A/N: School isn't as bad as I thought...yet, everyone keeps telling me it will get harder, I believe them. So here is chapter 3 i'm already someways into 4 so that should be coming up soon...enjoy...and I'm glad this is so far my longest chapter XP

Chapter 3- Trouble Is Spelled K.I.D.S

The pre-dawn light was cast over everything when I stepped out of the housing building. I pulled my jacket closer around me, zipping it up all the way, it was freezing outside. The cold was definitely the one thing I had not gotten used to nor taken a liking to. I walked briskly to the medical center since I had volunteered to take the morning shift of looking over the small amount of patients in the care of the army doctors. It certainly wasn't a hard job, not compared to what I'd been put through in the army, the patients didn't need much care just simple things like medications and minor bandaging changes. Plus, I enjoyed my job I had always liked helping people and, on a few occasions, animals; it brought joy to me when I could help relieve someone's physical suffering even if their mental aspect needed much more work. Often times my patients' physical wounds would heal, but they would carry the mental ones for the rest of their lives. This was the part of my job that tore me to the core. I could try as hard as my small understanding of psychology would allow to try to ease some of their mental suffering as well, in some patients I saw that it sometimes helped a little, however I knew I could never truly help most of them. I pulled my access card out of my jacket pocket and held it in front of the scanner to the side doors of the center, the light changed green and the door popped open. I hung the card around my neck by its lanyard and went inside.

Quiet, cold, and semi-darkness covered the medical center due to the lack of sun in the windows. That would soon change as the the sun was about to rise, a gray shade filled the sky before the first rays peaked over the horizon. I used to love this time of morning when even the birds were asleep and it seemed the whole world was waiting for the warmth to spread over the Earth. That was before the silence had become a whole new meaning, before the the silence had become the meaning of the end of your cover from the infected. I flipped on the lights in the center, shrouding it in florescent light that came from the long bulbs on the ceiling. I picked up a clipboard with the patients' information from the main desk and started making the normal rounds.

I was done in a little less than two hours having visited, treated and talked to all the patients. By now the sun had risen and was casting light into the center. It was an overcast day which was pretty normal these days, the sun usually didn't break through the clouds until around noon and even then there were patchy clouds. I missed the fresh, warm air of Kentucky where the sun shone brightly in the summer with only the occasional afternoon shower. On the hottest days my sister and I would go swimming in the large pond only a small trail ride on horseback from our house. There was a dock built out a quarter of the way to the center, there, I would grab up my sister and running down the dock throwing her in at the end then jumping in myself. Sometimes, we would ride up bareback and ride our horses into the water up to their backs. When we were done we would get the horses to stand fetlock-deep at the pond's edge, count down from five together, and then race all the way back to the house. Our mother would scold us about cantering in the water before throwing the horses into a gallop, which we knew did not do any harm. The both of us would laugh together as we mucked stalls for punishment, but to us it wasn't really punishment. I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing out the memory and the sneaking tears. If I thought about my life before all of this I would surely lose it and here was not a place to lose it. I focused on organizing files to keep my mind off things while I waited on the next person to take over the shift before everyone else arrived.

I had soon been relieved of my shift and was sitting in the cafeteria when I noticed something odd. A group of soldiers were leaving the safety zone and going across the river which was forbidden for citizens,period, and for personnel without direct orders. Since I had arrived I had seen no one cross the river going either way. Whatever it was that they were doing, going across, it had to be important, for them to risk infection and their lives by leaving the safety zone. I watched to soldiers until they disappeared around a deserted street corner. The rest of the day the soldiers leaving nagged at the back of my mind, giving me a constant reminder of what remained beyond the river. While no infected still lived, the last one had died over six months ago, there were still wild dogs and other ways to get the virus. The bottom line was: crossing the river was forbidden for a reason, for safety. The fact that someone could still get the virus just by sneaking out, coming up on a dog or something, and then starting the whole horrible thing over again scared me. Scarlett had told me after her meeting with base that they clearly were not afraid of it coming back. She said their go-to reflex would be to initiate Code Red which would not do a damn thing if everything got out of control. It scared me how little they cared, sure they cared a little, but they were arrogant because in their minds the virus would never happen again. Scarlett and I knew better, we knew the medical probabilities we knew that it could come back. It was a long shot, but it could. If and when the virus came back we would all be screwed.

I roamed District One for the rest of the day since I was not due to go back to work until tomorrow morning. A lot of people on their mid-day errands were walking hastily by me as I walked at a steady pace. I figured I had done a whole lot of rushing in my life and, since District One was supposed to be a fresh start, I would try to relax and enjoy it for as long as it lasted. When I was walking back to the housing building a black helicopter flew across the river to where the soldiers had gone earlier. Whatever was going on over there had to be serious now, I didn't even want to think of the possibilities. I went up to my apartment as the sun was beginning to set, there really was nothing to do in District One after hours, nothing that I normally enjoyed anyway. I picked up my book that was halfway finished. I sat down on the couch with it, staring at it for a little before jumping back in the gripping plot.

