I never once thought it would come to this. Why was I sitting here with a 12 year olds blood on my hands? Why am I not reacting? Why do I-
"Morgan? You there?"
My thoughts were cut off, I woke up.
"Yeah, apologies."
I spoke to the familiar orange haired child, Luca, my mind immediately remembering that my nightmares aren't true, and I stared at my hands to make sure his blood wasn't on them. I had to be the protecter, they are children, if somebody died on my watch I am not sure I could handle it. My mind caught attention of the burns on my hands, I paused. 'Hadn't those scars faded?' I thought to myself, my mind instantly filling with parts of memories. The bombs, the sounds, the intense grip that was on my hands, the running, the blood.
My breath became shaky, my mind instantly trying to trick me. I recognized this behaviour of my brain and immediately covered up my feelings, standing up without a word, and I stared off at the distance.
"Where's Nico?"
I asked to the small boy in a low tone, realizing that the whereabouts of his brother were currently unknown to me.
"Hunting."
He responded bluntly before he sat down on the ground, slightly mumbling, and I only made out a few partial sentences, such as "As usual." and "Probably to get away from me." I felt bad for the kid, he had to watch a lot happen to his family and he was alone. I knew the feeling, I occasionally saw my reflection in his eyes. I missed my family and even if they were around, I would likely still feel alone, and don't get me wrong I love being alone, just not lonely. I grabbed a gun from our stash and looked around for a split second, the familiar barn that we stayed in was giving off a scent of burning wood.
"You guys had a fire?"
I guessed and he nodded, I lifted my gun up and looked through the scope, turn the gun and my head to quickly scan the area for the undead.
"Watch the tree line for your brother."
I say before he simply grabbed a pistol and went near the trees. I climbed a ladder and went to the upper area of the barn. I take a seat and slightly open the window, feeling that familiar winter breeze, and looking back to the window before resting the muzzle of my gun on it. I felt the cold air creeping down the back of my neck and shivered, it felt like the breathing of a person. I put my hand on my neck and it immediately felt warmer. I shook off the paranoia and watched through the scope of my gun, moving it around to spot the ugly ass corpses. I spot only a few while the twins are gone, and immediately shoot them directly in the head. I hear the entrance of the barn open and slamming, then I heard panting. It's sounded like two boys, the twins. I put my gun down and closed the window, rushing down the ladder to them. Nico seemed also freezing, he was pale and his pupils were extremely small. Every time he took a breath I would see frost come out, and after about 3 breaths I went to him and wrapped a blanket around him.
"Hey kid, how you holding up?"
I asked after lighting a fire, letting him sit close to it. I heard no response and instead heard a small breath, this time no frost left his mouth. His lips were a bright white and slightly blue tone, which made them look frozen at first, but as time went on they began to return to their pinkness. I sat next to Luca and wrapped my arm around his shoulder.
"He'll be fine, kid."
I say in the same way my parental figure of a scientist used to speak to me, in a comforting tone with a gentle smile.
TIME * SKIP
The kid finally got warmed up, it was meant to be his watch but Luca volunteered to take it instead since Nico was previously not doing very well. I didn't disagree since I admired his dedication and actually felt quite proud of the kid. I was currently laying on the ground of the barn and staring at the roof, I was cold but not die-of-hypothermia-cold. I thought about something else that caught my attention, 'Shit.' I thought, a small groan leaving my mouth which wasn't audible. 'I left my sleeping pills at the prison.' I sighed and turned to my side instead of staring directly up. Insomnia had been haunting me for a while now and I wasn't afraid to show it.
"This is going to be a long goddamn night."
I heard myself say, followed by a slight giggle from Luca.
"And do your damn job, kid."
I said in a low sarcastic tone with a non visible smile before closing my eyes and attempting to control my thoughts. I was right about it being a long night, because I stayed awake throughout the whole time. Jesus those corpses are fucking loud.
YOU ARE READING
The Wonderstrom Forest
FantasyI began writing The Wonderstrom Forest as a way to cope and pass time. Originally, the book was meant for me to put characters that were based off of me into situations that i've either been in or have almost been in. Eventually, I found a comfort i...
