Ivan and the girl walked for a long time. After they left the town, they didn't stop walking. Ivan didn't plan on stopping until he was ready to fall. He needed to get to Eden as fast as he possible could, and they were both perfectly able bodied people, so they had no reason to rest often. Ivan also avoided a camp because they had no food. The girl thought otherwise. She also thought conversation was a good idea, but Ivan wasn't up for it.
"So 'bout how much time 'til Eden, Johnny?" She asked as she walked at a steady stride swinging her her hips gently.
Ivan let out a huff and pulled out his map. He threw it at her. The girl made a lousy attempt to catch it before it fell to the floor. She frowned and picked it up. Ivan watched out of the corner of his eye as she looked through it. She inspected it as she walked. Ivan watched her lips purse and her eyes narrow. When she looked up at him, he looked up. Then, he felt the map hit his shoulder as the girl walked by him with a smug look on his face. Ivan shook his head and retrieved the map.
The night was well settled in when Ivan decided it was time to stop. He continued to walk for a while before he spotted a good area. He walked off of the road and into the trees. The girl barely noticed him leave, but run up to catch him nevertheless. Ivan put down his bag several feet away from the road. The girl sighed and stretched her arms before letting down her bag full of trinkets and junk.
Ivan pulled out his makeshift tarp from his pack and set it down below him. He left to gather what he could find of twigs and dry shrub. Ivan made a fire. The girl watched curiously. As it ignited and caught the rest of the twigs, her eyes lit up. She sat across from Ivan close to the fire.
In the mid winter weather, it was hard to survive the nights without a fire. During the day, the temperatures were bearbly, but at night, the temperatures at times reached below zero. The girl was cold. Her fingertips red and skin pale.
"On the map, what are the x's?" She asked, distracting herself from the cold. Ivan watched the girl rub her bare arms.
"Enemy Territory," He said.
"Johnny, you ever think that the world was beautiful once?" She asked, looking at him.
Ivan shook his head and laid down. The girl always asked obscure questions. Did he think the world was beautiful before? Ivan didn't think about the past. He had heard things about a different time, but how could he wonder about such things, when he still had so much more to worry about now?
He shut his eyes. His stomached growled, but he ignored it. Ivan fell asleep.
When he woke up, his mouth was parched. He pulled out his canteen and took a drink as he gauged the amount of water left. The girl was staring at him when he looked up. She waved and smiled at him.
"Good mornin', Johnny!"
Ivan scowled. He packed his things and they began to walk again.
This time they took a detour through the forest which tired them out more. The trees were difficult to maneuver, and they had to do much more work traveling through the falled trees and trash. The girl looked at the trash with wonder. Ivan looked at the ground while he walked. He stopped to search below a fallen tree, but he cursed in disappointment.
Ivan trudged through the forest. He mumbled to himself. The girl was about to speak up, but Ivan stopped. He retracted a step back and carefully stepped in one area again. It was soft. Ivan got on his knees and began to uproot the damp dirt with his fingers. He ran his hands through clumps of dirt that escaped him. The hole became bigger and he continued to find nothing. Ivan gave up. He cursed and slammed his fist against a tree. He stood up and wiped his hands in a flurry.
![We're Just Friends [BOOK 1 Of The 'We're Just' Trilogy]] by Riane_Pereira](https://img.wattpad.com/cover/142153467-80-k186266.jpg)
"What are you looking for?" He didn't answer. "Johnny? Johnny? I can help you look. Johnny-"
"Stop fucking calling me Johnny! Ivan! That's my name understand?" Ivan yelled as he clenched his fists.
The girl nodded and smiled. "Ivan. My name is," She looked at the grass below her feet, "Lily."
Ivan kept walking. They continued that way until midday. When Lily's annoying questions and the growls in his stomach were too much to bear, they stopped. Ivan set his backpack on the ground and pulled out the remaining half of squirrel meat wrapped in an old plastic bag. He sat on the floor and began to eat. It hurt, because he knew that was his last piece of food until he he managed to find something else.
Ivan glanced at Lily who--for once since they had met--was quiet. Her eyes were locked into the meat he ate. He watched her swallow saliva and look away.
