Throughout the day of Day 11 and continuing on into the night the remaining fifty people in the room spent the night getting to know one another. Learning that they're more than just numbers and that they are in this together. Jim spoke to each of them as if it was his personal house party, going back and forth and introducing other to each other based upon the little tid bits he learned from each of them.
"Cynthia, this Janice, Janice this is Cynthia, did you know your both from West Virginia." he moved through out the room asking them if they've had enough to eat and drink, did they have any medical issues or did they need to talk to someone to help them along.
Liz and Anne took a break from their new friends and made their way back to the women's group. Some were not very pleased to see them, feeling as though they abandoned them to run off with the men, after they had preached to them that they didn't need the men to survive. Kara, a short woman walked up to the two of them. "What's wrong? Taking a break from your boyfriends?"
"Boyfriends?!" Liz looks at her and just pushes past her, not even allowing a conversation to take place. She finds several of the older women whom she knew had been hurt during the day with the mines to see how they're wounds were doing. it was just a few days ago they went through that ordeal but it seems almost like weeks.
"Kara, shut the Hell up." Anne literally pushes her out of the way, the demure woman tried to block Anne after Liz dissed her, but succeeded just as well with Anne. She catches up with Liz and the two go through the group encouraging them to talk with everyone, that if they all band together they can get through this experience in a whole new way.
These eleven days that they have been together have been excruciating, they have physically and mentally been pushed further than they ever thought they were even capable. Their will has been taken to the cusp and they have been left dangling there. In the time they've been here this has been one of the few moments where their thoughts were not dominated with feelings of dread. Because even in those briefest of moments when their physical torture has not been there, they have the thoughts of home to deal with. What is going on at home with their families, their wives and their husbands. Who's tucking in their children, who's comforting those they love so much it hurts just as much to say their name in their head as it did getting hit by the mine pellets.
When they feel this pain they reflect on other times they have felt pain in their lives, that one time when Julia fell walking into the grocery store tripping over the rubber mat. So embarrassed, her scraped knee and the way her elbow hurt for two weeks afterwards, nothing compared to treading water for nearly 18 hours. Craig remembers doing a roof on his brothers house, in the heat all day long sweating, cutting his hand on tiles and nails cramping up and being practically paralyzed for the rest of the night. The day seemed like Hell, but just last night being trapped in that small space with spiders, snakes and the fear of dying all night long, hell has a knew meaning.
Scott sits silently against the wall, the strong security guard can think of only one thing in this down time, Jenny. He can close his eyes and see her smile, the way it lights up and makes her eyes get all small. Those big beautiful eyes, brown like chestnut and full of life and love. Her hair flows, it never just sits there, it always flows and drapes over her shoulders that she liked to show off. She would say all the time she loves her shoulders and he would laugh, and think what girl says she likes her shoulders. But then he'd find himself giving them small little kisses, nibbling on them and realizing hell yes they were damn sexy fine shoulders. While he wishes he could just be sitting there remembering their taste, like almond and butterscotch rolled into one, all he can think about was the last time they spoke.
He had just got done working a eight day stint and was due for his three days off, but before coming home he wanted to go hang out with a few of the other guards. Hit the local bar, throw some darts and have some beers, hang with the guys and unwind. Jenny called and said she couldn't wait to see him, she had made plans to go out to eat and spend the day lying in bed and watching their favorite movies together. He told her he would be home the next day and not to wait up. She was shocked more than angry. She knew from his stories that while at work it was a boys club, where they goofed around and had some laughs. Not every day was a serious situation in fact there were more calm boring days than there were even the hints of riots. So she didn't understand why he didn't want to just run home and be with her. Of course he looked at it as her telling him what to do, his guard mentality of controlling the situation flared up and he told her that she could wait 12 hours; for her to go to bed and she'd see him in the morning and that it wasn't a big deal. He was right, it wasn't a big deal, for the past eight days he had spent it in that giant concrete building with all those guys so why wouldn't he choose to spend one more minute with them being a child and laughing at fart jokes, when he could have been home tasting those sweet shoulders. He never made it home. He wants to think Jenny is still waiting for him, its only been 11 days, but he was such an ass, and things had been tough with them before. All he had to think was if it was more important for him to be right than to make her feel less wanted. He wanted her to be waiting for him, but why should she; when he wouldn't run to her.
The monitor comes on and day 12 begins. Cipher comes on the screen runs through his normal routine, number eleven leaves. The heat comes back on in the room, but for the most part not too many people even noticed. Pairing up they kept warm and helped each other get through the night. No one died, and wounds that were received there in the room were treated. They waited to hear their fate for day twelve but they approached it with knowing they had each other.
Daniel looked around the room, his cynical mind raced as he watched people holding hands and helping each other up. Jim encouraging them to stand up tall, some still and quiet because they had done things in that room that will haunt them until they die. He waits for Cipher to tell them what twisted game they'll be playing today, he has the P90s drop down twenty five sets of plastic draw string cuffs. They have a rubber strap between the two about two feet long and the group is told to pair up and each person is to put on one end of the cuff. It doesn't make sense he thinks, the night before, the food, the cold what was that, and now why this? Pairing us up making the bonds stronger, or... the cold wasn't the torture, he left them to themselves to think and to reflect on the lives that they were missing, he let them socialize and he made it cold to force them to pair up the entire previous day bringing them closer together. Day 11 was just a prequel, a set up, he allowed us this reprise, so he could just break us harder.
Its as if the whole room is spinning he's seeing it play out in his head as he watches the group almost happily shackle themselves to one another. He looks at Ross as he stands their holding the cuff hoping Daniel will partner up with him. "Day 12 is going to suck."
Day 12 begins
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