It had been two days and no one had barely spoken a word. The silence was filled with their thoughts racing around, replaying the scene over and over again, and wishing they had done something different. Sarah was an innocent girl who didn't deserve to live in this world. Gemma tried to believe that, but no matter how many times she spoke the words in her head, she couldn't. Even though Sarah was at peace now, her time could have been longer. I was supposed to protect her. I promised her I would protect her. How could I just let her slip through my fingertips like that? Gemma put a hand on her forehead, squinting her eyes as she tried to subdue the pain from the headache she was getting.
"You alright?" Nick asked quietly.
"Yeah, just a headache. It just sucks that we don't have any ibuprofen," she answered, dropping her hand from her forehead. Nick took her hand and squeezed it.
"I know this is hard for you. Hell, it's hard for me. But we can't slow down, especially now. We gotta keep our heads straight so that we can get out of this permanent winter," he said, looking around at the muddy road with the occasional patches of snow that hadn't melted yet.
They were silent for a moment.
"How long has it been?" Gemma asked, looking straight ahead.
"How long since what?" Nick asked.
"Since I met you." Nick thought about it. He remembered it had been late autumn the day he found Gemma in a tree. Just a few days ago Sarah said she thought it was February. "I'd say about four months," he said.
"Huh, feels like forever," She said, looking up at him. He smiled and kissed her hand. And there go the butterflies… Gemma thought to herself. Adelaide, who was ahead of them, suddenly turned around and grinned.
"Gemma look!" she said, pointing to a small sign further down the road. Gemma squinted her eyes but couldn't make out what it said.
"What is it?" she asked.
"It says Philadelphia in 30 miles. We're so close, we could go home!" Adelaide exclaimed. Gemma's smile dropped and she looked down.
"No." Adelaide stopped walking.
"Why?" she asked.
"I don't wanna know what it looks like now. I just wanna remember it how it used to be: happy and not part of this hell." Gemma said.
Adelaide's shoulders dropped.
"But we're so close," Adelaide whispered, her voice cracking. Gemma didn't look at her sister. She didn't want to see the pain in her eyes that she knew would cause her to change her mind.
For a while in the beginning of the apocalypse she planned on returning home. It wasn't until she was with another group member that visited their own home did she realize how it would break her. When they got to their house they fell to their knees and sobbed because of how abandoned it looked. They never went inside because they could see the blood smears on the windows and hear the moans coming from inside. If Gemma went back home she knew she would lose it. The only thing holding her together now was the little hope that the world could change and go back to how it used to be. If she saw the only thing in her head that was still pre-apocalypse now post-apocalypse, her heart would break and she would be done with the world. Adelaide turned back around and caught up to Luke. Gemma watched as Luke put an arm around the upset girl.
The only sound was the crunching of their feet on the ground. Nick cleared his throat.
"You know, if I had the chance to see my house again, I would. All of the pictures and the familiarity of it would be more comforting than discouraging. I know it's scary to think about, but maybe Adelaide's right. Maybe we should go back to where you used to live. We've been in this apocalypse for so long, don't you think it will be refreshing to see it again?" he asked.
Gemma didn't say anything. They continued walking.
Nick was about to say something again when Gemma interrupted him.
"I used to think that way, but I saw someone go through it. When they saw their old house, they completely broke down. I don't want to go through that and I don't want my sister to go through that."
She stopped walking suddenly and held onto Nick's arm tightly.
"Whoa, you okay?" he asked as he held her shoulders steady. Luke and Adelaide turned around. Gemma squinted her eyes tightly.
"I just felt really light headed just then and—," she stopped, turned away from Nick, and vomited. Adelaide jogged over and put a hand on her sister's back, letting Nick step back. She pulled Gemma's hair behind her head as the shaking girl threw up again.
"Sorry," Gemma whispered, obviously embarrassed.
"No, no, just get it out," Adelaide said as she rubbed her back.
Gemma leaned back up. "I think I'm good. I don't know what the hell that was."
Luke scratched the back of his head and glanced at the girl. "Shit, we're not all going to get sick, right?" he asked. Adelaide shot a look at him before turning back to her sister.
