New character, along with a really long chapter. Hope you enjoy, or probably not.
Also, Will belongs to FreakLives. He's great.
Will- Ready To Fall
"Will!" I heard my sister whine and I sprung up. I immediately chastised myself for nearly falling asleep, as Ellie and I were supposed to only be stopping for a rest.
"Ellie? What is it? Are you hurt?"
"Which page should I color next?" She asked as she holds up her coloring book, showing me that she had completed another picture. I realized the coloring book is almost through; I would have to pick one up at an abandoned store or something.
Nevertheless, I sighed and told her to do whatever she wanted. I sat up and groaned as my stomach growled like a lion. We were low on food, and I was hungrier than usual due to the fact that I had been eating less so Ellie could eat more.
From a distance, a person wouldn't be able to tell that we were siblings. I inherited my father's Italian traits, with his dark hair and olive skin. Ellie, on the other hand, has our mother's Irish scarlet hair and fair skin. Up close, however, we had the same grey-blue eyes that pierced like a knife.
"Why don't we have a quick snack?" I asked, slowly opening my bag, which holds our supplies. We both had our schoolbags from before the disaster happened, but Ellie's blue one was filled with crayons, various coloring books, and some of my comics.
"Yes!" Ellie squealed, and hopped to stand by my side.
We sit there for a bit, savoring some dried jerky. I observed the area we stopped at, because it was too dark to see when we had first arrived. But dawn was coming and the sun was shining a bit brighter—as bright as it got nowadays.
An abandoned plaza. I've always liked open places, where there's room to fight any adults that happened to stop by.
"Are we going to walk today?" Ellie asked, munching on her jerky. "I mean don't you think we could stay here?"
"C'mon, Ellie, you know we have to keep moving. Besides, how am I supposed to get you more coloring books if we stay here?"
"That's true," she said solemnly, but then brightened up. "Maybe this time they will have crayons! My red one is almost gone," she points out, holding up a stubby red crayon as proof.
"Maybe," I said.
Once we were done, we began to walk again. Growing up in New York, we were pretty used to walking.
Ellie began to sing along the way. It's safer during the day, and I let her. She sings a song that used to be pretty popular—at least, that's what I think it is. Because Ellie is five and she can't remember all the words. She makes some up, and hums to fill in the blank.
Mom used to sing a lot. Ellie got her singing voice, and apparently I did, too, but I'd rather listen to music than sing.
Sometimes Ellie looks so much like Mom that it hurts. At least she wasn't around to see all this—no, she was gone before that. But I can't say which way would have been worse.
Gran and Gramps were nice enough, and without Gramps we wouldn't even be alive. He had this really impressive collection of western guns that I gazed at for hours. He's the one who taught me how to use the revolver I carry. I've had to use it in more than a couple occasions. Doesn't beat my (handmade and awesome) spear, but it has definitely saved us a couple of times.
The virus reached Gran first. She was frail, and when the symptoms set in she couldn't even act on them. Her life was swept away, and she crumbled very easily. It hit Gramps hard, but he was strangely okay when he fell ill, too. Very calm. Gramps was a smart man, and he knew what would happen. So he gathered up his collection and food and medical things, shoved them in both of our school bags, and sent us on our way. To where? The country.
We didn't go to the country.
Mostly because that's what everyone else was thinking, too. And once we started heading that way, the stench hit. Of course, it's worse here now, but there's something eerie about seeing hundreds of dead bodies where there should be tens of them. There's something frightening about the trees and the grass that seems so perfectly normal when in reality, everything has gone to shit.
Here, there's evidence of destruction. Here, I hardened. I don't sit and think about whether the people we saw dead had families, friends, pets, children. I don't think about whether they knew it was coming, or if they thought they were safe. Whether they had eaten that day, and if it was good. Were some kids with them when it happened? Were they chased down by the ones that hadn't died, and instead wanted to feed on them?
I shook my head. No, no. No, I don't think about that.
Ellie was singing something else. A lullaby.
Ellie is a small thing. At the sight of a body she'll cry. It was pretty inconvenient, because I hated to see her upset, but there was nothing to do. So whenever we'd pass one, I'd just cover her eyes. I covered her eyes a lot.
