Chapter 2: Convenient Store
The truck didn't stop for over twenty minutes and Elyza didn't know what do to. She was stuck between two strange boys she didn't know and in a truck going somewhere she didn't know of.
Elyza had only been in California for two weeks on a spring trip from University. She had spent the time in Santa Monica with her best friend, Wells, who she hadn't seen in over three years. She didn't know anything about California, she couldn't even drive in America.
As she looked out of the window, she saw smoke in the distance, over houses and buildings. People were in the streets, confused and scared. The going was slow and police officers weren't making it any easier. They ushered people back inside of their homes and fire trucks zoomed past several times, followed by multiple police cars.
Aurora turned up the radio and warnings were playing on every station. Every news caster was telling people to stay indoors and informing them that they did not need to worry, the police had everything under control. But there was nobody actually talking about what was going on.
Clearly something was happening, the power was out and people were getting stir-crazy. But what exactly was causing the city wide black out? Police shootings were occurring all over Los Angeles and people were beginning to protest the apparent brutality.
Finally, it seemed Octavia had had enough and pressed down hard on the radio power button before huffing and settling herself back down into her seat. "Bell, explain to us what's going on?"
He sighed, "I overheard my lieutenant discussing the shootings with another lieutenant. I guess they've heard about some sort of disease going around. It makes people vicious and violent. But, they don't die. They have to be shot in the head. I guess that's why the people that're infected attack healthy people and are shot so many times.
"Back there, someone was infected or multiple people. I'm not exactly sure, but they attacked. And once that happened, people freaked. Now, I think the infection is spreading quickly and I think we need to stay away from any over populated areas. We need to go home."
Finn spoke up, "So you mean, things are going to get crazy?"
Bellamy nodded, "Basically. We need to get back home and then head over to the beach house. Its secluded, we can hole up there for a while. Until everything settles down." If everything settles down, was the unspoken addition Elyza sensed in his tone.
Elyza felt her heart lurch. She didn't know these people. Yes, Bellamy might have saved her from a mob, but she didn't know if she could trust them. "Hold on, I don't know you! I need to get home!"
Octavia rolled her eyes, "And where's that?"
"Australia."
"Well, obviously that isn't happening for a while and right now, you need us to survive. Unless you want to leave and risk your life when you'd be perfectly safe with us." Bellamy interrupted harshly.
Elyza crossed her arms impatiently, "Fine."
Aurora and Octavia exchanged a look Elyza wasn't able to interpret as they pulled into the driveway of a small, blue painted house. Finn got out first and Elyza followed him, straightening her shirt and grabbing her bag.
She searched her pocket for her cell phone and pulled it out of her back pocket. I should call my mom. She flipped it over to the front, it was cracked. In fact, the screen was completely shattered.
Gunshots rang out from far away, then a shatter of glass that drew Elyza's attention away from her phone. A couple of houses down people stumbled outside, screaming at each other. The man was brandishing a gun.
"We better get inside, it's about to get even crazier." Finn said and pushed her towards the door, blocking her view of the arguing couple.
Once inside, Elyza got the chance to be alone. She mentioned something about having to use the restroom and locked the door behind her once she had found it. The lights wouldn't turn on so she was left in semi-darkness. A small amount of light shone through the small window in the upper part of the wall inside of the shower.
The distorted screen came to life and Elyza felt like she was going to faint with relief. She had to get in touch with her mom, with the Jahas'. Whatever was going on, she knew that it wasn't something simple that was going to be solved quickly. Elyza had a dreadful feeling that things were never going to be the same after this.
She unlocked her phone shakily and pressed her mom's contact name before putting the phone to her ear. It rang several times before a long, monotonous dead noise overtook the line. It was busy or out of service.
"Fuck," she mumbled and dropped the phone on the bathroom counter. Elyza sagged against it in defeat. Just three hours ago she was hugging Wells goodbye and looking forward to being home. Now, she was kidnapped by a group of people she didn't know because of some epidemic she hadn't even heard anything about until now. Until it was too late.
Tears welled in her eyes and she tried to breath, to push the pinpricks behind her eyes away. She couldn't afford to cry. Elyza wanted to talk to her mom, she wanted to know that she was okay. She needed the reassurance.
Picking up the phone one more time, she redialed her mother's number and held the phone shakily to her ear. She leaned against the counter, needing it to keep her steady. She was just feeling so alone.
"Hello? Elyza? I thought you were supposed to be on the plane by now." Her mom's voice was sleepy, she'd forgotten about the time difference. It was getting pretty late in Australia and her mom must have been asleep.
Elyza hesitated, too relieved to hear her mom's voice to respond. A couple of tears threatened to spill over and she rubbed them away with her sleeve quickly, clearing her throat. "Hey, mum. I'm sorry for waking you up but there's been a problem with the flight."
"Oh? When are you supposed to board? What's going on?" Her voice sounded more alert, a little worried.
