The sight of Bartie already at the tracks when I walked along them in the bright sunlight filled me with hope that things had returned to normal.281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXsUnDZ5bO
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fXLzhlpjO
He took a few steps forth when I passed him, wagging a finger. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6verUKPGd
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIeTZa9F8hw
I knew what was coming and smiled at it. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkG6FpDfG2l
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdBlr7eXbO
"She's worried sick about you, Soup!" Bartie grumbled at me "running off on her like that. Shame on you for having her in tears!" 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9bozoC58GG
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdZSPG6Pdt
I paused and turned back to him. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiM6m7fHWpC
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ6RQeGZk00
That wasn't his usual warning. He was supposed to tell me not to hurt her, like he always did. He never changed it. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwOIuUmgkP
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvQB2GGVv5M
What was going on here? 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiUiF9Xppb
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlqf17zHn7Q
Missy's face poked from the newsagency and lit up at the sight of me before she rushed out of it and for the tracks. Her pale pink dress billowed around her when she ran, kicking up around her legs to glimpse the red under-fabric. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2zaFl3JsIe
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8tCJb0PXoU
What was she doing here? She was supposed to be home! 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmnmqqafot
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRfyROMIAIW
"Soup! Don't be scared! I only want to find out a few things!" she blurted on her way. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLvPxMvaNEF
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmTtwD3bXqO
No, no, no! She was meant to be happy, not chasing me! 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡADob65CHhp
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1zVoPqXsTl
I scurried for the bridge, pausing at the beginning of it to see Missy throw her arms down in defeat. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0mfd5nN2yu
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPf90bEdWI5
She wasn't going to follow me. She knew it was too dangerous to be tempting fate on a place like this. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtKYn1U8yCf
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJZIXPghpQ
"No, don't go!" she whined out to me "Soup!" 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡggioavtnOk
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlTZtKwuHSZ
She had her dreams of solitude. Why was she trying to ruin it all now? 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Qf0QdKS3N
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFoDcdmbks
I rushed over the bridge and kept going until I was safely over the river. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM6WsbeDmuy
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfH6QT8PTLp
She just needed more time to realise. Then, we would be back to normal again.
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0YvEotEObZ
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWsUc5gZWzU
Unlike my hopes, Missy was relentless in her pursuit for answers. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl9so1433ra
Every afternoon I approached the tracks, she would be there, waiting. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBQj1GO6IQC
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAWSNEjVlV
She tried giving me distance at first from Bartie's shop but realised that I had too much time to dart back to safety on her sprint down toward me. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIXdUZXtycw
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72e6DCBO62
After failing that tactic a few times and giving up on it, she tried ambushing me from the side of the track as soon as I walked out into the open. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwWa0s4Dthp
I was too quick for her, even with her advantage. She still refused to step onto the tracks that I darted along to escape her hunt for the truth. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3OsWP2R99M
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5Ojvwp4Fb
I could see it was breaking her spirit at how wary I was being of someone I had cherished so highly. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF6fj8UYCgF
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPfhV8lzm5I
Missy started to give up whenever I spotted her across the river and refused to close the distance between us. She didn't call out to me anymore and just watched hopelessly while I backed away to continue my scavenge for food elsewhere. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6YMSZ4gP9O
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHn33mVx0AQ
Starvation was bringing me back to those tracks every day to only be met with disappointment once again.
