A new plan

- NO! SASHAA!

With tears in his eyes, Igor tried to run towards the girl being stopped by Murilo and Guilherme.

- Let me go!

- I'm sorry dude, but the dead are coming. - The boy with glasses said watching the dead approach.

Trying to shake off the shock of what she just witnessed, Amanda turned and held the knife out to Isa, not knowing if the girl would accept it or not, being surprised when she took it and headed toward one of the three walkers who were there. The brunette focused on the two walkers in front of her, sticking her spear in the eye of one and kicking the other away. Giving the spear a yank as the walker fell, she prepared to kill the other, but ended up hitting the creature's shoulder, the opposing force causing the spear's weak metal to bend. If Isa hadn't hit him in the head from behind, his teeth would have ripped a chunk out of the girl's face.

- What a time for this shit to break!

- We have to get a car and a way to open the gate. - Isa said pointing to the huge piece of metal that held them there.

André approached Igor, who was on his knees and crying for the girl he liked. Everyone knew, which made André feel even more guilty.

- Igor… - He kneeled down in front of him. - I know there's nothing I can say that will make your pain lessen, but know that… I'm sorry. It's okay if you blame me for-

- Thanks.

- … W-What? - He asked surprised.

- You didn't let her suffer… and it must be much worse for you… - The boy dried his eyes and stood up. - I'll find the gate control.

That's not what André expected. At the very least he expected a punch or even… well, he didn't expect him to understand so quickly.

- He's right. Gui, help him find the controller, it must be in the key cabinet or with the doorman. - As the boy with glasses followed Igor, the brunette looked across the parking lot, his eyes lingered on a red pickup truck, big enough to fit them all. - Think you can hot-wire that one?

- No, it's a very new model. We need the key. - The boy said looking out the window.

- We found the key and the control. - Gui said approaching with the two in his hand.

- Okay, everyone in the car. - André ordered.

- I'll go in the back! - Amanda said jumping into the trunk.

- Seriously, how old are you? - Danilo asked coming up behind her.

- Mentally or physically?

The boy just rolled his eyes and helped Igor, Rodrigo and Gui up with them, Ana and Isa going in the back seats and Murilo in the passenger seat. André sat in the driver's seat, started the car that still had some fuel, closed the windows and drove until it was just in front of the gate.

- Gui! There are probably walkers on the street, I need you to shoot them to clear the way! And hang on back there! Don't let any of them climb up or grab you! - He warned his friend that he still had the rifle with some ammunition.

The boy took a deep breath and pressed the button. The sun was beginning to rise, and as the gate opened he prepared to accelerate and look for the best route to escape. As soon as he could see the entire street in front of him, he saw two possibilities. He could go on where there was a greater concentration of walkers, Gui would have to shoot them to clear the way, but after that they would have a clear path, there weren't even cars to dodge. Or he could take the road on the right where the walkers were more spread out so they could keep what little ammo they had, but the walkers were scattered across the rest of the street, along with other cars and the chances of Amanda and the others in the back getting caught. it was riskier. Valuing the safety of his friends, he stepped deep in the pedal and went ahead.

- Gui! Shoot them!

- And the ammo? - Murilo asked holding himself in his seat.

- Since we have it we better use it!

Guilherme took aim and fired in a straight line, the walkers were pushed back by the force of the shots, facilitating the passage of the car. Inside the car they could only watch the hands hitting the glass while in the back Amanda, Danilo and Igor kicked the hands that tried to grab the edges while Rodrigo… you must know by now. When the bullets ran out, André stepped on until the accelerator sank and drove the car away from the dead, running through the deserted streets and away from the building. Finally they managed to escape.

- We made it! - Ana said relieved.

- Yes, but where do we go now? - Murilo asked the driver. - Back to college?

- I actually want to propose something… Let's stop in a safe place and I'll explain.

Murilo just nodded and trusted his friend.

—

They drove until they reached a parking lot in a quieter part of town, after a walk around the block they saw that there was no danger of stopping for a few minutes.

- What happened to the other people stuck on the court? - Amanda asked getting out of the car.

- We released them, but I don't know where they went. I hope they are all right. - Gui replied going to his girlfriend who was still quiet.

- So André, what is the proposal? - Murilo asked.

