GUEST: The timeskip will be two weeks. I'm not sure if I'm using that term loosely. Also, Whether or not Lucy is pregnant will be revealed soon. (Kind of feel like I'm saying too much) And I don't see anyone going a hunt for the lions, but they will come into play later.

GUEST: (This guy asked if Lincoln and Lucy's relationship was inspired by the relationship between Carl and Lydia on The Walking Dead comic) And to that the answer is: no. But I am seeing the similarities, though.

Sorry this chapter took longer than usual to come out, it was mostly because personal reasons. Plus, I don't think I'll be able to pump out chapters as fast as I did at the beginning from now on.

Alone

Chapter 10: Interests

Day 29: September 6th

It had been two weeks since Winston's speech. Two long, boring, uneventful weeks. Meaning it had probably been four weeks since everyone had disappeared. Almost a month.

And during that month Lincoln had done nothing but hang around the hotel, eat, sleep and read comic books.

The hotel had become stuffy without air conditioning, several people left the windows to their rooms open. And while it got cooler during the night, Lincoln was glad he was on the outside of his and Lucy's cuddle position when they spooned, he hoped Lucy didn't get too uncomfortable in the warm night air. He and Lucy hadn't gotten intimate like they did a few weeks ago, part of him was wondering if they ever would again, while another part of him was kind of glad they hadn't because… uh… They had no way to clean the sheets I guess?

Okay, so that wasn't the only reason, it was minuscule compared to the main reason. Which was what if he got Lucy pregnant?

They were both just kids themselves. Plus, with no doctors around, what the heck could they do if she did end up getting pregnant? Lincoln quickly pushed that thought out of his mind. They'd only done it once, but of course, it only needed to be once.

Come on, Lincoln. You don't see Lucy stressing out about what ifs, do you?

Lincoln currently stood in the bathroom, peeing. At least he was before he got too busy thinking to realize he was done. He flushed the toilet and as the water spun around he began to wonder how long they'd have running water. Who knew when everyone would have to start bathing in the river, or something. And what about toilet paper? Sure, the hotel still had a decent stock and some of his friends had gone out to go get more supplies, but he knew nothing lasts forever. Sooner or later they'd probably have to start using leaves to wipe themselves and improvise with other things as well.

He walked out of the bathroom and saw Lucy sitting up on the bed.

"Good morning," he greeted with a warm smile.

Lucy nodded. "Hey."

"How'd you sleep?"

"All right," she said.

Lincoln nodded. It had been a few nights since she'd had any night terrors and he hoped it would stay that way.

"So… Can you think of anything that you might like to do today?" he asked.

Lucy shrugged. There wasn't much she was in to. Mostly because she never got the chance to get in to anything before. Lincoln tried getting her in to comic books, but she didn't really care about any of the ones he was interested in. She did, however, enjoy reading Princess Pony, which struck him as odd. But hey, why should anyone give a damn about what anyone likes anymore?

Lincoln sat down next to her. The urge to put an arm around her was strong, but he ignored it for now.

"Was there ever anything you wanted to be when you grew up?"

Lucy looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"Well, when I grew up I wanted to draw and write comic books with my friend, Clyde. But… it doesn't look like that'll be happening any time soon. Of course, that doesn't mean I can't stop enjoying those things. I figured whenever I get some free time I can go and look for some paper and art supplies, so I can continue doing what I've been dreaming about ever since I was a kid – or, I mean, younger."

Lucy shrugged. "I never had a chance to dream."

"You do, now," Lincoln proudly announced.

Lucy didn't know what to say to that. so instead, she asked Lincoln a question. "Why do you like to draw and write?"

Lincoln sat and thought about that for a few seconds.

"Well… I guess since reading comic books brings me so much joy I figured: why not try creating my own comics. My ultimate goal was to make people feel the same way I felt when reading. As well as write stories that get people into comics the same way Ace Savvy got me into superheroes."

Lucy nodded. "I wouldn't mind writing."

Lincoln perked up. "Really?

"Yeah, why not. It sounds like a good outlet if you ask me."

Lincoln smile grew wider. "That's a good idea. If you'd like we could, go look for some notebooks and stuff later."

The corners of Lucy mouth curved up slightly in a light grin, which made Lincoln happy. As he kept his gaze on Lucy for a while he began to feel his stomach tingle which made his smile drop. Lucy's did too.

Then, before they knew it, they both leaned in and kissed each other. It was just a simple kiss. A kiss that wouldn't lead anywhere and was just to confirm their feelings for each other again. When it broke, they both pressed their foreheads against each other and closed their eyes. Lincoln wanted to wrap his arms around her and hold her. To stay close to her for a long, long time.

