Only The Living (Lost Survival Series Book 1) (10 page)

“Keep moving!!” Harry barked simple orders as we sprinted our way through the lingering darkness. The sun had set almost an hour ago, and no one was certain that we were even heading in the right direction anymore.

Beth sat atop Ian's shoulders, looking out for any of the Lost we’d left trailing behind. “They're coming...!” She reported down to us, and soon we were on the move again.

We really only had tomorrow left, and then we would be forced to head back to the community centre, with or without the supplies. I silently hoped that SP. Burkley would choke to death on his own pompous attitude before our unlikely return.

Not long after we'd started wandering again, Millie pointed us towards a small complex of flats nearby. At least it was a sign that we were moving away from the suburban area, and back towards the city. “C'mon, we don't have much time! We'll have to spend the night here!”

She held the unlocked door open as we stumbled in one-by-one, breathless from the terrifying sprint. Feeling the need to put as much crap as possible between ourselves and the horde we'd narrowly evaded, we covered the entrance with every piece of furniture that wasn't nailed down in the lobby. With Harry leading our charge, we began ascending the staircase with an almost superhuman level of determination.

After what seemed like five steps compared to our previous mad dash, we found ourselves on the top floor of the building, where only one solitary door resided. Shelter was a welcome sight, if somewhat ill-conceived after being given the boot from the community centre and having our families' safety toyed with.

Harry made us all stand to the side as he kicked his size-11s against the metal lock. It probably hurt more than he would ever care to admit, but with another two blows, the entire mechanism came loose and the door swung open. Once inside, we did our rudimentary safety sweep of the entire flat.

Upon finding no Lost, and realising that we were in some fancy penthouse apartment, we saw no harm in starting a small trash-can fire like we'd done at the newsagents. It was much colder than expected, but at least we had ventilation to let some of the smoke out.

The exterior wall of the living area was basically a large glass window showing the world outside, oddly reminding me of the conference room I was in at the start of it all. It felt like weeks ago, the thought of which only depressed me.

Would my life be as slow and monotonous as the past couple of days, from now on? I wouldn't mind as much, if the ever-present danger of being eaten alive wasn't hanging over my head.

We all bunched together in anxious silence, unsure of what could be said to kick-start the evening. “...They'll be okay, right? That Burkley creep... He'd better not touch our families until we get back!” Millie raised her arms combatively. She lowered them when she began wondering who exactly she was defending.

I knew for a fact that her parents were abroad, on business somewhere or other. Seeing that she wanted to swing briskly past the fact, my childhood friend spun to jerk her thumb around the semicircle.

“Who else is at the community centre? All I know is Joanna, and...” She looked over expectantly at Ian, who was obviously trying to melt into the couch and out of our plane of existence. He just scoffed blankly with a growl.

“...Yeah, like I care. Daniel's mum seems really kind, and... I can't just leave all those people back there hanging without medicine. That's all I'm here for.”

I was worried that he wasn't taking what went down with his parents that well, and even more concerned that I hadn't gotten the chance to speak to him yet. It felt like he was avoiding me, avoiding Beth after what happened.

Millie cast her head over her shoulder to Harry, who was also trying to stay out of the loop. “...And what about you, Mr. Cool-and-Silent?”

I think I saw something snap behind his closed eyes. “Dead. Ain't anyone left for me.” He stood up almost immediately before Millie could muster her panicked apology, and went towards the kitchen in an attempt to find some leftover food for dinner.

It took a while to recover the mood, but once we had square sausages and potato scones in the frying pan that rested over our fireplace, everything was in full-swing. Beth and Millie were chattering non-stop, and even Harry joined their conversation about the chances of locating another evacuation shelter.

As I numbly watched the debate unfold, Ian leaned in from the apartment’s master bedroom and asked me to help him case the joint. I knew it was a shoddy excuse, as soon as he timidly closed the door behind him.

It only took a moment of rummaging through the meticulously-tidy drawers before he finally brought it up. “S-So, um... I don't know how well you understood what my dad said earlier today, but... Before you hear anything from Harry, I—”

Satisfied with the conversational direction he was stumbling in, I stopped him there. All I wanted to know was that he could trust me with the truth whenever there was a problem, and I was glad he eventually came through.

“I already know, you idiot… You two weren’t exactly subtle, sneaking around like that.”

“We… We weren’t?”

“Hell, no. And it's definitely not something you should be worrying about, either. We're friends, aren't we? Especially after all of the crap we've been through... You didn't think we'd fall out now, did you?” I threw a bundle of clean shirts and socks at him. “You're stuck with us, bro!”

We both chuckled slightly, but I could tell that he was still a little embarrassed about it. Avoiding my line of sight like it was fire, Ian fumbled to open the large suitcase lying across the bed. "I guess... I'm just not that used to it. Even if you say it’s alright, I can’t pretend that everything’s going to work out someday."