She thought about telling the truth, explaining that things were going completely whacko in the States. The airport was shut down. She wasn't going home and that was what scared her the most. "I guess there were some maintenance problems and they had to call down the mechanics. It shouldn't be too long."
"Oh! It'll be okay, honey, you worry too much. I'll have some food ready when you get here. I know the time change is going to be a total pain in the ass for you, but you can sleep as long as you need once you get back. I've missed you so much."
Elyza sniffled, "I've missed you too, mum."
Someone slammed on the bathroom door, "Come on, Elyza! We need your help!" Octavia shouted through the door. Elyza winced and rubbed her face.
"Who was that, sweetie?" Her mom asked.
"Nobody, just loud Americans." She forced a hollow laugh.
She heard her mom yawn, "Well alright. Text me when you board. I'll probably be asleep but I'd still like to know. If the time changes for me to pick you up from the airport, let me know."
"I will, mum."
"I love you, Elyza."
Her breath hitched, she was so worried she'd never see her mom again. "I love you too, mum."
Elyza heard her mom hang up the phone and set her phone face down on the counter. Octavia shouted again and Elyza jumped. She caught her own reflection in the mirror. Her face was red and blotchy from crying so she leaned over and rinsed her face with the cool water from the sink.
Once she thought she looked as normal as she could for the situation, she slipped her phone back in her pocket and exited the bathroom. The three strangers were bustling around the house, back and forth from the kitchen to the truck with food, clothing and bedding. They were all ready to leave in an instant.
Bellamy approached her and held up a black, folded pocket knife. "This is for you, I found several in my dad's old filing cabinet. Do you know how to use one of these?"
Elyza rolled her eyes, before her father had died about a years ago he had taught her a whole lot about guns, knives and survival. He had convinced her mother when she turned ten to enroll her in Tae Kwon Do lessons and she'd been doing that for around eight years. She was sure that she could take care of herself, she wasn't sure about being able to live without her mother though. "Yes, I do."
He handed her the knife and nodded, "Good, well, protect yourself with it."
"It's not going to do much good against something like that," she gestured towards the gun holstered at Bellamy's hip.
A short chuckled escaped his lips, "Well, I don't have another one right now. Once we find some backup firearms I will be totally willing to give you at least one of them."
Elyza nodded and slid the weapon into her front pocket, allowing the clip to hold onto the material of her pants for easier access. "Fine then, I hope we can find some soon."
"Me too. Now, I have a serious favor to ask."
Elyza hesitated at that, she wasn't sure if she wanted to help Bellamy. She didn't even know him, if she was completely honest, he kind of seemed like an asshole. "What do you need?"
"Well, we haven't been to the beach house since last summer and there aren't many resources. My family doesn't have a lot of water here so I was wondering if you would accompany Finn and me to the gas station to pick up some extra supplies." He paused for a second, then added quickly, "It could possibly be dangerous and you don't owe my family anything, so I'd understand if you didn't want to go."
The danger was a serious factor, but Bellamy had saved her life in the airport. It was very possible that she could have been trampled or attacked so she did owe him. But there was no telling what was out there. She'd never seen or heard anything about any of these infected until the airport. But, she did need to find the Jahas', they would be familiar people who she could trust completely. So maybe if she helped Bellamy out they would give her supplies and she could go out on her own.
"I'm in, but my only condition is that you provide me with enough supplies to last me until I get to Santa Monica. After I help you, I'm leaving." She crossed her arms over her chest and straightened her back, trying to seem stronger than she felt in that moment.
Bellamy gave her a once over then stared into her eyes, probably hoping to convince her to stay with them. "It would be safer if you stayed with us. We can protect you. You can trust us."
Elyza shook her head and set her jaw, "I have to go find my family. I don't know you, I have to make sure my family is safe. I might not be able to get home but I have people here."
He narrowed his eyes at her, staring hard into her eyes before stepping away, "Fine. We'll supply you with what you need. But, if you change your mind, I'll draw you up a map to get to the beach house. Its near Long Beach, you can come there any chance you get. I promise we'll welcome you."
She only nodded in response, "Then we should head out."
Bellamy turned away and re-entered the living room. Elyza followed behind him and found Aurora, Octavia and Finn going through the large kitchen pantry, tossing any imperishable food items into a large cardboard box.
"Finn, let's go." Bellamy called and waved him towards the door. Finn quickly stood and tossed a can of sweet corn into the box.
He pulled on a jacket that was draped over the back of the couch, "Thank god."
Octavia stood and narrowed her eyes at Bellamy, "Where are you guys going? It's not safe out there."
"We're going on a supply run. We need more water than we have and we're ahead of the rest of the city. People won't start leaving for a while, so we need to stock up on food now." Bellamy replied, opening the front door. He was ready to leave and he knew if he stayed for too long Octavia would start an argument.
