Five minutes had passed since Lily's outburst. Julynn was now in the room, looking to Eve for answers. "I don't know," Eve said, answering Julynn's unasked question. The two stared at the little girl in wonder. What did she mean by that?
Lily had gone to sleep when Lucas and Austin had first departed for the 15th floor. After that day, she remained asleep. That's part of why her exclamation came across as a surprise. Another shocking thing was that she mentioned Lucas' name.
What did he have to do with any of this? The women pondered this question for some time. Sweat continued to pour from the girl's face, her expression a mixture of shock and fear. "Let's tell the others," with this statement, Julynn moved towards the door.
Eve didn't follow, she looked at the girl who had suffered the most among them. If the others heard what just happened, what would they do? Her thoughts veered to John kicking the unconscious girl out. It was a cruel thing. Kicking out a helpless girl in a coma because of forces beyond her control.
She also knew it was justifiable. Her words showed she had a connection to that floor. John would seize on this fact and run with it, moving her to some random hospital instead. Eve didn't want such to happen, she wanted to see the girl every day. Appraise her condition and give her words of comfort.
Deep down, she knew these actions were more for herself than Lily. An attempt to sympathize with herself for what she went through many years ago. It was selfish. Did that matter though? Wasn't comfort, even born of selfishness, still comfort? Even if her motives were tangled, did it matter if Lily felt less alone?
Selfishness that helped another person. Selfishness that gave another reprieve. Her selfishness was the reason she sympathized with the girl greatly. Was it a bad thing to be selfish if it raised another up? She didn't know. What she did know was that she needed to convince John to let Lily stay.
In the next moment, the door swung open. The first person she saw was Julynn, followed by John and Dante.
"Did that really happen?" Dante asked her this question, his face a plea for a negative response. She responded with a shake of her head, to his dismay.
"That guy…it's always that guy!" No one intervened or calmed him down. His actions were justifiable. They had only known Lucas for some days, yet his presence had stirred up years of trauma and anguish. Was he really that necessary for their plan? Dante asked himself this question.
No matter the conclusion he came to one thing was certain—Lucas was necessary for Austin to survive that place. Austin was normally a calm person. He never made decisions without proper reason unless absolutely necessary. This case was different though. His past trauma made him the most irrational person right now.
He was now a bomb. A sensitive device that required the slightest pressure to detonate. Dante looked up to Austin. He saw him as stiff, but viewed him as strong. The person who lost everything in his life at the time.
He was also the person who endured the most pain among them. He never showed it though. His mind itself was hell. No one could claim to truly understand him. He was the epitome of suffering; an indescribable hell.
Dante knew that Austin and Lucas were the people with the highest chance of making it back from that place. If it was anyone else in their group he wasn't sure. He had this confidence in Austin. It was something he didn't want to admit. He also disliked the man that John added to their group.
The man was an enigma. The embodiment of trouble. He hadn't known him for long—hell he hadn't even known him for three days. Yet from his introduction…he just didn't trust him.
The smell of alcohol brought Dante back to the moment, the room sterilized for Lily's sake. He looked to the far end and saw the little girl shivering in her bed. She was part of the reason for his hate for Lucas. A man whose very presence shook the world they lived in.
He had brought the girl with him when they first met. A girl who had suffered for an untold amount of time. He was envious, envious that some seven-year-old had suffered more than him.
What right did he have to crash out? A seven-year-old was before him in a coma and here he was feeling sorry for himself all the time. Lucas had brought the girl with him. He brought a living storm into their lives.
The girl before him was also a part of their problems. Why did they need to help her? John had entered the room to convey this message to the tense-faced woman they met inside.
He didn't want to hurt Eve, but it was either the girl or them. Lily's presence alone posed an untold threat. Her connection to the 15th floor was still unknown. For all they knew she could be a monster in disguise. Dante watched as John explained this obvious fact to Eve.
The pragmatic John took his time explaining what should have been obvious. He was the kind of person who took efficiency over all else. Dante disagreed with him often because of this. Dante believed the best way wasn't always the right way.
This was why he could somewhat understand Eve's reasoning.
"No! She stays here!"
"Dammit Eve, be reasonable!"
John and Eve were at each other's throats. John's offer wasn't a bad one. He proposed moving Lily to a hospital. Not just any hospital either, it was Flemmings—the best there was. John was basically offering to get Lily the best doctors out there in a populated city.
"Eve, this is the best option, your reasons are selfish," Eve looked towards Julynn, her eyes disbelieving.
Her body shivered as sweat lined her brow. She blinked rapidly, hoping what she saw wasn't real. Slowly, she approached Julynn. Dante and John watched this in silence. "Even you…" the expression on Eve's face moved from sadness to anger and back.
"It's for Lily's sake—"
"What of mine!" Eve retorted.
Everyone stared at her, confused. The air in the room had shifted from mundane to fraught. They couldn't understand her. She saw Lily as a chance to make up for her past experiences. A chance to right the wrongs done to her.
Why couldn't they understand? It wasn't just about the girl. She was a person too. She also needed comforting. Despite this, she gave her all to be beside this little girl, was anything wrong with that?
"Could you elaborate on your words?" Eve's head reflexively faced John as he made this statement. Her breaths were now labored as her fingers ran through her hair. "Eve, are you okay?" Dante asked concerned.
She didn't respond, rather tears slowly welled up her eyes. She approached John, her face now a plea. It was an expression that asked for one thing alone. A single request to satisfy all else.
"Please…have her moved to…" She paused as her tears now littered the floor. What was wrong with her? These were John's unspoken thoughts. These actions were unlike her. He wanted the best for everyone. A decision that left no one out while yielding the best result. Having Lily moved to Flemmings would guarantee their safety and hers too, why was Eve oblivious to this fact?
"Continue," he pressed as Eve had paused for a long time.
"I…would like her moved to my place."
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Eve walked around the room inspecting Lily's condition. The doctor had told her not to say any negative things to the girl. He said she was unconscious but may still retain auditory perception.
Her apartment was average in size. It couldn't compare to John's place in the slightest, but it was enough for her and Lily. The room was white, as was the rest of the house. Its windows were small, letting in only the faintest traces of moonlight in.
The air was cool, the night breeze doing what Eve's broken AC couldn't.
She stepped towards the little girl and sat on her bed.
"I know you're scared but it'll be okay…shit"
She had just gotten a glance at the mirror adjacent to the bed and saw streaks of platinum blonde locks intertwined within her ginger hair. "Shit shit shit. Don't worry, it'll be okay. It'll be okay!"
These words were more for her than Lily. Nonetheless, she couldn't be further from the truth.