Ch. 28
'The world's debts Part one'
[August 11, 2012]
"NO!" Blake's voice echoed with seriousness.
"But Blake, I need you," Summer said with tears flooding.
"I know, I need you too," Blake admitted in a somber tone.
Summer could be heard crying as the walkers came closer.
"Never give up! Promise me, Summer! Give me that much!" Blake yelled as the Walkers closed in on him.
"I- I promise, I'll do it!" Summer wailed out as her brother was getting ready to be ripped from her life.
"Now run!" Came the echoing last words of her brother, before he disappeared out of sight.
With the walkers closing in, Blake didn't know what to do, looking around he saw a one-way mirror.
Taking a chance, Blake made a sprint for the potential exit and dove through it, feeling a searing pain from the rib injury he had sustained on an earlier jump, leaving him laying on the floor momentarily.
Getting back to his feet a couple of dozen walkers were making their way into the new room, Blake got up and slammed the door.
Black Betty bam-a-lam, whoa!
"Gotta find a way out, gotta find it real fast!" Blake said as he looked for a different exit, quickly locating one and quickly rolled over the counter into an auditorium.
Black Betty had a child, bam-a-lam, damn thing gone wild!
A few walkers made their way towards the injured man.
Bam-a-lam, she's always ready!
The now smaller group above, ran for the RV they had procured with the owner Corrine, leading the way while Summer lagged, dragging Genevieve across the rooftop.
Bam-a-lam, she's so rock steady, bam-a-lam!
The commotion above rumbled the chandelier free, falling onto the walkers and freeing up Blake to make a run for it.
Whoa! Black Betty, bam-a-lam!
Shoulder charging the doors, Blake found himself in a hallway with what looked to be teenagers that had died in the school and had come back as walkers.
Whoa! Black Betty, Bam-a-lam!
Blake made a sprint down the hall and nearly ran into a small horde of the corpses but dodged into a classroom, immediately slamming the door behind him, which was promptly broken open instantly, sending the young man staggering away from the door before running again.
Black Betty, bam-a-lam!
While Blake broke away from the pack easily, the young man didn't have much room for escape.
Whoa! Black Betty, bam-a-lam!
Sporting a thick cable hanging outside, Blake picked up a school desk and spun around once for momentum before chucking it through the window.
She really gets me high! Bam-a-lam!
A walker grabbed Blake's shirt before the man retaliated with a rough shove that had the walker on the floor, writhing and trying to regain its balance.
Yeah, that's no lie, bam-a-lam!
Turning from his impending doom, Blake jumped out the window, grabbing the cable and hugging it tightly in prayer it would hold his weight.
Ah, yeah! Alright! Ah, yeah!
Still alive from injuries sustained from a fall, Blake opened his eyes and saw he was still hanging on, looking up Blake started climbing to the roof hoping to reunite with his friends.
Whoa! Black Betty, bam-a-lam!
The cable's base gave out, sending Blake back down towards the ground before the base caught on some debris and the momentum slung Blake through the ground-floor window.
Yeah, she's from Birmingham!
He slowly staggered to his feet, all the while trying to keep his hands free of glass. Blake got up, holding his ribs as he limped to the door. The young man saw his exit clear.
Pushing the double doors open, Blake ran for the site of the RV he had come in but found that it had already left.
Falling to his knees in pain and anguish, Blake looked to the tire tracks left by the vehicle. "I promise, I'll find you," Blake said in a solemn tone before getting back to his feet, taking a step forward into his journey.
[Settlement, night, 2021]
Blake, Summer, Melissa, A.J., Ian, and Tina sat around a fire as the man just imparted his story of survival.
"So, that's what happened, sorry, I couldn't find you," Blake said with a hint of sadness in his voice.
Summer's head was lowered in shame since she had unintentionally made it harder for her brother to find the group.
"It's amazing! You spent nine years, looking for your lost family without ever knowing if they were still alive," Tina said, thoughtfully imagining the hardship Blake could have gone through.
Blake nodded silently at hearing it out loud, looking at his worn boots, Blake hoped he could find a new pair soon.
"Damn hoss, that's some crazy-ass shit!" Ian declared, standing with his arms crossed.
The wind was non-existent this night and while the temperature was low, the fire made things fairly cozy for everyone involved.
Blake pursed his lips in an attempt to seem nonchalant being as he was the out person at the time.
"So, uh, what's your name again?" Blake asked, eyeing Ian.
"Ian," the large man answered simply.
"How long have you and Summer known each other now?" Blake inquired further.
Ian shrugged his shoulders as he uncrossed his arms. "Like, six years," Ian replied as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.
Blake rose from the log he had been sitting on and walked over to the big man, standing about a half-foot shorter than Ian.
"Thanks, for helping keep them safe," Blake said in a serious tone, extending a hand in gratitude.
Taking a moment to think of the gravity of the hand outstretched to him, Ian had a smile on his as he took the hand and shook slowly.
"Been a good time, having them around," Ian replied honestly, a small, light-hearted chuckle emanating from the tall man.