You spend your nights with your nose buried in a book and you wonder why you've never dated anyone. My friend's words and following innocent laugh rang through my head once my head strayed from the book. I checked the digital clock on the kitchen; the blue glowing numbers and letters read 8:00pm. I had been reading for a straight hour and not even noticed.

Well, I guess she was right, I thought getting up from the couch and setting the book on the table.

"Fresh start," I reminded myself.

I picked up my jacket from the back of a chair and headed out the door. I took the eighteen floors of stairs down to the ground level, flashing my I.D at the soldiers as I left the building. I headed down to the part of District One I walked by earlier today, but had never been to it before then. What was down here was the pride and joy of most of District One residents: the pub.

I had been to few pubs in my lifetime, not really enjoying the night life at all. This one was no different from the ones in Kentucky towns' that I'd been to. People chatted loudly in the dimly lit building, trying to talk over everyone else to their friends right in front of them. The smells of greasy food and varying alcohol filled the air, attacking my senses from all fronts. I went up to the bar, ordering a drink before standing awkwardly in the corner away from the crowd. Besides Scarlett and some of the army personnel I really had no friends in District One, with my job I had no time for stuff like that. I knew eventually I'd regret it, but right now my job was the most important thing. It wasn't that I was poor or anything like that, my parents had left me plenty of money, it was more the fact that I needed this to keep my mind off things. I guess that's what I was doing now; washing away my troubles. I was almost done with my second drink when I spotted a familiar face among the large crowd at the back of the pub. For the first time I noticed the guards at the doors and inside the joint, I guessed because it was after hours, as I made my way through the people to the back. I walked up to the large, dark-skinned man in a uniform.

"Flynn?" I asked when I got close enough for him to hear.

"Lily, hey, what's up? Haven't seen you since training," he said clasping hands with me.

"It's been a long time," I agreed with a smile.

I could tell he'd ha a few more drinks than I had, but we went way back, like he'd said, to training. We had hung out a lot at base then and become friends before being deployed to different areas.

"What're you here for?" he asked.

"Medical staff, trying to keep this place from becoming another hell on Earth. You still flying?"

"Yeah, still flying high, choppers."

"Oh, was that you earlier? In the fiasco across the river or whatever it was?"

"Just a few puppies that slipped the gate, we got 'em back, plus one."

"'Puppies'? That doesn't sound like you."

"Doyle named 'em to base, just a few kids."

My mind flashed back, there were only two kids in the whole country and I knew that Scarlett and I had been wrong. They had not learned the rules, apparently, as quickly as we thought. But they were kids, that was what Scarlett had tried to tell base, they would do absolutely stupid things and hopefully learn from those things. Here, however, was not the place to do stupid things and learn from them, this place was a serious danger if rules were broken.

"Doyle's here too?" I realized suddenly.

"Sure is, bored as hell," Flynn replied with a laugh.

I laughed too, if we weren't in the heat of combat Doyle would surely be bored out of his mind.

"Not shooting innocent civilians is he?"

"Not yet," Flynn replied somewhat jokingly.

"Shouldn't he be here with you?" I asked.

"No, he's got the night watch, likes scaring the hell out of me when he gets bored. Can't sleep with him walking the rooftops," Flynn said.

I considered his words for a moment before setting my empty glass on the counter. The crowd had thinned out since I had first walked in, but was still considerably large.

"I gotta get going, Flynn, but I'll see you later," I said smiling at him again before heading out.

"See you later, Lily!" he called as I exited the pub.

I returned back to my apartment just as the clock flipped to 10:00. I had actually enjoyed a night out, maybe I would start doing it more. It felt good to get out and be apart of a social climate rather than staying up here by myself every night. District One was a fresh start because two years ago that thought would have been extremely alien to me. I was glad I had seen Flynn tonight, it brought back good memories of the years I had enjoyed so long ago. The fact that Doyle was here blew my mind; the odds of he, Flynn and I being in the same country let alone the same district were slim, but here we were. I locked the apartment door and headed into my room. Tomorrow I would find Doyle, hoping Flynn wouldn't remember to tell him about me. I wanted to see his reaction because I knew it would be the same as mine.

