Zoo

by Tara Elizabeth

  He doesn’t wait a second. He presses his cool lips to mine, as he pulls me into an embrace. I’m a little surprised by the kiss, because of everything that is happening around us. I briefly return his kiss, and then bury my face in his chest. James’ knows more about me than anyone else in the enclosures. I’m glad that he’s here.

  When James and I part, I see Kale helping the small girl up off her knees. She has snot above her upper lip, and her hair looks like a small rodent has rummaged through it. Her pale green, cotton dress is rumpled with dirty patches on the knee area. I feel sorry for the girl. She’s been taken away from her sister. But I’m also relieved to know that it’s because James wouldn’t mate with her.

  Together, we walk over to Kale and the sobbing girl.

  “Please don’t leave me alone here,” she pleads with Kale. Her accent is thick and distinctly from Texas.

  Kale looks over to me and then at James. His eyes grow hard until he looks back at the helpless girl that he’s supporting. He softens once again and says, “It’s going to be alright. Don’t worry.” He brushes some of the wild hair out of her face so he can see her better. “What’s your name?” he asks her.

  “Victoria,” she whimpers.

  “Okay, Victoria. I’m Kale and that’s Emma. We’ll help you. It’ll be okay.” Kale pats her shaking arm. He really is such a good guy, always trying to make everyone feel better. I realize now that I wasn’t anything special to him, which makes me feel a little better about my decision to pursue James. And I still think Kale was laying it on thick for me at first, since his stay at the last enclosure depended on it. I have such conflicting emotions when it comes to Kale.

  James reaches out his hand to Victoria and says, “Victoria, I told you I’d help you. Now quit acting like a raving lunatic.” Ouch. That was harsh, but I can’t judge him for his reaction. I have no idea what went on with them back in the last zoo.

  “Stay away from me James. I hate you!” she spits. Victoria jerks away from James and further into Kale’s embrace. A tinge of jealousy passes through me at the sight of her physical closeness to my enclosure-mate.

  Wait. I have to focus. Someone else could come charging after us at any moment to slice our heads off or steal me away. It’s time to act. “So what should we do?” I ask. “Go into the forest?”

  “I think we should stay here in the open. We can setup camp here,” James offers.

  “Pussy,” Kale mumbles under his breath.

  “Got a better plan, hombre?” James puffs up his thin chest.

  “I’m Hawaiian not Mexican, dude. And yes, I think we should do as Emma suggested. We should go into the forest and see what we can before it gets dark. Find water. Food. Somewhere safe to sleep.”

  Victoria offers up her two cents, “I agree with Kale.”

  I can’t help but roll my eyes. Victoria and I were not going to be friends. She was too weak. I know I’ve had my fair share of cries—like I did a few minutes ago—and I too let Kale comfort me, but I was nothing like this girl. I could do things on my own, and I still plan on getting myself out of here eventually. She gave me the impression that she couldn’t do anything on her own.

  “Great! Let’s go then.” I start off for the ominous woods, putting space between Victoria and myself. We cross the dusty clearing with our wits about us, ready to embark on an unknown adventure. We don’t even set foot in the forest before stragglers stop us. They were dropped off here like us, but apparently didn’t get invited to join any of the other groups.

  “Wait, please. Can we tag along? We don’t know anyone here. Please.” A slightly overweight, middle-aged woman pleads with us. I don’t remember seeing her in the crowds earlier, though I don’t know how I could’ve missed her. She’s wearing a Disney t-shirt, hot pink biking shorts, and white sneakers. Clipped around her waist is a bright yellow fanny pack with a couple of whimsical key chains dangling from the zipper. Her hair is teased and hair sprayed. It almost makes a helmet around her head. There’s no doubt in my mind that she’s from the late 80’s or early 90’s.

  Next to the horribly dressed woman is a very small Asian man. He’s dressed in khaki pants and a white t-shirt. He has brown loafers on his feet and wire-rimmed glasses resting on his sharp nose. I have no idea what time he is from.

  The four of us look at one another as the woman once again begs, “Please. Please.”

