fine. Drop it.” She ducks into the car.
I drop my forehead onto the roof, holding back the urge to bang it repeatedly. We were doing great before the Sunjin appeared and destroyed her hometown. Now I don’t know what’s going on. Earlier, she rolled her eyes at Ted. Now she laughs only with him. I can’t figure out if–
Ted sticks his head out the passenger window. “You coming, man?”
“Yeah.” I open the door and squeeze into the backseat. There’s almost no space for me. “Enjoying the breeze, sorry.”
“-fits the way it should. Chair back, mirrors off, steering wheel too high. Last time I let someone this tall borrow my car, I’ll tell you that.” Mel bangs the steering wheel three times until it falls into place. “Perfect. So where are we going?” Mel says, reversing from the parking spot.
“Train station. We have twenty-five minutes to get there,” I say.
“It doesn’t leave until midnight. We have more than an hour,” Ted says.
“Not if we need to find a way to get Mel on the train.”
There’s no conversation for the entirety of the drive. Mel tries to ask a few questions, but nobody answers her. I’m too busy staring out the window trying not to lose circulation in my feet. I don’t know why the others won’t talk to her.
Finally, she stops at a red light and says, “Alright, if I’m driving us all onto a train so we can go somewhere that you guys won’t tell me, someone can at least explain to me what we’re doing when we get there.”
“We don’t know,” Kaitlyn snaps.
“What my friend means to say in a more polite tone is that the blue guy didn’t tell us the details,” Ted says. “He said people are waiting for us. Sam’s the leader, the captain or general or something along those lines.”
“I have as much info as you do,” I say without taking my eyes off of the still street lamps. “Tinjo told me we need an army. I’m not sure what he expects a bunch of teenagers to do about it.”
“Hey, I’m twenty-one, thank you,” Mel says.
Kaitlyn sighs, but I ignore it. “It doesn’t change much,” I say. “None of us are actual soldiers. Unless he has us riding to a Marine base, I’m not sure what he expects. But we have to do it.”
“What’s riding on it?” Mel says.
“My mom’s life,” I say.
“And the rest of the world’s fate,” Ted adds. “You know, that little thing.”
“And why are you two helping?”
“Destroyer recruited us to save the world. How could we say no?”
Kaitlyn smacks the back of the seat. “Ted, enough.”
“Destroyer?” Mel says, her eyes finding me in the mirror.
I avoid direct contact and stare at the back of Ted’s headrest, imagining myself strangling him. “Not relevant,” I say.
“Alright…how about some music, then?” She turns up the radio and we ride the last ten minutes quiet.
The train station is empty, not a single car in the parking lot except for Mel’s. A few street lamps light up the platform, but it might as well be abandoned. I pull out my phone and check the time. 10:42p.m. The battery is at the halfway point, and I forgot a charger. Damn.
“Anybody ever buy a ticket here?” Ted says.
“I’ve done it before,” Mel says, “except it was during the day and there were people working. I couldn’t tell you where anything is.”
“Let’s find the train and wait. Maybe you can buy a ticket on board,” Kaitlyn says.
“Or if it’s as abandoned as this place, you can ride for free,” Ted says.
I pull the tickets out and check the departure time again. Scanning everything, I stop on the destination. “What the…” Tinjo wasn’t kidding when he said far away.
“What’s wrong?” Kaitlyn says. She comes over and grabs a ticket. “Salt Lake City? Seriously? That’ll take at least two days.”
“Why don’t we fly out?” Ted says.
“Do you have the money to buy four people plane tickets?” I say.
He shakes his head, staring out at the empty tracks ahead. “At
I drop my forehead onto the roof, holding back the urge to bang it repeatedly. We were doing great before the Sunjin appeared and destroyed her hometown. Now I don’t know what’s going on. Earlier, she rolled her eyes at Ted. Now she laughs only with him. I can’t figure out if–
Ted sticks his head out the passenger window. “You coming, man?”
“Yeah.” I open the door and squeeze into the backseat. There’s almost no space for me. “Enjoying the breeze, sorry.”
“-fits the way it should. Chair back, mirrors off, steering wheel too high. Last time I let someone this tall borrow my car, I’ll tell you that.” Mel bangs the steering wheel three times until it falls into place. “Perfect. So where are we going?” Mel says, reversing from the parking spot.
“Train station. We have twenty-five minutes to get there,” I say.
“It doesn’t leave until midnight. We have more than an hour,” Ted says.
“Not if we need to find a way to get Mel on the train.”
There’s no conversation for the entirety of the drive. Mel tries to ask a few questions, but nobody answers her. I’m too busy staring out the window trying not to lose circulation in my feet. I don’t know why the others won’t talk to her.
Finally, she stops at a red light and says, “Alright, if I’m driving us all onto a train so we can go somewhere that you guys won’t tell me, someone can at least explain to me what we’re doing when we get there.”
“We don’t know,” Kaitlyn snaps.
“What my friend means to say in a more polite tone is that the blue guy didn’t tell us the details,” Ted says. “He said people are waiting for us. Sam’s the leader, the captain or general or something along those lines.”
“I have as much info as you do,” I say without taking my eyes off of the still street lamps. “Tinjo told me we need an army. I’m not sure what he expects a bunch of teenagers to do about it.”
“Hey, I’m twenty-one, thank you,” Mel says.
Kaitlyn sighs, but I ignore it. “It doesn’t change much,” I say. “None of us are actual soldiers. Unless he has us riding to a Marine base, I’m not sure what he expects. But we have to do it.”
“What’s riding on it?” Mel says.
“My mom’s life,” I say.
“And the rest of the world’s fate,” Ted adds. “You know, that little thing.”
“And why are you two helping?”
“Destroyer recruited us to save the world. How could we say no?”
Kaitlyn smacks the back of the seat. “Ted, enough.”
“Destroyer?” Mel says, her eyes finding me in the mirror.
I avoid direct contact and stare at the back of Ted’s headrest, imagining myself strangling him. “Not relevant,” I say.
“Alright…how about some music, then?” She turns up the radio and we ride the last ten minutes quiet.
The train station is empty, not a single car in the parking lot except for Mel’s. A few street lamps light up the platform, but it might as well be abandoned. I pull out my phone and check the time. 10:42p.m. The battery is at the halfway point, and I forgot a charger. Damn.
“Anybody ever buy a ticket here?” Ted says.
“I’ve done it before,” Mel says, “except it was during the day and there were people working. I couldn’t tell you where anything is.”
“Let’s find the train and wait. Maybe you can buy a ticket on board,” Kaitlyn says.
“Or if it’s as abandoned as this place, you can ride for free,” Ted says.
I pull the tickets out and check the departure time again. Scanning everything, I stop on the destination. “What the…” Tinjo wasn’t kidding when he said far away.
“What’s wrong?” Kaitlyn says. She comes over and grabs a ticket. “Salt Lake City? Seriously? That’ll take at least two days.”
“Why don’t we fly out?” Ted says.
“Do you have the money to buy four people plane tickets?” I say.
He shakes his head, staring out at the empty tracks ahead. “At
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