Everyone sat around the table with scattered candles lighting up the kitchen, Preciliano scoops up some soup while thinking to himself, with intense expression.
"this little group we've got so far, will be a little difficult to get along with, but if I want to ensure the survival for me and Tracy, then I need to start try getting along with everybody."
Ahsley who sitting next to Preciliano, notice how tense he is, places her hand on his thigh and whispers.
"you doing okay?"
for some reason her touch relaxed him, and he replies.
"yeah, I'm okay thank you."
Kelly looks around the table and asks.
"how's the soup?"
she smiles, feeling gratified that everyone gave her a satisfied response, meanwhile William looks at all the young able-bodied men, and thinks to himself.
"imma have to step up to show that I can be a leader they can follow, and have them prepared to take care of themselves and the ladies in our group."
he clears his throat and said.
"I would like to get everyone's attention for a moment."
everyone silently pays attention to William as he continues with what he has to say.
"we've found a place that we can ride out this whole mess, but from what Kelly as shown me the food stored, we can't afford to rely on it."
Preciliano agrees with him in his mind.
"he has point, and since we have a relatively large group, we will go through the food supply quick."
Troy who is absolutely seething that William is taking the initiative on being the leader, he curses him in his mind.
"I saved you, you son of a bitch, I can't have everyone following you."
William continues.
"I had an idea, and figured that, we should learn how to hunt animals to feed ourselves."
he looks around and said.
"I was looking for volunteers, to come along with me tomorrow and see what we can do."
he asks.
"any takers?"
Preciliano is the first to raise his hand.
"I don't know much about hunting, but my dad has taken me to firing range before many times."
William wasn't expecting him to be the one to volunteer, he was hoping that Troy would jump at the opportunity to do it since he was the one who offered him and his family a place to stay at, but nonetheless he nods.
"alright kid."
he gives a few minutes to allow more to volunteer but is visibly disappointed that no one else raised their hand, he sighs.
"alright, that's fine me and Percy will go out tomorrow, and if any of you change your mind, come talk to me about it."
Preciliano also looks disappointed, and thinks to himself.
"when the stored food runs out they will regret not learning how to hunt for their own food."
everyone eats their soup in silence, and after leaving the table, Ashley catches up to Preciliano and grabs his arm with giddy smile on her face.
"hey Percy, want to talk before we go to sleep?"
even though he was a bit tired even after recovering from the fever, Preciliano answers.
"um, sure I don't mind the company."
little did they know, John followed Ashley since he finally mustered up the courage to confess his feelings for her.
"there is no reason to hold my feelings back anymore, and who knows, maybe she'll say yes since there aren't many options left."
but all the courage and confidence he built, burns down as he witnesses the usual emotionless, cold hearted, Ice Princess, Ashley smiling and acting all giddy around Preciliano, he thinks to himself in shock.
"how did that loser Percy get a beautiful girl like Ashley to act like that around him."
after they climb up to the attic, John stood there deflated and heartbroken.
"damn it, the first girl I've ever fallen in love, and I lost her to a weak loser like him."
he takes a deep breath and comes up with an idea.
"wait, I haven't lost yet, I'll go talk to William and go with both of them tomorrow, to see what she see in him."
he stares at the attic opening and said angrily to himself.
"this only temporary, because in the end Ashley will be mine."
as he storms off towards William's room, to ask him if he can tag along tomorrow, Preciliano lights up the candle so that he can see better.
"there now, we don't have to sit in the dark when we talk."
Ashley looks at the rolled up floor mattress and said to Preciliano.
"here Percy I'll help you set it, so we can be comfortable."
they unroll the floor mattress, and set the mattress, where the side is up against the wall, Ashley sits down first with her back against the wall, she playfully pats on the spot next to her.
"come and join me Percy."
Preciliano slightly smiles thinking to himself.
"this isn't so bad, I don't have much to lose if I give us a chance."
he sits next to her and she rests her head on his shoulder, she sighs contededly.
"I wish we were like this before things went to shit, but I guess I'm alright with this now that I finally told you how I felt."
Preciliano remembers how he actually got along with Tracy and Ashley during middle school, but they started acting differently after Tracy started dating Troy in high school, he then asks not caring if the mood gets ruined.
"if what you are saying is true, why did you act like
we were total strangers at school?"
she thinks about it in her head.
"fuck, I didn't think he would ask me that."
she takes a moment to thinking that she only did that to avoid getting labeled a loser as well, but she begins to realize how stupid all that social acceptance and status seem, especially with the way things are, she then answers him trying to soften the blow of her honesty.
"once Troy marked you has a loser, for defying him, me and Tracy did what we could to fit in."
Preciliano knew it all along, but he wanted to hear it for himself, because if she had lied to him, then he'd have no problem rejecting her, here and now,
but her honesty answer didn't help him feel disappointed.
"I thought we were friends, when I saw you and Tracy acting differently from how you were school and privately, made me hate the both of you, with every passing day, especially when all you did was
watch him and his lackies torment me."
he remembers all the terrible things they put him through on a daily basis, while Tracy and Ashley acted like everything was normal, and angrily replies to Ashley.