She put a hand on her forehead. "Hm, you don't feel hot. Maybe it was something you ate," she thought out loud, though she didn't say what she was really thinking. Gemma nodded and looked at Nick who was staring at her with sympathetic eyes. She was really tired and he could see it so he offered to carry her. At first she hesitated, but gave in.
A few hours later when Gemma was fast asleep in his arms, Adelaide slowed down and walked next to Nick. "She's out like a rock," she laughed.
Nick smiled. "Yeah, she fell asleep right away," he said.
Adelaide looked at the sleeping girl. She looked so peaceful. "How long has she been feeling like this?" she asked.
"Well, she hasn't thrown up until today, but she's been complaining about having headaches for a few days now. You don't think it's a migraine? She said she used to get them a lot when she was younger," Nick said.
"No, trust me, she would know if it was a migraine. They hurt like hell and any sound or light," she said as she looked up at the bright sun, "only makes it worse."
Nick nodded and looked down for a few seconds before looking straight ahead again. It was quiet between the two for a minute.
"Nick, there's no way of knowing for sure right now, but I think she could be…" Adelaide began, but she couldn't finish the sentence. "Never mind," she said at last.
"I know," he said. He looked at the shorter girl next to him. Adelaide was surprised.
"Oh," was all she could say.
Nick looked forward again. "I recognized the symptoms. We had a woman in our old group who went through the same thing. Headaches, nausea, tiredness," he said as he looked down at Gemma.
"Do you think she knows?" Adelaide asked.
"I don't know. She wasn't part of our group until the woman was already heavily pregnant, so she wouldn't know the signs," Nick said. Adelaide nodded and sighed.
"We don't know for sure. Hell, we could all wake up tomorrow feeling as shitty as her and realize it really was a stomach bug. We should wait to tell her," she said.
"Yeah," Nick agreed, "So, are we actually gonna go to your old house? We should be on the outskirts of the city by now."
Adelaide thought for a second before speaking. "No. She's right. I don't wanna see what it looks like now. And if we do go, it'll only upset her. Plus, the further we go into the city, the more dangerous it'll be. I'm sure it's crawling with biters."
"Hey guys!" Luke called to them, jogging their way. He had gone up ahead of them to scope out what was there. "Found a small neighborhood with a few houses that doesn't look too bad. We could spend the night in one of 'em," he said when he had finally reached them.
Adelaide threw her arms up in the air. "Thank GOD! I'm so sick of sleeping on the ground!" she exclaimed. Luke laughed at the brunette and looked over to see Gemma still cradled in Nick's arms.
"She's still passed out?" he asked, surprised. He noticed a small smile curve on the edge of her mouth. He began to chuckle.
"What?" Nick asked.
"Nothin', just think you got yourself a faker there," Luke said with a grin. Nick felt Gemma try to hold back a laugh against his chest. He stopped walking and looked down at her.
"Really?" he asked her. Gemma couldn't hold it in any longer and burst out laughing. Nick couldn't help but chuckle himself; Gemma's laugh was contagious.
She burrowed her face deeper into his chest. "You're warm… and I'm lazy," she explained.
"All right, my arms are numb. I gotta put you down," he said. After he set her down, he dramatically rubbed his arms. Gemma scoffed and put a hand on her hip.
"Oh come on, I'm not that fat!" she said, playfully punching him in the arm.
"Ow," he whined, now rubbing his shoulder where she "punched" him. Gemma rolled her eyes. She pointed and shook her head at Luke who was laughing next to Adelaide. He put his hands up in defense. They all laughed as they started walking towards the neighborhood, with Luke leading the way.
Gemma looked at Nick who smiled his big, goofy, adorable smile. "To my defense, I had only just woken up when Luke yelled at the top of his lungs to us. I'm surprised he didn't attract any walkers," Gemma teased, giving Luke a side glance.
Nick and Adelaide exchanged a look of relief, both glad that Gemma hadn't heard their conversation.