  I grant them permission to come along since no one else is speaking up. “Sure. Come on.”

  The woman turns to her companion and in an Asian language (not sure which one), tells him something I don’t understand. He nods his head and smiles at us while saying something else that I don’t understand. “He’s saying thank you,” the woman informs us. “I thank you as well. My name is Phyllis and this is Chao. We promise to stay out of your way.”

  “Emma, Kale, James, and Victoria.” I point to each of us as I call out our names. “Well, let’s get going before something else horrible happens.”

  LIONS, TIGERS AND BEARS, OH MY!

  James pushes ahead and takes the lead, probably trying to show Kale that he is in fact not a pussy. I follow after him while Kale and Victoria take the rear. Phyllis and Chao are all over the place. They’re like two elephants dancing through the forest. I wouldn’t have thought such a tiny man could make so much noise. It’s like he’s oblivious to where he actually is.

  There are whispers of the other new people floating through the air, as they forge their own paths in this super-enclosure. It keeps us on our toes because we are never sure if it could actually be the “natives” hunting us. The light in the forest is dim due to the sun fighting a loosing battle with the trees. It infiltrates its way through the breaks in the branches and leaves. It makes for an ominous journey.

  Our feet crunch on the pine needles that cover the ground, but the noise we make is not as loud as our new friends. Kale politely shushes them, but they are hopeless. I’m extra quiet as I make my way through the brush, trying to make up for their heavy feet. Speaking of feet, mine ache like crazy. It makes me wish I had shoes like everyone else, with the exception of Kale. He’s in the same boat as me. Maybe I could make something that would cover our feet. I glance over to Victoria and all the extra fabric on her dress. No, she’d never let me . . . but for Kale, maybe.

  I bite my lip as I stumble over a tree root that scratches my little toe. Victoria lets a tiny giggle escape her lips at my expense. I can’t help but curse her in my head. We aren’t getting off to a good start.

  We walk for what seems like miles before we see anything besides trees. There’s a small log cabin with smoke drifting out of the chimney. It has a shallow front porch with two chairs and dried meat hanging from the eaves. Next to the wooden structure is a garden, like the one we left in our previous enclosure.

  Victoria has seen it and its potential to feed her. She squeals and rushes over to the garden, digging up a bright orange carrot before we can stop her. She plucks more and more from the ground, wrapping them up in the folds of her long, cotton dress.

  The Asian man is braver—or stupider. He rushes up onto the porch to steal slivers of the dried meat. His female companion follows his lead and helps him collect the strings of mystery meat.

  Those two can do whatever stupid thing they want, but I try to caution Victoria quietly, “Victoria. I don’t know if you should be doing that. I think someone lives here.”

  She quips, “I don’t need you telling me what to do. We need to eat. So I’m taking this here food. And what about them? They’re doing the same thing.”

  James tries as well, “Get up, Victoria. We don’t want to get caught stealing.”

  The door to the cabin creaks open. A weathered man in his sixties, wearing animal skins, emerges with his bow leading the way. He sinks his first arrow straight into Chao’s chest without any warning. The small man stumbles into Phyllis before crumpling to the ground at her feet. She immediately drops the meat that she’s gathered and runs into the forest alon
e. As she goes, she chants, “No. No. No. No.” I wish I could tell her she’s not going to find Disney World in there, but she’s gone is a flash.

  The old man turns his attention to Victoria, who is frozen with fear. “Get yerself out of my garden, girl,” he growls.

  “But I’m so hungry,” she complains as she clutches to the vegetables while backing away from the garden.

  She’s such an idiot. She’s going to get us killed like Chao. Poor Chao. Oh no, I think I’m hyperventilating. I just saw someone get killed. Another someone. I can’t be here. I can’t! But I can’t run off and abandon them like Phyllis did.

  A very stern warning draws my attention back to the unfortunate events that are unfolding before me. “You get yerself outta there, or I’ll shoot ya just like the Chinaman.” Well, that was a very un-P.C. thing to say. The crude man takes aim, his bow ready to fire at Victoria’s chest. Somehow I figure he’s not really into being politically correct, and I’m not going to be the one to correct him. He’s got crazy eyes. I take a small step back.

