Hey, sorry this next chapter has taken a while – I've been on holiday but I'm back now :)
Also, this is a long one so bear with me.. Been trying to work out exactly where I'm going to take this story but so far it's evading me so I'm just going with it.
Thanks to the reviewers, my writings a bit rusty but you guys seem to like it so hopefully this chapter follows suite..
Ray glanced wearily at the door, the knocking had jolted him out of the depressive stupor in which he had been sitting for the last hour. He made no move to answer. Slumped in the corner of the room he returned his head to his hands.
He could hear Mariam and Tala's muffled arguing outside, Tala attempting to calm her down again. He tried to be concerned about this but his brain just kept short-circuiting – going back to Mariah every time. He looked up at the bed where she lay, unmoving.
She hadn't reacted when Mariam had banged on the door, hadn't even flinched.
He bit his lip unhappily, staring at the floor. What was he meant to do? He had tried everything to get her to speak to him, at first he had been furious, demanding answers, but when this just caused her to cry even harder – almost hyperventilating, his rage had turned to concern.
Gently he had taken her in his arms, holding her close. He had tried reassuring her, wiping away her tears, but there had been no response. She wept freely, sluggish in his arms, allowing him to dress a deep cut on her hand but not speaking to him – refusing to even look at him. The tears were still coming even now – her small frame shuddering as she tried to contain herself.
He had never seen her like this before, it was so strange for her to remain quiet, compliant. Usually if he was angry with her there was no way in hell she would hold her tongue, even if she had clearly been in the wrong she would have something to say back to him.. But not this time. It was almost like something had broken inside of her.
He had known her his whole life, loved her his whole life and although they had never officially been an item it had always been there between them. In times of need they always had each other to turn to, emotionally and physically.
Mariam knocked again, louder this time and he struggled to clear his mind of the fog enveloping it. He knew she was seriously pissed with Mariah and this worried him, he'd never heard her this worked up before, especially over Mariah. The two were pretty close.
It wasn't that he didn't see where Mariam was coming from, he was pretty sure everybody would have something to say to her and with good reason. Ray himself still had a hell of a lot he needed to say – had even said most of it to her already, but when you didn't get a reaction what's the point?
Despite everything, he couldn't help but feel deeply worried, it sat in the pit of his stomach weighing him down like a stone. All of her recent actions had been so out of character, she could be impulsive and headstrong yes, but she was sweet and big hearted, never this reckless. It seemed like she didn't care any more, about her life or any one else's, why else would she have just gone off like that on her own, blatantly disregarding everyone else's opinions.
He could have forgiven her, if it weren't for Michael. His chest tightened painfully as he thought of him suffering in the nearby room.
If she had only listened to them – to him, none of this would have happened. Why hadn't she listened? Was she that far gone that even he couldn't get through to her any more?
He shook his head disgustedly, he had been sitting there far too long, moping like an idiot. He really wasn't doing anything to help the situation other than making himself feel pathetic. Besides, maybe Kai was back by now.. He knew seeing Kai would give him strength, it always did.
He got up, running a tired hand over his face to clear away the remnants of tears and opened the door to an indignant Mariam – Tala standing close behind looking apologetic.
"What's happening?" Mariam hissed angrily. "It's been hours!" Ray closed the door firmly behind him. He registered Kai's absence and steeled himself to speak. It was an effort.
"I.. I think we need to just leave her alone for now guys. She won't speak to me, won't even look at me.." He paused, exhaustion showing in his face. "She hasn't stopped crying since we got back."
"Good! She should be feeling like crap after what she's put us through!" Mariam snapped, crossing her arms across her chest hotly. "And I really don't care how upset she is, I want to talk to her."
"Please.. Mariam," Ray put a gentle hand on her shoulder, imploring her. "I know she messed up big time, but I think she knows that too which is why she's in this state.. She's got a hell of lot to answer for, but now isn't the time. Enough has happened today, let's just focus on what we can do to help Mike. Please?" His voice trembled slightly towards the end of his sentence.
