There is a good chance that I will be occasionally slipping into 3rd person in the rest of the story, but fear not m'loves, I'll put a heads up. :)
SO I fixed the major fuck up and made it much more sexier ;) Also, I hate to do this to my lovely readers, but I'm not as interested in this story anymore. I can't tell if anyone is still reading it and I feel a little burnt out. This usually happens on long walking dead breaks like this one, but it'd be nice to see what my readers think sometimes.
Lying here on my side I wonder what the hell kind of decisions did I make to end up here.
I sighed and turned my head, "Well at least I got a bed too," I said dryly. I laughed at my poor attempt at a joke but it was the only thing that would keep me sane. I'd probably feel a little better had I gotten to finish a bottle of wine, as my soberness was slowly coming back.
Sick of being on my side, I turned to be on my back again to resume staring at the ceiling. Just as I'd been doing for the past, oh I don't know, maybe hour or two. My eyes fluttered a bit from the lack of rest but I forced them open. Sure, I was tired - but I couldn't sleep. How could I anyways? I'd be lying to myself if I said I were actually comfortable. Everyone knows I'm not. Everyone knows I'm not happy to be here, but no one cares to say anything. I'm sure Rick has some choice words for Dr. Jenner but he won't share because he knows having me locked in here is the best way to keep everyone calm - even if it's at my expense.
Nearly everyone was blinded when the gate finally slid up, everyone unsure whether we'd be walking into another trap or not. The chances would be slim, yeah, but it's always important to play it safe. My father, brother, hell everyone always told me to never get too complacent - it'll get you killed.
No one stood there, waiting for us. We weren't going to question it though, and so Rick led the group in while Shane kept an eye on our backs. We entered the very empty building and I could feel myself relax a bit when the door or gate thing shut behind us. While the place looked abandoned, I knew someone had to be there. It definitely couldn't have been automated systems or something like that, they'd never let in some civilian group just like that.
Dale warned for walkers and before Rick could shout again for someone or something to come out, we heard the cock of a shotgun.
"Hello?" He called out, "Anyone infected?"
"One of ours was." Rick kept his gun raised, "Didn't make it."
The other man wasn't going to put his gun down either, "Who are you and why are you here? What do you want?"
I couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity of his question, the world's gone to shit and it's a miracle we've made it this long and he wants to know what we want. Well if I were certain he wouldn't shoot me I'd definitely take the time to write up a list and give it to him, but this wasn't the time or place for me to be a smart ass...as tempting as it was.
Rick was shaking a bit, not as much as Lori and the rest though, "A chance." Shaking not out of fear though, probably anxiety. Hell, I was sweating up a storm too but Rick had every right to be; he was speaking to our last chance of survival.
The man stepped closer, but with a more relaxed stance, "That's asking for an awful lot these days."
"I know."
He put his gun down but eyed the rest of the group before speaking again, "You all submit to a blood test. That's the price for admission." He said sternly. Rick did not hesitate to agree, "We can do that."
I felt really nervous about that blood test, though I had to reason to be.
The doors were resealed after we retrieved our belongings, Dr. Jenner led us to an underground laboratory for our blood tests. I was surprised that he seemed so lighthearted, making small talk and jokes with the rest of the tense group. Actually, I was probably the only one laughing with him, everyone was still so very nervous.
We eventually made it to a more clinical setting, an all white and crisp clean room. I almost felt like I'd be offending him with just my presence, considering how dirty my garments were and while I don't usually get really terrible BO, I couldn't imagine I smelled like cherry blossoms.
The blood tests ran smoothly, most were ins and outs of the small chair Jenner placed next to him and Daryl and I were last. Not sure why he volunteered last, probably shared the same fear of needles I had.
It was a bit nerve wracking having all of us in the same room for the blood tests, but I didn't think much of it. When Jenner called my name, I hopped out of my seat, eager to just get it over with. Rick joined too, probably because he saw how nervous I was feeling at the moment.
"Scared of needles?" Jenner joked when I sat down.
"No-" My voice squeaked and I blushed then cleared my throat, "Uh, no not really. I just...prefer not to be poked by them."
He smiled and nodded, "Well, don't worry it'll be quick." He tied a tourniquet around my upper arm and asked me to make a fist. Before sanitizing the area, he traced over the small bite mark on my forearm, "What happened here?" He asked in an unsettling accusatory tone. Did he...did he think I was hiding a potential walker bite?
I laughed, as I usually do when I get nervous, hoping this was a joke but answered nonetheless, "I can't remember that well, actually. Might've been a dog attack or just one of those college nights. Why?"
He looked over to Rick before returning his look to me and my smile faded, "Just wondering. Can never be too careful." He stuck the needle in and I looked the other way, I cannot stand the sight of my blood being drawn. I made the dumb decision of turning my head slightly for a quick peek, but it was the wrong choice. Immediately, I felt a little lightheaded and swayed a bit, only for Rick to hold me in the chair.
"Are you okay?" Jenner placed the palm of his hand on my shoulder, which felt soothing. I nodded but didn't say a word in response, instead Rick spoke for me, "She hasn't eaten in a while. Neither have the rest of us."
