The classroom was basically empty of useful supplies, so the time we were in there ended up being spent by playing a classic game of I Spy. Ben chuckled at every few comments made between Travis and I but didn't participate in the game, determined to open the door.
After a while, Lee, Kenny and Brie reentered the room with red bottles of fuel.
"How'd you guys make out?" Ben asked, turning around from his door-opening attempt.
"We got the fuel," Kenny lifted one in his hand.
"Awesome! Good job, guys."
"How're you doing with that door?"
Ben sighed. "Not so good."
Kenny put the fuel down and walked towards him. "Here, let me give you a hand," he crouched down and looked at the door before turning back to Lee. "You get that battery yet?"
"Yeah, Molly has it. She should be back here soon," the man responded.
"She'd better be."
Lee went to talk to Brie while I turned back to Travis.
"You think Vernon and Christa are doing okay?"
"Wanna go check?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, sure. We'd have to make sure it's okay with Lee though and see if he wants to come too."
"I know what I'm doing, Marce. I can look after us both."
"I don't doubt it," I replied. "But we can't just go running off like kids. It's dangerous."
Travis searched my eyes then looked down at the floor. "Okay."
I waited until Lee finished talking before wandering over with Travis.
"We want to check on Christa and Vernon," I stated. "They've been gone too long and they had the shortest distance to go."
"That would be wise," Lee agreed. "Are you going alone?"
"Unless you want to come with us, but we're fine I think."
Lee nodded. "It might be good for the two of you to go. If you get into trouble though, act quietly and quickly. Just get the hell out of there and back here, okay?"
"Of course," I smiled, happy he'd let us go without supervision. In a way, I felt a lot less useless.
Travis opened the door to leave the classroom and I followed, pausing only when a hand landed on my shoulder to stop me walking.
"Be careful," Lee commanded, his eyes fixed on mine.
I nodded and closed the door.
The corridor was empty except for some lockers and paper on the floor.
"I kind of miss school," I thought out loud as we walked.
"I know," Travis held the knife I'd traded with him close. "It feels wrong to be in a school when it's so empty like this. Deserted."
"Yeah," I nodded. "I miss learning about literature and history."
"I miss band," Travis sighed. "Football was okay."
"I hated all sports. Kind of ironic now when I have to rely on being fit to fight walkers."
We went around a corner and I hesitated. "Speak of the devil."
"Walkers," he confirmed in a whisper.
We crept forward, going around another corner and being faced with a collection of walkers hitting a door. I stumbled back while Travis ran forward, hiding behind something.
He looked above it, then sunk back down and mouthed words to me. "Nurses office."
I nodded once.
I peeked my head around the corner, looking at the walkers and then back to Travis.
"We have to get them," I mouthed.
He prepared the knife in his hand while I got the screwdriver. I already had the plan.
I banged my fist one of the lockers behind me, drawing in the walkers' attention. Travis signalled that they were coming towards me. My heart raced. What if it went wrong?
A walker turned the corner, looking me in the eyes and began growling ferociously. I stabbed it in the head, making it fall to the floor, before meeting more of them. I leapt out, killing them with Travis until they were all disposed of.
"We did good!" I grinned, looking down at the pile of walkers.
"Yeah," he sounded a bit cold. "It's nothing to really be proud of though, is it?"
I realised what he was saying.
"Let's just to get Christa and Vernon," I sighed, going to open the door.
I pushed it and went inside.
"It's just us!" Travis shouted, stepping at my side instantly and looking to where a gun was pointed at me.
"Christa, are you okay? What happened?" I rushed.
"We're fine. They wandered into the hallway after we got inside. I think they must have heard us rooting around in here. This whole place is infested, they're everywhere!"
"It's cool," Travis reassured her. "We got the ones outside. Did you find the meds?"
"That's our other problem," Vernon complained, walking over to the other side of the room. "Take a look."
Travis walked over to where Vernon was and tried the handle of a safe.
"Locked," he snarled.
"Can you pick locks?" I hoped.
"It's a combination lock. I guess we could try, but it'll take a while."
"I'll have a search for anything useful. Maybe they kept the combination somewhere?"
Ha. In my dreams.
I followed my hopes anyway and began searching everywhere. On a desk was a medical file which I flicked open half-heartedly. There was a tape inside.
