New World

Ducking, tiptoeing, and moving behind buildings, Elena took her usual, careful path to the fence’s hole behind the pub. This time she paid extra attention to her surroundings, as she was determined not to be caught by Liam again. She was thankful that he had promised not to tell her father, but he must have known she’d be out again the next night, and she was certain he’d be keeping an eye out for her. It was his duty, after all.

When Elena made it to the hole without any Liam sightings, she waited patiently for the guard switch, as she did nearly every night. Elena kept taking peeks at the guard tower, so she could make sure to catch the exact moment when they did their shift change, and when she saw the boys moving, she nearly leapt for the hole.

Pushing her arms back and forth, she darted toward the opening, the mud squishing beneath her feet from the rain they’d had that afternoon. Just as she hit the fence, she heard Liam’s voice ring out behind her, and she let out a deep groan.

“Elena,” Liam said, his voice deep and authoritative. “I thought we already had a talk about this.”

Elena sighed, turning around to face him. “We did. I just – Liam, please just walk away.”

“You know I can’t do that.”

“Please.”

Liam shook his head, and took a few steps forward, until he was standing directly in front of her. He was a good head taller than her, and she had to tilt her head up to meet his eyes.

“Do you know what kind of things are out there?” He asked, looking down at her with his eyes tight. “Do you know how easily you could be killed?”

“I know all of those things. I’ve always known them. I just –” She paused for a second, before shaking her head. “You wouldn’t understand.”

Elena turned away from Liam and back towards the hole. She knew she shouldn’t, but she wasn’t going to let him ruin her night again; she couldn’t. It was the only time she got to be free from the confines of Atello, and if she had to stay trapped in the colony any longer, she was sure she was going to lose her mind.

Taking quick steps, she moved towards the opening, not giving a damn about what Liam said or did. He could tell her, but he was bound to find out eventually, anyway. She knew her escapades couldn’t last forever, and if her nights out were going to end, she was going to have one last good one before they did.

“Elena,” Liam’s voice was harsh, as though he would have been yelling had he not been trying his best to keep quiet. “Elena, stop.”

Elena ignored him, and ducked through the hole, as she had hundreds of times before. She kept walking past the fence, towards the trees that had always been her cover.

Behind her, Liam sighed, throwing his hands at his side. What she was doing was insane, and he’d be damned if he was going to let her go out there alone. She didn’t have any weapons, and he had enough guns to defend the both of them. He had to go out there, get Elena, and bring her safely back to the colony. He couldn’t let Colonel Morris’s daughter be murdered. That would easily be the downfall of Atello as everyone knew it.

Taking a deep breath, Liam climbed through Elena’s secret hole, following quickly behind her. As a soldier, he had quick, quiet footsteps, and she didn’t hear him coming at all. It was anyone’s guess how she hadn’t been killed by a dinosaur with much better hunting skills than he had.

“Elena,” he said, causing her to jump. She spun around, with her eyes wide and her hand on her chest. Her breaths fell up and down quickly, and it was clear he had startled her.

“I’m not going back with you,” Elena said. “I’ll be back before morning, just like I always am, and you’ll be the only one who will even know that I’ve left. You can just turn around now.”

“I’m not going back without you, Elena. Your father would have my head if he knew I did that.”

“I’m not leaving, Liam, and nothing you say will convince me to.”

“Then I’ll stay with you until you’re ready to leave.”

“No way,” Elena said, laughing in her discomfort. She shook her head quickly, as she threw her hands at her sides. “No way.”

“I’m not leaving you out here.” He took a step forward, landing in a spot where the moonlight hit his face. His eyes had gone from their harsh, soldier-like glaze to a soft, caring brown. “I won’t bother you. I just want to keep you safe.”

“I don’t need you to keep me safe!” Elena shouted, causing a stir of flying reptilians to soar from the trees above them. Elena mentally scolded herself for being so loud, but he was just so damn infuriating. “I’m not helpless, Liam. I don’t always need my father’s soldiers to watch out for me and I certainly don’t need his right hand man following me into the forest.”

“Really, Elena? What would you do if a raptor came at you right now? Do you even have a gun? They’d rip you to shreds before you even had a chance to scream. I know you think this place is your sanctuary, Elena, but it’s not safe. If you’re willing to come out here without full artillery, you clearly don’t know anything about what’s out here.”

“And you don’t know anything about me, so don’t pretend like you do. Just go, Liam. Go and tell my father what I’ve done so he can bring his band of merry men out to find me, and the entire colony can keep watch on me while he traps me in my room.”

Liam shook his head, scoffing at her. “You’re lucky to have a father like Colonel Morris. He’d do anything for you, Elena, and you repay him by acting like a rebellious little brat. If you want to get yourself killed, be my guest, but you’re not going to do it on my watch.”

Elena didn’t know what came over her, but her blood suddenly began boiling beneath her skin, like the lava that would, at one point, cover the land. Or was it a meteor? Elena didn’t remember, but she didn’t care. All she wanted to do was take out all her anger on Liam.

Where did he get off telling her she was a rebellious brat? He knew nothing about her, her father, or their relationship. Of course, he was a good man and she was very lucky to have him as her father, but he was overprotective and unruly. He never gave her a chance to speak her mind and would never let her give her opinions. He took very good care of her, but he never let her be herself and he never let her do anything aside from walk around the colony.

Liam didn’t know anything, and she didn’t know where he got off thinking that he did.

Seeing how angry she was, Liam’s voice softened and he took a few slow steps over to her. He hadn’t meant to make her upset, but it was the only way to get his point across, and he really couldn’t leave her out in the forest.

“Elena, I –”

“No, Liam.” Elena held up her hand, as she took a few steps backwards. “I don’t want to hear it. Please, just go.”

Liam reached his hand out to hers, wrapping his fingers around her wrist. He could feel how fast her pulse was racing, and he knew just how much he’d upset her.

All he had wanted before was to get her back safely to the colony, but now he just wanted to right the wrongs he’d made. Sure, she had no right sneaking out of the colony walls, but he had no right to snap on her. He’d never been one to have a short temper, and he hated upsetting other people, so he was determined to make it up to her.

“Elena, please, just let me stay. I won’t bother you. I won’t interrupt you. I won’t even come within a hundred feet of you. I just want to be here so I can make sure nothing happens. I won’t tell your father; I won’t tell anyone. Just let me make sure that you’re safe.”

Elena let out a deep breath, letting her eyes move up to Liam’s for the first time since he’d begun speaking. They were back to the soft brown color that seemed so warm and inviting. She’d never seen a soldier with eyes like that before, and it made her have a little faith in him, even if that faith wasn’t a substantial amount.

“You won’t tell my father?”

He shook his head.

“And you’ll stay back?”

“I promise.”

She moved her hand from his wrist, so she could take his in a formal handshake. On her face fell a small smile, barely visible in the moonlight, and she whispered to him.

“Deal.”