I chose... Rapture. [Faith/ Dream]

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Welcome to Rapture. A city where the artist can roam freely, the scientist can create with the sky as the limit, and the power is with the people. Such a place could never exist on land therefore it was literally built on the bottom of the ocean, as far away from the governing powers as possible. Out of every jurisdiction. The extreme of extremes. It is a massive place with buildings that tower over head and long walkways that link different areas of the city together.
Everything you could ever want you can find in Rapture. There are stores, restaurants, hotels, spas, housing units, art galleries, markets, sports centers and for those who enjoy a little bit of nighttime excitement there are bars and love-houses. Everyone is welcome in Rapture! There are no minorities. Everyone is equal. Everyone gets a fair share.
All of this is thanks to to the hard work and dedication of our founder Andrew Ryan!

At least..that's how things used to be. Before the revolution. On New Year's Eve, at 12:00 on the dot, just as the clocks were ticking down and the champagne bottles were about to be popped, explosions rang through the entire city. The whole foundation of Rapture was shaken to its very core. Those explosions marked the beginning of what would be a long battle throughout the streets between those who supported Andrew Ryan and those who supported a man named Frank Fontaine. Soon blood coated every wall on every corner of the city. The year 1959 was off to a great start.

Hundreds died and those that didn't die..were left to slowly go insane. Driven only further to insanity by their addiction to Adam; the genetical stimulant that once kept the wheels of Rapture turning.
The side-effect of this drug was both an overwhelming addiction to it and a range of horrible disfigurations due to the way the drug affected the human body. Those addicted where named Splicers and those Splicers are all that are left in this city. They do whatever they can to get their hands on Adam..even if it means killing each other. Many have banded together in order to overpower those who are weak, making them even more dangerous.

The revolution was two years ago. There are now those who are merely trying to get by and those who are trying to escape. But to escape means going through hell and back again...straight through the center of the city. Can you make it out?
Let's see, shall we?

My eyes opened slowly as I felt my consciousness return to my body. It was a bit like somehow my soul was coming back into my body after having been out for a little while. A very strange sensation for sure. Yet I was happy to wake up. It felt good to be able to move my fingers and my toes despite the fact that only hours before I had been unable to do that much.
Now that I thought about it..just how long had I been out? Probably 6 or 7 hours at the very least based off the extent of my injures.

The very first thing I did was move my hands to my stomach where I felt the bandaging that Mira had applied to my body. A smile came to my lips as I felt the care with which she had placed the cotton pads and tightly wrapped the bandaging around me. It must have been a little bit difficult to get my body in a position where she could wrap the cloth tightly enough but she had managed somehow.
When I applied pressure with my fingers I felt no pain. That was a very good sign. Aside from being a little bit sore I felt ten times better than I had when I first slipped into my state of unconsciousness.

My leg was the same and soon I was carefully pulling myself into a sitting position with my legs hanging off the edge of the bed. Once I got into that position I glanced around the room only to find Mira asleep on an arm chair in the corner of the room. Her expression was soft as she slept yet the shotgun in her lap told me that she was ready for anything that might occur at a moment's notice.
Such a thing I had come to expect from her. It was in her nature to be ready for attack or danger of some kind even when in an area that was supposedly a safe zone.

I pulled myself out of bed as quietly as I could and I tested my ability to stand. It seemed fine. A little bit shaky at first but soon my body adjusted itself to being able to stand up straight without needing additional support.
For the first time I was able to look around the room fully. There was a window that looked out into the blue depths of the sea. It was not a very big window but there was one all the same. I was drawn towards it for some reason. As I walked I glanced down at myself for a moment or two. The blood had stained my shirt beyond repair as well as the shorts I usually wore underneath my diving suit.

My hands gently pulled the red cloth off of my body and let it fall to the ground, leaving me in what was probably best described as a sports bra. The torn shorts I left on for the sake of decency though I had the feeling I was going to need to ask Mira whether she had anything she could give me.
When I reached the window I looked out into the water with a quiet sigh. You could see schools of fish as they swam through the maze of buildings, the brightly colored algae and coral that had grown on the walls over time, and the bubbles that floated towards the surface.
Although I my body was there my mind had floated off with the bubbles into the realms of imagination.

(Ah, I see, so I won't see you then. That sounds like a fun time though)

It hadn’t taken long for sleep to press into my mind. I seemed to fall into a vast ocean of sleep. It was a dreamless sleep for quite some time. Many hours passed as I dozed lightly in the chair I had so many a times fallen asleep reading in. Even through the sleep, I could feel the soreness of the day tugging on my body. Each moment passed and soon, hours seemed to melt into what felt to be minutes. Even though I was sleeping, I made sure that I was ready. Anything could happen, and for that reason, I slept with caution. It was my life on the line after all. One slip up—one noise missed, and we could both be dead in a matter of seconds.

My body allowed me about three of four hours of rest before the vivid dreaming came about. For once it wasn’t a string of nightmares, but a lofty, soft, fond sort of memory that hung in my mind. There are the quiet sounds of humming in a room far off. I’m not at home. I seem to be at the primary school I had been at many years ago. Many shouts and sing-song voices ring through the air. “Ring around the Rosie, pocket full of posy…” There’s giggling and I run off to follow the other children. We’re playing a simple game, but all seem to be enjoying themselves quite thoroughly. “Ashes, ashes, we all fall down!” There’s screams of joyful laugher as children tip themselves over. Some even fall over and onto other children.

“Mira?” The voice comes from behind. It’s not a child’s voice though. No—it’s my mothers. She’s come to take me home. A vast, overwhelming feeling of happiness washes over me. “Mommy!” I hear the cry as I run to meet her. She picks me up in her arms and gives me a long embrace. “I missed you so much Mommy!” Now I’m the one giggling.

I wasn’t sure what it was about such a simple dream, but it built a sense of warm happiness in my heart. I missed my mother dearly, and such a dream was calming. It wasn’t the kind of dreams or memories I thought I would have after coming back here, but it was better than nothing.

Before the dream can continue, I feel my eyes lighten. Nothing seems to have happened, but my eyes force themselves out of their slumber. It seems to be all the sleeping that I’ll be doing. My mind won’t allow anymore, even if It was far less than I was used to.

When my eyes clear up I notice a few things different about the room. The bed that sits quiet nearby is empty. That’s never a good sign. I tighten my grasp on the shotgun, looking around to see where Echo has gone. It doesn’t take me long to realize that she hasn’t gone far, just a few feet to look out the window and into the deep ocean blue. I knew many times where I caught myself mesmerized by its beauty and glamor. There was so much to it that I didn’t understand: A vast body of life barely explored.