“You’re worried about your parents, huh?” I asked, only to be met with raw silence. “Hey, it’s not your fault that they’re stuck in biblical times. You listening, Ian?”

“R-Right, yeah. That’s what I meant.”

Glancing up at him, the remark sounded a little off to me. His unreadable expression felt distant, a million miles off as he sharply unzipped the side pocket.

“Hey, isn't this like your phone?” Ian asked all of a sudden. I walked around to his half of the bed, where he was staring at a mostly-empty box similar to the ones that mobile phones came in... specifically the same series as mine. There weren't any phones inside, but it did have what looked like several rounded-off jacks.

“Wait, are those what I think they are…?"

I pulled out my dead phone to confirm the model, and inhaled sharply. Taking one of the curious devices, I slid it into my phone’s slot and held my breath. The screen lit up instantly.

“Yes!! Charger packs!” Dancing a little, I praised the cautious fellow who had lived there before, excited until I saw the “No Signal” icon. “Oh... I don't know what I got so excited about. It's not like we can call anyone for help.”

Ian swiped the phone from me, and shrugged with an uncharacteristic smirk. “...Then let's have some fun with your apps. There's still one more in the box if we ever need it, anyway. I think Beth would appreciate this, just for tonight.”

Before I could ask him what he was going to use it for, he walked out of the bedroom and started blasting through the songs on my playlist, droning out Harry as he barked that dinner was ready. I exhaled, and pocketed the extra battery. For whatever good that would do, with no one left in the entire world to call.

We all sat around the flickering fire, with our breakfast-dinner plates on our laps. It felt so good to be using cutlery once more. Beth was telling knock-knock jokes that fell completely flat, and the only laughs she got was out of pity or restrained cracks from the ‘stoic’ thug.

I didn't notice how bad it was, but apparently the way we were behaving was starting to offend Millie. Her eyes had been twitching for at least a few minutes, reacting in disgust to the laid-back conversation.

“...What the fuck is wrong with you all? How can you laugh at a time like this?!”

I abruptly yanked her to the side, and told her to get a grip. This time, I managed to dodge her lightning-fast clawed fist just in time.

“Me?! What about them... You'd think that little girl’s parents didn't die the other day, you'd think that I didn't kill your dad, you...”

Her eyelashes began to shimmer with tears, but being Millie, she soon composed herself with a quick wipe and a frustrated sigh. I patted her on the shoulder, sympathetic to how bizarre our actions might seem on the outside.

“It's how we get by, Mils. We've had a hell of a day, don't you think? You have to let it go, because if you don't... it'll eat you whole, before you even get a chance to sleep. Don't forget, this nightmare is gonna start all over again in the morning, and the morning after that...”

I stopped myself from getting locked into a cycle, knowing that I was a few words from breaking myself. Instead of worrying about my mother’s life hanging in the balance, I moved to grab a bottle of Vino from behind Millie.

“...I think
this
could take the edge off, right?” I winked at her cornily, almost making her crack a smile at our usual banter. Nabbing a couple of nearby glasses, she lightly apologised to everyone while handing them out. With lazy nods and shrugs of acceptance, we sat back down as the evening roared on.

Beth picked up my phone that was still blaring music, saying that she wanted everyone to take a picture together. While all the men collectively groaned, Millie seemed to jump right into the spirit of things.

“All right, let's do this!” The brunette clapped her hands together, pumped up for the activity as Beth laid the device on the window sill. After she set the timer, we were all commanded to squeeze together behind the couch.

I was never that into taking cheesy group photos, but in this scenario it seemed appropriate… especially after everything that had happened between the five of us. There was no telling whether we would all be alive to take one after this mission was over. I'd be the only person to have a copy anyway, but it was more about us all bonding in that moment, if anything.

As Millie rushed in behind me, I suspected that she gave me bunny-ears as the flash went off. While everyone crowded around me to check how lame they looked, I couldn't help but feel as though this was as good as things were going to get for us.

I wished that I could only have the nights, and just sleep through the days which appeared to become even more disastrous as time ticked steadily on. As friends do, though, they quickly lifted my depressive mood with ease as we surrounded the fireplace once more and warmed ourselves up in the buzzing circle.

Some time after we’d each drank three or four glasses from the apartment owner's vast wine armoury, Beth grew rather bitter as she insisted that we were hoarding the stuff to ourselves. “Let me try some! I've never had alcohol before... Please, just one sip! I won't tell anyone!!”

Chuckling and almost spilling it all over himself, Harry — whom I'd decided was the lightest drinker in Scotland, despite his largely-butch stature — poured a little into Beth's glass of apple juice.

She took a long gulp, and looked up at our expectant eyes with a scrunched brow. “...Eww, that stings! No thanks!!” She remarked, cutting it with some more apple juice as we howled with laughter.

