PetrA

Chapter forty-six: Ellie

Ellie felt like somebody had decided to take her lungs out and squeeze them flat. Opening her eyes Ellie swore she was imagining things. Gordon was staring down at her. Ellie reached out, grasped his wrist, and let out a sob. Ignoring the arching in her body, she sat up and pulled him into a tight embrace. "Gordon!" She said in a strangely strangled voice. Ellie didn't care how long she sat there with Gordon safely wrapped in her arms. Well safely and safely, but he wasn't dead. When she let go of him she looked around the room and expected to see Daniel too, but he wasn't there. There girl was there, Joachim was nowhere to be seen neither were Henrik. "Where's Daniel?" She asked cautiously. The girl glanced at her, "I don't know. We left him around some of your first messages. I'm Stella by the way." She held out a hand for Ellie to shake. She took it slowly seizing Stella up. She wasn't tall, but she wasn't exactly lightly built either. "Gordon's been yapping about you. He's annoying, but resourceful. Kept me from killing myself with poisonous stuff several times. Handy with a knife too." She said casually.

Ellie wanted to tell her that Gordon shouldn't be playing with knives, but bit her tongue and kept quiet. Even if Gordon were still only nine, he'd have to know how to protect himself, gun or knife it didn't matter. Still Ellie did not like the thought of it. "Ellie." She said courtly. Stella nodded and stuffed a marshmallow into her mouth. She raised her eyebrows at Ellie and held out the bag. Ellie took a couple from the bag and nibbled on one. "So asthma, huh?" Stella said throwing some at Bob who was in a corner. He'd been so quiet Ellie hadn't even noticed him. "Did you cut out his tongue?" Ellie asked. Stella stared at Ellie, "No, but I wish we did. He's been talking about his mommy for hours. Don't suppose you were pregnant before you were even born." Ellie let out a snort and stuffed the rest of her white fluffy treat into her mouth. "I hope not; that way my mother would probably have exploded. It would've probably have been a good idea, but I like being alive." Stella let out a guffaw. "Not a big mommy fan either?" She asked. Ellie stared at her wondering what she meant by that, but shrugged. "When she leaves before you are the age of one, come back a couple of years later only to take your brother, and then use you as a showcase doll she can pull out whenever she wants to, then no. I'm not a fan."

"Guess you're right, but just a question. How can you be friends with Joachim?" Ellie laughed. "I'm not. I've never liked him, not even before this shit started." Stella nodded thoughtfully. "So you knew each other before the great apocalypse?" Ellie nodded. "Yeah, we went to the same school, same year and same German class." Ellie wrinkled her nose with distaste thinking about German. Ellie let out a sigh as she started to think about Kim, letting the conversation die out. "Oh look she's up." Henrik said walking into the room after a while. Ellie looked up and frowned, "Why shouldn't I be?" she asked crossly. "Oh lords, somebody's in a mood again." Joachim grumbled joining them. Ellie glared at him, "Well if you want to improve it then leave get out of my sight." She snapped. "Mummy and daddy, fighting. No, no." Bob said from his corner. Both Ellie and Joachim turned to him and glared at him. "I'm not your mommy." Ellie said. "And I'm not your daddy." Joachim said. Henrik looked like he was enjoying it.

"Did you date?" Stella asked looking between them. Ellie scowled at her, "I would never date that troll." Joachim glared at Ellie, "At least I don't look like a zombie hit me." Ellie got to her feet and swayed for a couple of seconds as her vision blackened. She hates when that happens. "You're one to talk? At least I have a brain that functions." She snapped. "Okay, enough of that. Let's figure out what to do." Stella said looking between them. Grudgingly Ellie sat down again shooting Joachim a glare. Gordon, Henrik and Joachim looked at Ellie waiting for her to talk. Stella glanced at Ellie too. She could sense that they'd rather listen to Ellie than her. Ellie huffed and crossed her arms, "I'd say we should stay here for a couple of days, let the others catch up." Ellie didn't mention that she was itching to see Kim again, she had forced herself to believe that he wasn't dead. "But how will they find us?" Henrik asked.

Ellie thought for a moment and then looked at the heap of white sheets in a corner. "We'll make a banner. I have an idea." She said thinking about the old Skype chat. The name was perfect for a meaningless clue. With some help, Ellie managed to find what they needed. "Okay, Mental Asylum 3.0" She mumbled as she smeared the very old painting onto the sheets. Ellie didn't understand who would leave painting in an old abandoned Mental house, but people had done stranger things. Outside she had Gordon, Joachim and Henrik hang it up on the huge iron fence. "You sure they'll understand it?" Henrik asked jumping down and brushing off his hands. "Positive. It's the name of our old Skype chat. Don't ask." She said looking at the sheets hanging towards the road. Some of the letters had smeared slightly, but you would still be able to read it and the arrow pointed straight up at the sky. Ellie wasn't sure that they'd see it if they arrived after dark, but it was worth a try.

They went back inside as some stray dead people moved towards them from the other side. Ellie curled up under her sleeping bag and stared at the ceiling, from the corner somebody snored, hopefully Bob wouldn't wake up until much later. The silence around them was thick, it seemed like nobody had much to say. Gordon had curled up beside Ellie and it seemed like he didn't have anything to say either, for once. Outside the sun slowly sank into the horizon giving the clouds an orange and pink glow. "Do you really think they'll pass it? I mean they might like us have passed you during night." Stella said when the last light of the day disappeared. Ellie glanced at her and shifted slightly careful not to wake Gordon. "I don't know, but all we can do is hope. I don't know what I would do if..." Ellie stopped abruptly, she had been about to say, if Kim died. She didn't want to say too much in front of Stella, she didn't know her. Even though Gordon trusted her, Ellie didn't. She was grateful that Stella had kept Gordon alive, after they left Daniel. Ellie couldn't imagine why.

Stella looked at Ellie as if she was trying to figure her out. "Don't even try and figure her out." Joachim said suddenly. Both girls jumped and stared at him, "She's almost impossible to read." He grumbled as if he had tried many times to read Ellie. "Not impossible." Gordon mumbled quietly. "Don't look at her face, read her eyes." Ellie stared down at her little brother who'd fallen asleep again. "You little slug faced troll." She said giving him a small shove. Gordon just mumbled something and started to snore slightly. Ellie couldn't stay mad at him, she brushed the hair out of his eyes and kissed his forehead softly, and pulled his sleeping bag up around him. "Hard to believe the squirt is only nine." Stella said. Ellie looked up at her briefly, "He's a smart little cookie." Stella snorted. "Little? Girl that boy is not little. He's almost taller than me!" Ellie had to stifle a laugh. "He's my baby brother, so he'll always be little, no matter if he outgrows me."

Outside darkness surrounded them, there wasn't much sound until the first thunder boomed over them. Ellie who'd almost fallen asleep jolted awake, Gordon sighed and snuggled closer to Ellie. She sighed and closed her eyes again. It was only thunder. Soon she'd fallen asleep to the rain pounding on the roof and windows.