Octavia's posture quickly changed, she tensed up and crossed her arms. Her jaw clenched angrily, "Bellamy, it's not safe. You guys could get hurt. We have everything we need right now. Once we get to the ocean we can find a store or something. People are starting to riot out there. Guns are going off, you could die. And don't get me started on her—"
"Shut up, Octavia. I'm going and so are Elyza and Finn. Just keep an eye on mom. We'll be back before you know it." He gestured for Finn and Elyza to exit the house and then firmly shut the door behind him before Octavia could respond.
The three of them walked down the eerily quiet suburban street in silence. They didn't talk to each other because all eyes were on the dark corners of houses or other people walking around as if nothing was going on.
Elyza pulled the knife from her pocket and flicked it open and closed nervously. She didn't know what kind of threat she was looking for. People shooting guns? Eating each other? It didn't seem like any of that was going on in Bellamy's neighborhood.
The trio turned a corner and a small gas station stood at the end of the street. Elyza's mind tried to go through the best possible way to do this. If people were in there, looting and going nuts, then they would have to fight for what they wanted. But if not, they could easily go in there and buy up as much water as possible without drawing too much attention.
She noted the three cars parked near gas pumps and one person pumping gas into their car. It wasn't crazy, so they just had to keep it low key and nothing bad would happen.
Bellamy grabbed her arm and pulled her close, "Grab whatever waters you can then bring them up to the front. Chips, foods, really anything. Not too much that seems suspicious but enough." He slipped something into her hand and she looked down at it as he walked inside.
Cash. She counted it. Over a hundred bucks. I could use this for later, she thought and slipped fifty bucks into her back pocket before entering the convenient store.
It was grimy and practically empty. The cashier was missing, probably somewhere in the back trying to entertain themselves. The white tile floor was tinged a slight gray color and covered in dirt. The lights overhead buzzed quietly and the air conditioner wheezed in the background.
Elyza made her way to the back line to find drinks. Heavy cases of 24-packs of water sat on the ground. She walked down the nearest isle, where Finn was grabbing several bags of chips and snacks to bring up to the front. Bellamy was near the fridges, grabbing Gatorades and water bottles, haphazardly balancing them in his arms before heading to the front of the store.
Elyza grabbed herself three bags of white cheddar popcorn before going back and grabbing a single case of water. She placed it heavily on the counter where Bellamy stood, waiting impatiently for the cashier.
"Hello?" he called out loudly, banging on the table.
Shuffling could be heard from the ajar door behind the counter. Bellamy grew increasingly impatient and hopped over the counter and pushing the door open further, "Hell-"
He was cut off and slammed against the door, "Finn! Elyza! He's infected! Help!"
Bellamy's hand was wrapped around the infected cashier's neck. He was covered in blood and Elyza hoped for all their sakes it wasn't his blood.
Finn shouted and hopped over the counter too. He blocked Elyza's view of Bellamy as her heart pounded painfully in her chest. She was afraid, more afraid than she had ever been before. She was frozen in her spot as Finn pulled the sick cashier off of Bellamy.
Bellamy pulled his gun from its holster, flicked off the safety and shot the infected man in the head, mere inches from Finn's. Elyza flinched at the noise, her ears ringing afterward.
As the three of them settled down, Finn dropped the cashier on the ground and leaned against the threshold of the door. He spilled his guts all over the backroom.
Bellamy grimaced and put the gun back in his waist, "I guess we don't have to pay for this stuff."
Elyza glanced through the window and saw that all three of the cars had left, so nobody had witnessed what they had done. Thank God, I wouldn't be able to deal with the cops again this trip.
"What the hell, Lex? I thought you knew how to take care of yourself! I could have died, we all could have died." Bellamy's voice was rough and low, angry and shocked. He patted Finn on the shoulder before stepping over the dead body. He didn't seem all that effected by what had happened, even though he was covered from the neck down in blood. Clearly not his blood, from the way he was acting.
Elyza swallowed the lump in her throat, "I've never hurt anyone before. I've only been in fist fights, not life or death situations. I'm sorry." Her mouth was dry. They had just killed a man and Bellamy still didn't seem like he was phased. It really freaked Elyza out.
Bellamy rolled his eyes, "Finn, you okay back there?"
Finn let out a groan and managed a thumbs up without lifting his head from behind the door. Elyza felt like she was shaking, like maybe she could throw up too, if she really thought about it.
She turned away, taking a deep breath to calm her rolling stomach. She ran a hand through her blonde tresses and pulled her jacket tighter around her. This is fucking crazy.
When she finally turned around Bellamy has packed away the loose food and drink items into plastic bags. Finn was wiping his face off with some paper towels behind the counter and looking paler than before.
"Grab some bags, you two." He grabbed three for himself after sliding over the counter again. Finn opened a soda he had grabbed and gulped it down, probably to get the taste of vomit out of his mouth. Elyza grabbed the heavy 24-pack of waters and rested it on her shoulder.
Finn tried to protest, saying he could carry it, but Elyza didn't allow it. She'd already shown these two boys her weak side, she wasn't about to let them do all of the heavy lifting. They did have a long way back to Bellamy's home, but Elyza wasn't going to let the boys pamper her.