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCbYdu8HARY
Two weeks of the same occurrence refused to deter Missy from hoping for some miracle that I would approach her. Every day she would wait at the tracks for me in silence, and every day I would turn from them when I saw her face pull up into a hopeful smile. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0hQCifEwEr
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt4ZQUndJzJ
But today, something changed. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwXtUoGQJ8
Missy stepped onto the tracks. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISyZNe019S
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqB5Il04RXe
She came marching towards me with worried glanced over her shoulder to any danger that might be barrelling past her home from the West. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDj5gRrcarL
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7q85twi6g9
I didn't dare leave my side knowing that she had nowhere to escape. Her trembling body was already over the river, trying to hurry towards me as quickly as she could over the rolling gravel sprayed over the boards she stretched her body over. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLOQ0DBc6RU
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJ8c1u90iW
I paced nervously in my own fear of being caught over the water with her. She was still so far away from land, even with her frantic pace. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSQ6v1SxLO
I wouldn't be able to do anything but watch hopelessly if the train decided to run early. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4OU94IVDG
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvce9lmSYXl
Listening to her now wouldn't change her mind and get her to return to the safety of the roadside. She wasn't going to let me ignore her any longer. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFpRks0sLKM
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWcfyaDK6mZ
Determination fuelled her fight. I was going to give her whatever she wanted if it meant she wasn't going to be so reckless anymore. If she wanted to destroy her life by hunting down impossibilities, then I couldn't stop her. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfw8NboQomW
Time had done nothing to deter her. If anything, it had fuelled her curiosity into what happened that night. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5lgRAoymSh
I couldn't chase her away with ignorance or distance. Missy was going to find a way around it, even if it tried to kill her. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFx4S2Hf9o8
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHEZ4eRh8vv
My whole body trembled at the thoughts blaring through my mind. They smashed through my nerves like the train dragging Missy's body along the tracks in every possibility I saw. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLyYhmpIkSb
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ747Ag9Kzov
"Come on!" I cried out to her still powering along "hurry! Please!" 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrLhezYe7EO
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX6zcs4oTiF
I didn’t want to be here anymore. I knew the train had to be approaching this point at any moment now.281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLxWzPBr5d
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkMG3ahILOw
Sure enough, I saw it in the distance behind Missy. It powered effortlessly on its approach to her house it easily passed in moments. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uP43hMj72
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgvZMP9QuU6
The horn of the train screamed out to make Missy turn her head and frantically race towards me. I knew that the gravel had to be spearing the bottoms of her thin flats, but she didn't have time to stick to the safety of the boards anymore. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbzPguxIOFE
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0mtma7G05p
"Missy!"281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlbdkDLfHwO
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYGCW0OGjOE
"Soup!" she whined back.281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0TCGnRo5oK
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8QQOrXKC2
The train ploughed past the station, screaming out frantically now. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGePz8XYqt
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrlsGiEkfNy
Missy was approaching the safety of the land, but still couldn't outrun the train quickly closing in on her. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrVosB16Zna
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzEaoVxBBh2
I leapt for the grass that knocked the air from my lungs and felt Missy's body hit the grass beside me as the train barrelled by. Its brakes screeched down my ears and froze my blood that shivered down my spine. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpj6YEkxbJC
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9FbHYQmVa
Missy gasped and trembled beside me before clinging to my arms in fear while sobbing. I cradled Missy in the grass while trying to shake my own grateful tears she was safe. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG5FLhPtpJy
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZiN9WMbsXN
She was so delicate huddled into me. Her head rested on my chest that warmed with her rigid breaths. The rest of her skin was frozen from the fear still coursing through her. Her arms tucked against me to try and warm up on my body. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9o0KBU952
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb2PQBQ1q8Y
"Never do anything that stupid again" I gasped out and squeezed her close. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0r7Vweq1Pi
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPp2GW9NvEA
Missy leant into it and didn't try to pull from me. Her trembling breath was steadying, and her sobs had subsided to little sniffles she tried to control. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJe7OJrqgy5
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTPaV9qMfPF
Her glistening brown eyes looked up to mine, searching again. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMlgKeL6roP
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhH8RsDouh
My body stiffened, dreading that the same fear and confusion would wash over them like that night I had run from them. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYpzGcERO4
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvEK2zWQk5f
I didn’t want to see that or know I was the cause of it. I moved my head away, looking at the clear sky and the drifting clouds above us finally threatening rain. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIMYPOSxtzu
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHEWOWEcOUy
Glancing down, I saw that Missy's eyes softened in the same way they did when she greeted me each day. They fluttered closed just as her shaking lips gently brushed on my cheek, leaving a tear to glide effortlessly down it. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGW7kKXmUzE
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhO1KLmpEKb
"Can I still call you Soup?" her voice breathed as her eyes found mine again, curious. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvIYrIAPKXr
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpJxvoxVHO5
Did she want to shatter it all for me? Or did she want to keep it the way it was, blissfully ignorant? 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk6BI89BcXS
She wouldn't be able to understand my answer anyway. I was just a creature trying to escape the drag of life, just like her. Everything else was drowned in the water tower and floating in the river, like it could remain to be. 281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqXoSyqjXdw
281Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTqkAOMSseC
I only had the name she gave me. Whatever she wanted that to mean would be up to her.
