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Twigs snap beneath Ralph's feet as he runs through the forest, pushing through hanging creepers and leaping over fallen branches.
Behind him, Jack follows closely. His wild fiery hair makes him painfully obvious to spot.
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Ever since piggy’s death, the same routine has followed for weeks.Everyday, Jack starts his morning preparing for his hunt. Every week, Jack circles through the jungle until he finds Ralph. And when he finally does find him, he is outrun by him.
Jack tells his hunters that he is right near catching Ralph, and no matter how much they offer their help, Jack insists that it's a one man job.
“All you know how Ralph led before, he could come back and take everything we have away from us!” Jack reasons. “We’ve worked bloody hard for what we’ve got, and it's my duty as chief to protect us from him.”
There were two instances where Jack had caught him. Once near the shore, and near the mountain.
On the beach, Jack had gotten so close to spilling Ralph’s blood.
They were both out of breath, Jack using his left arm to pin him down, making sure that Ralph stayed there. He lifts his right hand, holding a stick which was sharpened at both ends.
Jack stares into Ralph’s deep blue eyes, and shifts his glare to his neck. He aimed to kill.
He was so close, yet suddenly, he felt a strange pinch in his throat. Jack glanced back at Ralph’s face, instantly regretting having looked at it.
The pinch he felt grew into a choke. With his arms shaking, he saw tears fall out of Ralph’s eyes. Tears that he’s never seen. Soon he saw his own tears fall, right into Ralph’s.
Jack's grip on him softens. Ralph took quick notice of Jack’s hesitation, harshly pushing him away. Jack didn’t have the energy or the courage to chase after him, so he stayed there.
He stayed there lying on the sand, staring up into the sky, wetting the ground with his tears.
The second time he had caught Ralph was weeks after the beach. After the hunters found Jack lying on the floor, Jack had made up an excuse for why they found him so vulnerable.
“He threw sand in my eye to blind me, thas why they’re all wet.” Jack vowed to find Ralph, to kill him.
He spent days searching for him, until he finally found him again.
Jack set his search around the old scar. Short bits of greenery peeked out from the rubble, but it was far from being fully recovered. No one has been near it for months; it had been fully abandoned since they got there. Jack figured that Ralph would be somewhere around the area, he had nowhere to go but to places he was most familiar with.
Just as he thought, someone was nearby. Not too far from the scar, Jack heard unclear whimpers, as if it were faint cries of a wounded animal.
He creeped his way over to the sounds while avoiding crunchy leaves and small branches on the ground. Jack found behind large bushes, hunched over, Ralph.
He noticed Ralph tightening his own chest, using both arms to grip his sides.
Jack thought back to when he hurled his spear towards him. He vaguely remembered tearing off flesh with the point.
He caught the moment where Ralph ceased to tense his arms. This gave Jack the opportunity. He readied himself, waiting for the right moment.
Ralph took a single breath, he felt Jack’s presence there with him. It became a hard thing to ignore. He knew he needed to act fast.
Jack imagined how he could get Ralph in the same position as their last encounter. Except with his face shoved in the dirt.
He took a quick step forward, but as soon as Jack took action, Ralph abruptly stood up and scampered away. Jack froze mid stance, caught off guard. He observed Ralph, and though he was far, he could tell that Ralph had trouble running steadily.
Ralph didn’t know where he was going. Ever since he got away from Jack on the beach, he would wander around the scar and assembly area. Both were empty of boys, who now spend all their time at Castle Rock. It was a horrible place to live, Ralph thought. Yet, he couldn’t get himself to feel sorry for them. Sucks to those hunters.
He couldn’t walk too far due to his injury and would need to take a break every few steps to regain stamina. Still, Ralph became aware that Jack was nearby. He soon found a cave opening alongside the mountain. He ran for it and quickly turned the corner to lay flat against the inner wall.
Ralph held in his breath, silently begging to have led Jack astray.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t that lucky.
