Prologue

As Grant Taylor walked into the band room on his second day of sixth grade, he nervously strode past a few girls that were giggling and glancing around them. They were putting together their clarinets as they gossiped and Grant stared at the old carpet on the ground as he ambled past them. He continued traveling up the wide stairs that lead to the back of the room, where his chair for class and his instrument were.

At the doorway of the woodwind room (which was where the stairs started) Grant started to sprint up towards the low brass room, but he collided with someone very petite and fell backwards, landing on his behind hard. He felt his face burn as he gathered his books up from the ground, too shy to say sorry or look at the person he'd bumped into. Just as he stood up a hand clamped around his forearm.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay? I didn't even see you," it was a girl's voice, and she sounded sincere. Grant glanced up into the hazel eyes of a petite girl with short dark hair and a worried crease on her forehead as she looked at him. His heart skipped a few beats and he felt more tongue-tied than usual. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it was my fault." He uttered. The girl didn't let go of his arm though, and she gave him a small smile. Suddenly he felt very warm and was able to take in everything about her. She was wearing dark wash jeans that hugged her hips and thighs and were tucked into fuzzy grey boots. She had a yellow sweater on over a white tank top. She had a slim face with cheekbones that stood out proudly and full lips stretched over blue braces. She was very pretty.

"I'm Ashley Way," she introduced herself, smiling, as she clutched her flute case to her chest. Her voice was melodic, just like her playing in class. Grant had heard in the hallway that she was a singer and had been the star of her fifth grade play, a pretty big accomplishment. "You play the tuba, right?"

"Yeah, I'm Grant," he grinned sheepishly at her, glancing back down at the floor. He was embarrassed about running into her but he liked the attention that she was showing him.

"Well, it was nice meeting you Grant. I should probably go sit down or Mr. Horton will get mad. I'll see you in the hallway," Ashley smiled at him again and moved down to her chair, immediately being engulfed into a conversation with three male saxophone players who all looked like they had a crush on her. In a daze Grant went to go get his tuba and warm up for class, all the while thinking about the warm smiles that Ashley had thrown at him and how she'd asked if he was okay like she really cared. Maybe he'd try to get know her over the year.

XXX

Grant picked Ashley up and threw her over his shoulder as he paraded into the band room at their high school, earning reproachful glares from girls that had crushes on him and guys that liked Ashley and laughs from their friends. Ashley squeaked and hit Grant's back to try and get him to put her down, but he was strong and refused to let her feet touch to ground. Their conductor shook her head and continued looking over her music with a faint smile.

"Let me down!" Ashley laughed, holding on to Grant's waist tightly.

"Should I let her down?" he asked the row of trumpets, all of whom were boys that liked Ashley (almost every guy in the school liked her). They all shook their heads with large grins.

"No, I've got a great view of her ass." One jeered, making the others laugh. A clarinet player that was a good friend of Ashley's gave them a disapproving look before turning back and flicking through her music.

"Seriously Grant, all the blood is rushing to my head!" Ashley shouted, hitting his muscular back again. He chuckled and quickly went into the woodwind instrument room, setting her down next to a rack full of cases. She shook her head and blinked a few times, her red face making him grin. When she regained her senses, Ashley pushed him and crossed her arms over her chest, mocking anger.

She lowered her eyebrows at him. "Why'd you feel the need to do that?"

"Why not?"

"Grant Taylor, one of these days I'm going to actually get mad at you and stop being your friend,"

"You couldn't do that," Grant murmured as their band teacher whistled for everyone to take their seats. Ashley turned and stood on her tip-toes, trying to get her flute case, but she found that she couldn't reach it because it was on the highest part of the rack-one of her friend's doing, she guessed. Grant stretched around her and grabbed it, holding it over her head.

"And why's that?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow competitively and smirking. He was one of the only people that brought out the wicked side of Ashley, the side that would tackle you and offer things that made most guys' heads spin with ideas to get her way. But Grant had known her too long and knew her too well to be tricked.

"Because you love me," he said simply. Leaning down and kissing her cheek, Grant zipped out of the woodwind room and sprinted up to his instrument room, leaving Ashley blushing and smiling. She shook her head and walked out to take her spot as first chair flute. Somehow he always got his way by flashing his adorable dimples and staring at her with his light green eyes that twinkled pleasantly. Grant would wriggle his button nose and give Ashley a crooked grin that complimented his hard jawline that made girls swoon.

She and Grant had been best friends since sixth grade when he ran into her and caused her to break her flute from falling on it. Now, as sixteen year olds, they were the favorite to become a couple and they were practically inseparable. When making their schedules for the school year they'd worked it so that they had every class but one together (Grant refused to take chorus with Ashley) and they'd gotten lucky enough to get lockers beside each other.

