Gemma opened the cupboards on the kitchen, looking at what remained of their food. Not much, but it would last through the week. The early morning sun trickled through the window, hitting the dust that was hanging in the air making it look like tiny specks hung in midair. Gemma breathed in slowly, enjoying her moment of alone time. Since meeting up with the group she hardly got any time to herself. She couldn’t complain though, being surrounded by other survivors gave her less of a chance of dying. If anything, she could throw one of them under the bus and get away. Not that she would, but it was always a possibility.
“Good morning.”
Gemma looked over her shoulder to see Eddie making her way to the table where she pulled one of the chairs out and sat, eyes watching Gemma’s every move.
“Good morning.” She smiled, leaning against the counter. “I trust you slept well.”
“I haven’t slept well since all this shit started.”
Gemma rolled her eyes, pushing herself up to sit on the counter facing the newcomer and crossing her legs. “A simple ‘not so well, but thanks for asking’ would have sufficed.”
Now it was Eddie’s turn to roll her eyes, which she did with such a perfection Gemma was almost shocked.
“So, what were you doing?” Eddie asked, gesturing to the cabinets.
Gemma sighed, picking at the dirt under her nails. “Inventory. I usually do it every morning. See what we need and what we don’t need.”
“Sounds important.”
“Of course it is you dip shit.” Gemma leaned forward, lowering her voice. “You’ve got to be smarter if you want to hang around this crowd, little girl. You may think you’re safe now, but in the face of danger, we wont be afraid to leave behind the weakest link.”
“I don’t think I’ll be the one being left behind. You’d better watch your back, bitch. I’m not afraid to fight dirty.”
Gemma grinned, running her tongue over the roof of her mouth and leaning back. Maybe this girl was smarter and more strong willed than she had originally thought. Only time would tell. There was a knock on the wall and both girls looked over to see Joey standing in the doorway to the kitchen.
“Am I interrupting something?” He asked in a coy voice, fingers tapping the frame of the arch.
“Not at all. Please, join us.” Gemma smiled sweetly and gestured to the empty seat next to Eddie. He grinned and entered the kitchen, but instead of sitting he walked to the stove and leaned up against it.
“We’re missing a few of the posse.” Eddie glanced at Joey with a hint of jealousy. It was obvious she had the hots for him. Or at least thought he was one attractive man. Or both.
“Coming down.” Joey pointed towards the ceiling. “I did the honors of waking them up before I came down.” He lowered his voice, “be wary of Nicole this morning. She hasn’t had her nicotine yet.”
“What’s her story anyway?” Eddie cocked her head, genuine curiosity dancing in her eyes.
“Maybe you should ask her yourself.” Joey pointed to the doorway where Nicole was now entering. She went straight to where Gemma was sitting and jumped up onto the counter beside her, pulling her legs up with her.
“I ain’t telling that cunt shit.” She threw a glare across the room at Eddie who glared back, leaning forward in the dusty chair.
“Seriously, Nicole?” Evan frowned at her from across the room, taking the empty seat next to Eddie. “She never did anything to you.” He side glanced at Eddie, giving her a small smile.
“Fuck off. You don’t need to stick up for her. She’s old enough to fight her own battles. Or I assume she is.”
“Jesus Nicole. Cut her some slack.” Gemma nudged Nicole’s knee.
“You’re sticking up for her too? Dude! Fucking Seriously?!”
“Shut the fuck up, all of you. I’m tired of playing parent. So stop acting like a bunch of kids and lets get our shit together.” Joey spoke harshly, snapping at everyone in the room. “Gemma, did you do inventory?”
Gemma nodded. “We’re pretty low on food. Good on toilet paper and all that. It would be nice if we could find some more water bottles too. We’ve only got a package of them left.”
Joey nodded. “Looks like we’ll have to start getting water from the lake.” He rubbed the back of his head, running a strong hand through his ruffled hair. “Alright. Evan, Gemma, you’re coming with me. We’ll scout out a few stores downtown and see if anything has been left behind. Nicole, you and Eddie go scout the surrounding neighborhood and start going through houses that look safe.”