I didn't know where to go next. I remembered in history class when we talked about nomads, and that's what we were. Nomads. Uncivilized.
I've seen traces of other kids before, mostly their mulled bodies. Was there anyone left? Were Ellie and I the last of everyone?
It wasn't a comforting thought.
I was lost in thought when Ellie started to sing another song. This one, I've never heard before. I was confused until I heard the second voice.
"Shit," I muttered under my breath and snatched up Ellie. She yelled in protest until I clamped my hand over her mouth. I looked around and saw the source: through an alleyway, on another street, I could see two people walking. One of them was singing loudly while the other was laughing.
I looked seriously in Ellie's eyes and she stopped struggling.
"Stay quiet," I whispered, and held her hand. I silently jogged over to the alley. Did they hear Ellie singing? Who were they?
I deposited Ellie near a dumpster and peeked out. Their backs were facing me. They weren't infected—I couldn't see any boils or lumps—and they both had bags of supplies. My grip tightened on my spear. Maybe I could just take one? One bag would last them both for at least a day.
It was a boy and a girl. I knew one was a girl because of the voice, despite her hair being chopped off. She was slim, and short compared to the boy next to her. Were they siblings? Like Ellie and me?
I almost sprinted out but I stopped when I saw the glint. One of them was carrying a machete, with a gun in his belt. The other one was carrying a spear, like mine, with a black bow slung over her shoulders. If she was any good, she'd get me before I could get her
I sighed.
They could be hostile. I glanced back at Ellie, who was fidgeting at her braid. She could hide if they attacked me. We were running out of food, and fast. If I didn't do this, we wouldn't live much longer.
I bit my lip and stepped out of the alley. Immediately I could see the girl tense. She stopped singing.
"It's okay," I called out, and now the boy spun around. The girl turned slowly, holding her spear out.
"What do you want?" The boy asked wearily.
"I'm—I'm desperate. We're running out of food—"
"We?" the girl asked, and I cursed under my breath.
The girl locked eyes with me. "It's okay," she said, repeating my words. "We won't do anything as long as you don't."
What would they want with Ellie, anyway? She didn't have anything of value. I looked between the girl and the alley.
"Ellie," I called out softly. "Come here."
I kept glancing at the two, and soon my sister stepped hesitantly out of the shadows. She ran behind me and hugged my leg.
"We're going to starve if we don't get supplies soon," I said in their direction, firmly holding Ellie's shoulder.
The girl looked at the boy, and whispered something to him. He faced away from us, putting his lips to her ear as she nodded. Just as he was turning back to us, the girl grabbed his arm and said something else, something I couldn't hear.
"We'll let you come with us," the boy said as he looked at me. "We know a place where we can stay. But if you try anything, you're dead."
Ellie whimpered from beside me and I backed up a little.
"What's your name?" the boy asked me.
"Will," I said, holding Ellie behind me. "And yours?"
"Remy," he answered. I looked at the girl.
She stared back at me until finally she answered. "Jocelyn."
"This is Ellie," I said, moving slightly so that they could see her. Ellie waved shyly before scampering behind me again.
We stood there awkwardly before Jocelyn walked up to me. Remy started to say something but she waved him away. She dropped her spear and her bow, and stopped several feet away from me, looking at me expectantly. It took me several moments before I dropped my spear.
She closed the distance and held out her hand. I took it and flinched instinctively. Her touch sent bolts up my arm, and her grip was surprisingly strong for a girl.
She looked straight into my eyes. Hers shot daggers, but I stared back. I was used to playing the intimidation game. Finally, the smallest of smiles played on her lips.
"You have a gun in the back of your belt," she said. "You don't trust me."
I did a double take. "How do you know?"
"I saw when you were getting Ellie. It's okay, because I don't trust you either, and I have a knife back there. I would have killed you before you could have pulled it out."
"Great," I muttered.
"I'm not going to hurt the kid. You, maybe. But only if you give me reason to."
"Fine," I said, shifting uncomfortably.
"We're stopping soon," she paused, and I could see the hesitation. "I hurt my leg. It's not bad anymore, but I have to keep it clean until it fully heals. Do you have any medical supplies?"
