5

They lived together and died the same way.

Khalani’s feet drove into the ground with all her might as her worn black sneakers kicked up sand behind her.

They raced across the desert like death itself nipped at their heels.

The sandstorm followed, inching closer.

Beside her, Winnie huffed in pain. Her lips twisted as her injured shoulder was repeatedly jostled, but they couldn’t afford to stop.

Any pause meant death.

Khalani stole a glance behind them, and the approaching storm seemed to swallow the entire landscape whole, covering miles in seconds.

“Quick!” Brock’s booming voice yelled. “Into that building!” He pointed to a structure a few stories high, at least half a mile away.

“C’mon, Winnie,” Khalani urged, tugging her harder as the wind whipped around their clothing, stinging their eyes, hitting them like a barrage.

“I can’t, Khalani,” Winnie moaned, her steps faltering.

“Yes, you can.” Khalani’s forearms burned as she wrapped an arm around Winnie, straining to support her weight.

Suddenly, Winnie yelped and collapsed onto the sand, her mouth falling open as she clutched her ankle. Khalani frantically slid her arms under Winnie’s armpits, exerting every ounce of strength to lift her.

“Get up, Winnie!”

A shadowy haze fell over them as the rising sand blocked out the sun. She dared to look behind her, and her heart stopped. The colossal storm inched closer with every passing second.

Khalani’s arms shook as she struggled to lift Winnie to her feet, but her own legs buckled beneath her.

“Leave, Khalani,” Winnie begged as they fell further behind the group. “Winnie can’t run anymore.”

“Like hell I’m ever leaving you,” she whispered fiercely in Winnie’s ear. She’d drag her across the entire desert if she had to.

Her chest heaved and Khalani yelled, using all her strength to prop Winnie against her body.

Sand swirled around them, gaining momentum. She winced as the rough particles scratched her face, but she continued to heave Winnie’s body through the sand, inch by agonizing inch.

“Khalani!” Serene’s voice pierced through the howling winds.

She whipped her head around, mouth agape as the others abandoned their sprint toward shelter and rushed back to them.

Takeshi was the fastest.

He dashed across the sand like he was born racing through dunes, reaching them in under a minute. Without a word, he effortlessly lifted Winnie into his arms before pivoting his deadly gaze to her.

“I’ve got her, Kanes. Go!”

Violent determination swam in the black depths of his eyes, and Khalani hesitated only for a brief moment before nodding.

No matter what bitterness lay between them, Takeshi was the strongest one there. Winnie’s only chance of survival was with him.

“Come on, Khalani!” Serene danced on her heels, waiting for her.

“Get moving, pixie!” Brock’s voice thundered as he charged toward Serene, his expression contorting in rage.

Ignoring Brock, Serene held out her hand. Khalani’s thighs burned and a sharp cramp pierced her side, but she pushed her legs, straining to catch up. When she finally reached them, Brock all but dragged Serene forward.

Derek and Adan ran several feet ahead, but she was quickly losing sight as a whirlwind of sand swirled around them. She peeked over her left shoulder, and the monumental storm was nearly upon them.

“Don’t look.” Takeshi appeared to her right.

Even with Winnie’s full weight in his arms, he kept pace beside her.

Everything hurt.

The heavy backpack slamming against her lower back. Her calves that screamed for relief as she waded through the thick sand that felt like mud.

But through the dusty haze, a worn grey building loomed closer.

Serene faltered in her steps, but Brock kept a firm hand on her backpack, relentlessly pushing her forward. Adan and Derek were the first to make it to the building. They held the door open, frantically waving.

“Hurry!” She thought she heard Derek scream.

Khalani’s chest rattled as she tried to run faster, but the punishing wind lashed out at her frail body, and sand pelted her from every direction.

All over her skin.

Her hair.

Her stinging eyes.

Her vision was a sea of nothingness, barely able to make out her own hands in front of her. Khalani opened her mouth to scream, but dry sand trickled to the back of her throat, and she gagged.

Her whole body went numb, and she struggled to get a single ounce of oxygen in. She waved a hand in front of her, blindly moving toward the building.

Or was it the other way?

The heavy particles hit her like broken glass, and she fell to her knees, losing all sense of direction.

No. No. No.

This isn’t how she was supposed to die.

Fight. She needed to keep fighting.

Khalani gritted her teeth and crawled forward, like a roach refusing to perish.

But the vicious storm pressed against her, like the Earth itself were rejecting her presence.

Grains of sand stung her skin and filled her throat. The howling wind screeched in her ears like a deafening protest for all they’d taken away.

Perhaps the Governor was right.

Maybe they were never meant to return to the surface.

Khalani closed her eyes as the Earth enveloped her, suffocating her in its final embrace.

