Flo's pov :

Silence.

Absolute awkward silence.

Minutes passed since Aura stormed out. With tension heavy in the air, no one made a single move to get out of their compartment. Arsen's faint snores were the only thing that was breaking the pin drop silence. This guy can sleep through anything.

We were still shocked from Andy's sudden outburst. Finally,after what seemed like hours,Andy left without a second glance. I let out a breath I didn't realise I was holding in. Zach followed suit and shook Arsen awake. Eyes wild,a bewildered look on his face, Arsen jerked up and Zach grabbed him by the arm and pulled him out, Arsen still very confused. Scarly and I were the last to leave.

We found Zach, Arsen and Andy standing in the almost deserted platform. Aura was on the other side, buying tickets, which confused me. We weren't supposed to leave yet, and we were not gonna take the train. We were supposed to go get our stuff and leave using Cruz.

Scarly and I walked over to where the boys were standing, Andy standing a little far from them. Zach was briefing Arsen on what happened when he was asleep. Scarly was as silent as ever and Andy was playing a game on his phone, smashing his fingers against the screen rather harshly.

"Why's Aura buying tickets?" I ask, the two boys, confused.

"They're here again. With more men than before. We would be lucky if we can get away from them without getting caught" answered Arsen.

"Andy here got a call just before you arrived. Could tell that it was urgent." continued Zach, nudging Andy with his elbows slightly. Andy however never glanced up from his phone.

We were back. Back to the place where we could get killed. Back to the place we once called home. We were back in town. Our plan to sneak in was not going to take place. I was a bit relieved, the danger outweighed our safety and I sure as hell don't want to die until I find my family first.

I sighed inaudibly and leaned against a pole,taking out my diary from my bag. I mindlessly started writing, blocking out the entire world around me and entering my own world of words and music.

WHO I USED TO BE

There once was a time

When my smiles weren't fake

I was allowed to make a mistake

There were no promises to make

There once was a time

When my laughter was real

When I used to share how I feel

There were no truths to conceal

But now is different

The present is conflicting

I'd trade all my tomorrows for one single yesterday

Sometimes I wish I could be who I used to be

The happy girl who thought that she could be free

Who didn't have to fake smiles so no one could see

That she was unhappy '

Sometimes I wish I could be who I used to be

I looked down at the poem and re-read it. I had no idea where this came from. I shut my notebook with a snap just as Aura approached me, her signature blank look back on her face.

"Let's go." she says monotonously and I nod, following her back to where the others were.

She hands me all the tickets, keeping one for herself and marches away,again.

I give all of them their tickets. Andy didn't glance up once, Zach muttered a small thank you, Scarly gave me a tired smile and Arsen mumbled something about motion sickness.

I looked at the small piece of paper in my hand and then glanced over at the others.

Oh man this is going to be one hell of a ride.

Aura's pov : 

It was around 7:30 pm now, and the sun had already set about an hour ago. I stared out the window at the barely visible scenery outside. The train was moving through what seemed like a forest now, the tall trees casting dark shadows through the compartment with flickers of moonlight filtering in every now and then.

The scene was creepy yet calm and proved to be helpful while a thousand different thoughts raced through my mind.

I looked back to the night we sneaked out of our houses, to go meet up in the small clearing in the woods around our town. It was a full moon night, and the whole neighbourhood was lit up with the soft glow cast from the moon. There was a slight chilly breeze and I wrapped my arms around myself tighter, as I walked faster to the clearing.

We had previously agreed to meet up at 12 a.m., and we did. We had a campfire and roasted marshmallows with Scarly's special hot chocolate. There was a comfortable silence around us while we munched away. Arsen shared some stupid scary stories,trying to scare us and only ended up getting laughed at by us. Zach and Flo were there. They were cuddled together,too close for just "friends". Andy nudged me and nodded his head towards them. I smirked while Scarly pointed out how oblivious they were to us giving them stares. The way they looked at each other made me smile,happiness and longing filling me up. Happy for them,longing for the magnificent boy with grey eyes. Axel. it had been a while since I had heard from him. He was having family issues again,though this time he didn't tell me what they were about. I didn't urge him to tell me either,I had made it clear that if he needed to talk or let something out I'll always be here to listen.If he needed space,I'll give him that too. The uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach though didn't help. I had ignored it and focused on the others.

There wasn't a specific reason for us to meet up or maybe there was, but we never brought it up. Not even once. It was the day he left us. That night marked two years of his absence. Though we never talked about him, the unspoken words hung in the air.We all missed him. He was our friend and he was a good one.Three years. We had been through thick and thin for three years together and he left all of us a lot of good memories to cherish. He was also the one who showed us the clearing in the wood.

His name was Xavier. Xavier Cohen. Memories flooded through me as I started to think of him, and I quickly stopped thinking about him, as I knew that it would only bring me sadness. 

The rest of the time was spent well,  with us having random laughing fits at almost anything and everything. It was late by the time we decided to head back,  and we were all a little worried about what would happen if they got caught.

Little did we know there would be no one to catch us once we got back. We returned to a trashed neighborhood. Each street was eerily quiet and empty. Windows of houses, shattered as if the holes were made from a bullet. We checked each and every house,desperate for an explanation. By the time we had made it to the last house, it was dawn. Faint light illuminated the sky,making everything clearer. Exhausted and confused,we decided to go back to our hiding place. We were on our way and that's when we heard him.

" Yes, we took everyone we found." says a deep voice, with a thick british accent. We round around the corner and spread out,hiding behind trees and bushes.

"Good." says another voice. I peaked around the corner and noticed that the second voice came from a phone. Who the hell are these people?

"Remind me again though,why did we need to take everyone?" asks the man with the british accent.

" Because we don't know who has the cure,you doofus.Now hurry back." says the second voice. You could tell they were their leader.

" Aye,sir." He hangs up. We hear shuffling and then the roar of an engine. The mystery man rides off into the sunrise. 

It took us some time to put the pieces together. Some group of people received some information about there being a cure in our neighborhood but they weren't sure who had it. So they took them all somewhere. They had weekly visits to check if they missed anyone. We almost got exposed once. Since then,we decided it would be better if we didn't go back there.

Few days back, Axel told us about his small neighborhood,where it was free from the virus. We were on our way over there right now. We took on random tasks to make a living. Like earlier today,though the job was very simple the pay was high. I felt homesick. I missed my family and once we settled things,we were going to find out more about what happened to them. We'll get to them. I know we will. Right? 

Doubts and negative scenarios flooded through my head,making me assume the worst. No no no! Aurora it's not time to lose hope. Think positively. We'll find them. I will find them.Even if it's the last thing I do.  

Heyyyyyy soo there we go. Chapter 11 is up. Hope you enjoyed. 

Also thank y'all so much for 700 + reads. You beautiful human beings are the best. We love you. 

What do you think happened to their family? And what do you think of Xavier ? Comment and let us know.

oh and the poem " Who I used to be " is written by our co-writer and friend @Thelonelylobster 

Go follow her 

Please don't forget to vote if you liked it. 

Have a good night/day. We'll also be posting some character aesthetics we made. That's all for now. 

- RR