Chapter 3

Claire could feel K-Mart's grip on her hand tighten significantly to a point where a throbbing pain started coursing through her fingers.

K-Mart scanned her eyes across the deserted expanse of Las Vegas and felt a shiver run through her body at the sight of overturned cars and burning electricity poles crackling from small blazes of flames licking the dry air.

Claire felt her heart drop thinking about the journey ahead of them, but she swallowed any doubts and gave K-Mart a reassuring smile. "Guess we have the whole city to ourselves. Isn't this romantic?" Claire said sarcastically, giving K-Mart a reason to smile.

K-Mart's fear eased slightly from Claire's courageous attitude and she felt extremely lucky to have Claire by her side.

They started to make their way down the empty road of the Las Vegas strip as trademark buildings devoid of any activity gazed down eerily at them.

K-Mart stared at the once extravagant Caesar's Palace and felt a tinge of sadness overtake her because of the building's forgotten beauty which was now destroyed and abandoned.

Claire looked around her with her senses tuned up as far as she could muster. The Strip contained too much large and colorful objects and locations to take in all at once. To absorb everything, Claire's eyes swiveled left and right at a fervent pace.

K-Mart was les observant and hummed nervously as she walked hand-in-hand with Claire. K-Mart was humming a tune that sounded familiar to Claire, but she couldn't remember exactly where she had heard the melody before. What are you annoyingly humming if I may ask?" Claire said and looked around for any signs of danger.

K-Mart frowned and stopped humming. "You mean you don't remember?" she asked and stopped walking, causing the unaware Claire to propel backwards.

"Ah, K-Mart, warn me if you're just going to stop," Claire warned, but K-Mart pretended to not have even heard her.

"You didn't answer my question," K-Mart said with a glare and hands on her hips.

"We really don't have time for this K-Mart. We really should get going," Claire ordered, but K-Mart refused to budge.

K-Mart folded her arms angrily and defiantly. "Fine, fine," Claire gave in and ran her hand exasperatedly through her dark red hair. "What are you humming?" She decided to just play along or else they would never make it back to the convoy before dark.

"You're such a jerk!" K-Mart cried out and turned away from Claire. She spoke with her back turned to Claire. "I can't believe you don't even remember our song!"

"Our song?" Claire asked surprised. "Since when did we even have a song?"

K-Mart whirled back around and stomped towards Claire until they were nose to nose. Claire froze and felt a shiver run down her spine - K-Mart was strikingly beautiful up close. "Our song," K-Mart whispered. "Remember? The first time we met was when the song was playing on your radio - it was what brought you to my attention in the first place," K-Mart said and looked genuinely hurt that Claire didn't remember.

Claire gulped and felt guilt strike her. She remembered it now. The night she first met K-Mart was when K-Mart had approached her because of the song playing on the radio. She had asked her what it was and Claire was left paralyzed at the girl's beauty as the fire from that night lit up her lovely features.

From that moment on, they traveled everywhere together, and pretty soon, Claire found herself falling in love with her.

K-Mart's eyes watered when Claire didn't respond. She was about to turn and walk away when Claire grabbed for her arm. She spun her around and kissed her. K-Mart's eyes opened wide in surprise, but she soon relaxed under Claire's grip.

Claire felt heat rush through her and settle at the lower end of her stomach. K-Mart's lips were warm, soft, and tasted like strawberries. She wasn't thinking about danger and the bleakness the world around them had become. In this moment, only her and K-Mart existed.

When they parted, they were both breathless, panting, with flushed cheeks. K-Mart's softly shaded green eyes were glazed and her lips were parted. She moved in for another kiss, but Claire had to stop her when she heard a noise. Claire turned her head in the direction of the noise, but she didn't see anything. She brushed it off as nothing, but falling debris.

K-Mart clutched onto Claire's arm and smiled. "I love you so much, Claire," she professed with that innocent expression on her face.

Claire felt her heart beat at K-Mart's words as she stared at the young girl. "I-I -," but Claire was cut off by yet another noise behind the casino. Claire instinctively pushed K-Mart behind her and searched the area where she heard the clatter.

Only the sounds of crackling coming from a nearby fire could be heard, but Claire could feel it in her bones that they were not alone.

"Claire?" K-Mart said in a frightened whisper behind her. She could feel K-Mart's fingernails digging into her shoulders.

Claire released her gun from her holster and cocked it. She was ready to put down anything that would ever dare to hurt K-Mart.

Another clatter echoed throughout the empty streets and Claire aimed the pistol ready to blast away the encroaching enemy. A fringe of hair popped from behind the demolished building and a young boy about K-Mart's age appeared in front of them. He had his hands up in the air to reveal that he meant no harm.

Claire refused to put down her gun and K-Mart tapped on her shoulder. "Claire, stop pointing your gun at him, he's human!" K-Mart exclaimed, but Claire didn't want to take any chances. Human or not, no one could be trusted. In Claire's opinion, humans were even more dangerous than zombies - they could lie, deceive, play with your mind. At least zombies showed their true nasty natures to you, unlike humans who could stab you in the back when you least expect it.

"I-I mean no harm," The boy cried out from afar. He looked shaken and dirty, but Claire felt like there was something about the boy that made her unable to let her guard down.

"Claire!" K-Mart cried out behind her. "Have you gone crazy? Stop aiming your gun at him - he's just another survivor!"

Claire didn't listen to K-Mart and spoke to the boy instead. "Who are you?" She shouted at him.

The boy flinched and trembled with fright - he looked as if he was about to pee on himself. Claire heard K-Mart sigh behind her - annoyed at Claire's stubborn personality.

"I-I'm S-steve Burnside," the boy stuttered. "I mean no harm, I swear," he repeated.

Claire reluctantly put down her gun, but she still held it firmly in her hand - ready to shoot if need be.

Steve, hesitantly put his hands down and placed them over his heart. "Y-you almost gave me heart attack!" He cried out and walked over to the two of them.