Suddenly, a strong hand seized her arm, pulling her to her feet, and wrenched her in the opposite direction. She stumbled, unaware of whose firm grip held her in the torrent.

Each step was riddled with agony, but whenever she slowed, the steady hand forcefully pulled her closer.

Khalani’s legs were on the brink of collapse before she was suddenly pulled through an open doorway.

The door banged shut behind her, and she fell to her hands and knees on the white, tiled floor. Gasping for breath, she vomited on the ground, expelling sand, food, and water. Drool dripped from the sides of her mouth, tears blurring her vision, as a smaller hand began rubbing her back in comforting pats.

“Make sure she gets it all out,” Takeshi commanded from afar.

“I got her,” Derek responded, lifting her brown, knotted hair from her face. “Keep going. I’m here.”

She blubbered incoherently, unable to speak. By the time she was heaving dry air, Khalani was certain she’d ejected the entire contents of her stomach.

She stared at the mess on the floor, trying to steady her heavy breathing. A rustle caught her attention, and she raised her head.

Brock pulled a solar stick from his pack, casting a soft, yellow glow around them. The room they were in had small wooden desks piled against the far wall. A dust sheen hung over the empty space.

She flinched when a strong gust of wind hammered the building, and the beige desks rattled like an echoing symphony.

Serene coughed heavily, doubled over with her hands on her knees as Adan checked her for injuries. Brock stood in the corner, stealing glances at them.

Takeshi knelt beside Winnie, who lay against a pillar, tying a piece of cloth around her injured ankle. His brow furrowed when Winnie hissed in pain, but a firm determination set in his jaw as he tightened the knot.

Khalani licked her dry lips, the scratchy pain in her sore throat screaming at her, and Derek pushed a water canteen into her chest.

“Drink this.”

She nearly moaned as the cool liquid coated her lips and tongue, sinking down her parched throat. She gasped for air after gulping the water down, placing a shaky hand on her chest. An erratic pulse beat under her hand with each exhale.

“I thought we nearly lost you.” Derek’s expression was haunted as he watched over her.

She leaned back, running a trembling palm through her hair. “For a second, I did too. Thank you for coming back for me.”

“It wasn’t me who saved you.”

She followed his tense gaze to Takeshi, and she froze in disbelief.

The raw strength it would’ve taken for just one man to drag a person through that sandstorm was immense...but to hold someone with one arm while dragging her with the other was astonishing.

Takeshi spoke softly to Winnie, the tender care in his eyes the opposite of how he stared at Khalani.

Whenever Takeshi turned his gaze to her, it torched her skin like a brand. His black eyes were either laced with indifference, frigidity, or an inexplicable emotion that made her do a double take.

Khalani’s chest felt like it was bottoming out as the unthinkable truth stood before her.

Takeshi saved her.

He turned back for her without hesitation, risking his own life in the process. Why?

Maybe it was out of spite. To make her suffer through life a little longer.

That line of reasoning made her more comfortable.

When he finished wrapping Winnie’s ankle, Takeshi stood and marched toward Brock. His long legs swallowed the space, and both men talked in heated whispers, sporting minor cuts on their lips and cheeks from their earlier fight.

She was suddenly knocked over as a small figure barreled into her.

“Don’t you dare come that close to dying again,” Serene exclaimed.

Khalani wrapped her arms around her, squeezing just as tightly, a slight tremor quaking through her limbs.

Serene nearly died turning back for her. They all did. She wanted to scream and throttle her, but Khalani just bent her head into the crook of Serene’s neck, the massive knot in her chest expanding, covering every corner of her fragile heart.

She almost forgot what it was like to have people care if she lived or died.

“You okay, Khalani?” Adan crouched next to her, his concerned eyes focusing on her sandy face.

“I’ll survive,” she croaked, though another squeeze from Serene might prove otherwise.

“You’re not allowed to die without me,” Serene grumbled, still holding onto her tightly. “And dying from sand? That would’ve been a pitiful way to go out.”

“I’ll be sure to remember that next time.”

After a minute, Serene finally loosened her grip, and Brock broke away from an irate Takeshi and strode toward them.

“The storm will take hours to pass. We’ll shelter here for the night.”

“Are you sure this building’s safe?” Derek asked.

“Positive.”

As if on cue, a large gust of wind slammed into the decrepit building, and the questionably stable walls shook. Dust fell as the grey ceiling trembled above them. They all snapped incredulous gazes at Brock, and he held his hands up.

“If you want to test your luck outside, be my guest.”

The wind howled louder in response, and they sighed in defeat.

“Is being flattened by a building a better way to go?” Khalani joked weakly, tying her sandy hair into a messy ponytail. The tangled strands felt like they harbored a rat’s nest.

Serene looked up thoughtfully. “Killed by an inanimate object is also a paltry way to die. Points for respect though if our bodies get squished like dough.”

