Laye
I tag behind Jemma and Elle, trying not to intrude on their deep conversation on inter-dimensional theories.
I toss a rock from hand to hand, avoiding existential thoughts, but mostly failing.
Yes, there's that I was inches away from my brains being blown out of my head, but for some reason that isn't the thing taunting me.
For years, I thought of my mom of a beautiful, kind, amazing human being, that died early enough to have not that much of a memory of her. But to think that she sent me to that crappy old school makes it seem like she wanted to get rid of me.
Or maybe you I'm over analyzing this, and it was just my dad too in my first dimension. But if it was just my dad in the first dimension, why wouldn't my brain want to send me to a dimension where I had both of my parents? Wouldn't that be a place where I'd be happier?
I have no idea.
I look down at my feet. We've been walking for almost over a half an hour. I can't even remember when the cobble turned into a gravel road.
"Laye." Elle says, "look." She points ahead.
I look to the direction she pointed in. Whereas everything else in Jaylemm was bright and colorful, ahead the grass was dead, and it looked like a tiny abandoned village with plain stone houses. Each had a door with a single boarded up window. It was dead silent, and talking felt uncomfortable.
"What the hell is this place?" I ask.
"On the map I got from a stand at the cafe, there was a shortcut home through a few small towns. This one appears to be Perin." Elle says.
"It's creepy." Jemma says, face face full of concern.
"We just have to go through, and then walk a few more miles. It's the shortest way." Elle says.
My nose crinkles, "Doesn't dismiss the fact that it's creepy."
"Yeah, well, we have to go through, come on, Dora the Explorer, we're home bound." Elle says, starting to walk.
"Oh, so you have that show? No Supernatural or The Office, but Dora the freaking Explorer? Good to know!" Jemma says, catching up.
"I don't have Dora, but Supernatural is great." I say, trying to peak into the boarded window.
Suddenly the door bursts open, and a man walks out. His expression was mutual, and there was something off about it.
His gaze lands on me. "Hello, Miss. You don't look familiar. Are you from other states?" He smiles, showing all teeth.
"Yeah, uh, I guess." I say, raising an eyebrow.
"I see. You must stay for awhile. We haven't had guests in quite a time." The man says, and suddenly all of the doors to each house open at once, and men, women, and children walk out. They crowd around the three of us, sniffing and poking.
"Um, personal space, people." I say, backing into Jemma.
A little girl bites down on my arm, drawing blood.
"Ow! Holy crap, you brat!" I scream.
"They're people!" The girl screams, and suddenly the curious looks on their faces was replaced with hunger.
"Uh, what are you doing?" Elle says, kicking a woman in this shin before she could bite her.
Um, Elle, Jemma, I say we run for it." I say.
"Okay, three, two, one!" I scream, and we shove our way through the crowd of bloodthirsty people.
I book it toward two buildings, and just before we can get past, a group of them show up in front of me. I turn to run the other direction, but we were blocked in.
Someone grabs my wrist, and I was about to yank away before realizing it was Elle.
We run into an alley, in which we were even more cornered.
"Good going, Elle. We're trapped." I say.
"Yeah, well we were trapped out there too, moron. So now we get to die in an alley instead in the middle of the street." She says sarcastically.
"How luxurious." Jemma says, holding op fists to brace herself.
The people of Perin file into the alley, all with the same face of absolute hunger.
"Ya know, I could make you some food, if you want." I say jokingly.
A man in the front smiles, "Oh, child, you are the food." He says, and in that moment time seems to slow as everything happened. A girl runs up to me, and I take her by the ponytail and smash her head up against a wall. Jemma screams as a man bites her shoulder, and she punches him in the face, and Elle slams her foot on a woman's as she rushes up. More flood into the alley, and I grab onto Elle and Jemma.
"Well, it's been fun." I say.
"Don't talk like that." Jemma says, clutching her shoulder, her hand slowly being covered in blood.
A tall man runs up, and just as he is about to ram his teeth into my head, there was a snapping sound, he falls over limp. All of them do.
"What happened?" Elle asks.
"The power of friendship?" I say, raising an eyebrow.
But Jemma has her eyes wide on the opening to the alley. A little girl stands there amongst the limp bodies. She looked a few year younger than me, with dark skin and light hair.
Jemma's eyes were welled with tears, and she slowly stands up.
"Who is that?" Elle asks.
"I think it's another one of those- creature thingies." I say.
"No, no she's not." Jemma says, choking on her breath. She walks forward, towards the girl.
"She's my sister."