I forgot to mention this last time, but there is a dog with the group. Zoey's male German Sheppard named Max.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for original characters and idea's.
Chapter 2.
Zoey P.O.V.
"Up, Up, Up, can only go up
From here!,
Up, Up, Up, Up where the clouds
Gonna clear!,
Up, Up, Up, there's no way but
From here!"
I sang along to the Shania Twain CD, the song "Up" as I drove down the road. Skyler, who was in the passengers seat, started laughing and singing along. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw Courtney roll here eyes from the backseat, and Macy giggled next to her. Max, our German Sheppard, barked happily from his spot in between Courtney and Macy.
"What's the matter Court? Don't you like our singing?" I joked with a smirk.
"No, I don't." She said flatly. Skyler turned in her seat and stuck her tongue out at her. Just then, a wave of nausea hit me. That's been happening a lot lately.
"What's the matter with you Ms. Grumpy Gills?" Skyler said in a deep voice, causing Macy to giggle some more.
"She's just mad because she couldn't ride with Robbie." I teased in a sing-song voice, trying to hide my discomfort. Courtney's cheeks flushed and she glared at me.
"Shut up." She grumbled, looking out the window. Skyler snickered and I grinned at my sister.
"Ooohhhh! Courtney has a crush on my little brother!" Skyler sang. Courtney mumbled something under her breath and flipped her off. Skyler just laughed and turned back around.
Just then, the sound of a revving engine was heard and a red Corvette went flying past us. It swerved and cut in front of us teasingly. I rolled my eyes and reached for my radio. Every one of us has a handheld police radio that we took from a police station. Macy just call's them walkie talkies.
"What are you doing Connor?" I sighed into the radio.
"Hello to you to, babe." Connor's voice came threw clearly. I honked the horn once to show my annoyance. He honked back and then swerved to the left side of the road. He speeded up and got way ahead, then came back over into the right lane where he dropped the speed back down, causing me to slam on the brakes.
"Damnit Connor! Are you trying to make me crash!" I cursed into the radio. Skyler was holding onto the dashboard and snickering slightly. Macy gasped at my swearing and Courtney once again rolled her eyes.
"God, chill out Zo. I was just messing with you." Connor chuckled, and the radio crackled a little.
"What the hell is going on up there?" Zack's voice cut in. Zack, Hannah, Jace and Claire were in the black Convertible behind us, And Wyatt, Robbie and Daniel were taking up the rear of our little convoy in the black SUV.
"Connor's being a dumbass." I said as if it happens on a regular basis, which it does.
"You wound me Zo." Connor joked.
"Connor is dumbass. What's new?" Zack asked.
"Hey!" Connor exclaimed, pretending to be insulted. There was a tugging on my shirt and I turned in my seat. Macy was bouncing in her seat slightly.
"Aunt Zoey, I gotta go potty!" She whined.
"You think you can hold it for a few minutes?" I asked.
"Ok, but I gotta go soon." She nodded. I sighed and nodded back.
"Guy's, Macy has to go to the bathroom." I spoke into the radio.
"Can't she hold it?" Connor asked.
"Probably not for very long. Be on the lookout for a rest stop."
"Copy that Ms. Bossy Boots." Zack teased. I rolled down my window and put my hand out, sticking up my middle finger up at Zack.
"Hey guys, I see some sort of building up ahead. I think it might be a gas station." Connor informed us.
"Good. Lets go. You guy's have your gun's right?" I asked.
"Yep. Locked and loaded." Connor confirmed.
"Ready to go." Zack added. I nodded even thought they couldn't see me.
"Wicked. Someone let Wyatt know we're stopping." I said, then put the radio back up on the dashboard. The nausea was hardly noticeable by now.
It was silent in the car as we drove the rest of the way down the road, before stopping in front of the gas station. It looked abandoned, and that made it look extra creepy since we were out in the Arizona desert. I pulled into the little dirt lot and parked a few feet away from the gas pumps. The Corvette pulled up to my left and parked, the Convertible on my right and the SUV next to it.
I grabbed my Glock gun off the dashboard and made sure it was loaded. Guns were another thing we took from a police station. We have shot guns, Beretta's, Ruger's, Sig Sauer's and Glock's. We also have knife's, shovels and other stuff that kill's the zombies silently.