“You’re seriously demented.” Brock shook his head at Serene.

“I think that’s the first genuine compliment you’ve given me.”

“Wasn’t meant as one.”

“Even better.”

Khalani quickly passed Brock the gun he’d given her before the fight, leaving them to it. She walked over to Winnie, who was slumped against a pillar with her tired legs stretched out.

“You okay, Winnie?” She bent down.

“Never better, dear,” Winnie replied with a pained smile and coughed into her fist. Her raspy cough had a slight rattle and was deeper than before.

“Drink.” A large hand promptly shoved a canteen in front of Winnie’s face.

Her gaze drifted past Winnie to Takeshi, who stood over them like an insurmountable wall. It was difficult for Khalani to swallow with him so close, knowing how much he’d risked saving her.

“You shouldn’t waste water on Winnie, Kesh,” Winnie admonished in a weak voice, waving off the canteen.

Kesh?

“You can’t expect me to give up that easily, Win. Now, drink your water,” Takeshi instructed firmly, but his eyes were soft as he gently placed the canteen in her hand.

Win?

Why did this feel like mutiny?

Winnie was her friend. Her family. Family was supposed to hate the people you hate.

She gnawed at her bottom lip as Winnie obeyed and drank from the canteen. Only then did Takeshi nod and walk away, retrieving the gun from his bag and checking the ammunition.

Khalani cleared her throat and stood, side-eying his imposing frame. The black fabric hugged his chest tightly as he handled the gun like it was second nature.

Without thinking, she approached him. But the words “thank you” were stuck in her throat when he shifted his attention to her. The warmth he had for Winnie was absent.

He scrutinized her like an incessant thorn in his side—one he’d like to pluck out and burn.

“Can I ask you something?” she finally asked.

He cocked a brow and motioned for her to speak.

“Why did you come back for me?”

“Would you prefer it if I left you?”

A part of her wanted to shrink from the deep resonance of his voice. But she was tired of running and too exhausted to be anything but honest.

“I’d prefer not to be indebted to you.”

“Why? Afraid I’ll hold that debt over you?” Takeshi pocketed the gun and leaned against the pillar. He crossed his arms, and a lock of black hair fell over his eye.

“Of course.” She lifted her head. “You’re you. You always want to be in control.”

“You’re wrong about that.” His dark eyes trailed across her skin like a dull knife. They were only a couple feet apart, but the air between them felt magnetized.

“Care to explain how?” she asked, standing straighter, trying to maintain control of the conversation.

“No. You’ll lose sleep if I tell you.”

“Doubtful. I don’t get scared easily.”

A lie she would take to her grave.

“That so?” He leaned forward, his eyes glinting with an untamed fire. “Then why are your hands sweating, and why is your weight shifting side to side like you’re ready to bolt through the very doors I dragged you in.”

“That’s not true.” She was fidgeting with her fingers now, and Khalani immediately slapped her hands to her side. “I didn’t come over here to fight.”

“Then why did you really come?”

Say it, Khalani.

Just say it and walk away.

Even if they loathed each other, Takeshi had risked his life for her. Two simple words, and then she could return to blissfully ignoring him, just like he’d done most of their journey.

She took a deep breath. “I came to say thank you.”

Takeshi recoiled as if she’d struck him. His brows furrowed, like he didn’t know how to respond, but he quickly composed himself and nodded. “You’re welcome.”

“But I still don’t like you,” she added, more as a reminder to herself

He snorted and rolled his eyes. “The feeling is mutual, Kanes.”

Oddly, her chest felt lighter.

His body seemed more relaxed too. The lines in his forehead smoothed out and Takeshi’s shoulders slowly eased their coiled tension.

As if they both found comfort in their disdained banter.

“You should get some rest.” He dismissed her in a low voice when they didn’t speak for a few seconds.

Despite his statement, his gaze drew her in like he wanted something more.

Khalani hesitated, her feet feeling glued to the floor. But she nodded, forcing herself to turn and escape, listening to her brain for once.

The raging winds continued to batter the building, and Khalani cuddled with Serene and Winnie against the wall, using their backpacks as rough pillows. Adan and Derek slept on either side of them, while Brock took post by the door.

Takeshi was in the far corner of the room, blending with the shadows, where he was most comfortable.

With her back against Serene, she kept staring at Winnie.

She noticed Winnie’s appetite had been steadily waning.

The glazed look in her eyes was becoming more pronounced, and her voice had grown weaker by the second.

Winnie wasn’t getting better.

She was growing decidedly worse.

The thought made her stomach clench, and she had to steady her suddenly quickened breathing.

Khalani didn’t sleep that night. A strange part of her yearned to venture out into the storm and let the sand cloak her body.

Not because she wanted to die.

She missed being okay with loneliness.