Ivory pushed the door open.

Colourful bedsheets had been strewn over the floor and assembled as a blanket fort. Pillows and beanbags were stuffed haphazardly into the shelter; pushing precariously against the thin walls. The others couldn't believe it. When had Ivory found time to work on this? They were sure that she'd been downstairs with them for the entire evening.

Rosabelle faintly remembered Ivory excusing herself to the bathroom over an hour ago, but she had returned only moments later. No one had offered to go with her. Why would they?

Going to the bathroom was demoralising. They couldn't flush. There was only so many methods to remove the waste. Rosabelle had used the bathtub after the water within it had run dry. She refused to open the window to shovel the waste out. It wasn't worth the risk. They'd have to find some way to remove the waste now.

"There's more." Ivory smiled.

She led them into the blanket fort. Bowls of hand-cut fruit and half-eaten packets of chips, courtesy to the original owners, had been placed in the centre of the space. It smelt delicious. Esther immediately dove for a slice of watermelon. While the others had left for food, that didn't mean that they'd bring some back. Esther wasn't taking the chance. She refused to starve to death.

"So, tell me about Katherin getting arrested?" Raven smiled.

She had sprawled out across the beanbag, her previous embarrassment forgotten. The paleness of her skin had slowly ebbed away. Raven's hands weren't wringing anxiously in her lap. It seemed as if Raven had forgotten of the dangers outside, but everyone knew that wasn't the case. Jaxx was permanently etched in the corners of her mind.

Rosabelle chuckled, popping a grape into her mouth as she remembered Katherin's arrest. The grape was mushy. Gross. Rosabelle had forgotten that there wasn't electricity anymore. All the grapes would be room temperature. She'd always preferred frozen grapes. They were like a dessert.

"Last June, Katherin was frustrated about the lack of colour in the underground carpark of our apartment. I told her to do something about it. I just figured that she'd talk to the investors and once she'd convinced them, a contractor would be hired to liven up the place."

Ivory shook her head; a light smile playing on her lips. She held back from filling in the details. This was Esther's story to tell.

"The next morning, Katherin told me that she'd be back in a couple of hours. I went back to bed. That was possibly the second-worst decision I've ever made in my lif-"

"Second worst?" Raven interjected; a frown compressing her forehead into small crinkles.

Raven was confused. She knew where this was going. Esther's lack of clarification would surely result in Katherin's unfortunate arrest. It didn't make sense that it would serve as Esther's second-worst decision. There was nothing worse than letting your bad decisions affect the actions of your partner.

Raven knew that. She'd be on the boat if she'd agreed to Jaxx's plan.

Jaxx had said that Ttod would freak out once he comprehended the true dangers outside. The two of them had planned to leave a few hours early. Jaxx would set Ttod's mind at ease, just like he'd always done. That didn't happen though. Raven wanted an extra hour of sleep before the long journey.

Her actions had caused everyone to be left behind. Rebeka's death was on her hands. The sleep wasn't even worth it. She'd tossed and turned all night.

Tightness crept back into Raven's throat. She tried to ease her anxiety, not wanting to alert the others of her haywire thoughts. This wasn't the time nor place to break down. The rest of the group were trying so hard to keep the conversation light-hearted. Ivory had worked so hard to give the others a little bit of light. She didn't deserve her friends.

Ivory didn't seem to notice. She responded to Raven's question before Esther could open her mouth.

"Oh, definitely. The second arrest was way worse, and it was totally Esther's fault. I didn't think they would let Katherin go – even when I offered them $30 000 more than the bail. She's lucky the government abandoned us. Katherin would be locked up, for sure."

The fruit was almost completely gone. Chip crumbs scattered over the blankets. Ivory excused herself. She rummaged through the cupboards in search of more food. It would be unfair if they ran out of food before the others returned. They would be starving.

"$30 000 more?" Rosabelle gasped. "How do you have that kind of cash laying around? Like, I'm totally worried about what Katherin did, but I really need to know where you get that kind of paycheck."

Ivory didn't respond.

"She's definitely dating an old, white, single man. Having a sugar daddy would get you that kind of cash and allow you to pay your tuition. I admire you," Lyria teased.

Ivory didn't bite. She retrieved a handful of apples from the defrosted fridge and began to cut them into wedges. There wasn't much food left. If the others didn't return with something edible, they might starve. Ivory tried not to wipe thoughts of the future from her mind. It was an unnecessary worry.

"Anyway," Raven mumbled. Her voice was choked; her throat tight and constricted. She swallowed harshly. "Tell me about what happened next, Esther. I need to hear about this."

Esther smiled, launching into a detailed story. Katherin had bought spray paint from the local art store and set to work immediately. Flowers, ethereal landscapes and planets featured across the walls in a variety of shapes and sizes. When Katherin had stepped back to admire her artwork, she'd stood on one of the spray-can nozzles. Yellow paint splattered over the sports car to her right.

Katherin had an idea. She'd paint the cars, just like Morgana had done to Ttod's boats. People had loved it. They'd offered to pay Ttod thousands of dollars, just to commission Morgana to paint their ships. This wouldn't be any different. The people would love her artwork.

No one appreciated Katherin's artwork. Twelve people called the police.

The police arrived in the early hours of the morning. They explained the situation to the receptionist at the front desk, who was more than happy to play the security footage. She was a total snitch; the type that threw her friends under the bus for dick. Esther couldn't relate.

The police were given the spare key to their apartment.

Esther woke to an empty home. Two cold mugs of cocoa sat on the kitchen counter. Green fingerprints were visible against the white ceramic. Esther had huffed in annoyance; pouring the cocoa down the sink and washing the mugs immediately. They were trying to save money to buy a house. Every cent counted. They couldn't waste money on new mugs.

Esther received a call an hour later. Katherin's muffled voice crackled through the speakers.

Yes; this was her one phone call. No; people weren't pressing criminal charges. She just needed to clean the graffiti from the cars. The lady who owned the sports car had opted to keep her car colourful.

"I still can't believe that no one pressed charges," Rosabelle commented with a grin. "I wouldn't have been so forgiving."

"Oh, believe me. I was surprised too," Esther replied. "She must have sweet-talked the rich lady, or at the very least, sweet-talked the officers. Either way, she's very lucky."

Esther fell into silence; wondering whether Katherin was safe, whether the others were safe.

The younger girl had a habit of finding herself in trouble, especially when others were concerned. Esther had seen it with Rebeka. Katherin was hiding something to protect the others. She knew it. 

Hi everyone! 

How did you find this chapter? 

I'm sorry if you didn't find this chapter as interesting as you would expect - I thought I would add a lot of dialogue here so you could understand how the group dynamic works. 

Do any of you have a favourite character yet? 

Happy reading x