Chapter 3 - Dreams and Nightmares

My body jolts awake with a quick yell escaping from my mouth, beads of sweat rolling down my forehead as I feel myself begin to cry, covering my face with my hands to keep quiet and not wake the others. Evidently, I'm not quiet enough, as Benji gets up out of bed and sits down next to me. He rubs my back as I keep crying, more salty tears soaking my face and hands.

"I got Dad killed." I say to him. "It's my fault he's dead. I let that fucking walker get him. I was careless, and he paid the price for it."

"Brett, there was nothing we could have done. You said it yourself, it got the jump on us. You can't blame yourself for what happened. It was a freak accident what happened. It was fucking tragic, and I'm sad that it happened, but you can't say it was your fault." Benji assures me, but I shake my head.

"Say all the nice things you want, Benji, but there's a lot there that is my fault. I opened the door, and just stared it in the face. Like, I knew it was a walker. I could've backed away, shot it, stabbed it, anything. But I just froze."

"We were kids. You were scared. It happens. Please, don't blame yourself. It wasn't your fault."

I sigh, knowing he's right. I was fourteen. I froze. But still, I got him killed. I can't just say it wasn't my fault. My mind racing, I need some air and to just cool down.

"I'm gonna go for a walk. I need some alone time, you know?"

"Ok. Do what you need to do."

With that, I get out of bed, putting on my boots and my jacket. As I slowly open the door, I turn back around to Benji, a teary smile on my face. "Hey, Ben?"

"Hmmm?" he looks up at me.

"Thanks for being my brother. I know that's not really something you had any say in, but I'm glad you of all people are my brother. I don't think I coulda made it six years out here without you by my side."

In the moonlight, I see him smile and nod once. "I wouldn't give it up for the world, man. We're all we have left. But you and me, I like our odds, whether or not this turns out to be a long-term thing."

"Let's hope this is a long-term thing. I was getting sick of living on the road." I smile before heading out the door, quietly closing it before walking down the spacious halls of Ericson. The sound of my footsteps echo off the walls, the only thing I can hear as I reach a flight of stairs. I walk up it, passing through a set of doors and I see an opening to a balcony.

As I walk out onto the small balcony, I take a second to marvel at the sight. The entire courtyard, the woods, the whole landscape visible in the moonlight. I sigh as I lean up against a barrier, looking out at everything. I hear footsteps walking toward me, and I turn around, just to be face to face with that girl, Brody, that shot me.

Neither of us say a word at first, the two of us just stare at each other, before I finally break the silence.

"Uh, hi."

"Hi…"

"You're Brody, right?"

"Yeah, I am. You're one of the new guys?"

"Sure am. I'm Brett. I'm the one you got in the knee." I grin, and her expression becomes panicked.

"I am so sorry about all that. I really didn't mean to. You guys were strangers and all and I panicked and I just-"

"Brody. Please. It's fine. Ruby patched me up, and she said my leg's gonna be fine." I assure her, and she calms down a bit.

"Really? I'm so glad to hear. God, I just felt so bad when Marlon told us you guys were staying, cause I know that I shouldn't have shot you. He said you guys seemed like good people, so that just made the fact I shot you even worse. I really am sorry."

I shake my head. "Seriously, don't worry about it. I'm just a little sore." I sincerely smile, rubbing my knee a bit. "If it's any consolation, it was a Hell of a shot. You managed to get me right above the kneecap without hitting any arteries. You're a bit of a marksman yourself, aren't you?"

She blushes, looking down at the ground. "I was aiming at the ground in front of you, I never meant to hit you." She admits to me, but I shrug it off, chuckling a bit.

"Well then, yeah, your accuracy could use some work." I joke. "Lucky for you, my brother and I are both a couple of marksmen ourselves."

She looks at me, both intrigued and impressed. "Is that so? Maybe you should give some tips and help me practice sometime?" She smiles at me in a real pretty way and I feel my insides churn just a little bit, but I don't let her notice. God damn… Do I have a crush on her?

"I think we can do just that. Hell, I'll have you shooting better than me with enough practice, if you'll let me." I smile back to her.

"So be it then," She sweetly smiles again. "You'll teach me how to shoot." She says with a giggle, causing me to smile again. Yep. I definitely do.

"What're you two doing?" I hear Mitch's voice to the right, and I turn and see him looking at us, arms crossed and a less than pleased expression on his face.

