Part III

When Brian finally woke up, it was dark outside, and Stewie was still lying next to him, awake. The dog yawned and sat up while keeping his grip on the boy.

"Have you been awake this entire time?"

The child looked up at him.

"I woke up not too long ago. I didn't move because I didn't want to wake you up as well."

The boy removed the backpack he was still wearing and took out two bottles of water.

"Here, drink this. You need it."

The dog took one of the bottles and drank from it eagerly, and Stewie did the same with his own bottle. After several large gulps, Brian stopped drinking to remove the backpack he was wearing and retrieved a bag of chips for him and Stewie to share. There was no telling how long they were going to be here, so it was important that they did what they could to make the food last. He opened the bag and extended it out to the baby, who took a couple of chips to snack on. For a moment, they ate in silence, just enjoying each other's company. Brian had missed this. It had been so long since the last time he had just hung out with Stewie like this, and for the first time in a long while, he felt content. The silence was broken as Stewie spoke.

"You were great out there today, Brian. You really came through for me. I don't know how I'll ever repay you."

The dog smiled.

"Hey, it was nothing. I wasn't about to let anything happen to you."

The boy smiled back up at him.

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that."

The child's smile faltered as he continued talking.

"After you left, I began to believe that you really didn't care about me anymore. I know you said you left because you thought it was what I needed, but after awhile, I began to think you had done it just because you were sick of being around me. I thought that me coming out about how I felt was the last straw for you, that maybe you left because I was nothing but an annoyance in your life."

The infant lowered his head.

"That's why I didn't come find you, even though I knew that you were just a city away this entire time. I didn't see the point in it, but these past couple days have done nothing but prove that you really did care about me, and you still do. For a while, I thought I had lost my best friend, but now, I have him back."

Stewie hugged the dog.

"I missed you so much, Brian, and I don't ever want to lose you again."

Brian returned the hug. The entire time Stewie had been speaking he had made careful note of the words the child had used. He was still trying to determine if Stewie still loved him, but it was looking more and more like the child had moved on. This made him both happy and sad.

This is good, Brian. He just sees you as a friend now. Whatever feelings you may have for him are best kept locked away. Remember, no good could come from a romantic relationship like that.

As they continued to hug, Brian began to feel that pang of longing he had experienced back at the gun store. He pulled away from the child, trying to suppress that feeling.

"I missed you too, Stewie, and I promise, I'm not going anywhere."

After one last exchange of smiles, they went back to their snacks before going back to sleep for the rest of the night.

For the next couple of weeks, Brian and Stewie were able to live rather comfortably in Brian's apartment. One of the first things the dog worried about though was how he would handle a Stewie diaper situation, but lucky for him, it turned out that Stewie had taken the initiative and potty trained himself sometime during the last several months, which was something Brian had also done since the owners of his apartment building hadn't taken to kindly to him defecating on their lawn. Another problem arose though once the days began to drag on, but this issue was easily remedied by Brian's large collection of books, which they spent a good majority of their time reading together in order to keep themselves occupied during the long days. Both of them enjoyed having so much spare time to rebuild their friendship. Before long they were back to their usual antics complete with witty banter and gay jokes at the other's expense, and with each passing day, the initial coldness the dog had noticed from the child began to dissipate more and more. At first, Brian struggled with his feelings for the child, but the boy gave no sign that he was at all interested in that kind of relationship anymore. Brian decided the best thing to do was to repress his feelings, and the longer he did this, the easier it became. After all, they were happy now, so there was no reason to ruin everything all over again. They were both happier than they had been in a very long time, but things couldn't stay that way forever. Eventually, the food they had gathered and what was left in Brian's apartment finally ran out. That wasn't the only problem though. A couple of days before that happened, all of Brian's utilities shut down, leaving them with no heat or water. Stewie did his best to act like he was ok, but Brian could tell that the cold was having a nasty effect on him. If they stayed there any longer, Stewie could become seriously ill, combine that with the possibility of them starving to death, and it was obvious that the time had come for them to venture out into the dangerous streets of Providence once again, and this time they would have to find another place to stay. Before they left, Brian packed up a couple of his most treasured possessions. He didn't know how long he would be gone, so he figured he might as well take the things that were most important to him. Stewie had nothing to pack, but the dog made sure to include some books the kid could enjoy. Once all the packing was done, they retrieved their weapons from their first adventure into the zombie wasteland formerly known as Providence and what little ammunition they had left. Everything was ready. They decided it would be a good idea to take Brian's Prius, which was parked right outside. That way they could travel further, while still being protected. Hopefully, they could find a safe haven of some kind or even better, other survivors. Instead of taking the route they took last time, this time they decided to take the fire escape. Brian grabbed his keys and ran over to join Stewie by the window he had already opened.

