"Fire in the hole!" I screamed as I flicked the pipe bomb and threw it into the ravenous horde that was sprinting towards us. My anticipation rose as the pipe bomb blinked red after bouncing onto the cement as the horde followed its shrill beep. It exploded after a second – sending blood and bones scattering in every direction.

I cringed away from the sight as I felt some blood splatter onto my face. The situation was far from over as the ground beneath me began to tremble. My breath caught in my throat as I realised what was coming our way. There was too little time to gather ourselves – our exhaustion was reaching ground zero. I fought the fatigue that stunned me and pulled out my dual pistols, ready for the hungry fight that could very well lead to our doom. I looked over at my group; Francis was ready as his auto-shotgun was pointing in every direction awaiting any sign of the beast that was slowly approaching. Bill was busy putting out his cigarette as he motioned for Louis to cover him momentarily.

I clutched my weapons tightly, until my knuckles were glowing white. My heart sped as the ground quaked, I could feel the sweat crawl down my face and back. I spotted movement from my peripheral vision as the monster finally found us.

"TANK!" Francis bellowed, as all four of us began our gunfire.

The Tank was in our proximity within seconds as it charged through the brick of a once-built wall before roaring, its gigantic and muscular arms flailing uncontrollably. It stopped to pick up a slab of cement that it tore from the road and hurled it towards us – missing Bill by mere inches. The sound of the crushing cement against the brick wall behind us alerted yet another horde.

"Bill! You and Zoey take care of the horde. Francis and I will deal with macho-man over here!" Louis said as he shouted on top of the whales of the nearby Infected.

I felt a sudden wave of hope and adrenaline burst within my veins. We can take them. We've been through worse. There was still a shred of hope left in this apocalyptic hell, even if we were the last humans alive. I looked towards Bill, "Shall we?"

He lit another cigarette, "Ready when you are kid," He pulled out a machine gun and the horde soon lay dead at our feet. They were no match for us… and for my wicked adrenaline. It had taken a while to get used to killing the infected. I knew that they had been just like us – human. But the animalistic snarls and growls as they fed upon survivors was well off human. They retained no such humanity – they were animals, stained, tarnished, infected. Looking towards Louis and Francis, they had the volatile Tank well under control – only until the Tank took a hold of Francis and threw him into a nearby wall – the bricks shattering from the impact of his burly body.

"Francis!" I ran over towards his crumpled body by the destroyed wall. I heard a few final shots before the Tank collapsed onto the sidewalk, a tremor rocking at our feet as it did so. Its body convulsed before remaining still. Francis's body lay beaten against the sidewalk. I slapped his face, trying to waken any sense left in him as I let small tears escape. I dried them out with my hands – I didn't want anyone noticing. The others joined the scene shortly after dealing with a few last straggling infected. Soon after, he opened his eyes.

"Hey darlin'," he smiled at my face – smothered in blood and tears.

"You gonna be alright, Francis?" Louis loaned a helping hand, trying to hold together the huge, stumbling man. That was when we heard the familiar growl of a Hunter. I groaned. Not another episode – surely not tonight. We all needed rest; we were so close to the safe room, only about a street away.

"I think we should make a run for it guys." I said uncertainly, my voice shaking. They all looked down at me, yet nobody disagreed. Even Bill, whose leg was not in a good condition to run in – agreed. We took off at a slow pace, jogging past several shops – the glasses broken and the stores raided to obtain necessary equipment or supplies. I was last in line, supporting the old man and his faulty leg whilst Louis and Francis lead the way. I heard a hacking cough, thus slowing my pace further. I turned to look around me at all of the stores and then to the rooftops. But I saw nothing. Perhaps it was my imagination… At least I hoped it was. We really couldn't deal with a Hunter or a Smoker in such close range when we were almost to our destination.

But my train of thought was halted as the growl of the Hunter was closer this time and more menacing. It was greedily craving for a feast tonight. I distinguished the shadowy outline of the Hunter and watched as it pounced, claws outstretched, as its mouth opened into a scowl, its teeth savagely jagged – ready to sink into untainted flesh. My movements hadn't caught up with my mind as I witnessed the Hunter leap onto Louis. The Hunter was straddling Louis's torso, tearing and shredding through his clothing.