Brody sighs, "We're just talking Mitch. It's fine. Nothing's going on. You can go back to bed."

He eyes us suspiciously before turning around and walking back to his room. And Brody waits until Mitch is out of hearing range before getting back to our conversation.

"I'm sorry about him. He's a bit… abrasive."

I scoff. "Yeah, that's certainly one way of putting it. He's a bit of an asshole, isn't he?"

She giggles. "Yeah. He's an asshole. It's just how he is. But I saw the way you beat him up earlier, that was something."

I simply shrug. "He picked a fight he thought he could win. And I put him on his ass. I didn't want to do it, but I was scared he'd kill Aasim, all for saying something about you and Mitch?"

She rolls her eyes. "Mitch wishes. He told me he had feelings for me, but I turned him down. He's just not my type. I usually like guys that aren't complete assholes." She says with a laugh, and I join her.

"Well he's got a good taste in women, I'll give him that." I say, not even thinking about what I'm saying, and she immediately stops laughing, looking at me with a surprised look, blushing. I mentally kick myself for letting things go too far. I want to apologize, but no words come out of my mouth, so I just look at her like a moron that just told a girl he just met he likes her. That's me. I'm the moron.

The two of us just stare at each other, and I silently pray that she ends the silence. We keep staring until she finally breaks the silence.

"Brett? Were you flirting with me?"

"Uh. I didn't mean to- I just- I didn't want to be like-" I stammer for a moment, trying to collect my thoughts "...Yes. I'm sorry if I kinda put you in an awkward position. I just think you're super pretty and nice and all and... I like you and it just sorta flew out."

Another stunned silence follows, but she smiles. "Well, I think I like you, too. But, I don't want to take things too fast, you know? You seem like a cool guy and all, I just wanna get to know you better. But don't worry, I think it'll happen soon enough." She says with a cute smile.

I softly smile, which slowly turns into an embarrassed grin. I blush and look down, I look back up to still see her smiling at me, before she leans in and I feel her lips meet mine. The two of us kiss, and for a moment everything else leaves my mind. All I can think about is Brody. No School, no walkers, nothing. Just this beautiful girl that has feelings for me, apparently.

We break away from the kiss and I just stare, awestruck. My first kiss, completely out of nowhere like that. She giggles at my expression, and I think she knows.

"You can shoot, you can fight, you can kiss, is there anything you can't do?" She grins to me and I grin back, embarrassed.

"I guess you'll have to find out."

"Hmmm. I guess I will." She smiles to me. She looks out at the scenery outside and then back to me. "It's pretty late. I think I should go to sleep. I'll see you Brett, alright?"

I smile and nod. "Of course, Brody. Good night."

She blows me a kiss and I start feeling butterflies in my stomach as I go back to looking out at the courtyard. A small smile forms on my face thinking about it all. Benji and I have some new people, with good food and protection, and I just kissed a girl for the first time. This has been an interesting day to say the least.

Moments later, I hear someone sigh as they lean up on the barrier next to me, and I turn to my right to see Mitch trying to spark a hand-rolled cigarette.

"You came here to just give me Hell, didn't you?" He snarls as he finally lights it. "You beat me in front of everyone else, you steal the girl I wanted from me, all on your first day here. What's next, you cut my throat in my sleep?"

I shrug. "You picked a fight you couldn't win, and Brody wanted someone that wasn't a complete asshole. I'm not gonna kill you or anything, because I think there's a lot to gain from being a part of this group, and I'm not gonna lose their trust over some petty rivalry with you, Mitch. Although, if I had a suggestion, I'd lose the attitude and maybe show me some respect. You know damn well I am smarter, stronger, and more capable than you are."

He sneers at me, "And if I don't?"

I lean in with a nice grin. "I can give you Hell beyond your wildest dreams. Just keep that in mind. Don't test me, I'll pass every time, and I think you know that." With a smug smile, I pat him on the back a couple times, making sure he got the point. "Have a good night, Mitchell."

With that, I turn back around, and he doesn't say a word. I slowly walk back to my room, feeling like a new man. I creak open the door to see Benji sound asleep in his bed, and I walk over to mine, laying down under a thin blanket and closing my eyes with a satisfied smile.

What a fucking day.

I wake up that morning to a bright beam of sunlight pouring in through the window, and I slowly wake up to see Benji putting on his boots.