Mariam's eyes softened as she allowed herself to take in Ray's appearance. His long hair was dishevelled and loose, massive haunted eyes staring out from above bags so dark they looked bruised. She hadn't seen Ray this fragile or vulnerable in a long time. Squashing the urge to hug him she gave a curt nod instead, stepping back.
"Look Ray, I'll leave it, but sooner or later she's gonna need to come out here and explain herself.. So don't worry, she's safe – for now." She replied in a more jokey tone, offering him a conciliatory grin.
Ray flashed her a tiny, pained smile, joining Johnny at the table.
Johnny regarded him in uncomfortable silence, it felt strange for him not to be that involved in the arguments that were going on at the moment. Usually he was right in the thick of it - his mum always said he never knew when to keep his mouth shut, but this was different. This was shit he didn't know about and didn't want to touch with a barge pole.
Talking of things he knew nothing about, he had no idea how to comfort Ray. He looked around frantically, eyes catching on an unopened can of coke on the side, darting to get it he offered it to Ray with an expression of what he hoped was sympathy on his face.
Ray looked at it blankly for a few seconds. "You could probably do with the sugar boost man.." Johnny ventured hopefully. Sighing, Ray nodded slowly and took the can.
"Thanks Johnny, you're right. I.. I don't remember the last time I ate or drank anything.." Relieved Johnny sat back, sympathy clearly wasn't his forte but this time he had done OK, maybe it wasn't so hard after all. He gave Ray a tentative pat on the back.
Mariam and Tala joined them at the table where they remained sitting in heavy silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own gloomy thoughts. The candle on the table sputtered and went out, plunging the room into near darkness. No one made any move to light a new one.
Never one to stay silent for too long, Johnny drummed his fingers on the table. "What a shit day. Jeez.. Been a long time since we had a fight like that, with that many infected as well." Johnny's words didn't inspire any further conversation from the others. "Where's Brook anyway? I haven't seen him since Kai left."
"He's sleeping. I think sewing Mike up took a lot out of him." Tala replied looking troubled. Brooklyn had been pretty hard on himself when Michael's condition had worsened despite his best efforts. As the only one in the group with any sort of medicinal knowledge he had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders, Tala thought he was very adept, having been patched up by him a good few times after certain nasty confrontations with the infected.
The four of them remained sitting in silence again, all too frazzled to try and speak. They were still sitting there like this when Kai returned about ten minutes later.
"Hey." Kai bolted the door behind him. "Where's Brooklyn?" He moved towards Michaels room. "Someone get him please."
The journey home had been more difficult than he had expected. He had been careless. He was spotted and chased by three of the infected as he neared the fire station, and he had had to sprint - leading them away and doubling back around the block into one of the old four tiered car parks. He had managed to get to the roof where he locked the door, trapping them inside – from there it had been easy, free running across the rooftops, just how he liked it.
He felt drained and impatient, the day had been gruelling. What he really wanted to do was go straight to his room and sleep, he couldn't really face being around other people. Studying the others, he saw how he felt written all over their faces, he would have to make the effort this time. He took off his bag and leaned tiredly against the wall, watching as Mariam rapped on Brooklyn's door, he resisted the urge to slump to the floor.
A few seconds later Brooklyn emerged, eyes puffy with sleep. He ran a hand through his hair, eyes meeting Kai's.
"What did you find?"
"Penicillin – it's old but it should still work. Bandages and gauze, some painkillers, also what I think may be Valium but you'll need to check them." Kai handed his bag to Brooklyn. "I'm going to bed." He started towards his room.
"Thanks Kai, seriously.. I'm not sure I could have gone out there in this state, I would have just been a liability." Ray said, looking at him gratefully. Kai turned to him giving a thin lipped smile in return, then nodded and went into his room before he could change his mind. If only they knew. There wasn't any point in telling them what had happened. Unnecessary drama, the infected hadn't managed to follow him here ultimately.
He shut the door and sank down onto the mattress, his vision swimming. Kicking off his boots he gingerly felt his ankle, it was swollen, somehow he had landed on it badly earlier. He was getting sloppy.
He could sense that Ray had wanted to talk – his face hopeful and needy, but Kai just didn't have enough strength for both of them right now. He lay back on the bed, sleep embracing him within seconds.