And Lucy wanted to hold onto Lincoln and feel protected, forever and ever.

But they'd have to leave eventually.

"You can't possibly be thinking of leaving this place and going over there!" Lola shouted at her sister Lana who had just broken the news to her younger twin.

"I have to," Lana told her sister. Ever since Winston's speech Lana couldn't help but feel a sense of duty. Like she had to do something.

"No, you don't," Lola cried. "We can just stay here forever and never leave."

Lana and Lola had been taking refuge in the JW Marriott since day one. At first, they were able to keep the doors locked after a white-haired boy and his friends showed up and started acting aggressive. But then the power went out and they couldn't keep the doors electronically locked anymore. Then more kids began to show up at the hotel and the twins were powerless to do anything about it.

Then, a few days later, some more kids showed up and told them about a boy who was going to give a speech. Long story short- Lana wanted to help. She was pretty useful when it came to using tools, maybe she could be of assistance, ever since she was little she wanted to become, a plumber, or an electrician, or a mechanic. Hell, any job where you worked with your hands and used tool was fine with her.

"No, we can't," Lana said. "We're trying to rebuild society here sis, and we're not going to get anything done by hiding in here all day and night."

"Speak for yourself," Lola said.

Lana rolled her eyes. "Fine, stay here all day and hide in your room. I, for one, plan on making a difference."

"What difference can you make?" Lola said, "You're only fourteen."

"I may be young, but if you want to make a difference, it's best to get started early."

Lola stomped her foot. "Fine. Have fun playing pretend," she said and then stormed off to her room.

Lana felt kind of bad. But she had to go and talk to the people over at the capitol. She'd love nothing more than to get started on fixing and repairing things, maybe she could even teach other kids how to use tools and get the ball rolling for the next generation.

Lynn Starr was her name and sports were her game – or her life for that matter. She played all kinds of sports, although her favorite was football… and basketball and baseball and soccer and hockey and roller derby and – screw it, all of the sports she played were her favorite, she never limited herself to just one thing. Everyone only has one body. One life. So, she intended to live her life to the fullest. Or… that's what she planned on doing before the world changed forever.

She currently resided in Lucas Oil Stadium. (Go Colts!) She was standing on the thirty-yard line of the turf. Sleeping bags were scattered all around the field where kids would all sleep in groups. Lynn had no idea why they'd decided to make the football field their place to sleep, but she wasn't going to question them. Everyone had their reasons. Luckily Lynn arrived here early and was able to lay claim to a luxury suite where she slept at night and kept her stash of food and supplies hidden. No one dared to venture in there without her knowing lest they get beaten to a pulp. Her friend Margo was holding a football upright against the ground, so Lynn could kick it. She'd already kicked a field goal from the ten and twenty-yard line, now she was going to try the thirty and then the forty and so on.

"Ready?" Margo asked.

Lynn nodded. "Always." She then ran as fast as she could and put all her strength into her foot as she kicked the ball, launching it between the goal posts.

"YES!" Lynn cheered, pumping her fist, but not celebrating too much. "On to the forty, now."

As she and Margo walked, Lynn could feel several eyes on her, which she didn't mind of course. She loved attention after all. Before about a month ago, she hoped that one day she'd be the main focus in a stadium bigger than this. Hundreds of thousands of fans cheering her name. But for now, she was only playing in front of a few dozen. Most of whom didn't even care.

Margo held the ball at the forty.

All right. Lynn told herself. Three seconds left, down by two. Time to win the Super Bowl.

She ran up to the ball. Kicked it. Watched it fly.

*DOINK*

It bounced off a goalpost

Lynn swore. And she could've sworn she heard some kids snickering from the stands.

"Don't worry about it," Margo told her. "It happens."

Not to me it shouldn't Lynn wanted to say. Instead: "Yep."

"You wanna try again?" Margo asked.

"Yes," Lynn answered, "But from square one." Meaning she wanted to go back to the ten-yard line and start all over again. She was aware that the record for longest field goal in the NFL was sixty-four yards. Meaning Lynn would keep trying until she beat that record.

When it came to Lynn Starr, failure was not an option.

It was Leni Short's first full day as a fifteen-year old. She was born September 5th but not until around eleven o'clock PM. Her friends had all wished her a happy birthday, but unfortunately there was no way for her to celebrate it. No one would be able to celebrate their birthdays ever again. To them, their birthdays were more like a curse. A date that separated them from the rest of the world.

Either they were all born too late or too soon.

