Entry 1662: Part 1

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Date: September 9, 2061

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Em’s hands were hot against my eyes. The boy had insisted on covering my eyes to ensure the full dramatic effect of his reveal. After I agreed to his little rendezvous, Em took a moment to grab a bag from his tent before leading us deep into the forest. I’d been more than vocal about my concern about traveling through the forest in the dark, not to mention away from the safety of the village. But Em waved away my concerns as though they were no more than a child's complaints. If he tells me to have faith one more time, I might resort to violence. Why should I have faith in him? I just met the man.

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I clung to the torch in my hand; I missed high-powered, battery-operated flashlights. The sticky tar that burned atop the wood emitted a rather foul odor, but the light was a very welcome addition. In Em’s defense, the path we walked was just that- a path. It looked worn even under the dim light, which is partly why I allowed him to cover my eyes. Surely a well-traveled path didn’t lead to some kind of torture basement. Mainly, however, I just wanted him to shut up. I’d turned down his initial request immediately and then the ten that followed. If letting him relay his excitement by covering my eyes got him to stop whining, then I could put up with it for a few minutes. I still had the comforting weight of the dagger strapped to my thigh.

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“Darn, sorry, Ma’am,” Em called out just after I finished almost completely eating shit on a rock he’d neither warned me about nor moved me around. “God! Em, what the hell is this sup-” I shoved him off myself, taking a second to run a hand through my hair to steady myself. I didn’t have the heart to finish berating him as my eyes tried to focus through the thick amount of steam. I hadn’t noticed the faint sound of running water over our bickering. A hand pressed into my lips at the sight before me.

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A clearing in the thick trees allowed the moonlight to rain down from the sky and soak into the steaming water. Four intertwining circular stone pools stretched out under its milky reflection. The smallest was about the size of Bellamy’s room, the largest a neighborhood swimming pool. The emotional blow from realizing there had been a hot spring in this forest this entire time made my soul crumble. How I’d gone this many months without finding one is truly devastating.

Excitement flooded my body; I began to shake out my hands like a little girl seeing a pony. “Em! I take back everything I said! You are a peach!” The rich laughter of my counterpart fell behind my words. He gave a satisfactory bow and a motion as if he was tipping a cowboy hat at me. I reasoned the hat would suit him rather well. “Of course, I aim to please my Lady.” The title made me snort, and I shook my head as I bent over to run my fingers in the piping hot water. “I am not a Lady.” I trilled with a satisfied hum at the water temperature.

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Soon enough, Em bent over beside me to mimic my assessment of the water. He turned to look at me, his head a bit closer than I’d have preferred. “Ain’t ya?” He called out in that smooth accent of his. “Then, what exactly are ya, Ma’am? ’Cause I see a fine young lady.” His words made me stiffen. The tips of my ears were red as my green eyes caught on his. This close up, I couldn’t deny that Em was good-looking, and last time I checked, blatant flirting was outside the realm of common Southern hospitality. “I uh-” I swallowed and stood, effectively removing myself from his intense gaze. Em was cute, but not cute enough to risk making this perfect bath awkward. I stretched out my arm to buy me some time before finishing the sentence. The steam seemed to be getting to my brain. “I’m a runaway.”

Ten minutes later, I stared at Em with a deadpan expression. My arms crossed over my chest as my boot hit the ground in an impatient manner. He looked at me with his head tilted to the side like a lost puppy waiting for instruction. Eventually I groaned, “What, are you a perv?” Color instantly lit up his cheeks. I almost felt bad for him, given the way not even the backs of his hands escaped the flush. “I-I’m sorry, Ma’am? I hate to be painted as ignorant, but I’m not sure what you’re referrin’ to, Ms.” The genuine confusion and trepidation in his voice almost made me break my stern stance in a giggle. The boy was trying so hard to be polite. It was a bit refreshing in this world, and yet still a bit annoying. After a second to compose my amusement, I narrowed my eyes and gestured dramatically to the hot spring around us. “You brought me here; you may leave now. I hope you weren’t expecting me to bathe with you, Em. I didn’t take you as that kind of guy…” I wanted him to hurry and go so I could strip down and soak as quickly as possible. Plus, it was rather fun to tease him.

I watched the realization of my accusation bloom across his face, effectively ending his blush with an appalled and fretful look. “Mercy me, Ma’am! Of course not!” Em huffed in his defense. There was still a tinge of red on his ears as he ruffled a hand through his brown curls to gain his bearings. The pouting caught me a bit off guard. It was maybe the first time I’d seen him drop his smile for more than a few seconds. Who knew all I had to do was accuse him of being a perverted playboy? The thought made me chuckle into my palm as he walked past me. But seriously, he needed to leave…

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For the tenth millionth time in the last hour, I found myself staring at Em in some way; this time, it was bewilderment. He held out a handful of cloth that he fetched from the bag he’d brought. It’s a swimsuit; the bright florals were faded because it's from before the Fall, but it's relatively in good shape. It’s a solid one-piece that is creepily my size. The look of disgust on my face as I looked at the size on the tag must have given away my unease. “Don’t fret, that there belongs to my sister. Ya’ll are quite similar in size. Mary says howdy, by the way. Lord knows she’ll be all over you come morning.” The smile on his lips held so much love for his sister. I could see his fondness for her just from his eyes. I accepted the gift without further questioning.

I still wished he’d just leave. Then I wouldn’t have had to slip into the tight spandex in the middle of the woods. I wanted to relax on my own. God forbid a girl have some time to soak in a bath and process her feelings. But alas, Em seemed fixed on accompanying me. He gave the excuse that mutants sometimes roamed the area and stripped down into his boxers before he stepped into the water.

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I trusted Em enough not to look while I stripped down and changed into the suit. He is, after all, a proper gentleman. I paused once I finished. My fingers ran over Bellamy’s dagger. I wasn’t sure what to do with it. It felt too important to leave with my clothes and too silly to take it into the spring. “May I look now, Ms?” Em’s voice startled me, and a sharp clank rang out from the stone. “Shit!” I hopped on one foot to try and avoid accidentally stabbing myself with my own blade. Em seemed to take the noise as a yes, given his soft chuckle. “Well, I’ll be. You brought your dagger? I didn’ think I was so scary.” He was laughing, but despite his playful tone, I felt a pang of irritation. This had nothing to do with him. “It’s important to me,” was all I called back as I trotted over to the pool. I decided to simply set the blade beside me while I soaked. To hell with silly. The feverishly hot water washed away any presence of the cold night air that had begun to nip my skin.

My head lulled under the drowsing heat. I let its weight rest next to the dagger on the rock. I wondered where she was. Which was stupid of me given everything that happened. But I did anyway. I wondered what would happen if she was beside me instead of Em. If her tanned skin would redden from the water’s heat. If she’d have bathed with me as persistently as Em did. If she’d let me wash her hair again, and get a better look at the thick braid it held underneath. She’d swept the braid forward before I got the chance to undo it or even touch it. At the time, I really wasn’t concerned with it, but I suddenly found myself very curious about her.

“If you don’ mind me askin', Ma’am, how’d you manage to kill an Exposed?” The words left Em’s lips with a simple quirk of his eyebrow.