Outside Brooklyn was heading into Michael's room, grimly beckoning Tala to come with. "He's got what we need, we can only hope it's not too late."
XXX
Kai awoke a few hours later, groggily managing to wrench himself out of bed. God he wished he could have a cup of coffee.. It was one of the things he felt he missed the most about civilisation. He stretched and sat on the edge of his bed, contemplating his options.
It was unlikely that the infected would have been able to follow him back here, but he couldn't help feeling tense. Their sense of smell could be dangerously accurate.. If one of them had returned to where they had discovered him and followed the scent their home could be in trouble.
The infected were particularly sensitive following feeding on humans, their senses heightened – sight, smell, hearing and even strength. He thought back to the ones that had chased him.
One had been limping, dragging her torn, broken leg behind her. She had been weak, lagging behind the others. Not a threat. The other two he was not so sure about.
The one who had spotted him had given chase doggedly and immediately, one side of his face ripped away, a massive strip of skin flapping as he ran. His blood stained teeth showed through the side of his face – broken, ragged and grinding furiously. The blood was red. Human blood.
The last one had been a policeman in previous life, still wearing a ragged vest peppered in bullet holes from other survivors failed attempts to bring him down. He too had given chase with terrifying speed, but luckily Kai was smarter and faster than either of them.
He had obviously considered shooting them, but the noise of his handgun would have bought more upon him – plus he was too close to home. Drawn by noise, the infected were attracted to explosions and gun shots like moths to a flame. He had had to run.
He wondered if the two faster ones had fed recently, it certainly seemed like it. This left him with two difficult questions – who had the fed on? And would they have fed recently enough to have been able to track him..? He didn't want to think about either. If they had followed him he would know by now.
The old fire station was impenetrable to a point. The lower level consisted of a cavernous garage which was usefully secured by a heavy duty metal door which could be opened if necessary. Other than that the only other entry point into the building was a small back door, hidden away around the side. With only one window on the bottom floor – which they had boarded up long ago – the ground floor was safe.
The second floor they used for storage, and the top floor they used for eating and sleeping. The top floor was secured by a massive metal bolted door which lead to the stairwell, but if one was feeling adventurous they could always slide down the old fireman's pole which lead to the ground floor..
If the infected had found them they would hear the noise of them trying to get in pretty clearly. Kai hoped they were safe. He wouldn't tell the others straight away. They would only work themselves up about it.
Bracing himself, he left the safety of his room to find out what drama happened whilst he'd been gone. Maybe Mariah would have emerged, the silly airhead, hopefully not. He couldn't be bothered to deal with that shit right now, his head felt full of cotton wool and he was sure her voice could painfully penetrate it.
The main room was empty, all the doors shut.
Frowning he cocked his head, listening for sounds. He looked at his watch, 3am.. Surely they weren't all asleep? Suddenly sounds of laughter came from the room closest to his – Michaels room.
Allowing himself a glimmer of hope, but not quite daring to fully believe it, he stood outside the door listening to the snatches of conversation filtering through.
"Ha! I thought Mariam was going to hit me! I've never seen her face go that red, scary shit man.. Hey Tala is she on her.. OW!"
"Johnny, seriously just don't push it. It's not funny. One day I will hit you where it hurts.." Kai chuckled softly, Johnny always knew how to get under Mariam's skin. "Tala don't laugh!" A soft thud sounded followed by more laughter. Kai guessed she had shoved her boyfriend over. As the next voice came Kai was filled with relief. Michael.
"Well, I guess nothings changed in the last day then.. You guys are still immature.." His voice was weak but humorous, but as he tried to laugh he started coughing lightly instead.
"Do you want us to leave you to rest again?" Brooklyn's anxious voice cut in.
"Nah its fine Brook, thank you again for sorting me out.. There were a few times when I thought I wasn't gonna make it, should have known you'd be able to heal me with those magic hands.." Kai couldn't help grinning, even in the face of death Michael had remained positive and good natured.
The Infection had taken its toll on all of them in different ways, but surprisingly Michael had emerged as changed for the better. The ego had dissipated and he had turned out to be an extremely genuine and kind person, even Kai had found it hard to dislike him.
