Those Who Survive

Among Friends

"Was that actually Mark?" Minx asks excitedly.

"Sure was," Cry laughs, "Man, am I glad to see him."

"How many people do you think he has with him?" Dan asks, "How many did you see through the binoculars?"

"At least four or so," Thomas muses.

"So, are we just.. Gonna stick with them now then?" Dan asks.

"I don't see why we shouldn't." Cry says.

Minx nods, "This is what we've been looking for, and we found them so yeah, we're sticking together with them."

"It can't hurt," Thomas says, "More people means more protection, right?"

"Not always.." Dan frowns lightly.

"I think this will be good for us," Thomas smiles.

"I agree." Cry nods.

"So I'm outnumbered," Dan sighs, crossing his arms, "Great."

"Don't mope, Dan. Everything will be just fine." Minx promises, smiling softly.

"Sure." Dan rolls his eyes, "I guess we'll figure it out if it's a good idea one way or another."

...

"So, we're following these guys why?" Ken asks.

"Because Cry's driving," Mark replies.

"Wait, seriously?" Felix's eyes widen as he leans forward in his seat, "It was Cry for real, you saw him?"

"Yep," Mark grins back at him.

Felix leans back, smiling softly, "That's awesome."

"Wait, but Cry was in the UK, visiting friends, he drove me to a nearby airport when the planes wouldn't board in Florida." Sean says, confused, "How'd he get back here?"

"Maybe he never got to get on his plane." Nate shrugs.

"But what if he did?" Sean asks, "What if it's okay there?"

"If he had been in the UK and it was fine there, why would he come back here?" Ken muses softly.

"Maybe he didn't know?" Felix adds.

"Or maybe he came back for his family or something." Nate replies, "Isn't he from Florida?"

"He is," Sean nods, "So maybe.. I don't know."

"Either way," Mark cuts in, "We can ask him when we get somewhere safe."

"That's true." Ken chuckles, following the black truck ahead of them, "For now, let's try to relax."

The car falls into silence and that silence lasts for a few minutes before Oliver starts crying. Sean tries to rock the baby lightly, but it doesn't seem to help. He shushes the baby softly, continuing to rock him.

"Does he need, um.. A change?" Felix asks, scrunching up his nose.

"Maybe he's hungry." Nate says, "When was the last time someone fed him?"

"I fed him a little bit before we went to the roof," Ken states.

"Right," Nate nods, "So he's probably hungry."

"Who's backpack has the formula in it?" Nate asks next, looking around.

"Mine," Ken says, "It's in Mark's floorboard."

"Got it," Mark nods as he gets in Ken's bag for the needed supplies to feed the baby. He makes a bottle as quickly as he can before handing it back to Sean. Sean takes the bottle and lightly adjusts how he's holding Oliver before feeding him. The car falls into comfortable silence once more. Ken follows the black truck until it stops an hour later, at a gas station and Ken parks their car as well and everyone starts getting out. The black truck's occupants leave their vehicle as well, Cry helps Minx since she's still dealing with her recent bullet wound.

When everyone's gathered, they all just stare at one another for a moment. Felix breaks the silence first, grinning and hugging Cry, "Man, is it good to see you!"

Cry laughs, hugging his friend back, "You, too, man."

He glances over at Sean and nods, "You, too."

Sean smiles and nods back, "Likewise."

Minx hugs Ken and he laughs, hugging her back, "Nice to see you, too."

A few more hugs later, everyone's accumulated inside the empty gas station to catch up in peace and rest for the night.

"So," Mark asks the obvious question, "You picked up some brittish friends, what brought you back here? You had to have heard about the outbreak."

"The outbreak happened there, too. It wasn't just the four of us when things began.." Cry replies softly, a light frown on his face.

"It was just four of us at first," Minx adds in, "Me, Cry, Ohm and, uh.. Krism. We were told to stay in our homes, so.. We did. It was a mistake, we didn't know what was really going on. Our first encounter with the infected.. Krism got bit."

"I'm sorry," Sean says softly, "That's rough."

Minx just nods, looking away. Cry picks up where she left off, "It was just me, Minx, and Ohm for awhile after that. Then we met up with Dan, Phil, and Dave. And then we came across Minx's friend Entoan, and.. Signe was with him."

Sean's eyes widen lightly, "Signe was with you? Really? Wh-why isn't she with you now..?"

"Why aren't any of the others he listed with us." Dan crosses his arms, frowning, "They all died."

"Dan." Cry frowns, "You didn't have to say it like that."

Sean frowns and looks away, remaining in silence. Mark puts a hand on Sean's shoulder before looking back at Cry, "We've lost people, too."

"Everyone's lost people." Dan says bitterly.

"That's true.." Ken says softly, "But it doesn't make any of this any easier."

"Who's baby?" Minx asks, looking at the baby still in Sean's arms.

"Matt and Stephanie's." Nate replies, looking down, "They're gone, too.."

"Sorry.." Minx nods sadly, "I'm sure they were good people."

"They were." Mark nods, "They all were."

Nothing else was said about the people both groups had lost in the seven months since the outbreak. As the conversation died down, everyone got ready to sleep for the night, Mark and Cry volunteering to take watch for the night, just in case anything happened. They sit together, watching the door and windows before them in silence for a few minutes before Mark speaks up, "Sean said you were going to the UK, and clearly you did, but.. How did you get back?"

"A few weeks ago, we found a military outpost, they were transporting survivors to the states, I guess they were told everything was still fine and normal here." Cry replies, "From what I heard from Thomas, it all happened around the same time. The soldiers had no idea, so.."

"Yeah.." Mark sighs, "Sorry it still sucks here."

Cry chuckles softly, "Yeah.. Sorry for missing your birthday."

"No problem, man. Things happen." Mark replies with a light smile.

"Things happen," Cry sighs, "No shit."

Mark just nods and they return to silence. Who knows what they'll do tomorrow or what tomorrow will bring, but at least they know they're among friends. And that can make all the difference.