CHAPTER 26:
Silence filled the empty room in which Zoe was in
For the first time in a long while, Zoe did not seem happy
Instead, she was eating her back against the wall on the bed
“You haven't eaten all day…what's wrong?”
Sasha cut in sharply while holding a tray
“”It's just that. Something's been bothering me as of lately”
She moved her hands to her buckled up knees weakly
“That isn't an excuse for skipping your meals, you know, you still need to eat”
Sasha set the tray aside on the bedside table. Lying down next to her on the bed
“So, what's bothering you so much that you can't bring yourself to eat?”
“I've been seeing nightmares, to be honest”
That made Sasha pause slightly
“Nightmares? Are you sure? Maybe it's just your imagination playing tricks on you”
Zoe moved a hand to her hand to rub it slightly
Pain and a suffocating feeling filled her mind as they talked
Sasha could sense if even if Zoe wouldn't tell her
(I guess that she's telling the truth. But she is not telling the full truth)
“I'm honest. I really am having nightmares…specifically nightmares of N”
“N? You mean that bastard who kept you there?”
Zoe's eyes were shaking slightly as if she had remembered the things that happened
Suddenly, all kinds of thoughts about her past filled her mind
“Sasha…would you mind hearing about my past?”
“Of course I wouldn't mind. Why would you say something like that”
Now, Sasha propped herself onto her palms, looking at Zoe
“I used to spend my days at that small hut for a while, years as I have come to know. He kidnapped me when I was 17”
“So yeah, I was born in august 1945”
“WW2 huh?... must have been difficult growing up in the time that Germany was split”
“Wait. You're telling me that you're still 17 biologically and mentally?”
Zoe quietly nodded her head
For a moment, Sasha's lips pressed in a thin line
(She was born from that period. She still thinks Russia is the Soviet Union)
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
“How come you don't despise me then? Since you know I'm from the east”
“The east?...oh, you mean the Soviet Union…well I don't care, to be honest”
Sasha was shocked to see the real side of Zoe. And not the one who was happy all the time
No matter how happy a person is all the time, there's no way they don't have scars
“What happened to your family then?”
“My father died in an accident in 1957…my mother used to take care of me after that. She struggled to take care of me because of the post-war conflicts"
Tears threatened to spill from Zoe's eyes as she backed up even further against storm the wall
As if instinctively Sasha reached out to her, gently grabbing her wrists
“Look at me. None of this is your fault. You shouldn't cry about your mother, I know that it's a terrible situation, but the last thing you should be doing is crying”
As Sasha held her arms, Zoe quietly sobbed, now looking up at her through her teary eyes
A thought came to Sasha's mind in that instance
(Is it wrong to kiss the person I'm attracted to while they are in pain?)
“...”
She decided to pull back abruptly. Her breath came out as shaky
The risk was simply not worth it. Sasha thought that Zoe would overreact given her nature
(Damn, I almost blew it)
“?”
“What's up, Sasha? Why did you back up so suddenly?”
She looked almost scared while asking that
“Nothing. It's nothing. Don't mind me”
“But I do mind…youre the person that's been caring the most of me in the group…and I think that's memorable”
Despite her earlier swirl of emotions, Sasha managed to let a smile slip
“When you say it like that. I suppose it does make sense from your perspective”
Seeing her smile made Zoe smile in return
“Well…I've told you about my past. Do you want to tell me about your past?”
“...”
“Sure. I can tell you about my past”
“I was born in 2008 and raised in Russia. Formerly known as ussr”
“Oh, so that's what you meant by east”
“Yeah. Anyways, unlike you, I didn't have a difficult upbringing…I was mostly time despite being isolated in my house”
“We weren't that rich, but we lived comfortably enough that we never needed help”
“That's good. Wait, isolated? What does that mean?”
“It means when someone is alone and has no one to speak to”
Finally, Zoe let her legs rest on the bed while her hands rested at her side
“But now you have people to talk to and to rely on. Isn't that something to cherish about?”
