The Silver Death

chapter thirteen - sparky

ayyy so I made a ton of edits so now I'll prolly be republishing all of the parts after I finish. Also two more chapters until it's done

 Matthew and Edward had started to make a fire with our firewood, but then a huge rainstorm swept in and drenched everyone, and so we all went into the back of the van after taking down the tents in a hurry. Then, we played an hour-long game of B.S. with each other, in which Fox made a spectacular win against all of us. I proceeded to teach them Mau, something Katie taught me in middle school. Katie, or Katarina (Beatrice was her real name, but everyone called her by her middle name, as she hated her first name) was a dork, but she lost all of that silliness when she played Mau. She became the most serious I had ever seen her. With a pang of sadness, I realize I miss her. I shake my head and continue dealing out cards, giving Edward an extra one when he reaches for his cards dealt. You would think that having played it with me on the way to their headquarters, he would've remembered, but he manages to have the most cards out of anymore the entire game. The only rule in Mau is that I can't tell you the rules, you have to figure them out yourself.

After that I learn the game of Egyptian Rat Killer, a game completely determined by reaction time and luck. It is the game I saw Dawn and Emily, and Patrick and Alli playing. It's pretty fun, and after Patrick and I combine our decks of cards, me, Edward, Patrick and Matthew are able to play an intense game of Egyptian Rat Killer.

Soon after that, the rain stopped enough to where we could put out the tents again, but the ground was so wet and the air so cold that we all just decided to stay in the warmth of the van, huddled in the blankets. I was tired after my crying episode with Matthew, so I just took a nap.

I'm soon awakened by Matthew shaking my shoulder. I realize it is way past sunset - it's dark outside. "How late did I sleep?" I ask, stretching and yawning at the same time.

"It's 7:00 p.m."

I frown. "Wow."

"Yeah. Patrick and Alli are cooking something. I don't know what it is."

I sniff. "Yeah, me neither." I blink. "Um...can I sleep for a bit longer? I'm kind of tired."

His eyes widen. "You just slept for, like, six hours straight. And don't you want to eat?"

"I guess...I'm not really hungry. Just tired." In truth, my throat is burning for whatever reason, and I want something to make it better, but I am not hungry. I run my hands through my hair.

"Huh. Okay. Well, I can bring you something, and after you eat it, you can go back to bed. 'Kay?"

I smile. "Fine." I roll back over and close my eyes. Soon after, Matthew walks in, holding a plate with macaroni pasta and plain tomato sauce on it. There's not a lot. Once I start eating, I realize how hungry I am, and scarf it down in no time.

"I told you," he says, smiling. I wave my plastic fork at him threateningly, even though I wouldn't really do anything. However, I'm still tired. I start to cover myself with my blanket, but Matthew shakes his head. "No. Once you get up and start doing stuff, you won't be tired anymore."

"That sounds self-contradicting."

"It isn't, though! Come on. Get up."

I sigh and slowly sit up, mock-glaring at him. "You're a butt."

"Remember when we were reversed just a few days ago?"

"I guess that makes both of us hypocrites, then." I stand up. "Let's go, Sparky."

He leads me outside. A small fire is going, and people are gathered around it, scooping pasta and sauce out of two small pots cooked by the fire, talking and laughing with full mouths, I smile, seeing Patrick and Alli cuddling on a rock. They're really sweet. Vale and Fox are laying on a towel, Vale absently stroking Fox's arm, his head in her lap. He still looks disoriented. Edward is poking at the fire with a charred stick, an unreadable expression on his face. I frown at the can in his hand, making a beeline to him.