"Ready, Kid?"

The smirk the child gave him was the only answer he needed. He helped the child out before exiting the building. The both of them observed the ground below. There was a very large crowd of zombies stumbling through the street to the far right, leaving the path to Brian's Prius clear. They quickly made their way down the fire escape and over to the parking lot, ducking behind the other cars to avoid being seen. Once they were by the Prius, Brian unlocked the door and opened it slowly, trying to make as little noise as possible until they were safely inside. Stewie climbed into the passenger seat and Brian tossed him the bags for him to throw into the back seat. With the luggage loaded into the vehicle, Brian hopped into the driver's seat. He placed the key in the ignition and looked over at the crowd of zombies several feet away, knowing that as soon as he turned the key, the zombies would be aware of their presence. He didn't like this, but there was really no easy option in this situation, and as risky as this was, it was their best bet. He took a deep breath, shut his door, and started the engine. At the sound of the revving engine, the zombies looked over, prompting Brian to speed away out of the parking lot and in the opposite direction. The street was clear for now, but as the other zombies in town took notice of the sound of the speeding car, they began to make their way out onto the road. In no time at all, the streets were filled with the walking dead. Brian swerved out of the way of as many zombies as he could, but he couldn't do anything about the ones that insisted on throwing themselves at his car.

"Brian, watch out!"

The dog huffed, annoyed and spoke through gritted teeth.

"I'm doing the best I can here, Stewie!"

It became apparent very early on into their drive that the collisions were taking a toll on the vehicle. They were off to a very bad start, but Brian pressed on. He turned into an empty parking lot and cut through it onto another street that was clear of zombies. For a moment, they were in the clear, but it wasn't long before that road was full of the monsters.

"Oh, come on!"

And it began again. Brian did everything he could to avoid any collisions, but it was impossible to avoid all of them. Still, he knew he was very close to the edge of the city, and with any luck, the main highway would be clear. He just needed to make it a little bit further.

Almost there.

At that moment, a rather obese zombie tossed itself at the windshield. The impact, combined with the several before it, was enough to shatter the windshield, causing both Brian and Stewie to shield their eyes. It was only for a second, but that second was enough for the dog to lose control of the vehicle and veer off the road into a light pole. Stewie slammed into the dashboard and Brian went face first into his steering wheel. The horn went off and began wailing endlessly. They were both dazed, but they pulled themselves together quickly. The zombies began reaching for them through the busted windshield. Brian did a quick assessment of the damage to his vehicle. It was totaled. There was no way they were driving away from this. The two of them climbed into the back, and aimed their weapons. The zombies were all trying to get inside the vehicle at the same time, which resulted in them blocking each other so that it was difficult to make it into the car. Brian took the opportunity and blasted a group of them with his shotgun.

"Stewie, hand me another round!"

The infant did as he was told, while taking down a couple more zombies of his own. It was clear that they didn't have enough ammunition to take all of the monsters down, but if they were going to go down, they were going to go down fighting. Shot after shot was fired. There was no telling how many zombies they killed, but it was satisfying all the same. Brian retrieved the last shotgun shell from Stewie and took out another group of zombies. They both tossed away their weapons and began trying to think of a way out of their dire predicament. Stewie climbed into the very back and began rummaging around. When he returned, he was holding a tire iron and the rod of a car jack. He handed Brian the tire iron.

"Hit them in the head with this."

Just as he grabbed the tire iron, one of the zombies finally made it into the car. It reached toward the dog, but Brian was quick and began bashing the head of the zombie with the tool until it was mush. This wasn't like shooting them, while that was gruesome to a degree, this was a whole new level of awful, but Brian didn't think about that. He was just focused on surviving, and with each new threat that made itself known, Brian wasted no time in beating it into submission, and Stewie had no problem doing the same. The bodies began to pile up, and it was getting harder and harder for the zombies to get inside the car. The dog chuckled.

We might actually have a chance here.

But still, the zombies were persistent, and they weren't about to let anything stop them from getting to fresh food. Brian and Stewie had no idea how long they had been fighting off the horde, but after awhile, they began to get exhausted from the constant struggle. The smell of rotting flesh wasn't helping either. Brian wanted to puke, but he held it in, not willing to let his guard down for a second. This went on for what seemed like an eternity. They were getting weaker and weaker, making it incredibly difficult to use their melee weapons. Brian could feel himself fading away as he struggled to remain conscious. Everything was getting to him. He couldn't take it anymore. He collapsed.