"Hey." He says to me as he finishes getting dressed and picks up his crossbow.

"Morning." I say back groggily, messing with my hair for a bit before putting on my Brewers cap.

He waits for me as I do the same, throwing on a plaid flannel, a fresh pair of faded jeans, and my boots, pretty worn-down but still in good enough shape. I strap on my holster and pick up my Remington 700 rifle, and the two of us walk out of our room, and out toward the courtyard, where everyone is already up and about, doing their daily tasks.

"There they are! We let you sleep in a little bit, being you first real day here and all." Marlon says, walking up to us. "So, what to have you guys do today…? You boys feel like hunting?"

"Sure!" I grin. "Who else is hunting?"

"Marlon looks around. "Well, it looks like you two, Louis, Aasim, and Brody." My face lights up hearing Brody's name, and Marlon eyes me curiously, but continues. "We have animal traps set up to capture small game like rabbits and shit all around the safe zone. We'll just need you guys to go out, see if we've got anything, and bring it back for Omar."

"Seems easy enough." Benji remarks, and I nod in agreement.

"I would think so, and having you guys around, maybe things might go a bit more smoothly." This time, it's my turn to eye him curiously, but I say nothing.

The two of us walk over to Louis, Aasim, and Brody, the three of them chatting while they're getting ready, and we join them. Brody's the first one to notice me, brightly smiling at the sight of us.

"Hey y'all." She warmly says with a beautiful Southern twang, "Are you joinin' us today?"

"We sure are. Let's kill some animals." I grin, and Louis grins, too.

"I'm gonna have to introduce you fellas to Chairles." He tells us.

"Chairles?" Both me and my brother ask, and Louis simply pulls out an old chair leg, nails messily hammered into it, creating a unique melee weapon.

"Chairles" Louis simply states. "I like to name it that because it's a lot more fun that way. Bashing in a walker's head is cool and all, but doing it with Chairles makes it like, ten times as awesome!"

"Well, if we're showing off our weapons, I may as well introduce you to Mr. Remington," I grin as I show them my father's 700, a bit dirty but still a beautiful rifle nonetheless, "And his friend, Madame Beretta." I pull the M9 out of its holster, the sleek black body shining in the mid-morning sun."

"You probably shouldn't use your guns too much out here." Aasim reminds me. "We try to keep quiet here for a reason. Obviously, if it's life and death situation, do what you gotta do, but guns will only attract more attention, you know?"

I nod, "Yeah. That makes sense. I've got a knife for when I have to get up close and personal, but usually I like to avoid that if I have to."

Louis looks over at Benji. "What about you, Benji? What're you working with?"

Benjo shows off his crossbow, before softly smiling. "David Bowie?"

Aasim and I both facepalm at my brother's awful pun as Brody and Louis start cackling, Louis even giving him a high-five for the joke.

"Omar was right, you might have me beat for best sense of humor here!" Louis exclaims. "What else do you got?"

My brother unsheathes his katana, a gift given to my Dad when he went on a business trip to Japan when we were young, and shrugs. "I don't have a pun for this one. It's just a katana. It slices through walkers like butter, though, so that's fun."

"We should probably get going," Brody tells us. "With any luck, the traps are already sprung and we'll have some rabbits and whatnot for Omar."

With that, the five of us walk out the gates, and back into the woods. Well, time to hunt.

The little click noise that's made whenever Aasim snaps a trapped rabbit's neck is unsettling, but the meat we get from this is important for feeding us and the others, so I can deal with a little bit of morbidness for that. Brody clearly isn't a fan of it either, and I have no idea what the fuck Louis is doing. Benji and I are tasked with watching for any walkers, but it seems quiet, which is nice. The past couple of hours, I've gotten to chat with Brody, getting to know her better, and she gotten to learn a bit about me in the process.

The two of us sit on a large rock, overlooking a small clearing in the woods, just talking, getting to know each other.

"So, this is super personal, and you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but I'm going to be curious until I find out, but what exactly got you into Ericson's?" I ask her, and she looks taken aback. I look down, once again mentally kicking myself as she's clearly surprised by such a personal question. "I- I'm sorry. That was way too far. Don't answer that."

