章 57: New World

When I feel the sunlight in my eyes, I groan and roll over. I'm so tired and everything hurts... suddenly, my eyes snap open and I quickly sit up. The monkey nearly flies off the bed before he fusses and moves back to my side.

"Woah, woah! take it easy. No one's trying to hurt you." Someone says to my left. When I look over, I see a beautiful girl with bright yellow eyes. She gives me a small smile and says "My name is Fern, and you are?" I open my mouth to speak but nothing comes out.

Shocked, I reach up and touch my throat. I try to clear my throat as the girl quickly hands me a glass of water. I gratefully take the water and take several gulps before I clear my throat and croak out "Valerie... What happened?"

She gives me a larger smile and my eyes go straight to her teeth. Super sharp teeth... She quickly lifts her hand and hides her mouth as she awkwardly says "Some people said they saw you walk up to the City and pass out. They thought you were one of the soldiers from the larger cities but when the Doctor was checking you, he said you were female."

She lowers her hand and gives me a small smile as she says "I offered to take care of you..." I give her a small hallow smile as I say "Thank you, Fern. You don't have to hide your teeth. You have a beautiful smile." She blinks at me in surprise before she gives me a huge smile.

She really did have wickedly sharp teeth... but the look in her eyes tells me she means no harm. She slowly looks down at the monkey and asks "What's his name? He watched over you the whole time. He actually did his job so well, he made it hard for the Doctor to check on you." She giggles a little as she glances back to me.

A pang of pain hits my heart as my throat tightens. I reach over and gently pet the monkey as I softly say "CheeChee... his name is CheeChee." My eyes begin to sting but the girl doesn't say anything.

She gently takes the cup out of my hand and sets it on the table next to the bed as she softly says "I don't know what happened out there Valerie but you're safe now. We won't let anything happen to you, I promise."

I slightly nod my head and quickly whip my tears as I try to push back the thoughts threatening to swallow me whole. I try to distract myself as I turn to her and ask "What is this place?" Her eyes brighten as she says "This is Utopia City. We just call it Utopia but everyone here has come from all over. There are a few other cities like this one but for the most part, this is the largest."

I slowly nod my head and ask "What... what do you do here?" Fern blinks at me in confusion before tilting her head to the side and saying "Live? Uh... we go to work, trade goods with others, and have large feasts where we all come together. What city are you from?"

I feel the familiar sting from incoming tears and quickly blink them away as I softly say "The City of lies... That's where I come from." She looks at me in shock and then confusion before awkwardly smiling and saying "That doesn't sound like a nice place..."

I shake my head and whisper "It's not..." We sit in silence for a few moments before she says "Oh! Silly me, you must be starving. I'll be right back." She quickly takes off and gently shuts the door behind her. I look around the room and see everything in bright, cheerful colors.

Everywhere you look, you see plants of some kind hanging from pots or crawling across the walls. The sunlight coming in from the window is warm and bright, washing everything in a golden haze. Something that looks like a wind chime made out of glass is hanging from the ceiling but when the light hits it, colorful rainbows dance around the entire room. It was truly beautiful here in a simple, peaceful way.

Everything back in my City is metal and concrete. Hard and cold... order, control and rules. I hear the laughter from the children outside once again and it makes my chest hurt. "Utopia..." I whisper with a twisted smirk.

CheeChee looks up at me with confusion as he plays with the blanket covering me. It really does seem like a Utopia. I lift my hand up to feel the sunlight coming in through the window but when I see my arm, my eyes start to burn again.

Hot tears fall down my face as I see the large bruise from Thane's hand. I swallow hard as I reach up with my other hand and gently lay my hand down over it. Thane...

Suddenly, the door to the room opens. I quickly wipe my tears as Fern comes in with a large bowl of food. I take the bowl with a polite smile and say "Thank you." She gives me a tender look and says "I'll give you some space but I'll be right outside. If you need me, just give me a call."

I slightly nod my head and watch her walk out of the room and close the door once again. I look down to the bowl of food and see that it's soup. CheeChee quickly runs over and tries to stick his hand into it.

I quickly stop his hand and grab the spoon. I show him how to scoop it up and then lift it to his mouth. He takes a bite and his eyes light up! He bounces in excitement making me slightly giggle. I hand him the spoon and watch him clumsily feed himself.

I reach out and lightly pet his head as I say "Thank you for saving me CheeChee..." He lifts his head to me in question and tilts his head to the side, not quite understanding me but I just give him a small smile and say "Good boy."

He seems to understand that as his face transforms into a big toothy grin before going back to eating. I'm glad he's enjoying it... I can't bring myself to eat right now. I bring my arm up to my chest and place my hand on top of the bruise once again.

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