Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down, or it's characters.
Daley lay motionless on her back in the girl's tent. A light rain tapped against the plastic shelter like a mother tapping her baby's back to burp it. The sound was comforting. Daley hoped it would help lull her to sleep. So far it was not working; nothing ever worked anymore. She had conditioned herself to fall asleep long after Melissa and Taylor; just to make sure they were all right. She had conducted this ritual since their first night on the island. She had even made a game out of it. If she listened hard enough she could tell the exact moment that each girl fell asleep by listening to her breathing. Melissa was always the first to go, usually within a few minutes after they said goodnight. Taylor on the other hand took longer.
On a normal night she was usually out with fifteen minutes; other nights it took around two hours. Every so often long after they had all gone to bed, Daley could hear soft cries coming from Taylor's side of the tent. They were always weak, and soft, like the mewing of a kitten. Taylor's pathetic whines always made Daley's own eyes well up. She could just imagine Taylor's quivering chin; and her eyes staring to redden as fat tears rolled slowly off her cheeks and onto her pillow. She would hear her inhale sharply, only to exhale labored breaths that danced over Daley's face, and moved strands of her hair. She never cried long, only for a few short moments. That was never enough time for Daley to muster up the courage to reach over and take her hand, or even think of something to say to her. "She probably wants to be alone," Daley always thought. "Someone who waits until they think everyone is asleep to cry does not want comfort. She hates me anyway. But what if she wants me to wake up despite that?"
Daley and Taylor both slept on their sides facing different directions; Taylor on her right shoulder facing Daley, and Daley on her left shoulder facing Taylor. "But why would she not just turn the other way to cry; unless she is trying to wake me up in her own way?" Daley would ponder her own questions, until it was too late and Taylor was already asleep.
The rain had stopped, and Daley was still awake. She sighed and rolled over to her back. She laced her fingers together, put them under her head, and closed her eyes. "Sleep Daley. Just fall asleep. It's not a hard concept." She scolded herself, and cursed the sand man. Even he could not find her way out here. It was tiring to lie awake most of the night, and she usually only got a few hours of shut-eye before the sun decided to come up. She concentrated so hard on getting to sleep that until she felt a foot crash into her leg, she had not noticed that anyone had even gotten up. She opened her eyes, and saw Taylor standing over her with a worried expression.
"Sorry Daley... I didn't mean to wake you." Taylor whispered obviously intimidated. She turned and made her way to the opening of the tent.
Daley sat up and whispered "Taylor, where are you going?" as she glanced over at Melissa to see if she had awakened. Not a chance. Melissa was a pretty heavy sleeper.
"I uh... I'm going... to the... the... the latrine! Yeah, the latrine." Taylor smiled that smile, and Daley knew something was up.
"Oh, ok. Just be..."
"Yeah, I will." Taylor cut her off. " I'll be right back, just go back to sleep." With that, she scuttled out of the tent.
A/N- this is my first story with more than one part!! : It will only end up having two, or three chapters. More to come. Please review!! I am open to anything!