I watch her quietly for a few moments. I decide that it’s best not to disturb her. She needs to test out the bandaging. She needs to test out her stance. If she’s feeling better by the evening, we might be able to make it out of this place much earlier than I had initially thought. So, instead of bothering her I lean my head back in the position it had taken before, closing my eyes. I knew I wouldn’t fall asleep, but it was at least a little bit more rest before the rest of the day unfolded.


(Yeah :/ sorry about that. As well as this being my last post tonight, I won't be able to post tomorrow. I think that's what really suck. I would rather stay at home and Roleplay than go to a stupid football game.)

My mind was too absorbed in watching the sea to notice the movement behind me. I suppose that was both a good and a bad thing. It was a good thing because it gave Mira a few more minutes to rest in the silence of the room while at the same time it was a bad thing because had anything happened at that very moment, I would not have been conscious enough to react as quickly as would be required.
In this apartment though that second factor didn't really matter. We were behind locked doors and no-one knew we were here. If they did they would have attacked by now while we were both sleeping.

As my eyes followed the movement of a dark shape in the distance, the shadow of either a whale or a shark of some kind, I began to think about the dream I had woken up from not ten minutes ago. What was that strange world? Who was the large man in armor? What had I been doing to the person laying on the ground? All of these questions filled my head but I could find no answers to any of them, no matter how much I searched even the deepest recesses of my mind.
I blinked. Would Mira know?

A second passed before I shook my head at my own stupidity. I couldn't bother her with a dream that was none of her business. I had already bothered her enough by getting myself injured to the point where she needed to take care of me.
That alone was probably enough to fulfill the debt she felt she owed me and turned it around so that I owed her something. Really, she had gone out of her way to safe my life. Even the thought made a smile come to my lips. The act was so..out of character for the woman. Why hadn't she just left me to die? She had everything to gain from it.

In the silence of the room as my eyes remained on the water I began humming quietly under my breath. A gentle tune at first but when it came time for the words to begin, I couldn't help but begin whispering them. The song seemed so fitting to the emotions that were running through my body as a result of the dream. The classic Annette Hanshaw song 'Daddy Won't You Please Come Home.'
It was an old song I remembered from a very long time ago. Although I didn't remember the first time I had heard the song, I did remember all of the words and the tune. I was mindful of the sleeping Mira in the room with me but it didn't take much to keep my singing quiet..my voice was rather soft naturally.

(Well, I hope you had fun.)

(I have my post started. I thought I would have time to post it. It seems that I'm going to be late for my performance this morning if I don't leave now. I'm really sorry. I'll be back around one, hopefully.)

With my eyes closed, I could feel myself wanting to fall into another light doze. One good sleep wouldn’t be able to wash out all the days and nights of hell that I had gone through. I couldn’t let myself sleep though. Every movement could be something trying to kill us. I had to be awake to see that. As much as I wanted to sleep, I knew that it wouldn’t be fair either. Why should I be allowed to sleep when the person that lost so much blood was already up and walking around.

For that reason, I pull my eyes open. I knew that there was no other choice about it. I still thought that she should be in bed. Even if she healed faster than most, there was no way that she healed herself that fast. For a long while I watch her. It’s a silent gaze, taking in her features, and watching her movements. She still acted much like a child. That, I could see from the way she stood and the way she held herself. She hadn’t had the hardships of the world pressing her into a strong young woman. Of course, she was a sort of child in a young woman’s body. She was still getting used to not being one of those brainwashed little girls. I small chill ran up my back. How long had it taken her to finally grow out of being a little sister? Could she have been one of those possessed children for years? Of course, she seemed to be very…unique in her design. Maybe she had been a very original sister. Could she have been one of the first?

My muscles tense slightly and I watch her back. A quiet sort of song erupts from her lips. It makes my skin crawl. My teeth clench together in a tightly knitted fashion. I knew the song, very well. Her words, almost as if too natural. The girl was singing a song that many sung when they were fighting a Big Daddy. To me, it seemed that she was thinking about something. In her absented mind, the song just fell from her lips. It’s not long before I don’t think I can stand it. Not because of the quality, but the volume it speaks to me. I was probably over-reacting. Actually, I was most likely over-reacting quite a bit. I was over thinking everything lately.

“You should probably still be in bed” My words are soft and much warmer than I had expected. I had made sure to cut all my thoughts short. I needed to stop thinking so much; I had never been very good at it anyway. I straighten myself up quite a bit, rising silently from the seat. The time of slumber was over; there was no reason to sit anymore. I take in a deep breath, taking silent steps toward the girl. My eyes plant on the window and the deep blue on the other side. I had to admit, it was quite beautiful when there wasn’t a chance of it killing you.


(I'm so sorry. I had so much unplanned stuff come up today. I just got home. I'm tired, and going to bed, but I'll be on tomorrow.

While the words passed my lips I allowed my mind to wander back towards the dream I had experienced. Never before had I had a dream of that type. It was like for a brief moment, while my mind was a mess due to the blood loss, my mind had decided to bring back a part of my memory I had never known I had. I thought this because there was no way that I could have dreamt of something so vividly without actually having experienced it. Right?
Yet at the same time the dream was so bizarre that I had a hard time imagining that I could have forgotten such a unique world. I was utterly confused.

The singing came so naturally to me that I barely noticed that I was doing it. Of course the singing never became loud but it certainly was very audible when compared to the silence that had otherwise settled on the room.
In fact I was so absorbed in the combination of my quiet singing and looking out of the window that I didn't notice Mira until she spoke to me. My head quickly turned in her direction at the same time as my cheeks flushed with embarrassment. I had never really sung in front of anyone before so the sudden realization that she had heard me hit me like a brick wall.

"Sorry..I didn't mean to disturb you. I was thinking about..something." I said in an apologetic voice while taking a small step sideways in order to allow Mira to take the spot next to me at the window. For a moment we both stood there just looking out into the dark blue depths of the sea.
In that moment I felt as though there was some kind of connection between us. Not exactly a very significant connection but a connection all the same. We both allowed one another to admire the beauty of the vast ocean around us separated only by a thick metal wall and a few inches of glass.

I glanced down at the bandaging that was wrapped around my body and I placed my hand over one of the pads. The blood had soaked through the pad but now that the wound was closed, there was no need for it. For now though I didn't touch the bindings.
"My injuries have healed but it'll be a bit before my body is back to full strength. I hope you don't mind.." I brought my gaze over to my companion for a few seconds. I was not sure how long she wanted to stay in this apartment especially with all of the memories that were connected to it.

