Re-ans

Re-ans Chapter 18

Chapter 18: The end of my world

Luke woke up the next morning to beautiful brown eyes staring back at him, he smiled. After the incident with the freezer they'd all insisted he sleep on the couch in the office. He'd protested at first, but finally conceded when Jess agreed to squeeze onto it with him. It was soft, and much better than the concrete floor from the night before.

He sat up and stretched his legs then his arms slowly, his ribs twinged a bit but really it was way better than he'd expected. He smiled, she hadn't said anything, just eyed him sleepily the whole time, but he saw the question in her eyes.

"About a two before you ask." He said knowing she was about to ask him about his ribs.

"Not at all yet, but then again I haven't stood up." She said knowing his next question was going to be about her ankle. He leaned in and took the opportunity to kiss her. They hadn't had much in the way of alone time lately, but then again it had only been two days since they left the apartments. He froze, god it felt like months. She put a hand on his cheek and it brought him back to reality.

"You just looked so sad." She said and he saw it reflected in her eyes. He smiled and leaned back pulling her down on top of him. "It's just been a long two days." he said, placing his hand on the back of her head. They kissed slowly at first, but then it was like something clicked in both of them at the same time. They'd slept together every night, but they'd never... She froze suddenly.

"Not now, not when we feel this desperate. Not when you're hurt." He closed his eyes and turned away. She was right, this wasn't the time to act like some horny teenager. He jerked his head back forward when she lifted his shirt and gently rubbed her fingers over his ribs. She bent down, placing a kiss on either side of his rib cage. He drew in a shaky breath then lowered his shirt and set up pulling her into him.

"I love you Jess, we're gonna make it through this, I promise." He said, hiding his face in her hair. There were moments when he found himself wishing so hard that they were just two teenagers. In a world that continued to revolve like it once did. But thoughts like that were dangerously depressing.

"I love you Luke, and I believe in you. We will be okay." She pulled away and kissed him once more, wiping his tears. She stood. "Come on, let's go greet the day, whatever kind it is, together." He smiled and nodded. They made their way out into the restaurant and saw the sleepy eyes staring back at them.

"Everyone okay?" They all looked like they hadn't gotten much in the way of sleep.

"Neighbors were up all night making a lot of noise." Gavin said pointing, that's when Luke noticed the thudding noises and remembered the three re-ans in the freezer. He sighed, now he felt really guilty about the peaceful night he and Jess had.

"You wanna take em out, or just pack up and leave?" He asked, Denis shook his head.

"I don't know, I thought about checking these stores for anything useful before tackling that blockage or diverting but, it might be more pain than it's worth. We had four weeks' worth of food when we left, plus all the crap we found in the pantry. It seems like a waste of more energy than it's worth at this point." Luke nodded, he turned to Jess.

"Baby can you drive?" He shook his head in frustration. It seemed like something he should know, but honestly it never came up in conversation.

"Of course I can." She said as if it were obvious, he laughed and hugged her tightly.

"Okay, you're all exhausted. Jess and I will drive today so you can all relax." He said and pulled her to the side. "You don't mind, right? I don't like the idea of being away from you, I hate it actually. but..." She kissed him to silence him.