I hesitated to answer, which was enough for her.
"We aren't going to wipe you out, I promise. We're going to have to help each other," she said.
A question has been bothering me. "Where are you headed? What's this place?"
She looked at Ellie. "Somewhere with beds, showers, and clean clothes. And other kids."
Ellie immediately looked up and squealed. I shushed her but not before she detached herself from me and stumbled towards Jocelyn.
"There are kids my age?" she asked.
"How old are you?"
"Um," she held up five fingers. "Five."
"Connor's just about your age."
"My birthday is coming up." In reality, I didn't know. I figured, you know, that it had to be around July by now, and Ellie's birthday was in August.
"That's nice," Jocelyn said, and she looked at me strangely. Her voice was a little awkward.
"I like your singing," Ellie told her. "I heard you."
"Oh," Jocelyn said, looking back at Remy. He was standing back, and I noticed he was keeping his eyes on me. He walked up beside Jocelyn, never dropping his gaze.
"Are you… are you two siblings?" I asked, looking at the two of them. They didn't look much alike, but then again, neither did Ellie and I.
Remy barked with laughter and Jocelyn shook her head, glaring at him. He smirked at her.
"Okay?" I said, frowning.
"We aren't siblings," Remy said.
I shrugged and held Ellie's hand.
"Alright," Jocelyn said, "We'd better get going."
It was pretty awkward in the beginning. Remy took flank, and I was stuck in the front with Jocelyn and Ellie. Jocelyn never let go of her spear.
"So," I said, looking at her. "You aren't going to tell me where we're going?"
"I already told you. Somewhere safe." She paused. "No. Not until Remy trusts you."
"Why Remy?"
She looked at me and grimaced. "I have a problem with trusting people."
"I see," I said shortly, staring at the road ahead of me. "You don't have to worry about me. I don't betray people."
"And I know this how?"
"Because it's wrong," I pointed out.
She laughed bitterly. "Yeah. It's wrong. Doesn't stop people from doing it."
I guess I couldn't argue that.
-o-o-o-
Later on, I stood outside with Ellie as Remy and Jocelyn cleared a building. Once they were done, we settled down. Remy gave his sleeping bag to Ellie and me.
"What about you?" I asked. Ellie was so small that we both would fit easily.
"Don't worry about me, mon ami," He smiled and winked. Ellie hugged Remy around the legs. He looked slightly confused, but got over it.
I saw what he was talking about when he went over to Jocelyn. She had laid her sleeping bag on a torn up couch. Remy said something to her and she rolled her eyes and pointed to the floor. I could hear him laughing.
I brought Ellie over to the other side of the room and laid the bag down. I took my gun out of my belt and switched safety on, shoving it in the bag.
Facing away from the two, I got in and eased Ellie in with me. She immediately curled into me and closed her eyes. I wrapped an arm around her and closed mine, too. My hand closed around the revolver though. Just in case.
I hoped I wouldn't need it.
I slept dreamlessly. Ellie always calmed me down a lot, and kept me from getting too crazy. I had to keep it together for her. When I woke, Ellie was still snoring lightly into my chest. I gently unzipped the sleeping bag and rolled out. She just turned over and curled into a ball.
Jocelyn was on the couch with Remy, sleeping. She was facing away from him, but curled into his body like she fit there.
It was then that I realized how lonely I had been. Sure, I had Ellie, but it had been months since I've had a conversation with someone who talks about more than which picture to color next.
I stood in the middle of the room pretty awkwardly. I thought about waking them up, but decided against it. They probably wouldn't appreciate it.
So I rummaged through my bag. Twice. There wasn't much to rummage through, anyway. I kind of threw things around, hoping that enough noise would wake everyone up. It worked.
"What's with the racket?" Remy asked, twisting to face me.
I shrugged. "Just taking count of things."
"How long have you been up?"
"About a half an hour."
Remy sat up and stretched, not bothering to wake Jocelyn. "First night she's slept really well," Remy told me. "Her leg's a lot better."
"What happened?"
His eyes flashed dangerously. "She stepped into a fight."
I frowned. "Why?"