For a moment I stood there just staring out of the window before I turned my gaze towards the woman standing next to me. She truly was a woman too. In every aspect of her she was much more mature than I. From her posture, the look in her eye, the way she spoke, and especially the way she looked physically. It was almost comical how opposite she was of me.
The only thing similar between us at the moment was pretty much the fact that we were in the same room together. We made quite team of opposites.
A smile came to my lips at this train of thought.


(Well, yeah, I've come to expect such things.. See you tomorrow. I hope your performance was successful)

I feel myself entranced by the ocean. Maybe it’s because I don’t want to see the flush of her cheeks. She’s embarrassed to sing in front of someone? Of course, that is many people’s fears so I can understand it. It would make things awkward as if stared at her as she had her moment of embarrassment. Instead, I steadied my thoughts on the cool water.

“You didn’t disturb me. I’ve been awake for a while.” My words are simple, monotone really. I’m much more level headed now than I was the night before. My mind is on our trek back, even though it could be awhile before we get started on that trek. I was always thinking of the next step. I pull my hand up to trace along the cool glass. It was calming. It was something I had done many times before. When I was crying, when I was angry, and even sometimes just when I needed to think, the coolness of this window had been my friend through it all. It seemed silly, but you’d never realize how much you needed so simple in those times, especially when you had nothing else.

My thoughts about the window draw my head towards the girl as she speaks. I halfway listen, but I get the gist of what she’s saying. I nod slowly, pulling my hand from the glass.

“Don’t worry about how long we stay. If I’m not helping you then where am I? I’m walking around this damn city waiting for something to come up and kill me. I’m in no hurry.” I knew she was more afraid of the memories that hung thick like smoke on the walls. I was a big girl; I could handle the quiet memories that were playing in the back of my mind. They were always there, no matter what I was doing, but I wasn’t going to complain about our new place of short-term residence. We were safe behind a locked door and that’s all that mattered to me. Not getting killed mattered more than letting us get killed because I couldn’t take the recollections of what went on in here.

A small breath of air escapes my lips and I turn away from the window. I give the girl a light nod before starting for the door.

“I’m going to get something to eat. I’ll bring you bag something, but get back in bed, please” I’m already halfway across the small room before I start speaking. Although I try to be at least a little nice, once it crosses my lips I can tell it just sounds like an order. I shake my head silently. Making it to the door I grasp the knob, giving it one quick turn. The door opens quietly and I walk through, pushing it closed behind me with my foot.

From the doorway, it’s only about five or six steps to the cupboards where we kept what little food there was in the house. I’m slow about walking through though, making sure not to look into the living room, and anywhere near the couch. It seemed almost as if I felt bad for what I had done. In reality, I didn’t. I just didn’t want a reminder of what atrocities that man had done to both me and my mother. It would just anger me far more than anything.

I pull the doors the cabinets open, taking one good look. Of course, there’s not much that’s still edible, but there’s a few things. There were a few packs of coffee grounds and what I assumed was a crème cake it had aged much since it had been put into the cabinet. It seemed like there had been a break in the seal and the whole thing was a sickening green tint. It was positively uneatable. I shake my head, closing the door quietly, just to move to the second cabinet. I was luckier here. In this cabinet, I found a pep bar, a bag of chips, and a three pep cola’s. It was lucky, seeing as normally we didn’t have anything in these cabinets except for booze. I’m on to the last cabinet. My finds are sitting on the counter top beside me. As I open the last cabinet I see the thing I had been expecting. The top part of the shelf is filled with three of four different kinds of alcohol while the bottom part contains more of father’s foods. This was the cabinet he favored the most it seemed. I grab at the items below. A can of fruit, a can of beans, and a package of potted meat. It wouldn’t seem like much for the time, but it was far more than we usually had.

(I'm sorry that this is what you've come to expect of me. I post when I have free time and that free time is very little this year. I'm sorry)

I seemed to draw Mira out of her thoughts whenever I spoke to her whether it was to apologize for waking her up, which apparently I hadn't, or it was to tell her that I was going to need some more time to rest my body, which she didn't mind by the way she spoke, and I couldn't help but ask myself what those thoughts might be. Were they about me? Were they about what had happened? Were they about the apartment we were in? Were they about the trek back to the restaurant that we still had ahead of us? It could have been any of these things or none of them at all.
Times like these made me wish that we had mind reading abilities. The thought made me smile inwardly at my own silliness.

There was a small pause as she regarded the window with her fingers gently tracing against the cold glass. The more I watched the woman next to me the more intrigued I became by her. It was like everything about her was a contradiction in many ways.
She was hard and cold on the outside yet every now and then you could see mannerisms that only a person with true emotions would have. The look in her eye very much contradicted the way that she acted at times. Like you could see that somewhere, buried away inside her shell, there was a different side of her she had hidden away.
I briefly wondered whether I was ever going to get to see that side of her.

Mira turned away from the window and began towards the door with a small sigh. I watched her as she moved while speaking at the same time, telling me to get into bed. Her voice was less cold than usual but it still had a quite harsh tone to it. I suppose some things just don't change no matter what.
Still, I nodded my head.
"Alright.."
I knew that she was right in saying that I needed to be back in bed. Moving around wasn't going to harm me but it was going to slow down the healing process. The sooner I allowed myself the repose I needed the sooner we were going to be able to leave the apartment to head back.

I moved back towards the bed before slipping into it with a quiet sigh. The covers were soft as was the pillow that came to rest beneath my head. Had I been tired it would have been very easy to fall asleep at that very moment. Instead though I was left in the silence of the room to gaze up at the ceiling above my head.
Again my mind began to swim with thoughts about everything and nothing. In an attempt to bring my focus away from my dream I tried to think of the best route to get back to the restaurant. I didn't want to go back the way we had come so I needed to think of another way.


(It'd be worse if I hadn't already known that you probably weren't going to be coming back on, so don't worry about it.)

It wasn’t easy getting all the items back to the room. Of course it wasn’t hard either. A deep breath pulls through my lungs as I balance the meats and beans and spoons and sodas in my arms, making my way back to the room. This is one of the times that I was quite glad my room hadn’t been far from the kitchen. It had taken me no longer than five or so minutes to find the food and to get everything situated in my arms and back to the door. I reach out quietly to grab the door knob, pulling it open and stepping inside.

When I make it inside I see the girl in bed, just as I had asked. It was good that she was listening to me. She still could be tired or she just felt like she should do as I said. I wasn’t too particularly sure, but I didn’t press the issue. She was in bed, and that’s what mattered.

“There was more than I expected, so you can decide what you want. I’ll take whatever is left.” I pull the bottles of cola out from being pressed between my arm and my side, using my free arm to push the Audio recorder into the floor so there was more room on the nightstand. I then begin to place the different cans and bag and bar down onto the newly-freed space. My arms are free now; the only thing left is two spoons that I place on top of the cans.

