Ches would be lying if she said she hadnāt felt the shift in the air when Pastor North went missing. The tension as people waited for news with baited breath, the mixture of fear and relief, grief and joy as the weeks drone on. Uncomfortable, a bit overwhelming as she was never quite sure how she should react. It was no secret to anyone who paid attention to Ches that her own emotions were conflicted as well. Should she be relieved? After all, she was starting to find freedom from the cult to be relieved? Should she be mournful for a man sheād once followed? What if she was both? Relieved he could never chew anyone up to spit them back out the first time they breathed the wrong way, while mourning for the pain his family was undoubtedly going through?
So, maybe Ches didnāt like Pastor North, and maybe she was relieved at the concept of never risking running into him again, but at the same time she did care for the North children, and she wanted Grace, Hal, and Sav to be okay. And how could they be when they were trapped in the middle of all of this?
āSo...ā Ches starts, eyeing the person in front of her as she twirls a red curl around her fingertip. āI know everyone is upset about Pastor North, and I mean I get it completely. Man goes missing in the woods, you donāt even need to know him to be concerned about him, and with them ending the search parties.... itās been a lot for everyone but I was thinking, maybe we should do something to get our minds off of it for a bit?ā Itās a thought sheās actually wary to voice; uncertainty clear in her tone as anxious green eyes carefully watch the expression and body language of the person sheās talking to. āItās not healthy for anyone to hyperfixate on it, and with the case being closed, well, I donāt know about you but Iād up for doing something. Come on, you lead, I follow! Look, even Clover approves.ā She glances over to the dog, her happy go-lucky girl, as if the dog would actually confirm that she did approve.
āI mean unless youād rather I pick, of course. I mean Iām not much of a leader but I do know how to find an adventure!ā