We all knew how to use one, except for Daniel and Macy. Zack, Courtney and I were pretty good shots, since our dad was a police officer. He had taught us how to shoot for protection, but no one had known except for us and our mom. And we taught our friends once the fucking zombies started appearing. Our mom was a doctor, so I know all kinds of stuff about healing wounds and taking care of people too. We also have a portable generator to keep the electronics we were able to save running.
I turned in my seat to look back at Macy and Courtney while Skyler got her gun ready.
"Courtney, you stay here and keep an eye on Macy. And no getting out of the car until we give the ok, got it?"
"Yes Aunt Zoey." Macy nodded. Courtney just nodded and mumbled a 'whatever'.
"Hey Courtney, I love you, you little bitch." I smirked. She looked up.
"I get it from you." She smirked back.
"Yes, yes you do." I laughed and turned back around, then opened my door.
"Don't let Max out of the car either." Grabbing my jacket, I hopped out and closed the door, made sure my back up gun was in it's holster around my thigh, then walked around to the back of the car. The wind sent my blonde hair flying, so I pulled it up into a messy bun with the hair tie on my wrist. I pulled my black jacket over my white tank top and zipped it up. My blue jeans were getting dusty with all the dirt blowing around as I leaned against the back of the car.
"Hey babe." Connor walked over to me and kissed me on the lips. I smirked when I felt his hands slide from my waist to my ass. He goosed me and I giggled against his lips. It was no shock that I wasn't a virgin. Infact, none of us were, except for Courtney, Robbie and the little kids of course.
"Ahem!" We broke apart and saw Zack standing there, tapping his foot. I smirked at how annoyed he looked. Hannah came to his side and kissed his cheek, wiping away the annoyance and brining a smile to his face.
"Alright, who all's going in?" Jace asked as he joined us with Claire. In the background, I heard Wyatt tell Daniel to stay in the SUV with Robbie until he said so.
"I am. So is Connor, Zack and Skyler." I answered.
"I'm coming in too." Hannah spoke up. We nodded and the passengers side of the Land Rover opened. Skyler hopped out and I noticed she was slightly pale.
"You ok Sky?" I asked as she slowly walked up to us. She nodded.
"Yeah, I'm just tired." She gave a small smile. I walked up to her and put my hand on her forehead.
"Your burning up." I frowned. She was starting to sweat and looked ready to fall over sideways.
"I'm fine Zoey." But the minute after she said it, she fell forward into me.
"Wyatt! Help me get her into the SUV. There is no way she's coming in with us. She need's to lay down, now." I commanded as I held Sky upright.
Wyatt rushed over and took her from me, lifting his girlfriend up bridal style. I walked to the SUV and popped the trunk open. We had laid out two sleeping bags and pillows back there just incase someone had to sleep when we were driving.
I crawled up and helped Wyatt lift her in. Once she was laying down, I helped maneuver her into the sleeping bag.
"Robbie, hand me that blanket." I looked over my shoulder and pointed to the blanket next to him. He handed it to me and turned around, kneeled on the seat and leaned over the back of the seat, looking at his sister with concern.
"Do I really need the damn blanket?" Skyler asked, annoyed as I laid it over her. I smiled sadly.
"You already know the answer to that, Sky. I know your really hot right now, but your gonna get cold as soon as it passes." I said sadly. She sighed and nodded. I patted her arm and climbed out of the trunk as Wyatt climbed in and took my spot next to her.
"We'll be back in a few minutes." I said gently. Wyatt nodded and laid down next to Sky, moved her gun to the side, then started rubbing her arms soothingly. I felt my eyes water and shut the trunk. I turned and saw everyone with sad, knowing looks.
"Lets go." Hannah said, blinking repeatedly to hold in tears. Her, Connor, Zack and I raised our guns and made our way up to the building. Claire and Jace stayed back to guard the cars. Zack and Connor kicked the blood stained doors open, Hannah and I following them inside. There was a dead body a few feet away, and I wrinkled my nose at the smell of rotting corpse. It was not helping my nausea. The body looked to be male, and had a type of uniform on. He was probably the owner or an employee.
"God, that never stops being nasty." Hannah gagged in disgust. She went to walk farther into the station, but Zack pulled her back.
"We should check first." He said, reaching over to the counter and next to the cash register. He grabbed a "Ding for service" bell, and my brows furrowed in confusion. Only when he dinged it and moaning was heard, did I get what he was doing. A zombie appeared from one of the small aisles, growled and lunged for us.
BANG!
