Bill?...Bill! What are you doing!
There was nothing. No noise. Not even a bird chirping in the air under the eerie, charcoal sky. Only the silence.
Crazy old man! Get back here!
She sat next to the mounted machine gun high on the bridge. Her hopeless eyes stay glued to the dirty veteran's beret in her hands, fingers trembling within the fabric. No matter how much more she needed to let out tears, they would not come. Days after the incident still did not mend the pain the remaining survivors felt.
There's too many tanks! What are you thinking!
Her hair stuck to the back of her sweat beaded neck. The slight breeze that began to pick up failed to get her attention. Below her, her biker comrade came out of the building that connected with the walkway to the bridge. He looked up at the girl, crossing his arms and observing her. Since that day, not a word came from her throat. The once spirited, fighting college student was silenced, as if she had died along with the man that had become a father figure to them all.
You people are the only family I have left. Take care of each other, and keep fighting for hope. I love you.
"Zoey, I can take over watch." Francis called up to her, even though there was no point. As expected, she did not answer. She did not even move.
"Francis." The biker looked back to see Louis still sitting inside. His wounded leg was propped up, trying to take pressure off it. "Leave her alone. She'll come in when she's ready."
"Dammit Louis, it's been days!" The biker argued, "She's gotta get off her ass and actually do something!"
He didn't have the energy to try and reason with Francis. Louis sighed and leaned back again the cold stone wall. Taking a deep breath, he placed his hands on the ground and started to push himself up off the ground, wincing in the process.
"What the hell are you-"
"Cool it man." Louis cut him off. It was a struggle, but he made it to his feet and began to limp his way outside. He stopped before he passed Francis and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'll keep an eye on her. Why don't you do a supply run again? There still may be some stuff we could find for the trip."
Francis looked at him, then up at Zoey. He swore under his breath and shrugged off the Louis' hand. "This town is a shit hole. Every damn building has probably been looted long ago." Even as he complained, he walked off to do his assignment.
Louis watched him leave before turning and hobbling up the metal stairs. His leg was doing better, but still was a burden to not only himself, but to his fellow survivors. Sure the infected were scarce, but one could never know.
He finally made it to the top and let out an exhausted breath he had been holding. Louis looked over at Zoey and gave her a small smile. "Hey girl, you doin' okay?"
Zoey did not move her head, but glance up at Louis. Eye contact did not last, because she looked back down at the beret almost immediately.
Louis limped over to her, leaning against the railing to keep his balance. He did not sit down, but stare out in the distance, spotting Francis looking along the bridge below. He shifted the hunting rifle in his hands.
"Man, I remember the day when I thought I was gonna get that promotion at work." Louis broke the silence with a story that Zoey had heard many times before, "My girl made me this delicious steak dinner. She was the sweetest thing." He glanced at Zoey, waiting for the interruption. Louis was determined to get her talking again.
"I don't think I ever told you guys what ended up happening to her." Louis continued, "She went out to see her parents, so that she could make sure they were alright." He swallowed and looked up at the sky. "They weren't even zombies, and they had killed themselves. Didn't want to fight to survive. She saw them dead, and decided to join them. I had found them all laying together."
He could see that Zoey had stopped turning Bill's beret in her hands. Her eyes flickered up to him. They were filled with apologies that she didn't have to speak for him to hear. Zoey let her jaw fall slightly, and Louis thought that for a second that she was going to say something.
"Hey ladies, look sharp." Francis's voice called up to them as he was making his way back to rejoin them.
Louis glanced down, waiting for the biker to emerge from the doorway after entering the building. Once he came into sight, he leaned over the railing. "You find supplies?"
"Worse, I found company. Saw some sort of race car ahead. Probably gonna pull up on the other side of the bridge any second."
"Other survivors?"
"That, or I bet those vampires learned how to drive. I kept telling you guys they'd outsmart us!"
"Or just you." Louis muttered, and then he chuckled to himself.
"Whatever, nerd." Francis scoffed. Making his way up the stairs and then turning to go to the other side of the bridge. He decided that he was going to be the one to confront these strangers.
Eventually, a motor could be heard in the distance, approaching fast too. Zoey lifted her head and slowly stood up, leaving the beret in her spot. Her legs had grown heavy from sitting for so long. Louis turned from watching Francis and looked at Zoey, surprised that she had moved. She walked past him, ignoring his stare and walked slowly along the metal railing. Francis had his back to her, watching the street below as the blue race car drove up and slowed to a halt.
