Edited/Rewritten 11/10/12
XXX
For the first time in several weeks, Zoey was able to take a hot shower. Knowing that there was a number of people that were moving in behind her, she finished her business in record time; washing her hair and shaving. Thank God I don't feel like a yeti anymore. Her clothes were washed and dried and smelled so wonderfully clean – though her shirt was still something to be desired as it was still horribly stained and close to falling apart.
"Their daughter was close to your size," Rochelle told her, gesturing to the hallway where the girl's room resigned. "You can get a different shirt."
"Are you kidding?" Zoey laughed as she sat down, marveling over how different her legs felt as they rubbed against her jeans. "I can't just get rid of my apocalypse clothes – that would be like washing the magic out of that magic pair of socks, ya know?"
Rochelle chuckled, crossing her arms as she leaned back into the cushy couch. "And what happens when that shirt falls apart?"
"I run around topless."
The house they had set themselves up in was spacious single-story home, which was selected due to the overall lack of windows. Bookshelves and entertainment centers were shoved in front of any windows in the front room while beds were over turned and doors were locked to prevent unexpected visitors from gaining easy access. They had agreed to leaving most of the lights and electronics off so they could avoid attracting too much attention but when the two females saw that clean shower – and Nick spotted a perfectly good washer and dryer – they decided to bend the rules, just a little bit.
Zoey took a seat and Rochelle leaned over, nudging her arm lightly as she whispered, "I think them boys would like that a bit too much."
"Bra or bikini top then… And then I can wear Daisy Dukes, and a cowboy hat… Get some kind of sword…"
Rochelle's eyebrows quirked curiously.
"Videogame."
"Oooh."
Nick sauntered into the room moments later, his hair combed and sleeked back, his once dirtied suit clean, pressed, patched and crisp. It would seem that the conman had searched the home for an ironing board, the iron and the mother lode of starch – and it would explain where the man ran off to after he had taken his shower. Zoey whistled as the he took a seat in a recliner that was pushed against one of the barricaded windows. "Lookin' snazzy, Nick."
The conman smiled for a moment and then adjusted his collar. "Took a little longer than I expected," he said.
The three elapsed into a comfortable silence only moments before Coach was making his way from the kitchen, his shirt clean and the stubble that had been growing on his chin shaved off. He pressed his broad shoulder to the door jam and crossed his arms. "They had a few things in the freezer that are thawin'. Some bread, hot dogs-"
"Any real food?" Nick leaned forward in the chair, eyebrows raised.
"Well, there are a few steaks and some chicken, but-"
Suite started to snap his fingers, gesturing to the two women. "One of you – one of you knows how to cook right? Please tell me that one of you can cook."
Rochelle crossed her arms almost instantly, her eyebrows raising as she leaned back further into the couch. "What makes you think that we can cook?"
"You're women!" Nick said, almost bitterly.
Zoey smiled. "A woman's place is in the kitchen."
The older woman's eyes widened as she leaned from Zoey, examining her with bewilderment. Zoey froze as she noticed Rochelle's reaction, and she instantly cleared her throat. "That was a joke. Like, uh… Why did the woman cross the road?"
No answer.
"It doesn't matter – why was she out of the kitchen in the first place?"
"Giiiiirl-"
The College Student hopped to her feet, sighing. "Jokes – just jokes! All of that aside, I will take a crack at cooking them. It can't be that hard, right?"
It was then that Ellis rushed into the room, trying the arms of his jumpsuit around his waist, his shirt tossed over his shoulder. "No, no, no! I will do it, I will. We can do chicken fried steak, and gravy, and eggs!"
"Eggs might have gone bad."
There was a moment of silence as Ellis jogged towards the kitchen he vanished from view, wringing his t-shirt in his hands. A couple of seconds ticked by and then an ecstatic whoop of happiness filtered into the room. "Oh it's on!"
Rochelle slid to her feet. "He is going to make a ton of noise beating the meat-"
"Giggity."
The older woman slowly turned her head towards Zoey, eyebrows raised. Zoey snickered, raising her hands in surrender. "You totally walked into that! You could have said 'tenderizing' or-"
"… I'm gonna go help him…" She quickly left the room.
Overall, the entire neighborhood seemed empty – abandoned – and aside from the strange man everything seemed rather normal. There wasn't any cosmetic damage to any of the houses, no fires, no corpses, no crashed cars.
