The Strong Will Survive

Chapter Twenty-Two - KC

This was like one of my FPS games, but all the more real. I got my phone back from Lilith and listened to my music almost as loud as it would go. Rebel Love Song. Great tunage for a jacked-up environment, this song always made me relax for some reason. We all were tense and uneasy. Especially Lilith.

She obviously felt useless and horrible. I wanted to tell her that it was okay, that I understood, but I hate talking about my past. Lilith says that getting a story out of me is like pulling hen's teeth. Chickens don't have teeth. What is wrong with that expression, I wonder?

I led the way for some reason. They knew that I didn't know where to go, but I just followed signs to the lab and that seemed to work. Tapping my neck all the while, I wandered around. In one room, some sort of machine was beeping. I looked in and it was one of those thingies that measured your heartbeat. Flatlined. Of course, there was nobody to take care of the people left in the hospital. Duh.

We were walking around, getting lost in the freaky abandoned hospital, your normal Thursday stuff, when we heard a thump. In an abandoned hospital. You can see why Lilith started freaking out and shaking, tapping her fingers and humming. Benji and I shared a look that told me all I needed to know. I readied my gun, counted to three, and kicked open the door.

It wasn't a zombie. It was a squish. A little kiddo, probably about five to eight years old. She was screaming and crying, and for good reason. If I were the squish, and some scary goth chick were pointing a gun at me, I would freak too. Benji ran forward and hugged her.

"Lydia! Oh my God, Lydia!" He nearly screamed through tears. He obviously knew the squish very well. They looked alike, with blonde hair and green eyes too wise for kids. Were they...

Yes. Lilly informed me that the squish-- Lydia, sorry-- was Benji's little sister. Whoa, this made our journey a lot harder. A squish would be loud and hungry and not take instructions, but if she meant that much to Benji... And she was pretty adorable, I must admit.

Lydia wrestled away from Benji. "Hey big brother! Where were you?"

"Where was I? Where were YOU?"

"There were bad men. Are these your friends?"

Confusion crossed Benji's face at her first sentence. "Yeah, I guess you can call them my friends. The tall one is Jared, the beautiful blonde is Lilith, and the short green one is KC."

"Hey! I may be short, but I am a year older than you. And I have a... Thingy! And I'm not afraid to use it!" I rustled around on the floor and grabbed what I now know as a bedpan.

Lilith laughed. "Your thingy is called a bedpan."
"And what is that?"

I saw the mischievous grin on her face, giving the joke away, and immediately dropped the bedpan, spluttering and wiping my hand on my jacket. "Oh mon Dieu, qui est absolument dégoûtant. Pourquoi voudriez-vous me laisser choisir ça?"

"EXCUSE ME? THERE ARE CHILDREN PRESENT," Jared and Benji said loudly, Benji covering Lydia's ears and Jared covering one of Benji's and one of Lilith's.

I burst out laughing, my voice echoing in the hallway. "I only said, 'Oh my gosh that's disgusting, why would you let me pick that up?' Nothing inappropriate. You can let go of their ears now."

"Alright, fine," Jared said, sniggering.

Benji, looking indignant, took his hands away from the squish's ears. "So, now that we found her, what do we do now?" Lilith asked shakily.

"We keep going, of course. Is anyone good at science?" I asked.

"I'm alright at science," Lilith said, a little stronger. "My mom was in the medical field, so I know what chemicals or meds to mix, and what bedpans are."

"Hey! I've never been in ICU or the ER before, so cut me some slack! That's actually great, Lilith. I think that I would make something explode, Jared would knock something over, and Benji will have to look after the squish."

"Alright, honey. Now that we have that figured out, lead the way," Jared said, moving closer and wrapping an arm around my waist. I grabbed his shoulder. "Not here! We have stuff to do!"

The train of people moved out. I looked back, and Benji was in between Lilith and Lydia, holding one of each of their hands. I was beginning to trust that kid a lot more. But no time for love. We had a lot on our plates.