Jake watched Francis as he wandered around his apartment, one eyebrow raised at the man's rather curious behavior. He was muttering to himself about people he never really spoke about since returning as a survivor of the infection, tossing clothes about as if looking for something and gathering as much change as he could find lying around the house, twitching in agitation.
Several times, his taller room mate would stop in front of a mirror and make sure he looked alright, settling at last on a pair of black jeans and a plain black t-shirt and grunting after he had put them on.
"Alright." Francis muttered, turning to look at Jake. "I'm goin' out."
"Out where? What the hell is with you, man?" Jake asked, eyebrow still raised.
"To a housewarming party." Francis muttered this so softly that Jake almost missed it, and he had to mull it over for a moment before deciding he had indeed heard right and wondering if perhaps his room mate had gone insane.
"That's… um…" Jake rubbed the back of his head and twitched his eyebrow again, smirking. "That's great man. Why?"
"Cause I was invited. What other reason do I need?" Francis sighed shortly and ran one gloveless hand over his shaved hair.
"Okay. You gonna be home late? I might bring a girl back later." Jake called as Francis headed towards the door, the taller male scowling over at him and shrugging.
"Maybe. I dunno." He replied vaguely, and Jake blinked a few times, watching Francis' back retreat out the door.
Something told him there was more to the whole story of the other survivors Francis ran with than the man had made clear…
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…
Outside in the night air, Francis felt much less stifled, breathing in a deep lungful before letting it out as a deep sigh. He shoved his hands into his pockets and headed down the street towards the address that Louis had mailed him, a good walk away from the apartment where he lived. He decided to leave the bike at home tonight, because if there was booze he would be drinking it and could easily call a cab home with the money he had scrounged up.
Walking helped calm his nerves, anyway. It had been some time since he had last seen the others, and of course it was the anticipation of seeing Zoey again that had him in so many knots. He walked to keep from pacing, he kept his eyes on the sidewalk to avoid eye contact with any of the people walking the busy street with him, and he hummed softly to himself to keep from muttering nonsense.
Nothing had ever had him in such a state before. Sure, it had hurt when Zoey's father had chased him off their property after a screaming match with his own daughter, and it had hurt to have to say goodbye to her, but at that time he didn't know he cared so much. It wasn't until the anticipation of seeing her again that he realized how much she meant to him.
He had never cared about first impressions before, never cared about how he looked or what he said, but if there was any chance she was going to be there, she would have one or both of her parents with her and he was going to try his hardest to seem…
Not like himself. Now that he thought about it, it was a stupid plan but it was all he had, and he was going to stick with it.
Time passed quickly as he walked, and he found it too much less time than he had anticipated to get to Louis' new building, pausing in front of it to fish the paper from his pocket that had instructions on it on how to get inside. After he punched the code in, the man's familiar voice greeted him and a buzzer indicated that the door was open.
"I hate elevators." Francis muttered as he climbed into the one that led up to the floor Louis lived on, suppressing a shudder as he huddled into a corner for the ride. Elevators still gave him bad memories of the fight to get out of the city, and their experiences with elevators on the way to Mercy Hospital were one of the worst things that happened to them out there.
Rubbing the back of his neck, he sighed thankfully when the elevator stopped, stepping out the doors as soon as they opened and striding up the hallway while he looked at room numbers. It had taken him a long time to get used to not carrying a weapon, and longer after that not to reach instinctively for one everytime he opened a door or stepped out of his building and into the street. Large crowds bothered him…
He hated crowds. He hated people. He hated the noise and the smell and the crowding. He hated the rain, he hated the traffic, he hated…
Everything. Now that everything was back to normal, it all seemed strange and unnatural. Now that everything was back to normal, he returned to his dreary life without anything to hope for or look forward to. Just the same thing day in, day out, the same company and the same scenery.
His feet had stopped carrying him up the hallway, and he found himself crushing the paper he held in one shaking fist, his teeth grit so hard he could hear his jaw creaking. Taking a moment to calm himself, he forced deep breaths in and out of his lungs, swallowing a few times before walking the last few feet to Louis' door.
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Louis had been more than pleased when Zoey was able to join them, and her mother was more than welcome as well in the small apartment that housed more than its fair share of people this evening. The chatter was almost comforting, and while the group consisted mostly of family, it was his friends he was looking more forward to seeing. Bill had been the first to arrive, and Zoey shortly after, all three of them waiting as patiently as they could for Francis.
It never crossed Louis' mind to wonder if Francis was even going to show up. He knew the man well enough, or assumed he did, to know that Francis wouldn't miss this for the world. A chance to see old friends, tell exciting stories and drink free booze… it was right up Francis' alley.
Zoey's mother, Cheryl, chatted amiably with Bill nearby, the topic of conversation almost predictably about the absent biker, and from the way Bill was speaking and the relaxed look on Cheryl's face, Louis figured this evening was going to turn out pretty well once Francis actually did show.
The knock on his door that came moments after this observation was heavy, and Zoey leapt from her place on his couch to join him as he hurried to answer, a breathless excitement clinging to the young woman that made Louis smile.
When the door opened to reveal the towering form of Francis, Louis found that Zoey had somehow managed to make her way behind him and was hanging back as the two men greeted one another. A handshake and a hug later, Louis stepped back so that Zoey and Francis were facing each other, politely offering to grab Francis a drink and excusing himself.
He moved back into the living room, exchanging a glance with Bill and a smile with Cheryl, the three of them standing and watching unabashedly the much waited for reunion.
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…
The blushing, smiling face that gazed up at him from beneath soft brown bangs was so different from the filthy exhausted one he remembered seeing so often back then. The dress was different from the jeans and the jacket, and the absence of tears on her cheeks was a change for the better.
Francis stood for a moment, completely overwhelmed, and neither of them spoke as they stared at each other.
At that moment, no words were needed. No words at all.
She smelled sweet, like flowers or candy or something, the scent comforting as she wrapped her arms around his middle in a firm, eager embrace, and Francis let his eyes close as he wrapped his arms around her in return. She was warm and soft, just like he remembered, his throat growing thick and his eyes beginning to sting.
"Missed you." Her voice was muffled as she rubbed her face against his chest, and he let out a soft chuckle, dragging his rough fingers through her soft hair.
"Missed you too." He murmured back, the words seeming unnecessary and clumsy, awkward. He turned his eyes to the others in the apartment, all politely ignoring their conversation and embrace except for Bill and Louis. The two were standing with a woman Zoey strongly resembled, a woman Francis remembered seeing the night they had returned to their families, their lives.
Zoey's mother was smiling at him in a fond manner, and he felt his cheeks grow hot as she offered him a gentle nod, turning her eyes away from the two of them and striking up a conversation with Louis. Bill continued to gaze at them for a long moment, then he smirked and turned away himself, going to find another drink.
Francis looked back down at Zoey, seeing that she was now gazing up at him with a child like look of glee on her face, her eyes gleaming. He grinned at her, then pulled his arms away, taking her hand in his and leading her into the crowded room to join their friends.