"Get it off! Get it off me!" he shouted and screeched. I was worried he would alert another horde of zombies, but that thought skipped my mind as Francis lunged for the Hunter, ripping it off Louis before they both tumbled into the wall. The Hunter growled and snarled at Francis, raking its claws through his clothing – luckily not tearing through his flesh. I took this opportunity to shoot at the Hunter – aiming straight into its hooded face. Bingo.

"Nice Zo," Francis complimented, as he struggled to haul himself off the ground.

"Well I -," That was all that escaped my lips. I was suddenly hoisted off my feet and dangling metres above the ground. The Smoker's tongue tightened against my ribs as I let out a muffled cry. I knew that son of a bitch was somewhere on the rooftops, I should have taken care of it. But the thought was pushed out of my brain as I felt the impact of the tightness against my ribs. I would be really lucky if they weren't broken. I let out another cry, before the force of the tongue diminished and I realised I was falling toward the stone-cold cement.

There was a whoosh, and I was safely in the arms of Francis, as a puff of smoke incapacitated my lungs. I coughed, gasping for air. Shit, it hurt like hell. I was sure my ribs were broken.

"You okay darlin'? Thanks for savin' me back there." Francis said as he set me on my feet. I grabbed a hold of his arm for support, as he did the same with mine.

"No, thank you," I panted. I breathed in slowly, savouring the oxygen that replaced the toxic smell of the Smoker's stench. My eyes darted toward the group and lastly landed on Louis. My eyes went wide at the sight of his stomach; his flesh was torn from the Hunter's claws. Blood was flowing onto the pavement, creating a pool of blood that the zombies would sure as hell love to snack on.

"Let's hurry. We shouldn't be out in the open – we're too exposed." I took note of Bill's voice as the four of us began to make our way toward the safe room – only metres away. Francis and Bill supported Louis's faltering figure as he clutched at his torn stomach. I lead the group this time, noticing the safe room up ahead. It was hidden in an abandoned, yet safely barricaded sports store. I was too exhausted to take notice of where the hell we were. I focused on the red door, our sanctuary for the next few days. We reached the metal door and Francis pushed it open with all of his might. The sound of the metal clicking caught the attention of a few lonesome zombies that we hadn't seen.

"Get inside! I'll take care of the rest of these blood sucking vampires!" Francis's booming voice pounded throughout the vicinity as I stumbled into the safe room with Bill limping behind me, holding onto Louis, who grasped his tattered abdomen due to the Hunter's claws.

"C'mon Louis, let's get you patched up." I panted as I grabbed one of the health packs off the wooden table and got to work cleaning his wounds. Louis winced. But the job had to be done; we couldn't deal with an infection in any of our injuries or wounds.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, as I took hold of the wire gauze and a bandage and taped him up securely. "Hope that'll hold." I smiled weakly.

"Thanks Zoey. You should get patched up, you've been through a hell of a lot tonight, girl." He smiled as he huffed and slid his way over to the nearest sleeping bag and rested against the wall. I smiled for his concern.

"I hate vampires." Francis muttered as he collapsed against the red metal door. I indulged in the sudden moment of silence and closed my eyes. I steadied my heart beat to a slow and stable pace. It had been so long since we all rested. I lost count as to how many days or even weeks when we last reached a safe room – and the safety consumed us all. I knew each of us would be able to fall into a peaceful slumber after the long period of gore and bloodshed. I opened my eyes and took notice of the others. Louis was out – despite his fatal injury – he was deep in sleep. Bill was struggling to choose between another cigarette – his last one, at that – or to succumb to sleep. Surprisingly, he took the sleep. I was sure he'd smoke another death stick.

I attempted to stand from the chair so I could grab a free sleeping bag of my own until I pressed against my ribs, letting out a whimper of pain. I slapped my hand to my mouth, preventing another cry from escaping my lips as I didn't want to disturb the sleeping men.

