Could I be You?

Note: This has not been throughly edited yet, and I changed my music to the song that I based this story off of. As always, credit goes to Matchbox Twenty for writing the song, and please leave a comment or find some way to give me feedback. I can't be a better writer if I can't get feedback.

Could I Be You
Inspired by “Could I Be You” by Matchbox Twenty

He was staring at her again. She could feel it. Beth looked over her shoulder and sure enough the man was there, eyes boring a hole into her. He was a short man, not that intimidating. He could be young or he could be old, Beth never really looked. All she knew was that he would stare at her, with his hat pulled low, like he knew she wasn’t one of them.
She took off down the street, careful to keep her pace at a slow, stately walk, instead of the sprint that she wanted to do. Every once in a while she would peek back to see if he was following. He was, as always. She darted into an alley way and immediately started to run. She knew he wouldn’t follow this far; he never did.
She was out of breath by the time she arrived at Tara’s. Tara lived in an abandoned warehouse, in the Old district. There was no telling on how long it would be before Tara and Beth would be discovered. Every day, they lived in fear of being found. Other pockets of humans had been found and taken. They were never seen again.
The human race wasn’t ready for such a quick take over. The Operation was over quickly and only some people still survived, if you call hiding and scrounging surviving. Beth didn’t know where they came from, she didn’t think anybody did. One day the world was in perfect order and the next the human race was gone. At first nobody noticed. They acted human, went to work, ate, had families, everything. Except for one small detail; they had no emotion. Their eyes, devoid of any feeling, gave them away. People panicked at the thought of an alien invasion, and in that instance lost any ground they may have had. For with panic come mistakes and humans made some bad ones. The invaders called themselves Din and they took over quickly and efficiently.
The humans that were left learned that the best way to survive was to behave like the Din, no emotion whatsoever was allowed. And it worked, as long as they could keep the anger, fear, and sadness, out of their eyes. Beth’s sister, Tara, couldn’t do it. She was too emotional, and it fell to Beth to make sure that the Din never found out they were still free. Beth had perfected the blank look, locking her fear and anger inside a room deep inside her mind. She would go out walk the streets of what used to be Nashville and steal what they needed to live. But she hated it. She had to be stoic and automatic, when all she wanted to do was scream and cry.
A couple of weeks ago the man had started to stare and follow her. She didn’t tell Tara, because that might be the final straw to send Tara over the edge. She already was in a fragile state. She spent all her time in her room, pouring over pictures of disappeared family and friends, arranging and rearranging them. It broke Beth’s heart and she would do anything to protect her. But at times she just wanted to give up, let the Din take her and Tara away. At least, then she wouldn’t have to worry how to find food to eat or how to fix the generator when it next broke down.
Beth still didn’t know what to make of the man, even after a couple of weeks of seeing him. He never approached her. Just stared, and when she moved he followed until the alleyway. Every day they went through the same routine. It didn’t matter if she tried a different part of the city; he was always there. Beth sighed and walked into the warehouse.
Tara, as usual, was sitting in her room when Beth found her. She sat down the bag she was carrying and walked over to her sister.
“Hi, Tara”
Tara looked up forlornly at Beth, her huge brown eyes filled with tears. She looked back down at the picture she was gently caressing. Beth looked down to see a picture of their parents. Her dad, tall and strong, with her mother, small and petite, in his arms, filled the picture with their smiles. Beth gently took the picture from Tara and set it among the others scattered among the floor.
“Oh Tara” she took her sister into her arms, while Tara collapsed into sobs. And all the while Beth thought about giving up.
~
P4 stood in line, but his mind wasn’t on the food. He automatically moved and spoke, his face never betraying what was going behind his cold eyes. He took his assigned spot, and started eating. His mind whirled in a flurry of thoughts. P4 wasn’t used to the activity punishing his brain. The girl intrigued him. There was something different about her; he just couldn’t put his finger on it. The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. And dealing with confusion isn’t something that as a Din, he didn’t have experience with.
In fact, no Din anywhere that P4 knew of dealt with any emotion. As far back as the Din could remember emotions never once marred their minds. They were rational beings, viewing the world with the cold lens of logic. It wasn’t until they found Earth that Din encountered emotion. Humans were full of the volatile stuff. P4 remembered watching humans cry, laugh, fight, and love. As the Din watched, humans killed and loved one another in a hectic cycle. If emotions could cause that much destruction, the Din reasoned, then they were the superior race. So they had invaded. Humans were too wrapped up in their emotions, their daily dramas, to notice.
