Paradise

I was dying and I knew it yet I wouldn't change the past if I could. I knew there were humans out here somewhere and I was going to find them or die trying. The heat was almost unbearable and my skin felt like it would melt if I didn't find any shade.

I stumbled and fell into the dirt. Dirt filled my mouth, making me cough weakly, trying to get rid of the grit that had been in my mouth for days. If I was going to die, I was going to die with a clean mouth.

I wasn't sure how long I laid there; I wasn't even sure if I was awake or unconscious. Time passed though because the sun was gone and tiny stars twinkled at me like there was something to be merry about.

I closed my eyes once more and my breathing deepened until I really was asleep.

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I felt something cool against my brow. My eyes scrunched up and I turned my head away from the unknown object even if it felt comforting. My hands flopped uselessly at my side for a moment before I remembered how to control my body.

I opened my eyes and stared up at a cave ceiling, I think. I wasn't sure about anything at the moment. I rolled my eyes around and then noticed people where standing around me. I gasped, choked on air and started to cough uncontrollably.

"Are you okay?" a thin man asked, stepping forward with a container, of hopefully water. I nodded and whipped the tears off of my cheeks. I struggled to sit up and finally accomplished it.

"How did you find us?" a tall man with blue eyes asked. I looked around me again and noticed another man that looked very similar to the one that had spoken to me. Twins.

"I followed a few humans here. I saw them exit a motel and decided to follow them. I lost them in the desert though," I explained. I swung my feet off the side of the cot that I was sitting on and stumbled to my feet.

"I told you someone was following us," one of the twins mumbled. I hurried and looked at everyone's eyes. All human. A miracle for any lonely human seeking refuge such as myself.

"Where am I anyway?" it was my turn to ask questions and I was going to get answers.

"You're in the middle of the desert in our personal paradise. This is our colony of humans living here, surviving," an older man with a beard said. I noticed he had a gun and he was in charge here in the caves.

Everyone told me their names and then they explained everything to me, about finding the caves, the raids that they went on, and how they survived.

The older man cleared his throat like he was preparing for a long speech. "And there are two souls that live here with us," Jeb said like it was no big deal. My mouth fell open and my air swooshed out.

"Are you crazy?!" I squeaked, stumbling back from the group like I could get soul germs from them if I stood too close. A few of them glared at me like I had personally offended them.

"The two girls are so sweet once you get to know them," Doc stated, trying to calm me down as I practically hyperventilated against the cave wall. I stopped breathing all together when he called them girls. I felt bile rise up my throat; he talks about them like they're human.

"I think she's going to be sick," Kyle exclaimed. I leaned over to the side and gagged until I finally choked up the water that I had drunk. I didn't even pause to see if I had to throw up anymore and took off down the dark corridor. I wasn't staying in the caves if souls would be living here also.

I didn't know where I was going so I constantly ran into the wall or stumbled along the uneven floor, hoping I'd get a good enough head start that they wouldn't catch me if they even bothered to come after me.

Light was finally up ahead and I thought I had made it out of the caves but really, I had just made it into a large room. People were here working and socializing with each other like a normal community would. They stared as I sprinted past them into a room that had food.

My mouth fell open and I paused in my running to stare. They were cooking and eating together. I didn't stop even though my stomach begged and pleaded with me to stop just for a roll.

I went to turn around out of the room and BAM! I collided with someone else and went tumbling to the ground. I gasped and held my ribs, trying to get my breath back so I could start running again.

"Are you okay?" a sweet light voice asked, grabbing my free hand and tried to pull me up. I looked up and seen a small, blonde haired angel girl. I pushed myself off the ground and stood awkwardly in front of her.

"I'm fine. Could you tell me the way out of here please?" I said. I glanced around; the other people were starting to look at me suspiciously. I wanted out now.

"Oh, you're not staying? Everyone thought you'd want to stay, we even got you a room ready," she exclaimed, giving me a small smile. I struggled with myself now. I'd have a room and food if I stayed. I would be as safe as possible in a world like this. So what is souls lived here, maybe they weren't that bad.

"Well, I'm not sure yet if I'm going to stay," I mumbled, still battling myself. She moved slightly to the left and the light hit her in the eyes. Her eyes practically glowed. My jaw clenched automatically; the soul girl they had mentioned. She noticed my reaction and smiled sympathetically; she knew why I was tense.

My mind was going hundred miles an hour. On the one hand she was a soul yet on the other hand the humans trusted her and the other soul to live among them so they must be pleasant. Perhaps I was being too hasty; I should be to know her then judge her.

I made my body relax and I mustered the realest smile I could. "Could you please show me back to Jeb? I have to apologize to him," I said. She smiled and almost blinded me with how beautiful she was.

She led me back the way I had ran easily.

"I'm Wanda by the way," she stated, holding her hand out for me to shake. I hesitatingly shook it. It was soft even though I was sure she'd done some kind of work in the caves.

"I'm Angelica," I replied and took my hand out of hers. We walked silently the rest of the way back to where I woke up at. Everyone was still in there except there was one extra person who was holding a tray in their hands which I hoped was for me.

It was a teenage boy, probably around sixteen or seventeen with black hair that went to his chin. He was tan like most of the people that I had seen. He was tall but on the skinny side. I'd bet he was the only teenager in the caves besides myself now.