  Always the hero, Kale rushes the mountain man, slamming him into the doorframe. His bow and arrow fall to the wooden floor of the porch. Kale snatches them up. He shifts around to face the wobbly man with his stolen weapon. My enclosure-mate lifts the bow and readies the arrow like he’s done it a hundred times before. He holds his aim on the man as he takes a few steps back. Both men are breathing heavily from the scuffle. Kale knows he needs to regain his composure to keep his mind focused and his hands steady.

  Off to the side of us, two large men come pounding out of the forest, both holding their own bows. They’re wearing the same type of clothing as the older man, but are much younger. They each have their game slung over their shoulders, a rabbit and two birds. One of them shouts, “Paw, what’s going on?”

  The older man points at us. “They’re stealing our food.”

  One of his sons says, “That so?”

  Kale shifts his aim over to the two men and then back to the their father. He starts backing off the porch and down to where the three of us are now gathered. “Look, we don’t want any trouble. We’re new here. We don’t know the rules.”

  The older mountain man spits on the porch, leaving a string of blood trailing down his graying beard. Kale must have hit him harder than I thought. The angry man says, “Rules. Ain’t no rules here, boy.” Then he nods his head to his sons, motioning for them to get us.

  We all start backing up in unison as the two young men drop their dinner on the ground and prepare to fire on us. Victoria holds tight to her bounty and runs off into the woods, leaving the three of us alone.

  Kale moves in front of James and me, still aiming his arrow from the older man to his sons. He yells at the boys, “I’ll shoot him!”

  “I bet I’m a better shot than you are!” one of the boys yells in return.

  Kale hollers to us, “Get down!” when the hunter lets his arrow fly. We all hit the pine needle covered ground at the same time as the arrow flies overhead. “Now go!”

  Kale fires off an arrow as James and I run for our lives. I push my legs as fast as they will carry me, concentrating on the expansion and contraction of my muscles. I run and run and run.

  My feet hit the ground hard without the cushion of athletic shoes, and I can hear James’ boots pounding away near me. Then I realize I don’t hear a third set of feet. I slow down and look behind me. “Kale?” I don’t see him. I spin around and around, searching the dense forest. James stops next to me. “Kale! Kale!” I scream.

  I don’t hear anything except for our loud breathing. “No,” I whisper.

  “Baby, we’ll be fine.” James reassures me.

  I don’t like being called Baby. I am not a baby.

  “Kale!” I yell again.

  After two, full, agonizing minutes, Kale responds to my calls. “Over here!” It’s a faint answer to my panicked cries. It’s coming from over there, to the left.

  I set off without consulting James. He follows close behind though, letting me lead the way. I see Victoria first. Kale’s pulling her along by the arm while she struggles to keep hold of her bounty. He’s angry. She’s aggravated. I’m annoyed. And James is—a—pussy; according to the colorful greeting Kale just gave.

  TROUBLE IN PARADISE

  We’ve all stopped in the middle of the forest in a sort of face-off. The tension of new companions, clashing personalities, whatever is going on between Victoria and James, whatever is going on between Kale and James, and me and all three of them has all come to a head. And the sad or bad thing is, we’ve only been together for a few hours.

  I decide to target Victoria. I didn’t like how she laughed at me earlier when I stubbed my toe. Plus, she’s a moron for doing what she did back there. “What the hell were you thinking? We have no idea what to expect in this place. It’s not like the enclosures we just left. Obviously. You’re going to get us killed! What’s wrong with you?” I throw my arms out wide as I get in Victoria’s face. I’m a good five inches taller than the petite girl, so I use my height to intimidate her.

  Victoria backs up a few steps and says, “We need food. And I was hungry.” She turns to Kale and gives him a sad, puppy-dog face.

  “Don’t look at him. Look at me.” I demand. “You can’t do that again. You saw what they did to Chao. That could have been you. Seriously. Okay? And don’t rely on a guy to take care of you so much.” There are moments when you need someone else’s help and comfort, but so far she hasn’t been able to do anything on her own besides almost getting us killed.