She could hear doors open, and then slam close. Francis still didn't seem to notice that she was behind him. His mouth remain in a frown as he sized up the four strangers below.
"Hello up there! Do you think you could lower the bridge for us?" A bellowing, deep voice came from below.
Francis grunted and shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry, no can do."
A small silence followed, but was then broken by a sarcastic and very much irritated tone, "Listen, you greasy haired monkey, lower the goddamn bridge!"
"Bite me Colonel Sanders!" Francis snapped back. He looked as though he was ready to leap off the bridge and pummel whoever was talking.
Zoey huffed a small laugh, making Francis shoot a quick glare at her. He wasn't aware she was amused, it's just that at this point, any sound to him came off as annoying.
"Nick, come on." A female's voice now spoke up. "I'm sorry about that, he's just a little cranky." She called up to Francis. The woman sounded sincere, most likely just trying to get on the biker's good side. "Could you please lower the bridge for us?"
By now, Zoey decided to walk forward and stand next to Francis, finally giving into the curiosity of what these new survivors looked like.
There were four of them, and as much as Zoey gathered, they were four very different people. The zombie apocalypse has a way of throwing random people together. She was one that could relate to that.
The first one she noticed was the large man in the polo shirt. His face was humble but worn down with age. Although, maybe he wasn't as old as she thought. It was apparent he was the leader of this group whether he claimed that position or not. He reminded Zoey of her old high school gym teacher, which was probably wrong of her to assume so, but her mind went there.
She moved on to the woman next. Zoey had to admit to herself that seeing another female alive (and hopefully immune) was reassuring. She probably wouldn't hang out with this woman, but felt that she wouldn't hate her either. The woman's gentle face was touched with the occasional scar or bruise, but she still looked pretty. The pink shirt she wore was likely once brighter in color, complemented the brown scuffed boots and blue jeans. Even during an apocalypse, Zoey guessed she was a woman who still liked to dress with an eye for fashion. Again, she shouldn't assume things of people, but what else was there to do?
Next, she already figured that this was the man with the oh-so-charming-prince attitude. He may not be the prince himself, but more like the side kick of that prince character who was the smart ass best friend. The expensive looking suit and slick coal black hair looked rather suave on him. Although, he did not have the most suave impression at the moment. Being grumpy made things rather amusing.
"Come around the other side of the bridge. We can help you there." Francis grumbled. Nothing like a woman's charm to do the trick, apparently. He didn't wait for them to respond back, but turn around and strode away. More than likely he was going to inform Louis of his new friends.
Zoey watched him leave, and just as she turn her head to gaze down the bridge again, her eyes locked with the fourth member of the group below.
Immediately, he was easily factored as the youngest member of the group. Underneath that blue cap, his eyes widened and his mouth was debating whether or not to offer Zoey a smile. His hand came up nervously, as though he was going to wave, but instead went to wipe on his denim overalls (what she thought to be) tied around his waist. She watch as he bit his lower lip and looked around before looking back up at her.
"Uh, Howdy!" He called up to her. "Uh.. Heh.. Beautiful weather, huh?"
Zoey blinked, trying to figure this guy out. He seemed like a softie, which wasn't too wise considering it was the end of the world and all. She didn't even really know how to respond back, and luckily she didn't have to.
"Come on Ellis, we ain't got time for this." The big man called to his companion.
The redneck glanced back and scowled when he noticed his team was leaving him behind. "Y'all coulda least told me we were leavin'!"
"And ruin the great show you were putting on Romeo?" The sarcastic one commented.
"Shut up Nick!"
Zoey watched them leave and listened until their voices could no longer be heard. Rather, they were replaced with gunshots and zombies wailing.
Her hands reached out to grasp the railing, and slowly her fingers drummed against the cool metal. More survivors out there. It was still unbelievable, and a plus seeing as they didn't appear to be affiliated with the military. Zoey closed her eyes, letting her thoughts race. Maybe they could invite them along. There would be strength in numbers after all. Once they got away, everything could start over for Zoey. She wanted happiness, and more importantly, the future she had never bothered to plan for even before the zombie apocalypse.