I lean down to pick up the audio diary from where it had landed on the ground. They were durable so I didn’t bother worrying about it breaking. Really, they were scattered all over Rapture, and finding them was much easier than it probably should have been. If it broke, I could easily find another and put the tape in that one. I push the rewind button as I walk it back over to my bag, which was still sitting on the ground next to the pale pink chair. By the time I make it over there, the diary has finished rewinding. I kneel quietly, pulling open the flap and placing it inside.

“Now the cola isn’t cold, but if you give me a bit, I can probably chill them a little more than they are.” I speak as I rise form my place on the floor. I turn quietly, taking short steps to stand next to the bed. I pick up one of the glass bottles, placing the bottom in my left hand. I can feel the chill of my plasmid growing up my arm. Just the indicator for the plasmid I was using was enough to cool things. It required no eve, and we wouldn’t be drinking hot drinks.

Not ten minutes had passed before Mira came back into the room with an armful of food and drinks. I was actually surprised by how much she brought back with her. There was no way that we were going to need all of it. Of course there was later on but the amount still surprised me a little bit.
She came to set the things down and while doing so knocked an audio diary onto the ground. My eyes were immediately drawn towards the appliance.
I had not noticed it until now and in a fleeting thought I wondered what it had been doing on the bedside table. Had she played it for me while I was unconscious?
Her words drew me out of my thoughts before I could wonder any further.

I reached out to take one of the pep bars and took the time to unwrap it as I looked up at Mira for a second or two. I suppose in a way now the roles had been reversed from the night before when she had been a guest in my home. I was now in her shoes and I knew how she felt when I offered her my own supplies.
It was a bit of an awkward thing accepting supplies from someone else. More because you couldn't help but wonder whether they were going to need what you were taking from them later on, but wouldn't have as a result of them offering it to you. Still, I was very grateful of her hospitality and I accepted a little bit.

"Huh, I've never seen anyone use a plasmid like that.." I noted with a smile as I watched her chill the drink in her hand. The Splicers only ever used their plasmids for attacking and killing others, they never used them for anything practical the way she was using hers. It was a very interesting spectacle to say the very least.
In a way I had the feeling that her ingenuity was one of the things that had given her the ability to survive for so long in Rapture. One could only rely so much on strength or on plasmids alone. Without a good mind both were useless for the most part.

A prime example of this were the Splicers who carried the more sophisticated weapons that were not firearms. The crossbows, grenade launchers, and hack tools. All of which were made from modified items you could easily find scattered all over the ruins of Rapture.
Although I had come to fear such weapons over time I had also taken a moment or two to admire the thought that was put into the design of each and every one of the weapons. This place was the living proof of the phrase; 'with necessity comes ingenuity'.
The Splicers may have been evil but they were also very clever.

(Did it go well though?)

The girl seems surprised by the food that I bring back. It was much for two people, I could admit that, but I didn’t know what she would want. I was sure something was better than nothing, but it was good to give someone options. For once I could give someone options, and for once I didn’t feel bad about having too much food.

The girl takes the pep bar from the pile and opens it, taking a bite and looking at me. She’s thinking about something. As much as my curiosity could get to me at times, I didn’t worry about it now. She was probably thinking so many things right now, that it was good just to let her continue on with her thoughts. I could continue with my cooling of the drinks, one at a time, and she could think her little heart out if she desired.

Soon though she gives me what I think is a compliment. I look down to my hand, watching the frost creep up the side of the bottle. I shrug lightly, setting it down when I think that it’s cool enough. I didn’t know why, but it was natural for small things like this to just happen. I mean, weren’t plasmids made so you could make life easier? They weren’t just made for fighting. In reality, they hadn’t been made for fighting at all. It all just turned out to be a war. I was using them for the small things that they had been made for. I shrug quietly, looking up to meet her smile with a normal gaze.

“I guess I don’t just use them for fighting. They help with other things too.” I nod quietly. Really, I wasn’t sure how to respond to her statement. It would have been rude to say nothing and yet, I didn’t think there was much to say. I shake my head, pulling up the second bottle. I knew that we wouldn’t be drinking the third, so there was no reason to chill it like I was doing to the others. We could put it in one of our bags or save it for later.

“I know it’s a lot of food, but I didn’t know what you would want” I look through the food, plucking out the bag of chips. I make my place on the floor next to the bed. I don’t mind the floor. Really, I would rather be close enough to speak quietly to her than be comfortable in the chair on the other side of the room.

Once I get settled, I pull the bag apart and reaching in for the first of many crispy potato chips. I was surprised they hadn’t staled in the bag. They were a nice treat since I was used to small potted meats and beans. The salt was greatly welcomed too.


(It was nice. It was cold as heck though. I actually couldn't feel my fingers while we performed xD Some guy liked it well enough to ask me to coffee afterwards though. So at least I got some free coffee out of the deal )

I nodded my head in response to her words about her use of plasmids. I suppose as a Big Sister and a person who could not remember what Rapture was like before the revolution, I never got to see what the plasmids were originally intended for beyond the small animations that were shown at Gatherers Gardens whenever a new plasmid was purchased.
"I've only ever been attacked by them, I guess is why I'm saying that." I noted while watching her open a bag of chips while settling herself on the floor next to the bed I was laying in.

"Why don't you join me up here? I'm not going to bite you know." I said in an almost playful tone as I took another few bites from the pep bar until I was down to the very last bite. I understood why she would be hesitant to join me on the bed, although it was a large bed for someone of my frame, what with my needing to rest after my injuries but it made me wonder whether..I wasn't sure what to think. Was she trying to keep the distance between us? That seemed to be the most logical thing if it wasn't based off the notion that she wanted me to be comfortable in the bed, though accommodating her would just take a small movement of my legs so she could sit.

I didn't press the issue any further though. If she refused then I wasn't going to insist or anything like that. If she was comfortable on the floor I had no right to question her otherwise. So I did my best to focus on finishing the bar and beginning on the hop-up cola she had cooled for me.
It was amazing how quickly the bottle went from being room temperature to being at a very pleasant cold temperature. The drink was both delicious and refreshing. I found myself smiling as I took a long sip and then set the bottle down on the bedside table next to me.

There was a pause of silence before I broke it after some thought as to how to word what I was going to say next.
"Thank you, again.. You saved me even though it was probably in your best of interest to let me die." I spoke in a quiet voice while looking down at my hands that were placed in my lap. I spoke the truth. My death would have benefited her ten times more than my survival, especially considering that we now had to get back to the restaurant.
"I guess I'm just glad it was me and not you." I added as I glanced over at her, a small smile on my lips.


(Ah, well, that's always nice. I'm glad it went well.)

