NOVOCAINE ━ Grizz Visser

11. Left Behind

ELEVEN LEFT BEHIND

"Harry texted me, said there's gonna be a big ass game of Fugitive tonight, you guys in?" Wes asked as he sits down on his porch between Sahar and Winona, Daniel sitting on the other side of his girlfriend. Wes hands them the cold beers he had pulled from their fridge because when in an abandoned town with no parents, you might as well start drinking early. He was unsurprised when he had received the text from Harry this morning as that was pretty much something he expected Harry to pull. After all, with no adult supervision, they might as well get into some trouble. He was probably going to end up partnering with Winona because as much as she disliked Harry, that girl was competitive as fuck. He nudged the girl beside him who was staring cooly into the open bottle her hand was wrapped around.

She looked up at him, seemingly coming out of her daze. He could tell by the bags under her eyes she hadn't slept in days -- a feeling that was mutual between the two of them. His mind was still reeling from his conversation with Grizz that morning, so he understood being somewhere else mentally.

"Uh, yeah," she yawned, coming to attention, "I'm down. If only just to make sure you don't get yourself killed." Winona turns to the couple beside them, "You guys teaming up?"

Sahar nodded, "You know it, Daniel would lose his shit if I didn't."

"I would not lose my shit," Daniel scoffs, shaking his head as he wraps his arm around the girl's shoulders, squeezing affectionately as he presses a kiss to her cheek. Wes watches as the girl giggles, leaning into the touch. Bitterly, Wes thinks of Amaya. He takes a sip of his beer, the sour taste matching his attitude. "Ayo, what's up with that?"

The three of them follow the boy's line of sight where the sky is darkening. Looking up, the moon is shifting over to cover up the sun. Wes looks up to see a solar eclipse. It's not a total one, which he knows are rare, he'd probably be more freaked out if it was, but these happen every few times a year, so he tries to think if anyone had mentioned one coming up soon. For some reason, people love to talk about these things as if it wasn't just a passing moment in the sky. An eclipse meant nothing to the sun and the moon, so why should it matter to them?

"That's weird, I didn't know one was supposed to happen any time soon," Winona shrugs as she looks away for the sake of not damaging her eyes. Even Wes's eyes are spotted from the few moments he looked at it. The girl turns to the couple, making sure they didn't stare at it too long. "Don't burn your retinas, dumbass."

"We're not!" Daniel scoffs as he sticks his tongue out at the girl who responds only by rolling her eyes.

As the moment passes, Wes looks up. It's become a total eclipse. That's... odd. He shoots a questioning look over to Winona, who knows more about this stuff than he does. She had always been big on astronomy. "How often are those supposed to happen?"

Winona looks up at the sky before looking back down at her brother, "In the United States? Every 375 years. Uh, maybe there was one coming up. I'll stop by the library and check it out later."

"The library?" Sahar asks with a scoff, "What is this? The 90s? Just look it -- oh, right. Nevermind. Uh, I mean, it's probably normal. I don't think I've ever seen a total solar eclipse before so it's been at least seventeen years since the last one, I can't speak on the last 358 years, though."

Wes laughs at this, the feeling bubbling in his stomach that he's grateful to feel. Things have felt so heavy lately, it feels good to laugh even if just for a moment. They really do need to find some time to do something fun, Wes thinks he's going insane with every day that passes. Wake up, go for a jog, shower, do nothing all day, rinse, repeat. It's enough to drive anyone mad. They all desperately need a break from what has soon become the new normal. The new normal. He hates that phrase. Nothing about this is normal, yet they've somehow adjusted to it. Funny, how the mind works like that. He knows something is wrong and they could be completely lost in the realm of the universe, but his brain treats this as if it's a completely normal thing to deal with. If they ever make it out of here alive, he might consider therapy.

The moment is interrupted when another text comes through Wes's phone. He almost always expects it to be his parents, although he isn't sure why. Another trick from his own brain, constantly betraying him. How can his brain expect both the normal and this new normal? He doesn't understand. It's just some text from Luke about how Helena is speaking at church and she wants the Guard to come. The Guard. What a ridiculous thing Wes has found himself a part of. He doesn't know why being apart of the football team has suddenly given them any form of authority, but that's what they call themselves now. Wes doesn't get it, but he's loyal to his team so he'll go along with it until they give him a reason not to.

"You guys wanna go to church later? Helena's speaking," Wes asks, but he knows no one's jumping at the opportunity. He isn't either, but he'll probably make an appearance to appease Luke. He's never been religious, even less so now. How does one find God in a place that clearly has no mercy for those that walk its earth? Still, he can sit and listen to Helena's pretty, fragile words for an hour if it'll make his friend happy. If God is what comforts Helena in a time like this, then he can't blame her. He wonders what it must be like to have some idealogy to fall back on in adversity such as this. To have someone to blame it all on. Someone to shout to for help instead of staring your future in the eye and holding it all in your hands and no one else's. Wes finds no comfort. Screaming for help from someone who will never answer is just as useless as him sending texts to his parents every night, begging them to come home. It doesn't make him feel better, but he can't stop either. Maybe that's how Helena feels about God.

"Us and church? That's funny, Wes," Sahar shook her head, taking a sip of her beer, "With how much sin we get up to, I'd be surprised if I didn't burst into the flame the second the sermon starts."

Winona chuckles darkly at this, her expression distant, "What is sin in a universe with no one to judge it?"

"What do you mean? You good over there, Socrates?" Daniel asks, clearly trying to laugh off the dark mood that has covered the conversation.

The blonde girl just shakes her head, peering at her friends with a saddened smile, saying, "Ask Emily if she thinks there is a God here. I think I know what her answer would be."

The message is clear. If there ever was a God, they've left them behind.