"Because I was being stupid and picked a fight. That's why."
I tried to picture it in my head. Jocelyn didn't seem the type to put up with bullshit. Anyone's bullshit. "So you're together?"
"Nah," he said dismissively, but hesitated. "I mean, I don't know. Does it matter these days?"
"Just didn't think she was the type."
"She's not," Remy snorted. "I'm surprised she hasn't knifed me yet. Guess she's too hardheaded."
"Well, she did take a hit for you," I said, leaning back against a wall.
"I would have been killed otherwise," Remy replied. "She doesn't like people to die."
"And the other kid? What happened to them?"
"We got separated."
"You didn't kill him?"
"It's… complicated." And I could tell by the tone of his voice that it was.
"Was he a part of this place? Where the other kids are at?"
"Yeah," he said. "Yeah, we have quite a few people there."
"How do things work there?"
"I don't know. Like normal?" He stood up, brushing off his jeans. He stared at me and tilted his head. "You like Rise Against?"
"What?"
"Your shirt."
Oh. I had taken my army jacket—which had belonged to Gramps—off, and under it was a t-shirt for one of my favorite bands. It was mostly covered in blood and sweat, but oh well. "Yeah," I said, shrugging. "What does 'normal' mean?"
"Guess you'll find out, right?"
I looked to Ellie. "Yeah, guess so."
Another half an hour passed before Remy went over to Jocelyn and woke her up. By waking her up, I mean him practically kissing her awake. I turned away in embarrassment and went to wake Ellie.
"Jesus, Remy," I heard. "You could have just pushed me off the couch or something."
I withheld a laugh. I picked Ellie up from the ground, and shifted so she was on my waist. Her head was rested in the crook of my neck as I reached down to grab the sleeping bag. I awkwardly rolled it up against my leg before Jocelyn took it from me and did it herself. She looked slightly disheveled, and her cheeks were pink.
"I'm sorry you have to put up with him," Jocelyn said, her eyes on me. By the smile on her lips, I could tell that she didn't mind all that much. "Remy's a cocky bastard."
"No problem," I said, and I vaguely remembered going to high school, where couples did those sorts of things all the time. This was different, though. We've all grown in a lot of ways.
"It's because of my speaking French," Remy said from across the room, rolling Jocelyn's bag up. "She's crazy for it."
"He's lying," she told me, rolling her eyes. "I don't even really like him all that much. He's incredibly annoying."
"Not what you said last night," Remy said airily, and Jocelyn glared at him.
"I could—"
"—Kill me, I know. She threatens me a lot," Remy said to me, and I smiled awkwardly. What does one even say in this situation?
"She even punched me once," he said, and I flinched. From the look on Remy's face, he noticed.
"We should get going," Jocelyn decided, eyeing Ellie. "Will she wake up soon?"
I shrugged. "She sleeps a lot. She'll be hungry when she finally wakes up, though. The kid is like a garbage disposal."
"And you'll carry her?"
"Well, yeah," I said, looking at them. "We have to get going, right?"
"Right," Remy said, smirking. "Let's get going, then."
And we did. The sun seemed to beat us, and its rays burned my skin. I started to sweat a few minutes in, since I was wearing a coat. But I didn't dare take it off. Remy was wearing a light grey jacket with the hood up, and Jocelyn was wearing a dark grey tank top that contrasted against her pale skin. She probably didn't tan well, just like Ellie. My skin—much like Remy's—was a lot darker.
Looking closer, I could see that Jocelyn had a lot of scars. Her left arm had wounds that seemed more recent, and red streaks crisscrossed from her shoulder to her hand.
I trailed behind the two, just observing them. Jocelyn walked more rigidly than Remy, like she was in the army. I could imagine what kind of person Jocelyn would be without her counterpart, and the result was probably more intimidating than she already was.
Something about Remy seemed familiar. I might have seen him skateboarding on the sidewalks one time, because he seemed the type—but something about him stood out.
His attitude, his voice.
I've been all around the city, and New York City was huge. But I felt like I've really seen him before. And he stood out.