She shakes her head. "It's fine. I've had really bad anxiety as long as I can remember. Things just happen and I can't help but feel terrified about it. When the dead started walking, it hit an all-time high for me and since then, I get these instances where my nerves act up and I can't do anything. And when the walkers got Sophie and Minnie the other day, my nerves were pretty much controlling me for the next few days, so that's why I shot at you. Again, I'm really sorry for that."

I smile and shake my head. "Seriously, don't worry about it. It's not your fault. You can't control when you get anxiety, and it got the best of you. But, if it means anything, I think it's really cool you were so open about all that, and if you need someone to vent to or someone to talk to, you know I'm here for you."

She blushes, smiling widely. "That's very sweet of you, Brett. And I'll be sure to keep that in mind. I like talking with you. A lot." I feel her place her hand on top of mine.

This time, it's my turn to blush. "I like talking with you, a lot, too."

Brody surprises me by leaning in for another kiss, just like last night, but this time I'm more prepared, and my lips meet hers halfway. As our kiss breaks, I look her right in her eyes, those beautiful baby blues, and she looks right back at mine, a small grin forms on my face, but the both of us quickly turn around as we hear a few whispers.

Specifically, the sounds of Benji, Aasim, and Louis looking at us, surprised and confused, but none of them saying anything directly to us, instead whispering amongst themselves. Brody and I simply stare blankly at them, embarrassed beyond belief. The two of us glance back at one another, before staring back at the others.

"Well then, Brett and Brody. That did not take long, nor would I have seen that coming." Louis remarks. "Perhaps that arrow Brody shot you with was one of Cupid's."

Brody scoffs. "Shut up, Louis."

Aasim eyes the both of us weirdly, "So, what exactly is this?"

Brody and I glance at each other, and we just simply shrug. We don't really know what this is. We're just two teens in the zombie apocalypse that have feelings for one another, I guess. But still, neither of us answer, we just stare blankly at one another.

"Well we learned something new about our dear friend Brett today. He is basically the perfect human being and can do anything and everything. He'll beat up Mitch, he'll get with Brody, I honestly wonder what's next." He grins, and I just blush, even more embarrassed.

"Louis…" I quietly say to him, seeing Brody start to look a little anxious. He notices, and stands down.

"Alright then," Aasim raises several rabbits, their necks snapped and just waiting to be cooked by Omar. "It's not much, but we can make do with this for tonight and maybe the fishing haul will come out better tomorrow."

In the distance, I see some movement. I shush everyone as I raise my rifle, looking through the scope. Everything falls dead silent as I focus on the woods.

"What do you see?" Benji asks. I don't answer, too focused on what I'm seeing. Finally, he pokes his head out. A buck, slowly stepping out from behind the trees, makes his way to a patch of grass and starts eating. Everyone else is dead silent, until Louis whispers from my right.

"Holy shit… That's a lot of food."

"Brett, that rifle is way too loud. We should use Benji's bow." Aasim suggests.

I shake my head, not looking away from the buck. "No. It's too far away. Plus, I've got him in my sights."

I keep the crosshair lined up on his head, waiting for him to stay still for a moment, and I can feel the tension rising as everyone watches me in anticipation.

I take a deep breath, my finger slowly inching its way to the trigger, and after a second of hesitation, I squeeze.

The boom rings out for miles, and I hear the sounds of birds fleeing the scene all around me. The buck stands still for a moment, before dropping to the ground. I lower my rifle, a smirk forming on my face as I walk over to the buck's body. I hear soft footsteps behind me as the others follow, and soon enough, we reach the small clearing where the deer was grazing. Sure enough, it dead body lies there, a nice big hole right where its eyes were.

"This could feed us for like a week!" Louis exclaims. Aasim, on the other hand groans a bit.

"Sure, but we don't know who else heard that shot. We don't want to be attracting any unnecessary attention."

"A-Aasim's right," Brody agrees, and I frown. "We don't know who or what is out there, and… and I think we should keep it quiet back at Ericson's for a bit, just so nothing comes our way."

I eye her a bit curiously, but I nod. "That makes sense. We can talk about it with Marlon when we get back. In the meantime, let's worry about getting the food back. Omar's gonna have a field day with this."

Aasim walks off with the rabbits, leaving the rest of us to haul the deer back. Benji and I pick it up from separate ends, and Brody and Louis walk beside us to look out for walkers.

"So how did you get so good at shooting?" Brody asks me, "That buck was a good distance away, and you got it right through the eye. That's incredible!"

