Losing What Almost Was
A black van drives through an empty parking lot, slowly circling the area before stopping. The doors on the van open up and a large bird-like monster with purple feathers steps out of the driver's side while a girl with three eyes and purple hair steps out of the passenger side. The bird monster walks around the back and opens the rear doors grabbing a rucksack out of the back and putting it on the girl, then slings a backpack over his shoulder. He gives a concerned look at the other as they started walking towards the entrance of the hardware store.
"Alright Brock, do you remember why we're here? To grab supplies to make a fence," the girl asked.
"Don't worry Claire I know we need hammers, nails, barbed wire and, saws so we can keep our new home safe. This'll be easy, there's no sign of anything in here" Brock replied with a big grin on his face.
"Good let's get this done and get outta here," Claire responded with a faint smile.
Brock pulls out a hammer from his backpack while Claire pulls a crowbar from her rucksack. Now armed, she quickly checks the door to make sure there's no security system. When she's sure it's not alarmed she puts the curved end of the crowbar into the door and begins to pry it open while Brock keeps watch.
Once the door is open the pair walks inside the hardware store and head towards the Tools & Hardware section to grab what they need. At one point while they were grabbing some tools a Walker silently came out from behind them and grabbed Claire, pinning her to the ground. Brock quickly grabs a nail gun, placing it on the back of the Walker's head and pulls the trigger, showering blood onto the ground and girl. Claire threw the body to one side and moved out the way, uselessly wiping at the blood staining her shirt. With a roll of her eyes, she gave him a quick thumbs up to let him know she was okay. Together they walked off and finished grabbing the last of the things they needed, placing them into a large duffle bag.
"Alright that's just about everything we need, last thing is the barbed wire and then we're good to go," Brock said, wearing his typical big grin.
"Great. Can't wait to get out of here," Claire mused, responding with a fleeting smile before she leaned close and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I'm glad we're back together Brock," she whispered as they wandered the aisles looking for barbed wire.
"Heh, me too Claire. I missed being with you," the bird-like monster cooed. As they turned they turned down the next aisle, they spot a herd of walkers shambling about.
"Uh-oh," Brock whispered as they hid behind a shelf.
"There's so many of them," Claire gasped, looking around the corner as the Walkers started moving towards them.
"We need to get going," Brock replied.
Claire nods in agreement before backing away slowly with Brock. As they started to move away from the Walkers Brock accidentally bumps his leg against a display of paint cans causing them to topple and fall over, making a large crash and alerting more Walkers to their presence.
"Run like hell!", Claire shouted grabbing Brock's hand as they started to run from the Walkers. While running away Brock accidentally drops the duffle bag, he stops in his tracks and turns to grab it. Claire turns her attention to Brock and she doesn't notice a Walker come around the corner. The dead grabs her, biting into her shoulder hard tearing a large chunk of flesh off it, causing her to scream out in pain.
"Claire!", Brock shouted running at the Walker and hitting it in the head repeatedly with his hammer. He picks up the wounded monster from the ground and carries her on his back. As the Walkers got closer to them he spots an upstairs office not far from them and makes a run for it, taking care not to drop Claire as he ran.
Once up the stairs he opens the door and quickly runs inside, slamming the door shut behind him. He places Claire onto a nearby chair then drags a large desk towards the door, barricading them inside from the Walkers. "This is my entire fault, I fucked up big time," the bird monster squawked as he searched for a first-aid kit, tearing up the room until he found one.
"It wasn't your fault Brock... you were just trying to get our tools back, I'm the one that wasn't paying attention," Claire groaned, holding her bleeding shoulder.
"It is my fault, I should've been faster!", Brock crowed as a tear ran down his face.
Claire sighed heavily looking at Brock who started to dry his eyes on his sleeve. He walked over to her with the first-aid kit in his hand and kneeled down. She moved her hand from the wound revealing how bad it was, blood began to run down her arm. Brock pulls out a length of bandage and begins to wrap up the wound, adding a safety pin on the end so it wouldn't unravel.
"You know it's only a matter of time before I turn and attack you Brock. You really wasted your time fixing this bite," Claire sighed, staring at the bandage.
"I don't care! I love you too much to give up on you!", Brock shouted. He took a deep breath and wrapped his arms around Claire, holding her close to him. The bird-like monster rested his beak on top of her head. "I don't want to lose you," he cooed, tearing up again.
Claire wrapped her arms around Brock. "I don't want to die Brock, but there's nothing I can do to prevent it," she whimpered as she began to cry, as helpless as a child. "Brock, promise me when you get out of here, you'll live for the both of us," she pleaded, looking up at her boyfriend.
"Claire...please don't say goodbye," Brock said as he looked down at Claire. He then sighed with a nod, trying to fight back more tears, "I promise. I'll live for the both of us."
