Savage (The End 1)

“Lucy, come get something to eat,” Sasha called out, and a moment later she came running over, still talking about the dentist room and chair, and how they’d just hit the “jackpot.”

Although Sasha loved seeing her sister like this, wished she could tell her that they’d stay, that this could be where they put their roots down, the truth was they were still on the move. And they’d still be on the move until they got up north and hopefully found that safe haven that had been promised.

It was late, and Sasha wished she could fall asleep. She was tired, but ever since leaving home, which seemed like a lifetime ago, since this new world had taken nearly everything from her, Sasha had become fast friends with her occasional insomnia.

Her mind worked overtime, her body feeling like she’d run a marathon.

She sat up, grabbing her jacket and putting it on. The nights were getting a little chilly, but now she’d put it on because it was more of a habit … keeping those layers on in case they had to move quickly.

Sasha looked over to the other side of the room, where Tree Man slept, pressed against the corner. He snored softly, a pile of ratty-looking blankets strewn on top of him, his wild hair poking out from underneath them.

She stood and walked toward the room Lucy had insisted on sleeping in. She leaned against the door frame and watched her sister sleep, the rise and fall of her chest calming. Malachi had pushed a filing cabinet in front of the window, something Lucy hadn’t been too happy about, but they’d told her if she wanted to be alone in here, this was a no compromise situation.

It was probably overkill, but that wasn’t the point. It helped to ease some of Sasha’s constant worry over her sister, and she knew it calmed Malachi as well.

She looked up at the ceiling and saw one of the panels had been replaced with an underwater scene. She could imagine laying in that chair, getting her teeth cleaned, staring up at the scene, something that would’ve helped to take her mind off everything, given her something to look at instead of a beige tile.

She pushed away from the door and walked down the hallway, looking into each room, sucking up some time because it was better than lying there and letting her thoughts consume her.

She looked behind the front desk, then made her way toward the break room. There was a small table in the center, the chairs knocked over and laying on their sides on the floor. She continued back down the hall until she found a storage room. She knew Malachi had already searched it but hadn’t found anything too useful, just some pens, and some printer paper. But he had hit gold, in her opinion.

He’d found a few toothbrushes and sample toothpaste tubes. That had been enough to make Sasha giddy, if she were being honest. They’d been able to brush their teeth before bed, like really brush them clean, something she felt she hadn’t been able to do in forever.

She could still taste the minty flavor on her tongue.

Sasha stepped into the storage room and peeked in one of the boxes, seeing all the “treasure” in there, which really was just cheap plastic toys that were probably given to the children after they got their teeth cleaned.

The feeling of someone standing behind her had Sasha turning around. She knew it was Malachi instantly even though she couldn’t see his face clearly. The shadows were too thick, and despite the glow from the full moon coming through the small window in the room, his presence was shrouded. But she’d know Malachi anywhere, even if she were blindfolded. His presence was that consuming.

He stepped into the room, blocking the entrance, having her heart race in excitement.

“What are you doing?” he asked softly, his voice so deep it sent shivers along her body.

“I couldn’t sleep.”

He stepped closer to her but she refused to retreat. She wanted him pressed right up against her.

“You’re not tired?” she asked, her throat suddenly tight, dry.

“I rarely sleep anymore, maybe a couple hours a night.”

She knew that, to an extent. Although he might appear to be asleep, Malachi was always on alert.

All she could think about was being with him, secluded in this room, enough privacy that they could do whatever they wanted, that they could do what she desperately needed.

She parted her mouth, maybe to say just that, maybe to tell him that she needed to go further, that she cared about him so much, that they were in this together. She couldn’t see her life without him in it, and as fast as all of this had seemed to happen, that was the truth, their reality.

It was her reality.