"No combination here, but I found a tape," I told them.
"That's brilliant but will it help us get the safe open?" Christa snapped. "I doubt it."
I rolled my eyes and recommenced my search.
"Oh my gosh," I beamed. "A camcorder!"
"You gonna make a documentary of the apocalypse or something?" Travis asked in a distracted voice.
"I was going to play the tape on it. Come look."
I slotted the tape into the side and pressed play.
The tape showed a woman's medical consultation. I put a hand over my mouth as the doctor told the lady her baby would be terminated against her wishes.
"What the hell kind of place was this?" Christa cried.
"I don't know. I'm glad it's not like that now," I turned the camcorder off.
I looked everywhere in the room, finding nothing at all to help with the safe.
"I'm gonna ask Lee for help," I decided. "I'll be quick."
"You're not going alone," Travis said.
"I am. You stay and keep working on this lock, I'm literally only going around the corner and I have my screwdriver," I told him, waving the weapon in my hands. "I'll be fine."
He groaned in annoyance but also looked sad. "Stay safe and hurry."
"I will," I smiled, running out of the office.
I went down the corridors, passing the pile of walkers and trying to ignore it, then arrived back at the classroom.
"Hey, Lee? We could use some help," I closed the door behind me.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"The meds are in a locked safe. I found a tape with a doctor on it and he was near it, so I guess he might have something on him to open it. Now we just need to find him."
"A doctor... I know where to go," he said, marching out of the door.
I followed him closely as we went outside and into an alleyway. There was a small shed up ahead of us which Lee walked into before being pushed back by a walker.
"Look out!" I stabbed it in the head.
"Thanks," Lee pushed it onto the floor. Something fell off a shelf and splattered its head.
"I think I'm gonna be sick," I groaned, following Lee and pulling myself up onto some shelves.
We reached the roof and noticed a barbed wire fence.
"Can you make that jump?" He questioned, looking at my leg.
"I'll be fine," I assured though I wasn't actually sure if I would be.
Lee jumped first, his feet just missing the wire before he landed safely.
"Come on," he waved.
I nodded then leapt. The wire snagged part of my jeans, tearing through them and cutting my good leg. I hoped it was just a small cut. I landed rather disgracefully, hitting the floor on my stomach and just avoiding damaging my face by putting my hands out, effectively dropping the screwdriver while doing so.
"Are you alright?" He helped me up and picked up the weapon.
"I'm fine," I laughed, taking the weapon back and ignoring the blood leaking from my new injury. My jeans really weren't the best looking clothes anymore.
There was a walker just ahead of us, dragging itself along the floor. Lee killed it before it was aware of our presence, and then pulled a disgusted face.
"That's him, that's the doctor!" I exclaimed.
Lee searched the corpse and held out another tape.
"It's got a code on it," he pointed out.
"Awesome. Let's get back to the others, shall we?" I suggested. "Travis will be worried sick."
A walker approached. "Shit. Time to go," Lee began running and I did the same, returning back to the school.
"Hey," I stopped in the hallway on the way back to the others. "You don't think that combination is for a locker, do you? I mean, that's just a guess based on the blood here and the blood in the nurses office."
"Only one way to find out," Lee shrugged and moved to the locker, unlocking it with the combination. Another tape caught my eye immediately.
"A tape!" I picked it up. "Let's go show them."
We walked back into the nurses office and all heads turned to us.
"Thank God, you're alright," Christa smiled. "Your boyfriend has been stressed ever since you left."
I blushed and so did Travis.
"She... we're... she's not my-"
"We found two more tapes," I quickly changed the topic, walking over to the camcorder and putting a tape on.
This time it showed the doctor being stabbed by the girl.
"Wow," I mumbled, my eyes wide in shock.
"I think we know what happened to Crawford," Lee commented.
"More importantly, we got the combination," Vernon said, referring to the part of the video where the doctor went to open the safe, his hands visible to the camera.
"That was lucky."
Christa walked to the window, small sobs coming from her. I gestured for the boys to get the meds from the safe while I went over to talk to her.
"Christa?" I softly put a hand on her arm. "What's wrong?"
She wiped her tears away. "I'm sorry. It's... It's nothing. Let's get those meds."
"I'm here if you need someone to talk to," I comforted. She smiled slightly at my words and nodded her head in thanks.
