The Pack Left Me Behind, So I Claimed My Future Chapter 05

The Pack Left Me Behind, So I Claimed My Future Chapter 05

When I stepped off the plane, a senior member of the expedition team from base camp was waiting with a young man about my age.

While I was still looking around, they recognized me immediately. The older man spoke first.

“Are you Maeve?”

“Hello. I’m Elias, the expedition leader.”

He motioned to the young man behind him.

“This is Lucien, the field geologist assigned to your team.”

I smiled and silently reminded myself to get along with everyone.

“It’s nice to meet you both. I hope we’ll work well together.”

Elias was outgoing and talkative, while Lucien was quiet and reserved. During the drive, I could not help asking a question.

“How did you recognize me, sir?”

“Just call me Elias. Our contact at the Academy described you as tall and slim, with double eyelids and fair skin.”

He had recognized me in a crowd based on nothing more than a description. So this was what it felt like to be remembered.

Elias went on, “You really are fair-skinned, but it won’t be long before you’re as tanned as the rest of us.”

All three of us laughed.

The deeper we drove into the desert, the slower the vehicle moved. Wind hurled sand against the windows, and after what felt like forever, several prefabricated metal buildings gradually emerged through the dust ahead.

When the vehicle stopped, I turned to reach for my canvas duffel in the back seat. Lucien was already holding it.

Six people stood in a neat line outside the buildings, holding a piece of cardboard with a message written across it in black marker.

[Welcome to the team, Maeve!]

Elias introduced all six of them. Only one was a woman, and she hooked her arm through mine with easy familiarity.

“Hi, Maeve. I’m Selene, the field data coordinator. We’ll be sharing a room.”

She led me into one of the prefabricated buildings. The room contained only two beds and a small folding table.

She pointed to the bed covered with thick bedding.

“I already made your bed. Elias specifically asked the supply crew to bring back both the new bed and the bedding on their last run.”

I looked at the bed. It was small but new, nothing like the rusted metal frame I had slept on at home.

The mattress was thick, with two padded mattress toppers layered over it. The comforter was pale yellow with a floral pattern, not army green with four patches sewn into it.

“Thank you,” I said to Selene.

“What are you thanking me for? We’re your family here.”

The word family made me pause. So this was what family was supposed to feel like.

Someone knocked on the door. It was Silas Barrett, the camp cook Elias had introduced earlier.

“Maeve, come take a look at what we have in the kitchen and tell me what you’d like for dinner.”

“Come on. I’ll show you.” Selene pulled me toward the kitchen.

The shelves held plenty of smoked fish and cured venison, along with a few potatoes, onions, and turnips. Several large sacks of oats and flour stood nearby, but there was nothing else.

Mr. Barrett scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed.

“This is all we have out here. We don’t get fresh greens, but we have plenty of cured venison, oats, and flour.”

“That’s okay. I’ll eat anything.”

Mr. Barrett’s smile stiffened.

“Is there nothing here you like?”

I quickly waved my hands.

“No, that’s not it. I really will eat anything.”

In the end, I chose the cured venison and turnips.

“How would you like them seasoned? Do you want roasted potatoes or skillet bread with them?”

Once again, I did not know how to answer. No one had ever asked for my opinion before.

“I’ll have the skillet bread, then.”

When Selene handed out the plates and forks at dinner, she gave mine to me first. It was the first time someone had placed a plate directly in my hands instead of giving everyone else theirs and leaving one behind for me.

Throughout dinner, Selene and Elias took turns serving me food until my plate was piled high. For once, I did not have to fill up on starches alone.

“The food here isn’t much. I’m sorry you have to put up with it.”

I shook my head, unable to hide the tremor in my voice.

“It’s not a hardship. I love it here.”

The people were good to me, and so was the food.

I was still a little reserved during my first few days, but everyone looked after me. Whenever we went out to conduct field surveys, they gave me the lighter assignments, and someone always waited if I fell behind.

They saved the scarce water for me, put the freshest potatoes and onions on my plate, and gave me the warmest coat.

They were always saying, “We’re all rough around the edges out here. We worry we won’t know how to take proper care of you.”

Selene always told me, “I got here before you, so it’s my job to look out for you.”

At home, I had been unnecessary, invisible, and disposable. Being undemanding was expected, my sacrifices were taken for granted, and my needs did not matter.

In this desert, I was valued and cared for. I did not have to make myself small or pretend to be strong. I was allowed to be tired and vulnerable.

Every day, I grew more grateful that I had made this choice.