I could understand why the girl had such a one-sided view about plasmids. She didn’t remember anything before her being a being a Big Sister. I knew that she wouldn’t really know that they weren’t made in the first place made for the use of war. If Andrew Ryan had really known what would become of this whole plasmid industry then he probably would have stopped it before it began. She had only been on the receiving end of a long history of plasmid lines and wars. That made anything but fighting with them different.

She seems a little faster on a subject change. I don’t know why, but what she says catches me off guard a little bit. Why would she even offer part of the bed to me? As much as I was concerned, we really weren’t partners. No—We were just two people with a common purpose, for now at least. If I had to, I would sacrifice her life for mine at any time. She didn’t need to think that we were friends. Friends wouldn’t do the things I was willing to do to her. Hell, I would kill her if I had to. Right now though, I didn’t have to so it wasn’t going to happen.

“I’m fine with the floor. You need all the room you can get to relax.” I smile to her quietly. I was fine with the ground, and I didn’t want to get into her personal space just like I don’t want her in my personal space. She seems alright with the idea as I toss another chip into my mouth. For quite a bit, we eat in silence. It’s a nice idea, that the quiet wasn’t really forced. I could hear the crunching of the chips in my mouth, but little more.

She breaks the silence with thanks. She is happy I didn’t kill her. It seems that she’s not completely oblivious to the fact that I could have let her die. I could have taken her Adam, and I could have been set for life. I didn’t though. I saw the interest in keeping her alive. She would never think like I did. She would never see the evil in this entire place. She wouldn’t know that there was much more waiting for me than just a little bit of Adam from her.

“There’s no point in letting a sane person die. There’s no point in kicking off someone that really hasn’t even started their life yet.” Really, I only believe half of what I was saying. I didn’t want to kill someone that didn’t need it. Really, there had been enough killing down here for the whole world. I didn’t want to lose a chance of possibly getting out of here safer than I started out. Maybe, she was the way to protect me through Rapture at least until her time came.

(Thanks)

It did not surprise me when she declined my offer of sharing the bed with her. And as I predicted she explained her decline with the reasoning that I needed the bed to rest on. There were certain character traits of hers that were becoming pretty constant but I knew that I still had a lot to learn about her before I would know what to expect from her.
There was so much she was keeping hidden away behind her shield of cold emotionless composure. I was able to catch glimpses of the person inside her but never enough to get a good picture of who she was before this whole mess started.

I suppose that was one thing that set us apart as individuals. The revolution in Rapture changed her while it left me..not so much the same but it shaped me into the person I was at that very moment. There was no change for me as I was 'born' into the revolution per say.
What she saw of my personality was the only side of me there was to see and I suppose that was a good thing. Unlike most of Rapture, it was very easy to see that I had no ulterior motives when I spoke. Perhaps it was the programming that had been instilled in my mind at some point but my only objective was to survive and protect others. Period.

I felt a small smile come to my lips when she replied to my thanks for having saved my life. The way that she worded her reply was sound but also very safe. There was more to her reasoning but it was not my place to ask about such a thing. I knew that Mira was going to tell me only that which she wanted me to know and nothing more. Sure the thought brought up questions in my mind but I did my best to ignore them.
"Yeah..I guess that makes sense. I haven't had much of a life so far." I turned my head towards the window to watch it for a moment or two as I thought about what I had just said.

"A part of me wants all of this to just end. One way or another. But another part of me wants to push on, survive, so that maybe one day I'll be able to see what the surface looks like." As I spoke I reached up to brush a few strands of hair out of my face before I sighed and settled down in the bed, pausing to take a sip from my cola before I closed my eyes.
"Do you remember what it looks like?" I asked after a moment of pause. My eyes opened and my green eyes settled upon the figure on the floor. Perhaps the question was too personal but I was curious as to what her response would be like.


(So I started a drawing about this roleplay.. Big Sister leg braces are incredibly complex to draw >_< )

I finish off the chips quickly and quietly, crumpling up the bag and tossing it beside me. I was used to not eating much, but I felt like eating something more. I wasn’t sure what, but I knew I wanted something. I needed to keep my mouth doing something or I would say something stupid or uncalled for. I didn’t know where this sudden change of heart had come from.

The girl begins to speak as I pull the cola bottle to my lips. It’s still cool and just the perfect temperature for a drink. She seems happy with the explanation I give her. I take in a small breath. I’m glad that I’ve given her some sort of closure.

“I’m going to survive until it’s not my place to survive anymore…I guess, I know I’m going to die, I just don’t know what’s going to bring my end. I know Rapture is going to kill me.” I watch over her a moment. It’s dark in the room. There’s a lamp on the opposite bed side table, but neither has bothered to turn it on.

I had to admit I remembered little about the surface. What I did remember, however, was vivid and amazing. I smile quietly, taking in a slow breath. It had been awhile since I thought about the surface. It had been far too long. Taking all your time making sure that you stay alive, you forget about the little things like that.

“I don’t remember where we lived before we moved down here. I was about seven. I remember losing all my friends in school, and never getting to say goodbye. The sun though….That’s something that I remember. It was so bright and warm. I remember we used to live near a beach. We would go to the sand and play and swim all day. There was fresh air and trees. Most kids down here had never seen a tree, but I had. “I giggle quietly. My reminisce had calmed me down. It made me remember so many good things that I missed. I wanted to be back there, looking at the ocean, not in it.


(Trying to type a post and cook, sorry it took so long. I was having to deal with my sister. I'll be back after dinner)

There was something almost pleasant about being able to just sit down and talk to Mira. Yes we had spoken before while in the restaurant but it had been much different. We were complete strangers then and although we weren't too much more than strangers at this point, there was also the addition of safety. Before we had not been in complete safety yet now the only way something could come and get us was through the doors that separated us from the outside city. We would hear them coming in long before they got the chance to reach us.
I could almost feel my mood steadily improve even though the topic of our conversation wasn't particularly positive at this point.

Her words about death gave me a moment of pause as I slowly sipped at my bottle of cola until the last drop slipped past my lips and I was forced to set the empty bottle down on the bedside table. Was Rapture going to kill me the way that she was so sure it was going to kill her? Was I really going to allow it to kill me before I could get at least one glimpse of the surface? A moment or two passed before I allowed myself to come to the conclusion that I was not going to let myself die. If I had meant to die then I would have died on the way to this room.

When Mira began to describe what she remembered about the surface I shifted my body so that I was in a half-sitting position propped up by the pillows I usually rested my head on. The expression on my face was one of curiosity while the look in my eye was the kind that you would see in the eyes of a child that is being told a particularly exciting story. I had only ever heard myths about what the surface was like.
Never before had I come across someone who had actually been up there and was willing to tell me about it.
It sounded like a wonderful place..especially the sun. I wondered what that warmth might feel like against my face.