"We're in business," Vernon stated, opening the safe. "Antibiotics, morphine... we'll take as much of this as we can carry."
I wished I'd brought my backpack from the house.
Vernon collected it all.
"Okay, I think we're good. This is more than enough for your people and mine. Let's go!"
"We should have a look at the third tape," I shrugged. "In case there's something useful?"
Christa and Vernon left, telling us not to take too long. I put the tape in the camera and pressed the play button.
"Molly," I gasped when the familiar face appeared on the tape.
"Well, shit."
We headed back to the classroom in silence. I shrieked in surprise when a body dropped down from the ceiling above us, landing a few steps away. Travis grabbed me back by my arm, hurting it a little and aiming his knife at the figure, who then turned around.
"Jesus Christ," Lee exhaled. "You scared the shit out of us. Where the fuck have you been?"
"Sightseeing," Molly replied sarcastically.
Lee didn't look amused. "I'll take that battery now."
"Oh, yeah. Uh, about that..." She began.
"What the fuck have you done?" Travis snapped, stalking forward in a threatening manner.
"I'm just kidding," Molly smiled. "Jesus, kid. Lighten up."
"Lighten up?" Travis repeated. "In case you hadn't noticed, we're in the middle of an infected school with walkers blocking our exit. This isn't exactly seeming like the time to lighten up."
Molly ignored him and took the battery from her bag, giving it to Lee.
"What's that?" Lee wondered, nodding to the thing in Molly's hand.
"Nothing."
"It's probably a picture of her Crawford days," Travis shot.
"Travis!" I grabbed his wrist. "What's wrong with you?"
He stared at me then shook his head, blinking. "Doesn't matter."
I let go of his arm and turned away.
Molly looked at us quizzically.
"You care to explain about Crawford then?" Travis questioned her.
Molly sighed. "I used to live here with my sister. She was fourteen years old. When the dead started walking and Crawford shut itself in, it seemed like a pretty good deal at first. We were safe. We had everything we needed to survive. Then the rules started coming down. No-one who couldn't justify their place, earn their keep. No-one who required special care. My sister was diabetic, and by Crawford's rules that made her a liability. I kept it a secret, kept her safe for as long as I could. But in the end, I couldn't protect her. That's when I got out. Crawford, they always talked about how their system worked, how anything was better than becoming 'one of them'. But I saw what they'd already become. I just wish I could have seen it before it was too late. Before they came and took my sister away."
We fell into a silence while the blonde haired girl wiped her eyes. She held out a photograph. "This is all I have left of her. I didn't have time to take it before I got out of Crawford. I just wanted it, okay?"
"It's okay, Molly," Lee replied. "I understand. She's pretty."
A bell rang.
"What the hell?"
"I think that's our cue to get the hell out of here," Lee said.
We walked back towards the classroom and past the door from earlier. Something had changed.
"Hey, Lee? Wasn't there a hatchet in that-"
"Jesus!"
"Woah, shit! Ben!" Lee cried when the boy jumped out at us with a weapon in his hand.
"Sorry," Ben apologised. "I just got spooked by those bells, and then I heard someone coming."
"What the fuck are you doing out here?" Travis asked him.
"Kenny and I still can't get the door open to the armory. He sent me out to look for something we can use to bust it open. I found this!"
"Ben!" I gasped. "That was keeping the walkers out!"
Right as I said that, the door burst open and walkers paraded in, groaning out with the desire to attack us.
"Run!" Travis ordered.
Lee pulled his gun out while Molly raced forward, killing the walkers with ease. Lee shot one and we began to run away, but Ben remained frozen on the spot, hatchet clutched to his chest.
"Ben, we gotta go. Ben!" Lee shouted back at him.
"Ben!" I screamed.
"Move your ass!" Lee commanded.
Ben decided to abandon his post, regaining the life in him and followed us into the classroom.
"What the fuck is going on?" Kenny snapped as the door slammed.
"Walkers are right behind us!" Travis panicked.
"Oh, shit."
Ben passed Lee the hatchet so he could bust the armory door open.
"This is my fault, all my fault," Ben had a look on his face of sheer panic.
"What the hell's he babbling about?" Christa enquired.
"Ben, calm down," I put my hands on his arms.
"No, wait. I want to know what he meant. What do you mean this is all your fault?"