Nick looked at Gemma's body, unable to imagine her pregnant. She had a small frame that looked in no way able to push out a nine pound baby on its own. What if that happened? What if she died giving birth? What if the baby died inside of her… would it, too, turn into a walker and kill her from the inside out? His heartbeat quickened with the unwanted thoughts.
Gemma looped her arm around his and laid her head on his shoulder, but quickly lifted it off again when she felt him tense. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked with a worried expression on her face.
"Y-yeah," he said, not looking at her.
She tried to joke with him. "I didn't get you sick, did I?" she asked with a small smile.
He forced out laugh and barely attempted a smile.
What is up with him? He was just laughing around with me a minute ago, Gemma thought to herself. She decided to give him some space and dropped her arm form his. She folded her arms to keep herself warm.
She watched Luke and Adelaide flirt with each other a few feet ahead of her. They both swore it was only a friendship, but obviously they felt differently. Gemma was happy that they'd clicked so quickly. She didn't want Luke to feel like the third wheel around her and Nick. She noticed out of the corner of her eye Nick looking at her.
She looked up at him with an expression as if to ask, "What?" His blue eyes looked a little sad. Maybe he was thinking about Sarah, or his mom, or anyone that he had lost these past few years. Nick wrapped his arm around her and pulled him towards him. Without saying a word, he kissed her forehead and then continued walking. His arm slid down to her waist, resting his hand on her hip. She didn't know what kind of mood he was in, but she didn't mind the affection. In fact, Gemma was spoiled with it. She never expected Nick to be that kind of guy in the first few weeks of meeting him. He even told her he wasn't much of a romantic. Liar, she thought to herself, smirking.
They had reached the small neighborhood Luke was talking about earlier. It looked like a ghost town, making Gemma uncomfortable. It was always weird for her to see places that once thrived with life now so vacant. They chose a faded, yellow house at the end of the cul-de-sac that looked to be in the best shape.
"Cute," Adelaide said as they approached it. Gemma nodded in agreement.
It was an older house, probably built in the early twentieth century. It had a small porch in the front and a narrow hallway with stairs when that welcomed them when they opened the front door. Gemma walked over to some photos on the walls. There was a picture of a small family posing on the beach with two small dogs. Another was of the two young children from the previous photo building a snowman twice their size. Gemma chuckled at the sweet picture. Adelaide nudged her with her elbow lightly.
"C'mon, we gotta search the house," she said. Gemma nodded and followed her to the back of the house.
Nick and Luke we're upstairs searching the bedrooms. There looked to be a guest bedroom, a kid's bedroom with bunk-beds, and a master bedroom. There were two bathrooms, and as expected, no running water. There didn't seem to be much of any signs of other survivors ruffling around the house, looking for supplies.
"We got lucky," Luke said as he opened a hallway closet to reveal a few sleeping bags.
"Bingo," Nick said from an open door down the hallway. He had opened the medicine cabinet in the bathroom and found some generic cold and flu medicine, pain relievers, and bandaging supplies.
"Nice," Luke said, walking into the bathroom with the sleeping bags in his hands. Nick took the medicine and put it in his bag. He followed Luke back downstairs.
Adelaide and Gemma were standing in the hallway again, looking at the different pictures. "Downstairs is clear," Gemma said, turning around and facing the guys coming down the stairs.
"Found some medicine and sleeping bags," Luke said.
"Awesome," Adelaide said, walking up and taking one from his hand to examine it. "Seems to have held up. No holes or anything," she observed. She looked up at Luke with her bright eyes and smiled. Luke couldn't help but stare into them. He blushed and looked away when he realized what he was doing. Gemma raised an eyebrow and tried to hold back a giggle, causing Adelaide to roll her eyes.
"Let's start a fire," Luke said, trying to change the subject.
A few hours later they were all sitting together in the living room after eating their dinner of canned beans they had found in the kitchen. Gemma yawned.
"Okay, who gets which room?" she asked as she stretched her arms. Luke and Adelaide looked around awkwardly. Nick cleared his throat.
"Okay, if no one's gonna call it, we're taking the master bedroom," he decided.
"Uh, I guess I'll take the kids room," Adelaide said quickly.
"You can have the guest bedroom. The bed's bigger, it'll be more comfortable," Luke suggested.
