Title: Sigh No More
Author: Nanashi Angel
Date: 11 December, 2010
Catagory: Zombieland
Genre: Angst/Hurt-Comfort/General
Rating: 'T'
Warnings: Slash, OOC-ness
Summary: It's only at night, when he's plagued by the insomnia that's followed him for his entire life, that he wonders. . .
Disclaimer: I do not own Zombieland, nor do I own the ideas or characters associated with Zombieland. This is not for profit, merely pleasure.

It's always nighttime when he wonders. During the day they are busy; running, scavenging. . . surviving. It's only when it's dark out, when he's lying wrapped in Tallahassee's arms listening to the night that he wonders. It's only when he's plagued by the same insomnia that has dogged his steps his entire life that he has time to wonder.

He wonders. . . if the time comes that he's the only one left, he'll be able to do what Tallahassee did. ('When', his subconscious mind prods. When, because he's not near as optimistic as everyone, including himself, would like to believe.)

Will he be able to drive down the road in an old, beaten down truck (older than he is), with a bottle of bourbon in the seat next to him? Will he stop, and pick up that young boy, or girl, and drag them along?

Maybe he'll say, 'Call me Columbus. Columbus, Ohio. No names. Just where you're going or where you're from.'

He decides that if (when) asked, he'll say, 'They killed him.'

'Killed who?'

'My dog. My Tallahassee. He was the most loyal and protective dog a man could have. He saved my live, and in return? They ripped him to shreds, and his pup, Buck, too.'

And maybe he'll mention something like, 'My cats. Wichita, and Little Rock. Well, Rockie was more of a kitten really.' Because, all truth be told, Little Rock was too sneaky to be a pup, and Wichita was more vicious than any wildcat he'd ever heard tale of.

He then wonders where he'd end up taking them. Would they just travel the country randomly, or would they have a destination in mind? He somehow knows that he would never stop searching for Twinkies, because even if he dislikes (hates) them now, they were Buck's favorites, then Tallahassee's. 'And it's okay', he decides, 'because Tallahassee disliked (hated) Twinkies once, too.'

He wonders how long he'll last, traveling with the neurotic boy, or the spitfire girls. How long until he just can't go on anymore. Becuase he knows it won't be forever, or even as long as it would have been before the apocalypse. He doesn't know if it'll be zombies, but he thinks it's more likely that he'll just give up. Because he knows, that unlike Tallahassee, there won't be a Columbus to save him from himself.

Because if Tallahassee goes, there won't be anything left to save.

"Ohio? Why're ya still 'wake?" Tallahassee's sleep rough voice pulls him back from his thoughts. "Wichita 'n Rock've got tha watch."

"I was just thinking. I'm sorry if I woke you." He cuddles deeper into the warm arms of his lover.

Tallahassee just snorts. "There'll be time for thinkin' in tha car t'morrow. Sleep now, dammit. I ain't goin' nowhere." Columbus just smiles as his eyes slide shut, sleep finally sneaking in as a thought comes to him.

"Love you, Tallah."

"Love ya too, Collie."

'It doesn't matter what I think', he tells himself as he slips into his first real sleep in days. 'Because it was decided the moment I got into that truck. Where Tallahassee goes, so do I. So I'll just have to make sure he stays right here, where he belongs. . .'

The End

A/N: I know it's not much, but it came to mind and wouldn't leave me alone. So here it is. Drop a line and let me know what you think!

Nanashi