Post-Island: Ralph and Jack

                                    

                                          
Ralph and Jack have a conversation about the events that occurred on the island and the aftermath. I chose Ralph and Jack because these two characters had the greatest conflict in the novel, they witnessed some of the same events, and, before their conflict arose, they were friends (certainly not best friends, but they were probably friends in the first chapter or two).
                          
Post island fic idea suggested by suitelifeofsavannah. Hope you like it!
                          
***
                          
The boy was sitting at the end of the bed, his knees pulled up to his chest. He was looking down, his dark blue eyes were glazed over, and he was staring at nothing in particular. His long, dirty, once-blond hair fell in front of his face but he didn't mind it. He had refused to wash up with the other boys, but had reluctantly agreed to change into clean clothes. After he had changed, he had gone straight back to his room and sat on his bed, where he now remained.
                          
He had chewed off all of the fingernails on his right hand, and was now doing the same to his left. He chewed the nails down to the quick, and even when he had bitten the nail off, he continue to chew on the skin, chewing until he tasted blood. Even when the metallic taste filled his mouth, he felt no pain, and continued on to the next fingernail without a second thought.
                          
He couldn't stop thinking. Couldn't stop remembering everything. He saw images of Simon's death, images of Piggy's death, images of his race through the burning jungle, praying that the bloodthirsty hunters wouldn't catch up to him. He wondered what would have become of him if they had. A stick sharpened at both ends. He shuddered at the thought. If the officer hadn't come to rescue them...
                          
He heard a knock on the door and turned to look for the person who had made the noise. When he saw the tall, red-haired boy standing in the doorway, he cried out and scrambled back, pushing his back against the headboard of the bed. 
                          
"Get out!" he cried, his heart beating wildly in his chest. When the red-haired boy didn't move, the other boy yelled, "Stay away from me!"
                          
"I'm not here to hurt you," the red-haired boy said. His voice was surprisingly soft, and the blond-haired boy could barely believe that this was the same boy who had barked orders and cried out terrible chants only a few hours ago. 
                          
"I don't have any weapons," the red-haired boy continued in that same, seemingly too soft voice.
                          
"I don't trust you, Jack," the blond-haired boy growled. The red-haired boy, Jack, chanced a step into the room. When the blond-haired boy didn't say anything, he chanced another step. He began to take a third step, but when the blond-haired boy flinched, he quickly backed up again. 
                          
"I swear, Ralph," Jack said. "I'm unarmed." 
                          
"I still don't believe you," the blond-haired boy, Ralph, growled. Jack sighed. 
                          
"Do you want me to prove it to you?" he asked. 
                          
"Yes," Ralph replied. "You can't come any closer until I know that you can't hurt me."
                          
"Okay," Jack said. He turned around and closed the door of the cabin, then turned back to Ralph. He pulled the t-shirt he was wearing over his head, then pushed the sweatpants he was wearing down over his hips. Standing in only his underwear, he held out his arms and slowly spun around.
                          
"See," he said when he had stopped, once again facing Ralph. He dropped his arms to his sides and added, "I'm unarmed. No knives. No spears. Nothing. I can't hurt you."
                          
Satisfied, Ralph nodded. He turned away as Jack redressed, and looked back only when he heard Jack speak again. 
                          
"I wanted to talk to you," Jack said.