Her giggle caught me off guard. It was as if the memory of the world above the waves had brought a change in her mood. I blinked a few times before I found myself smiling happily. My head turned towards the window yet again before I nodded my head.
"Maybe one day, once we've both gotten out of Rapture, we'll meet on the surface..wouldn't that be something? I doubt we'd recognize one another." I mused this while trying to imagine the scene.
It caused me to laugh both from the image in my head and the difficulty I was having at imagining what things looked like up there.
"And we could have one of those..tree things for lunch or something!" I stated with a tone of pride, although really I was showing how little I knew about anything. I had never heard of such a thing before.

(That's alright, I'll be here)

Being able to talk so much to someone is strange. I wasn’t used to it at all. Usually, the only person I talked to was myself, and that wasn’t often. Usually, I was alone and there was no way that I would risk getting caught by splicers because I felt the need to be an idiot. Here though, there was cause for speech. Not only that, but we were safe and I knew that it would be okay if I let words slip. It was still uncomfortable though.

The girl seems caught by my words. She is very optimistic about this whole thing. I can see it in her eyes that she doesn’t believe that she’s going to die down here. If she does then it’s very well hidden. She is cautious about her thoughts. Taking her time, she finishes off her drink.

My descriptions aren’t very vivid. It seems to be enough however to get her interested. It’s as if she’s never thought of how amazing the surface could be. It was a great place to end up. It seemed as if she had never actually heard about the surface. You could see the curiosity plastered all over her face. Not only that, but it seemed like her inner child was being released. Every interesting thing seemed to get her more excited than the last.

I don’t expect the happy giggle to escape my lips like it does. Really, it surprises me enough to make me shift on the floor. I’m not sure what I look like, but I feel heat coming to my cheeks. I didn’t laugh like that. Never did I life like that anymore. I take in a deep breath, the girl is quiet happy now. She’s smiling and speaking of the future. She Is still being the same optimistic person. I shake my head quietly, smiling. I was trying to be nice.

“I don’t think that’ll happen. It would be interesting if it did.” I didn’t want to bash the girl’s dreams. I didn’t want to ruin the mood she had going for her. I didn’t want to remind her that I thought I was going to die.

I don’t have time to think of such thoughts. She says something that’s so outrageous that I can’t help a laugh coming from my lips. It wasn’t a jolly laugh, no. It was an all-out, uncontrollable, falling over, can’t breathe kind of laugh. It’s louder than I had intended, but it wasn’t loud enough to draw attention to ourselves.

“You-You’ve never been to Arcadia before have you?” I can barely stop the laughing, but somehow I do. I cough quietly a moment before looking back up to the girl. “You don’t eat trees, Doll” I give her a sympathetic smile. The laughing had been rude, but it seemed strange to me for the girl to not know what a tree was.

There was a good reason for the optimism that I displayed when we started talking about the surface and what it was like. It wasn't so much that I didn't think that I was going to die in Rapture but more the fact that I was determined to find my way up to the surface. My stubborn determination was a character trait that was only matched by my ability to make the best out of even the worst of situations.
Perhaps it was one of my coping mechanisms to deal with everything that had happened over the last couple years. Except instead of turning me into a sad negative person I was turned into a happy optimistic one.

I suppose I had never really taken the time to think about what the surface might be like. Sure I had fleeting memories of what my childhood was like before we got to Rapture but the experiences were so distant that they barely had any hold in my mind. I couldn't remember what the sun felt like or what a tree looked like, for example. And the fact that something had happened that caused a lapse in my memory certainly didn't help at all.
Of course there really was no excuse for the pure absurdity with which I stated that we would eat a tree for lunch. To a normal person it would have been a ridiculous thought but for someone who had never consciously seen the surface it made perfect sense.

The moment I mentioned said idea of eating a tree for lunch, Mira burst into laughter. It wasn't a happy little giggle like the one she had uttered before nor was it a content chortle like the one someone would let out after hearing a clever joke. No, her laugh was loud and uncontrollable in nature. Like I had said the silliest thing on the planet (which really, I had).
At first I was confused as to why she was laughing, then I started blushing out of embarrassment, but then I began to laugh with her. I guess it was because her laugh of pure mirth was incredibly contagious and I realized that whatever I had done to make her laugh, it had allowed me another glimpse into who she was.

When she finally managed to quiet down she began to speak to me, asking me first about whether I'd ever been to Arcadia and then going on to explain that trees weren't a kind of food. Again I felt my cheeks flush but a giggle also slipped past my lips. I was more than willing to laugh at my own expense. It seemed to relieve a lot of the tension between us.
"I try to stay away from Houdini Splicer territory..so no, I haven't. There are a lot of places in Rapture that I haven't been to yet. The farthest I've ever gone is Fort Frolic."
I watched Mira's face as I settled myself back down in the bed. It was almost funny how much of a difference just a smile could make on the usually hard serious expression she had on her face.

"There's a lot that I don't know in this world and that's why I want to get out of here. Maybe I can get a head start though..visit Arcadia and get a look at a tree so I know what I'm looking at when I get to the surface." Just mentioning a tree made another smile come to my lips. I was never going to let myself forget this mistake. Every time I saw a tree, whatever it looked like, I was going to be reminded of this moment.
In a way my mistake reminded me of just how little I truly did know about anything at all beyond the functioning of my suit and the way things worked down here in Rapture. In truth I was just a child who had been forced to mature very quickly.

(Sorry about last night. People came bursting into my room and were there until well into the night)

I have to calm myself down. It’s been so long since I’ve laughed like that. Actually, it’s probably been too long since I’ve laughed like that. I take in slow deep breaths, my eyes closed in an attempt to keep myself from laughing at her again. It was very obvious that I had embarrassed her if only a little bit. It was enough to bring a flush of red to her cheeks.

She says that she’s never been to Arcadia. That doesn’t surprise me with her words. Really, I wouldn’t be surprised if she hadn’t been to a lot of places. The splicers made it very hard to get from one place to another here nowadays. Really, it made it very hard t get anywhere. There were always booby-trapped doors and rigged tunnels. They were very serious about their territory. I was surprised at how far I had made it before.

I smirk quietly at her words. Now she was interested in going to Arcadia just to see a tree. It was an interesting idea. Of course, it would give her some closure. It would give her hope and gumption. It would make her fight harder to get up top. It might be a good thing for her. I smile quietly, nodding as I look back up to her.