"Which is exactly why you should be sleeping in it. You won't fit in a bunk-bed," Adelaide argued.
Gemma and Nick exchanged a glance. "Okay, we're hitting the hay. 'Night!" Nick said as he stood up. He pulled Gemma off the couch and they went upstairs.
It was quiet and obviously awkward between the two that were left. Luke scratched the back of his head. "Uh, yeah I guess it makes more sense for me to sleep in the guest bed," he hesitated, "I mean, um… if you want… if you would be more comfortable, you could sleep with me."
Adelaide gave him a look.
"Oh, wait, no I meant sleep in the same bed with me," he stammered. Adelaide blushed at his offer but couldn't help but laugh at how flustered he was. She decided that if she was going to have the opportunity to sleep in a bed, she was going to have a good night's sleep in one that was made for her size and not a child's.
"Sure," she said after a few seconds.
Luke's face lit up. "Yeah, okay," he said, standing up. He cleared his throat as he followed Adelaide upstairs. When they got to the room, Adelaide sat on the edge of the bed and kicked off her shoes. Luke just stood by the door, unsure of what to do. She looked up at him as she took off her jacket.
"What?" she asked. "Nothin'," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
"Um, I don't usually sleep with a shirt on. Do you mind?" he asked.
Adelaide blushed and crawled under the covers before shaking her head 'no'. He went to the other side of the bed and pulled off his shirt. Adelaide faced the opposite direction to give him privacy and to hide her red face. Luke crawled under the covers and rubbed his face with his hands. "
Goodnight," Adelaide's small voice came from next to him. He dropped his hands.
"'Night," he said back.
They both lay still for what felt like the longest time, neither getting a wink of sleep. Finally Adelaide sighed, knowing she just had to get this off her chest so that they could both get some well-deserved rest. She rolled over and faced Luke, who opened his eyes and looked at her.
"Listen, I know this is uncomfortable with you, and is for me, too. But we gotta get over it, or else I'm not going to be able to sleep at all tonight."
"I'm fine," he lied.
"Yeah, and you've been in the same position for the past hour," she said.
Luke smiled at her remark.
Adelaide closed her eyes for a few seconds before blurting out, "Okay, I know this will make you feel really awkward around me, but if I don't say it, I won't be able to get any shut eye tonight." she sighed, "I… I like you."
She quickly rolled back over and brought the covers up to her face. Luke took a second to process what she had just said.
"Wait… what?" he asked, sitting up on his arm.
Adelaide mumbled something under the covers.
Luke gently pulled the covers down from her face. She blew a few wavy stands off her face and looked up at him. He got lost in her beauty. The way the moonlight coming through the window softened her face and made her eyes glow bright was irresistible. The waves of her hair draped delicately on the pillow and her shoulders. He noticed her look at his lips and knew they both wanted the same thing.
He slowly brought his face down to hers and gently pecked her lips. Her body stayed still and he was worried he had misread her signals. He felt embarrassed and was about to pull away when she grabbed the back of his head and brought their lips together again.
Her actions caught Luke off-guard and had to put his other hand on the other side of Adelaide's torso to keep his balance. Their kisses were quick and passionate. Adelaide ran one hand through his hair and the other along his back. All of the feelings and flirtations between them came out and she moaned into the kiss. Luke smiled as he moved from her lips to her jaw, giving her small kisses until he reached the crook of her neck, allowing Adelaide to catch her breath. Her heartbeat raced with adrenaline and her senses were on fire...
The next morning the two were fast asleep. Adelaide was laying on her stomach with her head on Luke's chest. His one arm was wrapped around her and his chin resting on the top of her head. It was late morning, and very unlike the two to sleep in this late.
There was a pounding at the door that quickly woke them up. They were confused for a moment where they were as they tried to grasp their surroundings.
"Hey, wake up, it's almost noon. We're gonna be heading out soon… with or without ya," they heard Nick tease from the other side of the door.
Adelaide pulled the covers up around the two and Luke laughed a bit. He rubbed his eyes and thought about the night before. Everything was in the moment and while he enjoyed it, he hoped it wouldn't make things awkward between them now.