Jenner finished drawing my blood into this small tube, and even though it probably wasn't that much blood, I felt that all my blood had been drained out. I really needed sleep and something to eat. Maybe some sex, but hey we can't all have what we want.
3rd Person POV begins here:
"Wow, this is kickass, Jenner." Isabelle took another sip of the surprisingly sweet red wine. She would've toasted the group but she was already beginning to feel the warm effects of the alcohol in her system, considering she'd always been a lightweight. I'm so getting shitfaced tonight, she thought to herself and couldn't keep the big smile off her face. She could slowly feel her problems slip away with each additional sip.
Jenner began to fidget in his seat. Although feeling optimistic about the blood results, there was something in the back of his mind that was beginning to bother him. The whole thing about Isabelle's bite and her not recalling any of it set off a serious alarm in his head, though he chose to stay quiet as to not create panic within the group. Right now, he wanted everyone to enjoy themselves, so he sat still, knocked back a couple drinks and listened to their conversations, occasionally chiming in.
When the time was right and he knew the blood results were ready, he slipped away from the table and anxiously awaited the results to come up. Just as he expected.
Jenner re-read the list because he'd been too distracted by his own thoughts, mindlessly skimming the results he expected, but pausing at the results for Isabelle.
Unknown.
Unknown? He shook his head, this couldn't be possible. Everyone was infected. Jenner quickly ran a search in the CDC's database for a diagnosis of "unknown". Not much came up, as the CDC fell quickly after the outbreak and not much research had been done. He couldn't sit around here fucking with the computers though, he needed to isolate the patient before this new "strain" could spread - whatever it was.
When he returned to the table he took notice right away that Isabelle wasn't there. He wanted to ask where she was, but again, he had to do it carefully. "Did Isabelle go to the bathroom? Hope she finds her way." He joked, hoping it'd sound good enough.
The man in the sheriff uniform who introduced himself as Rick Grimes laughed and shook his head, "Hopefully, but she probably got lost."
A perfect opportunity. "I'll go show her the restroom then." He excused himself once again and left to look for her.
Once Jenner was far enough from the group he inquired about Isabelle's location through Vi, the CDC's VI. "Vi, where's Isabelle?"
"Currently in the women's restroom down the hall."
"Lock the restroom but no alarm, please. Tell the group in the dining hall to gather in the lab and to wait for me." He added before leaving, "Also, make sure she stays calm."
Isabelle finished her business in the women's restroom, slightly tipsy, she stumbled out and reached the sink for balance. She smiled into the mirror, already feeling better and slightly flushed. Not only was she excited about being in a safe place, she was happy about taking an actual shower again.
Even though it was a little thing, washing her hands with the lukewarm water felt oh so relieving. She took the time to completely clean her hands, under the nails and cuticles, as well as even washing up to her elbows. Living out there in the humid weather made her feel dirty all of the time. After admiring the clean scent lingering on her hands, she checked how she looked in the mirror briefly before exiting the restroom.
Well, she tried to exit. Oh come on, I'm sober enough to open a door. She chuckled and figured it was her not grabbing the door correctly and tried again, only it wouldn't budge. Not one bit. She gripped it harder and twisted it but to no avail. She was locked in.
"Fuck..." She mumbled to herself before giving up.
Her chest tightened and she was beginning to panic, she couldn't be in there any longer. It wasn't possible, it wasn't healthy. Who was going to get her out? Was it even possible? From the situation it seemed that it was the VI system locking her in, and the chances of anyone being able to override that would be slim if the VI had a very valid reason for locking her in. Could it have thought she was infected? Not possible, it couldn't be. All the scenarios ran through her mind, making her more nervous and harder to fight the urge of a full blown meltdown.
"Please! Someone!" Isabelle desperately pounded at the door, but quickly realized that it wouldn't do much. The CDC was built in a way to completely isolate anyone who happened to be infected.
Would the system listen to her if she spoke to it?
"...Vi?"
No response, but she wouldn't give up.
"Why am I here?"
Silence.
"Please, answer me, why am I here?" She begged but held back the tears. No way would a virtual intelligence be sympathetic to her feelings anyways, but it didn't hurt to try.
The VI finally responded but it was not the response Isabelle wanted to hear, "Dr. Jenner ordered me to keep you calm, is there anything I can do for you?"
Well you can let me the fuck out, she thought but remained quiet. There was no point in replying, she wouldn't be told the reason she was being locked in even though she had the sneaking suspicion over what it was. It was funny to her though, she could accept being infected. What concerned her was how. She'd always been careful not to even get scratched and she hadn't had many encounters with walkers anyways. It just wasn't possible.
It couldn't be...
She didn't belong there...
There had to have been a mistake.
3rd person is not my strength. At all. At least I tried though, right? I kept this chapter short for a reason though, I wanted to see how 3rd person POV would sit with my readers and I wanted to get something out before Thanksgiving... Anyways, thank you all for reading and please leave feedback! I love hearing what you guys think :D
1/3 edit: I'm fucking stupid guys. Forgot to fix the other plot hole but now all is well