I grin, but look down as I feel my cheeks turning a bright pink. "It's just practice, really. Years of being on the road, having to shoot things, it all adds up after a bit."

"Well don't think I forgot about your promise, now. You promised to teach me how to shoot. I wanna be just as good of a shot as you are."

A wide smile forms on my face, and I softly nod. "Of course. We'll start tomorrow morning."

"Great! Tomorrow morning." She smiles before pecking me on the lips, once again catching me off-guard. She notices this and giggles, taking my hand in hers, and the moment feels perfect. Perfect until, of course, I hear Louis clear his throat from behind us.

"So. Seriously, how did this happen?" He asks us. "I mean, you've been here a day and you've already got a girlfriend?"

"I mean… I don't know if we'd consider each other that yet…" I inform Louis. "There's definitely something here between us, but the two of us decided to just keep it slow for now, let things develop themselves."

"Yeah. That looked real slow back there." My brother remarks sarcastically, much to the chagrin of myself and Brody. Louis, on the other hand, loves it, a deep and hearty laugh coming from him.

"Benji!" Brody whines at him, embarrassed by his remark, and I shoot him a glare, to which he sheepishly grins.

My brother's cheery expression soon turns more serious, "So, how DID this happen?"

"Well, you remember how I had a nightmare last night and needed some air?"

My brother simply nods as I continue.

"Well, I went out to the balcony, just to think and shit, when Brody and I met. We talked for a bit and, well, the rest is history I guess."

"So, I guess I have to ask, is there anything you can't or won't do?" Louis asks me, and I simply shrug and grin.

"I guess you'll have to find out."

Ericson's walls come into view, and I see Willy on guard duty, scanning the area with a pair of binoculars. As he sees us, he nearly jumps from his post, and turns to yell something back to the others. We reach the game to an entourage of the others, looking on in awe at the sight before them. They open the gates for us, and we immediately bring the buck over to Omar's area, his jaw dropping when he sees what we've brought him as the others cheer.

"Think you can make something nice with this?" I ask him, and he casually nods.

"Of course. Give me a few hours to skin it and get the actual meat, but it looks like we won't be relying on rabbit stew for the next few nights."

Violet walks up next to me with a soft smile. "Not bad. Looks like you weren't kidding when you said you and your brother were capable. Maybe you are more than just extra mouths to feed."

"Hey. What's going on?" I hear Marlon's voice from the back of the crowd.

"What happened? Brett and Benji are fucking awesome! That's what happened!" Wildly exclaims as Marlon makes his way up to the front.

As he sees what we brought back, his eyes nearly pop out of their sockets. "Mother of God… That thing's massive. Good work, guys. Really good work."

Benji and I grin at each other, proud of our work, and Aasim speaks up. "It's a good thing, too. The rabbit haul was not good today. We've only got four of them. And two of them weren't very big at all. We're gonna need to expand the safe zone if we want to get more food for the winter."

This strikes a nerve with Marlon who, despite being happy about the food, doesn't want to risk it with the safe zone. "And risk what happened with Sophie and Minerva? Yeah, I don't think so. The safe zone exists for a reason, Aasim. Because I don't think I could handle losing another one of you guys."

"So we take an extra person on supply runs and hunting trips, and we make sure we watch each other's backs. You know we're gonna need to push out sometime. And it's gonna have to be soon, or we're not gonna make it through the winter." Aasim suggests, but Marlon angrily shakes it off.

"I said no. We'll figure something out." Marlon bluntly states, angering Aasim.

"So what do you suggest? Cause what we have isn't gonna work a month or two from now."

"I said I'll think of something." The blond teen states before he storms off, not looking back at us for even a second, and Aasim sighs before doing the same, albeit in a different direction.

I stand there, kinda awkwardly, just trying to wonder what the hell just happened, as Ruby walks over to me.

"Don't let that get to you. Marlon feels guilty about the twins and wants what's best for us. He takes all this very seriously, as he should. Now c'mon. Y'all helped us out a ton. You earned some time to relax and hang out."

I nod and join the others, most of them sitting around a fire and telling stories and jokes, and Benji and I join in on the fun, finally getting the chance to feel like kids in a relatively normal world again. Getting to hang out with kids my own age, in a pretty safe area, it almost feels like the world didn't end six years ago.

