

I exhaled and straightened, ironing out non-existent wrinkles from my sweater with my hands. I couldn't let Ember hear me panicking... or crying. The light sting of tears against my cheeks hinted that my eyes were puffing up. I quickly fanned my face with both hands, hoping a little cold air would stop the swelling.