Author's Note: I'm very sorry this is kinda late, but I had some serious writer's block with this one... Not to mention I was having some trouble uploading whatnot to But here's another chapter brought to you by HappyBunny1. And if you can, please review. :-)
And sorry for the shittiness of the last chapter. My complete appologies.
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Chapter 7:
June 30- The Thirteenth Floor
Josephine and Davey walked into the building, hand in hand. Josephine didn't know what to expect, but she knew something was very wrong there. She couldn't quite put her finger on it. It made the hair on her arms and the back of her neck stand on end. A chill went down her spine.
She got the strange feeling that she and Davey weren't the only ones in the building.
But Josephine didn't even know why she went into the building in the first place. Was it for some kind of closure? Maybe.
Josephine and Davey saw some bodies, not many though. A security guard's body was found on the floor near the exit. And a young man's body, probably of someone who worked there, was drapped over a bench near the elevator.
But there was something very, very wrong there. Very, very wrong.
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Josephine found some snack and candy machines near a flight of stairs. She dug into her pocket for some change, but then remembered that there was no one here to stop her from taking whatever she wanted.
Josephine put her bags down and then tried to kick in what she thought was the pane of glass that covered the candy, but to her complete dismay she found (the hard way) that the cover was actually plastic. She fell to the ground with a grunt.
Davey looked at her, horrified. "What are you doing, Joey!" he said as she stood up. "That's stealing! What if we get caught?! My mommy said that stealing things is wrong and--"
"Davey," Josephine began as she sighed and looked down at the frightened boy, "look around. What people are going to be mad at us when there's no 'what people' to begin with?"
Josephine picked up her bags and she and Davey continued walking. They took a flight of stairs leading to the upper floors. Davey didn't know where they were going, but he trusted Josephine.
"And besides, Davey, we're on our own now. I know there are more people out there, but this is survival of the fittest." Josephine said. "And I'm going to make sure we survive this."
Davey simply nodded.
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Everything was quite on the thirteenth floor. Jospephine and Davey wandered around the isles and rows of offices that she knew so well, that she had seen so many times before.
There were a few dead paper-pushers here and there, poor saps who were so committed to being that perfectionist workaholic that they didn't stay at home with family or friends while they were sick so they just croaked in their office. Josephine thought it was rather... sad.
Josephine stopped abruptly when she came to a door with a large opaque window with MRS. NANCY ANDREWS printed in bold black lettering. Josephine smiled sadly at the name, remembering all the people who sat in this office. People like Hector, and Wendy, and Mr. Dougly. People who didn't deserve the probably-horrible death they went through.
Davey saw Josephine's face and tugged on her hand, which he was still holding. "Whatsa matter?" he said with a confused look.
Josephine looked at him and shook her head. "Nothing, Davey."
"Did you know that lady?"
"A little..."
Josephine took the handle of the door and, expecting it to be locked, she twisted the handle. The very second the door opened, she regretted coming into the building completely.
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Jack stood there in the middle of Mrs. Andrews office with a gun to his head. He just stared at Josephine and Davey.
Josephine was shocked that he, the spoiled, greedy, arrogant Jack from therapy was still alive.
"I said get the fuck outta here."
The minute Josephine and Davey walked into the room, Jack whipped around to look at them and from then on he rambled (for about a good ten minutes or so) about the things he went through... saw... heard. And then he started telling them to get out.
Josephine was still in a daze.
"Are you some kind of fucking deaf moron, Kenndler? Get out!"
On any given day, Josephine would've walked right up to him and slapped him silly for saying that. But today was different. Today, Josephine had a kid to think about.... and a gun to Jack's head that she had to keep in mind.
"Jack, please put the gun down. Please." Josephine let go of Davey's hand, who stood there in stupified terror, and she brought her hands up and motioned for Jack to drop the gun.
"Do you have any idea what I've been through? Seen? No, you don't. I'm better off dead than wandering around this fucked up place." he said sarcastically.
"Jack, I understand what you're--"
"No, you don't! You have NO fucking clue!"
"Please, Jack, you can come with us."
"Yeah, uh huh, and do what, little missy? Wander around the fucking country side, looking for 'survivor's' and 'a cure'. Well screw that!"
Jack walked to the big glass window that sat in place of a wall on the left side of the room. He looked out the window and into the distance. He could see smoke in the distance, burning buildings, he supposed, and abandoned cars everywhere along with the scattered dead bodies, of which looked like ants from the thirteenth floor.
The gun was still to his head.
A tear ran down Josephine's cheek. She sniffed.
Jack slowly turned around. "Why are you crying?" he said softly but suspiciously.
"Because you don't have to do this, Jack."
Jack laughed. "Oh puh-lease. You and the kid want it after me ,sweetheart? 'Cause there's no real reason to suffer the way this world is gonna suffer. We have no electricity, no running water, nothing. We are incredibly fucked."
Josephine suddenly found herself looking around the room, and from the corner of her eye she saw Jack turn back around to face the window. But Josephine completely forgot about that when she saw the body of Mrs. Andrews slouched over in her chair. Her neck was freakin' huge and almost looked bruised, while the rest of her face was pale. The woman's brown eyes stared up into nothingness. They seemed to focus on something that wasn't there, something that was beyond Josephine's vision.
Josephine walked over to the body and sniffed again. She slowly laid her hands over the woman's eyes and closed them. She never liked Mrs. Andrews, but Mrs. Andrews never really did anything wrong.
"Ja--"
The gun shot was louder than anything she had ever heard in her life. Then again, she had never heard a gun shot so close before.
Josephine quickly looked up, her eyes were like a deer's in headlights. She turned around to see Jack's body fall to the floor.
And when Josephine turned, she turned around slowly, knowing that taking her time was ok because he was already dead. She looked at his body and started sobbing. She knew it was her fault. She knew she could've been a better negotiator than that. A pool of blood was already beginning to form around his head.
Then she remembered Davey.
She looked over at him, tears still in her eyes. Davey was mortified, to say the least
"Davey--I'm so sorry." Josephine reached her hand out for him, but he began to back away until he hit then door. Then he ran out, his little legs carrying him as fast as they could.
Jospehine took one last look at Jack and Mrs. Andrews again before darting off after Davey.
She knew there was something wrong with this place. And next time her intuition nagged her, she would listen.
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Author's Note: Sad. Really sad. And not in the pathetic way, but in the oh-my-God-I'm-gonna-cry way. Yeah, please review. Tell me if this chapter's better than the last.
