章 11: Chapter 10
After Richard left the camp, Sherry decided it was finally time to have a snack, as there was no proper time for that before. The pieces of fish were ready, and although the old pan still wasn't totally clean and that caused a feeling of disgust, it was better than starving here to death. Sherry just hoped that soon she would get some clean dishes and other necessary things. Richard agreed to help and it was a huge plus. Now the only thing that worried her was the decision of her parents.
While Sherry ate, Jason sat down opposite her again, watching her in silence. Although he never spoke a word, millions of thoughts raced through his head. He didn't understand how Mother knew that this particular girl was good, but if she said so than she definitely knew what she was talking about. If this girl was bad, Mother would have never told him to help her, she would just approve the kill. But she didn't interfere too much in Jason's life, just in the most critical situations she gave him advices. And this was one of such situations. One thing Jason knew for sure – this girl was definitely a victim of bad people and he saw it with his own eyes.
Sherry lifted her eyes and, seeing that Jason was watching her with full attention, finally decided to break the silence.
"Um… Jason… I just want to thank you for everything you did for me. To be honest… it was unexpected. I thought you would just kill me like the others. But I'm glad you didn't." She paused for a moment and continued. "I could make a conclusion that you're not like people think and speak of you. Everyone knows you as a soulless killing machine and…"
She went silent abruptly, being afraid that her words might make Jason angry, but he just continued looking at her with curiosity.
"What I want to say that now I'm pretty sure that you have feelings. If you maybe just let me know you better… erm… would you mind if I ask you a few more questions? Believe me, I'm just as curious about you as you are about me."
Jason watched her for a couple of minutes and finally nodded. That was a sign that he agreed to "talk". Sherry smiled kindly and said:
"Alright then, I'm happy that you agree to continue our conversation, Jason. So… let me guess – you have lived in this camp since… um… since your mom died?"
Jason nodded and Sherry could swear she noticed sadness in his eye. It was pretty obvious that thinking about his mother's death made him sad.
"I'm sorry… The theme of you mom is painful for you, I know. I guess she was the only person that you have ever loved and the one that loved you, right?"
A nod again.
"I see. And I understand this feeling. When you lost someone so dear to you, it hurts very much. I remember when my great-grandmother died, and how I cried during her funeral. I was so attached to her and her death was like a tragedy of life to me. But she was really old, she has lived for ninety years, so yeah… very respectable age. My parents and grandparents tried to calm me down and told not to cry so much, as my great-grandmother was in a better place now and she wouldn't want me to be so heartbroken." She looked at Jason again and continued talking. "Oh, sorry, Jason… You might not be interested in listening to this, but I just wanted to say that I know how painful it is to lose someone you love, so I understand how awful you felt."
While Sherry spoke, Jason listened in silence. If he had an ability to smile under his mask, he would have definitely done that. No one has even tried to understand what he felt and why, as no one cared, except for his Mother. And he began thinking that Mother might be right about this girl. She was not just kind to him, but did her best to understand him. At this moment Jason felt angry about not being able to talk. He wanted to express everything that was on his mind, but he didn't know how to do it. He didn't even know how to write. And this was really annoying. If only she could understand the reason behind his killing…
"Have you ever visited school, Jason?" Sherry suddenly asked. "Don't mind it, it's just curiosity."
This time Jason shook his head which was a "no". Mother has never let him go to school, telling that schools are full of bad people who would hurt him, so she tried to teach him at home as much as possible. As he was always mocked, so in school it would be much worse, as Mother couldn't be near.
"I see," Sherry said. "I guess your mom didn't take you there?"
A nod.
"Pretty understandable. I've heard that children teased you and laughed at you non-stop, all because of your… unusual appearance. In such situations children are cruel. If someone differs from the others, no matter how – whether in appearance, behaviour, thinking or even having the best or worst marks in school, he or she becomes a derelict and, as a result, a victim of bullying. Yeah…" Sherry sighed sadly. "Unfortunately, this is the life. And life is cruel."
Jason nodded in agreement. This girl was speaking the truth. He understood the cruelty of life a long time ago, but now he was already past that. Now he shows the bad people what cruelty means without remorse.
"You know, in some way I also have been a victim of bullying, although not to such an extent like you. In the University where I study, I have an enemy who bullied me practically every day when she got the opportunity. Yes, I mean this girl named Vanessa, whose idea was to bring me to your camp. I was mocked by her and her company, as I'm an exact opposite of her. She's a total slut and smokes marijuana. Ugh!" Sherry's face gained an expression of disgust. "Smells so awful, indeed. Really, I will never understand why some people smoke and use drugs. What for? It makes no sense. I am surprised how they don't value their health, and no one is going to live two lives. Damn!" She huffed in annoyance. "Sorry, it's just… the more I think about it, the more irritated I become. I've never known a thing more idiotic than that."
After Sherry finished the last sentence, something inside Jason's dead heart began to stir. Now he finally and fully realized why Mother was so sure that this girl was good. Mother's intuition had never been wrong, and this situation was no exception. It meant that good people still existed within this crowd of rotten-brained people that come to his territory. So beside his mother, the friendship with this girl was the second thing that he valued, and the fact that she wanted to stay in his camp, at least, for some time, made him happy.
At that moment Sherry's thoughts returned to her family, and she asked:
"Jason, I just want to make sure, for any case… is it really alright for you if my family visits me here now and then? I mean… if it disturbs you in any way, I'll let them know, so we can avoid unpleasant situations."
Jason nodded in response. Of course, if she needed help from her brother or parents, he wouldn't mind if they came here from time to time. But there was something else that worried him. He didn't know how to say it to her so that she would understand, while shifting in his spot nervously. Sherry didn't miss this moment.
"What's wrong, Jason?" she asked. "I see that you're uneasy."
Jason was pondering about several options of explaining his thoughts to her, but there was nothing else he could do than just pressing his index finger to the spot where his mouth was. Sherry just smiled.
"Oh, come on, we have mentioned this theme already. There's nothing to worry about. No one will know about you. Neither my parents, nor my brother are babblers. This secret will be kept among us alone, especially when my parents get to know you. So be calm, okay?"
Jason nodded slowly, although he wanted to be sure. The best option would be to wait for the arrival of her family and that would be a starting point. Sherry continued eating without hurry and time passed in silence. She was thinking about asking Jason to show her the area a bit more of the camp and out of it, as he has showed her just the main buildings like kitchen and bathroom. She would like to navigate through the camp territory without problems and fear to get into one of Jason's traps. But there will be much time for that. As she was planning to stay in the camp for a couple of weeks for sure, she would manage to take a hundred walks around the territory. Right now there were more important things to worry about – her parents. Richard agreed to cooperate, but will they follow his footsteps? She will find it out and very soon.
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