Ivan shoved the empty bag back into his pack and continued walking. Lily followed close behind. Ivan began to think. They still had a long way to go until they arrived at Eden. Although he walked to take the quickest route, he had to detour, because he wouldn't make it without food. Not to mention, his water supply was down to one fourth of his canteen. Ivan's extra bottle was empty too. He recalled using it back a couple months on a cut wound he got from falling on broken flooring. He wondered the second floor of an old bar, and the floor completely gave out as he walked. Ivan didn't even find anything in that broken up building. He scowled at the memory.
That remembered him of a different bar when he managed to find a entire storage of beer. At the moment it sounded like a great idea, but soon he came to realize that he never hated beer more in his life--even if it was the first time he tasted it. That was a long time ago. He could only dream of finding such things now. When Ivan looked back, he realized how young and naive he was then.
"Ivan?" She walked up next to him. He didn't say anything; the sad memories of his years still lingering. "Where are we?"
Ivan rolled his eyes. "On planet Earth."
"I meant like what state? On the map you carry I didn't see any," Lily said, curiousity encompassing her eyes.
Ivan looked over at her. States. It had been a while since people started naming their now cities. "Cause someone crossed them out."
"But you do know where we are right?"
"No," Ivan said, "that's why I carry a map."
"Can I see it?" Lily asked, gesturing his pack. Ivan pulled it out handing it over to the girl. She examined it as they walked. "I think there's a lake around here."
Ivan chuckled but covered it up with a cough. He took the map from her hands . "There's no lakes."
"Uh huh, I saw it on the map," Lily said, pointed at the paper in his hands. "Should be around that direction."
Lily pointed east from when they walked towards the main road. She nodded her head at Ivan, but he shook his head. Ivan put away the map and walked without Lily who still gazed off into the distance. Ivan couldn't believe that girl sometimes. Rivers; that was a funny idea.
"But there could be one."
"No."
"But-"
"Then, why don't you see for yourself, but I'm going to Eden."
Lily trailed behind him. Ivan shook his head and walked.
The rest of the day was spent walking. Ivan figured he could walk towards Eden until he encountered a building. He would gauge his actions from there. He just hoped they didn't encounter any trouble again. The last thing he needed now was a fight. The last time that happened he was with Lily. Lily who managed to kill Mopes. Lily who didn't even gain a scratch. Lily who asked strange questions.
Ivan looked over at the girl. She looked up at the cloudy sky as she moved her head to a tune she could only hear. The cool night weather nipped at her skin. Her empty stomach slowly collapsed on itself.
A couple days before he met Lily, he encountered some wonders same as him. They had tried to steal his pistol with a pocket knife. Ivan didn't shoot his gun that day, but he carries the knife in his right pocket now. When he met lily, she questioned what his tarp was. Ivan questioned her sanity, but he had met his fair share of people who went insane, and they were nothing like her. As much as he tried to fit her into a group, he couldn't. Maybe she was part of the Mopes. But why would she leave? Ivan was under the impression that Mopes killed any runaways. He didn't want that kind of trouble following him.
"That cloud looks like a hippo."
Ivan furrowed his eyebrows and looked up at the clouds. They looked like clouds. When Ivan gave her a look of distaste, Lily pointed out the various shaped clouds as they walked. Ivan was annoyed.
Ivan stopped for the night mostly to stop Lily's talking. She followed. Ivan made a fire, and Lily watched. He drank water, and she watched. He set up his tarp, and she watched.
They sat close to the fire. There was no food to converse over. There was nothing to converse about. Lily wrapped her arms around her small body. Ivan pulled his hood over his head. He looked over the girl's face. Her eyes were big and her face slightly rounded. She was just a kid.
"How old are you, kid? You're awfully young to be out here so freely," Ivan said.
"I'm not a kid," She said, glaring at him. Ivan found the sudden change of attitude amusing.
"The Ring didn't get you?"
"The Inner Ring?" Lily asked.
"Mhm, you know who they are?"
Lily nodded. Then, she laid down on the floor to sleep. Ivan--in an effort to answer his questions--was more confused.
In the morning, Ivan picked up his things and left. Lily followed close behind. The days passed in the same monotonous way.