“You’re not serious! You’re pairing me with the kid?!” Nicole shouted, grabbing a fistful of her shirt.
“Go smoke before you pull something.” Joey smirked and Gemma held back her laughter the best she could. Evan on the other hand let out a snort, quickly covering his mouth as she glared at him. If looks could kill, he would have dropped dead on the spot.
“Why the fuck are you putting me with her?”
“Cause you two could learn something from each other. Just shut the hell up and deal with it. Evan needs a break from you anyway.”
“Don’t pull me into this man.” Evan said softly, standing from his spot and walking to the doorway.
Gemma jumped off the counter and smiled at Nicole. “You’ll be fine. Just don’t rip her head off until after you’ve had a smoke.” She turned to Eddie. “Good luck sweetheart. You’re gonna need it.” Then she followed the men out the door.
“So I guess it’s just you and me then.” Eddie smiled, standing from her chair. “When do we leave?”
Nicole groaned loudly as she hopped off the counter.
“Look little girl, if you think we’re going to become some sort of friends, you’re way out of line. You know why Joey paired us up? Cause he’s a sick son of a bitch and he enjoys inflicting emotional torment on others. So you just shut the fuck up and don’t fucking get me killed or get us into trouble. So help me god I will throw you to those bastards before you can say a word.” Then Nicole grinned, pulling her pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. “Let’s go.”
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"We loot the shit out of the house and pray to sweet Jesus there was shit left behind and that the infected have left the house alone. We'll start with that one." Nicole pointed at an old brick house that was pretty much in tact except for the fact the driveway was overgrown and the front door was missing. The house was clearly slowly falling apart. Some of the bricks were coming loose from the foundation. The house was also the only one on the block to have a car that had more than the frame still attached. Nicole walked up the driveway with Eddie in tow, leaning against the car as she pulled out another smoke.
"Another one?"
"Shut your trap. I smoke and I smoke often. Get the fuck over it.
"What are you going to do when there are no more cigarettes to be found?" Eddie asked in a snide voice, an evil smile creeping over her face.
"Then I'll fucking deal with it." She lit the smoke, and took a drag then pointed to the house. "You think you're all tough and mighty right? So, go check out the house."
"Your sending me in there alone? Isn't that against your buddy system?"
"I don't give a rat's ass about you." Nicole scoffed taking another drag. "If you die, I'll deal with the wrath of Joey later. You've got a lot of shit to prove if you want to stick with us, kid. So hop to it."
Eddie crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "And if there are infected inside?"
"Do anything but fucking scream. We don't need to attract more. Get a fucking move on. We don't have all day."
"Fine." Eddie spun on her heels and walked into the building while Nicole leaned against the car slowly smoking her cig, a devious smile playing on her lips.
"Teenagers are such manipulative little shits. They'll do anything with the right motivation." She laughed to herself, ashing on the rusted car. She took a deep drag, letting the smoke fill her lungs before she let it out slowly. The taste of the smoke lingered on her tongue. Savoring it, she took one last drag before stomping it out on the pavement. She then walked into the building, hips swinging and a hop to her step.
The house was surprisingly quiet. An eery quiet. Nicole looked around. There was no sign of any infected, so she assumed all was fine.
"Yo! Cunt basket! Where the fuck did you go? You better not have run off." She began walking up the crooked stairs, nearly tripping over a plank that was peeling back from the rest of the structure. There was still no answer from Eddie. Nicole could feel her blood begin to boil. "Seriously? You better not have fucking ditched. God dammit! I never should have trusted a fucking teenager on her own." Reaching the top of the steps she looked around at the rooms. All the doors were open. Not surprising since most houses still had open doors. No one bothered to close the doors on their way out. Unless they were barricading a door, it really wasn't worth the time when a zombie was on your tail.
She turned to her right and that's when she saw Eddie, cowering under a desk. Eddie looked up at her, pressing a finger to her lips. Nicole cocked her head in confusion. The bitch had to be playing a bad joke. She slowly walked towards the bedroom. Eddie continued to push her hands out in front of her, motioning for Nicole to stop. But she pressed on. Eddie had to be playing some sick joke, being a teenager. She was 19 once. She knew what it was like to pull a prank and the satisfaction that followed.