"Where's Kai?" Michael continued. "I should thank him as well for risking his ass to get me the meds.."
"He went to bed as soon as he got back," Tala replied. "He looked pretty dead to the world, I'd give him another few hours to be safe."
Kai turned to leave, and found Ray standing in front of him.
"Eavesdropping at doors now are we Kai?" He raised an eyebrow playfully, but stepped back so Kai could pass.
"I don't need to go in. He's OK, that's all that matters." Kai opened his bedroom door. "You coming?"
"Sure, let me just get my dinner.. You want some?" He motioned to a can of peaches on the table. Kai shrugged.
"Sure."
Ray grinned, trust Kai to be as stony as usual even with the good news of Michael's recovery.. He grabbed another couple of cans of food and followed him into his room.
"Have you slept yet?" Kai asked without looking at him, instead lighting a few more candles. Ray settled down on the bed, using a knife to stab open one of the cans.
"Nope.. Sat up with Mariah all day, then once Mike woke up there didn't seem much point in sleeping." He inspected a shrivelled piece of fruit woefully. "Besides, I want to be awake in case she gets up."
Kai sat down on the bed and regarded the other boy reproachfully. Ray was his closest friend in the group but sometimes he felt he could a bit too nice.. To the point of causing damage to himself. He wasn't a pushover as such, but he definitely allowed people to get away with more than they should at times.
"Hn."
Ray looked up at him, amber eyes wide and concerned. "Don't be like that Kai.. She needs me. As far as I can tell everyone else could care less about how she's doing, they just want to lay into her."
"And they're right Ray. She put us all in danger."
"I know! She fucked up - she really fucked up.." Kai glanced at him curiously but he was looking down at his lap, fists clenched tightly. It was highly unusual for Ray to swear. "But I'm worried about her Kai. The night before she had that dream she was acting pretty weird with me.. She seemed really on edge and nervous. When she spoke it was almost like she wasn't quite with it – vacant.. I slept in her bed and the entire time she was just tossing and turning." He looked up at Kai again. "I don't know if any of that is relevant, but even you have to admit that running off like that was pretty out of character. Do you think something happened?"
Kai didn't look at him. Ray was rambling. He didn't want to upset him and he could tell that he was just about hanging on by a thread.
But Mariah was always a touchy subject between the two, with Kai only just tolerating her at the best of times, plus given recent events he wasn't sure that he even had an opinion on her that wasn't negative. He grunted in reply.
"But hey, Michael's alright Kai.. I mean, Brooklyn did an amazing job. Once he had the meds and the dressings in place his temperature just kept dropping, I forgot how incredible antibiotics are." He looked at Kai eagerly, hoping the change of subject would provoke a response. "It really was great of you to go get all that stuff.." He trailed off thoughtfully. "Maybe now that we all know he's OK the others will go a bit softer on Mariah."
Kai sighed. His and Ray's friendship was one they both relied on heavily to keep their sanity, but sometimes Ray's naivety irked him.
"Just because he didn't die doesn't change the fact that it happened, or that it was her fault."
Ray's face crumpled, and on seeing it Kai almost wished he could take it back, but he needed to hear it. Mariah was a soft spot Ray held that infuriated him, she was bossy and flighty – entertaining at the best of times. He didn't understand how someone as gentle and down to earth as Ray had ended up so tightly intertwined with someone so immature.. Well, he did – family history and Ray's kind nature, but it still pissed him off.
"Look Ray.. Let her fight her own battles, you don't always have to protect her, she's an adult." He reached out to take a can of food, stomach grumbling. Ray said nothing, staring at his half eaten can dully, eyes defeated.
Mentally slapping himself, Kai relented. "Fine.. If the others kick off and you really need me, I guess I can back you." Sometimes having a best friend sucked.
At once Ray's face beamed with a relieved smile, he knew Kai would come through for him he always did. Feeling as if a massive weight had been lifted he settled back happily on the bed, spooning peaches into his mouth with renewed gusto.
Thanks for reading :) next chapter up soon..
