Chris left the cafeteria and walked to the end of the hallway to wait for Heather. Heather was the first person to leave the farm, followed closely by Evan. As they walked past the main corridor, Chris joined them. Heather greeted Chris with a hug.
"Jackson didn't give you any trouble, did he?" Chris asked over Heather's shoulder.
"Not really," replied Evan. "Just a little stubborn."
"I was curious. Where do we sleep?" Chris asked, letting go of Heather.
"I forgot; you weren't there for the message," said Evan. "The bunker has exact replicas of our rooms down here. That's where we sleep."
Chris, Evan, and Heather walked to the end of the secondary corridor to where the bedrooms were. Evan left and went to his own room.
"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," Chris said to Heather.
"What do you mean? We are staying in the same room," Heather replied.
"Don't you have your own room?" Chris asked.
"Yes, but remember, we're married now. I asked Max after the meeting on ways that we could look married without being intimate or anything like that. He said sleeping in the same room and hugging when we greet each other was a good place to start. He also said cute nicknames would work, but that's only if you're up to it."
"I'll pass on the nicknames," said Chris.
"You're no fun," replied Heather. "Anyways, I hope you have a big bed."
"Not really, but we'll work something out."
Chris opened the door to his room. The room he had just walked into was an exact replica of his room at home. From the bright blue walls to the trophies on his shelf, everything was the same. Chris ran to the window and looked out. The view out of the window was the exact same. He opened the window and leaned out. He was overcome with disappointment when he replied it was just a digital screen that played on a loop. Chris took off the harness and the sword and threw himself on the bed. "Why couldn't this just be some bad dream," he thought to himself.
Heather entered the room with a large cardboard box in her arms. "Hey Chris. We need to make room in your dressers for my clothes," Heather demanded.
"Why do your clothes need to be in my room? Your room is just next door," Chris argued.
"Think of it like a trial marriage. We have to try sharing a space together," said Heather, walking over to Chris's bed and setting the box down.
"If this is a trial marriage, when does it expire?" Chris asked, laughing.
Heather bent down and picked up Chris's sword and pointed it at him. "You still think it's funny," she said.
"Yeah, because right now I could arrest you and tie you up to a pole for a day for attempted assault," Chris replied.
Heather sheathed the sword and put it back on the ground. "I'm sorry. Please listen for a minute. This is a request coming from me personally, not a suggestion from Max or anyone. I can't bear to stay in that room anymore. It brings back too many bad memories. I never told anyone this. If we weren't here, I would have come to live with you."
Chris hobbled over to Heather and hugged her. "Am I doing this hugging thing correctly," He whispered in her ear.
"Yes, you're doing it perfectly," Heather whispered back.
Chris let go and picked up the box and moved it on to his dresser. "You've gone through enough today. Let's do that tomorrow," he said.
Chris pulled the cover back and climbed into bed. He slid himself all the way to the far side bed, up against the wall. Heather crawled into bed after him and positioned herself as far from him as possible, almost falling off the bed. She leaned over to Chris and whispered in his ear, "We need to find a bigger bed."
"I don't think that will be possible," Chris whispered back.
The stress of the long day took a toll on him. The weight of eyes overcame him. Eventually he couldn't stay awake anymore and fell asleep.
…
Chris was awakened by a slight chill over his body. He glanced over at Heather, who had wrapped herself in Chris's blanket like a cocoon. His clock read 6:45. "That's close enough. I better get moving," Chris thought to himself, as he wiggled himself out of his bed. He changed out of the shorts he was wearing and put on a pair of jeans. He strapped the sword to his back and left his room.
The bunker was chilly, just like an early spring morning. Chris assumed that the temperature was set to simulate the outside temperature in normal times. The lights in the hallways and the farm were set on a timer to brighten and dim to match the sun's rising and setting. These were all an attempt made by the Project HLR team to ensure that there was some resemblance of a normal life.
Chris found that the cold air helped to ease some of the pain in his knee, and he walked. He hobbled his way down to the cafeteria. Chris sat down at one of the benches and was greeted by a familiar voice.
"So, you're married now?" Francis asked, grabbing Chris on the shoulder. "How'd that happen?"
"It just did," Chris replied. He was trying to formulate a lie that would be believable enough. "Yesterday was a blur and I can't remember much."
"Well, from what I heard, you guys were married before yesterday," Francis remarked.
"Oh yeah, that's right. We got married about a month ago," Chris said, shuddering.
"Some honeymoon this must be," Francis said, laughing. "But why didn't you tell me you guys got married? I'm your best friend, for Christ's sake."
"I'm sorry," Chris apologized. He became overwhelmed with the feeling of guilt. Not just for lying to Francis's face, but for making Francis feel neglected. "She wanted to keep it a secret from everyone. Heather proposed the ideal as a way to get away from her abusive parents. She was planning to move in with me after this weekend. My parents agreed to take her in and let her live with us. We were going to tell you after we moved in together."
"So, you're saying this was a plan to save her from her parents. Was there ever any love involved?" Francis asked.
"Yes, there was a little love. The love is what drove us to make this plan. I'm sorry we never told you."
"I appreciate the lengths that you would go to for a friend, but I'm hurt that you couldn't have told me and didn't," Francis said. He handed Chris the box of food that he had been holding on to. "Anyways, here's your breakfast. Max will want to be meeting soon."