“I’m sure you won’t have a problem recognizing a tree when you see one now” I lean back slightly, letting my hands fall behind me to hold my weight up. “You get up to the top Doll face. I promise you, you’ll be surprised at what you see when you get there” The idea was very calming. It had been awhile since I had even thought about going to the surface. I look around the room for a moment before my eyes fall on the window across the room. I hadn’t seen the sun in years. Now that I thought about it, I knew that I missed it.


(Don't worry about it. I've got a buttload of homework so I'll be on and off )

There was very little that I knew about Arcadia beyond the fact that it was both Houdini Splicer territory and the source of Rapture's oxygen. I had never looked into how that worked but with what Mira had said, I assumed that it had something to do with the trees you could apparently find there.
The factor that truly dictated the areas I visited and explored were the types of Splicers I knew I was going to find there. Brute, Houdini, and Spider Splicer territories were the ones that I did my very best to avoid as did most who valued their lives. Especially Brute territories. They were not particularly smart, like the Houdini Splicers, nor were they agile, like the Spider Splicers, but they were easily ten times as strong as both of the others put together. Even Big Daddies had trouble dealing with Brutes on the rare occasion the two crossed paths.

My gaze came to rest on Mira for a few seconds as she spoke about the surface, telling me that I was going to be surprised if I ever got up there.
"I'm not really sure how I'll react if I ever get to see the surface..I think I'll be too overwhelmed at first to really react at all! But of course this is all assuming that I get out of Rapture in the first place." My expression fell for just a moment before I shook myself out of the saddening thought. All of the odds were against my escaping the city. Not only were the majority of the bathyspheres either gone or destroyed but there was a whole city separating me from the nearest station. Getting there on my own was a near impossible feat.

I blinked and then grinned.
"I'm going to do it though. Nothing is going to stand in my way of getting to the surface. I want to see everything. I want to experience all of the things that a normal person gets to experience in life.." There was a moment of pause before I nodded my head confidently.
It was a way of reassuring myself that I was going to go through with my plan. Being accepted by the outside world as something not quite human..that was going to be a different struggle altogether but I tried not to think about that at this point. First things first and all.
"Don't you want to escape?" I asked Mira curiously while glancing over at her.


(That's alright, I'm really getting into this drawing so that'll give me a chance to get it finished)

It was because of Arcadia that my favorite color was green. The trees, the grass...everything about that place was enchanting. When we first arrived in rapture, the prospect of a forest underwater was nothing to be intrigued about. We had seen trees and grass and plant life every day for our lives on the surface. After years of being down here though, Arcadia had grown more and more popular. The children were especially fond of it. The ones that had been born in rapture had never seen trees or flowers. I was about twelve or thirteen the first time that I had been in Arcadia. Of course, since money was scarce I only went with my family once. It was like seeing all of those things anew. The color was bright and vibrant. It was amazing. I had only been twice. When I was fifteen, I had my first date there. It was the place to go on dates or just for a time out. A smile has broadened on my lips as I loose myself in thought. It was a place to go back when. Now, however, there were splicers everywhere. It was like they wanted to remember the greatness of the place before they turned into monsters.

I could understand why she stayed away from Arcadia. I absolutely hated Houdini splicers. They were probably my least favorite out of all splicers. They liked to draw you close and disappear when you tried to shoot them. They were a big waste of ammunition. I usually just left them, if I could get away without them chasing me. Most of them were cultist loons anyway. They got a hold of fire plasmids and decided to create a new religion. They were crazy, which meant that they were far more dangerous than the others. They were a different kind of crazy though. They weren't just hungry for Adam. They were hung up on a strange religious belief. I wasn't even sure what they were going on about.

I look up as I take in a deep breath. She wasn't sure how she would act if she saw the surface. She would freak. I knew that. She wouldn't be able to handle it. I hadn't seen anyone meet the surface before, but I knew that it would be overwhelming, just as she was saying. Hell, if I met the surface again, I would probably feel the same way. It was really unbelievable. No one got out of rapture. It was unthinkable. It was crazy to even think that way. I didn't know why she thought it would be so easy. She was so nonchalant about it. I think that until her voice drops. I take in a short breath. That was surprising. This was the first time I had heard her be negative.

I don’t say anything. I don’t know why that silence has fallen over me. She was being at least a little bit of a realist for once. I was shocked at that. I pull the almost-empty cola bottle to my lips. I tilt my head back slightly, feeling the cool liquid sliding daily down my throat. I smile quietly, taking in a deep breath as I pull the now-empty bottle from my lips. By the time the bottle has settled on the ground, she's already talking about how she's going to get out of here. I can't help but sigh at her words. She nods in confidence at her words. She doesn't understand. I take in a deep breath. She was still a child trapped in a young lady's body. She was naive...not just a little naive...Then she questions me. I take in a short breath, nodding quietly to my thoughts.

"Of course I want to, but there's no way Echo. You don’t understand Rapture. You almost got killed getting this far. Saying you're going to try and get to surface is suicide."

I was a little bit surprised by Mira's answer to the very last thing that I asked her. She told me that she wanted to get out of Rapture, with such certainty that I had been convinced she was going to finish her statement differently than the way she did, but that there was simply no way. She told me that I did not understand Rapture nor did I understand the danger of trying to escape that which is inescapable.
My mind was brought back to the way she had said that she knew she was going to die in Rapture. By the words that passed her lips I could see her conviction to the thought of death being inevitable in this city.

I parted my lips to say something at first, something to counter what she had said to me, but nothing came. No sound. So I let my lips come back together and I merely nodded my head in recognition of her words. My gaze fell back down to my hands as they rested on my lap and then further up to the bandaging that lined my body.
Mira was right yet I could not bring myself to believe that there was no way of escaping. I could not believe that there was no way. I would not believe it.
There was always a way.

In a way I was lying to myself. No, actually, in every way I was lying to myself. The chances of me getting from this side of Rapture all the way to the other without suffering a painful death by the hands of the Splicers was pretty much zero.
Big Sister or not I had been shown my limitations during the ambush and I knew that although I was able to take more damage than your average person, I was still just one person. One person against the population of the whole city. An army against a single individual.
There was absolutely no way for me to get out of Rapture on my own unless..unless..

Suddenly I sat up from where I had been laid back on the bed. A thought had found its way into my head that was both genius and at the same time so ridiculous that I didn't know if I even dared suggest the idea to my companion. With a small wince I slipped down onto the ground so that I was kneeled in front of her with my legs tucked beneath me. I reached out to take her hands in mine and I grasped them gently. The words were teetering on the very end of my tongue almost as if they didn't want to slip past my lips.
"Come with me.." I whispered softly as I looked up into Mira's eyes.