“It is. That's what I'm grateful for…in the past, I was selfish and thought I was at the top of the world, that no one could even touch me”
“So you changed? How, though? What prompted you?”
Even if she tried, Sasha would be unable to fully explain the situation to Zoe so that she could understand
She merely toyed with the hem of her skirt
“People are different. Some might accept change immediately, while others take time to accept change. Let's say that I'm in the first group, ok? Something great happened to me, that's why I changed”
Despite her mental intelligence being underdeveloped, Zoe could still feel others' emotions
“I see…well that's something great, actually. It means that you aren't that isolated, right?”
Sasha's smile only widened. Almost letting out a laugh
She wished she could just tell her how she felt outright, but that possibility wasn't viable
“Yeah. Something like that…so, are you motivated to eat now?”
“Now that you mentioned it. I am kinda hungry”
Sasha's hands moved to gently grab the tray
It had pancakes stacked upon it with syrup and blueberries and a raspberry drink on the side
A napkin folded under the plate with the pancakes
So she set it on the bed and rolled around on her back
“Pancakes? You seriously cooked this for me?”
“What? Of course not, Annabelle did”
“Oh. I guess that makes sense. Thanks for bringing me the food anyways”
With a surprised gaze, Sasha looked up at her
“I didn't really do anything. Bringing the tray was easy. You should be thanking Annabelle, not me”
“Either way. I should start digging in”
As if cutting off Sasha, she moved to eat the pancakes like her life depended on it
It was a miracle that the syrup didn't spill on the bed
Even Sasha was shocked
(Hot damn)
“Slow down, you might choke”
Her tone was that of half amusement and mild concern
“But the food is great!”
A sigh escaped Sasha's lips
Well, at least there isn't any syrup on the bed
“Whatever. Are you gonna drink the juice like that, too-”
Her breath caught in her throat as Zoe was already halfway through the raspberry juice
“You have to be shitting me”
Dark swirly clouds swayed above Sasha's head…
“Hey, do you think we should check up on the girls?”
Annabelle said as she stirred the broth
“No, let them be. I don't think they're gonna do anything extreme”
Lana replied as she was adjusting the plates in the upper cabinet
“That's the problem. You never think”
Lana choked on her own words at the reply
She almost dropped the plates on her face
“Sorry…I wasn't aware that you have the capacity to be shocked”
While saying that Annabelle was also looking away in fear
The sound of teeth clenching could be heard
It was safe to say that Lana was still working on her anger management…
Even when Zoe was all cobbled up on the bed with her, Sasha didn't mind it
Clear hesitation left her hands unmoving, it was quite natural to be tempted and not tempted at the same time
“Sasha, is something wrong?”
The ever loving sweet and charming girl looked up at her, swinging her legs back and forth
“Don't worry about it, it's nothing”
A genuine smile formed on her lips. Ultimately she didn't move her hands, …
EPILOGUE:
In a private office in an old office building was a large clipboard with various notes
Sergeant Read McConkey, and now, two infamous cleaners of Europe were gathered in that dimly lit room
“Listen here, gentlemen, we have gathered here to unveil the truth of this world!”
Paul and Marco exchanged a suspicious look before shrugging
“What gives, officer?”
“Yeah. What truth are we about to uncover?”
“Recently. Reports from all over Europe have reported strange incidents during the night and daytime”
Paul spoke up next
“Right, and that's why you called us here. It's true that we have been cleaning up blood and fresh across Europe”
“Yikes. Ugh, don't remind me. We're only doing it because it is a well-paid job, nothing else”
“I don't care about that. What I care about is that reports are true!”
“There really have been strange incidents happening all over Europe. You two are living evidence of it”
Marco rolled his eyes and crossed his arms
“What is really the meaning of this meeting? What do you want from us and what do you give in return?”
“I see. So you're all about the job? It's a shame you don't share my enthusiasm on the matter, but oh well. 10 thousand dollars if you help me in my investigation, how does that sound?”
“We accept”
They both immediately said in Unison
Sergeant Reed clapped his hands and slammed his fist on the table happily
“Fuck yeah!”...
