Me and viola lay side by side on the blanket with her head resting on my shoulder and the other half of the blanket we once sat on folded over us. Violas casually playing with my hand, twisting her fingers in and around mine in a calming way, her breathing even against my bare arm. i play with her hair with her hand she isnt occupying and watch the last of the sun go down behind the water. i let my mind wonder to the time we just spent together and the kind of closeness we shared and how id give anything to feel that way again, with viola and viola only. maybe we're wrong to do such things together. i dont even think we're old enough. not that new world really focus' on ages and limits but i know most of the settlers do and that its likely theyll 'frown upon it' as viola would say. it still doesnt stop it from being amazing. i feel viola smile, from obviously reading my noise, and she turns to press a small kiss on my shoulder.
"todd, that was..." she starts but i can tell she doesnt know how to finish.
"yeah i know" i say back shifting my head so its resting on hers. "i wish we could just stay here"
"you have no idea how much i wish that was possible" viola says sitting up on one elbow and wrapping the blanket around her. she looks down at me with her small smile, her hair no longer in its pulled back style she usually wears it in but hanging in waves at the sides of her head and very ruffled. although im expecting mine to look pretty much the same. i reach up and took her hair behind her ear but i also end up resting my hand on her soft check where she places her hand on top and turns into slightly almost as if for comfort and closes her eyes.
"happy birthday todd" she sighs rubbing her thumb across my knuckles.
"fifteen" i whistle and she opens her eyes smiling again.
"how manly" she says taking hold of my hand and placing it on my chest. "but, unfortunately, manly men are needed in the world". After double checking theres no one around she quickly gets up and colloects her clothes that are scattered around on the floor. i sit up and rub my eyes picking up my underwear and slipping them on just as viola does. as im pulling on my top i hear a spot of noise and immediately jump up next to viola, consciously grabbing something she can over herself with. it gets cloer quickly and viola hear it too, stoppong the search for her clothes.
"viola? todd?" i hear yelled far too close and i know its Bradley, based on his noise and his voice.
"Bradley!"viola says suprised and starts looking for her clothes alot quicker, gesturing for me to do the same. i have a feeling bradley wouldnt be too happy if he found out about me and viola so i try to cover it as best i can in my noise which is hard.
"viola" bradley says just a few trees away now and making his way towards us as i pull my jeans on but violas still looking frantically round for her top. "what the hell have you been doing out here?"
"well we're...just...i um... close your eyes" she says just as he steps out from a tree, his eyes already closed tight shut. i cant see her top anywhere so i slip mine off and hand it to her, my eyes lingering on her scar for just a second but its enough the bring the memories rushing back, which i use to cover up the past few hours. viola shoots me a grateful look and pulls it over her head as it falls to just below her bum.
"okay, you can... um" she says trying to flatten her hair down and bradley opens his eyes looking at us cautiously.
"whats going on here?" he asks taking in my now toplessness and viola wearing my top and her messy hair. Viola smiles a nervous smile and i try to focus on anything and everything around us, from the very note of each birds song to the tiniest twig on the floor.
"we, er, went swimming" she says, obviously trying to think of a reason for why we had to get dressed.
"swimming?" he says slightly unconvinced.
"yeah todd has been teaching me" she says glancing my way and i try to come up with pictures of me and viola swimming, me teaching her the basics ben taught me as a child, letting those memories come through willingly as more cover. it seems to convince bradley, who just nods.
"well youll have to show me one time" he says and violas lips curl trying not to give anything away herself. "ben sent me to come get you. said you have to sort yourselves out for tonight"
"tonight?" i ask looking at viola bitting her lip.
"id forgotten about tonight" she says she says looking slightly guiltly and i know why. we would hav spent all night here if we could have and missed what ever it is thats happening tonight.
"yes well you better get a move on then" bradley says surpressing a laugh. viola grabs the blanket and i grab the basket, throwing all our rubbish into it, then following viola and bradley out of the woods. me and viola dont talk the whole way back in fear of giving something away but i can tell by the look on her face that shes trying not to smile, and keeps turning her lips in to stop her from laughing.
apprently the thing tonight is an announcement made but bradley and the sky, another way to show our unity. personally i couldnt care less about what he has to say, no offence to him, i just want to spend some more time with Viola. she seems to want to go though, its really one of the only times she gets to see the majority of the people she grew up with, which i understand. me and Viola walks side by side into the square where many have already gathered, laughing and dinking things to lift the spirits. Ben walks with us but something requires his attention almost immediatly leaving just us walking into the crowd. we dont talk much as im still focusing on keeping my noise free og he time we spent together as im not sure many people would be too happy to hear or ee anything to do with it. we see lee and make our way over to him, viola taking his arm to let him know we are here. thank fully he can see through everyone elses noise so he doesnt need any help from mine.
"hi lee" viola says with a smile and even though he cant see her he begins to think about how beautiful she is, which makes her involantaryly rise up in my noise. i know viola notices as her cheeks turn a soft shade of red and she looks down, and my noise folds in on itself once more befre i reveal anything i dont want to. lee has a confused look on his face but lets the matter slide, still thinking of her.