Jack knew exactly where he was. He was only a few steps behind, shadowing his tracks. Jack crept beside the outer wall of the cave's entrance. He held in his own breath, waiting for Ralph.
For a moment, there was silence. Both boys heard nothing. Jack began to doubt himself, wondering if he traced Ralph's direction accurately. Ralph hesitated. Even with the stillness, he couldn’t really accept that Jack would lose him so quickly.
With this unnerving feeling, Ralph decided to take a peek outside the cave. He stuck his head out ever so slightly, eyeing the area in front of the cave.
Barely taking in the foliage throughout the jungle, he saw no sign of Jack.
Ralph believed for a second that he was free from his pursuer. That was until he turned his view to the left.
There he was. Staring back at him, Jack. With a gasp, Ralph immediately hid behind the wall. He knew he was done for.
Jack took a minute to react, still taken aback by the absurdly stupid scenario. He shook his head and focused back on his main objective. He hastily entered the cave, quickly finding Ralph by the entrance. Using his spear, Jack pinned Ralph against the wall by the throat.
Ralph choked, then let out a frustrated groan. He’s already endured enough from Jack.
Using all the strength he had left, Ralph raised both his arms and aggressively shoved Jack off. Jack lost his balance and tumbled over, landing on the ground with a stifled yelp. Ralph attempted to hurry away, but immediately slammed face first onto the floor. Jack frantically repositioned himself to reach out his arm, long enough for him to grab Ralph’s left ankle, yanking his leg down desperately.
Ralph cried out, feeling blood trickle down from his nose. He felt a hand graze his upper back, moving to the back of his head and run its dirted fingers through his tangled hair. This soft gesture turned sour as Ralph’s head was viciously forced into the ground.
Jack was now on top of him, using his left hand to keep Ralph’s head down. His heart was racing. Rapidly scanning the floor for his spear, he had to make a move. Jack’s breathing became shallow, barely able to snatch up his weapon.
Trembling, Ralph tried to lift himself up, only to be held back down by Jack. The taste of iron began to seep into his mouth. Jack raised his weapon up high, daring Ralph to make a move.
Struggling to breathe, Ralph turned his head to make eye contact with Jack. With angry tears, he let out a strained voice.
“G-… get off me… Merridew.”
Jack froze. He almost forgot how Ralph’s voice sounded.
Unintentionally or not, Jack let go of his spear. The sound echoed around them. His breathing slowed, a familiar pinch grew inside his throat. His hand relaxed, keeping it in Ralph’s hair.
Ralph struggled to crawl away from him. Even though it took him an excruciating amount of time to make space between them, Jack did nothing to stop it. Ralph didn't have enough energy to escape yet and was in no shape to do so. His nose had stopped bleeding, but he still felt an uneasy throb inside his head.
Grudgingly, Ralph stayed there. Sitting a few feet away from the boy who just tried to kill him a second time.
The sudden mood change made Ralph cringe. He could hear his heartbeat. They were both sweating and out of breath. His stomach twisted, he wanted to scream at Jack. Yell at him, demand what on earth was wrong with him.
He glared at Jack, shooting daggers at him, daring Jack to make eye contact. And when he didn’t, Ralph huffed. He gave up on making sense of Jack.
When Jack finally looked up, he saw Ralph had turned his back on him, hugging his knees, head hanging low. With a shaky breath, Jack mumbled something low. Ralph’s head jerked up. He anxiously turned his head, awaiting for Jack to continue, but when he looked, Jack was gone. Leaving his spear behind.
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It’s been months since their last encounter.
Everyday, Jack still sets out to find Ralph. As far as his tribe knows, Jack still wants to kill him.
Even to Ralph’s knowledge, Jack still wants to kill him. He knows how.. unusual… their past interactions have been, and he knows how conflicted he feels about it.
Still, he doesn’t let the uncertainty of his feelings blind him. Ralph witnessed how bloodthirsty Jack can be.
And now they’re back into their old routine.
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