But she was wrong. Eddie wasn't playing some sick joke, and Nicole didn't realize until it was too late. She entered the room and that's when she heard it. The low growl of one of the infected. She turned slowly, heart thumping against her rib cage. It looked at her with red, beady eyes. It's arms stretched in an inhuman fashion, holding its awkward limbs out in front of it. Its mouth hung open and its rib cage stuck out like a sore thumb. It was hungry, that much was obvious. Nicole couldn't take her eyes of the creature. Slowly, as to not bring attention to her movement, Nicole went to the top of her jeans, where her gun was usually holstered. Except this day, she had forgotten her gun. It was still sitting on the kitchen counter, next to Eddie's helmet. She remembered looking at it and thinking she should grab it, but her nicotine deprived mind had forgotten the vital weapon. She turned her head slightly to Eddie who shook her head in terror.
"Run on 3." Nicole mouthed to Eddie, beginning to count on her fingers. She blinked hard once. "3!" She shouted. Eddie scampered out of her hiding spot, throwing the infected off. They took off down the stairs, aware of the angry groans coming from behind.
"DON'T FUCKING LOOK BACK KID. IF YOU FALL I'M LEAVING YOU BEHIND." Nicole screamed as they passed through what used to be the front door, both running as fast as they could.
"Where are we going?!" Eddie cried out.
"Back to the house!" Nicole shouted back. "I have an idea!"
Their feet pounded against the pavement as they tried to create some distance between themselves and the crazed disease closing in on their heels. The infected were quick on their feet and could run almost as fast as any track star. Unfortunately for Nicole, a woman with the lungs of a smoker, she was running out of steam and running out fast. Eddie grabbed onto her arm, pulling her forward.
"Nuh uh, I'm not letting your ass die. No matter how much of a bitch you are." Eddie gripped onto Nicole's arm tightly, half dragging her wheezing ass down the sidewalk. The house was in sight now, just a few feet ahead. The infected was furious now. Both girls could sense it was getting closer but didn't dare look back. Nicole pushed Eddie's hand away, breaking free of her grasp and holding her breath as she ran as fast as she possibly could the last few feet to the house. She turned into the driveway, her lungs screaming for her to stop. But she ignored them and picked up the chain saw.
"What the fuck are you doing?! There's a gun inside!"
"We don't have time to get the gun! It's not even loaded!" Nicole shouted, ripping at the equipment praying it had some gas left in it. The infected turned into the yard, screaming.
"NICOLE."
"I FUCKING KNOW." Beads of sweat dripped down Nicole's forehead as she waited. The saw rumbled in her waiting grasp. The infected stumbled forward, more pissed than Nicole had ever seen one before. Angry its meal was putting up such a fight, no doubt. "A little closer." She mumbled, readying the saw. It took another step forward and she grinned an evil grin. "You're a dumb double dead bitch." She swung the chain saw through the air, bringing it down on top of the infected's head, splitting it almost perfectly. It wedged in the creatures skull as it let out a blood curdling scream as blood spit from the head wound, coating Nicole in a thick layer of red. "FUCK FUCK NO. JUST FUCKING SHUT UP AND DIE." Nicole frantically tried to pull the blade out and kill the thing. It finally toppled over, blood spilling everywhere. She took a step back, admiring her handy work. Then she turned to Eddie, who was staring at her wide eyes from the porch.
"Let's go inside." She pointed towards the house. "I need a cigarette. and apparently a change of clothes."
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"How many do you think are going to show up?" Eddie watched out the window. The infected had screamed so loud it was sure to attract others.
"Fuck if I know." Nicole shrugged, picking at the blood that coated her hair as she rolled her cigarette around in her fingers. "If they haven't shown up by now, they probably wont come at all. We got fucking lucky."
"How can you be so sure?" Eddie turned from the window and sat on one of the boxes, looking up at Nicole with nervous eyes.