That life in college was a waste. Staying in her dorm room late, failing tests, and missing classes. Even when the illness broke out, she didn't take it seriously. It was a game to her. Plucking off the undead one by one and horde by horde made her feel like she starred in a horror movie, and she was living it up.
But that finally changed. When reality hit, it became the ultimate bitch.
Then when reality is done smacking people around, it has a way of leaving behind unnatural daydreams.
"Well," That familiar gruff voice she heard in her head now stood by her side, "gotta hand it to them for sticking close."
Zoey glanced to her right and opened her eyes. That's when she saw Bill, leaning against the railing and lighting a cigarette. He brought the nicotine to his lips and inhaled. Bill made eye contact with her before exhaling.
Zoey swallowed. It only needed to happen once for her to get used to talking to him like this every time after the first time. She let out a breath she had been holding, and looked down at her hands. "...I think, we should join-"
"You, Francis, and Louis were the only family I had." He cut her off. "Every time we put our trust in other people, it ended up being shit."
She set her jaw, wanting to argue but couldn't. It was true. "I know, Bill."
There was a small silence. He sighed. "Zoey, are you mad at me?"
Zoey couldn't help but chuckle, and immediately after, her mouth got rid of all traces of the smile that rose from the humor. "Even when you've kicked the bucket, you still haven't changed."
He shrugged his shoulders. "Whatever you say. You were always a wise ass. Well, not as bad as Francis."
Before replying back, she paused to listen to Louis and Francis. They seemed to be whispering heatedly about something. "I should wait with-"
Right when she looked back at Bill, he was gone. Whenever he did this, it was like her heart broke again, similar to the moment right when he left them to become the sacrifice they didn't ask him to be. The pain was always a reminder, and had an annoying habit of slowing her down.
She dragged her feet and let her head hang as she went to rejoin her group. Louis and Francis both ceased talking as they watch her approach. No one said anything to each other for some time. Louis struggled to sit down, a little shaky and wobbly, but finally managed to make it in one piece. He let our a sigh of relief upon taking off the pressure on his leg.
Time went by. Ten minutes, to twenty minutes, and so on. It seemed like an eternity. Finally, gun pops and shouts were getting closer and closer.
"Almost here." Francis mumbled.
"Stay positive Francis, I'm sure they're a nice bunch of people." Louis tried to reason with him.
"Nice bunch my ass." Francis sneered, "I hate new people."
"You hate everything."
"Not true. I don't hate vests."
Zoey sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. Maybe Francis was right. Perhaps they should disregard these newcomers. After all, they were asking to lower the bridge when it was a struggle to get it up in the first place.
The moan of a metal door swinging open followed by soft chatter alerted the bridge dwellers or their arrival.
Francis and Louis seemed to shift in anxiety, and Zoey felt it. The tension was growing with the echoing of footsteps in the night. They kept their eyes down where they were expecting them, and finally, the familiar figures of the four survivors appeared underneath the streetlights that lit the way up the stairs. No one spoke, even as the four ascended and finally halted before the platform the three stood upon (Louis sitting).
It was then Louis offered a smile and a polite wave of his hand. "Hey! You guys made it! What are your names?"
"Friends call me Coach." The big man replied back with a friendly tone of his own. "'N this here's Rochelle, Nick, and Ellis."
The one called Nick huffed in annoyance and looked away. He probably thought no one noticed, but Zoey spiked an eyebrow at him.
Louis nodded. "I'm Louis. This is Francis and Zoey. Where you guys headed?"
"New Orleans. Heard they've still got evacuations running." Coach informed him. The corner of his mouth turned up a bit at the strike of a thought. "Hey! Y'all wanna join us?"
"Nah, that's alright. We've had enough of the military." Louis replied back nicely.
"Lousy back-stabbing asses..." Francis muttered. Of course he hates everything, but probably the military just a tad more.
Louis ignored his comrade's remark. "In order to lower the bridge the generator has to be filled with gas." He informed them, "If you guys wanna search down below, we'll cover you from up here."
"Sounds great, thanks!" Coach told him. "C'mon y'all."
Nick rolled his eyes and followed after him. "Hey, wanna hear my prediction of this-"
"NO." Coach and Rochelle snapped at him.
"What? I wasn't gonna say we were all gonna die. Maybe just Ellis."
Zoey watched as Nick trailed behind Coach and Rochelle, who had made it to the elevator to take them down. It was then she glanced down to see Ellis was lingering, and must have been eyeing her. Seeing that she noticed, he gulped and averted his eyes, but they found their way back to hers.
