It is awkward at home. There is an unfamiliar sense of civilization surrounding them, almost choking them after the time spent like savages on the island. Things are too reformed here, and Ralph chuckles with grim irony at the situation. How odd, that the entire time they were on the island (the wretched island), they were longing for the strict rules and behaviors of civilization, yet now that he has it…he doesn't want it.
Everything is bounded in steel and plastic and wrapped in the heavy dark pollution of a thousand (million) dying factories. The smoke infiltrates his lungs, sears them with oil and dirt and grit and makes his eyes water, his mouth go dry. He thinks back to the wilderness of the island and almost misses the clean air. Almost.
He looks sideways at Jack and quickly averts his gaze. Dressed in civil clothing, hair combed and cut to a respectable length, bathed and washed, no longer painted with mud and blood and clay. The change in their appearances almost makes him forget what had happened on the island. Then he scans their small group and the number comes short. No, no, he remembers, surreal as the memory now seemed, he remembers, will always remember.
It is even worse meeting their parents. On the helicopter that had rescued them, there was only the initial shock of being led away from the island, away from savagery, that had numbed them all into silence. It had seemed like a dream, a great, beautiful, terrible dream that whisked them up in the moment and spun them around and around until they were too dizzy to think straight.
Not like now. Because now he can think straight, he can see in his own eyes when he looks in the mirror what has become of him (them). He can see the shocked looks on his parents' faces, looks of horror and bewilderment that mirror those on the other parents' faces.
He tries to give a grin and fails. Instead, he mimics Jack's antics and stares at the floor, twisting the cloth of his pants with his hands inside the pockets. He wants to break the silence but doesn't dare. Neither of them speaks, and Ralph is waiting for Jack to start but the other doesn't.
Finally, they both launch in at the same time, because the silence is stifling and they want nothing more than to just get this whole ordeal over with.
"I –" Ralph starts, but is interrupted.
"We---" Jack cuts in suddenly, then stops.
There's another awful moment of complete silence and they are both looking at each other as if to urging the other to go first. Ralph does, because he is (was) chief and because he wants to get his side of the story out before anyone else.
"The plane crashed. And…and we were stranded and the captain was injured so we…we…" he doesn't know how to continue.
"So we picked a chief," Jack adds, and Ralph is taken aback at his tone, because it is normal and devoid of hate and anger and it doesn't sound like the Jack he knew (feared) on the island.
Ralph starts again, this time smoother. "And we made huts and had fire and food."
"It was a good island," Jack insists with conviction; the same kind of conviction that Ralph had had when they had first arrived on the island (because they were going to have fun and be civilized and be rescued).
Ralph nods fiercely in agreement. Yes, yes, it was a good island and none of the horrible accidents happened. Accidents made by children, because children made accidents and they couldn't tell their parents the truth, they just couldn't. Don't know why, don't know what force made them keep the secret from the ones that gave them life, only that it was something gruesome and dark and not suited for the light of society (and it was to be something that remained between survivors only).
"We were playing, and we just got caught up in the moment."
"Nothing bad happened," Ralph (tries to) reassure the grownups. "But we were scared because there were no grownups," and he starts playing the part of the frightened child, torn from civilization, because that's what adults want and what they will believe.
Jack goes along and not long after, they have the whole story told, carefully editing out parts they didn't want to bring to light.
Ralph feels both horrible and relieved when it's over. He shares a solemn glance with Jack and they both nod silently. Skeletons in the closet, and in the closet they will (have to) remain.
-Fin.-
I wrote this for English 11. It's a sort of epilogue, based on the movie. Ehh...I'm not really good at writing fanfics for novels, especially Lord of the Flies. Expect a 20 Prompt Challenge fic for LOTF soon. I'm trying out a new style of writing...I think I like it. Review please, and tell me what you think. ^^ Thank you for reading!