{"id":410,"date":"2011-07-13T00:00:27","date_gmt":"2011-07-13T04:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=410"},"modified":"2011-07-13T00:00:27","modified_gmt":"2011-07-13T04:00:27","slug":"day-7-chapter-8-marin-01","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=410","title":{"rendered":"Day 7 – Chapter 8 – Marin – 01"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I lay awake with Thom\u2019s arms around my waist, watching as the sky went from a flat slab of sullen blue-black to a twisting mass of navy and slate gray as the sun struggling to rise on the eastern horizon.\u00a0 There had been no rain last night, for the first time in days, but I held out no hope that the day would be more of the same.\u00a0 The constantly moving clouds above promised some sort of precipitation.\u00a0 It was only going to get worse for a while before it got better.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 At least, that\u2019s what Matt had told me quietly at dinner.\u00a0 My instincts said he was probably right.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 There were only thirty-five of us now, with three more slipped away the day after I\u2019d woken up screaming.\u00a0 I already knew we\u2019d never see them again.\u00a0 Our numbers were growing smaller day by day.\u00a0 How were we going to survive?
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I knew we would, though.\u00a0 Somehow, we would.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thom pressed a kiss to the back of my neck through my hair, mumbling, \u201cIs it time for that logistics meeting yet?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s time yet,\u201d I whispered back, running my hands along his arms before twining my fingers with his.\u00a0 \u201cWhy are you awake?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cJust am.\u201d\u00a0 He kissed my neck again, gave me a squeeze, then started sitting up.\u00a0 It was still an ordeal; his ribs still bothered him more than he\u2019d admitted to me and his torso was a mass of purple-black bruises.\u00a0 He tried to hide how much pain he was in and he succeeded in large part with everyone except for J.T. and I.\u00a0 We both knew him a little too well for that.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I sat up, too, blankets slipping away from both of us.\u00a0 I shivered a little in the chill of the morning, feeling more like it was October than August.\u00a0 My arm was still sore from where the grays had clipped me, but the mark they\u2019d left was slowly fading.\u00a0 We hadn\u2019t fought since that day.\u00a0 It was almost a relief\u2014almost, because I knew the respite wouldn\u2019t last, but for the moment, I\u2019d take it because it was all I was going to get.\u00a0 At least he believed me about what I<\/em> could see.\u00a0 That was a victory, at least.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s on the watch?\u201d\u00a0 Thom asked as he grasped my shoulder for extra leverage.\u00a0 He got himself fully into a sitting position with a wince, one hand unconsciously going to his ribcage.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I tried not to shake my head at him.\u00a0 \u201cDo you want Jay or Jac or Leah to tape those later?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He glared at me sidelong and shook his head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not that bad.\u201d\u00a0 I glared back at him and he sagged.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, fine.\u00a0 They hurt, but taping them isn\u2019t going to help.\u201d\u00a0 He squeezed my shoulder and let go.\u00a0 I stared at him for a long moment, trying to decide whether or not I should believe him, then nodded.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cJac gave you some pills, though, right?\u00a0 Do me a favor and take a couple.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thom made a face, watching me as I got up, lit our small camping lantern, and started getting dressed.\u00a0 \u201cToss me a clean shirt, please.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I found one and tossed it to him, watching him as he shrugged out of the shirt he\u2019d slept in and into the fresh one.\u00a0 He balled the sleeping shirt up and shoved it beneath our pillows.\u00a0 I took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cAre you going to take something?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cI really don\u2019t want to, Mar.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThom.\u201d\u00a0 Gods of heaven and earth, don\u2019t be stubborn.\u00a0 Please.<\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI know what you\u2019re going to say, but just listen, will you?\u00a0 There\u2019s going to come a time when we won\u2019t have the luxury of pills.\u00a0 Better get used to dealing with pain now rather than later.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I gave him a long look, trying to choose my words carefully.\u00a0 Calling him galactically stupid came to mind.\u00a0 \u201cThom, we need you focused on something other than how much you\u2019re hurting for this.\u00a0 Just take the pills.\u00a0 Please?\u201d\u00a0 The look on his face told me he was going to be stubborn.\u00a0 I came back over to the mattress and knelt down next to him, taking his hands.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not a headache or sprain we\u2019re talking about here, Thom, and you know it.\u00a0 Your ankle is broken<\/em>.