These Different Times (Nick Clark FF)

31.

While Nick went off to find Travis and Chris for his mom, I got cleaned up and went to sit by the pool, smiling at the little boy who was playing football.

"Taylor,"

I looked over to see Alicia watching me and she came to sit by me, "Hey."

"What were you thinking?" she asked, "Following Nick out there like that...why?"

"It was my idea." I said quietly, "I thought that if we brought her son back, she'd let us stay. And we were right."

"You could have died," I turned around to see Maddie glaring at me, "The two of you could have died. What were you thinking?"

I shook my head and stood up, "I'm sure Nick has already had this conversation with you, Maddie. We were fine, They wouldn't touch us."

"It's like you enjoy being out there."

I shrugged and picked up my glass of water, "I don't know what to tell you, Maddie. We did what we thought was right, brought her son back and now, now we get to stay. Is that not better than being out there and having to scavenge our bed for the night?"

Maddie shook her head, "We're leaving. As soon as Nick comes back with Travis, we're out of here."

Rolling my eyes, I headed into the house to wash my glass out.

It was the best thing for us, right? Staying here? I shook my head, of course it was. Now all I had to do was wait for Nick to get back and maybe, Maddie would get off her case.

"They do not understand us," I spun around, hand against my chest as Celia walked into the kitchen, "My apologies. I didn't mean to scare you. But you understand what I'm saying?"

I nodded, turning to put the glass down on the drying rack, "I think so."

I felt her squeeze my shoulder as she passed, sighing quietly when she disappeared.
Was I going crazy.

**
Smoke. Fire.

That's all I could smell as I ran out of the villa, seeing that it was one of the cellars that had gone up.

"Oh my god!" I heard Alicia yell as Maddie emerged from the building, "Mom, what happened?"

"What did you do?" I asked, running toward the flames, "Where's Celia?"

"It wasn't me," the older woman said quietly, looking at Ofelia as she appeared beside us, "It was Daniel. I'm sorry, he's gone."

"What? No!" she cried, trying to get past us but I held her back, looking over my shoulder at the flames.

"Is Celia in there? Maddie!" I dropped Ofelia's arm and attempted what she did moments before me and was also unsuccessful in getting past the force that was Madison Clark.

"She's in there!" I yelled, moving back when one of the support beams fell. 

"She's gone!" Alicia also yelled, grabbing hold of my arm, "Taylor, we've got to go."

"No," we both said at the same time and I looked at the blonde woman beside me, "I'm not leaving without your brother." 

"Madison! Taylor!" Strand barked, "Get in the damn truck!"

I spun around, looking into the miles of misty vineyards and I could see the silhouettes of hundreds of infected but one stood out. 

One which was moving quicker than the others. 

Nick. 

I took off towards him, tripping over small rocks and such as I did so but with our combined speeds, it didn't take us long to meet. 

"What happened?" he asked, wasting no time in pulling my knife from where it was sticking out of my pocket, "Where-"

"Nick," 

We both looked at his mom, seeing her looking at him with pleading eyes and sensing that this wasn't going to go well, I took a step behind him. 

"Nick, come on. We have to go. Get in the truck," she instructed, frowning when he stayed put, "We don't have time for thi-"

"Where's Celia?" he asked, his voice shaking slightly. 

"I...she was in the cellar with Daniel. That's how the fire started."

Nick shook his head, giving me the knife back when I reached for it, "She was right about us." 

Maddie opened her mouth to say something but then I felt her eyes on me, the words not making it from her mouth.

One of the infected stumbled closer to me and I quickly jammed the knife into its head, not hesitating in slicing the stomach open to get to the warm blood that would provide my cover. It was clear to me that there was no way that Nick would be going with the rest of the group and if he wasn't going, neither was I. 

I quickly spread the thick liquid over my skin and clothes, standing up again to reapply Nick's camouflage as well. 

"What are you...Taylor, Nick, get in the damn truck!" Alicia yelled, eyes wide. 

"She was right," Nick repeated and Madison shook her head, reaching out to take his hand but he moved back, looking at me, "You're sure?"

"I'm not going without you." I nodded, "I can't."

Without saying anything else to his mom, he turned and started walking in the direction he came from while I hung back, whispering a quiet sorry before I hurried to catch up to him.

He looked down at me as I reached him, taking the knife when I held it out for him. We were both particularly skilful when having to take out the infected but he was just that little bit quicker than me. Always aware. 

We both moved to the side as headlights illuminated the dirt road in front of us and looking up, I saw Alicia staring at the two of us with a look of betrayal. 

Nick had promised he'd never leave her again. 

At the end of the dirt, where it met the tarmac of the road, the truck turned left, to go towards the coast, to the Abigail. 

Nick and I, we turned right, into the herd, walking as one with the infected.

As we walked, he took my hand and I looked up at him. "It's just us now. We're on our own." 

We could do this.