5. Plan

Three days eventually passed in which I didn't see any of my friends. For some reason I couldn't bring myself to meet any of them before the awaited day, as if seeing them would put an end to my idea. I was scared of them being able to change my mind when it took me months to convince myself not to run away.

I was sitting on the ground, trembling uncontrollably out of stress and anxiety, biting my nails to the point it bleeds. "If they don't come then I won't go." I told myself, "If only one come let's just give up on everything. No. If at least one of them comes let's just do it". My thoughts were swinging furiously between extreme pessimism and suicidal bravery like a clothe abandoned outside during a storm. It was driving me crazy and I was ready to slam my head on the floor when I heard the sound of the rooftop door. Instantly, I jumped on my feet both startled and enthusiastic.

"Navajo! Kenny! Thank God you came.

-Ye...Yeah."

They both had their most comfortable and clothes on and their backpacks full on their back.

"You don't know how much I'm happy to see you!" Indeed they couldn't know. They were emotional support, but moreover both of them had precious qualities. 

"-You...You're exaggerating....I...I was really sc...scared...so..so...I nearly...I nearly gave up...b..but...I thought...that... I mean... you are always so brave...An...and....that...I shouldn't run away...I don't want...to give up...on my father....apart from you guys....he...he's all that I have...

-I understand Navajo! Don't look so down! You know I'm not that brave! Even I want to give up! But it's because I want to save my father that I keep going forward! And I would have understood If you didn't come! After all, my Idea was crazy and never concerted you about it before! We used to say how much we wanted to go down but we knew it was all but fantasm, but now that we're about to do it, of course, we'll want to give up! We don't know exactly what's waiting for us, but we won't know if we don't try! Even if it looks crazy, we still need to try!"

I Took their hand's in mine, not knowing if I was trying to convince myself or them but I wished the gesture would give them more confidence and strength, especially to Navajo. 

Although Navajo was a genius with quick mind processing,  my tall friend was extremely nervous and sensitive. If someone panicked, looked stressed or a little too aggressive,  he would instantly panic, to an extent it was actually dangerous for his life. In a stressful situation,  he would start trembling, hands on the ears with breath convulsions just like the other days.

I sincerely thought on not telling him, I did not want to involve him when his psychological and physical state were not completely stable,  but he was my friend I could not see myself doing it without him, especially with his mental capacity.

The same was for Kenny,  because he never talked,  I thought that we might lose him at some point, or even that he might completely give up on us if something ever happened to Navajo. On top of that, because he had nothing to gain, I was not even sure he would come. Nonetheless,  I could not deny the fact that Kenny was incredibly resistant: from the moment I knew him, he got into multiple accidents. Puched on the stairs by his mother,  beaten, got boiling water thrown at him, but never did I kept a scar, nor did he stayed unable to move for more than a week. It was as if he was indestructible, like we were not human. While Navajo and all of us would take weeks to recover bruises,  he simply wouldn't have any after three days, and if we all get the seasonal Tajin Flu, he would remain healthy. Not to mention that he seemed not able to feel pain. 

For their strange conditions, Navajo and Kenny were always discriminated against by other kids.

"-Alright let see what you have on your bags while we wait for the others." 

We went back to where I was sitting before they came. Once we were sitting they opened both of their bags. Water bottle of two liters, so snack and food on bottles, protein bars. 

"No fruit? I said 

-N...no....they perish easily,  I also took dry meat.....since its all we have at home...fruits are rare anyway...it's not much but I have enough for a few days.

-Me too. We'll need to find food at some point...." 

We still discussed the supply we had and how we'll have to manage it. 20 minutes passed, but neither Amador nor Biggy arrived.

I was worried,  To tell the truth, I didn't believed Biggy would come, the way he acted three days ago clearly sat the picture and Although his culinary knowledge would have been more than useful,  his health was not in advantage. He might have been faster than us he still had a hard time keeping his breath, not to mention his frail heart, and his weight. If something had to happen to him we would not be able to do anything. For Amador on another hand, him not coming would be impossible.  He never betrayed, not even once, when he said he will do something he would do it. Never did he lied to me, and even if I didn't ask his help he would never leave me do something inconsiderate alone. But I was still so scared of him giving up on me. He loved his mother very much after all and didn't have anything to win since he hated his father.

"A...Amador...will...

-He will come. Don't worry Navajo. Amador will come. Definitely. And Even biggy, he doesn't like to take risk but... still he might come!"

The rooftop door clacked again, and a wave a relief came to my heart. Finally Amador was here. Although his face looked somber,  he still was here. I could tell by his expression how hard he might have been for him to live his mother.

