HUMAN

Chapter Four

There Will Be Tears – Mr Hudson

***

They followed the highway for a while, until they found a promising exit. The sign said that they could find a Wal-Mart and Shell station there, which was exactly what they were looking for.

"Ok, guys. We're gonna be arriving in like ten minutes," Jenevieve said.

The ten minutes were just a blur, just like the past couple of hours had been.

As soon as the bus came to a stop, they knew that Jenevieve would need help getting supplies. They all looked at each other, unsure of who would be willing to brave the outside. They felt like they were in an alternate universe that was completely unknown to them. They didn't know what to fear specifically, but they knew that there was danger surrounding them. Avi and Jenevieve searched for any cash that they had lying around. They also got a couple of bags to carry as much as they could. It was dark, so they grabbed a couple flashlights too. Esther jumped up from her seat and peaked her head into the back of the bus. Nicole and Kevin were sitting in the bunk across from Kirstie, who was fast asleep. It was the farthest distance that Nicole would considered going from Kirstin's side. 

"We're gonna need help getting more supplies. Can you take a second?" Esther asked.

"I don't know. Someone needs to stay on the bus, and with Kirstie. She's finally sleeping. I would really like to stay with her," said Nicole.

"Yea, she needs the rest. Is it cool with you if we stay here and watch the bus? I really don't feel comfortable leaving them alone right now either. If someone tries to take advantage of this mess and rob us or something, I don't want Nicole to be the only one here to deal with that," Kevin replied.

Esther didn't say anything, but looked at Kirstie and then back at the other two.

"Ok," she replied, rolling her eyes and turning back around. "Scott. Mitch. Get your asses up. You're both coming with us, Nicole and Kev are staying with Kirstie. C'mon, let's go." She tapped Scott's leg.

The all looked at her dumbfounded. Where did this energy come from? They could barely muster up any words and she was practically bouncing off of the walls.

She continued, "I'm not kidding. We ALL have to deal with this together. We're a team and we're not tapping out just yet. Don't even think about brainstorming some ridiculous excuse to stay behind and be lazy because it's not happening."

Nicole smiled and shook her head. She looked over at Kevin, who was trying to remain serious and not smile. It was a struggle.

"God, she's such a fierce bitch. I love it. Has she always been like this?" Nicole asked.

"ALWAYS," joked Kevin, "since the moment I met her."

They were both smiling, but then paused when they looked at each other. Suddenly they had a nauseating realization that nothing was really all that funny right now. It felt weird to smile, knowing that the rest of the country (and possibly the world) was in such a dangerous state.

I don't want to take anyone for granted right now, Kevin thought.

"She means well," he continued. "She just goes into 'boss' mode when she's exceptionally anxious. Well, she's actually almost always in 'boss' mode. Just because, you know, we're all too immature for our own good. She's the surrogate mom when we need to be told what to do, which is pretty much always. Right now I'm really glad we have that encouragement. We need that. I NEED THAT. I don't know what else to say or do but think and pray. I feel completely numb."

"I understand the feeling," Nicole replied, "or lack thereof. Numbness. The second the newscaster said the words 'Martial Law', I felt that."

Kirstie stirred in her sleep, but thankfully she didn't wake.

Nicole continued in a whisper, "I don't know how I'm even able to help her right now. I'm just as scared as she is."

She turned to Kevin, who was looking at her with a confused expression. She went on, "Sorry. That probably sounded bad and selfish. What I mean is... I mean, I have literally no idea where my boyfriend is. Or my parents. We can't contact our family members either. No one I know was flying, but they all live near big cities. My boyfriend and ALL of my friends live in LA. She feels like she's grieving because she knew Jeremy was flying and that several planes had just crashed. I get it. But, what if we are too... grieving? What if we are... and we just don't know it yet?"

"Wow," Kevin replied. "I haven't... I've tried not to think about that. I guess we won't know, until we know. All I can do is have faith that they're all safe, like we are. At least we're safe."

"For now," she mumbled.

Kevin quickly replied, "I know that this is hard. But, you can't JUST be negative like that. That's a choice and... I know it's the easiest option. But, we just don't know what's going to happen. We really don't. I'd like to think that there's a reason for everything, for all of this. That's what I choose to believe. I don't know what it could be and why people have to suffer for it... and that's the hard part. Not knowing. In the long run though, I hope we'll all be better for it. Hopefully, we'll be where we're supposed to be, doing exactly what we're supposed to be doing. I have to believe in that."

Nicole teared up halfway through his speech. She took a deep breath when he was done talking, to prevent herself from sobbing. She rested her head on his shoulder. She couldn't help thinking that his heart was already too pure for the normal world, let alone a world that was falling to pieces. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and settled his chin atop her head.

She softly cried and mumbled, "Ok, we're safe. I'm glad we're safe."

***

"There will be tears, I've no doubt, there may be smiles but a few; And when the tears have run out, we'll be numb and blue. I can't be there with you but I can dream."