Ashley was still the nicest girl in the school and the one that everyone went to for cheering up. Her hair had grown out and now cascaded over her shoulders and to the middle of her back. Her hazel eyes were still the same and she'd gotten her braces off in seventh grade, and both of those features still made Grant's heart skip a beat when he saw her. He had grown out of his awkward phase and was what most girls in their little town called a 'bad-boy', but in reality he was straight A student that had never gotten a detention. He had a very athletic build from being on the wrestling team and the archery team and caught many of the girls' eyes with his handsome face and easy way.

Grant had gotten his driver's license over the summer and drove Ashley to school every morning, making people spread rumors about their relationship. In the small town that they lived in it was impossible to be friends with anyone of the opposite gender without speculation about what you really did when you hung out, but Ashley and Grant were only friends. Grant was teaching Ashley how to accurately use a bow for target shooting (she refused to hunt) and they both loved to hike. When they were together neither of them felt like they had to hide anything.

They sometimes acted like they were dating-like Grant kissing Ashley on the cheek-but neither of them considered that the other could have any feelings for them. They'd both had dreams or fantasies about the other but had brushed them off, thinking that they would ruin their amazing friendship if they dated. They went to the school dances together so that they'd always have a date, but neither Grant nor Ashley considered it a real date.

As Ashley held her flute up to her mouth and sounded the first note that their conductor had asked for, she turned around to glance at Grant quickly. He had his eyes trained on his music but saw her swinging curls and glanced up, winking at her as he played. She grinned, causing her note to be thrown into a higher octave, and turned back around to read her music.

XXX

"How's your brother been feeling?" Grant asked as he kept his eyes trained on the road ahead of him. Ashley shrugged, staring at her phone, and bit her lip.

"Not well, my mom just sent me a text that he's got another really high temperature. He hasn't been able to go back college for about a week because he feels so bad…I don't know what's going on but I'm worried about him."

"He'll be alright," Grant reassured her, scooping her small hand up in his large one and holding it tightly. "The doctors have checked him out, right?"

"Yeah, and they've got no idea what's going on." She sighed and pushed her hair out of her face as she rubbed her eyes tiredly. "I've got him to worry about and Ralph hasn't been feeling any better either, Janet is still as depressed as ever, Kelly hasn't gotten over her break up, Hanley is-"

Grant interrupted her. "You need to stop worrying about everyone, Ash. It's gonna kill you,"

"But they all came to me for help," she explained, leaning against Grant's arm and closing her eyes.

"They'll be alright without your help-you're overwhelmed. Can I come in and say hi to your brother?"

"He looks terrible; it'd just kill your spirit to see him. How about we go to the beach real quick?"

They lived in North Carolina and, because it was December, the beaches were usually deserted. Ashley and Grant were both wearing warm jackets and long pants so they'd be comfortable enough in the cold. Their houses were three miles from the beach so they could go there and walk around and get home before it got dark and their parents started to worry. Grant nodded and altered his route from their neighborhood towards the icy beach that he and Ashley went to for unwinding and quality time.

The drive was a dull one: large houses that all looked the same with a huge expanse of yard leading out towards the road. The sky was grey and ominous, with dark swirling clouds that looked full of rain. No one was outside of their house, which was unusual because kids usually flocked to the farms to run around and play. Ashley hummed a tune that went with the newest song she was learning in chorus absentmindedly under her breath as Grant drove. Silence stretched between the two, but it was comfortable. They didn't need to talk to get each other.

Grant pulled into the vacant parking lot of an abandoned restaurant that was near the shore of the ocean and climbed out of his car, going around quickly and opening Ashley's door for her. Her worried expression evaporated and she tucked her phone into the pocket of her The North Face jacket, deciding not to worry about anyone for the time she would be able to share with Grant in seclusion.

Cold salty spray and harsh wind beat the two as they strolled on the sand and chatted about school and what home was like. Grant hadn't been able to see Ashley's brother for three weeks, the time that he'd come home sick, and he missed him; they were good friends because Grant was at Ashley's house so much. The two went to the beach to get away from everything, and every walk they shared was a special time to bond. Grant and Ashley loved going to the beach together.

"Someone told me that I should audition for one of those singing shows today," Ashley blurted out. She blushed and grinned, looking out to the choppy waves of the ocean and laughed lightly to herself. Grant stopped walking and stood beside her. "It's that ridiculous?"

"Have you heard yourself sing?! That's not ridiculous at all-I think you'd win one!" he told her enthusiastically.

"You're supposed to think that, you're my best friend. Think about it realistically. I don't think my parents would approve of me parading around a stage in a miniskirt and singing about sex every week."