"Amador! " when he saw us vis expression quickly changer back to his usual grinning. 

"What? Are you that happy to see me?"

I first could not say a word,  I was incredibly happy, but my heart cried out of despair.

"I thought that maybe...

-Common Marica, that's not like you. Did you really believe I wouldn't come? You know I never lied to you.

-I know but...

-Orh stop it!I'm here now right? Let's just focus on what we have to do. Biggy isn't here yet?

-I don't think he will come.

-He will. Trust me. 

-There isn't much time left. I really don't think he will come, but if you say so, let's wait five more minutes. 

I inspected Amador's bag, he had few tools. I did not know how it was supposed to help us but I decided to let some of them, of course he also had his iron staff.

-Why keeping that?!

-Well no one is telling us we won't need to protect ourselves!

-With an Iron staff?!

-I can knock you off with that you know?!"

I heavily sighed. 

"Alright keep it. But all this will be left here your bag shouldn't be too heavy. "

Five minutes passed, and once again there was no Biggy.

"Alright let's consider he won't come. I have to tell you the plan so let's start shall we?"

I did not wait for them to answer we did not have much time left and the plan would be long to explain. 

"-So here is the complete plan. In a bit more than 15 minutes,  A big black car will come, with inside of it the boxes with the food supplies and a total of ten men will be in it. 8 of. them will go on each carrycot we have here. the too of our building and the 3 on the too building if each side of our. One of them will charge the suspended basket and I suppose that the last one will be on the car to drive it. We will need to take care of them. While the carrycot will go up, we'll hide behind the small walls, waiting for.....

-wholup, wholup, wholup!Wait a sec Marica! You never told us that we had to take care of anyone.

-Well you might have been a real idiot for thinking we wouldn't have to deal with them. Do you really think they will just let us go with a smile on their face?

-hmph.

-Ok let's keep going. 

-B...but how are we supposed to deal with so many of them...No....no.. matter how much I thought about it I...I don't think we can do anything...

-Let me continue and I'll tell you. So Once the carrycot arrives, we'll deal with the men inside of it by throwing him out of it. Two of us can do that while the other directly jump into the engine.  We'll have a bit more than a minute to get all into the carrycot before it's starts its ascension.

-B...but what.....what....if he..he... jumps back into it? Wha....what if we can't throw him out of it.

-If we are too there is no reason for us to fail, we will surprise him so he won't resist.

-But That...that definitely not enough...This can not just work...its...too easy...and what if...what if the other one sees us and tell the other...what if.

-Ok Navajo I get why you are worried but do you have a better idea?

-But...but... did you think about... the other? Did you think.....about how....how... we were supposed to deal with them....and...

Although Navajo was really intelligent,  once he started to worry he would think endlessly without finding anything clever at all, as if his brain was over boiling with useless information. 

-Navajo just let me finish. Of course they are too much for us to take care of them all, but we have the surprise effect. They will be too surprised to react quickly so we'll just run as fast as we can right after we touch the ground. 

-B...but...that doesn't.... ad.... up at all...we really shouldn't do this....if...if...they catch us....or one of us....what should we do if they decide to run after us with their car? you know...those things....are faster than a human being.....and after that where should we go what should we do? Isn't there a better way? Shouldn't we....shouldn't...just try to take the stairs again?

I started to feel pissed, he was slowly shattering my frail confidence while pointing out all the details of my plan. He was not totally wrong but he was not giving any solutions either and we were out of time.

-We have no time for this Navajo. I'm trying my best here!

-But...but...you know a lot...a lot of things...aren't right...

-Arrh just shut up already!

The cutting tone of Amador gave me chill, he rarely talked that coldly. 

-Listen up Navajo. I understand that you are worried and I'm worried too ok? We know nothing about what can happen in the future, especially because we don't know anything about what is out of the four walls of our building. But if we do nothing, it's not gonna help! And staying here running around at every single question and doubts won't get us anywhere! We can just have a rough idea of what we can do and then find out the rest during the action! And common you are the most intelligent of us all! If you panic all the damn time you won't be able to use your brain! 

-Stop it Amador! I was at fault for not have tough about it more. 

-Stop your bulshit! If you want to look like a saint in front of me it won't work, whatever who is at falt we should go back to the plan. Or we can just drop everything is it what you want?

-No I...

-Right so shut your bulshit and keep on explaining your idea. Are you fine with it Navajo?

-Ye...yes....I'm sorry Marica...We can't have everything perfect...

-No it's fine.....So...Amador and I will throw him out...As you said Just pulling the men out might not be enough so we can neutralize him for good. 

-Don't..... tell...Don't tell...me you want us to kill him. Navajo looked like he drank a whole bottle of bleach. 

