I clench my fists under my armpits and shout at him angrily, “You sound just like the monsters that took my brother away from me!” I can feel the tears streaking down my face and falling down my chin.
He notices the tears and his shoulders slump slightly. He is guilty. “Alice, I’m sorry, but you cannot just give up like this,” Will says, breathing out heavily.
I don’t reply. I can’t reply even if I want to. My breath is stuck in my throat, and I think if I even try to open my mouth nothing will come out except for loud sobs.
Will reaches out and brushes the back of his palm against my cheekbone, swiping away a few tears. The contact makes my skin burn, and a shiver goes down my spine.
He is about to put a strand of my hair behind my ear, but I catch his hand before he can make any more contact with my skin.
“Don’t touch me,” I mutter darkly.
I turn away and storm to the door. I think it would actually be a hazard if it were nighttime. I walk outside and look around, no people.
Weird. The wind is hitting me hard and is sending a chill down my back. I am only wearing short shorts and a tank top, so the cool air is making me shiver.
I sit down on the last step of the building and close my eyes, listening to the wind. I am expecting Will to come outside and give me a pep talk, but instead I am alone. I sigh in relief. Very good.
I drop my head in my hands and let out an exasperated sigh. My body shudders as I replay Will’s words in my head. Is he right? He can’t be right. I’m not giving up. I just need a break. I can aim. Mostly. Even if something were to happen out here, I am armed. I can protect myself.
What is bothering me is the feeling I got after his skin came in contact mine.
Electricity zipped through the light skin covering my cheekbone, and went through my blood sending small spikes of a newfound energy throughout my hurting body. I can still feel the heat that had burned my skin. Slowly, I brush my fingertips lightly against my cheek. I sigh quietly, why do I feel like this?
I glance up at the gate surrounding the warehouse. The section that I accidently burned off has been repaired. If I hadn’t done it, I wouldn’t have noticed anything had happened to it. Remembering when that happened, I scowl at how Will acted.
At some moments, he is caring, nice, relaxed, but then he changes. Other times he becomes angry, and stone cold. He’s kind of like those mysterious male characters in books. The guys that the girl always falls for…is that going to be me?
I shake my head with a light chuckle. I don’t plan on it. I lean back against the door with a sigh, allowing the cool wind to sweep through my hair. It’s a nice day, I miss nice day’s like this.
A odd chill runs down my spine causing my eyes to shoot open. It’s not a chill that you might get from the wind, more like when your nerves are trying to tell you that someone is watching you.
I begin to look around casually, not really worried. As I look up, I see on the neighboring building a thin figure. My eyes narrow suspiciously.
The figure doesn’t move an inch. I angle my body towards the building to try to get a better look. The figure moves too. It disappears for a moment, just to reappear closer to me. It jumped down from the building on the other side of the gates.
It is a she. She has light ginger hair that is braided down her back. The girl wears casual clothes, a dark blue t-shirt with light blue denim jeans with a few holes in it. The odd thing about her, though, is the arm guard that is worn on her left arm. In her left hand she holds a black bow with a leather handle. On her back is a brown quiver filled with black arrows that have feathers on the end.
We hold each others stare for a long moment. This girl certainly is not a normal pedestrian just passing by. Her eyes look black from where I sit, but I guess they are really just very dark brown. She has high cheekbones and a slender body with muscles in the right places.
Gracefully, she reaches to the quiver with her right hand and pulls out a arrow. Taking her time, she positions the arrow on the bow, pulls the arrow back, and aims straight at me.
The realization hits me like a ton of bricks. I jump from my relaxed position. Behind me is the door to the safe house, if I can get there quick enough, but she might hit me before I can get inside. I don’t have enough time to think over what to do, but it seems pretty obvious.
Might as well try and return. I let out a deep breath and turn around. I am still a little sluggish from Will, but I put all of my remaining energy to this. I can hear her advance over the gate. I take the last step to the door, and turn the knob. The world seems to be moving in slow motion for me in this moment.
