Disclaimer: Same as always, Resident Evil is not mine.
I haven't been giving a lot of feedback so please indulge me for a moment:
Rogue: Wow, that is a really nice compliment, not sure if I deserve it but thank you very much.
ShadowClub: You bring up some very valid points, maybe I should just have everyone freeze to death but I don't think that would make for a very satisfying ending. I haven't forgotten about the zombies though and we will be seeing some again pretty soon.
CloudGazer15: I liked the flashback too, it was a last minute addition and I'm really glad I did it. Thanks for reading!
RockChick11: I'm glad you like the story, and since I know you're checking I'll try to update more often!
Pieman3: I thought some people might have suspected a proposal, but I may or may not have plans for that later. Also, there is someone stupid enough to try and steal one of them away, but we are still a few chapters away from that.
A/N: Special thanks to everyone who keeps reading even though my updates have become less consistent. Enjoy the chapter, and as always reviews are welcome and appreciated!
A/N2: I apologize for the long wait, and for giving you this filler chapter but it necessary to get the plot moving again.
No amount of planning could have prepared the survivors for the amount of snow that was dumped on their settlement, showing the early signs of winter. It began midway through October, with three feet falling in the first few days and it didn't let up for almost two weeks. Everyday the survivors were forced to brave the outdoors and clear the streets as much as possible in order to get around. K-Mart, like the others who had never experienced snow before was finding the weather conditions particularly difficult.
"It is so cold out there." The blonde complained as she and Claire entered the house, stomping their feet on the mat to remove the excess snow from their boots.
Claire immediately moved into the living room and picked up the fire poker, sticking it into the dying flames and stirring them back to life before adding a new log to the burning pile. "I thought you were all excited for the snow to come?"
"That was before it actually came! I thought the sand in the desert was bad but this! I just can't, it's so cold and wet, and cold!" K-Mart was in the process of trying to free herself from the overabundant number of layers she'd bundled herself in before they'd left the house earlier.
"I think it's sort of pretty," Claire commented from her place in front of the now roaring fire, trying not to laugh as the blonde tried to untangle herself from three separate scarves. She agreed that the snow was sort of a pain in the ass, there was the constant need for shovelling just so they could get around the village and no one could venture out after dark because the temperatures fell too low for anyone to stand but if that was the price to pay for the safety of their seclusion from the undead then Claire was not going to complain.
"Sure it looks nice when it falls but once it's on the ground is a whole other story." K-Mart prattled on. "It just never stops. It's been snowing for almost two weeks straight and has barely let up..." she trailed off when Claire held up a hand to silence her.
The redhead pressed a finger over her lips telling the teen to keep quiet as she looked up at the ceiling. She thought she'd heard a noise, it had been faint but she was positive there had been something. K-Mart was about to open her mouth and ask what was wrong when they both heard the sound, this time it was louder. It sounded almost like groaning, as if the house was in pain, and it was definitely coming from the ceiling.
"What is it?" K-Mart voiced her confusion.
"The roof," Claire stated matter-of-factly. "It's the snow pushing down on the roof. Come on." She motioned for the blonde to follow and it was with great reluctance that K-Mart replaced her layers of warmth and followed the redhead back out into the cold. The pair stood in the shovelled pathway connecting the house to the street and stared up at their home. There was easily over a foot of snow that had fallen on the roof and piled up over the past couple of weeks. "If we don't take the snow off it's going to make the roof cave in."
"And how are we going to take the snow off the roof?" K-Mart questioned, a hint of scepticism in her voice.
Claire smirked at the blonde. "Give me a boost and then get out of the way." She dragged K-Mart back over to the porch and with the blonde's assistance was able to climb up onto the roof. "Throw me the shovel K." Claire instructed and then began knocking the snow over the sides of the house. K-Mart stood at the edge of the path and watched the redhead work, acting as a spotter in case something should go wrong.
It was almost an hour of work but Claire was able to knock most of the snow off, reducing much of the weight pushing down on their roof. Satisfied with the accomplishment, Claire went to cross the roof and get down the way she had climbed up when she suddenly found herself on her back and sliding towards the edge. Reaching out in a vain attempt to find something to grab onto she soon felt the roof disappear beneath her and knew she was falling. It all happened so fast that all the redhead knew was that one moment she was on the roof and the next she was in a snow bank with a throbbing pain in her left leg.
"Fuck," she groaned but her grumbles were soon over powered by K-Mart's frantic screams.
"Claire!" the blonde shrieked and waded through the waist-deep snow on the lawn before she fell to her knees beside the redhead. "Are you okay?"