  “Okay,” she concedes.

  While I was scolding Victoria, James and Kale were having disagreements of their own. I must have missed it if there were words exchanged. They’ve already turned to throwing punches at each other. James’ nose is spouting crimson all over Kale’s shoulder as he tries to pin James in some kind of wrestling hold.

  “Stop it! Stop it!” I shout at them.

  Kale gets distracted by my rants and backs away from James. Assuming James is backing down as well, he leaves himself unguarded as he turns to look at me. Unfortunately, James wants revenge for his busted-up nose. His fist connects with Kale’s lip. It splits instantly. Kale very calmly licks his wound and spits on the ground. Then he lunges forward and body checks James, slamming him hard into a tree trunk. James expels a lungful of air and wheezes over Kale’s shoulder, while he tries to regain his footing. James may have height on Kale, but Kale has way more muscle and power. It’s really not a fair fight in my opinion.

  Victoria is shrieking behind me as I rush forward. I try to pull Kale off of James by the neck of his shirt. He doesn’t budge an inch, and instead, he pulls me down with them as they tumble to the ground. Pine needles are flying up around us as I try to separate the two angry guys. “Stop! Stop!” I keep shouting. But I know they don’t hear me because they’re too caught up in ripping each other to shreds.

  Somehow, I get an elbow to the stomach before I’m able to scramble off Kale’s back. The hit knocks the breath out of me, and I roll off onto the ground gasping. Kale immediately freezes and turns his attention to me. His face falls when he sees me clutching my abdomen. He shoves James out of the way, who flops to the side and hits his head on the base of the tree.

  Kale is at my side in an instant. He pushes my hair out of my face and touches my hands where they cover my aching stomach. He looks into my eyes and says, “I’m so sorry, Emma. Are you okay?” I notice he has tiny flecks of green in his dark brown eyes.

  I answer him as I move my hands out from under his, “I think so. It just stunned me for a second. I’ll be fine.” James is headed this way. He doesn’t look happy to see Kale touching me so intimately. I clear my throat and ask Kale to help me up, so I can ward off any additional conflict.

  Kale lifts me easily off the ground and onto my feet. I double over, feeling like I might vomit. The unpleasant sensation hits me immediately upon standing. James approaches cautiously and removes a few pine ne
edles from my hair, as my head hangs forward. He says, “Your hair is a mess. There, that’s the last one.” He holds my arm to steady me and to move me away from Kale, but I don’t want to be coddled. Their male egos are suffocating me, and since the woozy feeling has passed, I step away from both guys. Everyone needs to cool it—including me.

  “Enough fighting. I can only assume we’re going to have plenty of that in our futures as it is. So, we need to stick together and find somewhere to camp for the night. Any ideas?” I ask, looking from Kale to James. I don’t bother with Victoria because anything she has to say will be useless.

  James reluctantly says, while pinching the bridge of his nose, “Well, all we’ve seen so far in the woods was that cabin. We could keep walking or just huddle up around here for the night. It seems quiet here. They don’t seem to have followed us this far. Plus, we don’t know what we’ll find if we keep going.”

  “I agree. I think we should stay here.” I look over to Kale for his response.

  “Yeah. Fine. The three of us will have to take turns keeping watch. I’ll go first when it’s time,” he offers.

  “But what about water?” Victoria whines.

  “We’ll have to do without until tomorrow. It’s getting dark already,” James tells her.

  Victoria argues, “But James, you know I need water because of…”

  James cuts her off before she can finish. “Victoria. Tomorrow.”

  Victoria backs down. She’s doing a good job of concealing whatever emotions she’s feeling, because her face is as blank as it could be. I watch her as she unfolds the top layer of her dress and pulls out the stolen carrots. She proudly pets them and attempts to wipe off the loose dirt.

  We each receive a carrot for dinner and eat in silence. None of us have anything to say to the other. I think we all noticed that these carrots weren’t from a garden like the one we left. Nothing grew back after they were picked. No wonder those men were so furious.