She blinked down at him. From the corner of her eyes, she could see Francis help Louis up and leave to get into position.
Well, she and this guy were kind of alone now. Shit. Weren't the others going to be waiting on him?
Zoey sighed, trying to think of something to do, or say maybe. Suddenly, the words ran out of her mouth before she thought of them. "Nice car."
You should get going, she should have told him.
He grinned. "Thanks! It belonged to someone you mighta heard by the name of Jimmy Gibbs Jr."
She couldn't help but smile a little back. Memories of watching the big races on TV with her Dad flooded back to her. She remembered her family actually rooted for Jimmy Gibbs to lose on more than one occasion. "Yeah, I know who that is."
Ellis blinked, looking a tad awe struck. "Ya do?"
Zoey turned her head in the direction of the car. "She's a beauty." When she didn't get a response back, she looked back to Ellis.
"...Yeah. She is." He replied, still keeping his eyes on her.
"Hey! He haw!" Rochelle called out. "Let's go!"
He fumbled with his shotgun, being thrown off at his companion calling to him. Ellis threw one last glance at Zoey before hurrying off to join them.
Zoey let her smile fade as she straitened up and turned to join her own party. As she neared, Francis picked up a sniper rifle and handed it to her. She took it without question and raised the scope to eye level.
"After this, we need to split." Francis told them.
"What?" Louis asked, sounding confused by his statement.
"That bridge is gonna make a lot of racket. It'll draw a bunch of more of those vampires. After they leave, I don't wanna clean up the leftovers they didn't get."
Louis took this into consideration. His leg still wasn't at it's best, but he guessed they didn't have much of a choice. "Alright."
The roar of an incoming horde grabbed their attention as they assumed their positions to guard those below. Gas cans were carried one at a time and made their way into the generator. Despite the numbers, the four down there didn't slow down.
"Split in twos!" Coach shouted to his team over the noise, "Ellis 'n Ro, head down that way and look for some cans!"
Rochelle nodded and nudged Ellis, who followed behind her as they left Nick and Coach. Zoey kept her eyes on these two now.
Rochelle opened the door to an old bar and went inside. Ellis stood at the entrance, eyeing the surroundings to fend off anything that might be following them. It was then he noticed the open trunk of a car just a few feet away from him. He could tell something was inside.
Ellis hesitantly wandered over, curiosity taking over. He lowered his gun and smiled as he reached in with one hand, and pulled out a molotov. "Well alriiight! Time to start some fires."
*Huh HAAAAAH!*
Zoey's eyes narrowed at the familiar sound of a certain special infected. She looked around wildly, wondering where it could possibly be hiding. Closer and closer the gasps from the creature drew. Just as she turned her head to ask Francis if he saw the smoker, it revealed itself.
"Ah! What the hell!" Ellis yelped.
Zoey turned her attention immediately back to where Ellis stood, or where he once stood. Her eyes widened in horror as she watched him being dragged along the pavement. She raised her rifle and peered through the scope, following up the long, snaking tongue.
Rochelle by now had emerged from the building, a gas can in her hands. She had heard her comrade's cry for help. "Hang on baby!" She called to him, dropping the can and raising her pistols. There was hesitation in her entire body as she ran forward. She couldn't shoot from the current distance she was at, in fear that Ellis might receive a bullet instead of the smoker.
Her finger shivered on the trigger, but Zoey took in steady breaths. Finally, the smoker's head showed itself right in the middle of her scope. He was bobbing back and forth, still pulling in his victim. It was determined to bring it's meal all the way in.
"Try this one for size, you long-tongued fucker." Zoey hissed under her breath, and thus pulled the trigger. The bullet whizzed through the air at lightning speed, straight towards the undead being. To her pleasure, she watched as the smoker flinch violently before bursting into a cloud of smoke. A perfect headshot.
Ellis sat up quickly and struggled to get the leftover tongue off of his body. He looked up to where the smoker stood, wondering what happened to it.
"Ellis! You okay?" Rochelle panicked, rushing to his side and helping him up.
"Yeah Ro, I'm good-"
"Get yo asses ova here!" Coach hollered, getting their attention.