"I just fell off the roof K, of course I'm not okay." She clutched at her leg and knew right away that she had more than just a bump for damage. "Did you see what happened?"
"There must have been some ice under the snow cause you slipped. Is your leg okay? You hit the porch railing on your way down."
That explained the pain her leg, it was most likely broken. The house was only one story and the snow was pretty soft, but falling off the roof still hurt like hell and she was starting to feel sore everywhere. Claire tried not to show the pain for K-Mart's sake but it hurt like a bitch. "I'll be alright K, just help me stand up and get inside."
It took the pair almost ten minutes to get up the porch stairs and into the house, with Claire leaning heavily on the young blonde every step of the way. K-Mart helped the redhead get settled on the couch, laying down with her injured leg elevated over the arm rest. With shaking hands the blonde carefully removed Claire's boots and rolled the pant leg up for closer inspection.
"You're not bleeding."
"Well that's very reassuring," Claire spat through clenched teeth. The pain was pretty bad and just because she wasn't bleeding didn't mean anything. "What does it look like?"
"It's starting to turn purple and there's a large bump. Tell me if this hurts," K-Mart instructed and before Claire could stop her the blonde reached out and poked the protruding bruise. Claire yelped loudly and nearly kicked the teen in the face.
"Don't fucking do that again!" she growled and pushed herself further into the couch and away from the blonde. "It's fucking broken."
"What do we do?" K-Mart had taken several steps away at the redhead's outburst and looked to be on the verge of panic.
"You better go get some help. Chris will probably know what to do, and if you can find Alice that would be good too." The teen nodded and bolted towards the door but stopped when Claire called her back. "Hey K!" K-Mart turned and looked at the redhead curiously. "You were right about the snow, it sucks!" Claire grumbled and winced as another surge of pain shot through her leg.
K-Mart was back at the house in less than fifteen minutes, returning not only with Chris and Alice but also Mrs. Parker's much less annoying husband in tow. Mr. Parker was their designated doctor as he had been a veterinarian before the outbreak and was the closest thing they had to an actual physician. Fortunately for Claire, K-Mart had filled them in so she didn't have to explain the embarrassment of how she had fallen off the roof while shovelling snow. Mr. Parker examined her leg for several long minutes without speaking and it was amazing to Claire how someone so quiet could be married to someone so obnoxiously nosey.
Alice stood next to the couch behind Claire's head and observed the scene silently. And even though she was looking at her girlfriend upside down Claire could easily make out the subtle glare that would appear in Alice's eyes every time Mr. Parker touched the redhead's leg. Seeing these hints of jealousy from Alice was almost enough to make Claire forget about the constant pain and she was careful not to make any sounds of discomfort as the doctor examined her less Alice beat him to a pulp thinking he had hurt the redhead further.
It was Chris who was the first to break the silence. "So what do you think Parker?"
"Her leg is broken," he stated.
"No shit." Claire muttered, rolling her eyes. The last thing she needed was someone telling her something she already knew.
"I don't have the equipment to make a proper cast," he continued, ignoring Claire's sarcasm. "I can make a splint to help set the bone but it means you'll have even more limited mobility."
Claire sighed in frustration. "Great. Just fucking great."
"How long until she's back on her feet?" Chris, ever the big brother instantly went into full parental concern.
Mr. Parker thought it over and took a step away from the couch before answering. "Anywhere from six weeks to two months."
Claire thought it was smart of him to move away because at hearing his response she wanted to break something. "Two months! I can't sit on my ass for two months! I won't do it!" She even tried to sit up then but was quickly held down by Alice placing her hands on the redhead's shoulders.
"If you don't do it the leg won't heal properly and you'll make it worse. We can get you some crutches or a cane for moving around the house but that's it. I'm sorry Claire."
Claire sighed again and closed her eyes. "Yeah, me too."
K-Mart let out a sigh of relief when she peeked over the top of her book and saw that Claire had fallen asleep. The first month of bedridden Claire had been hell; the redhead was impatient on the best of days but by not being able to move around and contribute like everyone else she became irritable and moody. The first week had been the worst with Claire ignoring the only rule she was suppose to follow and trying to hobble around, forcing K-Mart and Alice to take drastic action. To make sure Claire didn't try to leave, the blonde and Alice took turns sitting with the redhead and keeping her occupied as best they could but on some days there was really no consoling the injured woman. Alice was obviously much better at dealing with Claire on the days when she was most difficult but K-Mart was trying her best and this particular day had proven to be one of the more challenging ones so it was a great relief to see the redhead had finally tired herself out.