"get out! and leave me alone."
in that moment she felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, since this is the first time she felt his anger, the poor thing brings both her knees up to her chest and buries her face into to them as to hide her shame from Preciliano and then said with the most softest and pitiful voice.
"I'm so sorry, Percy."
she sniffles and stammers over her words.
"I-I'll L-Leave Y-You A-Alone."
she slowly stands up, hoping that Preciliano would accept her apology, and to stop her from leaving, but he wasn't having any of it and said coldly.
"tomorrow don't talk to me."
he lays down on his side and sighs thinking to himself.
"at least she admitted it, that is good enough for me, but the downside is, that it hurt me and I'd rather avoid her while I deal with these feelings on my own."
Ashley leaves the attic wiping off the tears.
"deep down I knew that my poor treatment of him,
would come back to bite me."
John who just came back from telling William about joining them, runs into Ashley who is in tears, he stops her and asks with a concerned voice while both his hands are on her shoulders.
"Ash what's wrong?"
remembering that she went up to the attic with Preciliano earlier, he thinks to himself.
"did he say something to upset her?"
she wipes her tears again, and sniffles while thinking to herself.
"damn it, I've never shown any emotions in front of Troy or his friends before."
she clears her throat.
"nothing John, I was just thinking if my foster parents are still alive."
John already figured that she was lying, but plays along with her and said sympathetically.
"all of us are in the same boat when it comes about our parents fate, so you don't need to keep up that Ice Princess persona."
she thinks to herself.
"at least he doesn't suspect, that I was crying since things didn't turn out well with Percy."
he then unexpectedly hugs her.
"I know it can be hard, but I want you to know that
we are all friends here."
Ashley doesn't reciprocate his hug, and said uncomfortably.
"um thanks?"
John gets caught up in the moment, and smirks to himself.
"you snooze you lose Percy, it is time for Johnny boy to swoop in and claim Ash as mine."
he pulls away from the hug, and stares deeply into her bright green eyes, making Ashley even more uncomfortable with how many personal boundaries John has broken already, and she takes his hands of his shoulders.
"listen John, I appreciate the sentiment, but you and.."
John interrupts her with a sudden confession.
"Ash, I fell in love with you, the moment I first laid my eyes on you, and have dreamt of being your boyfriend."
Ashley scoffs and rolls her eyes, thinking to herself.
"oh, god another lame and corny confession about love at first sight."
he then asks.
"I love you Ash, will you be my girlfriend?"
Ashley falls back into what made her infamous amongst all the guys that she rejected, The Ice Princess stares daggers into him and responds emotionless.
"gross, I only hung around because you hung around Troy, who is the boyfriend of my best friend."
she continues with the onslaught, with her icy and harsh words piercing through his heart.
"I've never seen you in a romantic light, if anything
I just saw you as Troy's pathetic lapdog that blindly followed him, and it's sad that you try very hard to be just like Troy, but you lack his confidence and come off looking like a cheap imitation from a discount store."
she doesn't stop and responds to his confession.
"so no, I will not be your girlfriend, and please refrain from acting like we are close, when you and me barely interacted."
John unable to react to what she said to him, stands there staring at her in complete shock, and just as Ashley leaves him, John breaks out of his shock and grabs her wrists, she reacts by slapping him with her other hand.
"what the fuck, are you doing John? let go of my hand!"
he ignores the stinging pain on his cheek, he asks her feeling jealous, even if his ego was bruised and confidence shaken by her rejection.
"what the fuck Ash? what the hell do you see in a loser like Percy?"
Ashley scoffs at John's nosiness, she forcefully pulls her hand free from his grasp, and said angrily.
"it's none of your damn business with what I do!"
she doesn't allow him to say or anything else and heads staright towards her and Tracy's room, where she let's out a sigh of relief, but notices that her hands were trembling because of that intense interaction with John, Tracy who was laying on the bed, notices Ashley's distraught expression, and asks.
"you feeling okay Ash? did Percy something bad to you?"
Ashley shakes her head and just hugs Tracy feeling like shit since the while night felt like a complete disaster, with how things with Preciliano turned out, and John being a complete creep with his confession, she then asks Tracy.
"do you regret treating your brother the way we did?"
Tracy thinks to herself.
"Ah I see what this is about."
still hugging her, she replies.
"yeah, it put a strain has siblings and even though me and him are good now, I still feel the guilt for being like that to him."
Ashley responds.
"I just wished that I could have done it differently."
Tracy comforts her.
"I understand, but what's done is done, and I'm sure Percy will come around."
Ashley asks embarrassed.
"how'd you know I was talking about him."
Tracy smiles.
"it was, obvious."
she then said.
"come on let's sleep on it and see how you feel tomorrow."
they both go to bed with completely different thoughts, with Ashley thinking.
"if John tries anything like that again, I'll make sure to tell everybody."
while Tracy thinks.
"I shouldn't be hoping for things to not work between them, I should step back and support them."
and just like that another day passes by.