Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me. The title and some of the words come from the song "Broken" by Seether and Amy Lee (of Evanescence)
A/N: So, it's not like anyone cares but I saw "Dawn of the Dead" again today. So, I thought I'd write yet another fic based on Terry and Nicole, because I just love them so much. A little of it is like another fic I write "Things a Heart Won't Listen To" but try to ignore that fact, they take place at the same time. This little story is dedicated to a good friend of mine who loves Terry and Nicole as much as I do. Hope you like it.
The night air was chilly but that fact didn't drive Terry off the roof of Crossroads Mall. He didn't think anything could send him back down into the mall and make him abandon his spot, staring toward Andy's Gun Works, wondering whether or not the woman that he loved was still alive in there somewhere. He didn't want to wonder. He wanted to know.
It was hard for Terry to see across to Andy's shop in the dark but he made his eyes pick out the little details he had seen all most every day for the past couple of weeks. The wooden pillars, the sign with a bull's-eye painted on it, the undead creatures wandering around in front of the building. And, as of an hour ago, the big rig truck that Nicole had crashed into the side of the shop, now abandoned, as it would no doubt forever stay. The truck was no good to them now and if Nicole hadn't made a break for the car by now then Terry knew she never would.
But that didn't mean anything, he reminded himself firmly. Just because Nicole hadn't escaped yet didn't mean that she was dead. She was just confused, hiding from Andy and scared. God how he wished he could be there for her right now.
Ever since Nicole and her father had come to the mall all those weeks ago with the others in Norma's truck, they hadn't spent a night apart. It was something Terry had grown used to and never wanted to give up; he loved having her around him all the time, to hear her laugh and see her smile and he liked knowing that she was safe. He had no way of knowing that now.
Terry continued to stare into the distance toward the gun shop, watching for signs of movement that didn't come from the creatures, any sign that Nicole was still alive. He figured that something inside of him would know if she was dead; he'd heard stories of how people knew whether or not their loved ones were dead or alive. But right now, he didn't feel much of anything aside from worry; he was scared, honestly scared, for the first time since those creatures had started to show up. And he was scared now, scared that he'd never get to see her again, see the way her eyes sparkled when something really made her laugh; he wanted to be there to comfort her, to tell her that everything was going to be okay and make sure that it was.
But for now, all Terry could do was stare across the street at a building he could barely even see and imagine the woman he loved inside.
* * *
Nicole shivered as she huddled in the closet, though she wasn't shaking because of the cold. The thing that had once been Andy (a man she had never meet but was sure he had once been a nice guy) was banging on the door outside, growling constantly, and gnashing its teeth. It was hungry for her, that she knew and that was why she shuddered.
The door rattled as the Andy-thing continued to pound upon it and Nicole pressed herself farther against the wall, drawing her knees up to her chin and wrapping her arms around her legs. Beside her, Chips was asleep, curled up and peaceful, something she envied him for. He didn't understand what was going on and even if he did, it didn't matter; Terry had been right, the creatures didn't want him. They wanted her and now, because she was foolish enough to doubt the man she loved, they were probably going to get her.
Nicole didn't even want to think about what she would do if the creature found a way to get through the door. "Yes you do, you idiot." She snapped verbally to herself, simply to cover up the growling on the other side of the door, "You die."
That thought brought about another round of shudders and Nicole scooted over to the farthest end of the closet, trying to get as far away from the door as possible. But it was a small closet; there weren't a lot of places she could go.
As she listened to the thing pounding and gnashing outside, Nicole tried to take her mind off the situation at hand. She thought about her family, which didn't work very well to brighten her spirits and she thought about her family in the mall. Which made her think about Terry; thinking about him made her smile, despite everything, which didn't surprise her. He always had that affect on her. She'd smile every time she'd look at him and he'd look at her like he couldn't figure out what made her so happy. And she could be with him now, safely in his arms, enjoying the stars or simply enjoying his company, but instead she was spending her last hours in a closet, alone.
Was he thinking about her? Nicole was almost sure that he was and she wished she could see him again, just one last time. She had so much that she had wanted to tell him and probably would never get a chance to. By the time he came over to rescue her, she'd probably be dead and one of those things. If that was the case, she prayed that he didn't come at all; she couldn't bare the thought of him getting killed because of her or worse, of her killing him once she became one of those creatures.
Nicole sighed and pressed her face against her knees, tears stinging her eyes. She had thought when she and her father had made it to the mall that all their problems were over but then he had been infected; but Terry had made everything all right again and she had thought that the worst was past them again. But if her current situation wasn't bad, then she didn't know what was.
Not for the first time, Nicole wondered if Chips had been worth all this. No, she finally decided, Chips was not worth being away from Terry and never getting to see him again. If only she had known what was going to happen; if only this was some horrible nightmare that she would wake up from in Terry's arms.
Nicole wished she was there now, safe and loved, a whole person again. Now she was scared and alone, half of the sane part of her mind already gone; she knew she had lost a part of herself when she had been forced to run for her life from the person they had tried to help. And now she was slipping further and further down with every knock against the closet door.
* * *
Terry knew that if he could trade places with Nicole that he would. He would give anything to help her, to be with her, to make sure she was safe and take away all her fears. But he was stuck here, still watching the roof, and praying for a miracle that he was certain wasn't going to be granted. He just wanted to hold her tight against him and never let her out of his sights again.
How could she have gotten off the roof and to the truck without him even seeing her leave? What sort of boyfriend was he? Part of being in love with someone was promising to always protect and keep them safe. But he hadn't kept Nicole safe had he?
Nothing felt right anymore to Terry, the whole world suddenly seemed turned upside down; it was as though having Nicole with him allowed him to forget that the world had long since been turned upside down. What he wouldn't give to have her with him again.
Terry looked up at the sky and studied the stars, arranged in patterns Nicole had shown him the first night after her father had been killed. He had never taken an interest in stars before she had arrived. They had spent many nights together on the very same spot he stood now and she had shown him constellations and they had just enjoyed being together. But now Terry was alone, staring up at the stars and seeing the same patterns she had shown him night after night. "That's the Big Dipper," he could imagine Nicole saying. "And that one's Pegasus." Pegasus was her favorite.
Terry looked away from the night sky, feeling his heart twist in his chest at the thought of her beautiful voice. He didn't think he could bare the thought of never being able to hear it again, to be with her to study the stars.
With a sigh, Terry dropped to his knees, closing his eyes and picturing Nicole. A part of him would die with her, if time proved that he wasn't going to see her again. Without Nicole, he would forever be alone, shattered and broken.
* * *
Nicole cried into her hands as the door continued to rattle, sounding much closer to giving way as far as she was concerned. She wished she were strong enough to pull herself together enough to think of a way out of this closet and safely back to the mall. Back to Terry. But she wasn't strong enough, unable to do anything but cry and wish that she were with him. She didn't feel like herself anymore without him; she was helpless trapped in this closet, with only her memories. The broken image of whom she had once been.