"I'm sorry Zo. Let me help you patch it up," Francis offered as he took hold of a health kit and opened up to its supplies. He took a seat by the table directly opposite me. He dragged his chair right over; his body was inches from mine as I examined the close up of his face. But all I noticed were his grey eyes staring deeply into mine.

Coherency slowly stumbled back into me as I glanced away from his gaze. "I don't understand why you're apologising Francis. You saved my life." I said sincerely as I watched him pick up the tape.

"I couldn't see where the stupid infected was. It did a good job of hiding itself, I'll tell ya that. And then just watching you dangle like prey up there, watching you squirm and cry..." he cringed. "So then I tried aiming for the tongue. But it was so hard 'cause I was scared I would shoot you instead." His face was solemn. That was the first time I've ever seen a hint of sadness from Francis. After the long and gruelling months of friendship we've gained, never have I seen him so… vulnerable. He was busy looking down at the tape, whirling it around his index finger. Looking at him, he looked so innocent – despite the infected blood that pooled his white shirt, now slashed by the Hunter's claws. Without even realising what I was doing, I laid my hand against his cheek and smiled. "Thank you."

He looked up at me incredulously and I quickly removed my hand. Both of our faces flushed a brilliant red and an awkward silence fell between us. But it was the pain of my ribs that screamed at me to tape it up. I grimaced, fighting the urge to curl myself into a ball and cower.

"Well uh - I kinda have to uh – tape your torso up and all…" I smiled at his hesitation and I took the tape myself.

"I'll take care of it, Francis. Thanks," I swiftly leapt from the chair – wince – and left into what looked like an employee bathroom. I shut the door and sighed as my cheeks flushed once more. I had no idea what swept over me in that moment… but to caress Francis like that on the cheek was uncalled for. Francis had always been my pal, no matter how selfish or rude he acted in front of everyone. Hope always blazed within Francis, igniting strength and optimism for the rest of us. Without him, I really wouldn't be here alive. I would probably still be dead in my college dorm… or worse, I flinched at the thought.

I took my time to examine the bathroom. It contained a toilet with lack of toilet paper, a – hopefully – working sink and my eyes lit up by the decent shower installed in this place. I guess the government was good for something. It would be heaven if the water system was working. None of us had had a shower for months. My heart picked up at the thought of warm water flooding my hair and back, scrubbing the dirt and grime that all of us had acquired during these strenuous times.

After patching myself up, I was too exhausted to have a shower. The tape helped keep me together and I was sure it would last for one night. I figured I would shower after a long rest. Plus, we wouldn't be moving anytime soon. Both Louis and I needed a few days to heal and collect ourselves for our venture to the next safe house – hopefully taking us closer to the evacuation site. I left the room and entered back into the main room. Everyone had shifted into their sleeping bags – their snores growing louder by the second. I hoped it wouldn't attract the attention of any zombies.

One of us always kept watch; it was what we usually had planned. But hearing all the men snoring only made me want to sleep. My injury wasn't helping and I was on the verge of letting the fatigue take over. Instead, I shuffled into the closest sleeping bag, inviting the warmth and comfort that my body so desperately needed. Stay awake Zoey. What if an infected stumbled across the safe room during the night and killed everyone. It would be all your fault.

But that couldn't be possible. The door was bolted shut, thanks to Francis's might. There was no way an infected could enter. I didn't even understand why I was arguing with myself in my head. I must be going insane. Well hell, we are in a zombie apocalypse. How can you stay sane?

"Goodnight Zoey," I heard the soft tone of Francis's voice. His voice knocked me out of my train of thought as my heart skipped a beat. I thought he was sleeping. But he was keeping watch. I mustn't have noticed his presence when I stumbled back in here.

"Goodnight Francis." I smiled and finally let unconsciousness take over.

A/N: Hey guys, just a little something I've been working on.

Hope you like it. Also, a big thanks to all the people who reviewed and favourited my previous story. It means a lot to me :)
Anyways, I have the next few chapters ready, but I won't be publishing until I edit a little more.
Till then, enjoy!

Cheers :)