“Thank goodness... You're still
waaay
too young for that stuff!” Millie slurred as she flailed her arms around the poor girl, despite drinking the least out of all of us.

She could’ve given Harry a run for his money... In fact, Beth probably had more to drink than she did — Millie seemed to be high on the atmosphere itself. The ‘wasted’ girl suddenly looked up at the ceiling with a curiously-serious face. We all glanced up as well, and then back down at her in confusion.

“...We... We should play a game!!” she shrieked happily. Almost everyone turned their noses up at the suggestion. However, just before we could move on and avoid fuelling the idea, Harry betrayed us and asked what we were all cautiously thinking.

“W-What kinda game?”

Ian looked as though he was in physical pain, lugging the empty wine bottle from the kitchen counter over towards our makeshift fireplace. His lacklustre expression was expected, considering what he was being forced into. “Do we really have to do this...? It doesn't even make any sense.”

Millie's hand shot upwards at him accusingly. “Siiilence! We'll get to know each other better this way. We'll need a game-master, though... Oh, Beth! Will you do the honours? It's like, you get to choose who's turn it is, and then you spin that bottle. Got it?”

Beth nodded her head enthusiastically, obviously wanting to be in control of us adults for a change. Adults who were now sitting cross-legged on the floor, playing some childish hybrid of spin-the-bottle and truth-or-dare.

“Ian!” Beth said unexpectedly.

Is it already starting?!
I choked silently, dreading the moment that I would be chosen. The blonde girl twirled it around, spinning the bottle until the head finally pointed towards herself, making her giggle nervously.

“Okay, I guess I'll play along,” Ian muttered listlessly. “Beth, Truth or Dare?”

“Dare!!”

All of our eyes snapped to her in astonishment. “B-Brave girl...” Harry stuttered, giving an impressed blink.

Ian motioned Beth over to him, whispering her dare quietly so that we couldn't overhear. Almost instantly, she took a cushion into her tiny hands, walked over to Millie and lightly whacked it into the side of her head.

“Sorry!” Beth squeaked an apology as we all burst out laughing at Millie's expense. At least Ian got his revenge on her, for making him play this silly game.

We played a couple of more rounds, mostly the back-and-forth slapping of cushions, before the rather-disjointed Ian told us that we was retiring from the game. Wobbling to his feet, he floated off towards the master bedroom to get some sleep for once.

Harry followed after him, but Ian insisted that he should keep playing. With a subtle touch and kiss in the hallway, he wandered back with a huge goofy smile plastered over his face.

“Miss Mill-yee, your turn to ask!” Beth yelled, excited to continue the game.

Mils barely noticed the horrific pronunciation of her name, as her eyes followed the thug with a level of curiosity that could only end in her victory. The bottle went around and around, until it slid to a stop in front of the still-reeling Harry.

“Shit.”

I half-expected this kind of question from Millie, who wondered about the two boys ever since the community centre. When Harry chose truth, Millie instantly threw her inquiry right back into him, almost knocking the big guy over.

“What's the deal with you and Ian?” she asked, already knowing the answer. Harry was just drunk enough to give all of the gory details, and since I had no idea what else had happened between them, I was prepped and ready to cover Beth's innocent ears.

Thankfully, he was just as shy as Ian was when it came to these matters. “Um...Did I say truth? I meant dare!”

“Come on, tell us! I’m dying to know,” Millie whined, pressing her body up against him like a brick wall. After chipping him down just a little more, he caved into the pressure.

“Well... U-Uh, I... I mean, we're...” Adopting his boyfriend's inability to speak under pressure, it took him another gulp or three of wine before he started talking for real. “I-I've always liked girls, y'know? I had lots of girlfriends in school, never really thought about... well, anything else...”

Millie was already squealing with excitement, realising where the story was going.
Do all girls get this freaked out over two dudes together?
I asked myself, clearing my throat loudly to snap her out of it.

Harry recounted for us an experience he had with Ian one rainy night, when they first got together. It was strange hearing about their past, almost like two completely different people from the survivalists I’d come to know. The thug’s face grew so red, it looked as though he could pass out at any moment from blood overflow.

“...What do you guys want me to say? He’s the nicest bloke in the whole world, it just sorta happened. I’m glad the world went and shat itself, ‘cuz we never got to hang out as much with his asshole dad around. Now, I get to protect him from brainless freaks around the clock. It’s what I do best.”

I hadn't expected such a mature and honest answer, coming from such a dangerous-looking character. Millie went on to celebrate her first ‘gay best friend’ while Harry threatened to stab her in the face, and Beth tugged at my sleeve with a slightly-confused expression.

“What was Mister Harry talking about? Ian's a boy, isn’t he? Does he like him in a boy and girl way, but with
two
boys?”

