“How does thinking make you morose?”
Chelsa shook her head. “It doesn’t matter.”
He knew she was lying, thanks to Darrel’s advice. If a girl says something doesn’t matter, then it probably does.
“Well, here’s some good news that might cheer you up: we should reach Oppidum in two days at most,” said Kristi.
Chelsa didn’t react with joy to that bit of news; instead, she appeared even more somber.
chapter twenty-nine
“Want to go for a walk before we bed down for the night?” Chelsa asked.
Kristi wasn’t expecting this offer; Chelsa usually spent her free time with Jaiden.
“Sure, if that’s what you want to do,” Kristi said.
“Yes it is.”
“Alright then.” Kristi called to the two boys, “Jaiden, Troop, we’re going for a quick walk. Be back soon.”
“Okay, don’t get eaten by a bear,” Jaiden called back.
Kristi let Chelsa choose the path of their walk. They walked the first ten minutes in silence; Kristi absorbed the soothing sounds of nature all around her. The further south they journeyed, the warmer the temperature got. Back in the North Region, the ground would be covered by snow during this time of the year.
The girls reached a flat slab of rock poking out from the ground and Chelsa scaled it rapidly. Kristi scrambled after her, sitting cross-legged besides Chelsa at the top.
“Troop really likes you,” Chelsa said, breaking the quietness.
“Oh?”
“I don’t think you should keep on pushing him away. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but he has been following you around like a lost puppy.”
“Is this what you wanted to talk about?” Kristi asked dubiously.
“Partly. Why do you keep on rejecting Troop?”
Kristi sighed. “First of all, he’s a jerk. Second of all…” She couldn’t think of another reason why she kept on distancing herself from Troop aside from him being a bully at school.
Chelsa acknowledged her lack of reasons and continued on speaking, “I understand that you didn’t get the best impression of him, but I truly believe that he has changed his character. Well, in the first place, I don’t think he had a nasty nature to begin with. I think you’ve been a good influence on Troop. He’s a different person from when you first met him. I guess all I am saying is that you should give him a chance to at least befriend you.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes,” Chelsa said. After a brief moment of hesitation, she asked, “Have I ever told you how Alex died?”
Once again, Kristi was unprepared for Chelsa’s erratic behavior tonight.
“Well, you told me you killed Alex,” she mumbled.
Chelsa looked off into the distance, “It all started when Alex started dating me. The other students couldn’t believe anyone could see any beauty in me—who would want to befriend a girl with no genetic tweaks when there are several other literally perfect girls to date? I was already used to getting hassled, but once Alex and I started going out, the bullying got a lot worse. I wouldn’t have minded except Alex was getting his fair share of harassment as well.”
Chelsa bit her lower lip, then continued on, “One day, some of the kids at the school decided to throw my backpack into a nearby river behind the school. It was during spring, and the snowmelt had caused the river to swell and increase its current. Nevertheless, I tried to retrieve my backpack because it contained my electro-slate and most important, a baby leopard. Alex had just given me Ghost a few days before and I had kept Ghost in my backpack. I used a fallen branch to snag my backpack and somebody decided to push me into the river.”
Chelsa took a shaky breath and then met Kristi’s eyes for a second. She rapidly blinked, as if holding tears back. Kristi laced her fingers through Chelsa’s hand and listened with rapt attention. She felt Chelsa tighten her grip.
“I was immediately pulled under the icy water. I’m not a bad swimmer, but the current was too fast and too strong. Several of the students began to worry that the prank had gone too far, but nobody tried to help me. Just then, Alex came by and saw the commotion. He jumped into the river to rescue me since he was an excellent swimmer.
“Together, we were able to stay afloat as the rapids carried us downstream. But Alex was holding onto my backpack since he knew Ghost was held within it, and that sapped a lot of his strength. By the time the rescue team arrived, my entire body was numb from the frigid water. The doctors told me I was extremely fortunate to have survived for such a long time in freezing water with only hypothermia.”
Chelsa lowered her eyelids, letting the events of the past wash over her. “But Alex wasn’t so lucky. He was dead by the time he arrived at the hospital. Somehow, Ghost managed to survive the whole ordeal; he’s one fortunate leopard.”
A moment of silence enveloped the space around them. The only sounds to be heard were the cicadas chirruping and the breeze teasing the foliage.
“Why did you tell me you killed Alex? You never did such a thing,” Kristi stated.
“If I hadn’t dated Alex in the first place, none of this would’ve happened. The other students would’ve left him alone.”
“But still,” Kristi argued, “you didn’t kill Alex. It was an accident.”
Chelsa shrugged. “There are several angles to look at this tragedy. Ever since Alex’s death, I’ve learned to stand up for myself. I can’t bear the thought of other people getting hurt because of me. Yeah—I’m still an outcast from society, but at least I’ve learned to deal with it.”
They sat in a silence. Kristi’s brain struggled to digest all that she just heard.
“Kristi?”
“Yeah?”
“I really think you should give Troop a chance. I know he likes you and I think you have feelings for him as well,” Chelsa said.
Do I like Troop? Kristi wondered. I suppose I am a bit attracted to him. His personality does seem to have changed, now that I think about it. I guess I have been so occupied trying to distance myself from getting to know him that I am missing the big picture.
“You never know when you’ll lose someone you care about,” Chelsa said, interrupting her thoughts.
“I’ll try to be more amicable towards Troop.”
Chelsa flashed her the first smile she had seen on her face in a while. Then she checked her watch.
“Goodness—we better start walking back. It’s been almost an hour.”
Kristi woke up relatively early the next day, though Troop was already starting a fire by the time she ducked out from the tent after pulling her hair into a messy bun.
“Morning,” she yawned.
Troop looked up in surprise. “Jaiden and Chelsa still asleep?”
“Yep.”
He handed her a bowl of oatmeal topped with brown sugar.
“Thanks. Did you eat yet?” Kristi said.
“Yeah.”
She warmed her cold hands against the warm bowl and spooned a large bite of gooey oatmeal into her mouth. She felt the warmth of the oatmeal travel down her throat and into her stomach. Even though the temperature was reasonably warm during the day, the air was still crisp in the morning.
“Something bothering you?” Troop asked.
“Just thinking how I should say something.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t tell me to mind my own business.”
“Troop,” Kristi said, fighting to find the right words to convey her thoughts. “I’m sorry if I acted rude to you. I know I kept on refusing your help when I could’ve used it.”
“Well,” Troop said, “I wasn’t expecting to hear that from you.”
“What I’m trying to say is that I’ll try to stop acting so unfriendly towards you,” she finished awkwardly.