Nick broke the silence, "So y'think they have a map or something?"
"Doubtful," was all Coach grunted as he lowered onto the other end of the couch. "How many people actually have a map in their home? Everything is google and GPS and all that,"
Zoey got to her feet, giving her limbs a good stretch. "I bet we can find a computer, or a cell phone." She gave Coach and Nick a quick smile as she walked from the living room and into the hallway, making her way towards the girl's bedroom.
xXxX
After the meat had been tenderized – something that Rochelle had managed to do in near-silence – Ellis breaded the meat and began the cooking process, feeling rather cheery as he worked on cooking the group's meal. After days of eating nothing but junk, they were finally going have actual food! Jabbing a fork into one end of the searing meat Ellis flipped it onto its uncooked side. "So how are we making the gravy, Ell?"
"Gonna hafta do without – mama never let me in on the recipe," Ellis said as he went about preparing the next steak to hit the pan. He took a glance towards Rochelle and he gave a smile. "So you really don' know how to cook?"
"Does toast count?" The woman smiled.
"No…"
"Then I don't know how to cook!" she said it on a smile died rather quickly. "I always wanted to learn though. Actually learn. Soul food and all that, ya know?"
Ellis smiled, transferring the finished steak over to the plate and then tossing the next steak on the pan. "Oh I know," he mumbled, feeling his mouth beginning to water. "Maybe, when all of this is over, you will be able to learn. Hell, maybe I'll teach ya a thing or two!"
Rochelle offered a knowing smile as she got another plate down from the cabinet. "You know, for some ladies, man that can cook? It's a bit of a turn on."
A smile, a smile that was shy yet quite proud and vibrant, formed onto Ellis' lips as he flipped the steak. So she saw through his idea after all. Ellis' cooking abilities were what set him apart from the rest of the would-be competition. While most males stuck with, what was assumed to be, man's territory Ellis ventured into the woman's house and dominated. He could be that guy who fixed the romantic meals, the breakfast in bed and bring the food that would serve as the meal for the quite night at home. "So you want to woo Zoey through your cooking?"
"Not so loud, Ro," Ellis mumbled, giving her a meaningful glance as the next steak hit the pan. "It's worth a shot, right? I can be a man's man with the cars and all that but I could be the lady's man too. So long as she don't ask me to get a minivan, I think we will be just fine."
As he watched the steak sizzle in the pan, his mind wondered. They would be fine if they would be able to make it through all of this mess – they would be fine if she didn't run off, or get thrown from the helicopter. He frowned, closing his eyes. He didn't like the idea of being separated from her and not knowing where she was. I will make sure that it doesn't happen again.
The attachment that he felt towards her was somewhat uncalled for, but with the conditions they were surrounded by made the relationship accelerate naturally. One moment they were safe and happy and the next everyone was having near death experiences. When Rochelle's hand touched his shoulder, Ellis turned to glance her way. She was smiling softly and the expression reached her eyes. As her nails scratched at his back, and she bumped his hip with her own, she sighed.
"She'll be lucky to have you, Hillbilly."
xXxX
Zoey was quite pleased to find that the desktop in the girl's bedroom was still on, and after a couple of minutes of getting the computer to emerge from hibernation she found the page was left on Google Maps. Zoey leaned back in the computer chair and smiled up at the ceiling. "Thank you," she told no one in particular then straightened so she could study the image on the screen. The sidebar that was left up held all of the information that Zoey needed. They were in Baton Rouge, and according to the route that was left the family's destination had been North, the ending point being Arkansas. Frowning, Zoey tilted her head. There wasn't any evacuation points that way – or at least there wasn't when Bill, Louis and Francis had made their way South. The Military had made it a point to keep moving the evacuation points South and this family was headed North.
The infection did seem to get worse the further South we went, Zoey thought, tapping her fingers over the desk. It went from the Smoker, the Boomer, and the Hunter… And then there were… Things that spit acid, the charger.
Maybe the family had the right idea…
The road they took went from Baton Rouge to Lafayette Louisiana, and from there they could follow the highway North, and eventually cross over into Northern Texas – maybe into less populated areas. Of course she would have to run this idea by her companions and then there would be trying to direct Louis and Francis to where she was going. The moment of wishful thinking died instantly. Zoey closed her eyes, willing herself not to get too upset, too caught up with the day's events but the thought of never seeing Louis and Francis again was enough to thoroughly upset her. Losing Bill was bad enough and now…
No. She shoved herself to her feet. What would Bill say…?