My mind brings me back to a late night, in our stuffy apartment. Our means the apartment my Mom and Dad shared. There was screaming and sirens and Ellie was crying again though she didn't remember why. There was a sound of a man hitting a woman over and over and over again and me yelling because I was young and I was confused as to why Mom and Dad were fighting again. I was confused as to what I did wrong when Dad hit me, too, like he does whenever he gets upset with me. I was confused as to why when Mom fell asleep, Dad panicked and called the police and before I knew it Mom was in the hospital. We couldn't stay there, of course, and a lady had to ask us some questions and we ended up in a police department.
The lady apologized for our loss. I asked her what she meant and she left for a while. When she came back, she told me that Mom wouldn't come back. I started banging on the tables and then on the walls and then on the floor and when the lady noticed my bruises she left again for longer. Someone had taken Ellie at that time and I was alone.
Gran and Gramps were rung up and they were there soon. They had to be interviewed too, and I had to sit in the waiting room like a good kid.
I was pretty torn up, sobbing and pacing, when another boy was dragged in, kicking and punching at the police officers that were holding him.
"Let me go!" He yelled. "There's no way in hell I'm going there!"
The boy looked around my age, but he was dirty and his clothes were too big for him and his hair hung over his eyes. He locked eyes with me.
"Help me," he yelled at me. "They're going to take me!"
I froze. The police officers apparently thought it was over, since they had him in the station, because as soon as I started to say something, the boy ducked from their grip and sprinted out of the door. One of the officers swore loudly and chased after him.
I sat in that waiting room for hours. The boy never did come back.
But the boy standing in front of me has given me a pretty good idea of where he ended up.
-o-o-o-
Ellie was still sleeping—or at least half asleep—an hour later. My arms began to ache and it got harder and harder to walk and eventually, I was stumbling. I had to keep adjusting her, which she moaned and groan about until Remy came over and held out his arms.
"No way, man," I said. "Have you ever even held a kid?"
"Can't be that hard. Besides, Jocelyn's a wicked fighter and she probably shouldn't have a kid weighing her down."
"I can hold her."
"I'd rather you be handy in a fight," Remy said, more for my sake than his.
I shook my head but after a few more minutes of walking, I handed her over. Remy was a bit taller than me, and it was easy for Ellie to wrap her arms around his neck and cling to him.
"If you drop her I'll kill you," I warned him.
"Everyone just loves to threaten me, don't they?" Remy said as we caught up with Jocelyn, who hadn't bothered to stop.
"Just don't drop her."
Ellie was pretty panicked when she woke up in Remy's arms instead of mine, but Remy kept his word and didn't drop her. Instead, he held her out to me and I quickly set her down. After she had calmed down, she was pretty pink in the cheeks.
Jocelyn was smiling, and began to say something before we heard a scream. It was heart-wrenching, and suddenly I wasn't sure if it was an attack we were hearing.
I stopped in the middle of the street, along with Remy, but Jocelyn took off running.
Remy stood in confusion but moments later, his eyes widened. "Oh, shit."
And he ran too.
I ran as fast as I could with a five year-old, and eventually slung her over my back. I couldn't manage much more than a quick jog, and soon Remy was out of sight. I heard another scream and just ran in that direction. Turning an alleyway, I slammed straight into Remy, who was holding down a frantic Jocelyn.
"It's him! I know it's him!" she shrieked. "LET ME GO!"
She kneed Remy in the gut and he rolled over, groaning. She took the opportunity and sprinted away. Remy was struggling for breath and I let Ellie down.
"Watch her," I commanded. I only had time to see him shake his head before I took off after her.
Remy was not too far behind me. He was fast, probably faster than me without a kid on his back. Jocelyn was running like it was life or death, but judging by the scream it was.
Whose scream was it, though?
She turned a corner and I followed her, and ahead I saw them. Adults. Tens of them.
I saw Jocelyn pull her knife before I tackled her to the ground. She fell, and Remy skidded behind me, pushed me out of the way, and held her down. They wrestled until finally she was in a standing position, and he was holding her back.
"Grab her knife," Remy yelled at me, and I noticed that if Remy's hand wasn't over Jocelyn's mouth, she probably would have been screaming at the top of her lungs.