I swore the girl was crazy. There was no other way to describe it. Every moment was another second she had to lose her sanity and become one of them. Right now, she was silent. Each word that came from my lips seemed to make her frown. Yes, I was negative, but I was so close to reality that it was hard not to be. A deep breath fills my lungs as I watch her. She doesn’t seem to be responding well to my opinionated answers. I wasn’t her friend nor was I her mother. I wasn’t going to tell her to follow her dream or that everything was going to be okay. I knew that nothing was going to be okay in Rapture ever again. God would be doing this city a favor if he just flooded the place. If there was a god in this place after all.

She seems to look up rather quickly, watching me for a moment before another smile falls softly on her lips. Had she finally gone mad, or was she thinking of another crazy thing to say. Either way, I just waited for her to say something. It didn’t take her long before she rose up from where she had been laying. She pulls herself cautiously out of bed, letting herself down lightly in front of me. The smile on her face doesn’t seem like one that she has given me before. It’s so hopeful. She pauses a moment, taking my hands in hers.

My eyes widen as she speaks. She doesn’t know what she’s just asked. She wants us to go together, out into the city, and try to make it out of here alive… There’s no way that’s possible. She doesn’t know that she’s just asked to go on a suicide mission. I start to shake my head, out of shock.

“You don’t know what you just asked, Echo” I mutter the words quietly, watching as she smiles at me. I feel my head start to fall and one of my hands pulls away from hers to press at my temples. Even though I knew I was going to die, the idea of dying still didn’t settle well with me. I would have to think hard about this. I would have to figure out my plans.

(You have no idea how sorry I am. I know that you have heard that a million times before, but I couldn’t help it this week. It was homecoming week and I had something going on until well past nine each night. Then, Saturday we had a competition and I didn’t back but about three hours ago. Every time I tried to type up a response my mom would make me go to bed. I’m sorry, but my schedule was packed this week.)

Mira looked at me as though I was going insane. Perhaps I was. The idea of actually ever escaping Rapture in one piece was most certainly the idea of a crazy person. However in my mind it made perfect sense down to the very last word. Seeing as she was so convinced she was going to die then why not die fighting to get out of this god forsaken city? It's not like she had anything to lose by at least trying, right?
We had already learned from experience that it was possible to survive together so long as we watched one another's backs, why not take full advantage of that ability?

Yes there was a good chance of us getting killed only halfway to our goal but the slight chance of survival was what made the whole thing worth it. What if we did make it out of Rapture alive? We defeated all odds and actually found a way to a bathysphere or some kind of submarine we could use to get to the surface.
Mira would be able to see everything she remembered and I would be able to see it all for the first time. It would be a whole new world to me. One that I did not remember from when I was a child. The thought of feeling the sun on my face made me smile but only for a moment as I waited tensely for her response.

Her reply was one that I had come to expect from her yet at the same time I could see something in her eyes. Predominately it was both shock and surprise at the very thing I had suggested however there was something else in her gaze. Embedded deeply in the very back of her expression. I could have been wrong, as I was no master of reading expressions, but she seemed to be actually considering the possibility.
That was a step in the right direction in my opinion and although I did not allow myself to get too excited, I did allow myself a smile. A hopeful smile. I hoped that she would realize the possibilities that lay with accompanying me on what was definitely a suicide mission alone..but together? It was simply an impossible mission.

With a bit of a sigh I let her warm hand slip from my grasp to rest in her lap while I turned my gaze towards the window yet again. The blue still shone in the way it had earlier but there was something more welcoming about it now.
"I know it's a lot to ask of you..but with your help I think we can actually make it up there, Mira. With my strength and your experience, there is little in Rapture that could stop us. We wouldn't need to rush either. We could take years if we needed it, just to stay unnoticed, but we would make it together. Just..consider the idea, okay?" I spoke in a kind voice as I moved to pull myself back in bed.
When my head came to rest against the pillow my eyes grew heavy and I settled down, giving my companion another small smile. The choice was now hers.

I could tell in the girls eyes that she knew what she was saying was right. She didn’t think she was mad. She liked her dreams. The more and more I was with her, I realized that she had never left her childhood. She had gone through life thinking that her dreams could all become reality and that life wasn’t that hard. Of course, she had some slaps into reality, I could tell that right now. She knew that people weren’t all friends and that the world would rip you limb from limb and let your loved ones watch. What she hadn’t seen yet, and what she hadn’t lost was something detrimental. She thought that whatever that she set her mind to would happen. It was a nice ambition for someone growing up in Rapture ten years ago, but right now, that’s the last thing you wanted. You kept your head down and didn’t get any stupid ideas. Those ideas got you killed. Maybe this girl just needed the harsh reality of things pushed into that head of hers.

Most people would think I was a pansy. Really though, I was damn smart. I could adapt better than most of these fruits and I wasn’t crazed at that. It was stupid to go out on a whim with a girl I had only met a few days ago. Still, there was part of me that longed to get out of here. There was part of me that wanted to see the trees, feel the sun, and breathe the nice fresh air of the world. It was a little flame, but the more this girl spoke, the more fuel she added to that fire. I didn’t want to admit that she was going to be the end of me. She drew me in, made me do stupid things for a small hope that I thought had gone away a very long time ago.

She smiles softly, almost like she sees the inner fight that rages on. It’s almost embarrassing that she can see through the mask that I put up. No one’s supposed to be able to see through me. There’s a reason that I kept myself hidden away from other people. I take in a short breath, averting my gaze. She then speaks, and I look back up. She is very long winded tonight. She wants her voice to be heard. She wants me to remember her words and think on them, I can tell by the way that her tone shifts and changes, like a simple melody playing on a record.

The warmth of her hand slowly slips away from me; the smooth skin falling away from my calloused hand into her lap. My own hand mirrored hers, and she turned towards the window again, acknowledging it’s beauty. She speaks, and her words quiet drastically. She was thinking the way she had been the whole time. She would get her call soon. I sigh quietly, watching her in the bed. She was starting to win me over though. There had been so many times that I wished that I could just get out. Her words were starting to convince me more and more. I wouldn’t let her see that though. I didn’t want her thinking that anything she said I would believe or follow her on.

I watch as her eyes grow heavy. It’s very apparent. The food she has eaten has filled her stomach enough to cause her to slowly fall into a drowsy state. I wouldn’t give her an answer yet. I had been easily won over, but I wouldn’t let her see that. I would think on it just a little while longer. Then, I would inform her of the new companion on this crazed, fruitcake of a journey.

“Get some sleep, Echo. Your body needs all the rest it can get.” I give her another warm smile before pulling myself onto steady feet. I reach for the covers that had fallen down quite far on the bed. I pull them up over the girl, just below her chest, before smoothing them out. I smile quietly, letting the fabric dance across my fingertips. “Sleep Echo” I mutter softly, smiling to her.