Elevate | ONC 2021

3. Team 5

Sintra awoke to the reflection of a familiar pair of brown eyes and red lips.

"What the fu—"

"I'm telling you, Sintra. The government is out to get you!"  Lee's voice cut in, startling Sintra as her head snapped to the side to look at her friend.

Sure enough, Lee was standing at the bathroom door with her messy blonde hair and tired blue eyes, frowning at Sintra's wild expression.

"Are you okay, Sin?" Lee asked worriedly, her eyebrows knitting together in concern as she regarded her friend's stunned look.

Sintra's gaze returned to the bathroom mirror, gasping before warily touching her face with her free hand, her eyes slowly drifting to the red lipstick she held in the other.

"H-how? I-I was in an elevator and it took me to a rainforest and there were monsters and insane, freakishly tall women chasing us and—"

"Wait, wait, wait. What are you even talking about?" Lee tittered nervously.

"We— I almost died," Sintra said shakily, turning to Lee once again.

"Sin, you never left," Lee said, staring at her friend as if she had gone mad.

"Lee, you were ri—" Sintra tried to say but stopped as a bout of dizziness overcame her body, her legs buckling below her.

She staggered a little, gripping the lipstick tighter as if it would prevent her from falling.

"Woah, Sintra!" She heard Lee say, catching her instinctively as Sintra keeled over. She felt Lee lower them both to the hallway floor before propping her head up on her lap.

"Sintra!" Lee's voiced echoed in her mind, but this time it sounded deeper. In fact, it didn't sound like Lee at all but Sintra's eyes had closed now, her mind fighting to get up and finish their conversation.

"Sintra!" Vante's voice called, her eyes flying open to meet his panic stricken face.

His damp hair still clung to his forehead and a crease had appeared between his eyebrows, worry distorting his handsome features as he watched her pant.

"Are you alright?" He asked, cradling her head in his lap as Sintra finally realized that he was yellow, courtesy of the light streaming from the elevator.

"Where are we?" She flew up, looking around in confusion as her mind replayed the dream she just had.

"Where do you think?" Vante sighed, his eyes drifting off to the yellow light that illuminated the room.

Sintra slapped a hand to her face, shaking off her fatigue as she finally got her bearings.

She brought herself to stand using the handrails, swaying a little from the elevator's movement through the shaft.

"You really should relax. You're exhausted," Vante told her. He was sitting on the floor, one leg draped over the other as his hands braced against the cold metal, his attention never leaving the lights.

"What happened?" Sintra asked.

"You don't remember?" He responded, finally looking at her.

As soon as the question left his lips it all came flying back to her. The elevator, the rainforest, the two-headed panther, the giant women, her employees, Anna.

"Ugh," she winced as she clutched her face with one hand.

"I told you that you needed to relax," Vante scolded, finally standing as he tried to reach for her.