That night Ellis and Zoey lay in bed in their small room in the shack. The air was silent between the two as Ellis just held her. He was still thinking about what she had said a while ago, about having kids. Did she really want to have kids? And more importantly, did she want to have them with him? When she said that, the future became wide open to him. He wanted nothing more than to just marry her, have a family, a big home, and just support her. He would be everything that she needed, a friend, a provider, a lover, a husband, etc...
He wanted her to be a part of his future for sure. He didn't care about anything else in the world as long as Zoey was by his side. She was all he needed, and they would start their lives together. That night, Ellis was definitely sure of one thing. He wanted Zoey to be his forever, so he was going to ask the woman to marry him. He knew she would say yes, but still, he was longing to ask her.
"Hey Zoey?" Ellis asked, making sure that she was still awake. He hoped that he didn't wake her up, because then he would have felt bad. But still, he wanted to be engaged to the most beautiful woman on the planet. He wanted her to be his forever.
"Yeah?" She asked in barely a whisper.
"Did I wake you up?" He whispered again.
He felt her shake his head, "No, I've been awake." She answered. "Why?"
"I have to ask you something." He replied.
"What?" She asked.
"Will you marry me?" He popped the big question as he tightened his hold around her. He didn't know why he was nervous, but he was. His palms began to get sweaty, and his heart was beating about a mile a minute. And he felt like he was about to puke at any given moment. Ellis knew that he shouldn't have been nervous, that this woman loved him just as much as he loved her, but he couldn't help it. It was his natural instinct to be nervous. Any average man would be.
He then heard the young woman sigh. "Are you sure about that, Ellis?" Zoey asked.
"Yeah, I'm sure Zo." Ellis said. He had never been more sure of anything in his whole life. "I love you." Ellis replied. It seemed like he'd been waiting forever to say those three words, and now that he had been able to get them out, he somehow felt complete. He had wanted to proclaim his love for her since the day he had first laid eyes on her, and now he was able to. He felt good now, and hopefully now Zoey would say it back.
"I love you too..." She said with a slight smile, and Ellis felt his heart swell up with joy.
"You do?" He asked, unable to believe it.
Zoey laughed, "Of course I do." She said. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't."
"That's a relief." Ellis replied.
"Oh Ellis..." She said. "I love you so much, and more."
"So, will ya marry me?" The mechanic asked again, sure he would get a better answer this time.
"Of course." Zoey said and in that moment Ellis was possibly the happiest man in the world. Despite the zombie apocalypse, he had managed to get new friends, and find a wife. If it weren't for the apocalypse, Ellis might have not even met Zoey. So in a way, he was glad of all this.
The next morning, the newly engaged couple decided to tell everyone. "Well, Zo and I are getting married!" He announced to the household.
"That's not a surprise but congrats!" Francis said.
Coach laughed, "Don't worry Francis, we know you're next!" He said.
"This is awesome!" Rochelle said. "I'm so happy for you two."
"You're all invited to the wedding too." Zoey added. "I can't wait for everything, I can't wait for our life to start." She said.
"Me either Zoey." Ellis added, and he turned to kiss his fiancé.
A couple of months had passed, then months turned into a year. The rebuilding of civilization had started. Even though all the survivors were still staying in an evac camp, there was organization all around them. Life continued to get better and better for the five of them. Sometimes, they would ask about Nick, and wonder if he was doing good, but a sullen thought lingered in the back of the survivor's minds and that was that if Nick ever died.
Doctors were starting to find a cure for the infection, which was more than good. Then they could eliminate the zombies, and have a better chance of rebuilding the world. It seemed as though things could only continue to get better as new cities and places were being built. Hell, some people had even started to repopulate, which was a good thing so that the human race wouldn't die out.
Life was good, and it seemed as though the five remaining survivors had nothing left to worry about except time. Because everything would be done so soon, and then they could all start the lives that they wanted to start so desperately. They were thankful for the camp, and thankful that they had each other. "Looks like things are going to be okay." Coach noted.
"Yeah." Rochelle agreed. "I think things are going to be okay."
"It's just a matter of time." Francis said.
"All we have to do is wait." Zoey added.
"Don't worry guys." Ellis waived off. "This is going to be awesome." The infection was being destroyed, and houses were being built. Soon, people would be able to start looking for jobs again, and everything would be okay. And hopefully Nick was still okay too so that they'd be able to meet up someday.