..
Within the abandoned gun store, Zoey found herself securely locked within the confines of a cleaning closet. Everything had happened so fast, one moment she was speaking with the seemingly sickly man at the front desk, trying to get him to sell her a proper weapon and then the man had suddenly hunched forward and released the contents of his stomach, his body heaving with each projection of bile. Watching, Zoey could only step back and cover her mouth with the back of her hand, her eyes watering as she felt her stomach churn. Oh God…
Once the man was through he wiped his mouth and straightened, eyes narrowing into sharp slits before he sprang into action. Moving from behind the counter the man grabbed her arm and dragged the girl towards the closet. "It's for your own safety," he had said, and then she was thrown into darkness once the door was closed behind her. Whirling around she tried to leave but found the door locked…
What seemed like hours later, Zoey was still trying to get out…
Slamming her fists against the door, Zoey continued to scream and shout for help. She didn't know where the man went, if he was still manning the front of the store or if maybe he decided to leave, all she knew was that she was trapped in the midst of a viral outbreak that threatened to annihilate the world's populace. The man had gotten sick – something that the news had specifically highlighted as one of the beginning symptoms before someone turned. "Let me out!" she kicked at the door now, giving her aching hands a moment of rest.
Tears filled her eyes but she refused to let them fall.
She wasn't going to die here - she wasn't going to be stuck in some fucking closet while there was a zombie outbreak – no way! Though, as she fought her darkening thoughts with her fists and feet she couldn't remove the feeling of complete dread that began to impede on whatever positive ideas that were left within her.
No… No…!
Another scream of absolute desperation fueled her body as she threw everything she had into the door. First, her body vaulted into the hard wood, followed by her feet and hands. She suddenly let out a cry as pain lanced through her wrist. Cradling the hurt appendage to her chest she dropped into the corner of the gun store's closet and waited…
It seemed like hours had gone by before she heard footsteps and she let out a tired yell for help.
When the door suddenly opened, Zoey gasped and pitched herself forward and out of the closet, relief finally flooding over her. "Th-thank you," she murmured, still crouched low on the ground, holding her hurt wrist and doing her best to keep more tears at bay.
Thankful – she was so thankful.
"Enough of that," came the firm, yet weathered voice. Looking up she saw an older man wearing a green beret. "Cryin' like that isn't going to make it better." His gaze suddenly dropped towards her bum wrist and he sighed. "Now come here and let me see that."
…
"Get your shit together, Zoey," she ordered herself. "You've done enough crying today."
There was a soft sound from the hallway and the door creaked open, Coach giving her a wide, excited smile. "Dinner is ready, honey."
"Yeah, okay…"
xXxX
Zoey, Ellis noticed, hadn't eaten all of her meal and though he was somewhat hurt he understood her reasoning. Once she pushed the plate away she placed her hand over her stomach and sighed, leaving half of a steak on her plate. He reached out for the remainder but was too slow as Coach's hand shot out and grabbed the plate before he could get close. "You done with this, baby?"
"Yeah, go for it…"
Nick sighed, scooting his empty plate away from him as he leaned back. "That really wasn't all that bad – I am surprised."
Ellis feigned hurt, grasping at his chest and frowning. "Nick, c'mon now…"
He shrugged. "I'm just saying."
"Zoe, you should eat the rest of that," Rochelle said as she gestured to the remains that Coach had yet to devour. "It's not healthy, not eating-"
"I know… I just haven't really eaten an actual meal in so long that when I do eat something I don't feel well," she frowned but then she shrugged. "As soon as all of this is over and done with, I am going to eat my own weight in Ben and Jerry's." Ellis smiled at her from across the table, pushing his empty plate to the center.
"So what… What are we gonna do? What's the plan?"
"North," Nick said easily. "There isn't anything for us down here."
"What if we stuck to the coast and made our way over to-"
Nick cut Coach off, shaking his head. "There isn't shit down here, and everyone knows it. We need to get out of here. This isn't getting better – what are they going to do? Get all of the remaining people on a cruise ship until everything just starts over?"
