Fifteen ✔

14

I sat still, thinking about what I was about to do. Invade the Westerners, take down the leader, then become a leader. Why had I signed up for this?

I watched as people left the room, leaving the room empty with the exception of Nadia, Nirav, Ivris and I.

Ivris stood up and approached me on my spot between Nadia and Nirav. Nirav placed his legs over my lap and Nadia place an arm over my shoulder as Ivris neared.

"Koni. Will you listen to me? Please?"

"Why?"

"Because you are my friend. Back in the woods, that argument, I'm sorry. I wanted to apologize for being so defensive over you, but I remembered the battle and I felt I had to apologize for that. You're not just a pawn in a mission, Nida, I don't just need you for this plan to work. I need you because you're my friend too."

"Tell me exactly what you're thinking," I knew I was being irrationally angry. But in my defense, I felt I was right. I couldn't tell if it was my actual emotions or simply because I was a teenager. Whatever it was, I hated it.

"I think you're my best friend. I don't have all that many friends because I spend all my time with the adults or fighting. And I've dedicated so much of myself to you already, and you saved my life today."

"You would've done the same if you were in my shoes."

She slowly dropped to her knees and took my hand in hers, "Koni, I'm sorry. You hit me and I still want to apologize for every little thing I did wrong. What can I do to make you forgive me?"

I sat silent for a moment, "Nothing."

She looked dumbfounded, "Nida there has to be something."

"There's not."

"Koni, I'm sorry."

"If I say that I'll think about it, will you stop pestering me about it?"

"Yes."

"Now let me up," I said to the twins. They each moved off without a second thought.

I moved out of the room quicker than I thought possible and ran outside. I ran around the building twice before running into the woods. When I was in the woods I looked around for the easiest tree to climb and walked up to it.

I jumped up and grabbed the branch that was only a little bit out of my reach. I pulled my self up, using the tree as leverage to pull my body onto the branch so that I was sitting atop the branch.

I grabbed a nearby branch and pulled myself to my feet in order to reach a higher branch to stand on while I looked for more branches. I pulled myself up 3 branches before I was interrupted.

"Konida, it's been hours. Well it's been an hour, but still. It's dinner time, come down," A voice sounded from the base of the tree, causing me to nearly lose my balance.

"Shut up."

"Don't be hostile towards me, Koni."

"No, shut up so I can concentrate on getting down, you dimwit."

I slowly eased my way down, branch by branch. I could feel the small splinters pricking into my skin. The wood burying itself a new home in my hand. I could have cared less about the splinters, I cared about getting down and not falling out of the tree.

      I reached the final branch and lowered myself before dropping to the ground. I landed on my feet but nearly tipped over. My companion moved and put his arms behind me as though I were actually going to fall.

     "I'm fine," I said and moved to lean against the tree I had just climbed out of.

     "I wanted to thank you," he smiled a small and caring smile, "For comforting me earlier."

     "It's nothing, Nirav," I said calmly.

     "I also want to return the favor. Can we just talk about why you're so angry at Ivris?"

     "No," my voice came out colder than I had expected, "I do not want to talk about it."

     "Why?"

     "Because Ivris was really my first friend and after that argument I don't have a clue what to think. I never learned how to trust."

     "If I hadn't of had Nadia, I wouldn't have learned how to trust either. I wouldn't have had any friends either."

     "I just want to find my dad," I said truthfully as I stared at the ground, "That's the only reason I agreed to do this. I just want to find my dad. I don't care about this whole war, I care about the man who helped create me."

     "So you don't care about me, or Nadia, or Ivris?"

     "I didn't when I was being dragged into this. It's different now."

     "Isn't that what Ivris said to you? Just in different context?"

     "How do you know what she said to me?"

     "She told Nadia and I everything."

     "Of course she did," I grimaced, "Does she ever keep her mouth shut? This is problem belongs to her and I, she shouldn't have brought you two in."

     I brushed passed him as I went to leave, but he had different ideas. He grabbed my arm and rooted me back into my previous place.

     "You aren't leaving until you tell me why you're so angry. I'm already tired of Ivris complaining to me and Nadia about this," he breathed a deep nature filled breath, "Stop being a petulant child and fix this already."

     "It's been a day. She'll get over it. She's over reacting."

     "So are you!" He threw his hands towards the sky out of frustration, "You're acting like you're actually 5 years old. You're fifteen, damn it, act like it."

     "You don't know me, Nirav. This is just how I am."

     He took a frustrated step back with his eyes glued to the ground before throwing his head back to meet the skies gaze with a grunt, "You're worse than Nadia with the damn stubborn attitude. I never thought I'd meet a person like that, but here you are!"

     "What are you saying?"

     "Now you're going to go and turn this into an argument, aren't you?" He met her contemplative gaze, brown met blue in a battle of thought, "I don't understand you women. You're like a whole other species."

     "I wasn't going to turn it into an argument. What were you saying?"

     "Persistent too," he paused to throw his gaze to a nearby tree before returning it back to her, "I was saying you're more stubborn than Nadia. Not everything a guy says is cryptic and requires the Davinci Code to decipher."

      "Okay, cool," I mumbled, "Can I go now? I'm hungry."

     "Oh yes, by all means. You're frustrating me with your stubborness more than Ivris with her complaining."

     I walked away without a second word and went straight to the cafeteria where I grabbed a salad and went straight to an empty table in the centet of the large room.