-Of course not. It's unnecessary. We will just knock him off, so he remains unconscious for a moment. If we do it well they won't notice anything down, It will like I said, live us the surprise effect to run as fast as we can. 

From them they kept on listening to me rather quietly, I took my bag, And too out too important items. 

-Oh! I remember this thing. you dad tried to teach us how to read it. Though I don't know how you can read something with no world on it. 

-Not like you can read things with World either. I said taking out my stress on Amador.

-Is this a map?

-Yes. It's my fathers map. It's actually pretty valuable,  at least that's what he told me. It took me some time to find it. I don't know if there's more then this but this piece of paper shows or areas of living and the Factory area. Our Fathers might be there.

-And what if they don't work all in the same place? As far as I know Biggy old man changed his work location. 

-Well We'll figure it out, There's nothing else written here,  I believe all the Factories are centralized in the same location, if it's a whole area it could be the case.

-4...4th circle...5th circle...Is it the name of where we live?

-Maybe.

-It would make sense. Then those letters might show the different living Areas...

Navajo was now talking in his beard, not really minding us anymore. 

-So It's marked in red the place we are right now. And I traced the in the itinerary we will follow to be the fastest. However we'll have to be extra cautious,  It's a complete maze if we miss ou itinerary we are screwed. We know nothing about What's out there we can't afford to get lost. As soon as we start running you'll absolutely have to follow me. If anything happens to me, I count on you Navajo. I think you'll be able to read it. 

-Hey and Kenny and I!?

-I'll try to reach you if we have time, but Kenny doesn't speak so if we lose him it will be a bit complicated.

I closed back the map and looked at each of them.

"-I've to tell the truth. From here onward I have no idea of what we'll do. It took me a month to come up with just that, but as I don't know what's out there, I can't see what else to prepare. I'll repeat myself but, you can give up here and now. I won't force you on anything even more because this whole plan is suicidal. "

The mood got heavier as I said those words, we might have been really crazy, no wonder the other kids never wanted to play with us.

"-Arh stop it. If we are here it's because we want to. We had three days to give up do you think coming here was easy? What do you think we did during those three days. Of course, we'll come.

-Y...yes....I've nothing to lose...I don't think I could leave peacefully not knowing how my father is...and I still have a lot of things to learn from him. So I'll come.

Kenny simply shaped his head of approval. Somehow my heart cried out of despair. I couldn't show them, but their decision as much as it made me happy made me want to cry. I still smiled.

"-Ah! one more thing, I have this small device. here You know what it's right?"

I slowly pulled the round object of a hand-size to him with the most delicacy I could. Like a box, my long-haired friend opened the iron colored object to show a small piece of metal under a glass which was turning like the wings of a fan.

-A compass? Your father got one?

-Yes, I fairly know that it's supposed to help when you're lost but I don't know much more.

-It's supposed to show a magnetic direction, The north, well.. the magnetic south but that's just a detail. Anyway, it doesn't seem to work..... it's turning like there's a north everywhere,  maybe. there is a magnetic conflict? An anomaly? 

Incomprehension flooded to our face while Navajo was spouting the complicated worlds that none of us could really understand. I could have been the most cultivated out of us all, out of all the buildings even, but the existence of Navajo always showed the sad truth of my outrageous banality. He read more than I ever did and books I could not even understand,  in things he called physics,  chemistry,  and Biology. He knew dozens of things about math and mechanics. He told me dozens of stories of light poked at the night sky called Stars that we could see if only the constant cloud was not there. So it happened often,  out of his panic attacks and anxiety crisis, in completely over time then his usual inconsistency of behavior,  when he was not a quiet shadow mass of shivering flesh, he would be oddly composed,  as if his self got to an unlocked level. Unundersantable words would run out of his mouth in a moment of craziness. When it happened, I felt like we did not belong to the same realms, but he was a weirdo just like us.

-OooooK!said Amador.  Guess you know how to use it.

-Ah....sorry... Yes...But it's unusable for now...I...I don't know why....We...we...should still keep it.

-Alright. "

The crack cracking sound of the suspended basket then rose vibrating the atmosphere. Making us understand that it was not a dream nor the shaded silhouette of our imagination. We said it so many time, that we would go down,  but not even once did we seriously considered it. So now that they were embracing the sounds of the ominous fans, my heart could not stop to beat so fast it felt like it would break my limbs by mistake. 

I tried to keep my calm, to stay confident as someone needs too. I patted Navajo shoulder as I knew he was starting a stress panic,  took his hand even, then putting my bag on my back I went crawling to the small walls of the rooftop.