I lunged forward and grabbed it from her bound hand, almost getting sliced in the process. I looked out into the horde and saw what she saw. A boy with brown hair was down the street, just in view of Jocelyn. The only thing blocking them was a bunch of kid-eating monsters.
The kid seemed to be walking down the street in a daze. He kept grasping at his chest, like he was missing something. He was walking straight towards the adults.
"Shit, shit, shit!" Remy said, struggling to keep Jocelyn in check. Suddenly, she broke free, grabbed Remy's machete, and ran out onto the street.
Remy didn't hesitate as he ran after her.
All the while Ellie was crying silently behind me. She knew not to make noise around the monsters. I kneeled down.
"Stay here and hide," I spoke quickly and ran off. She was probably freaking out, but I had to help. Looking back, I saw her curl up near a dumpster, pulling her bag over her.
Looking forward, I saw hell break loose.
In the confusion, I don't think the boy saw us. Jocelyn was screaming for him and slashing away at adults, but the boy was almost… entranced. I saw him pull out a sword and swing at the adults, effectively decapitating one. He was yelling something, and over Jocelyn's own screaming and Remy's pleading, I could barely hear what.
"You killed her! You fucking killed her!"
"Freak!" Jocelyn screamed. "I'm here! I'm right here!"
With my own spear, I had already killed five of the adults. Every stab was a fatal one. There were about twenty left, and the boy was being surrounded.
At fifteen left, we couldn't see the boy.
At ten left, the boy suddenly cried in pain.
Five left. Jocelyn and Remy took care of the ones surrounding the boy.
None left. I stood in the street, watching Jocelyn kneel over a boy with torn clothes. I stumbled forward, getting a better look. There was a huge gash on his lower arm.
My vision went blurry, and all I could hear- or see- were pulses, coming from their direction.
"We have to tourniquet and cut!" I heard. Jocelyn was screaming as blood gushed from the boy in various spots.
"Freak!" she yelled at him. "Stay with me, you bastard!"
The boy named Freak looked up at Jocelyn and blinked. He frowned. "Jocelyn?"
"Yes, you stupid idiot," Jocelyn sobbed. Remy had tripped his belt and was using something—I couldn't tell what—to tourniquet the boy's upper arm.
"My… my arm feels funny," the boy whispered. His eyes were big and brown, and looked bloodshot.
"Will!" Jocelyn yelled at me. "Do you have any pain meds?"
I fumbled with my bag and produced a thing of Tylenol, the best I could offer at the time. Nonetheless she fumbled with the bottle and dropped about four in Freak's mouth. "Swallow them," she whispered urgently, and he did.
"Am I dead? You're dead…"
"You're not dead, Freak, and neither am I. We just got separated," Jocelyn was looking from his arm to the boy's face, tears streaming from her eyes. Remy grabbed his machete and looked at Jocelyn.
"Will, you have to hold him down."
"What?"
"Get some alcohol wipes from your bag. Remy, clean your machete. Do it now!"
Remy cleaned it the best he could with his hoodie, and frantically used the alcohol wipes to try to sterilize it. I stumbled forward and held the boy's legs down.
"Jocelyn, what are you doing?" Freak asked.
"Your arm has to come off before—before it gets infected."
"It already is. I'm going to see you. And my brother."
"Freak, no," Her voice got higher, and Remy positioned the machete on his arm. "I'm right here. Stay with me."
Freak coughed up some blood and it splattered on Jocelyn's face. He coughed again, more violently, and his face paled.
I blocked out Freak's screams and looked away as Remy began to cut. His body jerked against mine, and his cries were agonizing. He was screaming for them to stop, to please stop, to just kill him. Jocelyn was trying to yell over him, but it was no use.
It wasn't Remy's doing that caused it. Maybe Freak was right about it being infected, or the fact that we missed the stab wound in the small of his back that caused him to slowly bleed out. But soon Freak stopped yelling.
"No!" Jocelyn screamed, shaking his face, Remy was supporting Freak's body to press bandages to his back, which was the actual cause of the large pool of blood he was laying in, along with the bite wound. Freak was trying to say something, but he kept choking on blood.
Jocelyn leaned in really close as Freak coughed and managed to say it:
"My name is Tommy."