"Sounds better than running around and hoping to find a safe place," Rochelle grumbled.
Ellis shook his head. "Nah, there ain't no way we would be able to get that far going North," he crossed his arms. "Getting out of here without going through any swamp is going to be…"
"Actually," Zoey cleared her throat. "I'm with Nick. Me, Bill, Francis and Louis started up North and made our way down here. We didn't have half of the things that are down here. Maybe going North will… Maybe it will get better."
Frowning, Ellis argued, "But how would we get there? It's nothin' but swamp and more swamp and even then, how far North? There is a slim chance we'll get by what Mountains that are there."
"We can find a car… From here we can go to Lafayette, then Texas and-"
"We will need a car if we plan on crossin' the Atchafalaya. That's one uh," Ellis shook his head as he tried to think. "It's one of the largest bridges in the world, I think."
"The eighth," Rochelle supplied.
Ellis licked his lips, his eyebrows furrowing. The eighth largest bridge in the world, stretching over nothing but swamp and other places just as inhabitable; but if they got over the bridge then really, it shouldn't be that difficult making their way further North. Coach frowned, finishing off the last of Zoey's steak. "I don't-"
There was a loud thud that came from the space above them, causing their heads to whip up towards the ceiling in almost perfect unison. Rochelle reaching for her fork while Nick moved to his feet, hands reaching for the none-existent weapon that would be at his waist. "There isn't a… There isn't an upstairs, is there?" Ellis asked, glancing at the group of startled individuals.
"No. Not even an Attic," Coach murmured.
Another thud and all heads twisted to view another point on the ceiling. "So it's on the roof," Nick mumbled. "So long as we stay-" Another loud noise, though this time it was accompanied by splintering wood. Coach began to usher the ladies into the living room. "Go, go now. Hurry up."
Ellis moved in quickly after them, Nick and Coach moving in after. Once the group had been rallied into the living room the three men began to block off the doorway with the spare furniture that wasn't blocking off the remaining doors and windows. "What…What was that?" Rochelle whispered just as another loud crash came from the kitchen.
Shoving a small ottoman in front of the rest of the furniture that blocked the door, Ellis took a few steps back. "Coulda been a tank." He too was whispering, though he didn't really know why – the thing knew they were there, it was just a matter of time. They hadn't found many useful weapons in the house, mostly cutting knives and some mace in the girl's room. There was no axes, no beer bottles to make any of the team's favored cocktails. They did find knitting needles, a small ukulele and a rather large raw hide that could have only belonged to an over-sized dog. Those things, however, were essentially useless and thus, were discarded. Now they were down to one pistol, with a full clip and then enough bullets for another half of a clip. One meat cleaver, one cast-iron skillet, a shovel and a fireplace poker.
The sound of shattering glass brought Ellis' attention towards the hallway, noticing that the weapons were being grabbed and he was passed the fire poker. More sounds on the roof, followed by another crash from the kitchen.
"We need to get out of here!" Nick hissed, waving the meat cleaver at the barricaded front door.
Rochelle shook her head, eyes wide as she cradled the skillet in her hands. "Are you kidding me? What else is outside?" she was still whispering, as if the absence of her voice would prevent the impending chaos.
Nick gestured for Coach to help him push the furniture away from the door. "I don't give a damn. They have already blocked us into one room and whatever is on the roof? Yeah, I don't want that fucker blocking me in here."
Reaching out to Rochelle, who seemed to be close to a panic attack, Ellis offered a fleeting smile. "We'll be okay, alright Ro? We get out of here, we find a car and then we drive outta here! North – right?"
Nick and Coach where quickly working, shoving the couch away from the door while Zoey checked the pistol, sliding the clip out and checking her ammunition before it was clicked back into place and the safety was flicked off. Rochelle nodded though it was hesitant – scared. It was at that moment that Zoey seemed to appear at the older woman's side, smiling a wide and genuine smile. "You got this far, right?"
Rochelle nodded. "I just… Once we got the sense of normalcy it's just torn away."
Zoey laughed despite the chaos around them, the sounds of the splintering wood, the loud screeching in the kitchen, the sounds of shattering glass. "It's something that we are all going to have to get used to." She glanced at Ellis and then back to Rochelle. "Now let's go!"
