They Called It The Apocalpse

Chapter 16

"Where am I?" She croaked, her voice sounding like a scratched record. She looked up and locked eyes with Cassie, pleading. Cassie found herself noting that Thalia's eyes were a similar colour to Jason's, only they were a little lighter, more of a mahogany. No one moved, they stood completely frozen, staring at Thalia as she tucked her legs under her and sat. She kept her hands spread on the floor in front of her and looked between Jason and Cassie. They looked over at Tate, who seemed equally as confused and afraid as she was and she followed their gaze, twisting to look at Tate then pulling a strange face. "You..." she mumbled, shuffling a little closer to him, "I know you...." She held a hand out to him and Tate smiled sickly, bending down to offer his hand to her. She took it and looked up at him sadly, black curls of hair trailed down her shoulders and Jason and Cassie watched in horror as Tate seemed to comfort her. He smiled at her gently then opened his mouth and spoke in a soothing voice, "I'm Tate." She was mesmerised, staring up solely into his blue eyes and wondering how they had such a soothing pull. "Thalia." She whispered back and he smiled, her hand lay in his, tiny manicured nails looking preppy compared to his large dirty palms. "Thats a nice name." Tate cooed back and Jason felt himself gradually beginning to feel sicker and sicker, "Can you stand?" Tate asked Thalia and she nodded, her whole gaze stuck to his face as he pulled her hand gently and she got to her feet. She was wearing baby blue ballet pumps and her legs wobbled like jelly as she held tightly to Tate's arm.

Cassie felt an urge to move, inching forwards and grabbing Thalia's other arm. Her trance on Tate was suddenly gone as she smiled sweetly at Cassie, "Oh hello." She cooed, letting go of Tate and allowing Cassie to hold her up. They smiled at each other then Cassie spoke, "Hi Thalia, I'm Cassie and that's Jason." Thalia's eyes flicked between the two of them and her smile faltered as she saw Jason. Her first impression was that he was scruffy and dirty and he seemed very strong but her eyes locked onto the gun on his holster and she started to breath a little heavier. She leaned into Cassie, whispering quietly into her ear, "He looks mean." Cassie's eyes flicked up to Tate, shooting daggers at him. He held up his hands and stepped back as Cassie returned to smile at Thalia, "Well Jason's very nice, he's kept us all safe so far. Why don't we go and get you cleaned up?" Cassie asked, leading Thalia and her following after a quick nod of the head. As they passed Jason she watched him with fright, cowering slightly back against Cassie. They left, Cassie leading Thalia down to the stairs and Jason and Tate remaining in their places. Tate started after them and Jason stepped in front of him, his fingers hovering inches over his gun. "Don't try it." He grumbled, staring Tate down. He shook his head then pushed past Jason anyway. Moving his hands back away from the gun but following Tate's every move with his eyes he followed, taking one last look back at the fluid leaking from the tube before heading down the stairs.

Cassie lead Thalia to the showers, sitting her down on a little seat that had been left in the corridor outside of them. "Are you alright there?" She asked as Thalia seemed to sway from side to side, she nodded eagerly as Tate appeared at the entrance to the shower block. Thalia raised a hand to wave at him but Cassie lowered it. "Don't wave to him, he's not a nice man." Tate stared in disgust at her then carried on past. Jason appeared, staring after Tate and almost walking all the way past if Cassie hadn't shouted to him. "Hey Jace," his heart froze, she'd last called him that over 3 years ago, "Can you grab Thalia one of those towels you found for me?" Jason nodded silently then disappeared as Thalia looked to Cassie for guidance. He returned as quick as he'd left and tossed the towel to the girls, "are you ok keeping guard?" He asked Cassie and she nodded firmly. He replied with a nod like hers then headed off after Tate.

Thalia waited patiently for Cassie to start up the shower, watching as she twisted the silver handle then a stream of clear water poured from the shower head. Cassie held her hand underneath it and waited for it to turn from freezing to luke warm, then she placed the towel on the chair that stood at the entrance to every shower cubicle. "Its ready for you now Thalia." She smiled and Thalia got to her feet, wobbling across slowly and holding tight to the wall as she approached the water, "Do you remember how to use a shower?" Cassie asked, unsure of the last time she'd even step foot outside of that tube never mind used a shower. Thalia nodded encouragingly then slipped her soft slippers from her feet, she had pale blue toenails that looked freshly painted. She turned and looked at Cassie, waiting for her to excuse herself. "Oh, I'll just stand over here." She pointed over to the wall then shuffled away, turning her back so that Thalia felt a little more comfortable. Slowly, after ensuring that no one was watching her, Thalia stripped out of her blue dress and placed her clothes in a neat pile on the chair next to her towel. She carefully touched the water stream, checking its temperature before slipping under it. She pulled gently at her hair bow and tossed it onto the pile then scrubbed through her hair with the provided shampoo. "So, how old are you?" Cassie asked, realising just how awkward it must've been for Jason to stand guard, she kicked her boots at the floor. "I'm 18." Thalia explained, her voice a syrupy sweet high. Cassie tried to remember in her head how old Tate had said he was, "When's your birthday?" Cassie replied and it took Thalia a second, there was the sound of soap suds hitting the floor then her voice echoed back, "I'd rather not talk about it."
"Why not? Did something happen to you?"
"You could say that...." She clawed through her hair again, the weight of the water dragging it down and making it straight.
"Do...you remember anything?" Cassie asked, picking at a crack in the wall and watching as tiny flakes of white paint sprinkled the floor.
"Bits...I don't know how i got here." She stopped speaking and Cassie heard the water go off, "But I remember before, and him."
"Jason?" Cassie asked, confused as to how she could've met him before.
"No, the other one..." Thalia replied as she brought the towel up to towel dry her hair.
"Tate?" Cassie frowned, listening to Thalia fidget around behind her, "How?"
"Well, its more of a familiar face than anything but I remember his eyes, he used to look right at me with those, even in a crowd i could feel his gaze." She slipped into her dress and zipped up the side, gently pushing her toes into her shoes.
"Thalia...Tate....he..." she grabbed her hair bows and clipped up her fringe, tapping Cassie on the shoulder and handing her the wet towel back. "I know, he's a bad guy but....but he doesn't feel like it." With that she stalked down the hall and Cassie watched her go, only running after her when she realised she had no idea where she was going.