Adelaide leaned over the side of the bed to pick up her clothes. She grabbed Luke's jeans and tossed them on his face.
"Thanks," he said groggily and the two quickly got dressed. They made their ways down the stairs and found Nick and Gemma in the kitchen filling the bags with cans of food from the cabinets. Gemma greeted them with a raised eyebrow.
"Get enough sleep?" she asked. Adelaide looked away from her sister's eye contact and fidgeted with a button on her jacket.
"Yeah, it was so comfortable sleeping on a mattress for once that I didn't even realize how late we'd slept in. Sorry," she said.
Luke had already walked over and started to help fill the bags.
"What's for breakfast?" Adelaide asked. Nick tossed her a can of beans, "Looks like these are all that's left in the house that hasn't spoiled yet." She nodded and used a can opened she found in a drawer to open the can. Instantly a whiff of the beans hit her and everyone around her. Gemma made a disgusting face and brought a hand up to her mouth.
"That smell is gonna make me throw up," she said. Nick looked over to Adelaide who looked a little worried.
"I'll go eat this in another room," she said before walking out.
Nick zipped up his bag and threw it around his shoulder as he followed the girl. When they were in the living room, Adelaide kept her voice low as she spoke to Nick.
"Okay, this can't be a coincidence. I'm feeling fine, you seem like you're feeling fine, Luke seems like he's feeling fine. This isn't a stomach bug," she said.
They heard Luke's muffled voice in the kitchen, "You better not throw up on me."
Nick rubbed his eyes and sighed.
They could hear the door from the kitchen to the backyard open and Luke say, "Better out there than in here." Nick sat down on the couch to collect his thoughts. Adelaide ran a hand through her hair and walked back to the kitchen.
"I have no idea why but that smell made me so nauseas," Gemma said after she came back into the kitchen. Adelaide quickly finished her meal and grabbed her backpack.
"Are you okay to go?" she asked Gemma who nodded.
They were on the road again. It was still cold, but luckily not freezing. Gemma was actually pretty warm in her sweater and jean jacket. She was walking with Luke and Adelaide because Nick was in a mood again. They had found a sign on the side of the road with a map and found a general route they would follow. They were heading down to Virginia's mountains. They figured steering clear of the cities was best and since they've been in the mountains for the past few months, they we're used to them.
It was midday and so far they had only encountered a few walkers. Nick wasn't letting Gemma kill any herself, though. She couldn't understand why he suddenly had been acting so strange. Whenever she asked him about it, he would give her an indirect answer like, "If I'm closer to the lurker, I should be the one to kill it." It was putting her in a bad mood and she snapped at him for the first time. She immediately regretted it, but she didn't apologize. Nick needed to know how he was making her feel. Since the incident, they hadn't been talking to each other. Nick walked with Luke up ahead and Gemma behind with her sister. She tried to think of another subject, so she brought up Luke.
"So… did something happen with you and Luke last night?" Gemma asked.
Adelaide looked a little embarrassed to hear her sister be so forward and motioned for her to be quiet. Gemma giggled and waited for her answer. Adelaide rolled her eyes and gave in.
"Okay, yes, we made out a bit… and... we slept together," she whispered. Gemma's eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped.
"What?!" she exclaimed. Luke and Nick looked back at them, but Adelaide waved at them to turn back around.
"Shhh!" she told Gemma, but they both ended up laughing.
"Wow, that was faster than expected," Gemma whispered.
"What?" Adelaide asked.
"Nick and I had a bet to see how long it would take you guys to hook up. We expected it to be sometime soon, but not that soon. I mean, now that I think about it again, you were sleeping in the same room. What else should I have expected?" the blond haired girl teased.
Adelaide playfully shoved her sister and they burst out laughing again. The guys turned around again.
"Okay, seriously, what am I missin'?" Luke asked.
"You aren't missing anything," Gemma answered. He looked confused at first but then realized what she meant and blushed bright red. Adelaide was leaning on Gemma and hid her face in her shoulder. Nick was really out of the loop, but Gemma's wink at him let him know she'd tell him later.