"Brian!"

Stewie was above him looking down, worried. The dog wanted to keep going, if for no other reason than to protect Stewie, but he had reached his limit.

I'm sorry.

That look in the child's eyes killed him, but then there was something else. He heard the sound of rapid gunfire, which was soon followed by the sound of his trunk being opened.

"Grab them, and let's get the hell out of here!"

Before his eyes shut, he saw a pair of hands pick up Stewie. As he lost all consciousness, he felt his body being dragged out of the car.

I'm so sorry.

When Brian finally woke up, he was in a bed surrounded by a bunch of strangers. He looked to his left and saw Stewie sitting beside him. The baby was giving him a concerned look.

"Hey, Buddy. You feelin' ok?"

The dog was confused but relieved. He had thought for sure that he and Stewie had died in that car, but here they were, alive and, at least he was assuming, safe. He smiled at the boy.

"I'm fine."

He stretched and sat up.

"What happened?"

One of strangers answered.

"We saved your sorry ass. You're lucky we we're able to find you because any longer in that car, and the two of you would have been zombie chow. What were you thinking driving your car into a bunch of zombies?"

Brian looked over to the man that had spoken. He couldn't have been much older than twenty and he was carrying, what Brian assumed was, a machine gun of some kind. The dog didn't like the tone the man used, so he made sure to speak sternly.

"Well, I wasn't exactly trying to hit them. We were trying to get out of the city and find a safer location. We didn't have a choice. It was leave or die."

It obvious from the look on the man's face that he didn't take too kindly to Brian's response, and it pleased the dog to know he had irritated him a bit. The man went to say something else, but he was stopped by woman.

"You'll have to forgive David. He thinks just because he's saved a couple of people that makes him superior to the rest of us."

The woman had been standing by Brian since he'd woken up, but the dog hadn't really taken the time to notice her until now. Like David, she couldn't have been much older than twenty, but she wasn't carrying a gun like the rest of the men surrounding him. She was very pretty with her blonde hair, shapely curves, and beautiful green eyes. It had been so long since he had seen a woman who wasn't trying to eat him alive, so the dog decided to seize the opportunity and put on the charm. He put on a suave smile.

"I'm sorry. I didn't catch your name. I'm assuming it's Angel."

The woman rolled her eyes but chuckled amused.

"That was pretty bad...but cute."

She extended her hand.

"I'm Mara."

The dog took her hand and shook it lightly.

"I'm Brian."

There was silence for a moment that was quickly interrupted by Stewie clearing his throat.

"Oh, and this is my little buddy, Stewie."

Mara looked over and waved at the baby.

"Hi, Stewie."

The child didn't say anything, but this didn't faze Mara in the slightest.

"He's adorable!"

She turned her attention back to Brian.

"So, you've been taking care of this little guy?"

Ahhh. So she likes kids.

"Oh yeah. Little Stewie lost his family during the initial attack, and I've been keeping him safe ever since."

Their conversation was interrupted by David.

"It's amazing you were able to keep him alive this long."

Mara turned to give David a scolding look.

"Just stop it, David. Just because everyone wasn't as prepared for a zombie invasion as you, doesn't mean they're incompetent. Brian has managed to survive this long while still taking care of a toddler. He may not be a zombie expert like you, but he's obviously an intelligent and caring individual, so the least you could do is stop condescending him every chance you get."

David glared at Brian but didn't say anything in retaliation. Instead, he motioned for the other men to follow him and left area. With the men gone, Brian was finally able to look around the room he was in, and to his surprise, it looked a lot like a furniture store. He forgot about his wooing of Mara for a second as question after question began to enter his mind.

"So, Mara. Where the hell are we?"

The woman sat down on the bed in preparation for a long explanation.

"You and Stewie were rescued by, my brother, David and his men, and they took you back here, Providence Place Mall. You see, David has been obsessed with zombies for as long as I can remember. He's read everything about them, and he put a lot of effort into developing a plan just in case a zombie apocalypse were to ever actually happen."

She laughed morbidly.

"I thought he was crazy. I mean, that stuff was only supposed to happen in movies and such, but it was for the best because as soon as he found out about the zombies, he put his plan into action. David got a group of his friends together, all of them just as into zombies as he is, and together they cleared out and secured this mall before the town was completely overrun. It's served as a sort of safe haven ever since. There's plenty of food and water, and David and the guys made sure to stock up on a whole arsenal of weapons. We'll be able to stay here safely for months. But that's just not enough for David. He isn't content just sitting here waiting to be rescued. He enjoys going outside and hunting those monsters. I've tried to convince him to stop, but he won't listen. I guess it's a good thing though because if he hadn't been out and about with his friends, they never would have heard your horn, and they never would have found and rescued you."