"Kenny, I'm so sorry," the boy stammered, pulling his arms away from me. "I'm so sorry, man."
"Kid, this ain't the best time! Whatever you did, save it for later!" Kenny brushed his apologies away and kept hitting the door.
"I opened the door, I let them in," Ben mumbled.
"Stop it," I instructed.
"Ben, shut the fuck up!" Lee snapped.
"Fuck you both! I can't do this anymore."
"Don't talk to her like that," Travis pushed Ben.
Ben stumbled back but continued his confession. "It's been me all along. Putting all of us in danger. Katjaa and Duck... it was me. It was all me!"
Kenny kicked the door through and shook his head, anger burning in his veins as he turned to look at the teenager. "Wait a minute. What are you saying?"
"It was me who made the deal with the bandits at the motor inn, slipping them supplies. I thought maybe I could keep them off our backs. When it got discovered, that's when they attacked. That's when Duck..."
Kenny charged forward, the only thing stopping him from ripping Ben to shreds being Lee and Vernon.
"Kenny, stop! This isn't the time!" I sobbed, tears now falling from my face.
Kenny hurled insults at Ben, ignoring me entirely.
Eventually, the man went limp and stopped trying to attack.
"Nice group you got here," Molly pointed out sardonically.
"Not the time, Molly!" Lee shot.
"If this asshole thinks he's getting on my boat after what he did, he's out of his motherfucking mind! You hear me, shitbird? You can stay behind and fucking rot!"
"Kenny, stop! We need to leave now!" I yelled.
"The boat's not big enough for all of us," Kenny raged on. "Somebody's gotta get left behind. Might as well be this piece of shit right here!"
"Well, I vote we leave him," Christa decided. "I know you mean well, but all I want to do is get back to Omid. And you put that at risk."
"I'm sorry, Ben," Lee agreed. "I've got to do what's best for the group, and that means cutting you loose."
"What about the rest of us?" Brie wondered from the door. "Don't we get a vote in- Ahhhhh!"
A walker pulled her back, biting her right in front of our faces.
"Get out, now!" I instructed, running towards the door and shoving various bodies to it too.
We got to the armory, which was basically an empty staircase.
"This door won't stay shut," Travis told us, his body against it.
"That's just fucking great. There's got to be a way out down here," Kenny began running down the staircase and we all followed.
Lee opened the door and a walker turned to see us. It was accompanied by a lot more of them.
"Fuck!" Kenny shouted as the door closed.
"That's not gonna hold. Back upstairs!" Lee commanded.
We did as told and ran.
Lee fought off walkers while we got to the top of the tower.
"What are we waiting for?" Kenny asked. "Go! Go!"
Everyone went out through the window of the tower, climbing down a ladder as they went.
Lee turned to Ben before Travis and I descended the ladder. "Ben, come on, let's go!"
Suddenly the bell rang.
"Walker!" I screamed, noticing it hanging down from the bell. I ran forward and grabbed Ben's hand as the walker took him in its arms, pulling the both of us over the side of the stairs. I managed to hold onto the ledge just as Lee shot the walker. Ben did the same and we both hung there for dear life.
Lee looked between the two of us for a millisecond before moving to help me up. I scrambled over the edge to safety while Travis appeared to aid Ben.
"Move it, you idiot!" He ordered.
"Ben, climb up. Come on, you can do it!" Lee said, grasping Ben's arm.
I had to breathe. I knew I could. My lungs were intact and safe, I was safe. I was alive and I could breathe.
I sharply inhaled the air like I'd been deprived of it for hours. Travis snapped his head around to check on me, almost dropping Ben in the process before the boy crawled up over the edge.
"Go, go, go!" Lee ordered, and I found myself climbing out of the window and down the ladder. Above me, I saw Travis, Ben and Lee. They were safe. I was safe. We were all safe.
Super long chapter! I hope I did this right and it was good enough for you all.
Thank you so much to the reviewers, your comments make me so happy! Let me know what you think is going to happen to everyone next and what you want to happen to Marceline in the future. Some reviews said you want this to carry on into Season 2, so how about I let you in on a little secret? I have already written the ending of this season, but I might change it for an alternate ending?
If I do change it, would you like to know the original one anyway as a bonus chapter(s)? Tell me what you think!
Much love xx