P4 took his tray up and walked out onto the street. The city used to be called Nashville and it was the center of what humans called music. All the Din understood was that music was mainly made by emotion, and what better place to start an invasion then the place with the most emotion. Soon Nashville was the epicenter for the Din.
As P4 wandered the streets, he felt his mind drifting to the girl over and over. He stopped and slapped the building in frustration. Then he froze. He stared at his hand. Something wasn’t right. P4 believed he displayed emotion. Quickly, he pulled down his hat and walked to his suite. Next time he saw the girl he would follow her. Maybe she had the answers to his troubled mind.
~
Beth saw him again. This time he was bolder, walking toward her before she had even a chance to start walking. Her eyes widened and without thinking she took off. He knew. He was coming to take her away. What would Tara do without her? Beth stopped and realized what she was doing. She would lead the Din right to her sister. Beth felt a surge of fear. She turned and took off in a different direction. They wouldn’t get her sister. Never. It didn’t matter that yesterday she wanted to give up; she couldn’t be weak for Tara’s sake. She lost herself in Nashville’s streets. But each time Beth looked back, he was always behind her.
The dead end took her by surprise. Beth whirled around, but it was already too late. He stood blocking the entrance. She thought at first she could still pass herself off as a Din, but she discarded the thought as soon as she thought it. Din didn’t take off running; they walked with even, unhurried strides. Din didn’t look wildly about for an escape; they had nothing they needed to escape from. Beth faced the man and finally let the anger and fear leak from her eyes. She was tired of running. Tired of the fear. Tired of being the brave one, the supportive one. She was tired of living her life. She was ready to give up. What she wasn’t ready for was the sound of the Din’s voice.
~
P4 stared coldly at the girl. She was human, no doubt about it with her eyes blazing. But something stirred within him, something he had never encountered before. Without thinking he asked her, “Why?”
She looked like he had shot her. Her eyes widened and a gasp escaped from her mouth.
“Why what?” she finally answered.
P4 looked at her, seeing if he could edge closer without her bolting. He needed to hear the answer.
“Why am I feeling this way?”
Beth looked at the Din. His voice wasn’t the monotone she was expecting. Instead it was soft and lilting, and there was something in it that made her want to hold him tight, reassuring him. This wasn’t how she was supposed to act, not to a Din. She was supposed to fight or give up, not feel for them. He was dressed as always in a suit, and he stood as ramrod straight as the others. His eyes were cold as ice, but there was something on the edge of them, something she needed to see.
“What are you feeling?”
The Din shook his head. “I’m a Din. I don’t feel emotion. I don’t feel anything”
“Then why did you ask me why you felt the way you do? How can I answer if I don’t know how you’re feeling?”
P4 sighed, took of his hat, and sat against the wall. His head hurt, with all these, these, feelings. The girl was right. After a moment she sat next to him. Not close, but close enough that he just felt her. He looked at her, and again he saw her jump.
Holding out his hand he said, “I’m P4, I believe this is how you humans greet one another, yes?” He cocked his head at her.
Beth laughed despite herself. She expected to be taken away and killed when she finally gave in, not sitting here laughing with a Din. It was just P4 looked like a puppy, with his huge brown eyes and his head tilted. She took his hand and was surprised that it was warm.
“Hi P4, I’m Beth.”
“Beth” he rolled her name over his tongue, savoring the sound of it. It was warm and smooth, unlike Din names. He smiled and Beth couldn’t help but smile back.
“You should do that more often.”
He looked at her in confusion. “Do what?”
“Smile” she said “You have a nice smile” She stared at him, taking in his short spiky hair, down to his brown shoes. “Do all Din look like you?”
“No, we are all different.”
“But you dress the same, walk the same, and even eat the same. How are you different?”
“We aren’t robots. We look different, have different thoughts, and prefer different things.”
“You could have fooled me,” she swept her eyes away from him, and instead stared at the wall in front of them. She fiddled with her straggly brown hair. P4 took her hand into his.
“You are so full of it”
She looked at him, confused. “Full of what?”
“Emotion. You laugh and cry. You are confused and angry. Fear. Passion. It radiates from you, bursting from every pore. You are so…alive!”
She started tracing circles around his thumb. “If you call stealing and hiding living,” she gave a small, sad laugh, “sometimes I wonder if it is even worth the trouble, living. All I have left anymore is fear.”
P4 lifted her chin. “Could I be you, then?”
“What?” she looked at him, startled.
“Ever since I saw you on the streets, there has been something inside of me. Something unfamiliar. I think if I was you, just for tonight, then maybe I can make sense of it.”
Beth looked at him. His eyes were filling with tears and she caught one on her fingertip. She looked at it in wonder and when she looked up, P4 was staring at the tear in shock.
“What is that?”
“A tear”
“It’s…beautiful isn’t it?”
“I guess it is.”
“What does it mean?”
Beth looked at P4, her green eyes suddenly full of something close to hope, “It means you can be me.”

