Outlast (1) - The Walking Dead

Chapter 9

"Here, I'll go look for something to cover that wound with." I helped lower Evan to the floor and rest him against the side of a house.

"I'm fine. Really." He tried to stand back up but I pushed him back with my foot.

"No. You hit your head pretty hard and you're still bleeding. Stay here and I'll go get something." I said sternly. He nodded and stayed slouched against the wall.

"I'll be back soon." I turned away and sighed.

My flashlight lit up my surroundings. We were on the edge of a large town which had buildings of all sorts, we'd passed by a museum (much like the one we were just in) gymnasium, school and much more.

The sign for a pharmacist in the distance rattled in the breeze. I looked back to Evan who was still sat against the wall putting pressure on his wound.

Crunching and creaking came from the shop, I quietly crept up to the window and peered inside.

3 walkers were mingling about in between the shelves. If I could silently execute them one by one it would work in my favour.

The machete I'd taken from the hideout lay in its holster strapped to my waist. I pulled the blade out, a satisfying sliding noise to accompany it.

Carefully, I crept through the open doorway and towards the first walker which was on the ground. The blade effortlessly slid through and out the walkers head, leaving its body to slump to the ground.

The next walker was standing with its back to me. It made me wonder if these things could still think, what if it turned around last second and attacked me? What if it knew I was coming.

Thoughts of Evan raided my vision and I put my incompetence to one side, I had to help him.

Standing up behind the walker and slicing its head, it's involuntary groaning stopped. I caught the body before it fell to the floor and made a loud thump. 90 kilos of flesh piling on to me took all my strength for me not to fall over too.

One walker left.

I left the other guy on the floor and edged around the shelves to the other walker.

Except it wasn't where I'd last seen it.

Shining my light down the rows of shelves I only saw the two walkers I'd killed and a previous dead guy on of the infected was munching on.

Turning around I came face to face with the other walker. It lunged at me, yellow and red bloodstained teeth snarling at me, bloodshot eyes looking straight at me. In shock and fright, my machete fell from my hand as my hands rose to protect my face.

It's hands scratched my arms which were covered by the denim jacket. It growled and kept pushing me back until my back hit the counter.

There was no way I could push this guy off, he was bloodthirsty and determined.

The counter rattled behind me, I looked back briefly and saw some scissors lying a few centimetres away.

In a split second I grabbed the scissors as the walker's teeth came down next to my neck and rammed them through its eye socket. The walker fell limp at my trembling feet.

Bile rose in my throat and next minute I was chundering all over the corpse.

"Okay. Okay... I can do this." Taking a deep breath I picked up my light and machete, then continued walking round the store.

It took me little time to find all I was looking for, it seemed people hadn't been too interested in a pharmacy, strangely I thought this would be the first place they came.

I jogged back over to where I'd left Evan. He looked up as I approached and smiled, wincing afterwards.

"I got the stuff. Let's move you somewhere more secure." I placed his good arm round my shoulders and helped him up.

"I'm really not as crippled as you think." He tried to take his arm back but I kept holding it tight.

"Don't need you fainting on me now." I looked up. His brown hair shone under the moonlight, it reflected off his perfect green eyes as he looked down at me.

An abandoned minibus sat on the side of the road with the door open. I let go of Evan and quickly checked the inside before sliding the door open for him to get in. I shut the door as quietly as I could behind us.

Evan sat down with me next to him. I laid out the supplies between us and started taking his shirt off.

"Aren't you going to buy me dinner first?" He asked with a smirk. I rolled my eyes but smiled anyway.

"I can offer you a can of beans? Some rice maybe?"

I poured the alcohol onto his wound which quickly wiped the smirk off his face and replaced it with a grimace.

"This will sting a bit." I put the thread through the needle and started stitching him up. After lots of curses and hisses he was finally done with a gauze and bandage covering it.

"Where did you learn to do that?" Evan asked while wincing.

"I took a first aid course in high school."

"And the stitching?" He asked with a frown.

"Uh, YouTube." I rubbed my neck sheepishly.

I put the left over equipment back in my bag and was going to shuffle away when Evan stopped me.

"Thank you Chey. I mean it, I'm really grateful for the things you've done for me in this short time we've known each other. I really like you, and I'm glad we came across each other." He let go of my hand and just stared at me with that cute smile of his. I looked down. Even the darkness couldn't hide how red my cheeks were at this moment in time.

"Me too." I smiled back. The silence was peaceful. I laid my head back against the seat and quickly fell into a deep slumber.

---

My duvet was so warm and secure around me. I snuggled deeper into my bed, but something didn't feel right. My senses came back and I was... sitting?

My duvet was firm with my arms wrapped around it. And it was moving!

Opening my eyes slowly I realised my duvet was not a duvet at all, it was a person.

Shit! I was straddling Evan, my head laying on his chest with our arms entwined somehow. Luckily he was still passed out.

Oh my days, how did this happen.

Detaching my arms from around his waist carefully and sat up so I was fully facing him.

My heart was hammering so fast in my chest it would surely wake him up.

He looked so peaceful sleeping, a cliché thing to imagine but it was true. His brown hair flopped on his forehead, it had a natural shine to it despite not being washed in a few days. The stubble around his cheeks and chin looked so soft, making me want to stroke it. His blush lips parted slightly as he contently breathed in his sleep.

My eyes trailed down to his shoulder, dry blood coated his shirt, and a hole in the fabric gave me sight to the bandage that lay underneath.

How could someone be so cruel to hurt another person like that?

"Sounds like a you problem." I mumbled to myself referring to Peter, and traced Evan's wound gently.

He shifted in his sleep, and in a split millisecond I was off his lap and facing away from him pretending to sleep.

He silenced for a bit until he finally stirred.

A moment passed before he called out my name. Stirring like he had, I turned round to face him.

"Huh, what time is is?" Yawning with a stretch, which lead to a satisfying crack from my neck.

He looked down at his watch "about 10am. Cmon, we can't stay here."