As if on cue the front door was thrown open and Nick, Coach and Zoey made their way outside, Zoey pivoting quickly on her feet to check the roof. "Come on!" Nick yelled. Rochelle sighed, looking up at Ellis who was patiently – C'mon and get it together, we need to goooo! – for Rochelle to head out first. Nick looked back inside. "Move it! Now!"
Finally rooted from her spot as the barricaded door was finally splintered into a number of pieces, Rochelle ran out into the yard with the group, leaving Ellis to take the rear as they began to move into the darkened street. They moved in a perfect group in complete silence, jogging across the street before the ducked down into the shadows, Zoey near the front with the pistol, followed by Nick and Coach, then Rochelle and finally Nick who would occasionally spin around and check their back before running to catch up. "Alright, we need to find a car," Nick whispered. Ellis nodded though his eyes were glued on the house that they had just left, trying to pick out any humanoid figure.
Coach pointed far down the block. "Two-car garage. If they made an evac then they would probably be taking one car, right?"
"Might as well give it a shot," Ellis nodded.
"Right. Let's move," Coach ordered, then gestured for Zoey to make the move but she shook her head.
"No, that way is clear – you guys go ahead and I will take the back."
Ellis shook his head. "Zoey-"
She turned her head towards him and he was surprised with the determination that reflected in them. They were narrow, hard and knowing. "What are you going to when they come out of there?" He took a breath to speak but merely frowned, not having a valid answer. "Now go."
Together, they formed their tight group and began to make their way down the street. Ellis shifted into the center of the group, glancing back at Zoey every few moments to make sure that she was keeping up. Whenever he got the chance he would look around at the surrounding roof tops, expecting a tank to be standing on top of one of them. He couldn't think what else would be so bent on breaking through the ceiling, yet at the same time he had never seen a tank do anything like break through a roof top. Sure, he had seen the thing tear slabs of asphalt from the road and literally hurl them several feet into the air…
"Doors open," Coach whispered before he was pulling Rochelle into the hopefully empty home. Nick moved in after them, hitting Ellis' shoulder to get him to follow.
"Zoe, c'mon!"
Once the five had made it to the garage they were greeted with a lone vehicle, a weathered Dodge Stratus sat in the dark room and Ellis took it upon himself to assess the vehicle. "Alright, it should be relatively easy to start without the keys." He looked through the window for a moment, looking around the interior before he lifted his weapon and slammed it down into the glass. Upon the glass shattering into the driver's seat the sound of a shrill alarm filled the garage.
xXxX
Zoey's entire body – her entire being – froze at the sound of the alarm. She didn't move to cover her ears or, at least, not immediately. While Ellis went straight into action she merely stood, the pistol in her hand, her eyes wide as she tried to figure out what to do. Did she filter into the car like Coach and Rochelle and wait? As Nick stood by the passenger side door he was shouting over the noise, his eyes closed as he tried to get his voice to project over the sound of the alarm. Slowly, her head turned away from him and towards the garage door controls.
Making her way towards the panel, she waited and ignored Nick's frantic hand motions. They needed to get out, and this was the going to be the easiest way. Leaving the door open, Nick put one of his feet into the back seat, waiting for a few moments. When the alarm didn't cut, but the smell of exhaust caught her attention, Zoey hit the button to open the garage door. Bolting towards the car she got into the passenger seat, noting several pairs of legs that were shuffling around the opening of the garage.
"Go!" Coach shouted.
Ellis straightened in the seat, the alarm still blaring as he shifted the car into drive and stepped on the gas. The vehicle vaulted forward, scraping against the underside of the still rising garage door before colliding with the bodies of a few gathered infected. "Down the road! Left!" Nick shouted over the still blaring alarm. Ellis followed the instructions, narrowly avoiding a large figure that was emerging from the house that they had evacuated earlier. "What in the hell was tha-?"
The breaks screamed and Ellis turned the wheel sharply, letting out a startled yell as a refrigerator was thrown in the car's path. Punching down the gas to retain their momentum, Ellis sped out of the block, trying to navigate his way out of the once quiet neighborhood. Zoey gripped the handle above the passenger seat window, eyes wide as she held on for dear life.
"The Alarm!" Rochelle screeched as another hard turn was forced onto the poor vehicle.