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know if your ribs are, but I know they hurt a lot.\u201d\u00a0 He opened his mouth to argue and I shook my head.\u00a0 \u201cPlease don\u2019t.\u00a0 I know you well enough to know that they hurt like a bitch and you didn\u2019t want to tell me.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure why you didn\u2019t want to tell me, but it\u2019s either good or really stupid, so it\u2019s probably good I don\u2019t know why.<\/em>\u00a0 \u201cI won\u2019t tell anyone.\u00a0 Just take the pills and feel a little better for a little while, okay?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 His nostrils flared, expression going hard for a moment, then went slack.\u00a0 He looked away from me, taking a deep breath with a wince.\u00a0 \u201cAll right,\u201d he whispered.\u00a0 \u201cJust this once.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thank the powers that be for small favors.<\/em>\u00a0 I squeezed his hands and got up to finish getting dressed.\u00a0 He got up a few moments later, hobbling around with his crutch under one arm and keeping his weight off his ankle.\u00a0 The swelling had begun to subside again, though it hardly looked normal.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho had the watch this morning?\u201d\u00a0 He asked quietly, tapping two pain pills out into his palm and swallowing them in one go.\u00a0 He grasped my arm as he started to pull on a pair of jeans.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We\u2019d started setting watches almost from day one, three shifts a night, two volunteers a shift.\u00a0 The first shift was always the easiest, since most of us still lingered around the campfires until at least halfway through it.\u00a0 J.T. and Rory had taken most of the graveyard shifts during the darkest parts of the night, though they couldn\u2019t keep doing that forever.\u00a0Stasia Lane had been taking the early morning shifts since we\u2019d found the livestock, since she went to tend them in the other tent as soon as someone else got up in the morning.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cStasia and Jack,\u201d I said, holding still until he was finished getting dressed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll wake the fires and get some hot water going.\u201d\u00a0 I watched him as he reclaimed his crutch and hobbled over to where he\u2019d stashed his drafting supplies.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s too dark, still, for you to be drawing, Thom.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI know, but when you get the fire going and we get those lamps up for the meeting, it\u2019ll be bright enough to see and not everyone\u2019s seen these plans yet.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I nodded a little, turning down the lamp before I picked it up.\u00a0 The sky wasn\u2019t much lighter than it was fifteen minutes ago, but as we headed toward the nearest fire, I could see red starting to tinge the clouds in the east, a warning of piss-poor weather to come.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Red sky at morning means bad things coming on within the next couple hours.<\/em>\u00a0 I tried not to wince.\u00a0 Thom followed my gaze and grimaced.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cLooks like we\u2019ll be battening down the hatches before this pow-wow, huh?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cLooks like,\u201d I agreed with a frown.\u00a0 I caught his free hand with mine and squeezed it.\u00a0 \u201cGo sit by the fire.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to wake my brother.\u00a0 Jack and I can\u2019t get those walls up alone, and Stasia\u2019s going to need to see to the animals before the storm hits.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWake Brandon, too,\u201d Thom suggested, fingers tightening around mine before letting go.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I blinked at him.\u00a0 \u201cWhy Brandon?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHe can help with the animals.\u201d\u00a0 I must have been giving him a very strange look because he just shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cCall it a hunch, Mar.\u00a0 Wake him.\u00a0 He\u2019ll be happy to feel useful, anyway.\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A hunch, huh, Thom?<\/em>\u00a0 I nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u00a0 Try not to fall into<\/em> the fire while you\u2019re poking it back to life, huh?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thom grinned.\u00a0 \u201cAm I that predictable?\u201d
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOnly with me.\u201d\u00a0 I smiled at him and we parted ways, he to wake the fire and get some water going, me to start rousing some of the camp.\u00a0 Something was telling me this storm was going to be unpleasant, and we\u2019d need quite a few hands on deck to be up to its challenge.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I lay awake with Thom\u2019s arms around my waist, watching as the sky went from a flat slab of sullen blue-black to a twisting mass of navy and slate gray as the sun struggling to rise on the eastern … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chapter-8","category-day-7"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1EBlN-6C","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=410"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}