Authors Note:
Thanks for all the reads and reviews for my first chapter! I hope I'll be able to do this thing successfully!
Again, there's just so much I want to get in through Jason's eyes, because there's so much that he's doing off screen that we miss and I'm sure we want to see. Because hot dang that boy is attractive.
Trust Comes Easily to Some
Chapter 2
Following Charlie was not as easy as Jason thought it was going to be. She managed to get her companions packed and off in a matter of seconds. Soon, he found himself wandering in the woods alone, trying to find them with no luck.
"They can't possibly have gotten that far away," Jason said to himself, readjusting the straps of his pack. He followed what he hoped was their trail and not a deer's through the forest but Jason couldn't hear or see any sign of Charlie or her friends.
Soon, the sunset was filtering through the trees, the last rays of sunlight streaking between leaves and the sounds of animals getting ready for the night echoed through the forest. Finally, Jason reached the edge of the trees and looked out into a meadow. There were several fallen airplanes from before the blackout, covered in vines and dirt, nature having retaken the land.
The week after the blackout was one Jason would never forget. His friend, whose name Jason had given to Charlie and he were exploring through abandoned homes one day, a mile or so away from their homes when they came upon a fallen plane. Twisted metal parts and whole chunks of the plane were strewn across the park they had often played in. The air smelled like fire and chemicals, and there was a sick, rotting smell underneath. Jason and Nate were so young, so curious. They picked away through the debris towards the remainder of the plane, and crawled inside.
The stench was so strong that Jason had thrown up as soon as he was inside the plane, but Nate held off. He crawled further in, trying not to touch any of the bodies and sat in one of the seats and just looked at them. Nate didn't say a word, didn't make another move, he just looked at them and cried.
Some had burn marks all over, some he could see had bones sticking out from their skin. Others had limbs tangled in wrong directions. All of them were dead.
Jason had never felt more afraid, the consequences of the blackout hitting his young mind and forcing him to grow up, as his father wished. Fifteen years later and Jason still couldn't look at a plane without feeling sick, without the echoing smell of death filling his nostrils.
This plane was no different and Jason shuddered to think that somewhere in the abandoned air field, Charlie and company were probably making camp. Jason climbed the rusty chain-link fence, landing with a muffled thud and ran across the clearing, keeping low the ground. Night had completely fallen by this time, the moon the only source of light. Jason had hoped that Charlie's group would have lit a fire or something by which he could find them faster. But Charlie's not stupid, she'd know better than to build a fire, something which could draw unwanted attention to her, Fatso, and Blondie.
Voices cutting across the night air across the field, forced Jason to dive for cover behind a large crate. Three men were climbing into one of the planes. Their voices were sharp and stupidly confident, laughing too loudly and raucously. But they quieted, and he could hear their low tones from inside the plane. Jason pulled his recurve from around his shoulders and notching an arrow in case he needed to defend himself.
A woman's cry made Jason jump to his feet. The men were shouting and Jason could hear two women yelling in fear. One of the doors was open and two dark forms were struggling in the moonlight. He could see Charlie pressed up against the wall, fighting for her life as the man touched her, trying to under her belt.
NO! Jason pulled the arrow past his ear and released, the arrow into the man's back and through his chest. The man dropped to the floor, choking on his final breath. Charlie looked out into the night at him breathing heavily, fear in her eyes. He lowered his bow, his jaw clenched and his heart pounding.
"Charlie! Charlie, are you alright!?" Her companion grabbed her, checking for injuries, while the other checked to see if the man was dead. Charlie was still watching Jason as she jumped down on the grass, walking slowly towards him.
Jason tensed, She knows I'm following her. What will she think? She looked so frightened, Jason wanted to go to her and tell her that everything was okay now, that he was there to protect her. He didn't say anything, however, his jaw still flexed tightly shut as she approached, stopping just a few feet away from him.
She smiled a sad little smile, still too terrified and shocked to do anything else. "I guess you were right, Nate."
"What?" he asked, still tense and unsure what to do now. He was surprised she remembered the name he had given her.
"We did meet again." Her smile was rueful, but it was still a smile, so she wasn't going into shock
"I have to admit I didn't think it was going to be so soon, though." Jason said, shouldering his bow.
Her companions had climbed down and were standing behind Charlie. The older blond woman was glaring at him, having the good sense to still be suspicious of him, while the bearded guy still looked upset, looking everywhere for another threat.
"Aaron, Maggie" Charlie said, calling to her friends behind her. "This is Nate. I met him earlier today when I was getting water." Jason put out his hand, but Maggie ignored it, fingering a knife at her hip.
"Thanks for helping out, man." Aaron said, taking his hand and shaking it vigorously. "We really needed it." Maggie clenched her jaw and Jason realized that he hadn't seen the other two attackers.
"What happened to the other guys?" He asked, looking back at the plane.
"I took care of them." Maggie said, raising her eyebrow in challenge, which Jason took to mean "like I'll take care of you if you try anything." She eyed him a moment longer before saying they'd better make camp somewhere for the night and walked off. Aaron sighed and heaved his pack back up on his shoulders and followed her, leaving Jason and Charlie still standing there.
Charlie looked up at him through her eyelashes, "Really though. Thank you."
He smiled and dipped his head forward, looking deep into her eyes. "You're welcome."
A/N- So I feel like I'm having a hard time getting his emotions up and out. If anyone has any advice or edits, I'd welcome it, but if it is a full edit, pm me instead of reviewing, so I can at least pretend to keep some face!
But if you liked it and feel it doesn't need much help, please review and tell me what you're looking forward to! Thanks so much for your messages!