Almost there, I think. Then, I hear her let go of the arrow, and a terrifying whistle breaks through the air.
With all of the speed I have left I jump inside. I shut the door close letting out a small sigh of relief, and there is Will, right in front of me, staring at me in a disdainful manner.
“What did I tell you? You idiot, now do you see why we don’t go outside?!” He shouts.
I glance down in guilt and notice there is an arrow right through my hand. Blood pours out of it and I scream in horror as the pain starts to fill my arm all the way to the heart.
My bloody hand! My hand has an arrow sticking out of it! I could not even feel it until I saw that. I cannot move it.
All of the blood that is spilling out of my wound is starting to make me sick. It’s black!
All this blood in my sight made me so sick my mind went numb and everything faded to black, forcing my eyes to close. Before they close, I feel Will carry me up from the ground.
I swear that he is laughing at me.
…
When I wake, I am lying on a bed with Will by my side reading a book. My eyes narrow as the recent events come flowing back to mind. His rude comments and my rage seems to disperse with exhaustion.
“How do you feel, Princess?” He says with a grin on his face.
“What did I say about you calling me princess?” I growl at him with a hard glare. Even if I try to just forget and move on with what he said before, my brain doesn’t want to stop being angry.
“How’s your arm?” He asks softly.
Speaking of the arm, I shift my gaze down towards my left hand and see bandages. I am a little shocked at first; He is being nicer than before. “Fine, I don’t feel anything,” I murmur.
“Good, under the bandages are stitches. You are lucky she missed the arteries and bones,” He says.
I roll my eyes and narrow my eyes, “Are you going to give me a pep talk now?”
“Would you like one? Cause, I have lots of things to say to you,” Will growls.
While raising an eyebrow, I swing my legs over the side of the bed. “Oh really?”
Will puts his book down and chuckles, “you’re lucky that I feel happy today.” I quickly glance at his book and see, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.
I inwardly smile at the amazing taste, but automatically shift my gaze back to Will. I cock my head and ask, “Wait, you aren’t mad?”
“Of course I am mad. I am just pushing away the feeling. Just wait till practice later. Besides, I think I owe you an apology, but I am not exactly sure you need one,” He says with a grin.
What? He wants to apologize? Surprising. “I think I do deserve an apology.”
I suddenly realize that he is leaning towards me. I awkwardly pull myself backwards and act like I was never just inches from his face.
Will laughs and looks away.There is a grin on his face, but his eyes are hard and cold. I think he just realized his position too. He leans all the way back in his chair and pulls his leg over his other.
“What is wrong with you? Don’t you feel the slightest of guilt for what you said to me?” I ask with a ting of annoyance in my voice.
He turns his face back to mine. I try to read his face, but I cannot tell what he is thinking. His lips are in a firm line and his eyes have a glint of irritation in them. Is he annoyed with me? Rea
lly?
“Alice, I don’t regret what I said. I hate people who lie, and I dislike the word lie itself. What I said is what I said. I am sorry if you don’t like, but the truth hurts sometimes,” He explains.
I clench the bed sheets and let out a sigh of exasperation. “You’re mean,” I mumble.
“Oh am I?” He laughs. From that one comment, Will’s mood seems to lighten. His eyes sparkle once more, and his lips form a small smirk on his gorgeous face.
“Yes you are! Now tell me how on the face of mother earth is that funny?” I yell.
He just laughs even more. I can feel the corner of my lips peaking up in a smile, but I try my best to resist it. “Please enlighten me, Will!”
He ignores me. “Can I ask you a question, princess?” He asks quietly. His voice is soft and musical.
I open my mouth, but I am tongue-tied. “Of course,” My voice isn’t even audible; More breath escapes my mouth than sound. I’m surprised he even heard it at all.
“Have you lived in the Bronx all of your life so far?” He asks quickly.
I am stunned at the simple question. I look away from his inquisitive eyes and answer slowly, “Uh, no. I was born in Massachusetts and when my parents died Eric and I were sent to a foster house here in the Bronx.”