Claire smiled with relief. She notices a skylight with a ladder behind them on the ceiling. She let go of Brock and shuffled away from him. "There's a way up to the roof, you can get ou-" Before she could finish there was a loud bang on the door.
"It's gonna break!", Brock shouted as the door rattle and begin to move on its hinges. Walkers bashed their hands against the door trying to break inside the room.
"Brock, get going I'll hold them off," Claire spat, pulling out a handgun. She checked to see how many bullets were in the clip "Fifteen bullets in this clip, counting the one in the chamber and an extra," she thought aloud while motioning for Brock to move.
"No I'm not leaving without you Claire," Brock crowed, shaking his head.
"I'm not giving you a choice here Brock!", Claire shouted, her hand was shaking as fear overcame her. "Go, get moving," she demanded.
Brock looked away and noticed a large shelf in the office. "At least let me put this in front of you, it'll buy you enough time to...", he began.
"To do what?! I'm dead Brock! This bite is a death sentence. Either move or...or I'll end it now," Claire hissed. She walked over to the door, ready to move the desk barricading them in.
"No don't I'll go just...try and stay alive. I promise I'll come back and get you. You've got plenty time before you turn," Brock reassured Claire.
Claire sighed heavily, "Fine. Put the shelf in front of me, but don't come back for me." She started moving to a corner in the office, silently. She was done discussing. Brock nodded and sighed, "Fine."
With Claire ready in the corner Brock begins to move the bookcase and place it in front of her. She smiled at him briefly as he began to climb the ladder, when he reaches the top he throws open the skylight and pulls himself up to the roof.
Brock hardly had time to take a breath of fresh air before the door breaks open and Walkers pour into the office. Claire aims her gun at the Walkers and begins to take shots, splattering brain and gore onto the ground. It didn't take long for the first clip to run out of bullets, she quickly ejects the magazine from the gun and slides a new one in. She was ready.
After less than a minute, she had gone through most of her clip leaving only one bullet. A small group of Walkers got close to the shelf she was barricaded behind, clawing for her. Claire decided to take them out by toppling the shelf on top of them, crushing them immediately. She vaulted over the shelf and across the room to a supply closet where she locked herself inside.
Brock stood on the roof of hardware store listening to the gunshots, he wanted to jump down to help Claire but there were too many Walkers inside. Eventually the gunshots seemed to end and Brock looked down into the office. He only saw a small group of Walkers that remained then heard one last shot go off. Brock decided to make his way to the edge of the building and climb down onto a fire escape.
Once down in the empty parking lot he immediately ran back inside to get Claire, despite it going against her last request. He bashed any Walker that he came across in the skull before running upstairs to the office where he spoted a couple of Walkers trying to get into a closet. Brock effortlessly kills them before breaking the door open. Claire is lying on the ground with her eyes shut and Brock picks her up, carrying her out of the supply closet.
"C'mon Claire, wake up," Brock said trying to wake her up, he even shakes her a little. "We need to get outta here. Claire, come on! Get up, we have to go! Why aren't you waking up?!", he squawked. Brock began tearing up as he stared at Claire's body.
He moved his hand away when he felt something on his fingertips. Brock glanced at his hand and gasps realizing that it was blood.
"No, no, no, no! Claire! Why did you do it?", Brock shouted, crying uncontrollably at the loss of his girlfriend. The bird-like monster shuddered with each sob.
Brock began to walk down the stairs of the office carrying Claire's lifeless body out to the van, tears still streaming down his face. When he arrives at the van he opens the door taking care not to drop Claire, then carefully lays her body on a sheet in the back and pulls it over her.
Brock makes his way to the driver's side of the van quickly drying his eyes. He buckles his seatbelt and starts the engine before driving off, heading back to the camp.
After an hour of driving he pulls over at a wide empty field. Brock climbs out the driver's side and opens the back of van, carefully removing Claire's body and grabbing a shovel. He takes the body to the middle of the field and places her down. Brock began the long, somber process of digging a grave. He placed her body in the ground and shovels dirt back into the hole over the body. To finish he grabs a couple of sticks and some rope to make a small cross to mark where she is buried.
He pulls out something from his pocket staring at it, it was a small ring. Brock places it on the grave sighing heavily as he stares at it. "I was gonna propose to you tonight, once we had gotten back from the store. I was going to take you out front, get down on one knee. I had this whole big speech worked out too," he chuckled at the thought before the harsh reality settled again.
"I'm going to miss you so much Claire. I hope you're with all our friends we lost. I'll always love you. Goodbye Claire Wheeler," he said somberly before making his way back to the van.
Brock pulls out his gun and aims it at the side of his head. The monster hesitates before dropping it onto the passenger's seat, crying. "No I won't do that...I made a promise. I'm going to do the living for the both of us," he crowed, nodding a little before starting the van back up and driving off to the camp.