The soldiers are marching again, with the heavy sound of drums quick to follow.
Everyone in the town who knows what is coming stays silent and tries to hide, praying that they won't stop here, in Woodson.
And it's every week now that they pick a new...
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The day after the kiss was pretty awkward, since Kade and Andres haven't left me and Camillo alone yet to talk about what happened between us.
And in addition to that, I am starting to get a little worried that we haven't struck a village or any sort of life yet while walking through the woods.
Maybe we're stuck in the middle of nowhere - we haven't reached a town or anything for miles. However, walking amongst the calm and towering trees all day has given me more than enough time to think.
Here's the thing: In my community it is a woman's job to gain a husband, but I've never been one to abide by those rules.
I guess one could say that I am not your typical bachelorette, for starters. I don't fancy wearing itchy cotton dresses, experimenting with vibrant makeup, or flirting with suitors. But it is typically expected that once a girl reaches eighteen years of age, she should be considering her options about marriage and making a family. I've always been reserved, and I'd never once considered the possibility of dating or getting married, although at this age it's all any girl wanted to talk about.
Plus, I wasn't ever ready to start a family - I already have Andres and my father to look after. The women of my hometown of Woodson used to gossip behind my back, saying how odd I was for never going to social gatherings meant to pair people together, nor socializing with men on my own.
I completely avoided the topic, although looking back, I should have just pretended to care so that people would mind their own business. The girls back home searched for reasons why I haven't dated anybody yet, but the truth is simply that I am in no way searching for a husband.
But, wouldn't it be nice to have someone to share responsibilities with you for once in your life?
Ah.
There's the struggle, isn't it?
I know Andres has always been there for me as a brother. Yet, he was so little when my mother died that sometimes I was forced to be a parent towards him instead of a sister, which forever changed our relationship. With that said, my father never helped me because he was still caught up in his grief over my mom. He stopped working, stopped cooking, stopped cleaning. Him and my mother never did follow social conventions themselves when it can to running our household.
But when she got sick and passed... there was no reversing what had been done.
My father was devastated, Andres was devastated, and so was I.
But I was always alone in my grief in some way, whereas they were not.
Andres had me to look after him, and my father also had me waiting on him. And I? I had... nobody.
My only friend back in Woodson who ever really helped me out was Melissa, but even she was engaged to be married when I left. We haven't spoken in the weeks after that.