“What is a foster home like? I was given the option when I was a child but I went to a boarding school instead,” He leans forward slightly, which makes me lean forward also.
“Well, I guess it would depend on whom you get sent to. On one hand there are the sweet and loving people whom aren’t able to produce any kin. And on the other hand is the family who has to do it for community. Either way, it is still torcher. Even if you’re given the chance to be with a loving family, you still don’t have your own,” I explain quickly.
He looks away then asks, “Which were you sent to?”
I stare down at my hands and whisper, “The second one. The ones who don’t want to do it. The ones who like to hurt the poor children for their own entertainment.”
“I’m sorry, Alice,” He says softly.
I gaze up at him and say, “Is there something else you want to know?”
Will nods at a leisurely pace, and gradually asks me the other question after a minute or so. “If you could be a character in a book,who would you be, and why?”
I fiddle with a strand of my black hair and refuse to meet his eyes. “Can I not answer that?” I ask quietly. “Why?” he chuckles slightly. I feel a blush creeping up and cover my skin as I stare at my hair. “I feel a tiny bit fraught answering that question.”
“I guarantee you I will not laugh.” He utters with a small voice.
I breathe out my nervousness and answer his question slowly, “Maximum Ride by James Patterson. I would like to be the main character Max because…. She just happens to be everything that I wish to be.”
“Would you mind clarifying what you mean by that exactly?” Will asks. I chuckle slightly and say, “Max is brave. She is the leader of her family.
She even says it so many times. Many times the youngest character would try to become the leader but she would tell her no. Max isn’t afraid of anything. I… I am afraid of everything,” I murmur the last phrase.
“I bet that isn’t true. You just want to be like her because you have a low self-esteem. I don’t know why you want to be someone else, beside you’re…” He suddenly stops talking.
I watch him with anxiety. He looks away sheepishly and my hands tremble. Why won’t he finish?
“I am what, Will?” I whisper.
Will holds up his hand. He doesn’t want to finish.
I groan at his stubbornness. “Can you answer my questions then?”
He turns to me with a cold stare and says, “Are you going to ask me to finish?”
I sigh and shake my head. “Not anymore,” I mutter. I wish he didn’t say that… It is almost as if he knew what I was going to say. Weird.
He laughs and I slightly smiles. The sound of his laugh is just so beautiful. “Well then, ask one.”
“But you asked two!” I say with a teasing small laugh.
He smirks as a response and waits for me to ask away.
I look out the small rusty window and think hard about what to ask. “What is your greatest fear?”
Will’s body stiffens as he keeps his gaze away from mine. I watch him intently, waiting for his answer. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked him that, it is quite a deep question, compared to the one he asked me.
“I’m claustrophobic,” He answers with a small shrug.
I suddenly burst into laughter. Will stares at me in confusion. When my fits of giggles disappear, I look at him and say, “I never said I wouldn’t laugh. Besides, you’re not telling me everything. I know you might not want to tell me, but you can trust me.”
He looks away from me with a distant and sad look in his glistening eyes. “But can you trust me?” He asks in a small whisper.
“Why do you worry about such? You have taken me here and kept me safe, not including the arrow to my hand,” I say softly.
Will shifts his gaze back up to mine and with a small smile on his face. “‘Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters”
“Cannot be trusted with important matters.’ Albert Einstein. One of my favorite quotes,” As I finish his sentence I stare down at the ground with a sad smile on my face. “Eric used to say that to me all the time.”
Will shuffles in his seat and says quietly, “My favorite quote is ‘we loved with a love that was more than love.’ Edgar Allan Poe. I found that quote when I went to boarding school, my dad wrote it in the journal he kept. It was on the first page,” He takes in a deep breath and continues, “At first, I had no clue what it meant, now that I’ve been through so much, I finally know what it means to me.”
I smile and look towards the small oval window. I just stare in peace. A nice and quiet peace. Well at least, it was quiet.