Hours later, Omar pours everyone a bowl of soup with deer meat, spices, and other vegetables the group brought to him. Just like last night, the meal is incredible, and I scarf it down just as quickly as last night. This man Omar is God when it comes to food, and he clearly is not afraid to show it off. He just might become my new best friend.

After dinner, we all go our separate ways, but Brody pulls me aside, a concerned or nervous look on her face.

"What's up?" I ask her as she leads me inside, toward the dorms.

"I've been stressing since you killed that deer. It was loud and… and… and I'm just scared someone or something heard it and that they might come to us and try to attack us. There's been walker breaches in the past and every now and then, we see strangers walking around. We try to keep quiet and they pass by, no second thought to it. But every time, I just start thinking, 'This is it. Someone's gonna find us and kill us all.'"

I put my hand on Brody's shoulder in assurance, offering her a warm smile. "Brody, I'm not letting anything happen to you or anyone else here. I know you're scared, but I promise you, even if someone or something heard that shot and came for us, I'll handle them before they can even lay a finger on you, alright?"

"That's what Marlon said, but I saw the twins die right in front of me. They could've been saved, but I froze up, and every time I think about them, I can't help but think that if I did something, anything, Sophie and Minnie would be alive and well right now, and I just feel awful because of it."

I frown at what she tells me, and without saying a word, I hug her. I feel her bury her head into my collar, not quite crying, but I can tell she wants to. I rub her back as I hear her sniff.

"Brody… I wanna tell you something, and I think that it'll help. Is there someplace we could go and sit down in private?" I ask her in a whisper. She breaks from the hug, her puffy eyes meet mine, and she nods.

"Yeah. My room's just a few doors down." She leads me down the hall, before opening a door to our left, her name inscribed in the door crudely with a knife. She pulls out chairs for both of us, and I sit down across from her.

I hesitate for a second, as that familiar feeling in my gut comes back to me, just from thinking about Dad, but I know I need to tell her. Hopefully, this'll make her feel better.

"Ok, so this is the reason why I couldn't sleep last night, and ultimately the reason why I was out on the balcony, and why we met. And I'm not proud of this, it haunts me to this day. But, I had something similar to you and the twins when I was younger. I was confronted by a walker and I froze, and I got my Dad killed. So, here goes nothing."

Painfully, I tell Brody the story. I tell her the background, growing up in Wisconsin, eventually moving East when the dead rose, and how we wound up spending a lot of time in Ohio, culminating in the events that happened in Downtown Cincinnati, ending with Dad being bitten, and me pulling the trigger to make sure he wouldn't come back.

I feel my heart drop as I tell that last detail, reliving the experience in real time as the images of Dad's brains splattering the wall behind him come back in vivid detail. I look back up at Brody, tears welling in her eyes. This time, it's her turn to hug me, once again burying her head in my collar, although this time, the tears start coming. Without a word, I put my head on her shoulder and rub her back once again, trying my best to comfort her.

"Brett, I am so sorry. I am so sorry. That's terrible. I can't believe you had to do that." She manages to say through the tears.

"I know. It still hurts to think about it. But thank you, Brody. Being able to confide in you like this, it means a lot to me, and I hope I'm able to do the same." I smile as I feel her nod.

"You have. A lot." She sniffs. "Having you around has helped so much. Honestly, thank you."

"Of course, Brody. I'll always be here for you." I plant a kiss on her cheek, accidentally getting a salty taste in my mouth from her tears, not that it really matters to me.

"It's getting late." She notes. "Do you… Do you think you could stay and cuddle tonight? It'll help me feel better." She gives me a pretty smile, despite the tears, and my heart melts.

With slightly reddening cheeks, I nod. "Absolutely. Whatever you need, I'll give you."

Minutes later, she and I are cuddled in her bed, and as the two of us lay there, she asks me one last thing.

"Brett?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to be my boyfriend?"

My heart rate doubles as the question hits me. We agreed to take things slowly the night before, and yet here she is, dropping the big question just like that. I chuckle a bit, a big grin forming on my face.

"Absolutely. There's nothing I want more right now."

I hear a soft humming noise come from her mouth before she responds. "Good. I want you to be mine, too."

"So that's it, then. We're boyfriend and girlfriend."

"I guess we are, then."

I grin as the two of us start to drift off to sleep. In less than two days, I've made lots of new friends, found a new place to call home, and got my first girlfriend ever. This Ericson place, I could get used to it, real quickly.