But Leni didn't let that bother her. She was a very upbeat and cheerful girl. A little ditzy and slow, but she had a heart of gold and that outweighed all of her bad qualities.

She currently hung out with Lori and a few of her other friends in one of the many dimly lit clothing stores in the mall. They would often look through the racks of clothes and make it look like they were looking for something, but of course, they'd all already looked through the racks of clothes several times. It was like constantly looking in your fridge after you'd already looked in it a few times. You'd hope that by the umpteenth time you opened the door, there would be a fresh stock of food, but nope. Just the same carton of milk, eggs, half a stick of butter and almost expired salad.

Lori sighed loud and exaggeratedly. "Gosh, I'm so bored," she moaned.

Bobby looked at her and smiled. He thought about suggesting that they go someplace more private. They'd already done it once; two weeks ago, when they both thought they were going to disappear, but they didn't. Even so, Bobby still wanted to do it again.

"I can take care of that for you," he said, with a smile. After finally getting some with Lori he felt as cocky as someone could be after losing their virginity.

Lori looked at him and opened her mouth in a fake shocked expression.

"Can you take care of it for me, too?" Leni asked, obviously having no idea what Bobby meant.

Bobby cleared his throat and looked nervously away.

"You wouldn't want that," Lori spoke up for him. "It's not as fun as it sounds."

"Hey," Bobby said, clearly hurt by Lori's words.

"I'm teasing, Boo Boo." She said.

"So, I was good?" he asked.

"Good at what?" Leni asked.

"Nothing," Lori said, "don't worry about it, just go back to looking at clothes."

Leni sighed. "But I've already looked at all these clothes, like, eleventy times. I just wish there was, like, a secret stash of them somewhere."

Across the store, a chubby kid who was eavesdropping on their conversation perked up and slowly began to make his way over.

In the meantime, Lori began to consider Bobby's offer, her boredom had finally gotten the better of her and she decided, Why not?

"Bobby can you come with me to the restroom?"

Bobby was about to ask why, but then he saw the expression of desire on Lori's face and knew he was about to get lucky again. "Sure thing, babe." He chirped.

Lori asked Leni if she was going to be okay by herself for a while (or for only a minute, she joked at Bobby's expense) and Leni said she would.

She watched as Lori and Bobby walked off towards the bathroom.

Poor Lori. She 'd heard of people having shy bladders and not being able to pee if someone else was near, but Lori seemed to have the opposite of that since she needed Bobby to be with her when she went.

Leni continued to scan the racks… again when she felt a presence beside her, then the sound of a boy clearing his throat. She turned her head to see a boy standing next to her with a nervous expression on his face. He was chubby with dark blonde hair and freckles.

"H- hi," he croaked.

Leni smiled, "Hey."

"So… I uh… hear you're looking for some new clothes," the boy said, rubbing the back of his neck and adjusting a blue, backwards hat he was wearing.

Leni nodded. "Yeah, but I've already looked all over the place for clothes, I just can't seem to find any that interest me."

The boy smiled and rubbed one of his arms. "Well, if you're looking for some clothes, I can help."

Leni raised a brow. "How?"

"Well, first, let me introduce myself. My name's Chaz…"

Leni introduced herself, too.

"…My dad used to own this store. I have a key to the backroom where they keep a lot of the new clothes that haven't been put out yet."

Leni's eyes widened. "Really?"

Chaz nodded. "Yep. you wanna go check it out?"

Leni nodded excitedly. She cast a glance to the bathroom where Lori was and figured her friend wouldn't mind if she snuck off for a few minutes.

Chaz led Leni to a locked door that led to a backroom and opened it. It was dark, but Chaz brought a lantern, he flipped a switch and the bright LED light filled the room.

Leni gasped. There were several boxes stacked on top of each other. She was surprised that the room could fit so many boxes in it.

"Yeah," Chaz said. "We'd got a new delivery the day before… Well… you know."

Leni turned to him.

"You're welcome to look in them," he told her.

And Leni went through them to her heart's content. Going through piles of clothes, holding them all up, studying them. She'd even made a few piles. A pile for clothes she really wanted, one for clothes she probably wanted, and one for clothes she didn't want.

Chaz smiled as he watched Leni prance around like a kid on Christmas. Before the world changed, he'd always liked Leni. He'd see her visit the store often and had been trying his best to work up the courage to go talk to her. But the problem was: she was a ten and he was at best, a four. She was an angel, and he was just some overweight kid.

"Thank you so much, Chaz," Leni said, and she went over to him and hugged him.

Chaz was caught off guard. No girl had ever hugged him before- besides his mom. His face felt hot and his groin began to stir. He was about to lift his arms and hug Leni back when he heard another voice.