- Remember the documents the lieutenant wanted? - He said pulling the folded bundle of sheets from his pocket. - He wanted because he says which ports and which ships are responsible for the rescue. - Resting the sheets on the hood, he pointed to one of the names of several cities. - One of these ports is in Santos, as it is only 1 hour and a half away, it is the one with the most ships. I think it's worth going there.

- Wait, do you really think it's a good idea? You saw what happened the last time we trusted the military. - Danilo said.

- The military police is one thing, the navy is another. I know it's not easy to trust them after what happened, but we need to give them a chance. In fact, he wanted these sheets anyway, so the chance of them being there is big.

- What if they are just like them? Then we just left the pan to go into the oven. What do we do if it's exactly like here?- Murilo said.

- I don't know, ok?! I don't have all the answers! If any of you have a better idea, please tell me!- The boy yelled in frustration.

Nobody said anything. There was nothing to say, they had put all their faith in the state, that they would work it out, that it would be temporary. André ran a hand through his hair and leaned against the hood.

- Maybe they are the same as the military… but maybe they really want to help. I still want to believe in… something. If there's a chance, even a small one, that they'll help and that there's still a ship willing to save us, I'm taking a chance.

The group thought about the boy's words. This whole situation served to show the real side of the people; those who care about others and those who care about themselves. There are people like the lieutenant who prefers to take advantage of people, people like Kaique who value their own life more than that of others… and there are people like Getúlio, who didn't think twice about helping. Perhaps it was still worth believing that there are more people like that in the world.

- …Well, where there's hope there's life, right? - Amanda said. - I think it's worth a try.

- If you believe it, I believe it too. - Ana said holding her boyfriend's hand.

- You're right, if there's still a chance, let's take a chance. - Murilo agreed, followed by Gui, Isa and Igor.

- Are we really going to do this? - Danilo asked looking at everyone. - What can I do, right? I'm stuck with you guys anyway.

- And we all know you love us. - Rodrigo said pulling the boy's head and giving him a head nudge, receiving a punch in the arm afterwards.

- Thank you guys. Well, I think we can rest a little longer here and head out of town right now. - André suggested putting the papers away.

- I think we'd better stop at a gas station on the way, fuel is low. - Murilo warned. - And how about we check the other cars in the parking lot for gas and food?

- Good idea, can someone go with him?

- We will. - Danilo offered pulling Rodrigo by the blouse. - And you'll help. Doesn't that battery ever run out?

- It's analogue, it doesn't have a battery.

Murilo was grateful for the two of them to volunteer, but he was a little sad as he wanted to use that chance to be alone with someone else. Unfortunately Amanda had other priorities.

- Can I talk to you? - She asked her brother.

- Yeah, I want to talk with you too.

The two walked to the parking lot entrance for more privacy.

- How are you? - The youngest asked.

- What do you mean?

- André, I know you. You always keep what you're feeling to yourself, so tell me: how are you? Not just about what happened in the principal's office, about everything.

The boy sighed and let his shoulders relax. He didn't want to talk about it, but if he didn't, he would explode sooner or later.

- I feel like… I made a lot of mistakes. That I didn't have to kill that guy, that I could have saved Sasha, that…

- You did everything you could, you did more than most people would.

- I killed two people.

- Okay, one of them deserved much worse and the other… if you hadn't shot her, she would have become one of them. She would die slowly and in great pain, but you didn't let that happen.

- But I could-

- I know André! There's a thousand things you could have done differently, but at that moment, with the tools and the knowledge you had you still managed to find us, free a lot of people, find another way for us to get help and get us out of there. Unfortunately we lost one person along the way, but it was only one. We are still alive thanks to you.

- I know, it's just… I didn't want to have to do that. - He said touching the gun handle. - But at least it wasn't you or Ana.

- Yeah… well, me and Danilo kind of… oh forget it, just remember you can talk to me, ok?

- Of course, thanks sis. - He said pulling the youngest for a hug. - Managing to get you out of there also makes me much more relaxed about everything. And also… - He said separating the hug. - I promise you we'll go straight to the port, ok?

- …Promise?

- I promise.

The girl gave a slight nod and hugged her brother again. Nothing soothed her more than that promise.