I blushed and ducked my head so he wouldn't be able to see my dirty face as good. This was the first boy I've ever meet and I wanted to make a good impression.

"There you are, we thought we'd have to go hunt you down," Jeb chuckled. I smiled weakly at him. "Jamie brought you some food. You kind of ran off before we could feed you," he teased.

Jamie, his name is Jamie! I blushed even harder and glanced up at him. He had a big smile on his face and handed me to tray. I reached out hesitantly and took it from him. I sat back down on the cot I was on earlier and slowly started to eat; I didn't want upset my stomach. I was well aware of everyone watching me.

"So, where are you from?" Melanie asked while I ripped into my roll. I swallowed before answering her.

"I was from Tennessee before we hit the road," I answered before starting on my bad of chips.

"We?" Jared stated.

"My great uncle, my second cousin, and I were hanging out together when we found out about the souls," I answered around my mouthful of chips. I seen Wanda shift uncomfortable out of the corner of my eye.

"And what happened to them?" Ian asked quietly. I shrugged.

"They went out to get food and never came back," I stated. A few of them nodded like they had gone through something similar.

"Well, if you're finished eating Melanie can take you to the underground spring. You look like you could use to a good clean up," Jeb exclaimed, winking at me. I looked down at myself. My light blue shirt was a light brown color now and my old jean shorts had dirt caked onto them. I blushed and glanced over at Jamie to see what he thought of my state of clothes.

"Come on," Melanie grabbed my hand and pulled me after her. I stumbled before regaining my footing and followed close behind her so I wouldn't get lost in the dark.

"So, are you Jamie's sister?" I asked, trying to act like the answer didn't matter that much.

"Yes, he's my little brother," her voice answered from the darkness. We didn't talk anymore as we walked. We walked back into the large room that I was in earlier and went into through a different opening. It took a few minutes before I heard running water up ahead. The room had two rivers in it and steam rose up into the air.

"In this room back here is where you bathe and even farther back in the bathroom. You'll need to wash your clothes when you bathe but we've got you soap and shampoo, it's by the edge of the pool," Melanie said.

I slowly went into the dark room and felt my way by to the bathroom. After I was done, I edged myself into the pool. I sighed in relief when I felt the cool water wash over my feet. I didn't bother with undressing and hopped right into the pool. Water splashed over the edge.

I cleaned myself the best that I could then I scrubbed my clothes the best I could in the dark. I was rinsing my hair yet again when I heard Melanie enter the room.

"Um, I know you're probably enjoying your bath but we've got people waiting out here," she exclaimed. I felt my face burn from embarrassment and quickly got out of the pool with my wet clothes on. Melanie blindly handed me dry clothes and left the room.

I quickly dressed and carried my wet clothes out of the room. There were two women waiting beside Melanie. One had peppery hair and the other had blond hair. I nodded to them as I passed and followed Mel back out of the washroom.

"You're going to be sharing a room with Lily, that blond woman. She's really nice, I'm sure the two of you will get along. You're lucky you even have a room. We recently made some more rooms; it was getting pretty crowd down here with all the new people showing up," Mel explained.

After we got out of the darkness again I walked beside her and looked around. There were many humans here from what I saw and they all seemed to pitch in with the work around here. Carrots were growing in the center of the large room while two men watered them. Everyone moved in and out of the different rooms so no one must get lost in these caves after a while, which is lucky for me.

"Try to remember with hallways to go down or you'll never find your room without help. Third on the left, eleventh door with the wood board for a door, got it?" she said. I nodded.

My room wasn't very big but that was fine with me since it was going to be two people living in here. There were two mattresses, one on the left, and one on the right. It was like the room was split down the middle. The covers on the right bed were unmade and there were combs and extra clothes beside it. On the left side of the room it was bare except for the mattress and the covers for it.

"Make yourself at home, on the left side of course. Someone will come and get you in a few minutes to show you the way to the kitchen," and Melanie left to let me get settled. I folded my damp clothes and put them at the head of the mattress. I sat down on the bed and laid back on it to relax for a moment.

This place was wonderful after the last six years. Here I am at sixteen and I finally had a place to call a home.

Someone was knocking on my door only after a few minutes. I got up, made sure my new red tank top was covering everything and that my new shorts weren't scrunched up. I pulled the door back and blushed.

Jamie was smiling at me on the other side. "Hi, are you ready?" he asked. My mouth went dry and it felt like my throat had closed up. I just nodded and followed him as he started down the cave hallway.

He swung his arms as he walked and kept grinning. I'd glance over at him every once in a while, blushing.

"So, don't you think this place is awesome? We've expanded the place since we keep running out of room since I arrived but it's roomier like this," Jamie said. He named off who's rooms were who's as we passed them until we were back in the large room. "And this way is the kitchen."

Around thirty people were gathered in the kitchen already. A few people stared when I passed them but most didn't seem interested that someone else had joined their community. Jamie helped me get my food and led me over to a table where is sister and Jared were already eating at.

Wanda, Ian, Kyle, Sunny (the other soul), and Lily joined us while we ate. Everyone laughed and joked around with each other. I stayed quiet and enjoyed the company that I had while I munched on my food.

This was the paradise for humans….and a few souls I suppose.