Chapter Seventeen: Mariah

I don't come in for a while, not even when it starts pouring down on me. I always loved the rain, loving the exhilaration I get during a storm. 

A flash of lightning strikes at the distance, and I feel my heart pick up slightly as I go over my leg again with some soap, wanting to make sure that all the blood is gone. Plus, it smells good. 

I'm not sure which startled me more, the fact that Tyler touched me, or the fact that he was shirtless. I've never seen a guy shirtless before, and I'm not sure if I liked it or not. 

I looked up, blinking every time a raindrop hit me in the face. After a few minutes, I stand up and head inside, soaking wet and cold, leaving Tyler outside. Diane wraps me up in a towel while I take a seat on the other side of the plane. 

A moment later, Tyler comes over to sit next to me, sopping wet. I hand him a towel and watch as he quickly dries off his hair, then laugh quietly. It looks like a guy's bed head if I ever saw any. He smiled slightly. 

"What are your plans?" He asked quietly. 

I looked over at Diane and Steven, watching her gently rub the back of his hand with her thumb. 

"Stay here with you guys and help out as much as I can. Just try to survive." I said quietly, watching them. 

He nodded, then started looking around. My eye caught one of the bags and I thought of something. 

I stand up, dropping the towels and grabbing all the bags off the shelves of first class, then take them to the table. I'll get the bags from the other half of the plane once the weather clears up a bit. 

There wasn't much to go with, but there were a few things that I might be able to work with. I left our four bags alone, knowing there might be some private things in them. 

I started organizing everything into piles, just like the neat freak I was. At first, there is just two piles; stuff that can be useful, and stuff that is just trash. Then, I push all the stuff that's just trash into a trash bin and start organizing the pile of useful things. 

There's stuff I can use to make weapons, which is mostly just scraps. Then there's medical things, like bandaids, thread, needles, and pain medication. There's the pile of spare clothes and blankets and towels, too. 

Then there's all those little snacks that the old lady had. It's the little things like that had me wondering why they were going there. Why was she going to Paris? Was she going to visit children? Grandchildren? Great grandchildren? Why did she have so many kid's snacks, like gushers and poptarts? 

The final pile is just about everything else. From electronics like phones to stuffed animals from the old lady. I tossed my stuffed turtle into the pile as well just because. It had been worn out over the years, but it was still in good condition. Sure, the others might think I'm crazy, but... Stuffed animals keep me calm at night. They always have. 

Tyler sat next to me a moment later and picked up my stuffed turtle, looking at it skeptically. 

"Don't judge me." I snapped quietly, snatching it away and setting it on my lap

"I was just thinking that it was kind of cute." He whispered. I looked over at him, perplexed. "You know, in that old toy kind of way." 

"It's... It would help me sleep at night. Something I've had since I was a baby." I explained quietly. 

I looked down at my little turtle with tired eyes, but I wasn't tired. 

"Why are you here? Why are you going to Paris?" He asked, watching me quietly. 

Although I really didn't want to talk about it, I found myself explaining my situation to him. 

"My mother was caught shop lifting some bread, and they were sending me to live with my father. You know, that rich man that I never met." I said quietly, starting to tear up. 

I closed my eyes, and a moment later, I felt his arms around me, comforting me. Normally, I would shrug him off and play it off as if nothing had happened, but right now, I couldn't find the strength to really do anything but hug my raggedy turtle close and cry.

Author's Note

Silent Wolf's chapter.