Suddenly, a roar of laughter and shouting makes me jump on the bed and sends my gaze flying towards the door that is wide open.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“They are fighting. It’s just some fun practice,” He shrugs, “I do it sometimes.”
“Can I try?” I ask.
“You fuckin’ what? You can’t even hit me, how can you hit one of them?” He says.
“Thanks for all of your faith, Will,” I roll my eyes at him, “I think that this could help me get better. Don’t you?” I shrug while giving him the puppy face.
“Fine. But try not to use your arm will you?” He shakes his head and is about to leave the room but a question pops up in my head.
“Wait!” I call out. Will turns to me and raises his eyebrow. He seems as if he was expecting for me to say something and he almost too eagerly says “Go on.”
“Do you know the name of the assassin?” as I ask I see how Will’s look full of expectations turns into a disappointed but an ‘I’m all ears’ expression.
He takes a step towards me, and replies with a small shrug, “I don’t know.”
“Oh, well thanks anyways,” I smile.
He nods and explains, “The fight just ended, so if you want to do this you better do it right now.”
I grin; I really hope I can do this. I get out of the bed and walk over to the door. I strut outside, holding my head high. There everyone is surrounding a little makeshift arena with a big man inside.
“WHO WILL FIGHT ME??? OR ARE ALL OF YOU SCARED!!! HAHAHA!” A big man in the center boasts.
I take a good look at him. Wait, I know him!
This is Chuck, he was the one who came back from outside with Will. I remember while I was watching the kids run around they were playing with him. Now that I really look at him I realize that he is huge! I mean his arms are the length of my body! He has a short beard and a French looking mustache.
“I will!” I say while raising my hand. Everyone turns and laughs at me. Even though I will most likely get crushed,
practice makes perfect. And by practicing, I can get to Eric, right? If I don’t die.
“YOU WANT TO GET BEAT UP, NEWBIE?” He yells in my face. I pull my head back and wave my right hand over my nose.
“I would like it if you would stop yelling, please.” I say quietly. Everyone greeted that phrase with a loud laughter as I walk into the arena. “Oh, and maybe you might what to get a breath mint,” I whisper to him, trying to be polite.
Will walks over and stands in between us while saying, “Alright, princess, don’t you die on me. Chuck, please try not to kill her.”
I smile at him and he sighs. He doesn’t want me to do this. I wonder why. Will storms off and a loud horn goes off. Chuck automatically charges at me.
I grin. Channeling my power, I lift off the ground and hover above him with fire at my hands and feet; I land behind him. A gasp leaves my mouth. I barely made it over him.
“Mistake number one: always take in your opponent, if they are your size, then charge, if not stalk them,” I say. I am reciting what my mistakes were with Will.
Chuck just laughs, “TINY GIRL, NO ONE BEATS ME! I MAKE NO MISTAKE!” Damn I wish he would just stop yelling!
He molds his arm with black flesh into a giant fist and throws a punch at me, but I duck quickly, molding my arm into a shield made of fire. My wounded arm won’t fire up neither it does anything power-requiring. Damn, that arrow must have been poisoned… his powerful fist ricochets back from my shield and sends Chuck backwards as his fist is the heaviest object of his body right now.
“Mistake number two: remember, your opponent has powers like you, they do have advantages just like you,” I laugh, loving how good I’m doing so far.
Chuck growls at me, dashes behind me and grabs my ponytail. I scream at the pain; I feel some hairs get pulled out and I hold back another cry.
He is about to pound me into the ground, but in my mind I am pleading for some help from anything. A feeling stirs in my gut and I close my eyes.
I might just die.
I haven’t even gotten any closer to Eric! But before anything can happen, I open my eyes to see black. Am I dead? No my heart is beating, I think. I blink and see that I am clinging onto Chuck’s back. A gasp escapes from my lips as I realize what just happened. A devilish smile forms on my lips.
Alice: The Leader Page 8