Chapter Four – Edging Closer

Ellis and Nick were in strange territory.

The mechanic had no idea when it had happened, nor did he want to explore why in too much detail, but he and Nick were suddenly much more pleasant company for one another. Perhaps it was the better nights sleeps that were doing it, as Nick was more amiable than usual (though still retained his arrogant charm, one might note) and generally seemed to mind being around the Georgian much less than he used to make out. In turn, Ellis was starting to get over the weird sensations he found creeping up his spine when he was in close proximity to the older male, and now occasionally caught himself almost trying to seek them out! When they turned in for the night, one laying awake while the other slept, both were fully aware of how little space they bothered to leave between one-another, and it was not unusual for their legs, hips or arms to be brushing. It was a strange advance to their friendship, Ellis thought, but he couldn't deny that he liked it.

He was used to physical contact, at the end of the day. From Keith who'd fight and wrestle with him, to his mom who'd fuss and preen over him, he was used to having people close by when his head wasn't stuck hovering above an engine. The return of this to his life in the form of Nick's presence, while strange to adjust to at first, had quick become a very welcome return to Ellis's daily routine, and it was made all the better as the older male seemed to often have an excuse to be nearby, play-punch him, or pat him on the shoulder. Small things, but ones Ellis found himself almost craving before long.

Their 'short stay' in the suburban house had stretched to almost two weeks now, and while both wondered just how long their stay would last, neither wanted to broach the subject, perhaps for fear of it being a catalyst to their leaving. Sure, Ellis wanted to make tracks at some point, but for now, he was happy where he was. It was a relief to just be able to live instead of fight to survive for a while. Now, however, they were running out of excuses to stay. Ellis had done everything short of re-paint the car in the garage, they'd both siphoned all the fuel tanks on the street to stock up on gas, and they had a very decent supply of food to keep them going. What other reasons did they have not to leave anymore? They couldn't just hide out in the abandoned house forever, after all.

Nick had done the daybreak watch today, being awoken by Ellis late into the night, and taking over so that the hick could get some sleep. He'd vigilantly stared blankly at the walls and ceiling throughout the night, smirking as the younger man snored beside him, unconsciously moving in closer as he turned to lay on his side, facing Nick. They both looked much better for the respite they'd enjoyed at the suburban house: both had washed and shaved, and done what they could about cleaning their clothes, and even gone as far as looking through the drawers for clean underwear (all pretence that they were bothered by wearing another person's underpants lost, as when you'd worn your own for more than a week during a zombie outbreak, you learned not to care so much about such things). Despite their relaxation, they'd taken no chances with safety. Both still carried a weapon around with them at all times, or at least kept one within arm's reach. The doors and windows were still shut and checked regularly, and any movement in the street was instantly scoped out with furtive peeks through the blinds and curtains.

But they were happier doing it, perhaps purely for the fact they were enjoying the company of one another in the process. The first time that Ellis had woken up to find himself curled against Nick's side, he hurriedly pushed himself away and made muttered excuses to make his way swiftly to the next room. After a few days of this, he started to take the matter more at ease, neither man commenting on just how close to each other they were falling asleep now, but instead wordlessly accepting it. Even Nick had been a culprit, having more than once dropped his arm over Ellis' waist in his sleep as the younger man stayed awake at his side. At least, Nick had pretended to be asleep.

"When're we leavin'?"

Nick peered up from the rifle on his lap (procured from one of the houses along the street) that he'd been attended to, to shoot a questioning glance at the hick. The two had fallen into such a comfortable routine here that the gambler had been certain his companion would want to stay as long as possible, and thus avoid the subject of moving. When Nick had awoken at the young mechanics side that morning, things seemed just the same as every other day that week. Perhaps Ellis did more thinking than Nick gave him credit for. "You want to make a move?" Nick queried, an eyebrow arched as he observed Ellis, who had dropped his gaze down to his feet now, muttering something about needing to leave at some point. It was true enough, and if Nick was honest with himself, he hadn't entirely looked forward to this day. Instead of voicing this, he merely sighed with an air of impatience, grasping the rifle as he pushed himself to his feet, shouldering the weapon. "Why didn't you say you wanted to leave, Overalls? We could be half-way to Vegas right now.."

The slightly harsh edge to Nick's tone had been primarily absent of late, but did break out every now and again to remind Ellis quite firmly that Nick, even if he was being a nicer guy, was still not to be fucked with. The mechanic ran a hand over the back of his neck, shrugging as he lamely responded with "Jus' didn' want t' hurry things, is all,", glancing up at Nick apologetically. Seeing the large, grey-blue eyes staring across at him caused Nick to quickly look away, clearing his throat as he ordered the mechanic to start getting his stuff together.

Preparation for departure took longer than Nick had expected. Not only had their raids of stores and neighbouring houses left them holding a lot of weaponry and ammunition (not to mention the two axe's they'd taken, just in case), but their food stores were also decent, as were their first aid items. Nick had spent the last few days tearing things apart to make a new load of pipe-bombs, and carefully placed them in the back seat of the car, along with their other supplies. Perhaps they were intentionally stalling themselves, as the job that should have taken thirty minutes tops ended up being over an hour, with Ellis loading the last of the shotgun rounds he'd found into the door-pocket of the car, Nick already having declared himself ready, and taken the drivers seat. The mechanic had expected this arrangement, what with the fact Nick liked to take charge of every situation. He climbed in to sit on the passengers side, closing the door behind him with a muffled thud. It had been ages since he'd been in a car like this, what with trucks being his ultimate preference. He sat, staring out of the windscreen, before turning a quizzical look to Nick. Wasn't he going to start the car?

Guessing the question in the hicks mind, Nick raised both his empty hands. "No keys, dumbass," he explained simply, Ellis responding with a sudden "Oh!" of understanding. Without thinking, he leant across the car, down into Nick's lap, and pulled away part of the car facia to get to the wiring underneath. Ellis was oblivious, with his mind set on starting the car, but the same could not be said of the con-man, who was all too aware of just how imtimately placed the younger male was. It took a lot of willpower to control himself from revealing just what was going on in his mind at that very moment, this particularly explicit train of thought broken as the engine began to struggle at turning, before finally firing to life.

"Wooo! Bet'cha didn't think I could do it, huh?" Ellis smirked, mistaking Nick's surprised expression for being purely relating to the hotwiring of the Honda. He wasn't going to correct the young man, Nick instead putting his hands on the steering wheel, pressing the accelerator lightly and revving the engine. The noise wasn't wise, but they hadn't seen an infected for two days. "Get the door, Overalls," he ordered, Ellis still smirking as he grabbed a shotgun from the back seat before sliding out of the car, walking over to the garage doors and starting to manually roll them up. Ellis's eyes scanned the street for movement while Nick's eyes instead skirted over the flexing muscle's in the hicks arms and shoulders as he pulled the door up. He quickly returned his gaze to the road as the mechanic climbed back into the car, slamming the door behind him.

"Next stop, Vegas."

"Ain't yew gunna miss New Orleans?"

Nick didn't even have to bother to respond to Ellis's sarcastic grin, though his lips did tug upwards just a little as he put his foot down, speeding out into the street.