Uh oh...
Beth must’ve had no clue about dating, much less orientation. Not wanting to lie, I tried to tell her the truth in the best way I could.

“Well, that's... err... You know how mums and dads like each other, right? Well, for those two, it's more like a dad and another dad who like each other. Got it?”

Beth turned her head to the side, as though I hadn't answered anything at all. “Yeah, duh… But how do they make sex, if they're both the dad?”

I nearly spat my drink all over Beth's unassuming face.
Okay,
I thought,
so she does know about that stuff.
“...It... doesn't matter. You get that it's normal for them to like each other though, right?” The knowledgeable little girl looked even more bewildered by my statement.

"Huh? Why wouldn't it be? Ian and Mister Harry are in love! My mum told me that love is the best thing in the whole wide world!”

I smiled down and patted her on the head. “Yeah, it is. We all love each other too, as a family. We'll always be here for you, kid. Don't forget that.”

The game continued with Beth asking Millie about the scariest thing that ever happened to her — oddly she didn't say 'the dead coming back to life'. Instead, she opted for 'the time that she and her dad went camping, heard strange mumbling noises during the night and found a dead deer outside their tent in the morning'. It was enough to spook Beth out, anyway.

While she drank it off with some more apple juice, Harry decided that he wanted his turn and abandoned the whole bottle routine. “Big M, you owe me a truth after asking that last damn question.”

I figured it sounded fair after how intimate Harry's round was, although I could sense Millie shaking with nerves already. Her voice trembled into a laugh, obviously not pleased with being in the hot-seat two rounds in a row.

“O-Okay, go.”

I had no clue where he was going with this, which made it seem that much more intense when he set his drink down on the coffee table to focus on her. “Why did you slap Daniel, when you saw us in the centre? You two know each other, ain't that right?”

I was kind of hoping that this wouldn't come up, but I felt compelled to hijack her answer before she could speak. “W-We're… friends. Old friends, you know?”

She lightly kicked me under the chair for hesitating. The response affected Beth the most, pottering over to us with her fresh glass of juice and mouth wide open.

“What? Mister, you liar! When I asked, you told me that she was ‘something like your girlfriend’! You guys aren't just friends, are you?!” Beth seemed disappointed that we weren't a couple, but I was more concerned about the beans she had just spilt in front of everyone.

“You said
what
?” Millie's tone was much more serious now. I hadn’t planned on humiliating her, although it was clearly myself that everyone was now focused on.

Beth stuck her tongue out, teasing us as though we were already a couple and didn’t know it yet. “I've got a good way of finding out, then! Mister Daniel, I dare you... to kiss Miss Millie on the lips!”

My legs ejected me from my seat, embarrassed at how insensitive Beth was being to the situation. “I-It's
really
not like that!! We aren’t... We weren’t ever going to—”

Millie stumbled to her feet as well, too quick to show that she wasn't affected by what I was about to say. She failed to remain emotionless this time, letting out an unsteady exhale in an attempt to calm herself down.

I could tell that she was mortified as she wiped her eyes dry, something I hadn't seen her do in a long time. “I... don't want to play any more.”

Pushing past me and storming straight into the guest bedroom, the evening was killed and gutted right then. Beth, Harry and I talked about apologising to her before the fire died out, but we eventually decided to leave her alone for the night.

As Harry slipped discreetly into Ian's room and Beth curled up on the couch, I lay on the floor beside her. We’d gotten so wrapped up in drama from the past, it actually managed to distract me from our current threat.

The situation with police officer Burkley replayed in my mind, among other hopeless scenes. Never mind our emotions, the mere chances of survival were getting grimmer by the minute... and even in my mentally-weak state, I still couldn't grasp a wink of sleep.

----

Gazing up at the window's dying light, a lone figure stood ominously on the rooftop below the block of flats. Lighting a cigarette, he dropped its ashes down into the faces of the clawing dead below; the flock who hungered for a taste of his flesh.

He had witnessed chaotic shouts and screams earlier on, but they didn't seem to be related to fear, panic or even distress at all. No, this group was having a little party.

The very thought disgusted him, as he recalled each and every tragedy he had suffered through in the past few days. The only reason he continued living, was for the alliance he’d formed with his guardian angel.

"Blasphemers," he grumbled, drawing another slow breath. His hand drifted towards the portable CB radio at his waist. Previously, he had intercepted a disturbing call from his saviour about five troublesome youths in the area. He almost didn’t want to believe it, that the living still aimed to destroy everything he stood for.

The man gobbed his spit at the street-level dead, who reached like animals towards his feet. With righteous judgement, he let his cigarette embers fall gracefully into their tangled clumps of hair.

"I am untouchable... We are untouchable," he repeated, alone in the night. “Sleep well, my children. You know not that you sin.”