Sneak Peak of "Could I be You?"

Here's a sneak peak of my next story, "Could I be You" I am not yet finished with it and it is UNEDITED, meaning it is FULL of mistakes. I'm excited because it is my first attempt at science fiction. Enjoy. As always credit goes to Matchbox Twenty for writing the song.

Could I Be You
based on the song of the same title.

He was staring at her again. She could feel it. Beth looked over her shoulder and sure enough the man was there, eyes boring a hole into her. He was a short man, not that intimidating. He could be young or he could be old, Beth never really looked. All she knew was that he would stare at her, with his hat pulled low, like he knew she wasn’t one of them.
She took off down the street, careful to keep her pace at a slow, stately walk, instead of the sprint that she wanted to do. Every once in a while she would peek back to see if he was following. He was, as always. She darted into an alley way and immediately started to run. She knew he wouldn’t follow this far; he never did.
She was out of breath by the time she arrived at Tara’s. Tara lived in an abandoned warehouse, in the Old district. There was no telling on how long it would be before Tara and Beth would be discovered. Every day, they lived in fear of being found. Other pockets of humans had been found and taken. They were never seen again.
The human race wasn’t ready for such a quick take over. The Operation was over quickly and only some people still survived, if you call hiding and scrounging surviving. Beth didn’t know where they came from, she didn’t think anybody did. One day the world was in perfect order and the next the human race was gone. At first nobody noticed. They acted human, went to work, ate, had families, everything. Except for one small detail; they had no emotion. Their eyes, devoid of any feeling, gave them away. People panicked at the thought of an alien invasion, and in that instance lost any ground they may have had. For with panic come mistakes and humans made some bad ones. The invaders called themselves Din and they took over quickly and efficiently.
The humans that were left learned that the best way to survive was to behave like the Din, no emotion whatsoever was allowed. And it worked, as long as they could keep the anger, fear, and sadness, out of their eyes. Beth’s sister, Tara, couldn’t do it. She was too emotional, and it fell to Beth to make sure that the Din never found out they were still free. Beth had perfected the blank look, locking her fear and anger inside a room deep inside her mind. She would go out walk the streets of what used to be Nashville and steal what they needed to live.
A couple of weeks ago the man had started to stare and follow her. She didn’t tell Tara, because that might be the final straw to send Tara over the edge. She already was in a fragile state. She spent all her time in her room, pouring over pictures of disappeared family and friends, arranging and rearranging them. Beth would do anything to protect her.
Beth still didn’t know what to make of the man. He never approached her. Just stared, and when she moved he followed until the alleyway. Every day they went through the same routine. It didn’t matter if she tried a different part of the city; he was always there. Beth sighed and walked into the warehouse.

Gearing up

Ok, I'm getting ready to start on the next story. But first I'm going to print out all the lyrics to all the songs...that way I can better see where I want to go, instead of playing the song over and over again (I'll still play the song over and over again :D what it helps me with the tone lol) Anyway I gotta do that first and then I'll plant a little sneak peak of it...for new people my previous story "How Far We've Come" is still up, so head over and read it...leave me a comment :D

Song post

I forgot to tell you guys that the song playing is the song I based the story on. :D Also I have finished my next story but my editor (aka my best friend Amanda) hasn't had the chance to read it yet. But it isn't going to be public....wait a couple of weeks and I might post another story...ok back to studying for finals :D