Grant tried to get the picture of Ashley in a miniskirt out of his head before he started talking, but it was like the image was burned into his brain. It wasn't bad at all, either. "Well you could be one of those really nun-like stars that only wears turtle necks and full length skirts and sings about Jesus and God and holy stuff," he joked, sitting down in the damp sand and pulling Ashley with him. "I bet your parents would be okay with whatever you had to do in order to get a record deal."

"I don't think so…" she shrugged and brought her tiny hands up to her lips, blowing into them to try and stay warm. Grant watched her, his eyes on her long eyelashes that many girls were envious of; they were natural, too. He remembered in sixth grade how she hadn't worn any makeup and still looked gorgeous and now, in eleventh grade, how she only wore mascara, eyeliner, and foundation. He'd seen her without any makeup and thought she still looked great, but Ashley refused to go to school without makeup on. She glanced up at him as he wrapped his arm around her.

"Remember the first day we met?" he asked, staring at the horizon dreamily. Ashley grinned.

"I remember that you broke my flute and I had to lie to my parents and tell them that I did it so you wouldn't have to pay for it."

Grant chuckled. "I'd forgotten that I actually broke it! I thought I just cracked the case,"

"I cracked the case from landing on it," she reminded him. "You just caused me to fall on it."

"Right, you can't forget the details," he laughed and checked his phone for the time, sighing. Ashley's parents had set a very strict curfew that she had to be home by six every day after school because they knew Grant drove her home and they didn't trust him entirely. Both of her parents were strict Christians and thought that Grant would corrupt their daughter. He slowly got to his feet and pulled Ashley up, but she didn't want to move or walk all the way back to Grant's car.

"Come on, I'm tired!" she whined. "Carry me?"

Grant rolled his eyes and turned around, bending his knees so that Ashley would be able to get on his back. "Hop on."

"Aw thank you," she said as she happily jumped on his back and put her arms around his neck and her legs around his torso. Grant's hands held her thighs firmly, occasionally squeezing them to make Ashley squirm and playfully smack the back of his head. Her chin rested on his large shoulder and she leaned her head against his, closing her eyes and breathing deeply. He could tell that she was drained from having to help people at school and her brother at home, so Grant made no attempt at conversation.

Lately Ashley had been subdued, and everyone guessed it was because of her brother. She didn't know what sadness was like, because she'd always been so merry, her worst days were usually someone else's best. But she hadn't been feeling well lately and everyone could tell from the way she was dressing (sweatpants and t-shirts most days).

"I'm cold," Ashley complained as she buckled her seatbelt and watched Grant put the keys in the ignition. He grinned and turned up the heat, also pulling off his jacket and throwing it over her so her arms and legs were covered. Ashley was so small that it was more of a blanket on her. "Well now you're going to be cold."

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," he told her as he turned on the radio. Grant knew the only station that Ashley liked and he turned it on for her. She smiled at him and closed her eyes, swaying to the Broadway music that flowed from the speakers in the car. "This is from Wicked, right?"

Ashley nodded and hooked her arm around Grant's. "Yeah. That play is phenomenal; I'll take you to see it one day,"

"You know I can't sit through plays," he groaned. Grant had ADHD, so even sitting through a half-hour lecture was torture to him. Usual during class he'd try and talk to Ashley while she took notes, but she'd told him to stop doing that long ago. Grant had taken up sketching people when he found that he could no longer pay attention to the teacher because it kept his hands and his brain busy. His notebook was full of Ashley's face, her back, her silhouette, and every little scene he remembered from when they were younger. He was actually quite good at drawing her.

"Oh, even you would like it!" Ashley laughed and looked outside of her window, assessing the houses in hers and Grant's neighborhood. Most of them looked the same: large brick homes that were at least two stories high and had grand glass storm doors. The yards were all perfectly manicured and had small trees and beds of flowers adorning them. Everything was perfectly in order and predictable.

Except for now.

Grant turned down Ashley's street and was assaulted with the sight of police cars and ambulances crowded in her driveway and on the road before her house. Both of them were struck silent, Grant not moving the car an inch and Ashley unable to speak. His heart hammered against his chest as he stared at the scene and Grant felt the blood rush from his face. Ashley's face got deathly pale, then, with a strangled gasp, Ashley threw herself out of the car and sprinted down the road toward her house.

Police officers caught her and held her back from going into her home. She struggled and screamed, fighting and punching them with an agonized expression on her face. She was terrified. Medics in stark white uniforms rushed out of the house and Grant ran to meet Ashley. Emergency workers were frantically yelling out orders, scrambling through doors and carrying supplies. Grant pushed past a few by-standers, the sirens of the police cars and ambulances wailing and making him wince, and pushed with Ashley at the police officers holding them back.

"That's my house!" Ashley shouted as she pushed and kicked, her body quaking in fear. Seeing her so terrified made anger and fear flow through his veins, and Grant caught one police man's arm.

