One Girl, One Boy

The girl stared into the shop window. There wasn't much to observe, in fact, most of the objects that had once sat there had been taken long ago, looters looking for anything of any value that they could steal away. However, there was one thing left behind that had caught this particular girl's attention.

A yellow rabbit.

She tilted her head a little as she looked at it. A shade of colour against the backdrop of grey and gloom that covered the street. Shards of glass littering the ground from broken windows and no signs of life to be seen anywhere. But this one rabbit was just sitting there, almost acting as some kind of beacon. It stirred a memory somewhere inside her.

She took a quick glance down the street. Really she needed to hurry. Time was not on her side. But for some reason her feet remained planted where they were, refusing to move. She sighed to herself. This was the sort of thing that would only happen to her.

That damn rabbit.

Her feet threatened to give way several times as she clambered over the rubble until her fingertips reached out and grabbed the soft material. Holding it up, a satisfied smile crept across her face. She quickly shoved the rabbit into her bag and hurried away. Dark clouds were circling in the sky, reminding her of the stories she had heard about bad omens as a child. As of right now, the only thing they meant to her was that she needed to find shelter before her clothes became drenched. Picking up her pace, she soon found refuge in a run-down shed just as the first droplets began to fall. Typical.

It seemed this storm was not going to let up any time soon. She decided she may as well get comfy where she was. Crouching down, she grabbed a twig that lay nearby and held it outside, beginning to draw circles in the damp earth. These circles turned into more intricate drawings as she became bored. She grinned to herself as her mind wandered.

"Will you put those down!" She yelled at her younger brother, who had somehow managed to sneak into her room and get at her journal full of drawings. He was at that age now where irritating his older sister was the funniest thing in the world to him. She, however, could not see the hysterical side as she strode over to him, a face full of thunder. She held her hand out towards him. "Give them to me."

"Give what to you?" He giggled, hiding the journal behind his back as if that would make her forget what he'd done. She threw a sigh to the heavens. 

"Don't make me take it from you."

"You're not allowed. Mum and Dad said that it's wrong to hit your siblings."

"Well, Mum and Dad aren't here right now. And I'm in charge which means...I get to make the rules. Now give it to me." She darted forward and grabbed him lightly, taking the journal with ease. He cried out in frustration.

"Hey! That's not fair, you're bigger and quicker than me!"

"I know I am. And I always will be," she grinned, ruffling his hair. "Don't worry. As you get older, you'll come to realise that no one is tougher than your big sister."

The rain was beginning to ease off now so she decided to get up and continue walking. This was the daily norm for her now. Keep walking, keep your head down and keep out of trouble. There were plenty of things she had to keep doing in order to get by nowadays. At least now she had a reason to keep going. That memory had reminded her of that.

She journeyed for what seemed like a lifetime, her feet gradually beginning to throb. Dusk was starting to creep over the horizon and it wouldn't be long now before she would need to find some form of refuge for the night. She couldn't move in the dark. Too many risks.

Her eyes were cast down on the gravel path she was walking, watching her feet when a sudden noise from the undergrowth caught her unaware. Startled, her head flew up and she immediately began searching for anything she could use as a weapon. When nothing would suffice, she decided her fists were the next best thing. Whatever the threat was, she could take it.

What the girl was not expecting was for a young boy to wander out, mumbling something to himself. At first, he didn't see her but after a moment, he glanced up and nearly jumped out of his skin. She wasn't sure why. A girl of small build, wielding her fists randomly. She couldn't look that intimidating. "Who are you?" The boy demanded. "I could ask you the same thing." She shot back. He blinked in confusion before obviously coming to the conclusion that she wasn't going to attack him. "Are you trying to look threatening?" He asked. "Not trying, I am," she tried to be convincing. It wasn't working. "Oh, right. I'm terrified," he replied, his voice laced with sarcasm.

She sighed and threw her fists down finally. Somehow, in this very brief exchange, this boy had already begun to irritate her. This shouldn't be the case. This was the first human interaction she'd had in weeks. It seemed the universe was playing some cruel trick on her by having her path cross with this idiot. "Why did you come out of the undergrowth? Were you trying to ambush me or something?" "What?" He gave her a look of genuine confusion. "No. If you really must know, I got lost. I was just trying to get back on to the path. This whole thing," he motioned between the two of them, "was merely a coincidence." Something in the way he explained it made her believe he was telling the truth. She sighed. "Alright, well, I'll let you get on your way then," she told him in a dismissive tone. "Hang on," his hand flew out to stop her from leaving. She jumped a little. This was something that had become entirely foreign to her, someone else touching her, especially a complete stranger. It felt like he was trying to make things too familiar between them too quickly and she didn't like it in the slightest. She shrugged away from him, causing him to look sheepish.

