Amethyst wasn't going to do it, hell no.
"Taking it out right now is going to make it worse." She decided.
Ruby took a deep breath and could faintly see a bright light coming for her, but she was using all her strength to stay away from it.
"We just need to go." Sapphire suggested. "We need to keep walking and see if someone will help!"
"That sounds better... How about that gas station over there?" Amethyst nods her head over to the right, where the Mobil gas station sat. It was surrounded by fencing and one person who was staring creepily at them from the roof.
Sapphire and Peridot looked, finding it suspicious, but both started to walk towards it.
"Do you have bad feeling about this?" Sapphire asks.
"Oho yeah," she replies with a scoff. "But, this will either help your girlfriend or kill us both."
Sapphire stays silent.
"My bet is the latter."
Sapphire sighed and expected such an answer. The fencing-to-Mobil wasn't too far apart.
They were faced with the man, who actually looked like a teenager at a closer view, a shining pair of sunglasses and a shotgun in hand.
"Good day to you." Sapphire greeted first, raising her voice.
"How may I help you?" He also raised his voice.
"We were hoping you have a doctor or someone who can help us with my... our friend."
"Let me go see. Stay right there, okay?"
He seems to go down a ladder and they waited.
"Well thanks for asking me if I wanted to talk to him." Peridot placed her one hand on her hip.
"You think they're going to kill us."
"Yeah, but with my charming and charismatic appeal, he would've gotten help way faster."
"Sorry, I'll ask next time."
Sapphire really wasn't going to.
The teenager comes out, along with an older woman and what seems to be her young daughter. They walk up to the fence. Up close, all three looked about as fed up as anyone would be.
"You need help?" She asks.
"Yes, please, our friend got shot and we're just in need for some help and then we'll go."
The woman looked at the two with a somewhat contemplating look, juggling whether or not to help them, and goes with,
"Okay, try to bring her inside. I'll try to help to the best of my ability."
"Thank you so much-
"Sapphire, you stay here! I'll get them!" Peridot says and then runs off before Sapphire can even reply.
"Did it happen just now?" She asks.
"Pretty much," Sapphire replies, "She was shot by an old group member."
"Dang." The teen reacted.
Sapphire turns, seeing Amethyst and Peridot, side-to-side, carrying Ruby, who looked dead and limp.
"Hurry up, you two!" The woman yelled at the two.
"The name is Priyanka." She speaks to Sapphire again. "Dr. Maheswaran, if you still care for formality."
"Sapphire. Ruby is the one that's hurt, Peridot was here, and the last one is Amethyst."
The boy opens the gate, "I'm Buck."
"And this here is my daughter, Connie." Dr. Maheswaran introduced.
Inside, there was two other families and most were sleeping.
The ones that were awake watched as Ruby was carried in. Some looked quite scared, as if Ruby was turning into a zombie that very moment, and others looked sceptical and suspicious of the new group.
"Please place her in the back room so I can assess what I can do." Dr. Maheswaran pointed to the open door in the back with a table and various boxes within it. Peridot and Amethyst followed.
After placing Ruby on the hard metal table, the two watched for a moment as her chest went up and down in slow breaths.
"She's in good hands, I can assure you that."
The two leave, walking up to Sapphire, who was standing alone by the entrance.
"Are you okay?" Amethyst asked the silent girl.
"Yeah... I'm fine." Sapphire stared at her blood-covered hands.
"She's going to be fine." Amethyst put her also-bloody hand on the other's shoulder.
"I swear, I will kill all of you if your friend in there turns and tries to touch me or my family!" An older man stands up and start to yell at the three. He was dressed a little too well for how far into the apocalypse. He must've had
"Hey man, she wasn't bitten, okay?! She was shot!" Amethyst pushes him away. "We're just here to help her then we'll go!"
"Oh, you'd be surprised by how many people I've seen turn from falling asleep!"
"Dad, stop!" A teen girl grabbed her father's arm. "Their friend is hurt, give them some space!"
"I will not give some space when someone is about to put my life in danger! I-
"Kofi, I will ignore that you were threatening newcomers." Dr. Maheswaran walked out, wearing gloves and holding a bandage wrap. "Your thundering voice is very prominent through this door."
Kofi looked irritated with the whole situation.
"Please, let me work and help them. They're clearly no harm to any of us."
"Then they should stand outside! Away from us!"
"What the hell is your problem?!" Amethyst stepped up to him.
"Just go outside, please!" Dr. Maheswaran demanded. "I need to work!"
The three decided to follow the order, leaving outside into the warm day.
The only person outside was Buck, who was back on the roof, and watching over while walking back and forth.
"What brings you three back out here?" He asks as he looks over the edge.
"Kofi went off on us, yo." Amethyst replied, "Why he so crotchety?"
"He's just trying to protect his family, man. He just louder about it."
Everyone agreed with that.
"Hey, Dr. Maheswaran is the best out there, your friend is going to be great after."
"The best out there right now." Peridot included.
"Right, but you picking up what I'm putting down."
Sapphire has since walked away towards the fence, watching clouds and the street.
She's going to be okay... she's going to be okay... She'll be fine... Why do they keep calling her my girlfriend?
We can't be together, can't we? Life is hard right now. We can't possibly make it work. Wait... why... Why am I losing my mind?
She clears her throat. She walks back to them.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but we should all really wash our hands, no?"
"Oh, right. I was so distracted with keeping Ruby alive and fighting with Kofi that I totally forgot..." Amethyst looked at her hands.
"Alright, be careful with Kofi inside then." Buck walks back the other way.
"It was only a few minutes and you couldn't handle standing out there!" Kofi went off the moment the door opened.
"We're covered in blood! Calm down while we go in the bathroom to wash this off and not get infected by our friend." Amethyst defended just as quickly.
Amethyst and Sapphire went to the open restroom and started the sink, which actually had water, to their relief.
"How do you think she's doing?" Sapphire asks.
"Ruby is pretty strong. I know she's going to be fine. And you, I am sure you will jump into her lap the moment she's okay." Amethyst winks at her and then shakes her hands to dry them.
Sapphire does the same with her hands. She wasn't sure how to feel about Amethyst's remark.
Amethyst and Peridot waited at the door.
Sapphire felt all eyes on her as she walked across the room, and through the door.
"You're awake." Dr. Maheswaran took her gloves off.
Ruby had only the bandage around her body, left in her pants and shoes. She breathed slowly as she regained herself again.
"Who are you?" Ruby asked as she turns her head.
"I'm Dr. Maheswaran. You were brought here by your group and they'll be happy to know that you're just fine. Luckily, I was able to extract that bullet and patch you up."
"Thanks..." Ruby furrowed her brows. "Can I see them...? My friends?"
"One of them is having some trouble with my group. Amethyst, was it? She didn't do anything, but she is vocal."
"That sounds like her... I should rest a little more."
"Please do. I'll tell them that you were awake for a little."
She walks out her room, closing the door behind her, and saw that the three came back inside, sitting further away from everyone else.
"How is she?" Sapphire stands up and goes up to the doctor.
"I'm happy to tell you that she is okay."
Sapphire lets out a heavy sigh of relief.
"But, she is going to need rest. So, please, get comfortable as she heals."
"Y-yeah, no problem. We can last a few days, right?" Sapphire turns to the other two.
"Yeah, we can manage." Amethyst looks across the room, "... or try."