"This ain't my first rodeo, kid. Evan and I have been through a lot of shit together. Nothing like the pussy shit you've had to deal with. Your parents probably handled most of it for you until they were bitten, right? Probably even sacrificed themselves for you. I suppose that's a parent thing to fucking do."
"Are you shitting me?! Just because I'm younger than you, you think I haven't dealt with this shit all the same as you? Look here, bitch. I was in Bridgeport. I live in the fucking middle of Bridgeport. I was locked up in the middle of that shit for a week, surrounded by the stench of rotting flesh before I finally got out. Don't think you know what happened to me, because you fucking don't."
"Alright you little shit." Nicole tossed her cigarette into an old beer bottle that she had found a few weeks before. "We've all been through shit. We've all been through a lot of the same fucking bullshit with this fucking plague. But let me tell you something, you have no idea what it's really like to fight those fuckers. If you had any clue, you would have swung an ax or something at that bastard. But you didn't. You watched from the sidelines like the timid little dog that you are. You've got a lot to learn."
"And I bet you know everything, cause you're the smartest woman in the world and you're never wrong, is that it?!" Eddie's voice began to rise. She stood from her chair, fists clenched.
"You're damn right." Nicole grinned, taking a step closer to Eddie. "What you gonna do? Hit me? Kill me? Oh please do. In fact, I encourage you to. It's been a long fucking time since I've felt any pain kid. I'd welcome it now. I welcome death like you welcome life. I want to die. But you know why I stick around? Huh? Wanna take a guess?" Eddie was silent, glaring into Nicole's eyes. "That's what I fucking thought. You now why I stick around? Cause my fucking brother. He is my world and without him I'm just a lost fucking cause. So you and your narcissistic, self absorbed, piece of shit personality can keep your god damn mouth shut. Cause you don't fucking know shit. No, I bet your parents didn't sacrifice themselves for you. They were just suddenly gone. That's it, right? So you were left alone and that's what hurts you most. That you were left alone by the only two people who ever loved you."
Tears jumped to Eddie's eyes and Nicole knew she had hit the nail on the head.
"Do I need to go on?"
Eddie shook her head, unclenching her fists.
"That's what I thought. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a wardrobe malfunction to attend to."
“Good morning.”
Gemma looked over her shoulder to see Eddie making her way to the table where she pulled one of the chairs out and sat, eyes watching Gemma’s every move.
“Good morning.” She smiled, leaning against the counter. “I trust you slept well.”
“I haven’t slept well since all this shit started.”
Gemma rolled her eyes, pushing herself up to sit on the counter facing the newcomer and crossing her legs. “A simple ‘not so well, but thanks for asking’ would have sufficed.”
Now it was Eddie’s turn to roll her eyes, which she did with such a perfection Gemma was almost shocked.
“So, what were you doing?” Eddie asked, gesturing to the cabinets.
Gemma sighed, picking at the dirt under her nails. “Inventory. I usually do it every morning. See what we need and what we don’t need.”
“Sounds important.”
“Of course it is you dip shit.” Gemma leaned forward, lowering her voice. “You’ve got to be smarter if you want to hang around this crowd, little girl. You may think you’re safe now, but in the face of danger, we wont be afraid to leave behind the weakest link.”
“I don’t think I’ll be the one being left behind. You’d better watch your back, bitch. I’m not afraid to fight dirty.”
Gemma grinned, running her tongue over the roof of her mouth and leaning back. Maybe this girl was smarter and more strong willed than she had originally thought. Only time would tell. There was a knock on the wall and both girls looked over to see Joey standing in the doorway to the kitchen.
“Am I interrupting something?” He asked in a coy voice, fingers tapping the frame of the arch.
“Not at all. Please, join us.” Gemma smiled sweetly and gestured to the empty seat next to Eddie. He grinned and entered the kitchen, but instead of sitting he walked to the stove and leaned up against it.
“We’re missing a few of the posse.” Eddie glanced at Joey with a hint of jealousy. It was obvious she had the hots for him. Or at least thought he was one attractive man. Or both.