Blake returned a genuine smile as he looked up at the man before his eyes drifted to just behind Ian, his smile fading to a look of awe, a short girl wearing her signature half-ponytail.
Blake felt his stomach lurch and his heart pounding he felt like he could throw up, he hadn't seen this young girl's face in nine long years, a face he thought about often while he was gone and one he had begun to think he would never see again, until now.
Genevieve stopped just outside the warmth of the fire, a faint orange glow on her cheeks, nose, and forehead, coming from the fire.
Blake approached the teenager he had been forced to leave as a six-year-old, she was substantially taller and her face was skinnier, but her eyes were the same beautiful blue as the day he had lost her, perhaps a small hint of 'something dark' dwelled in those eyes now, that girl had killed many of his men just that morning.
Blake stopped about five feet from Genevieve, his heart felt like it stopped for a moment when Genevieve stopped as well and met his eyes.
"Look at you," Blake said with a small shake in his voice, taking in the sight of the little girl he had saved years ago. "Just look at you," Blake reiterated, hesitantly opening his arms halfway signaling for an embrace.
Genevieve stood exhaling a long, shaky breath, nervous energy causing her to shake instead of the cold, averting her eyes when he spoke of her, a small gasp and hint of a smile was brought forth for a moment before she looked back to the man she had believed to be dead for so long.
Blake waited in fear of rejection for what seemed like an eternity, not moving an inch, hoping he wouldn't scare her away.
After a long, tension-filled silence, Genevieve took tentative steps into Blake's arms, softly being enveloped in his strong arms, as he set his chin on the top of her head.
A weight lifted off of Blake when Genevieve accepted his hug since he wouldn't have made her, the feeling of holding the little girl he had reunited with after so long, brought tears welling up in his eyes that threatened to spill over at a moment's turn.
Genevieve felt a vivid sense of peace as she allowed the person she had bonded first with after her parent's death, while they had only spent a few months together by then, she had never met anyone kinder, braver, and yet as human, as Blake was, the teenager could feel her heart beginning to thaw at the prospect of this world allowing someone to come back to life, but not in the warped, horrible sense, for once the world gave back a good, kind person in her eyes.
After a few moments, the embrace was over and the world around the two resumed as it had before.
A.J. stood up, chuckling at the light-hearted scene that had unraveled, shaking his head as he disappeared into the darkness of the cold wintery night, making headway in the direction of the bar.
Summer watched on as Blake, the brother she had lost so many years ago, stood alive next to the child he had taken on after the death of her parents, surreal was the only way could think to put it, as if she would wake up it would all be a cruel dream, a very pleasant dream nonetheless.
Melissa sat on a log near the fire trying to keep warm, beaming at the lovely sight of one of the first people she met during the apocalypse, was reunited with his family and friends after searching for so very long.
Ian sent a casual finger salute to Summer before heading towards his own home and family, his large lumbering form, dissipating into the cold night.
Tina looked at the man, Genevieve had spoken of in passing a few times, revering him as more than just some person she had known but as a mentor or maybe even more, to see that same man in the flesh brought a pleasant warmth that wasn't solely from the campfire.
With the reunion coming to a satisfying close, the group went their separate ways, Blake following his sister to her home, where he now had to find a place to sleep.
"You sure you don't want my bed?" Summer asked as she shrugged her coat off and placed it on the hook near the front door.
"Nah, you're all good, I'll take the couch here," Blake replied genuinely happy with the fact he had found his family, and truly content with the couch.
Genevieve slipped out of her coat and boots and slinked to her room silently, keeping to herself and closing the door behind her.
Blake heard the door shut and assumed the room of Genevieve was that door now, looking at the door in question, Blake smiled softly at the thought of today's events.
"This is amazing," Blake breathed, elated with his current fortune.
Summer looked up at her brother with a heartful smile, gracing her face and wearing starry eyes. "It is," Summer said with a tiny break in her voice.
Blake looked to his sister and grabbed her up in his arms, hugging her once again.
Releasing Summer, Blake took a moment and smiled before sitting on the couch. "I'm gonna hit the hay, tomorrow you can show me the ropes of this place," Blake offered, giving himself a stretch.
After agreeing, Summer retired to her room, shutting her door, the woman rested her back against the door.
Her eyes overflowed with tears of joy at the day's events, Summer would've never assumed this to be real if she hadn't been there.
Walking to her bed across the room, Summer felt the cold, smooth wood on her bare feet, sitting on the bed, Summer set her hands on her knees to try to keep her balance.
"If this is a dream, don't wake me," Summer whispered as she looked to her ceiling, hope spread across her features as she stared longingly at the ceiling.
Summer laid down soon after, her mind drifting to the people who wouldn't come back.
Her mother and her father, Amanda, Corrine, and Jenny, poor Jenny, so many others had been lost to this world and its monsters.
But not Blake, he was still alive, Summer practically breathed in that fact before exhaling gratitude to whoever would hear her, her parents, or Jenny or Amanda even.
"Thank you."