"why are we here?" he asks making things feel less awkward.
"i dont know, neither Bradley or Ben would tell us" viola answers looking around for either of them.
"they say its some kind of announcement" i say shurgging also looking up to the make-shift stage just as bradley and the sky walk out.
"if i may have your attention" bradley speaks into the microphone casing his vioce to echo across the square. the sky uses his noise to communicate with the spackle who have congrigated on the outside of the crowd, still looking weary to come too close to us. the noise dies down and all eyes are on bradley as he finally tells us what weve been waiting to know.
"at the last counsil meeting we came upon a decision" he says and me and viola look at each other confused.
"this afternoon" she says remembering "i totally loast track of time"
"doing what?" lee asks but neither of us answer as bradley starts talking again.
"we decided that our town is begining to get a litle too crowded. so, starting in a few months time we think we should all start to migrate outwards and join the previous settlements along the way, as well as starting new ones. men and spackle alike, living peacefully together." he explains and me and viola look at each other again, but this time with a similar worried expression. "parties of every able bodied men will go out to prepare for this as soon as possible, before we begin the full migration. the will determine which settlements are safe and functional and which ones are not. the trips out will be a maxium of two months away so think carefully. if as many able bodied men as possible can come to the town hall to sign up to the job with in a weeks time, we can get this up and running as fast as possible. thank you"
"well ill definetly go" lee says and viola looks down.
"lee youre not able bodied..."
"well tecnically i am" he says with a slight note of sarcasm in his noise.
"you know thats not what i mean. weve been out there, seen and heard somethings that shouldnt be there in a time of war, that could still be there now. it wouldnt be safe for you to go, no way" viola says shaking her head violently. shes right, there were some crazy things out there, things such as poverty and settlements which arent exactly too sane, things we saw on our way to save one another.
"what makes you think you have a say in it?" he asks joking but viola just sighs and shakes her head once more.
"im going to go say hi to a few people" viola says to me with a small forced smile and i just nod letting her know i dont mind at she smiles back for real. she walksof into the crowd of people and straight towards a fairly large group of people about our age who im guessin were her friends from the ship. me and lee watch her go until shes put of sight then lee turn to me, or more directs his noise to me.
"shes really not going to let me go is she" he says almost laughing but with a serious note.
"shes right lee there you dont know what could be out there. especially now" i say trying to avoid what i know is coming.
"are you going?" he asks half curious, half picking.
"ill have to" i say sighing and looking down. "how will it look if i dont?"
"yeah our very own saviour not joining the men on the dangerous journey to further better mankind" he says with a touch of sarcasm. alothough, hes not wrong. "well good luck trying to persuade Viola into thinking thats a good idea. if she didnt want me going, she definitely wouldn't want you going"
"lee..." i start saying because i know where hes heading with this but he cuts me off.
"youre lucky you know. to have someone love you as much as she does" he says and i cant help but feel guilty about considering going on this trip .
"she loves you too lee" i say to him becuase its all i can think to say and i know its true.
"not like that" he says with a little laugh as we both look over to viola looking back at me and not lee, smiling as she dances with her fiends to the music thats started playing thorugh the speakers, music ive never heard of as always. i dont really know how to reply so i dont and again we both just stand watching Viola look so care free and relaxed. i smile at her and her smile just broadens then she laughs at something her friend says in her ear. i noticer her say something back then she sarts making er way back through the crowd to us.
"im going to go talk to some of the settlers" lee says and walks off before i can even say anything and just a viola reaches us. she looks at him confused for a moment but refrains from saying anything.
"i think we should go home its getting quite late"
"are you sure? you looked like you were having fun" i say
"i was but id just much prefer to go to bed like usual" she says sighing and i nod as we make our way back home in silence.
"viola i..." i start as we walk through the door and viola carries on walking straight into the kitchen, not stopping as she cuts me off.
"Todd i know what you're going to say" she says and i follow her, where she stands leaning against the island in the middle of the kitchen. "i cant stop you from going"
"if you seriously didnt want me to do it then i wouldnt" i say making my way to her and leaning on the bar too.
"no go"she sighs looking at me and i know she means it "it makes sense for you to go, i know that"
"ill be okay" i try to say reassuringly but my noise shows something different.
"two months is a long time todd" she says looking to the ground.
"it doesnt matter" i say taking her upper arms and turning her towards me. "i ain't ever leaving you remember? not even in my head"
"i know" she says smiling. she reaches up and kisses me gently and of course i kiss her back, something which is becoming a lot more common for us and less surprising but still has the same effect on me. it doesnt last long however as we hear the door open and we both jump back just as ben also wlaks into the kitchen. we both stand there slightly awkwardly, viola biting her lip and looking to the ground trying not to laugh again and me trying to clear my noise.
"you two alright here?" he asks with a small smirk.
"yep" viola answers running a hand throuh her hair and ben just nods slowly, letting the seconds go by in awkwardness.
"well im, er, going to go to bed" i say nodding to bed then walking out.
"yeah me too" i hear viola say and she follows me out quickly. i hear ben laugh in the kitchen and his noise fills with us two and what just happened. i hear viola start to laugh too which also makes me laugh slightly.