The Dead and the Restless (Completed with undergoing editing)

Chapter Eleven (Edited.)

Ever since Liam and I went out to the roof, we've gone out of the cafeteria more. It certainly has been driving Darlene insane, the fact that it's dangerous and we don't come back till sun down sometimes. It's become a thing between Liam and me, though. We don't talk much when we're out there, but sometimes it's the silence that speaks volumes.

We go out often, but I do stay in the cafeteria to talk with Lucy and spend time with Craig. Craig still hasn't awoken, but Lucy never questioned it. We talk about random stuff like books and movies. We tried not to talk about the time before. We tried not to talk about family. Well, we tried.

Sometimes it was just inevitable. Sometimes our conversations would just swerve into the past and we would be talking about it and not even realize. When we did realize, we'd get quiet. We'd just stare into the grey nothingness and think.

"Nine," Liam said, shooting an arrow dead center into a Snappers forehead. See, we had started a game out of our escapades. We'd count how many we took out and who ever got the most at the end of the day won. It just kind of started. He's won more than I have, so far. Today, he was kicking my butt at it. He led now, nine to four. He walked over and pulled the bloodied arrow out of the snapper's forehead, his gaze meeting mine. "Something wrong?"

"I'm fine," I said. This was the thing about Liam. Even though we didn't talk much, he could tell when I had something on my mind. We were beginning to get to know each other well out here, actually. Liam was getting to know me too well. He could tell what I felt by the way I stood or the slightest expression. So, even though we didn't talk much, he knew when to say something. "I just got a lot on my mind."

"Want to talk about it?" He asked me. He was so sincere it made me think about telling him something.

"Not really," I said. I could never talk about the ghosts that follow me. If I did, it would be inevitable for me not to get attached. "It's nothing."

"Hmm," He said, running a hand through his hair and cracking his neck. He didn't believe me, which was obvious enough. But he knew not to press. "Anyways, I was thinking..."

"Yeah?"

"Well, since we are killing a lot of the snappers and all," He started, "I think we should start cleaning up the place. I mean, maybe we can get rid of some of the smell. We can load them up and put them somewhere outside. At least we can try and get the lobby cleared out of bodies and try and clean up the blood stains."

I thought about that. I mean, it would be nice to make it look a little normal around here. It would be nice to get rid of some of the smell. We're out here anyways, so why not?

"Sure," I said. "That's seems like a good idea, actually."

"Good," he said, smiling a little bit. We just stared stupidly at each other. I turned my gaze away from his after a few moments.

"I surrender today," I said, shaking my head and wiping the blade of my machete off. "I think we should head back early. My head kind of hurts."

"Sure," he said, pulling up his crossbow. The target fell and he smiled. "Ten."

#

"Hey," Lucy said to me from her hospital bed as I sat next to Craig on his. She folded the corner of the page of the book she was reading, setting it beside her. I instantly smiled as I saw her, feeling the bubbly air that surrounded her. It was always contagious around her. "What's up? How was it out there today? Anything new?"

She always asked the same questions every time I came back to her. I always had the same answer.

"Nothing really," I said. "Liam won. I surrendered. I also have a huge headache."