it is starting to turn into dreadlocks.
Youâll look funny , she warns.
Not if you do a good job . I kneel next to her and hope she can make it sort of straight.
She starts to snip away, tentatively at first, but then she gets into it. I feel the hair drop down my back and all around me. Already I feel lighter. Baby steps back to examine her work.
How does it look? I ask.
Not bad . She bites her lower lip. Not good either .
I slip back into the lake to rinse myself off. My fingers slip through my short hair. I canât see it but it seems like Baby made it even on both sides, close to my scalp until just above my ear, then a bit longer on top.
I look like a rock star from Before, I try to convince myself. In truth, I already miss having long hair, but it just isnât practical. Who is there to impress anyway?
I dress in my new clothes, strapping my gun back over my shirt. Baby gathers her things, carefully placing the gun we took off the boy at the house at the top of her bag. I want her to carry it, to use it if necessary. I showed her how. It makes me feel a little safer to know she has it, in case something happens to me.
I heft my bag to my shoulder. Letâs look for a place on the lakefront tonight. We can find a mansion .
O . . . Baby pauses mid word. Did you hear that?
Hear what? I ask, puzzled. I look around and then I see it. A ship, landing.
I turn back to Baby. Run. Now . I sign as the blinding light appears.
Before I have time to turn, I hear a swoosh , and Baby is knocked into me and we fall. Her body weight presses against my chest. I gulp for air. We are a tangle of arms and legs, held tightly inside a strong web of netting. Luckily Baby is mostly on top of me, so I donât have to worry about crushing her small body.
We begin to move. I twist my head so I can see through the netting. We are being dragged toward the ship, just like the creature, that night with Amber. I canât reach my gun, but I feel Babyâs hand within my grasp.
Desperately I sign to her. Baby, where is your bag?
Here . She shifts her weight slightly, maneuvering the bag into my hand. I undo the zipper and reach inside. I feel the cool metal of the gun against my fingers. I donât know what happens inside the ship but Iâm going to be ready.
We are almost to the ship doorway, the gaping hole in the side of the craft. We are lifted from the ground and sway within the net for a moment before being deposited roughly onto the floor. I can barely see anything in the dark, but I feel a presence come closer.
Suddenly the net falls away and my hands are free. I roll over Baby into a crouch. The creature looms over us, covered in a shadowy black material from head to toe. I raise my arm, gun in hand, and fire into the creatureâs body.
Itâs not the recoil of the gun that surprises me. Iâm ready for the gunâs push against my arm, the memory of childhood shooting lessons still etched in my mind. What shocks me is the noise. Iâve forgotten how loud things were Before. In the enclosed space, the noise is amplified and my eardrums feel as if they will shatter.
The creature jerks back and clutches its chest where the bullet struck. I pull Baby to standing but cannot see a way out of the ship. Itâs small and cramped with no windows, and the door has already closed tight. I canât even tell where the opening is. We are trapped.
Baby grabs my hand. Itâs not dead .
I look back to the creature. It didnât fall over; it doesnât even look very hurt. It seems to study us, debating what to do.
I shove Baby behind me and fire again. Now Iâm prepared for the deafening boom. The bullet hits the creatureâs shoulder, and I watch closely. There is no tear in the creatureâs suit; the bullet just falls to the floor with a clink . I canât believe it. They arenât smart; They are mindless killers . How can They design a bulletproof suit? How did
Youâll look funny , she warns.
Not if you do a good job . I kneel next to her and hope she can make it sort of straight.
She starts to snip away, tentatively at first, but then she gets into it. I feel the hair drop down my back and all around me. Already I feel lighter. Baby steps back to examine her work.
How does it look? I ask.
Not bad . She bites her lower lip. Not good either .
I slip back into the lake to rinse myself off. My fingers slip through my short hair. I canât see it but it seems like Baby made it even on both sides, close to my scalp until just above my ear, then a bit longer on top.
I look like a rock star from Before, I try to convince myself. In truth, I already miss having long hair, but it just isnât practical. Who is there to impress anyway?
I dress in my new clothes, strapping my gun back over my shirt. Baby gathers her things, carefully placing the gun we took off the boy at the house at the top of her bag. I want her to carry it, to use it if necessary. I showed her how. It makes me feel a little safer to know she has it, in case something happens to me.
I heft my bag to my shoulder. Letâs look for a place on the lakefront tonight. We can find a mansion .
O . . . Baby pauses mid word. Did you hear that?
Hear what? I ask, puzzled. I look around and then I see it. A ship, landing.
I turn back to Baby. Run. Now . I sign as the blinding light appears.
Before I have time to turn, I hear a swoosh , and Baby is knocked into me and we fall. Her body weight presses against my chest. I gulp for air. We are a tangle of arms and legs, held tightly inside a strong web of netting. Luckily Baby is mostly on top of me, so I donât have to worry about crushing her small body.
We begin to move. I twist my head so I can see through the netting. We are being dragged toward the ship, just like the creature, that night with Amber. I canât reach my gun, but I feel Babyâs hand within my grasp.
Desperately I sign to her. Baby, where is your bag?
Here . She shifts her weight slightly, maneuvering the bag into my hand. I undo the zipper and reach inside. I feel the cool metal of the gun against my fingers. I donât know what happens inside the ship but Iâm going to be ready.
We are almost to the ship doorway, the gaping hole in the side of the craft. We are lifted from the ground and sway within the net for a moment before being deposited roughly onto the floor. I can barely see anything in the dark, but I feel a presence come closer.
Suddenly the net falls away and my hands are free. I roll over Baby into a crouch. The creature looms over us, covered in a shadowy black material from head to toe. I raise my arm, gun in hand, and fire into the creatureâs body.
Itâs not the recoil of the gun that surprises me. Iâm ready for the gunâs push against my arm, the memory of childhood shooting lessons still etched in my mind. What shocks me is the noise. Iâve forgotten how loud things were Before. In the enclosed space, the noise is amplified and my eardrums feel as if they will shatter.
The creature jerks back and clutches its chest where the bullet struck. I pull Baby to standing but cannot see a way out of the ship. Itâs small and cramped with no windows, and the door has already closed tight. I canât even tell where the opening is. We are trapped.
Baby grabs my hand. Itâs not dead .
I look back to the creature. It didnât fall over; it doesnât even look very hurt. It seems to study us, debating what to do.
I shove Baby behind me and fire again. Now Iâm prepared for the deafening boom. The bullet hits the creatureâs shoulder, and I watch closely. There is no tear in the creatureâs suit; the bullet just falls to the floor with a clink . I canât believe it. They arenât smart; They are mindless killers . How can They design a bulletproof suit? How did
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