"Back door!" Cade shouted, pointing behind us. "Go to the back door!"
No one tries to be cautious anymore. There is no reason for this. If aliens can hear our screams and the tortuous noise echoing outside, they deserve us. If they are so much more advanced than us, if they are more advanced than us then we can never escape their control.
Abby pulls me, Bretra pulls me, and I desperately want to avoid commodities that go from boring to deadly in a few seconds. Before we reached the back door, I pushed Abby towards Brett. "Mom!" Abby was still yelling, but I could hardly hear her voice in the bangs of the whole store.
"I know."
I stumbled forward, struggling to return to my mother, trying to maintain my balance in this rapidly disintegrating world. Aiden grabbed my arm and a loud impact shook the store. We fell to the side and ran into a row of racks. A silver elephant fell off the shelf and hit Aiden on the shoulder. When the shelf began to sway back and forth, he winced and left quickly. The shelf is huge, and if it falls on us, we will be trapped inside and let the monsters outside.
When the fear of being trapped anywhere hits the hot, lively life, I become dumbfounded.
Aiden jumped off the bookshelf. He hugged my waist and dived forward. When we bounced off the shelf, my tailbone screamed in protest. When the shelf tipped over, the old stuff was spilled on the floor. I can breathe again, but not very well.
There was a huge crack in the ceiling, and a loud noise shook every wall of the building. Debris began to fall on us, plaster covered the floor, covered our clothes, and stuck to our hair and skin. The hand grabbed me, and Bright pulled me up, and the store door suddenly collapsed. The wood and nail snapped off, as if they were nothing more than toothpicks.
Bright drew me towards the open back door. Aiden was behind us, a little lame as we stumbled forward. Cade appeared among the rubble and deliberately strode towards us, passing through the shops in the ruins. He grabbed my other arm and urged me to move forward, and we fell into the sultry night sky. I breathed the fresh air greedily, struggled not to cry, and turned back quickly. I broke free of Bright's palm and stumbled back to the store. Peter! my mother!
The lights flickered at night, illuminating the shaky buildings around us. The terrible scream seemed to be disappearing, but the building continued to collapse in front of us. The four thick cracked roof beams collapsed like a house made of cards. My heart plummeted; when I looked at the back wall, I knelt to the ground feebly, that was the only thing left in the shop.
How can we dig them out
Before I answer this question, I know the answer. We can't do it. We just can't.
My whole body is shaking. shattered. I broke my heart. My father died because I couldn't get out of the car because I let him down. Now my mother is dead because I failed again. I left her there and she was gone.
Aiden booed her when Abby started crying loudly. I turned to look at my brothers and sisters, and saw a desperate answer in Aiden's eyes. I saw the truth from his gaze. We are orphans now.
Abby cried silently, lowered her head, her hair draped over her slender shoulders. I can't comfort her, at least not now, the job has fallen on Jenna's shoulders. She put her arms around Abby's shoulders; she lowered her head to try to ease her grief. It is impossible, we all know it. Jenna herself was struggling with the possibility of never seeing her parents again. The only difference is that Jenna didn't get the cruel confirmation that they were dead like we did.
Even Aiden shed a few tears. He tried to hide the tears from us, but I saw it. I did not cry. I am sure I will not cry, at least not now, not in front of my brothers and sisters. Someone must stay strong, just like my father, that person is me. I didn't see Cade's gaze, I could feel it burning on my back, but I wouldn't look at him. Brett kept his arms around me, trying to comfort me, even though I didn't like it. But he didn't seem to understand, and I stopped shrugging his arms. What's the point
"Why did the building collapse?" Abby groaned. "What caused this?"
A muscle on my cheek jumped up, and my jaw hurt from gripping it tightly. I don't know what caused it, but no matter what the reason is, it is huge and cruel, and it will strike us. On this point, I am quite sure. It will continue to search for survivors. It will be indomitable and ruthless in the pursuit. It obviously doesn't know that we are in the store, but I'm sure that if it targets us, it won't stop squeezing our determination.
I closed my eyes and put my hands on my sides. No matter what the aliens are doing, no matter what they plan to accomplish, they are really starting to mess with me!
"Bethany." I forced myself to open my eyes. Brett's eyes widened and looked at me in horror. "How are you?"
I want to be a better person for him and become the me in his mind. I want to be kinder, more understanding, and more loyal. I want to express some feelings, except for my anger, but I can't do it. I hate to let him down, but I don't know how to be different. In the past few months, I tried to be a better person for him. I really did it, but it was impossible for me. I thought that if he understood me better, the relationship between us would be different, but he did not, and it is not true.
I knew he would not want to have anything to do with the real me, because he was too kind to understand that person. I am a survivor, I am a fighter, I am strong. This is the first time I admit this to myself, but it is true. I thought it was the death of my father that made me like this, but I began to realize that I was wrong. Jenna may have lost her family, but she is comforting Abby. Brett may have lost his parents, but he is still caring and kind-hearted.
Yes, I watched my father die with my own eyes. Yes, I was young and defenseless. But we are unprepared now, yet I still feel that they are more people than myself. Maybe this is shocking, but I don't think so. What's wrong with me? Why can't I be like them
This is the first time I have been able to see CapitaLand again. The duffel bag with the gun hung on his shoulder, and his hand was on the strap. CapitaLand is a wealth full of mystery and confusion for me, and I am not sure if I can understand it. However, when his eye-catching gaze fell on me, I knew for sure that he fully understood me. He saw my heart and knew who I was.
He saw many of my shortcomings, and for some strange reason, he didn't mind. He saw the depths of my imperfection, how cold I was, and he understood it. I suddenly realized that I didn't know what was worse. I was fully understood and accepted because of my many shortcomings, or kept trying to prove that I did not have these shortcomings.
Was it accepted because I was a bad person, or did I make others believe that I was better than myself
Cade squinted his eyes and tilted his head. There was a dissatisfied god sè on his face, and he held the belt tightly around his chest. Moonlight shone on his onyx eyes, almost dyeing them blue. I have an uneasy feeling. He knows what I am thinking, or at least knows the direction of my thinking. He doesn't like my thoughts.
"Bethany?"
"I'm fine," I replied when I turned my attention back to Bright.
"Maybe we should stop."
"We must keep going."
"Where to continue?" Jenna's voice was weak and bleak.
"Somewhere." Although I don't know where. I knew we couldn’t just sit still. If we stop, we become living targets.
"Some places are not the answer!" she retorted. "We have to have a place to go, and traveling aimlessly ** is not good for any of us! We should find a safe place to hide!"
"Since you know where all these places are, why don't you just tell us where to go?" I quickly responded.
Jenna stared at me, her delicate jaw clenched tightly, her teeth rattling back and forth. "Well, relax, maybe we should think of a plan," Brett interjected calmly. "We must find a shelter."
"I won't go in again," I answered immediately.
They all looked at me as if I had grown another head, and even Cade seemed a little surprised. "Beth..."
"No Aiden. If you want to find a place to hide from the wind, it's okay, but I won't go in again. At least not now," I changed my mind when I saw their grieving faces.
"We have to find a place to hide!"
Jenna's complaint stung my last nerve. I know she is scared, but I have never had such patience (this is another shortcoming of mine), and I find that I have less patience now. My nerve endings feel like someone is constantly stroking a match for them. I was hurt, I was also scared, but the most important thing was that I was angry, and she was in a rage right now.
"We will." Cade stroked Jenna's arm lightly, reassuring. But for now, we must move on. "
"The old lighthouse, now only young people go there, everything will be safe."
"Nothing is safe anymore," Abby whispered. (To be continued) (End of this chapter)