Fever Dream Red

39

"Where are we going?" Chloe asked like a little kid. I wondered the same thing.

We could go anywhere. The world was limitless for us, and yet the one moment we could have anything we couldn't even understand what the anything would be.

"I don't know." Doug admitted.

I thought and thought and thought.

"What's that noise?" Skye asked. There was a noise, like a low humming getting louder and louder.

"It's a car." Chloe answered.

We turned around to see a sleek black car coming towards us. I knew at once who it was. It was Nick, back from the dead.

Only it wasn't. It was a man. He still had the signature cool guy glasses on.

I stared at him and stared at him until the penny dropped.

It was Eli. I was sure of it.

I hadn't seen him all that often. I just knew that he was mildly friendly towards Doug.

Shouldn't he have been back at The Base, taking care of Zoe?

"Your friend's here, Doug."
"Who?"
"Eli."

Doug properly turned around then, the worry burning in his eyes.

"Really?"
"Why is he...here?"
"I don't know!" I answered.
"Pull over." Alfie told Doug.

Doug pulled over.

We heard the car behind us pull up.

We heard a car door slam.

Eli walked along to Alfie's window. Alfie winded down the window.

"Heyyyyyy! Long time no see." Eli greeted us like an obnoxious blogger.
"What are you doing here?" Doug asked with a dirty look on his face.
"What are you doing here. Everyone's out looking for you."
"We escaped." Sunny answered.
"Obviously." Eli rolled his eyes. "I'm here to take you back."
"Why would you do that?" Alfie asked him.
"Because it's for your own good."
"Okay Nick Junior. Cool it." I muttered under my breath.
"Don't push me. I have a gun." Eli countered, brandishing a gun from his pocket.

Doug put his hands up.

"Woah. Woah. Woah! Calm down Eli. Why don't we talk about this?"
"Why would I do that?" Eli gave Doug a confused stare.
"Because you don't want to kill anyone?"

Eli shrugged.

"Mkay. One drink. Only 'cause I'm thirsty."

And that's how we ended up in some washed up diner, sneaking drinks from the dead fridge.

We all sat around a main booth. Chloe, me, Sunny and Skye were clamboured on the next booth over. Doug and Alfie were on our side of the booth.

Eli was alone on the other side.

"So."
"So..."
"So how's The Base?"
"Not great. After Aggie died and you left, well, things have been a bit," Eli made his hand cut across his neck, "you know?"
"How so?" Doug asked.
"Nick's been in a bad mood. He's convinced you killed Aggie. Someone also hit him with a bat, is it? I don't know. He's been on a rampage getting me to find you."
"How did you find us?" Alfie asked.
"I just drove down the main road for a day or so."

I thought we were harder to find than that.

"It was that easy?"
"Yep. What did you guys think you were riding on? A country lane?"

"How's Zoe?" Sunny asked pleasantly. It took Eli by surprise.
"Yeah, um, yeah. She's getting better. I don't know what Nick is doing, but it's making her better." He smiled nicely back.

It was strange to think he had almost pulled a gun on us.

"Right." Doug stated determinedly, standing up"We better be going."
"Why?" Eli asked.
"We have to, you know, do stuff." Doug said, waving his arms around, motioning to Eli, as if that would make him make any sense.
"Do stuff? It's an apocalypse, Doug. It's not like you have a dinner date in half an hour."
"No, but we have to do, other stuff."
"Like what?"

Doug paused, a deer caught in Eli's headlights. His eyes span round to us all, hopin for some kind of rescue. None came. He had dug his own grave and we would all take pleasure in watching him lie in it.

"Maybe we don't have much to do. But we aren't going back to The Base."
"Why?"
"Because Nick's a psycho." I finished. Eli turned his attention to me. I bet he didn't even realise I was there.

"Inez really misses you." Eli said simply. He knew it would splinter me a bit inside.
"I know."
"She'd really like it if you came back."
"Would she?"

I kept a blank face. I didn't give in. I had come this far. I was not going back voluntarily.

"I'm not going back."
"So, what then? Are you never going to see her again?"
"I don't know. Am I? If that place is so good then why did we have to escape from it? Why didn't Nick just let us out?"
"It's for your own good."
"Is it? We were better without it. It has caused a murder, Eli. Someone died."
"That wasn't anything to do with-"
"Just because it makes Zoe better doesn't mean it's better for all of us."
"Don't bring her into this."
"Why don't we? You brought Inez into this."
"Shut up."
"I don't even know where Danny is. Your sister is healing. My brother is gone."
"Your brother escaped. Go find him."
"He didn't escape. Nick's got him somewhere."
"You're delusioned."
"I'm telling you. He's in there."
"You just don't wanna accept the fact that Danny abandoned you, Finny."
"He didn't."
"He abandoned you and you abandoned Inez. You're both the same."
"Shut up."
"You're both selfish little-"
"I SAID SHUT UP!"

Eli did shut up, with a bemused expression on his face. I wanted to kick it off of him.

He brandished his gun again like a little trick up his sleeve.

"You're coming with me. All of you. Or else I use this."
"You aren't going to kill any of us, you idiot." Skye interjects.
"Really?"
"You don't have the heart."
"Try me."
"Go on then. Make it quick. I haven't got all day."