"Sorry. I just thought...well, I'm trying to get somewhere and I was wondering if you might know the way?" "I'm sorry?" Look, ordinarily I wouldn't bother you with it but these days it's so rare to run into another living soul like this. If you could help me, I'd really appreciate it." The girl rolled her eyes. Why did this have to happen to her today of all days? She was already behind schedule. A small part of her was wondering if she could get him distracted long enough to sneak away.

But another part of her was saying that she knew exactly what he meant. She couldn't remember the last time she'd spoken out loud to another person. Sure, she talked to herself all the time, it was the only way to stop herself from going completely mad. But it was nice to have someone else respond. She sighed in defeat. "Alright, where are you going?" "I'm heading south. To Redridge. There's a safe haven up there, I've heard." "No kidding?" She smiled a little at this turn of events. "That's where I'm heading too." "You're serious?" "Yeah. I've been mapping the route for some time now. Pretty sure I know where I'm going now." She did a sharp intake of breath before she said the next part. "I guess you could tag along with me." This was unlike her. She always did her best work alone. But the way his eyes sparkled when she gave him this invitation, she knew she'd made the right decision.

"Hey, where have you been?" She heard a voice from behind her. Twisting around, she found herself staring at the broad figure of her boyfriend. She grinned and turned her back again, not giving him an answer. He should be used to her slipping away like this by now. He came and sat down beside her.

The two of them had been at a friend's birthday party and the music had been too loud for her, causing her to come outside and find a nice place in their garden to sit and look up at the milky sky. She smiled at him.

"I was just getting some headspace. It's so noisy and crowded in there."

"It's a party. It's meant to be noisy and crowded." His tone came across perhaps a little to bitterly and her smile faltered slightly. A lot of people couldn't understand why they were together. He was so outgoing whilst she was more withdrawn. They were polar opposites. Maybe he thought he could change her. She knew he couldn't. 

"You should go back inside," she told him. "Don't miss out on the party because of me."

"This was something we were supposed to do together."

"Well, that didn't work out, did it?" She was becoming increasingly more frustrated by him. All he could do was shrug. It was impossible to argue with her.

"Ok." He stood up to leave but not before uttering one last sentence to her."When are you going to stop shutting people out?"

"Did you hear what I said?" The boy called out to her from behind. She had been leading the way and become lost in her thoughts. She stopped and looked back at him.

"Sorry?"

"I said, it's getting late. We should stop soon." 

"I know. I'm trying to find somewhere safe we can crash for the night."

"What's safe to you?"

"Somewhere where we won't be found by anyone. It's too risky to leave ourselves exposed. Please tell me you know that?"

"I'm a light sleeper. Anyone finds me, I'll wake up before they can do anything. That keeps me safe."

"Then I suppose that makes you lucky." 

"Hm, I don't believe in luck," he informed her. "Just probability."

He was speaking a lot of sense but somehow the way he was saying it made her want to punch him in the face. It sounded so pretentious. She sighed heavily. After a while, she came across an old shack that looked entirely deserted. She grinned victoriously. Perhaps the universe hadn't given up on her just yet.

"We can stop here for the night," she told him. "I suppose now that there's two of us, we can take shifts keeping watch. I'll go first."

"I feel like I should be a gentleman and volunteer to go first."

"I appreciate that but, really, I don't mind. My mind's too jittery at the moment, anyway." 

"Fine by me," he made his way inside and got himself comfortable, or at least as comfortable as you could be sleeping on the cold, damp ground. She followed suit. A few moments of silence passed between them before he broke it.

"I never asked you. Why Redridge?"

"What do you mean?"

 "I mean, there's plenty of other safe refuges you could go to. Why Redridge?"

"I could ask you the same thing," she shot back.

"Touche," he replied, shutting up.

Maybe it was the awkward silence settling between them or maybe it was the constant memories flooding her brain but her next move surprised her. "My brother."

 "What?" He asked.

"It's my brother. He's at Redridge. I'm going to find him."

"Oh," he nodded. "How come he's not with you?"

My mum and dad divorced a few years back and, when my mum moved away, she took him with her. I stayed with my dad. When everything first started kicking off, she called us to let us know they were going there. That's why I'm going." 

"You aren't going for your mum?"

She shook her head. "She's not there anymore." 

He seemed to understand that she didn't want to talk about it anymore, so he didn't press any further. Another silence settled between them only this time it wasn't awkward. It was peaceful.

"When was the last time you saw your brother?" He asked one more question.

"Three years. I've counted every single damn day."

The car door slammed shut on the street outside, causing her to startle slightly. She was sitting in her bedroom, trying to keep herself away from all the change. It wasn't really working.

Her door flew open and he ran inside, throwing himself under her bed and curling up into a ball. She took a breath and knelt down, peering at him. He stared back at her, unblinking.

"What are you doing?" She asked softly.

"If I hide, they might not find me. They might not make me leave." The words fell out of his mouth. "I don't want to leave."