“Coming down.” Joey pointed towards the ceiling. “I did the honors of waking them up before I came down.” He lowered his voice, “be wary of Nicole this morning. She hasn’t had her nicotine yet.”
“What’s her story anyway?” Eddie cocked her head, genuine curiosity dancing in her eyes.
“Maybe you should ask her yourself.” Joey pointed to the doorway where Nicole was now entering. She went straight to where Gemma was sitting and jumped up onto the counter beside her, pulling her legs up with her.
“I ain’t telling that cunt shit.” She threw a glare across the room at Eddie who glared back, leaning forward in the dusty chair.
“Seriously, Nicole?” Evan frowned at her from across the room, taking the empty seat next to Eddie. “She never did anything to you.” He side glanced at Eddie, giving her a small smile.
“Fuck off. You don’t need to stick up for her. She’s old enough to fight her own battles. Or I assume she is.”
“Jesus Nicole. Cut her some slack.” Gemma nudged Nicole’s knee.
“You’re sticking up for her too? Dude! Fucking Seriously?!”
“Shut the fuck up, all of you. I’m tired of playing parent. So stop acting like a bunch of kids and lets get our shit together.” Joey spoke harshly, snapping at everyone in the room. “Gemma, did you do inventory?”
Gemma nodded. “We’re pretty low on food. Good on toilet paper and all that. It would be nice if we could find some more water bottles too. We’ve only got a package of them left.”
Joey nodded. “Looks like we’ll have to start getting water from the lake.” He rubbed the back of his head, running a strong hand through his ruffled hair. “Alright. Evan, Gemma, you’re coming with me. We’ll scout out a few stores downtown and see if anything has been left behind. Nicole, you and Eddie go scout the surrounding neighborhood and start going through houses that look safe.”
“You’re not serious! You’re pairing me with the kid?!” Nicole shouted, grabbing a fistful of her shirt.
“Go smoke before you pull something.” Joey smirked and Gemma held back her laughter the best she could. Evan on the other hand let out a snort, quickly covering his mouth as she glared at him. If looks could kill, he would have dropped dead on the spot.
“Why the fuck are you putting me with her?”
“Cause you two could learn something from each other. Just shut the hell up and deal with it. Evan needs a break from you anyway.”
“Don’t pull me into this man.” Evan said softly, standing from his spot and walking to the doorway.
Gemma jumped off the counter and smiled at Nicole. “You’ll be fine. Just don’t rip her head off until after you’ve had a smoke.” She turned to Eddie. “Good luck sweetheart. You’re gonna need it.” Then she followed the men out the door.
“So I guess it’s just you and me then.” Eddie smiled, standing from her chair. “When do we leave?”
Nicole groaned loudly as she hopped off the counter.
“Look little girl, if you think we’re going to become some sort of friends, you’re way out of line. You know why Joey paired us up? Cause he’s a sick son of a bitch and he enjoys inflicting emotional torment on others. So you just shut the fuck up and don’t fucking get me killed or get us into trouble. So help me god I will throw you to those bastards before you can say a word.” Then Nicole grinned, pulling her pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. “Let’s go.”
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"We loot the shit out of the house and pray to sweet Jesus there was shit left behind and that the infected have left the house alone. We'll start with that one." Nicole pointed at an old brick house that was pretty much in tact except for the fact the driveway was overgrown and the front door was missing. The house was clearly slowly falling apart. Some of the bricks were coming loose from the foundation. The house was also the only one on the block to have a car that had more than the frame still attached. Nicole walked up the driveway with Eddie in tow, leaning against the car as she pulled out another smoke.
"Another one?"
"Shut your trap. I smoke and I smoke often. Get the fuck over it.
"What are you going to do when there are no more cigarettes to be found?" Eddie asked in a snide voice, an evil smile creeping over her face.
"Then I'll fucking deal with it." She lit the smoke, and took a drag then pointed to the house. "You think you're all tough and mighty right? So, go check out the house."
"Your sending me in there alone? Isn't that against your buddy system?"
