Smile Always

One Step

"Mark, are you still going with Jack, Signe, and I to go look for supplies?" Mark heard Amy ask as she gently shook him awake.

"Yeah, give me a sec." Mark yawned, stretching his arms high over his head before he reluctantly got off of the couch and followed Amy to the door to join Sean and Signe.

"I gotta empty my bag first." Signe darted over to the registration desk and dumped the bag's contents out. She was about to walk back to them before she paused, spotting something behind the desk.

"Should we take this?" Signe brought out a small pistol and a cartridge of ammo.

"Yes, we need some kind of defense." Mark nodded, Signe walking over to him and handing him the weapon and ammo.

"Do you have any idea how to fire a gun?" Amy watched Mark warily as he fiddled with the safety.

"I've played enough video games to know the basic principle." Mark held the pistol up by his face, his expression unreadable.

"You pull the trigger." He cocked it before going through the door, Sean and Signe following behind him.

The outside world was about as bad as they expected.

Several Infected still roamed the cracked streets, seeming to ignore the group as they took in their surroundings. Cars were flipped over in the streets, a few of them still on fire. Bodies littered the ground, chunks of flesh missing with bite marks around the wounds.

"There's a gas station over there we could check out." Amy pointed out. The sign had been torn down, the doors and windows boarded up.

"Are we really going to raid gas stations?" Sean asked in mild disbelief.

"Unless you have a better plan." Mark muttered, tightening his grip on the gun as he marched towards the gas station.

Mark tore down the wooden boards, refusing to let anyone help as one of the nails scratched his palm, leaving a small red scrape.

"Radio, perfect!" For the first time since the Infected attacked them, Mark smiled genuinely as he picked up the radio, his smile quickly turning into a frown of disappointment.

"There's no batteries." He growled in annoyance as he set it back down.

"What kind?" Signe poked her head over the aisle she was in the middle of.

"Triple A." Mark called back.

Signe's head disappeared for a moment before she popped back up again, tossing him a package of Triple A batteries.

Mark absent mindlessly caught it with one hand, turning his attention back to the radio. He tore the package open, sticking as many as he could in his pockets before tossing the empty package away and placing three batteries inside the radio.

There was a crackling noise before a male's news broadcaster's voice was faintly heard.

"-major epidemic in Boston-government is rescuing survivors as soon as possible-stay tuned for-" the radio cut out completely, the voice drowned out in static.

"Damnit!" Mark yelled, slamming the radio down.

"Seriously, what is going on with you? You're not acting like yourself!" Amy took his hands in hers.

"Because I'm scared and want to protect the people I love!" Mark yelled back, his voice cracking with emotion.

"Because I don't want any of those Infected or dead people to be you." Mark's voice softened to a whisper, his rough expression crumbling to reveal his fear.

"You don't need to protect me, I can take care of myself." Amy assured Mark sympathetically. He didn't seem to agree, but he didn't voice his opinion. Instead, he took a deep breath and went to go look for food.

"Guys, we have a problem!" Amy yelled at them.

Charging towards the doors were a countless amount of Infected.

"I'll distract them, get out of here!" Sean waved the other on.

"I'm not leaving you behind!" Signe protested defiantly.

Before either of them could argue further, they noticed that the Infected weren't moving towards the group.

They were focused on Mark.

"Oh boy." Mark muttered under his breath as he took off in a run, the Infected following.

"Get away from me!" Mark ordered Amy, who was running beside him.

"And let you have all the fun?" She panted with a smirk, speeding up.

Mark couldn't help but grin as well as he managed to catch up to her, daring to glance behind him.

The Infected were still in pursuit, but Mark noticed that there were less of them. Sean and Signe were close behind them, seeming to talk to something behind the horde.

Mark saw a flash of red before another Infected fell, the entire horde completely diminished.

Bob and Wade were standing behind them, Wade holding a fire hatchet in his hands while Bob held a small hammer in one hand, a backpack slung over his shoulder.

"They usually go after fresh blood, so we figured we'd find someone." Bob explained.

"Glad we found you guys!" Wade added happily.

"There's a rescue helicopter landing at the airport, we need to move fast so we're not late." Bob started running off.

"We need to get Ethan, Robin, and Tyler from the hotel!" Mark yelled after him.

"What are you waiting for then?" Bob yelled over his shoulder. The group hastily ran after him.

"Were going to the airport, move out!" Wade poked his head inside the hotel once they arrived.

Only the lobby was empty.

"Hello?" Wade called out.

"Guys, we gotta-" Mark paused when he noticed that the hotel was empty.

"Where are they? They were here when I left!" Mark seethed in frustration.

"We don't have time, we have to go!" Bob reminded him impatiently.

Mark and Wade hesitated inside the lobby, scanning the room one last time before reluctantly running to the airport.

They arrived just in time as a helicopter landed. Eleven others had already taken off, meaning that the one that just landed was probably the last one.

Ethan, Robin, and Tyler were already inside, waving for the others to hurry up.

Amy and Mark were in first, followed by Bob and Wade. As soon as Signe got in, the helicopter took off, leaving Sean behind.

He was only one step behind.

"Wait!" Sean screamed frantically, waving his arms wildly to gain the pilot's attention. They didn't see him.

"You forgot someone!" Signe shouted to the pilot.

"I'm sorry, I can't risk it." The pilot apologized.

The group exchanged glances, already knowing what to do. They weren't going to leave their friend behind, no matter what. They took a deep breath as they all grasped each other's hands.

Then they jumped.