Jason caught up to Tate on the steps between the third and second floor, he found him leaning against the railing and lighting up a cigarette, "Had them the whole time?" Jason sneered, stomping towards him and slapping the cigarette from his hand. It hit the floor, glowing red and sprinkling ash across the nylon carpet. Jason's boot came down on it hard, snuffing out any potentially dangerous ashes and Tate rolled his eyes and sighed.  "You're an absolute psychopath, and you've been carrying a gun this whole time!" Jason yelled, reaching for Tate's shotgun, which he pulled out of the way. "Jason..." he said, shocked at his friends reaction, "Don't be so quick to call people a psychopath." He berated, shaking his head in disappointment. "You've put me and my family in danger!" Jason cried, pointing an accusatory finger at Tate. His eyebrows went up and he smirked back, "Family? Is that what you consider Cassie now?" Jasons face screwed up and his fist shot forwards, colliding with Tate's face and knocking him down several stairs. "What the hell man!" He cried, dabbing a tentative finger to his bleeding nose. "You shot a girl, Tate! You killed her in cold blood!" Tate's eyes dropped from Jason's, staring at the floor as he wandered down another few steps then sat down on the bottom one. "No, I didn't. You have no idea." He took off his gun and placed it on the stairs beside him then held up his hands to show Jason he was unarmed. "What really happened then?" Jason asked, inching forwards but sitting just a few steps up to his left. "I really loved her. I thought that I was committing the ultimate act of love."
"In what sick world is shooting someone done out of love?"
"One where shes sick...." Tate replied and Jason's eyebrows furrowed.
"Sick how?"
"I don't know how it started but i used to climb up the grating on the side of their house and go in through her window, I didn't want to harm her i just liked visiting. She was so peaceful asleep and sometimes she was even awake. Our relationship carried on like that for a few weeks until she started to get sick, she would throw up, all the time, her face went pale and her eyes sunk in." Tate smiled up at Jason, "Can you believe we thought she was pregnant?" He asked and Jason's mind flashed back to a positive pregnancy test and the fear he felt when he saw it for the first time. "Anyway, she wasn't. She started to throw up blood and her eyes jittered all the time."
"She...evolved?" Jason asked cautiously.
"Yeah, but we didn't know then. Being the mayors daughter meant she mixed with a lot of people and by the time we figured out what was going on there was already a couple cases of this evolution." He paused, twisting his fingers together, "It was supposed to be me too. I was going home to put myself in the ground, I thought if she had it then I surely did too. But just after i took the shot there was more of them, people in the crowd, a guy right next to me turned into a joyous. I ran home like everyone else and the tv broadcast what was coming, they called it the apocalypse. I bunkered down, waited for my symptoms to appear, but they never did and I lived."
"You better not be lying to me..." Jason grumbled as he got to his feet, he re-secured his gun, "If she was evolving, why is she fine now?"
"I don't know dude." Tate replied, equally getting to his feet and slinging the gun around his neck, "I wondered the same thing."

"Thalia wait!" Cassie called as she limped after her, she was heading towards the stairs for the second floor when Tate and Jason emerged from them and stared at her. Cassie glared at Tate then looked over at Jason, who seemed completely comfortable int he presence of someone as dangerous as Tate. Confusion swirled inside of her but she brushed it off to follow Thalia. She came to a stop in front of the two armed boys, "Whats going on?" She asked and Jason stepped forwards to address her.
"You can't go down there." Thalia looked between them then back at Cassie.
"You cant keep me here, my father will-" Tate broke her tirade of possible outcomes.
"You're dads dead."
"What? No, he-" she wanted to argue, wanted to tell him that she'd seen him just a few days ago but a fog lingered between then and now.
"He's dead Thalia. It's been 6 years. A lots changed." There was silence as she took in this information, her hands wringing together nervously then she turned and rushed into Cassie. "Hey, maybe we should sit down and discuss this?" She suggested, clutching Thalia's arms and smiling kindly at her. She nodded timidly then followed Cassie to the bunk rooms.