Not The Same | Nick Clark | FTWD

Part 12

"Hey Hannah, have you seen Nick around?" Madison asked, walking into the dining room as I forked through the bowl of noodles that sat in front of me.

"Not since this morning," I mumbled as the silverware left my lips, "End of the world or not, he's still not gonna stay at home." I joked, trying to distract her from any suspicions she may be having.

"Yeah, I know," she nodded, "Just with all the military patrolling outside, I don't want him getting himself into something he can't get out of."

"I reminded him last night to steer clear of them-- they give me weird vibes." I said as I took another bite.

"Well, you've always had a good gut instinct." She said lowly, taking a sip from her bottle of water.

"What did you see?" I asked quietly.

"Nothing-- not yet anyway." She answered, "I'm planning on going outside the fence today, just to scope things out."

I nodded, taking another bite, "You got a plus one?"

She shook her head, "I'm not gonna be out there long, but while I am, I need you to keep an eye on Nick-- make sure he's staying out of trouble with the soldiers."

"And if someone asks where you are?" I asked, looking up at her from where I sat.

"I trust you," She shrugged, "Say whatever you have to."

***

"Have you seen Nick anywhere?" I asked Daniel as I passed him in the hall, the relationship between us still very fresh.

"He's out back." He said simply, gesturing in the direction before continuing his way through the house.

I nodded, making my way to the back door before I stopped, hearing voices on the other side of it that caused my curiosity to peak.

"I understand you may be in need of Methadone." An unfamiliar voice said, my breathing picking up as I quickly began to worry about the outcome of this conversation.

"Well, I would love Methadone if I was trying to kick, which I've already done." Nick's raspy voice replied.

As the conversation continued, I hesitantly pushed open the door, stepping out as I saw Liza, Nick, and the face of someone I had never seen before.

"Hello." The woman said, briefly looking up at me before back down to Nick, checking his pupils with a small flashlight.

"Hi.." I said as I took in what was in front of me, looking over to Liza, "What's up?"

"This is Dr. Exner," she gestured to the woman, "Dr. Exner this is Hannah, she's Nick's girlfriend."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Hannah." She said, pausing for a moment as she put away the flashlight before shaking my hand, "Glad to see a young couple end up together while all of this is going on," she continued, "I'm just trying to get to some overdue house calls."

"That's nice of you, I'm sure a lot of people could use it." I said mindlessly as my eyes locked with Liza's, trying to wrap my head around why she would even mention Nick to any of these people.