After Life

Chapter Sixteen

I go and put my bag back onto the roof. Then I head down to Zoe's room to pack her stuff. Once I get to her room, I find that her door is closed, I open it and find Ty inside sitting on her bed, the sheets ruffled and worn, go towards where he is sitting on her worn bed. He his lost in his own thoughts. "What are ya doin?"

I break him out of his reverie, he looks startled. "I was, uh, going to pack her stuff for her." He sounds as if he is still in his head, "You know, because she can't."

"I was thinking that I could. After all, we're both girls, and uh, she probably wouldn't want you to go through her stuff..."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. Thanks." He rises from the bed with a squeak and walks towards me. He stops right in front of me, and gives me a hug. "Really, thank you," He whispers into my ear. Ty then lets go of me and steps out the door.

I cannot find Zoe's backpack that she used when we first met. It is not by her bed or nightstand, so I decide to look in the closet. I walk to it, open the door and find the backpack in the bottom corner, it is not empty though, it is already packed with clothes. It has everything she would need, well, almost everything. I go to Zoe's nightstand and open the first drawer to find a small polaroid picture of her and her, brother, mother, and father. She says it is the only picture she still has of all of them together, which is why it is so important to her.

I put some more of her stuff into the backpack, then close it. I bring that up to the roof and set it next to my bag, I notice that there are two other bags by the ladder.

"Hi Lee." I turn around swiftly and see Ben again.

"Woah! You shouldn't sneak up on people like that."

"Why are we leaving?" He asks me. I offer my hand to him and he takes it. I lead him to the other side of the roof that faces the parking lot to display all the Walkers banging on the door in an attempt to get in.

"See them? That's why we have to leave." I hope he gets it.

"Oh," He turns to face me, "Where is my mom?"

"I- we already told you, she told me to take care of you."

"Than... What's that?" He points to a spot to the right of the parking lot. The same spot where we buried his mother. "Please don't lie to me. I might be little but, I do know that my mommy wouldn't just leave me without saying goodbye to me."

"That's- Ben. I told you, she le-"

"NO! Tell me the truth! She told me that she would never leave me. NEVER!"

"She's- she." I sigh, the realization crashes into him. His angry eyes turn quickly to sadness, "We buried her after you arrived." He knew it. I know he knew it. He wasn't ready for it though and his eyes have become waterfalls. He runs down stairs. Away from me. Away from the world. Away from the cold truth.

I want to run after him but I can't, my legs are pulled down to the ground and before I know it my vision becomes blurry with tears and shortly after I am sobbing. Sobbing for his loss, sobbing for mine. Ty's, Zoe's, my dad. It feels as if the weight of everyone's grief has been put onto my shoulders.

I sit there on that roof crying for what seems like forever, after an eternity, the flood ends. I go down stairs with a red face and puffy eyes. I walk from room to room, I go by the kitchen, my dad is packing food, he doesn't notice me. I go by one of the spare rooms that we have made into a small armory with few guns. Al is packing some. I walk by B3, the door is closed, I hear the weeping of a young child through the door. I go to Zoe's room, barely touched with ruffled sheets and one drawer out. Next door is Ty, he sits on his bed staring of into space. A half packed bag sits beside his leg.

I go through the door and sit alongside him.