"Get in the fucking tank!" Nick was swearing at a gas can he was pouring in. His once white suit was now bloodied and torn open at his chest. The obvious marks indicated that a hunter probably got him for a very brief moment.
Rochelle had retrieved the can she dropped before her and Ellis ran back to regroup. She struggled to pour it in, hands shaking during the process.
"Let's go! Bridge is lowering!" Nick shouted, "Come on move-"
Beneath them, the ground began to tremble. Slow and study, but soon became louder and closer. A familiar, loud roar filled the air.
They all turned, and saw it. Standing in the middle of the rode up a ways, was a tank. He stood up on his legs, furiously pounding his fists against his chest. His hands then shot into the ground, yanking out a large chunk of asphalt and rock, and hurled it directly at them.
"Go! Get out of here!" Louis called down to them.
"C'mon y'all!" Coach turned and began hurrying down the bridge, followed by Rochelle, and then Nick. Ellis trailed behind slightly, plucking off the common infected that threatened to catch up and slow them down.
Zoey watched him, an unpleasant feeling was beginning to grow in the pit of her stomach. Was this really it? They'd go off and never meet again?
"Let 'em go, Kid." Bill's voice was next to her. She didn't have to look at him, because she knew he was there. "We look out for our own."
Our own. Those words were meant for her, Francis, and Louis. However, in that moment, she took it differently. Looking out for their own human kind.
"Ellis!" Her voice rang through all the noise of the infected.
Louis and Francis froze, looking over at her with wide, concerned eyes. However, she paid them no mind.
Zoey leaned over the railing a bit, and watched as Ellis looked up at her. He was also taken back by her voice, or mainly that she addressed him in the first place. "You stay alive, got it?"
He smiled up at her. Ellis raised his hand and grabbed his cap, bringing it down to hold over his heart. "Zoey, I promise you that we'll meet again!"
"Go! Now!" She shouted back, knowing that the undead army approached fast.
Ellis nodded and placed his cap back on his head before turning and running to the car. Zoey made sure to keep an eye on him all the up up until he reached it and got in.
"Zoey..." She turned and met eyes with Francis. "What-"
"Taaaannnk!" Louis yelled. He kept his hands on the mounted machine gun and would not let go of the trigger, determined to get every single bullet in that monstrosity.
The beast came closer to the bridge, it's mere sight sending hurtful reminders to the three upon the bridge. They refused to cease fire though. All of the them continue until the loud revving of the race car sounded through the night.
Within mere seconds, the car sped across the bridge and down the road, narrowly missing the tank. The giant stumbled a bit in surprise and howled angrily, changing his focus from the bridge to the escaping survivors. Back up the road he began running after it, grunting in fury at the fact that he was probably not going to catch up with it.
The ground seemed to quake less and less until everything finally fell silent. There were scarce commons stumbling to the ground, giving up on the car and laying on the ground exhausted. They seemed to forget about the ones on the bridge too, for now.
Francis was breathing heavily, and sighed with relief as he lowered his gun slightly. He looked up at Louis who was hunched over the machine gun. The men made eye contact before looking over at Zoey.
She lowered her gun and began walking up the metal stairs. Zoey kept on, not looking at Louis as she passed him and went up the the railing that overlooked the dark water below. She eyed their boat, and looked back at her team. "Let's go." She finally spoke.
There was silence among them. Francis scoffed a bit and turned her back to her, going to gather the few things they had with them on the bridge.
Louis continued to watch Zoey, a small smile forming on his lips. "Good to have you back, Zo."
Her eyes wandered away from him, focusing on the point where the sky and the sea touched in the distance. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, finally replying, "I was never gone."
"Ellis, slow down honey we lost the tank a long time ago." Rochelle leaned forward from behind the driver's side and placed a hand on the southern boy's shoulder. "Don't want us to get into an accident."
"Ro', I'm a pro at drivin'." Ellis told her, looking up at the rearview mirror to flash her a smile.
"I wanna get rescued just as fast as you do, but Ro's right. Gotta be careful." Coach agreed with Rochelle. He glanced over to the driver next to him. "Boy, you got something else on your mind?"
Ellis glanced at him briefly but kept his eyes on the road ahead of him. "I made a promise to the most beautiful angel I have ever seen..."
Nick snorted. "No need to flatter Rochelle, Kid. Not exactly angel material."
Rochelle made sure that the suited man saw her glare.