K-Mart closed her book and carefully set it aside. As slowly as possible she stood up from the chair next to the bed she had grown so accustomed to the last four weeks and crept towards the door. Just one small noise was enough to wake the redhead and dealing with a grouchy Claire was the last thing K-Mart wanted at the moment. She took slow, deliberate steps down the hall, scared to even breath until she got to the living room and sank down into the couch, completely exhausted. Her own eyes drooped shut and just when she was on the verge of sleep the front door opened. Thinking it was Claire, the blonde shot up from the couch and raced towards the door, nearly colliding with a confused Alice who had just come inside.
"Oh, it's you." K-Mart sighed in relief at seeing the brunette.
"Long day K-Mart?"
"The worst one yet! She's sleeping now but I don't know how long it'll last. I don't think I could take another month of this Alice, she's completely miserable and it's making all of our lives unbearable! I swear, babies don't whine as much as she does these days."
Alice frowned slightly, "I really don't think it's been that bad."
"Of course you don't! She actually behaves for you without putting up a fight because she's in love with you," K-Mart rolled her eyes as if it were obvious.
"Well I'm here now so I'll take over and you can leave if you want. I know you haven't been able to see Seth in a few days so go have some fun." Alice motioned for the teen to run along and K-Mart could not move fast enough, completely forgetting about how tired she had been a moment ago.
"Thanks Alice!" K-Mart beamed at the brunette and quickly pulled on several more layers of clothing, coats, scarves, a hat and mittens before bolting out the front door.
She knew there were only three places she could expect to find her boyfriend; his house, the store, or at the school playing his music. She opted to try the school first as it was just across the street from her own home and therefore less time spent out in the freezing cold. She pulled open the front doors and stepped inside the school, immediately hearing the sound of music bouncing down the hall. K-Mart frowned in confusion as the music sounded much different than she was use to hearing. There was the unmistakable loud drumming which had not been present before and the blonde could not remember there being a drum set present the last time she'd been in here. The closer she got to the open classroom the louder the music got and when K-Mart stopped in the doorway the first thing she spotted was Seth standing with his back to her and strumming the guitar she'd found in their basement almost two months ago.
The second thing she noticed was the small drum set that had definitely not been present a few days ago, but what startled K-Mart even more was the figure who was currently seated at the instrument, drumming enthusiastically. It was that bastard Tim who had pushed her boyfriend off the boat and subsequently almost gotten Seth and Claire killed. She couldn't believe that Seth was hanging out with this creep, acting as if none of it had ever happened. The whole thing filled her with an anger she normally reserved for Claire's stupid motorcycle. The blonde took a few steps into the room, neither boy noticing her arrival as they were too focussed on creating the loud music.
"What the hell is going on here? !" K-Mart shouted and the music immediately stopped.
"Music?" Seth answered, turning around slowly which only fuelled K-Mart's anger further.
"Obviously," she said sarcastically sounding almost exactly like Claire. "Why are you playing with him?" She shot a glare at Tim and the other boy shrunk into himself under her stare.
"He came into the store the other day and we started talking about music. Someone had this drum set in their house and Tim's been teaching himself how to play. It's nice having someone to jam with." Seth explained, sounding kind of bored with the conversation and acting completely nonchalant about the situation.
K-Mart was burning up due to a combination of her many layers and intense anger, she was both perplexed and furious at Seth's behaviour. She didn't see him for a couple days and he becomes best friends with the guy who had first tried to take her away from Seth and then almost taken Seth from her by pushing him off the boat. "He almost killed you Seth!" She yelled, her voice escalating with every word.
Seth merely shrugged. "He apologized."
Her eyes widened in disbelief. "And you just forgave him? Just like that?" she snapped her fingers for emphasis.
Seth remained vague. "We came to an understanding."
Apparently Tim had found his voice. "I'm sorry K-Mart, I never meant for things to turn out the way they did–" but she cut him off.
"I don't want to hear it." Her tone was harsh, "I can't believe you Seth." She spat and then turned on her heel and left the room.
K-Mart stomped back across the street, muttering to herself the whole way. How could he do this to her? Didn't he know how scared she had been that day? She had not only almost lost Seth but Claire as well and here he was acting as if it had never happened! She kicked at the snow, cursing it even more as she strode across the front yard and back up the porch steps. She paused at the top long enough to glance over at the pile of wood which use to be the railing that had broken Claire's fall from the roof. K-Mart was certain of one thing at the moment; she'd rather deal with ten miserable Claires than look at Seth's stupid face. And with that thought in mind she threw the front door open and slammed it behind her as she entered the house.
Yeah... I really am not a fan of this chapter but it's out of the way now so I'm pretty sure the next one will be better.