"I don't give a rat's ass about you." Nicole scoffed taking another drag. "If you die, I'll deal with the wrath of Joey later. You've got a lot of shit to prove if you want to stick with us, kid. So hop to it."
Eddie crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "And if there are infected inside?"
"Do anything but fucking scream. We don't need to attract more. Get a fucking move on. We don't have all day."
"Fine." Eddie spun on her heels and walked into the building while Nicole leaned against the car slowly smoking her cig, a devious smile playing on her lips.
"Teenagers are such manipulative little shits. They'll do anything with the right motivation." She laughed to herself, ashing on the rusted car. She took a deep drag, letting the smoke fill her lungs before she let it out slowly. The taste of the smoke lingered on her tongue. Savoring it, she took one last drag before stomping it out on the pavement. She then walked into the building, hips swinging and a hop to her step.
The house was surprisingly quiet. An eery quiet. Nicole looked around. There was no sign of any infected, so she assumed all was fine.
"Yo! Cunt basket! Where the fuck did you go? You better not have run off." She began walking up the crooked stairs, nearly tripping over a plank that was peeling back from the rest of the structure. There was still no answer from Eddie. Nicole could feel her blood begin to boil. "Seriously? You better not have fucking ditched. God dammit! I never should have trusted a fucking teenager on her own." Reaching the top of the steps she looked around at the rooms. All the doors were open. Not surprising since most houses still had open doors. No one bothered to close the doors on their way out. Unless they were barricading a door, it really wasn't worth the time when a zombie was on your tail.
She turned to her right and that's when she saw Eddie, cowering under a desk. Eddie looked up at her, pressing a finger to her lips. Nicole cocked her head in confusion. The bitch had to be playing a bad joke. She slowly walked towards the bedroom. Eddie continued to push her hands out in front of her, motioning for Nicole to stop. But she pressed on. Eddie had to be playing some sick joke, being a teenager. She was 19 once. She knew what it was like to pull a prank and the satisfaction that followed.
But she was wrong. Eddie wasn't playing some sick joke, and Nicole didn't realize until it was too late. She entered the room and that's when she heard it. The low growl of one of the infected. She turned slowly, heart thumping against her rib cage. It looked at her with red, beady eyes. It's arms stretched in an inhuman fashion, holding its awkward limbs out in front of it. Its mouth hung open and its rib cage stuck out like a sore thumb. It was hungry, that much was obvious. Nicole couldn't take her eyes of the creature. Slowly, as to not bring attention to her movement, Nicole went to the top of her jeans, where her gun was usually holstered. Except this day, she had forgotten her gun. It was still sitting on the kitchen counter, next to Eddie's helmet. She remembered looking at it and thinking she should grab it, but her nicotine deprived mind had forgotten the vital weapon. She turned her head slightly to Eddie who shook her head in terror.
"Run on 3." Nicole mouthed to Eddie, beginning to count on her fingers. She blinked hard once. "3!" She shouted. Eddie scampered out of her hiding spot, throwing the infected off. They took off down the stairs, aware of the angry groans coming from behind.
"DON'T FUCKING LOOK BACK KID. IF YOU FALL I'M LEAVING YOU BEHIND." Nicole screamed as they passed through what used to be the front door, both running as fast as they could.
"Where are we going?!" Eddie cried out.
"Back to the house!" Nicole shouted back. "I have an idea!"
Their feet pounded against the pavement as they tried to create some distance between themselves and the crazed disease closing in on their heels. The infected were quick on their feet and could run almost as fast as any track star. Unfortunately for Nicole, a woman with the lungs of a smoker, she was running out of steam and running out fast. Eddie grabbed onto her arm, pulling her forward.
"Nuh uh, I'm not letting your ass die. No matter how much of a bitch you are." Eddie gripped onto Nicole's arm tightly, half dragging her wheezing ass down the sidewalk. The house was in sight now, just a few feet ahead. The infected was furious now. Both girls could sense it was getting closer but didn't dare look back. Nicole pushed Eddie's hand away, breaking free of her grasp and holding her breath as she ran as fast as she possibly could the last few feet to the house. She turned into the driveway, her lungs screaming for her to stop. But she ignored them and picked up the chain saw.