Mara stood up and picked up Stewie who struggled against her grip.

"If you're feeling ok, I'll show you around and introduce you to the other survivors we've found."

She pointed at the ground before continuing forward.

"Your bags are right there."

Brian quickly hopped out of the bed, grabbed the bags, and followed the woman. She led him to another section of the furniture store which had different areas set up as living spaces for different people. They stopped by a male teenager sitting on a couch.

"This is Pierce. He was one of the first survivors David found. They saved him from a group of zombies who were chasing him down the street."

Brian extended his hand and the teenager stood up and shook it.

"Hey, Pierce. I'm Brian."

The dog motioned toward the baby in Mara's arms.

"And this is Stewie."

Pierce let go of his hand and sat back down.

"What's up, Brian. It's always good to see another survivor."

Mara motioned for the dog to follow her in a different direction and led him to a middle aged male who was sitting in a recliner and reading.

"This is Barry. He was the next person saved by David and his friends."

Barry didn't seem to notice them as he was caught up in the book he was reading. Mara cleared her throat.

"Barry."

The man's eyes shot away from the book and up to Mara. He smiled.

"Oh, hello there, Mara."

He looked over at Brian.

"I see David found another one."

Barry stood up and extended his hand which Brian took enthusiastically.

"The name's Brian. Do you mind if I ask what you're reading there?"

The man quickly spun around to pick up his book and hand it to the dog.

"I was just in the middle of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's A Study in Scarlet. I'm a huge fan of mystery novels, more specifically Sherlock Holmes, and I just discovered several of the Holmes novels in one of the bookstores, so I decided that now was as good a time as any time to start reading them again."

The dog looked over the book and paged through it before returning it to Barry.

"Once you're done with it, do you mind if I borrow it. I'm not too familiar with Doyle's work, but I'd love to give his books a try."

A huge grin spread across the man's face.

"I should have it done by tonight. If you come back here, I'll gladly lend it to you."

Brian's tail began to wag at the prospect of some new reading material. Mara motioned for him for follow her again, but before he did so he made sure to bid a proper farewell to Barry.

"Thanks. It was pleasure meeting you, Barry."

The man sat down.

"Likewise, Brian. Likewise."

With that he began reading again.

Brian followed Mara to yet another man who was lying down on a couch. Before they reached the man, however, Mara stopped him and began speaking solemnly.

"That's Michael. He…doesn't talk to us. The poor man lost both his wife and son during the initial attack, probably watched as they were eaten alive. David found him locked in the storage room of a toy store not too far from here. He was mumbling to himself about what happened. Once we got him here, he just shut down. He eats and drinks what we bring to him, but other than that, he does nothing but lay on that couch."

Brian just stared at the man in sympathy.

"That's…terrible."

Mara put a hand on his shoulder and led him away from Michael. She led them to a deserted part of the store and handed Stewie to Brian.

"Well, that's everyone. You and little Stewie make yourselves at home. You're welcome to call any part of this store your own so long as you don't try and take someone else's spot, though I'm sure you won't try and do that. Also, make sure you let David know if you want to go somewhere else in the mall. He may be a jerk at times, but he'll keep you safe."

She gave Stewie a pat on the head who proceeded to huff in annoyance.

"I've got to go help him get food together for tonight, but I'll talk to you later. Ok?"

With that she turned to leave. Brian watched as she left, taking in her womanly beauty. His ogling was interrupted by Stewie.

"What the hell was that all about?"

The dog looked down at the baby in his arms who looked far from pleased.

"What are you talking about?"

The boy placed his face in his palm and sighed before looking back up at the dog.

"I'm talking about that whole bit about "little Stewie" and then, you allowing that harlot to carry me around as if I'm incapable of walking around on my own. You of all people should know how much I hate being treated like a normal person my age!"

Brian saw Stewie's point, and he couldn't help but feel a little guilty.

"I'm sorry, Stewie. I guess I got carried away. But did you see that girl? That's the hottest piece of ass I've seen in a long time, so can you blame me for doing everything I can to hook up with her?"

The boy frowned, not saying anything. Brian set him down.

"Look, Kid. Just go along with this for a little while. I think I have a really good chance with this girl."

The child's frown never left his face as he sighed in defeat.

"Alright, but I'm only doing this because you're my friend. Just remember you owe big time for this one."

A large grin spread across the dog's face, and he bent down to embrace Stewie in a tight hug.

"Thanks, Stewie. I promise, I'll make this up to you."

The infant sighed yet again but still patted the dog's back.