The next morning I found Scarlett and learned just what had gone down yesterday. She told me that Tammy and Andy, Don's kids, had gone across the river to their old house. They had left the safety zone, disobeying the rules, and were now being kept in quarantine until they were checked out for any signs of the virus. The most interesting part of the story she had told me was that the army had brought back a survivor. The survivor was the kids' mother and had previously been thought to be dead during the outbreak, but had somehow managed to stay alive. She was being held at the medical center until Scarlett could personally attend to her. I was to help her check blood samples tonight at the lab while General Stone looked in on us to make sure there was no threat to the safety of the District. That afternoon, after I had finished my shift, I headed to the building adjacent to my housing building. Showing my I.D to the soldiers by the door I walked up the many flights of stairs that eventually ended at the roof. I stepped out on to the flat roof knowing full well that there were at least four snipers with their sights on me. I walked over to one of the soldiers that had his rifle aimed at the housing building across the street, looking through the scope.

"You know, stalking people is a misuse of a weapon," I stated loudly so I could be heard over the wind.

The soldier turned, smiling at me.

"Well, it gets kind of boring up here, have to find some way to entertain myself," he said.

He had dark brown hair and bright, blue-green eyes, but he didn't have to get close for me to know that.

"So I heard. You're a sergeant now?" I said more than asked, nodding to the chevron on his uniform.

"Yes. Shit, I don't have a clue what you would be," he said laughing at himself.

I smiled, handing him my I.D card from around my neck.

"'Private First Class Larrissa Caine'," he read off the card then handing it back. "Thought I'd never see that name again."

"Sergeant Doyle, didn't think I'd ever hear that name again," I said back to him.

I stood there, looking at him but not believing it. I laughed to myself, shaking my head. Seeing Doyle again was basically like seeing a ghost from my past.

"How'd you manage to get yourself into this hell hole?" Doyle asked.

"Medical team, apparently we were the best-equipped to handle the situation besides the ones that were already here. You?"

"They needed the best marksmen," he said shifting his sniper rifle at his side.

"You haven't changed," I smiled.

There we were staring at each other again, silence surrounding us. Apparently he was just as unbelieving as I was about seeing each other again. We had both been foolish at the training base many years ago, something that connected us there. Despite my words, Doyle had changed, for the better he seemed a little more responsible now and a little more...mature compared to last time.

"Hey, Doyle, who's your lady-friend?" I heard the teasing voice come over his radio.

He took the earpiece from around his head and stuffed it inside his vest.

"Ignore them," he said smiling.

"I was planning to. I heard about your 'puppies' by the way. I thought those kids wouldn't cause any trouble but I guess I was wrong," I said.

"Flynn?" Doyle asked.

"He has a big mouth when he's drunk."

"Flynn doesn't get drunk."

"Well, I guess he was a little tipsy then. I don't know if I should be telling you this, but they picked up a survivor along with the kids. It was their mother, she somehow managed to stay alive and they brought her back."

"Why are you telling me this?" Doyle asked. "Are you afraid she could have the virus? If she did they wouldn't have brought her back."

"I know, but I'm just scared that it'll start all over again, somehow."

"You shouldn't be, but if it does, I've got you covered," he said lifting up his sniper.

I smiled, "I have to meet Medical Officer Lima soon, so I have to go. If you get too bored you know where to find me."

"Thanks," Doyle said.

As I walked down the stairs to exit the building, I smiled to what seemed like nothing but the fact of Doyle having my back. I had seen him shoot like an expert for years, so him saying that made me feel safer. I knew, though, that if the virus started here again even an army of snipers couldn't stop it.

I slowly made my way to a secluded part of the district, knowing I had about thirty minutes before I should start heading to the medical center. I sat in the park-like area on a wooden bench doing nothing but sitting and enjoying the peace and quiet. The only sound I could hear was the soft birdsong coming from the trees, the sweet innocence filled my ears and my mind. The tall, green trees reached for the little sunlight that had managed to filter through the clouds. I allowed myself a giant breath of the fresh air before closing my eyes. It felt like I was back home again; that point before a big storm where the sunlight was scarce and the air became chilled. I felt free for those few moments of pure serenity where I was undisturbed by my normal troubles that clouded my mind like a smog. I let my mind flash through the nineteen years I spent with my family in our small, two-story farm house. The white, mostly-wooden house had its wide front porch with a waist high railing and always smelled of a home cooked meal or dessert. The porch swing was where I spent a lot of my nights, reading or -when I was still in high school- talking softly to one of my boyfriends. None of them had held my attention or love for long, they had all ended up doing something stupid that drove me away, all except one. One had been true to me to the end, had held me and showed me what true love felt like. Had also showed me what true loss was like. Showed me how fast a car could turn from transportation to life taker. I never got over it, so I decided to embrace loss rather than letting it rule my life. That was when I decided to join the army, therefore landing myself here. I opened my eyes the partial sunlight still making me squint as my eyes adjusted. I noticed the time and decided it was time to start walking to the medical center. I took in one last look and feel of the green spot, and turned, walking away.

A/N: Doyle finally fit into my story, thought it was about time to bring him in since obviously he's going to be a big part. :) The sooner the better in my POV. Anyway chapter 4 coming up as soon I as I can get it written. Hope you enjoyed it