Chapter 484: Everyone is getting ready
Kellen jerked awake, startled since he’d expected someone to wake him up, but that didn’t happen. At first, he was worried that something bad had happened. Someone had been taken, or gone crazy. He was worried, his heart pounding in his chest as he jerked his head around, on high alert.
Instead, he found Bree and Gwen speaking in hushed tones to each other, keeping an eye on the two members of their party who were still unconscious. They were only a short distance away, but Kellen couldn’t get his heart rate to calm down as he looked them over. Was something going on? Why hadn’t they woken him up?
Kellen couldn’t calm himself down as he glanced between the four people in front of him, until Gwen caught sight of Kellen with his eyes open and she blinked several times.
"Kellen, what are you doing up? Go back to sleep. Nothing’s happened, and you have more time to sleep." She told him and Kellen just stared at her for a long, long moment, checking that it was actually her, she wasn’t just a figment of his imagination. Gwen, as if able to piece together the fact that Kellen was having a moment, moved past Bree and took the few steps towards him.
She reached out, placing her hand on Kellen’s shoulder and just that simple touch really put Kellen at ease.
"Hey, it’s okay. You look like you’re seeing a ghost. How much sleep have you had over the few days you’ve been with us?" She asked softly and Kellen closed his eyes, swallowing thickly. How much had he slept? How often had he done it?
Honestly, he knew the answer, and he knew that Gwen wouldn’t like it. He’d taken a few cat naps here and there, but nothing serious. Nothing for a substantial length of time. Especially compared to how long he’d been looking for them.
"I’m fine. I just...I was worried something had happened. I normally don’t sleep well in gates." Kellen told her, not lying in the slightest, just not telling her the full truth. Kellen normally didn’t sleep well in gates.
He normally would do his reports once he got out and then make it to his tent after checking in with everyone else and he’d pass out for 12 hours after. That was where Brent normally would step up and make sure the rest of the tasks were completed.
Kellen’s throat grew tight as he remembered that that might not be the case anymore. At least he wasn’t in the gate by Bree’s words.