"I know you don't but you have to. We've been over this."

"I'm not listening." He covered his ears and screwed his eyes shut as if that would make everything stop. She sighed and reached under, gently pulling him out. As he sat up to face her, she gave him a reassuring smile.

"Everything will be alright. I know it seems scary now but you'll make new friends, do loads of cool things, you'll come to be happy. I promise."

"But what about you? You won't be there."

"I won't. But, listen. I give you my word, we will see each other again. Even if we are living on separate sides of the planet, this absolutely isn't goodbye. Got it?" There was still fear in his eyes but he nodded, seemingly believing her. They heard their mother shout from downstairs. She brushed the hair out of his face. "Go on, champ. I think you're ride's waiting."

She was shaken awake by him, quickly noticing how ragged his breathing was. She was wide awake in a second, sitting bolt upright. "What is it?"

"There's someone outside," he whispered.

Her ears pricked up and, yes, she could hear the footsteps outside. She got up and hurried over to the door, peeking out through the crack. She saw the man instantly. He was stumbling around like he was drunk. This could be very bad for them.

"What do we do?" He came to stand next to her.

"We'll have to try and sneak past him. It's the only way out of here."

"Alright," he agreed. "We'll be like ninjas."

She twisted around, distracted for the briefest of seconds. Raising her eyebrows in question, he gave her a sheepish grin. "Something my dad used to say to me." 

She didn't reply, turning back around and signalling for him to follow her lead as she crept out. Together, the two of them barely managed to sneak past the man, whose reflexes seemed more fast than they should be. As he began turning around to face them, the girl grabbed the boy's hand and pulled him away, running as quickly as her feet would carry her. He shouted in surprise but she didn't stop, not until she was sure they were completely safe. They both ground to a halt, trying to catch their breaths. 

"Didn't he seem?"

"Too fast," she finished for him. "They're definitely getting quicker by the day. It's scary."

They continued their journey which lasted for the next few days. The girl would never admit it, but having a travelling companion was not the worst thing in the world. If the old her knew she was thinking that, she'd probably shake her head in disbelief. Things had definitely changed.

It wasn't until the third day that the boy, who was currently in the lead, shouted back to her. "There's a sign here. For Redridge."

Her ears pricked up and she hurried to catch up with him, surveying the sign he was stood in front of. He was right. They were so close. She suddenly felt nervous.

"Maybe you should go without me."

"What!?" He exclaimed. "Are you joking?"

"This all just got very real and...what if he doesn't want to see me?"

"What are you talking about. He's your brother, why wouldn't he want to see you?"

"Because so much time has passed and he might be a completely different person to the brother I remember. He might not even recognise me." 

He nodded in understanding. "I can't claim to know exactly how you're feeling. I've never experienced anything like this before. And it must be scary. But come on. How will you know any of this for sure if you don't at least try?"

It was the most cliche of advice but, for some funny reason, it was exactly what she needed to her. It broke her out of her panicked daze and she realised she was being ridiculous. She had come this far, she couldn't chicken out now. 

"OK," She breathed. "Let's go."

They carried on down the beaten track until, eventually, they reached the wooden gates that were sealed shut. She couldn't quite believe it. They'd finally made it. The boy moved forward and pressed the ominous looking buzzer stationed by the gates. Almost instantly, two cameras that she hadn't noticed before swivelled in their direction. It was a precaution to make sure they weren't a threat. After what seemed like an eternity, the gates began to open and two armed guards peered out at them. They really must have been a sorry sight.

"Come on in," one of the guards said. They did as they were told, shuffling inside as the gates closed behind them. The other guard examined them briefly. "Have you travelled far to get here?

"Far enough," she replied.

The guard nodded. "Welcome to Redridge. We'll have to keep you both in quarantine for twenty-four hours to make sure you aren't contracting the virus. After that, you're safe."

The guards led them inside and as they went, people began appearing to watch them go, obviously interested in the new arrivals. The girl scanned the faces of every single one of them, hoping to see a hint of familiarity. There was nothing. Her stomach churned a little. They went on a little further before they reached what was obviously the quarantine unit. The pair gave each other a knowing look. Just as she was about to go inside, she heard someone shout her name. Twisting around, she saw a boy running towards her. Not just any boy. That mischievous glint in his eye was unmistakable, even now. A huge smile spread across her face as he threw himself into her arms. She couldn't hold back the tears that started rolling down her cheeks as he pulled away. "What took you so long?" He asked, grinning. She shook her head in disbelief. "Sorry. There were a few complications."

He glanced at the boy, who was watching the scene intently. "Is that your boyfriend?" He whispered.

She gave his arm a light smack, just like old times. "No! He's just someone who was helping me out. He helped me get here." She took her bag off her bag and opened it. "Hey, I got you something along the way."

 "What?" His eyes sparkled.

She pulled out the yellow rabbit and gave it to him.