"There you are, Leni."

Leni stepped away from Chaz and they both looked to see Lori standing in the doorway with Bobby standing right behind her.

"What are you doing?" she asked, with her hands on her hips. She looked like a mom about to scold her kid.

Leni smiled at Lori. "I was just hanging with Chaz." She told him how this store was his dads and he had access to all these clothes.

Lori looked around, she had to admit the stock was impressive.

"Well, you really had me worried when I came out of the bathroom and you weren't there."

"Sorry," Leni said.

Lori sighed. "Let's just head back, now."

"But I'm not done looking," she protested, and she gave Lori the look of a sad puppy which made the girl sigh again.

"You're welcome to take whatever you want, too," Chaz offered. Which made Lori perk up a bit.

"Well… since you offered.

Meanwhile, a fifteen-year-old boy named Chuck and his two friends Reggie and Mitch walked into the store.

Chuck was pretty much the leader of his little gang. He was a good-looking kid with dark black hair, blue eyes and strong facial features. His two other friends were no where near as good looking as he was. He mostly kept them around just to make him look even better than he already was by comparison.

"So, you're saying you saw Leni come in here?" he asked them.

"Yep," Reggie nodded.

Chuck looked around. "Well where is she, then?" he asked impatiently.

"There," Reggie said and pointed towards a door at the back of the store.

And that's when Chuck saw her, the object of his affection: Leni Short. The most beautiful girl in the world and she belonged to the best-looking dude in the world- him.

She was carrying a load of clothes and walking with her bitchy friend Lori and her boyfriend, as well as some random fat kid. Chuck noticed that the fat kid and Leni were smiling and talking to each other. He noted that Leni appeared to be a little too friendly towards the kid. He assumed she was just being nice. No way she would go for a dude like that.

There were some very unattractive girls that always seemed to have crushes on Chuck and he was never friendly to them when they talked to him. No way was he ever going to lead on any ugly chicks and have them follow him around like this fat fuck was with Leni.

That's when Chuck decided to make his move. He strode up to Leni with the confidence of a dude who was about to fuck some woman in a porno and spoke up.

"Hey, Leni." He said coolly.

All four of the teens stopped and looked at Chuck. Lori and Bobby looked at him with disgust- they knew who Chuck was. The fat kid looked nervous. But Leni, on the other hand, smiled her kind, sexy smile.

"Hi, Chuck," she chirped. "What's up?"

"Nothing," Chuck said. "I just heard you recently had a birthday. I would've gotten you something, but I couldn't think of anything that would be perfect enough for a perfect girl like you."

Leni blushed. "Aw, that's okay."

"Not for me it isn't," he said. "So, I was thinking maybe later, me and you could go for a walk around the mall and maybe look for a present for you."

Leni seemed to be considering, but then Lori spoke up.

"She has everything she needs, thank you very much."

Bitch, I wasn't asking you! Chuck wanted to yell. Instead he just gave her an annoyed look and then looked back at Leni who still seemed to be pondering his offer.

Lori placed a hand on her shoulder before she could answer, she knew that Chuck was just going to end up using Leni and then leave her after he got what he wanted. "Come on, Leni."

"Oh. Okay," she said and then looked at Chuck. "Sorry, I gotta go."

"Okay," was all Chuck said, even though he was fuming on the inside. That bitch, Lori ruined everything.

"Chaz, you want to come with back to our hangout?" Leni asked.

Chaz stiffened. "Me?"

"Yeah, you," she giggled. Which was the sweetest sound Chaz had ever heard.

"Okay," he said. And with that, they all left the store.

Leaving Chuck and his snickering friends behind.

Chuck's teeth and fists were clenched. Did Leni seriously invite that fat kid back to where she lived and not him? Normally he was the person who invited people over to his place in front of others, it was never the other way around.

"Wow, Chuck. Looks like you got rejected," Reggie said.

Chuck turned around and hit his friend in the arm.

"Ow, Hey!" Reggie cried.

His other friend, Mitch, stopped laughing.

"Shut up!" Chuck said. "No one rejects me! I'm going to end up having sex with Leni whether she wants to or not." He stomped out of the store thinking of how he was going to get Leni to fuck him and his friends reluctantly followed.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, because I'm going to take a break from this story and focus on a story involving Luan. It's going to be a pretty long story that I will post as one chapter, but I'll try to have it up as soon as I can.

Also I just created a Discord account (I don't know the basics of it, yet. I also don't know if it will be a permanent thing) so you can befriend me on there, too. My username is: NiceGodzilla (message me for more details)