Apocalyptic Love

Run

"Do you see that?" I squinted as my eyes adjusted to the night, the darkness still heavy shielding the sight, but the sounds were faint.

Carter picked up his rifle holding the scope firmly to his right eye as he scanned the perimeter "Fuck" The boy jumped up, holding his hand to pull me up. I didn't second guess as I intertwined our hands, letting him pull my weight up. He reached for the walkie hidden in the pocket of his cargo's "Matt, we got more than a dozen creeps getting through the gates".

The silence was deafening as we waited a reply, the groans in the distance growing closer.

"We need to go" My uncle's voice vibrated through "Is Katie with you?".

His caramel eyes met mine for a second before turning back "Yeah. We are on the roof".

"Go down the fire escape. Head towards the end of the courtyard, there's another gate there. Two miles down the road there's a café called Dolores, meet us there" We were already rushing through the fire escape when the walkie crackled again "Look after my niece, she's all I got left".

Carter grabbed my hand pulling me down the stairs, his faster legs barely giving me a chance to catch my breath. "I don't need you to keep me safe you know" I grunted; I was capable of doing that myself.

"We will see about that" The boy cockily added.

"Duck" I interrupted, grabbing the small knife from my waist and launching the blade through the air until it settled in the skull of a corpse "Told you" I laughed before following route.

Carters hand never lost grip of my own as we raced through the overrun school, the dead were closing us in front almost every angle. I twisted my body, using the hard rubber of my boot to kick any that ventured too close while the brunette used the end of his rifle to take out the few blocking our exit, a few seconds of violence and his hand was back in mine.

If we weren't killing monsters I might have actually enjoyed it.

I think we'd both forgetting we were attached until we stood outside the metal gates to retrace our breath. There was a pause when we separated our palms, an emptiness when his weight left mine and his eyes glued to my own. "I really got to do more cardio" I tittered between harsh exhales.

"Still got two more miles to go blue" He met my stare "And we got to go now" The man pointed to the crowded shadows slowly skulking their way towards us.

The thin material of my shirt was uncomfortably stuck to my chest as sweat exited every inch of my body, the aches slowly inching across my muscles. We'd been running for at least twenty minutes; Carter ran slightly ahead making sure to look behind every few minutes. For someone who barely managed sentences, he was protective, even if he didn't know me.

"Almost there" He spoke over harsh breaths.

The dead were out of sight for now, but even at the slow pace they limped, they could follow your scent for miles, the only way to rid them was to run or find a safe place.

My eyes were blurred, spots dancing across my vision as I pulled dry inhales. But finally I could see the silhouette of a small building, a one-story café with large, bold letter about the door "Dolores". This place was one homely. The white metal chairs outside overturned with bloody splatters across every inch, the windows were still intact, but gore was covering them from every angle.

My apparent protecter went in first holding a small flashlight in his palms under his other that held a combat knife. The place was dead silent as we snuck through each room, the only noises were our heavy breathing echoing through the silence. The moment we deemed it safe I slumped down in the kitchen resting my head between my knees, my body burned, and my muscles were lifeless, the only relief being from the cold metal behind me icing my skin.

Carter joined, sitting opposite me on top of the island "The place is secure, I put some tables in front of the door" I nodded sluggishly.

"Do you think they made it out?" I hoped my uncle had made it out, I'd only just found him again, but my luck so far had always been cut short, so why would this time be any different.

"I don't know" his voice was almost a whisper, as if he didn't want to hurt me but at the same time he couldn't give me false hope. We both knew how this world worked, almost to well. Our lives were never guaranteed, nor safe. Every moment was a time bomb waiting for something to finally explode; It always did.

For what felt like hours, we sat in silence, patiently waiting for any sign of life from the others.

"What did you do before this" I couldn't help but break the silence, the brunette looked tired but neither of us were close to getting any rest.

"Why do you want to know? Not like it matters anymore".

Carter was blunt, his arms clenching at his sides as he watched the door "God. Just making conversation Lucifer" I knew why he was keeping to himself, I wanted to do the same, but it was easier said than done.

A light knock sounded three times against the window, loud enough for us to hear but quiet enough to not attract the dead. I was already inching towards the door when I whispered "It's got to be them" but Carter pushed me back, his knife already aimed in front of him.

Through the dirt I could see four figures huddled against the window, but I couldn't make them out. Carter pulled the furniture away, not disarming himself until the four walked through the small entry way. Matt ushered through first, his eyes looking around frantically until his gaze rested on me finally letting his lungs settle.

The moment he ran over I settled in his arms, cradling me in a fatherly way "Thank god, you're okay" He left a chaste kiss on my forehead before rushing back over to the others.

Ramon was pale, but Beth was worse. She was barely holding onto his grip as he carried her through the door, Crystal on the other side holding the other half of her petite weight. The blonde looked sweaty and weak, and a clouded silence fell over the room. My eyes wandered her until I noticed blood pouring through the white blouse stuck to her stomach, but it wasn't until he lifted her I noticed the deep bite mark embedded into her abdomen.

She was bit. I looked to Matt, his face watching her the same as us "She got bit while we were getting out, there was just too many".

They laid her frail body on the kitchen island, the three of them applying pressure against the wound but we all knew it was useless, all it took was one bite. Ramon was holding her hand tight while whispering into her ear, his eyes shining against the tears threatening to exit as he watched her slip away. 

Carter stood back with his head turned away, his mind everywhere except in the room. We all knew she didn't have long left; The moment you're infected the virus spreads through your bloodstream like the plague. The fever is the worst, burns you from the inside out until your body ultimately gives into death. Then comes reanimation, the time varies but you always come back and all you can do is hope someone puts you out of your misery.

The silence was deafening, the only sounds were the faint cries from Beth. I couldn't take no more, so I pushed to the front of the shop while everyone said their goodbyes. Carter appeared first, his hands in his pockets while his face held little emotion. Matt was next, wiping the red liquid staining his palms, his face ghastly pale.

"They've gone to bury her" The silence broke "We need to go, before that herd catches up".

Edited