I stared up at the bright lights in confusion, white spots appearing in the corners of my vision and obscuring all else but the ignition up above. My head was pounding in the background, a dull ache spread through my limbs, and I couldn't, for the life of me, understand where I was.

I fumbled to get up, my hands grasping at the edge of whatever it was I was laid out on, and a sharp yelp filled the air as pain shot through my leg. Whatever had happened, I couldn't move my leg an inch, and I couldn't begin to think about getting up. Biting my tongue through the pain, tears stung my eyes as I struggled to sit up.

"How are you feeling?" It was a woman, the voice coming from behind me, and the question seemed endlessly ridiculous. Could she not see my feeble attempts at righting myself. As she came into view, though, I could see the worry in her eyes.

"Not good," I gasped out, shocked at the pain even speaking caused. What had happened to me to make every single millimeter of my body set on this hot, burning fire?

She reached around for a small white box and peered inside hopefully as she opened it, revealing two small white pills. She handed them over to me, my outstretched hands desperate for any kind of relief.

I took a second to look at her as she handed over a glass of water as well, and I gulped it down greedily. Clean, fresh water. How unusual.

She was pretty, with soft, gentle brown eyes to match her chocolate waves and an exceedingly kind smile, making her look trustworthy. How was I to know? I hadn't exactly been the greatest judge of character as of late.

Throwing her a cautiously hopeful look, though I knew suspicion still guarded my eyes, I asked, "Where am I?"

She bit her lip, gazing down at my leg, which I could see was covered in brittle-looking bandages. "Outside of Boston, in an old high school," she replied, still hovering over me. "May I?" She gestured toward my leg, asking permission, though she'd already done some work by the looks of it.

I nodded slowly, my stare placed down at my wound as she carefully unwrapped the dressing and began cleaning it out, pouring alcohol right onto the cut. After letting out a little whimper, I managed to force out, "How did I get here?"

Her eyes widened, her fingers still for a moment. "Don't you remember?" She asked, her shoulders sagging a little bit. "You collapsed in front of the school."

I shook my head, the gears turning as I tried to recall what had happened to me recently…I could remember, up until…well, I certainly had a vivid recollection of getting hurt, but not much after. "I can't remember what happened after I got hurt, or how I traveled here."

She nodded calmly, returning to the injury. She prodded at it softly, causing me to wince at every touch, and she smiled at me apologetically. "Partial memory loss and confusion can sometimes occur without correct nutrition. Of course, if it was a traumatic experience, you could be repressing it…" She mused, getting lost in thought for a moment. "How long has it been since you've eaten?"

I thought about it, thought back to when I wasn't so clearly alone. "Maybe a week? A week and a half?"

She nodded, understanding flitting across her features. "As long as you don't become dehydrated, you can go extended amounts of time without food. I'm Dr. Anne Glass, by the way." She cleaned off her hands after wrapping up my leg again, and reached her hand out to me.

I shook it cautiously, mumbling, "Audria Myland." Now that the pain relievers were starting to take effect, and she wasn't poking around my wound anymore, I was starting to think more clearly. Without the pain in the forefront of my mind, I could contemplate more pressing matters.

"How many are left?" I whispered, terrified of what the answer might be. How long had I been out? How long had it been since I'd seen other humans?

"Humans?" She asked, surprise lighting her eyes, and then the reality settling in to darken them once more. "It's hard to say. Most of the population was wiped out," she replied softly. "There are three hundred of us here. We call ourselves the Second Massachusetts."

Three hundred? Was that all they'd made contact with? There were millions of aliens invading our home and only three hundred humans to fight back. If that didn't signify the end of our struggle, I didn't know what did. Perhaps when we were all dead and lying cold on a battlefield somewhere.

Anne must have heard my sharp intake of breath, because she continued on in that same soft and careful voice, "I know it might be overwhelming for you at first. Hal Mason, one of our scouts, can tell you more once you feel up to it. Speaking of Hal…" She glanced near the doorway of what I now understood was some sort of hospital.

There was an older teenager leaning against the frame of the door, staring at us warily. His lips curved up just slightly when he saw me, but the small smile was gone in a matter of seconds. "Ben's still in pain. It's like a headache or something, but I don't know how to stop it."

Anne was silent for a moment, pondering what the boy had said, and then spoke slowly, "Send him in here. I'm not sure pain medication will help him, but it's worth a try, I suppose." She motioned toward me, "I used up some of my last meds on her, but she could always use some company."

Hal nodded quickly, and then continued on in a rushed voice, "We need to make a plan to leave, too. After Weaver came back…and the news about my dad…I don't think…" He paused for a moment, seeming to put his thoughts in order. "We need to get away from the school. They know where we are."

The older woman seemed ready to protest this, but closed her mouth after a second, and I could see tears welling up in her eyes. She closed them for a second, and then said in a steady voice, "Audria won't be able to move for at least another day or two. If someone's willing to carry her…"

Before Anne could continue, I shot her a dark look, shifting my leg a bit as if to prove a point. "I'm capable of moving myself, thank you," I said, with some difficulty.

She looked at me sympathetically. "A few days and you'll be fine to walk by yourself, yes, but…" She turned to Hal again, and spoke to him, "Someone will have to at least support some of her weight until then."

I made an annoyed sound at the back of my throat, never having been one for charity. If I couldn't do it myself, then it wasn't meant to be done. I looked back at Hal for his reaction to see that he was smirking. He shook his head at me, and I snapped, "What?"

He bit his lip, a small smile once again gracing his lips, and said, "You're independent, that's a good thing." I grinned in triumph until he continued, "But…it's been hard for all of us, at least let me help you just this once."

I shook my head stubbornly. "I've had to fight for myself by myself and that's not going to change. I'm not chancing my survival by letting someone help me. You should leave without me as a burden."

"Right," he scoffed, turning to exit the clinic. "My father just got on board with the aliens, and he wanted me to let him go on his own too. I can't let that happen to someone again, so you need to let me help you."

I sighed noisily, though I was touched by the departure of his father. If he'd gone through something hard, maybe he could understand that I didn't need the help. Instead of voicing this opinion, I just said shortly, "Fine."

He grinned at my snappish response and turned to Anne once more. "Should I send Ben in?"

"Yes, I suppose," Anne sighed, clearly affected by the mention of Hal's father. "I have a few things to do if we're leaving soon, but just tell him to take a seat and I'll be back in a few minutes."

Hal nodded his consent at this, and then turned to look at me more seriously than he had before, contemplating something before he said, in a pleading voice that I could tell was unusual for him, "Audria?"

I stared him right in the eye and waited for him to continue on with whatever it was he needed to say.

"Give Ben a chance."

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion at this. Toward strangers, I'd like to think I'd never been judgmental, except perhaps after this invasion began. But a teenager? I wouldn't expect anything dangerous from him. "Why would I?" I asked, bewildered.

Hal seemed hesitant as he said, "He's just…" He struggled for the right word, shaking his head slightly, finally settling on, "Different."

I shot Anne a questioning look at this, but she just gave me a small, but warm smile and said, "You'll see."

The two people walked out the doors of makeshift hospital leaving me to wonder what in the world they could've meant by their words.