Connor took it down with a single shot to the forehead. Smirking smugly, he stepped over the decaying body and waved his hand.
"Well come on!" He gestured for us to get moving. Hannah and Zack rolled there eyes and went down separate aisles. I laughed and Connor winked at me, bringing a blush to my cheeks. I went down the aisle closest to me with my gun pointed in front of me, ready for any surprise attacks. I could hear the others a few aisle's down so I relaxed slightly. At the end of the aisle was what looked like a storage room of some sort. Next to it was a strange little bedroom. It seems the owner/employee was staying here. Yuck.
Thump!
I eyed the door carefully as I approached the storage room. That thump was obviously not one of the others. As I got closer, I could hear moaning coming from inside the room, so I hesitantly reached out and unlocked the door. It creaked open and I gasped, the nausea making a return.
A little girl, no older than 10, stared back at me with dead eyes. Veins popped out across her pale face, her blue dress ripped and stained with blood. Most of the skin and tissue around her mouth was torn off, revealing the bone of her jaw.
"Oh god." I whispered sadly as she growled at me. Her left leg looked like it had been snapped and it was twisted around unnaturally. She went to lung at me, but fell back down because of her leg. So instead, she started to crawl towards me. At the speed she was going, I could have walked away, used the bathroom and come back.
But no, I just watched her. Watched her with sad eyes and took little step's back when she got slightly closer than before.
When I looked at her, I couldn't help but see Macy's face. Sweet, innocent little Macy who wouldn't hurt a fly if she didn't have to. I heard footsteps from behind.
"Hey Zoey," Hannah's voice came from behind, and then I could see her out of the corner of my eye. "I found some…..OH MY GOD!" She then screamed when she saw the little girl.
"What? What happened?" Connor and Zack were by our side's in seconds, ready to fight off whatever would bring us harm. They froze, though, when they saw her.
"Holy shit." Connor whispered as we watched her try to reach out and grab one of us. She growled and moaned, slowly inching herself forewords.
"Poor little girl." Hannah said sadly.
"She's not a little girl anymore, Hannah." Zack mumbled.
I seemed to break out of the little trance I was in when he said that, and realized he was right. This thing in front of me was not innocent or alive anymore. I blinked and no longer saw Macy's face, but the face of a creature who would stop at nothing to harm my family, friends and I.
So, with a glare, I aimed and fired.
BANG!
The bullet pierced through it's forehead, and the body fell limp. I stepped over the body with my poker face on.
"Did you guys check out the rest of the building?" I asked emotionlessly, turning around. They were all giving me odd looks.
"Yeah, it's all clear." Hannah nodded.
"Are you ok Zo?" Zack asked, his expression worried. I nodded emotionlessly.
"Yes. I'm fine." I lied. I'm pretty sure my face was slightly green, though.
"Are you sure, because you seem…."
"I'm FINE Zack!" I exclaimed, annoyed all of a sudden. He backed off immediately.
"We should move the body's. There's a dumpster outback that we could toss them in." Connor suggested, glancing at me. We all agreed and got three old sheets out of the bedroom.
Connor and Zack decided to wrap up the first two body's and take them outback, (Mostly because they were stronger then Hannah and I), while Hannah and I wrapped the little girls body. Connor and Zack got the first body wrapped easily and were already taking it outback as Hannah and I started to wrap the little girl.
Beside's her head, the little girls corpse was wrapped. Hannah ripped part of the sheet and laid it gently across her face.
"I just can't see her like that." Hannah said sadly. In the background, Connor and Zack carried out the second body, the one Connor shot.
"I know." I sighed, nodding in understanding. I grabbed the head and shoulders, while Hannah took the feet. Slowly, we lifted the corpse up and made our way out back. Zack held the door for us and Connor held up the dumpster lid.
"Alright, 1, 2, 3." On the count of three, we laid the little girl inside as gently as possible. I don't know why I was so soft one second, then ready to kill the next, then so soft again. Probably because I knew deep inside that the little girl didn't do anything wrong. She didn't ask to be turned into one of those things. At least, I hope not.
"Now that that's done with, I'm going to get Macy. Hopefully she hasn't peed her pants." I said. Not waiting for an answer, I walked around the side of the building to the cars. Jace and Claire were waiting, leaning against the SUV, but they lowered their guns when they saw me. Claire held out a Clorox wipe and I took it gratefully.
"Any problems?" Jace asked as I wiped my hands clean.
