Soldier Down
The five of us sat silently in the semi-deserted playground. We weren’t talking, there was nothing to talk about. I just sat there watching the others. Scout was kicking a pinecone up and down trying to beat his underwhelming personal best of 7 kickups. Annabella was nestled up against Artur’s chest on the bottom of the rusty old slide as she stared solemnly at the heart-shaped locket that he had given her before everything went to shit. Then there was Kingshark, doing pullups on the monkey bars one after the other as if there was still a point in trying to better ourselves. I admired him for that. For me, that point was long gone. Watching them as I sat on the old swing set, as the metal chains creaked more each time I swung back and forth, I was reminded that even though we were not supposed to be here, we desperately needed to be. Our supervisor would be pissed if she found out we weren’t in our beds, let alone across the Divide. But enough is enough a kid can only take so much arguing and fear. We needed some time in the peace and quiet.