Ellis glanced over at Zoey before reaching under the wheel to pull out the wires. He reached out, hitting her shoulder lightly before gesturing to the wires. "… Green…" was all she heard through his clenched teeth as he focused on the road. "Green wire! Pull it!" Zoey leaned over towards him, trying to get a good glance at the wiring. As she leaned over further, she placed her hand on the center console and ducked her head down.
"I don't –!" The car jolted quite suddenly and Zoey's hands fell from the console that separated her from Ellis' lap, her shoulder dropping down in between his legs, her head on his thigh. She went stiff for only a moment before she realized that before her, at eye level, was the green wire. Reaching out towards the wire she gave it a good yank and the sounds of the alarm elapsed into the sounds of the engine. Again, while Zoey was trying to right herself the car jolted as if Ellis had jumped a curb and then there was the sound of screeching tires. Grabbing onto Ellis' leg, Zoey braced herself as the car came to a complete halt.
"Dear God," Coach whispered from the back seat.
Rochelle gasped softly. "What… What is that in its hand?"
"Ro, I think that is its hand," Ellis said slowly. Zoey watched as Ellis shifted the car into reverse.
"… Ellis…"
Zoey began to slide herself out from Ellis' lap, her eyes straining to see over the top of the dash but it was as the car darted backward did she see a large figure, arms above his head and its hand was large, bulbous and unproportionate, At the quick glance she was given, it appeared that the infected was holding a large boulder in his hand, rising it high above his head to smash the vehicle. A hard crank of the wheel pivoted the vehicle to the side, Zoey's body crumpling into Ellis' lap and against the driver's side door.
"Dammit Ellis! GO!" Nick shouted as the young mechanic fumbled with the gear shift. Once in drive, Zoey watched as Ellis' foot slammed down onto the gas. The car surged forward with a fit of noise and then they were speeding out of the neighborhood. Finally driving at a steady pace, Zoey moved her hands down onto the seat between Ellis' legs and pushed herself out from under his arms.
"What the fuck happened?" she blurted, turning in her seat to get a good look at the figure that had almost smashed the car. It was following, that was a definite but it was far behind and possibly even giving up on the chase.
Nick, who was also twisted to look in the back window, glanced her way briefly. "I do believe that we just met the thing that broke through the roof."
xXxX
If it had been any other occasion, like a fun road trip or a fun drive out of town, Ellis would have taken a deep interest in Zoey being between his knees, her body stretched across his lap. He would have brushed his fingers through her hair, rubbed soft circles along her scalp and the back of her neck. He would have dragged his hand from her upper back, down her spine and along the curve of her backside, quietly urging her as he controlled the vehicle. But as he managed to avoid the boulder-fisted infected and her body was shoved even further into his seat, he had no chance to even acknowledge the fact she was even there.
As she began to right herself and try to get back into her seat her cheek brushed against his crotch and her breasts pressed into his thigh there was nothing he could do. He couldn't touch her like he would if this were any other occasion. He had to have his full attention on the road, scanning the houses and the buildings, the rear view mirror and the road immediately ahead of him and whatever was down the block. He had to focus on everything but Zoey as they sped from the neighborhood and he found himself angry…
Angry at the situation, angry at the circumstances.
Once they hit the highway he allowed his mind to drift over how everything that had happened had lead up to this point. If the virus hadn't appeared, if the man with the green beret hadn't made his sacrifice, there was a distinct possibility that Ellis would have never met Zoey in the first place. On one side, he was happy to have met the people that he did. They were good people – people that he would have easily gotten along with even without the threat of the virus. He had met Zoey, got to drive Jimmy Gibbs Jr.'s car! But everything put together? It upset him very deeply.
"Ellis?"
He turned his head and looked towards Zoey, sitting in the passenger seat. Looking back to the road, he hummed his response. "Mm?"
"You okay?"
He offered her a soft smile. "Just thinkin'."
It was no longer just about Zoey and his missed opportunities at pursuing her sexually (hell, if is mama knew that he was aiming for anything less than innocent with the girl she would have backhanded him), intimately or casually. No, it was something deeper than that, things stretching to lost innocence, unbiased monsters that attached to kill, not to eat or survive. Everything – all of it – it wasn't fair.
xXxX
And that's all I got…
I was going to do a blip on what Francis and Louis are up to… But every time I tried to do it, it just wasn't working for me.
Hope you enjoyed your actionless action.
