Crazy Images

In the beginning, his face was only an illusion. A dreary image meant to keep her up at night. A picture that haunted her and made her break into cold sweats at night. A memory that made her scream internally when she thought of his name.
She couldn't help the fact that when he had to be mentioned while she was around, people whispered it in fear of frightening her. She wasn't going to be scared by him being mentioned. At least, that's what she told people. They didn't believe her. She didn't blame them. Especially not Ruby. She had no reason not to think that she was still thinking about him.
Ruby was the one who untangled the pale sheets from around her even paler legs when she was trapped in them. Ruby had wiped her face off with a damp cloth and quieted her when her feverish lips whispered, "Samuel. Don't. Don't. No. Sam. Sammy. I said-" Ruby was the only one who had reacted to her desperate cries.
She remembered Ruby softly telling her, "Kelly, don't cry. He's gone. He's gone," and brushing her reddish mane out of her sweaty face. But Ruby hadn't mentioned it. She often acted like she thought Kelly didn't remember the incident. But she did.
The next morning was awkward. At breakfast, the whole group ate slowly and fidgeted as if they were anxious to be somewhere else. Occasionally Kelly would look up and see one of the group members hastily turn back to their breakfast and pretend that they hadn't been staring at her. Soon, the leader, Micheal cleared his throat. Everyone else looked relieved like they were glad he had been the one to start.
"Kelly," he began in his deep voice, "We are going on a hunt today." This wasn't unexpected. The group always went on hunts. It was what Hunters did. Found a victim. Tracked them. Usually it was a person or an enemy. But Kelly still didn't know what the big deal was.
"Great! I'll go get my crossbow and change out of these!" she fingered her flannel pajamas that were decorated with kittens and were way too young for her. Then, she stood and began to exit.
"You aren't coming," Daniel, the abrupt tracker cut her off before she could walk out of the kitchen.
"What do you mean? You always take me! You said so yourself, I'm the best shot you've had in years!" the morning's ambiance changed with that statement. All of the teenagers trackers shifted uncomfortably in their seats except for Daniel. He stood firm, as though he was not a eighteen year old Asian, but an oak that marked a boundary no one dared cross.
Kelly sat, the excitement of the hunt leaving her. Some people continued eating, thinking the conflict was over, since Micheal had no response. Other, more senior members of the Elite Hunters, knew that Micheal would have the last word, and Kelly would not like it.
Kelly picked at her eggs. They weren't cheesy enough, she thought. It struck her odd that she could have such a mundane thought after the experience with Samuel.
"I want to know where you are going on this hunt," she commanded. This was no longer the simple inquiry that it should have been. It was a battle cry. A demand. An order.
"Bluebird Hills."
"Which part of Bluebird Hills?"
"That is classified," came the reply. This hit Kelly like a blunt ax.
"Classified?" she cried incredulously. Nothing had ever been classified to Kelly before. In fact, nothing had been classified to anyone before. Micheal believed that secrets and classification led to conspiracy and conspiracy led to doubt. And doubt led to betrayal. Micheal didn't seem to sure about this decision himself even as he said it.
"I see you don't trust me anymore. That's the thanks I get for all I've done?" Kelly was on the verge of tears. Some might call it overreacting. But after Samuel, she had been on edge a while. Anything could upset her.
"What have you done that we couldn't have done ourselves?" Daniel said coldly. He moved towards the door, scooped up his pack, and flung the door open. Micheal followed. He briefly glanced at Kelly, but soon guiltily turned away from her burning face. The rest of the Hunters left a little reluctantly, and in the swarm of leather clad people, Kelly could see Ruby approaching her. Ruby stopped, and then she left with the others without a word of good-bye.
"Thanks, y'all. Thanks a lot."
She waited until the last of the hubbub outside was gone, and then she threw a mini temper tantrum. She flung her satchel full of hunting supplies onto the wooden, scuffed floor and pounced on it. She hear something snap in half inside the bag. What was it? An arrow? A pencil? A glass object? She didn't care. For all she knew, it could've been the breaking of her heart. She knew that the they were hunting Sam, she just knew it.
She stormed out of the kitchen, her tangled braid swishing behind her, and sobbed. How could they think she was too close to Sam, when she barely knew him at all?