CHAPTER ONE
Jacob Remembers
The sky was crimson red. There’s hardly any clouds to be seen. It wasn’t the usual blue sky that Jacob could see from the window back in his room. The air was humid, which made it hard to breathe. Unfamiliar, blatant sounds echoed across the plain. This wasn’t a pleasant place to stay but it’s good enough if it’s just for a while, Jacob thought.
Jacob stumbled upon a concrete that came out of nowhere and before he knew it, he was lying on a hot, steamy surface which seemed to be searing through his skin. A body fell off his arm as he fell. He looked down at his jeans and saw that it’s torn. Fortunately, he did not seem to be suffering from any fractures. Jacob turned his head towards the body that fell off from his arm and was a few feet away from him.
The body was dressed in a thin layer of blue cloth which looked like those worn by patients in a hospital. Jacob reached out his hand to the body but it was out of reach.
“Heeey…” Jacob wheezed, while looking helplessly at the body.
Whenever he tried to stand up, he ended up falling back to the searing, hot ground. But this time Jacob could feel the heat coursing throughout his whole body, as if he was being barbequed alive.
“Help!” Jacob cackled. He hoped for any kind of help, even though he knew that there wouldn’t be any help.
Jacob was right. No one could possibly be passing through such a horrid place and still live until today. It’s been an hour. Jacob could barely felt his feet or anywhere below his waist anymore. He crawled towards the body which was a few feet away from him, with every ounce of strength that he had left in him.
He was shocked when he turned the body over. It was a woman with the face he recognized. This woman was Marielle. He began to come to his senses and remembered the reason of how she ended up in his arms. Marielle’s face was as pale as death. Her body was shuddering in cold.
“Marielle, wake up! Please wake up,” Jacob said, with his hoarse voice.
Jacob carried her and put her down beside a huge boulder which should be enough to keep them hidden and safe from anything that lived down here.
“So cold, your face is so cold,” Jacob nestled her on his lap and juddered her body. Yet, there’s still no response from Marielle.
“Marielle, you have to wake up, you can’t sleep here,” Jacob cried. Eventually, the heat caught up to Jacob and he fell asleep while holding Marielle close onto his lap.