"Nah I don't mean Rochelle-" He cut off and made eye contact with Rochelle in the mirror again. "No offense Ro', you are pretty too."
"None taken." She sighed and leaned back in her seat.
"I meant that Zoey girl." Ellis clarified to Nick. "Her holding that gun.. I mean she can shoot! Man oh man... I'm gonna marry that girl.." He paused for a second and looked over at Coach. "Hey Coach, can coaches marry people?"
"No Ellis." The man replied, a bit annoyed. "Even if I could, why? Boy you don't know anything about that girl."
There was a bit of silence. Ellis swallowed, and then nodded his head, eyes on the road ahead. "Maybe not now, but one day I'm gonna learn everything about her."
"Ugh." Nick sounded disgusted. "I feel as bad as you look."
Ellis didn't reply back to his comment. None of them did. The rest of the road trip in the Jimmy Gibbs jr. would be silent. They knew not of what would lie ahead, and did not care. Freedom was but so close to them, and yet so painfully far away.
Bill...
Bill...?
Bill..!
"Bill!" Zoey shouted and flailed her arms as she tried to untangle them from the sheets of her bad. She sat up, drenched in sweat, and blinked her eyes quickly to adjust to the dark of the room. Her hand shakily rose to her forehead to feel her temples pounding.
It was then everything began catching up to her. She was on a boat, with Louis and Francis, sailing to the Florida Keys. However, they were still not there. The survivors did not expect to hit several wind storms on the way there. It seemed that they were off course at this point. Although, Francis continuously insists that he knows the way.
Zoey let the tip of her tongue run along her lips, only to find how dried they were. She tried to swallow, and found her throat to be parched. Supplied were starting to dwindle, and still no land in sight. Zoey swung her legs over the side of the bed and planted her feet on the cold floor. She could feel the ground rocking beneath her.
Before getting up, she rubbed her eyes and grabbed her pink jacket that lay nearby. Even after all this time, putting her jeans on in this boat proved to be a tough balancing act because of the rocking, but she managed.
She saved her shoes for last, tying them on tight and looking around once more. Her heart dropped a little when he wasn't around. Then again, she constantly had nightmares of Bill over and over, so she didn't need to see him again for a little while.
Zoey grasped the metal ladder and descended up on to the deck of the sailboat. The first thing that hit her face was the salty air, which did not help her thirst. What she saw what what she expected, nothing but ocean all around her. Once on deck, she zipped up her jacket and shivered.
"Hey, look who's up!" Louis called to her. She turned in his direction and caught his smile. "How'd ya sleep?"
She shrugged. "I've had better."
It was then she heard Francis snort. Zoey glanced at him to see that he was steering the boat. His gaze was forward and his hands seemed to be tense at the wheel, as though he had a tight grip on it for quite some time.
Louis disregarded the noise Francis made and turned back to Zoey, eager to continue conversing since Zoey had decided to talk ever since leaving the bridge. "The water hasn't been all that bad. I've got a feeling we'll be reaching land soon!"
"Can we hope for tomorrow? We're not doing so hot on supplies." Zoey by now had reached Louis and Francis.
"Well look who all of a sudden is so hopeful now." Francis muttered under his breath. He probably thought he was saying this quiet enough, but Zoey had heard every word.
Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Care to explain that?"
His eyes shot over to her, making contact. "I don't need to explain shit to you."
"Whoa whoa guys!" Louis stepped forward between them, trying to cut off their stare at each other and avoid further fighting. Although, that would fail.
"I think you do, Francis. Because you've been a massive dick since we set sail."
Francis let go of the wheel and took a large step towards the girl. Louis, in a panic, reached out to grab the wheel and keep the boat on course.
"Oh, now you're taking notice to your team? At the bridge you acted like you didn't give a damn if we were all gonna die. And now, you wanna find a hell hole island as bad as ever!"
She stare at her comrade, registering all that he was throwing at her. "Is this about those people we met at the bridge?"
Francis balled his hands into fists at his sides. "..You know what I hate? That you turned into some girlie over that fucking hillbilly. Aren't we enough to keep you fighting? We're family, like Bill said. We don't need anyone else."
Zoey stare at him, taken back by his words. Francis had never called her girlie at all. He knew this even when they met, because that was like an insult to her. Her blood was boiling, and nothing would please her more than to punch him right in the nose. "You're not family. You're a jealous asshole."