"Three of them, one already down before we got here." I informed them, letting my hair out of it's bun and walking straight to the Land Rover. I just threw the wipe on the ground because it didn't really matter about recycling or garbage disposal anymore. I knocked on the window and Courtney unlocked the doors. Connor, Zack and Hannah appeared and came over, getting the remainder of people out of the cars, beside's Skyler.
"It's safe to go in. There are two bathrooms inside, so we have to take turns." Connor announced as I un-buckled Macy's car seat and pulled her out. I grabbed the small tote bag from between the front and passengers seats and flung it over my shoulder. Closing the door, I held Macy on my hip and started for the station again. Since the front doors were already kicked in, I just walked straight inside.
"Close your eyes Mace." I told her when we approached the blood stains on the ground. She closed her eyes when I said to, used to it. It's obvious she has seen more blood than a six year old should ever see, but I still liked to keep it out of her head as much as possible. I walked us to the bathrooms and opened the door with one hand.
"Ok bug, you can open your eyes now." I told her as I shut the door behind us. She blinked a few times to readjust to the light and I smiled at her. The bathroom didn't seem dirty or to bad for me to worry about, so I set her down. I pulled a Clorox wipe out of the tote bag and wiped the toilet seat, just in case.
"Alright bug, go ahead and do your business." I said, tossing the wipe in the corner. She smiled back at me and pointed at her pants. I laughed and helped her unbutton the buttons. She pulled her pants and underwear down and sat down. I turned away to give her privacy as she peed. I laughed lightly at the relived sigh she let out.
Once she finished, I pulled out a baby wipe and handed it to her. She took it and cleaned herself, tossed it in the toilet, then stood up and pulled her underwear and pants up. I buttoned the buttons for her and pulled out, this time, a Wet wipe for her.
"Your goofy Aunt Zoey. You act just like a mommy." She giggled, taking it from me and wiping her hands. I smiled and kissed her nose. She tossed the third wipe into the toilet as well and went to flush it.
"I don't think that'll work Macy. These bathrooms haven't been used in….." My sentence was cut off by the gurgle of the toilet flushing. Well, I'll be damned. I don't know how the hell the toilet worked, but I didn't question it.
Macy gave me quite the smug look for a six year old, so I stuck my tongue out at her. She returned the gesture, making me laugh. Just then, the nausea returned. I tried to ignore it, but it didn't work.
"Alright bug, we should let someone else use the bathroom now." I said, forcing myself not to upchuck on the spot. I once again picked her up and opened the door with one hand.
Zack was waiting outside the door, and quickly took Macy from me, holding her under the butt with one hand.
"Well it's about time." He joked, poking her stomach. She giggled and poked him back.
"Would you take her back out to the cars? I have to pee too." I asked.
"Sure. I'll have Courtney watch her while the rest of us try and find anything that might be useful from here." He gestured around the station with his free hand. I nodded and turned back to the bathroom.
I made sure the door was shut and locked, before turning and pulling the dreaded item out of the bottom of the tote bag. I laid it on the sink counter and unbuttoned my jeans. I pulled them down, followed by my underwear. Looking at my underwear, I sighed dreadfully.
No Blood. Which means no period. Fuck.
"Crap." I whispered as I opened the Pregnancy test box. I found a quite a few of them at the last store we checked for supplies, and sneakily slipped them into the tote bag. It had been three weeks since Connor and I last had sex, and I had started to notice the signs about a week ago.
First, I missed my period. Then my breast's were sore constantly and started to feel heavier, now I have mood swings, and I've been very nauseous as well.
Blinking back fearful tears, I pulled the test out and sat down to pee on it. Once I was finished, I set it on the counter and cleaned myself. I got up, pulled up my underwear and pants, and flushed the toilet. I unlocked the door, then leaned against it. I stared at the test for what seemed like forever, but was really three or four minutes.
Hesitantly, I reached out and grabbed it. I took a deep breath and looked. A little pink plus sign showed on the small screen.
Pregnant.
"Oh no." I whispered to myself. I laid it back on the counter as tears filled my eyes and I put a hand to my forehead.
"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck! FUCK!" I cursed, before the feeling of nausea became to much for me.
"Ugh!" I grunted as I dropped to my knees and started to vomit into the toilet. My throat burned and my eyes leaked a few tears as I threw up. I tried to hold my hair out of the way, but it was hard as hell.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Zo? Are you ok?" I heard Connor's concerned voice through the door. I tried to answer, but I couldn't stop puking.
