"Hey! Are you alright?"
The old man's voice sliced through the air. Jonas looked up from Gabe, to see the old man, dressed in a thick blue coat and red hat running towards him.
"What the hell are you doing out here!?"
Jonas gazed at him, mesmerized. Had he found his way to another community? No..he wasn't dressed like that. Was this Elsewhere?
"Well, speak up!"
Jonas snapped back to reality.
"Aah..Hello."
He had no idea what to say. How was he to know if this man knew anything about his community? The community seemed so far away now that Jonas wasn't even sure it existed. The only reminder of it was his clothes, which the man had now noticed.
"Wait a second..you're..you're one of them, aren't you!?"
Jonas was shocked. One of them? He apparently knew about the communities.
"I guess I should take you into town, then. Come on, follow me."
Jonas, with the aid of the old man got to his feet. The two of them began to tredge through the heavy snow.
"I wonder what he'll do to me?" Jonas thought. He didn't know what these people, the ones from Elsewhere, did to strangers. They could be savages, who knows? One thing he knew, was that he was relieved just to have seen a person. As much as he loved Gabrielle, he hadn't been much to talk to for the whole trip.
The two of them walked maybe 300 feet, until they reached the old man's beat up blue truck. Jonas gazed up and down it's torn, beat up rusted edges. This vehicle came as a shock to him, he was used to the shiny brown delivery trucks back at the community.
"Get in." The old man called in his rough, crackly voice.
Jonas did as instructed, swinging open the door and entering the blue leather interior. The first thing he noticed was the smell. It was awful, as if this thing had been through many many years of use. The old man turned the key to the ignition, and the truck sputtered to life. The old man slowly pressed down on the gas pedal, and it inched forward, through the snow, until it eventually hit the road.
"So," the old man broke the silence. "Whats your name?"
"Jonas."
"Grand. My name is James. And what about the kid? What is his name?"
"His name is Gabe."
"He your brother?"
Jonas didn't know what to say. Jonas knew that he obviously wasn't, but he loved him like he was.
"No, not really."
"Oh..alright."
The truck was heading up a very large hill. The snow had begun to fall again, thicker than before. Jonas stared up at the murky gray sky. It was strange. Even for how long he'd been out of the community, he was still amazed by the sky. He was used to the normal blue, sunny weather back home. He also found it weird how he referred to the community as home. It obviously was his home, but he hated in a way that no one should hate their birth place.
Jonas' thoughts now wandered to the people at his home, if you can call it that. He thought about Fiona. Had she heard the news? Had she recieved any of the emotions Jonas had released? What about Lily? Or his mother and father? He hoped that he had given Lily a memory of an elephant, but not the one of an elephant being poached. He figured she would be quite intrigued by knowing that animals do actually exist. He also thought of The Giver. Was he thinking of Jonas now, too? Was the community changing? Jonas was dieing too know.
The truck pulled over the hill. Jonas looked down from the sky, which he had been staring at this whole time. The scene which greeted him shocked him. He saw a town in absolute ruins. Mounds of rubble lie everywhere, some buidling were still have standing. A sign a rusted green sign hanging over the road read "Welcome to Milan. Population, 20,000"
"Home sweet home" said James, the old man. He sped up slightly.
Within moments Jonas and James had reached the inside of the city. He saw a giant fire burning in the very center of an intersection, surrounded on all sides by half standing buildings. Jonas also saw a plethora of scraggily clothed people. At some places around the fire sat some tarps, standing up on trees. Underneath these sat more people. To Jonas' right, he saw a man sitting with an instrument he recongized to be a guitar. Although Jonas could not hear what was coming from it, he knew that it was used to produce music. He was estatic to hear it.
James pulled the truck up, maybe 50 feet from the fire, and turned it off.
"Alright, we're here. Get it out."
Jonas opened the door and stepped down onto the ground.
He knew things would never be the same again.
The old man's voice sliced through the air. Jonas looked up from Gabe, to see the old man, dressed in a thick blue coat and red hat running towards him.
"What the hell are you doing out here!?"
Jonas gazed at him, mesmerized. Had he found his way to another community? No..he wasn't dressed like that. Was this Elsewhere?
"Well, speak up!"
Jonas snapped back to reality.
"Aah..Hello."
He had no idea what to say. How was he to know if this man knew anything about his community? The community seemed so far away now that Jonas wasn't even sure it existed. The only reminder of it was his clothes, which the man had now noticed.
"Wait a second..you're..you're one of them, aren't you!?"
Jonas was shocked. One of them? He apparently knew about the communities.
"I guess I should take you into town, then. Come on, follow me."
Jonas, with the aid of the old man got to his feet. The two of them began to tredge through the heavy snow.
"I wonder what he'll do to me?" Jonas thought. He didn't know what these people, the ones from Elsewhere, did to strangers. They could be savages, who knows? One thing he knew, was that he was relieved just to have seen a person. As much as he loved Gabrielle, he hadn't been much to talk to for the whole trip.
The two of them walked maybe 300 feet, until they reached the old man's beat up blue truck. Jonas gazed up and down it's torn, beat up rusted edges. This vehicle came as a shock to him, he was used to the shiny brown delivery trucks back at the community.
"Get in." The old man called in his rough, crackly voice.
Jonas did as instructed, swinging open the door and entering the blue leather interior. The first thing he noticed was the smell. It was awful, as if this thing had been through many many years of use. The old man turned the key to the ignition, and the truck sputtered to life. The old man slowly pressed down on the gas pedal, and it inched forward, through the snow, until it eventually hit the road.
"So," the old man broke the silence. "Whats your name?"
"Jonas."
"Grand. My name is James. And what about the kid? What is his name?"
"His name is Gabe."
"He your brother?"
Jonas didn't know what to say. Jonas knew that he obviously wasn't, but he loved him like he was.
"No, not really."
"Oh..alright."
The truck was heading up a very large hill. The snow had begun to fall again, thicker than before. Jonas stared up at the murky gray sky. It was strange. Even for how long he'd been out of the community, he was still amazed by the sky. He was used to the normal blue, sunny weather back home. He also found it weird how he referred to the community as home. It obviously was his home, but he hated in a way that no one should hate their birth place.
Jonas' thoughts now wandered to the people at his home, if you can call it that. He thought about Fiona. Had she heard the news? Had she recieved any of the emotions Jonas had released? What about Lily? Or his mother and father? He hoped that he had given Lily a memory of an elephant, but not the one of an elephant being poached. He figured she would be quite intrigued by knowing that animals do actually exist. He also thought of The Giver. Was he thinking of Jonas now, too? Was the community changing? Jonas was dieing too know.
The truck pulled over the hill. Jonas looked down from the sky, which he had been staring at this whole time. The scene which greeted him shocked him. He saw a town in absolute ruins. Mounds of rubble lie everywhere, some buidling were still have standing. A sign a rusted green sign hanging over the road read "Welcome to Milan. Population, 20,000"
"Home sweet home" said James, the old man. He sped up slightly.
Within moments Jonas and James had reached the inside of the city. He saw a giant fire burning in the very center of an intersection, surrounded on all sides by half standing buildings. Jonas also saw a plethora of scraggily clothed people. At some places around the fire sat some tarps, standing up on trees. Underneath these sat more people. To Jonas' right, he saw a man sitting with an instrument he recongized to be a guitar. Although Jonas could not hear what was coming from it, he knew that it was used to produce music. He was estatic to hear it.
James pulled the truck up, maybe 50 feet from the fire, and turned it off.
"Alright, we're here. Get it out."
Jonas opened the door and stepped down onto the ground.
He knew things would never be the same again.