Just as the words came out of her mouth, she immediately wanted to take them back. Something in Francis' eyes seemed to break, and they lost their shine. He took a step back, his face paling. Zoey's eyes softened due to her guilt setting in. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, trying to find words. "I... Francis, I-"
"Shut up Zoey." Francis spat and turned her back on her. He stormed off, his destination to be below deck where she had been.
Louis and Zoey watched him until he climbed down. There was nothing but silence. Zoey groaned and brought her fingers to her face to rub her temples. It was then she felt a light touch on her shoulder. She looked up and found Louis staring at her. In his eyes, she could see that her words hurt him too, but even so, he offered her a small smile.
"Why don't you take over for a while girl? I'll go talk to him."
She sighed, and nodded. "Thank you." She whispered to him, and watch as he walked away to join Francis.
Zoey lifted both hands and grasped the wheel, keeping it steady. The sky above was beginning to darken, and not because night time was coming.
It was then a bad feeling knotted in the pit of her stomach. Upsetting her team wasn't the only thing that would come to be a problem.
This can't be happening... This can't be happening... We were so close.
When they had been rescued in New Orleans, Coach, Rochelle, Nick, and Ellis thought it was over. It would be finally over.
There would be no more running. No more starving. No more zombies, hunters, tanks, chargers, and the rest of those horrors.
They thought the military had pulled through, and that being in this helicopter meant living in a safe facility for the rest of their lives.
The survivors should have known that was not the case in the exact moment a storm shook them in the sky.
Ellis kept his eyes squeezed shut and his grip on his seat tight as everything rumbled. He did his best to block out all the sounds: the thunder, the screeching of the plane's emergency procedures from speakers, and the panicked shouts of his companions.
"It's alright y'all! It'll push through!" Bellowed Coach, still trying to reassure everyone that this plane could fight through.
"Push through my ass! I told you this was all going to hell!" Nick shouted back.
Rochelle spoke nothing through this ordeal. She held on for her life too, whimpering and fighting back tears. She kept her eyes on all her boys, wanting to be hopeful in this.
"No." Ellis grit his teeth and force his eyes open. The plane moaned loudly and jerked so suddenly that immediately, all of them could tell that they were descending. He made eye contact with the family he grew to know and love. "We will make it. I promise y'all that!" His mind then flashed to Zoey, that image of her on the bridge still crystal clear and beautiful.
Just like I promised you, Zoey. I'm gonna find you girl, and when I do, you're never gonna leave my sight again.
Zoey...
"KEEP HOLDING ON!"
This storm by far was the worst that Zoey had ever been in. It began when Francis started his steering duty again. They did not speak, even as the wind picked up and grew worse. When the thunder and lighting began to fill the sky, thats when Francis started shouting at them.
"Louis, you all right?" He shouted.
"I can't see a damn thing!" Louis yelled back, holding on to the railing for dear life.
Zoey held on too, but could feel her grip slipping. She struggled to open her eyes since wind and rain kept impaling her face. Her bangs stuck to her forehead and poked her eyes as well.
Bill. What would he do?
The questions popped into her head. If he were here, they wouldn't be in this mess in the first place. They'd be on their island, and live happily ever after. Or some cheesy crap like that.
Was he here? Was he watching her? Zoey struggled to lift a hand to her face and wipe her bangs from her eyes, and opened them. Right before her, she saw it. A large splash roared from the sea and came right at them. Behind it, she could see something dark and large submerging into the water.
As this object from the sky collided into the darkness, the boat rocketed back and began to tip.
Before they all knew it, they were airborne. Everything around Zoey appeared in slow motion. Her mind was on the ending, and how after all they had been through, her team hated her. She reached out to Francis, who she saw turn his head towards her and shout her name.
"FRANCIS! I-"
I'm sorry.
These words, along with everything and everyone, were lost under the dark surface of sea.
A/N: Finally, after procrastination and the torture of having this story in my head for weeks, is finally up. The first chapter of more to come, I can assure you. I have read through multiple fan fictions, and thus I am trying my best to add in my own take on the characters and throw them in situations.
Thank you for supporting me.
Also, the title of each chapter is after a song that I find fitting in some way shape or form. I will credit the song and artist at the end of each chapter with italics.
Best regards,
Kitty Sensei
Where Is My Mind? - Yoav ft. Emily Browning