About a half hour later they had decided to take a break for lunch. Before Luke opened his can, he looked over to Gemma.
"You good?" he asked. She rolled her eyes and nodded.
"I feel fine now, just shitty the past few mornings," she said, opening up her own can.
Suddenly she stopped opening her can as she thought about what she just said. The word passed through her mind. Pregnant? No, no she couldn't be. She thought about the classic signs of an early pregnancy. Morning sickness, headaches, tiredness, stronger sense of smell. It could have all been coincidence, but what were the odds? What would she tell Nick? She didn't even know for sure if she was. She couldn't tell him until she knew for sure; she wouldn't want to scare him.
"Gemma?" Nick asked quietly. She jumped at the sound of his voice, but quickly looked at him and smiled. She finished opening her can and began eating before he could ask her anything.
"We should be in Virginia in a few days. We're goin' to have to pass through some suburbs to get to the mountains quicker. Or, we could stick to the rural areas and go around the cities, but that'll take longer. I'm fine with either way, though," Luke said.
"Maybe going through the suburban area would be better. There would be more buildings, more houses, and more supplies. We really need to find some drinking water because most of the snow has melted and I don't think there's any creeks nearby," Adelaide pointed out.
"Agreed," Gemma said with a mouth full of beans.
"Chew your food much?" Adelaide teased.
Gemma smiled and swallowed, "Sorry."
Once they we're walking again, Gemma pulled Adelaide aside out of hearing range of the guys.
"What's up?" she asked. Gemma felt a little uneasy telling her sister, but she needed to confide in someone.
"I've been thinking about how I've felt the last few days, and I know this is going to sound stupid, but I keep thinking of the classic signs and—"
"What do you wanna tell me?" Adelaide asked, cutting her sister off.
"I think I'm pregnant."
Gemma half expected her sister to blow up on her right then and there, but instead she just calmly said, "I know."
"You know?" Gemma asked.
"Yeah, when I felt your forehead yesterday after you threw up, you didn't feel hot. I knew something was up," Adelaide explained. "Nick knows, too."
"What?!" Gemma almost screamed. "No— how- he can't—he's going to be so upset!" Gemma blurted out all at once.
Adelaide put a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, it's okay. Well, it's not ideal, but it's not the end of the world."
Gemma felt tears sting her eyes. All of this was hitting her at once and she felt like she was going to pass out. "I don't feel good," she said groggily and then everything went black.
When she woke up, she was on the ground. The sun was shining bright, but a figure walked over and blocked it out of the way. She rubbed her temple with her thumb and index finger and closed her eyes again.
"Hey," she heard Nick's voice say softly. She opened her eyes and he was leaning over her. Gemma looked at him, confused as to why she was laying there.
"You fainted a few seconds ago. You're okay, though," he explained. She tried to sit up, but her arms were shaky. Nick helped her to her feet again.
Adelaide put her hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "You had me worried there for a second," she said.
Gemma gave a reassuring smile. "I'm fine now, thanks."
Adelaide dropped her hands and walked over to talk to Luke to give Gemma and Nick some privacy.
Gemma looked at the ground and Nick cleared his throat.
"So I know this is scary and more than we're prepared for, but we'll get through it," he said.
Gemma looked up at his blue eyes and saw the softness in them.
"And, yeah, of course I'm worried. I'm worried about you, worried about the baby… hell, I'm worried about me," he said with a small chuckle. "It's going to be harder than we can imagine and I'll be more stressed than ever. But there's no one else I'd rather go through this with," he finished.
Gemma was so overwhelmed with emotion and she felt like she was going to cry.
"I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier today. I didn't mean it, I've just been really emotional lately," she said, dabbing at the tears in the corners of her eyes.
Nick smiled and kissed her. Gemma felt butterflies in her stomach like she always did whenever he was being adorable.
"I love you," she said, hugging him.
"I love you, too."
A\N:
Hey guys! Hoped you liked this chapter. I made it super long because I felt bad since it's been so long since I've updated and because it's the finale of this series. I will be making another one soon so don't worry! Have a Nice Day! ~WalkingDeadCrazy