Page 56 of Beyond The Maples
He gets up to leave, but I have another question nagging at me.
"How did you get put through the initial testing so fast? You said you'd already been placed in a crew. And that you're in our cohort." I eye him as he pulls his boots on. He says nothing so I continue, "It's just odd. You're going to be behind in more than a few areas."
He barely makes eye contact with me when he answers.
"What, you think I'm going to be a liability or something Mae?" He says it like a joke, but his smile doesn't reach his eyes. "I've had some previous training. And I've already done some tech stuff. They started training groups that are government sanctioned travelers so that the materials we haul are protected. It's why we're allowed firearms."
I look at him. I can tell when he's lying. I can tell when most people are lying. At the very least, he's leaving bits out, and I don't know why. I’m tired though, unwilling to fight any longer, so I let it go.
"Oh, ok. Well, I can help you catch up, too. Leo as well. Farra might take a bit." I chuckle.
Deacon’s laugh is finally honest. "Yeah, I couldn't get a good read on her. During mytourshe literally just pointed at things and used one word to describe them.Classroom." He points with a straight face, imitating Farra. I laugh too, thinking about her doing that for me.
"Yeah, she's honestly great. She just takes a bit to warm up." We stand there awkwardly for a second.
Deacon bridges the gap, as usual, always the confident one. We hug for a minute, and he kisses the top of my head before saying he's going to get settled, and then he leaves.
I flop down on my bed, covering my face, and let out a frustrated sigh.
I'm still in this position when someone knocks tentatively.
"Come in," I grumble, without moving. The door opens, and I pop up to see Farra.
"You weirdo, you don't have to knock to come into your own room," I say and Farra laughs.
"I know, but we never really had the talk about romancing childhood sweethearts. I wanted to be sure I wasn't walking in on you exposed." Farra wags her eyebrows suggestively. It's a gesture that looks like it belongs on Leo's face and not hers, and it makes me grin. I flop back down on my bed and groan.
"Get up. I want to show you something."
I sit up and cock an eyebrow at her. Farra walks over and pulls me by the hand. "Just come on ok? Grab your coat."
With that, she struts out the door. I follow, and I'm surprised to see Farra trudging up the stairs, not down.
"What are you doing?" I grumble as my friend hauls ass up the flights of stairs.
"Just come on will you? Gods, you're a pain sometimes," she teases, and I smile, following faster to try and keep up.
I'm out of breath by the time we reach the top. I'm not sure how many floors we just conquered, but I'm surprised at my aching lungs, considering how well I've been doing with morning cardio.
Farra leads us to a ladder and starts climbing. I whisper-yell at her, realizing what she's about to do.
"Once again,what are we doing?We're obviously not allowed up here."
Farra completely ignores me, throwing her shoulder into the circular trapdoor in the ceiling. A thin layer of dust sprinkles down on us, and I blow it out of my face. I follow, loudly cursing her, and mumbling about how no one listens to me.
As I fumble onto the roof, everything goes quiet. It's a loud silence, like a first snowfall. I had forgotten what that sounded like. Our country doesn't really have seasons anymore, let alone snow. But up here, that's the first thing that reaches me, the loud silence. It's peaceful.
I wobble, feeling a bit like I'm about to fall off the edge of the earth, and Farra steadies me.
"Easy. It takes a minute to get used to being this high up." She says as she leads me over to the edge.
There's a thick concrete lip around the edge of the roof, but it's not that high, and I hesitate. Farra leans over the edge, a look of total calm washing over her face. I look out and suck in a breath. It's unlike anything I've ever seen. From up here, the city looks serene, bathed in the evening glow. I can see far beyond the walls. The training compound is already on the peak of the highest hill in The Centre. I hadn't noticed before, but the city is set in a round valley, like someone subtly scooped out the earth with a spoon.
Our view seems endless. The rolling landscape shimmers as dust floats over it in swirls. It is beautiful from up here. You'd hardly know how suffocating life can feel beyond the walls. Do people here even know how it feels? I watch as the dust gently catches on everything: the hills, the far-off buildings, The Centre walls, the dark silhouettes of dead trees spattered everywhere beyond them. I let out a breath.
Farra bumps my shoulder."There she is."
I look at her, studying my friend. "What?"