"What the fuck are you doing?! There's a gun inside!"
"We don't have time to get the gun! It's not even loaded!" Nicole shouted, ripping at the equipment praying it had some gas left in it. The infected turned into the yard, screaming.
"NICOLE."
"I FUCKING KNOW." Beads of sweat dripped down Nicole's forehead as she waited. The saw rumbled in her waiting grasp. The infected stumbled forward, more pissed than Nicole had ever seen one before. Angry its meal was putting up such a fight, no doubt. "A little closer." She mumbled, readying the saw. It took another step forward and she grinned an evil grin. "You're a dumb double dead bitch." She swung the chain saw through the air, bringing it down on top of the infected's head, splitting it almost perfectly. It wedged in the creatures skull as it let out a blood curdling scream as blood spit from the head wound, coating Nicole in a thick layer of red. "FUCK FUCK NO. JUST FUCKING SHUT UP AND DIE." Nicole frantically tried to pull the blade out and kill the thing. It finally toppled over, blood spilling everywhere. She took a step back, admiring her handy work. Then she turned to Eddie, who was staring at her wide eyes from the porch.
"Let's go inside." She pointed towards the house. "I need a cigarette. and apparently a change of clothes."
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"How many do you think are going to show up?" Eddie watched out the window. The infected had screamed so loud it was sure to attract others.
"Fuck if I know." Nicole shrugged, picking at the blood that coated her hair as she rolled her cigarette around in her fingers. "If they haven't shown up by now, they probably wont come at all. We got fucking lucky."
"How can you be so sure?" Eddie turned from the window and sat on one of the boxes, looking up at Nicole with nervous eyes.
"This ain't my first rodeo, kid. Evan and I have been through a lot of shit together. Nothing like the pussy shit you've had to deal with. Your parents probably handled most of it for you until they were bitten, right? Probably even sacrificed themselves for you. I suppose that's a parent thing to fucking do."
"Are you shitting me?! Just because I'm younger than you, you think I haven't dealt with this shit all the same as you? Look here, bitch. I was in Bridgeport. I live in the fucking middle of Bridgeport. I was locked up in the middle of that shit for a week, surrounded by the stench of rotting flesh before I finally got out. Don't think you know what happened to me, because you fucking don't."
"Alright you little shit." Nicole tossed her cigarette into an old beer bottle that she had found a few weeks before. "We've all been through shit. We've all been through a lot of the same fucking bullshit with this fucking plague. But let me tell you something, you have no idea what it's really like to fight those fuckers. If you had any clue, you would have swung an ax or something at that bastard. But you didn't. You watched from the sidelines like the timid little dog that you are. You've got a lot to learn."
"And I bet you know everything, cause you're the smartest woman in the world and you're never wrong, is that it?!" Eddie's voice began to rise. She stood from her chair, fists clenched.
"You're damn right." Nicole grinned, taking a step closer to Eddie. "What you gonna do? Hit me? Kill me? Oh please do. In fact, I encourage you to. It's been a long fucking time since I've felt any pain kid. I'd welcome it now. I welcome death like you welcome life. I want to die. But you know why I stick around? Huh? Wanna take a guess?" Eddie was silent, glaring into Nicole's eyes. "That's what I fucking thought. You now why I stick around? Cause my fucking brother. He is my world and without him I'm just a lost fucking cause. So you and your narcissistic, self absorbed, piece of shit personality can keep your god damn mouth shut. Cause you don't fucking know shit. No, I bet your parents didn't sacrifice themselves for you. They were just suddenly gone. That's it, right? So you were left alone and that's what hurts you most. That you were left alone by the only two people who ever loved you."
Tears jumped to Eddie's eyes and Nicole knew she had hit the nail on the head.
"Do I need to go on?"
Eddie shook her head, unclenching her fists.
"That's what I thought. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a wardrobe malfunction to attend to."