"I'm coming in, ok?" A second later, the door was opening and Connor stepped in. I heard him shut the door behind himself and then he was kneeling next to me. He grabbed my hair, held it back, and started to rub my back.
"That a girl Zo, get it out." He whispered comfortingly. After a few moments, the puking finally stopped and I flushed the toilet again. I sat back against the wall, tears streaming down my face.
"Are you ok? Tell me what's wrong Zoey." Connor commanded gently. I only cried harder and pointed to the counter. Confused, he stood up and looked. I closed my eyes in fear of him hating me.
"I don't see what's wrong….Oh shit." I heard the shock in his voice. I squeezed my eyes shut tighter, wishing this was just a dream.
"Oh crap. Oh shit! Fuck!" He exclaimed. I pulled my knees to my chest and full on sobbed. I was crying so hard, I'm surprised no one else heard me. Connor, noticing my sobbing, stopped swearing and immediately kneeled in front of me.
"Hey, hey." He said, grabbing my face. I looked at him through my watery eyes. "Please don't cry."
"I'm so sorry Connor! I understand if you hate me." I couldn't help but cry.
"You listen to me. I do NOT hate you, and I never will. It's insane how much I love you, and I will not leave you alone in this. I know it will be hard, but I'm right here." He said sincerely. I just stared at him for a few seconds, before throwing myself at him. I buried my face in his chest and he wrapped his arms around my waist securely, holding me in his lap.
"I love you Connor." I whispered after a while of silence. He squeezed me tighter.
"I love you too." He said, resting his chin on top of my head. I smiled.
"If the world wasn't in hell, and there were no dead cannibals roaming around, would you want to keep it?" I asked. He was silent for a minute.
"Yeah, yeah I would." He answered. I looked up at him to see he was smiling at me. My smile widened.
"Me too. Abortion would be out of the question completely, I would never kill my baby. And I couldn't live with adoption, knowing some complete stranger would be raising my child." I told him truthfully. He grinned at me.
"I totally agree. Now what do you say we get out of this little bathroom?"
"I say hell yes."
He helped me up and I tossed the tote bag back over my shoulder again. He grabbed my hand and I grinned at him. I opened the door and we stepped out, only to run into Claire.
"Well it's about damn time. I've got to pee so badly and Wyatt wont get out of the other bathroom!" She complained. I laughed while Connor rolled his eyes at his sister.
"Chill out Psycho, it's all yours now." He said, and I snickered. Claire raised an eyebrow.
"Why were you guys both in the bathroom? And why did it take you so long" She questioned with a cheeky smirk.
"None of your business." I said, blushing at what she was hinting at.
"Oh my god! You guys had a quickie didn't you!" She burst out laughing. I grabbed her and covered her mouth with my hand, hoping no one heard that. But of course, Zack just had to be standing nearby.
"What?" Zack exclaimed, stomping over. I sighed and dropped my hand from Claire's mouth.
"Thanks a lot Claire." Connor glared at his sister. Claire shrugged and mouthed sorry, even though she was still snickering.
"You two did what?" Zack asked, more like demanded, as he stopped in front of us.
"We didn't do anything. And even if we did, what I do with your sister is none of your business." Connor said. Zack gave him a dirty look.
"You have sex with Hannah all the time, so what's the difference?" I asked, glaring at him.
"Hannah's not my sister." He snapped.
"No, but she's Jace's sister. And I don't think Jace likes that very much, but he doesn't go bonkers. So you need to calm down and leave it alone. We have all had sex before, except for the younger and little kids. So, drop it already." I shot back, hands on my hips. He looked shocked at first, then looked down.
"….."
"What was that? I can't hear you."
"I said sorry, your right. Gosh!" He avoided my eyes. I smirked at his embarrassment.
"I'll forgive you, but only because you're my favorite brother." I playfully punched his shoulder. He smirked at me.
"I'm your only brother."
"I know!" I smiled happily and kissed his cheek. He turned to Connor.
"We cool man?"
"Yeah, we're cool." They smirked at each other and fist bumped. I felt so happy all of a sudden.
"Yay! Everyone's happy again!" I squealed, then literally skipped outside.
"I think she's bipolar." I heard Claire say. Connor laughed, but it was more of a I-know-the-real-reason-why-she's-all-happy-again-and-you-don't laugh, if that makes any sense at all…