"What's going on?!"

"You two need to leave-this house is being quarantined. Go!" he tried to shove them back and out of the group of officials, but Ashley's adrenaline made her much, much stronger than she was, because she was able to break the ranks and run up her yard, towards the door. Before she was able to reach it, though, it burst open. Her mother stumbled out, followed by a stream of medics. Her mother's dark brown hair was matted and stringy and looked like most of it out of her skull. Her mouth was gaping and her skin looked yellow and sickly. Ashley ran towards her and tried to reach for her hands, but a young police officer shoved her backwards and made her fall on the grass.

"It's the thing they told us about!" he shouted back, terror clear in his voice. He pulled his pistol out and aimed it at Ashley's mother's head. "The disease, it got them!"

Grant drove through the gaping hole that Ashley had created and tackled the man with the gun, kicking it out of his hands. Why was he pointing it at Ashley's mom? What was going on? Had she done something wrong? "What the hell are you doing?!"

"Get outta the way, kid," the man grunted, swiping his gun from the ground and pointing it at Ashley's mom again. She growled at him, and Grant and Ashley were taken aback. Her eyes were white and sightless and her mouth emitted deep, primal snarls. Ashley howled in agony when she saw that her mom's leg had a wide, bleeding hole in it.

"NO!" she shrieked, seeing the officer point his gun at her mother's head. The woman that had always been so strict and so sweet and understanding at the same time turned towards her daughter when she ran over to her. Ashley held her mother's forearms and tried talking to her desperately. "Mom, stop! Where's Jake? Where's dad? What's going on? Mom what're you doing?!"

She fought against Ashley's hold on her, her mouth wide and teeth barred as she tried to get closer to Ashley's skin. Grant watched, petrified, and was pushed on the ground by another police officer. "How do we kill the damn thing?!"

"MOM!" Ashley pleaded as she held her back, struggling against her strength. Ashley's mom snapped her mouth at her and tried to clamp her mouth on her skin. "Mom stop they're going to hurt you!"

Grant's senses finally kicked in and he leapt up from his landing place on the ground and grabbed Ashley, pulling her away from her mother. He could see that she was acting too strange for something to be done by Ashley's screams and the police officers all had their guns drawn. Why they refused to shoot, he had no idea, but he held his writhing and crying friend back, his strong frame planted firmly on the ground with his muscular arms wrapped around her quivering frame. Ashley tried to fight, but Grant refused to let her move.

A swarm of men and women in white uniforms with masks over their faces poured out of her house, screaming orders and pushing through crowds of emergency workers. In the doorway two figures appeared, walking slowly with their faces covered in shadow. One of them was very thin and the other had a large belly, and both of them had a lighter brown hair. They were balding and their skin was marbled, but Ashley recognized them and her face paled and she shook with renewed sobs, knowing exactly who the two were.

"JAKE! DAD! P-PLEASE, STOP, THEY'RE GONNA SHOOT YOU! STOP WALKING!"

A flurry of gunshots broke through the air and Grant's heart seemed to stop. He couldn't breathe, couldn't register what was going on around him. Glass broke. Sirens and people screamed. Wood from the door flew through the air and dug itself into people's skin. Ashley's mother, Jake (her brother), and her dad all fell with bullet holes checkering their bodies. It was all chaos.

Ashley fell to her knees, crying and screaming in agony. Grant stared at the still body of Jake, not believing he was dead. What was wrong with him? Why did the police shoot him? Ashley was sobbing hard, her hands over her mouth as she stared at the remains of her family lying on the perfectly kept grass her father had taken so much pride in. A pool of blood surrounded the three bodies.

In desperation, Ashley heaved herself up and stumbled over to Jake's body. She clasped her hands around his, shaking them. People yelled for her to move, but she was numb to everything around her.

"Jake," she whispered, weeping. "Jake…"

Grant was dazed from what he'd experienced in such a short amount of time and he didn't realize what was happening before it did. Jake's head snapped up and he grabbed Ashley's foot, yanking it towards him with his mouth agape and ready to smash down on her skin. He growled and she shrieked, trying to get away from him.

"Move the girl!"

The command seemed to snap Grant out of his revere. He sprinted to Ashley and grabbed her arms, pulling her hard away from Jake. He started to crawl towards them, his damaged body somehow still working and letting him move. Ashley didn't know what to do, she stared at her brother in disbelief and Grant had to jerk her backwards so that Jake couldn't get to her. He didn't know what was going on, but Jake's eyes were so cold, so emotionless, that he couldn't be in his right mind. Ashley screamed for him and tried to get to him, but Grant held her tight, staring blankly at her brother. Everything went silent for a moment.

Then one last shot was fired past Ashley and Grant, and it went straight into Jake's brain.