Amazed at the response for the first chapter. Had me smiling from ear to ear. I hope you guys stay interested in this story as it progresses. I promise this IS a Spashley story so no worries on that. Hope you enjoy this chapter. Review and let me know your thoughts, predictions, hopes... :)
"We're here." My dad shakes Glen and I from our sleep.
"Hmm?" I mumble out, not wanting to open my eyes. I feel like we've been in this car forever but I've grown to love this car. For more reasons than one.
"We're here." He says again. Glen and I sit up and stretch out a bit as we take in the place we're to call home for the next...however many days, weeks, months, years it takes for the government to figure out a way to stop the X virus.
"Where are we?" Glen asks.
"Las Vegas." My dad says, getting out of the car and the rest of us follow suit.
"Will they have room for us here?" I ask quietly as I stare head at the thousands of people getting out of their cars, hoping to find safety within the walls of the MGM Grand hotel that has secured by the army for quarantine.
"I've always wanted to come to Vegas and stay here." Glen bends down and whispers to me with a smile. "Guess I get my wish now huh?" He bumps shoulders with me and I chuckle as my family and I make our way up the stairs into the hotel.
"I need to check your temperature." The soldier standing at the front gate tells a man in front of us. He is with a woman and two small children. I'm assuming his wife and kids.
"I'm fine." The man maneuvers away from the soldier holding the thermometer. The other soldier raises his gun and tells the man that they only way he can get in is if they check his temperature.
The man refuses again.
"Daddy!" The little girl, who looks to be about two, pulls at his leg.
"One second honey." He looks down and tells her.
"Jeff please." His wife begs him. Why is she begging him?
"Check my wife and children in please." The man says and pushes his family in front of him. The soldier checks and clears them and another one escorts them in.
"Are you infected?" The soldier with the gun asks the man. I can see the sweat dripping off the mans forehead and how labored his breathing is. When the man doesn't speak the soldier asks him again. "Are you infected?" He asks louder. The man takes a step back. My father immediately pushes us backwards and I almost fall down the stairs. It's like he knew what was about to happen.
"Dad?" I question him. He places a protective hand around us as one soldier rolls the thermometer across the mans forehead and gives the other soldier with the gun a head nod.
The man fell less than a foot in front of me. Blood oozing from a small hole that is where is temple once was. I'm sure parts of it are splattered on the concrete steps. I shut my eyes tightly and imagine the man's family that just went inside, how those children won't get to ever see their father again. How he won't get to watch them grow up.
"It's okay." Glen tells me rubbing both my arms, up and down. I can feel my breathing starting to pick up and I know an episode is coming. "Just stay calm, Spence." Glen whispers to me.
"That man." I say, not daring to open my eyes.
"I know." He says as he continues to rub my arms. "He was sick though Spence, he was gonna die anyways." Glen says and I know he's right. No one has survived the virus. Not yet anyways.
"They shot him in the head." I breathe out.
"It's the only way to insure he doesn't come back." Glen says in a soft voice.
"Next!" I hear the soldier say.
"Come on." Glen says, wrapping his arms around me. "Everything is gonna be fine." I finally open my eyes and look back at the man who'd just been shot. Two soldiers in body suits were carrying him around the side of the hotel. After we were checked and cleared the soldiers explained how everything worked including; food rationing, meal time, water and power usage and how long we were allowed to stay here.
One bag of corn per family and ten canned goods. My mother talked about how lucky she was to have a pantry stocked full of can goods. We'd brought most of them with us so food wouldn't be a problem.
Meal time is when everyone gathers together for hot meals. It only happens once a week and the food rationing is even tighter. But, it's better than eating corn from a bag and food from a can.
Everyone was allowed three one minute showers per week. They would be timed and there is a guard stationed outside of each bathroom. The building is running on generators and had its own back up water supply. With this many people I doubt it'll last long.
Which is why each family is only allowed to stay for two weeks. Then we must move along.
As we carried our bags from the car, I turned to look out a window and saw the men in body suits burning the people.
"Don't look." Glen says quickly, covering my eyes so I couldn't see.
"Glen." I say, almost in tears.
"I know, baby sis." He says, taking my bag and throwing it over his shoulder as we ascend the stairs to the fourteenth floor to go to our room.
–
"There just isn't enough food anymore to ration it the way we have been." Carmen says. " We need to be smarter, we're running through our supplies quicker than we can replenish them."
"What do you suppose we do?" Tim asks. Tim has become somewhat the leader of our group. No one elected him or anything but he is the fastest, strongest, and smartest one so it kind of just happened.
Glen and I met him, his wife and son first. They were happy to take us in. Not that Glen and I weren't doing well on our own.
But it get's lonely after a while, we were happy to see other people.
"Hey." Tim's son Francisco comes and sits next to me.
"Hey." I smile down at the boy.
"I think we need to go and scavenge or we need to ration the portions better. I think the children should receive the bigger portions and us adults should make do with much smaller portions." Carmen suggests.
"That makes no sense." Rick pipes up. I look down and Francisco, then over to Jessica. They are so young. I hate what this world has become, because this is their childhood. Moving from place to place, all the killing and hunger. It's not right. "The children aren't the one's having to protect us. They aren't out getting fire wood and looking for water." Rick says.
"So what do you suppose, we starve Francisco, Jess, Spencer and Glen?" Jo asks.
Wait what?
I am not a child.
"I'm fine with smaller portions." I speak up.
"Me too." Glen says.
"It shouldn't have to be that way." Jo says.
"I think that it's late and we should all just get some rest. We are not going to get anything settled by arguing." Santana, Ricks wife speaks up.
"I'm up for a scavenge." I say. I'm not really in the mood to sleep.
"Me too." Glen says, standing up with me.
"Okay. We'll go scavenge." Tim says and he and Carmen get up as well.
"We'll be back soon." Carmen says as she kisses her girlfriend and daughter. Tim does the same with his wife and son.
"If we're not back by sunrise you all need to go on without us. It's too dangerous to stay here." Tim says and Rick nods.
"Tim I won't"
"No." Tim cuts off his wife. "If we're not back you go with the group you here me?" He says firmly and she nods and then wraps her arms around his neck.
"I love you daddy." Francisco tells his father.
"I love you too, kiddo." Tim kisses his son on his forehead again before we all gear up to go scavenge.