A New World

Chapter 6

Bonnie carefully opened the front door, taking a second to look out before quickly locking it up again. He only left when he heard Gregory block the door.

He was terrified of leaving his children alone, but he had no other choice. He trusted Gregory was old enough to take responsibility.

But Bonnie was also scared for himself. He and Freddy had both agreed to never be out past sunset unless absolutely necessary.

At night time, the walkers became more prominent. More of them would come out of hiding, and the lack of bright sunlight made them more active and aggressive.

As he lost more and more visibility while making it down the old forest road to town, his dread grew. All that was going through his mind is why Freddy was taking so long.

He loses track of time a lot, though. He has always had a hard time with time management. He could have just forgotten what time he was supposed to get home.

He was always such a clutz, which he was always embarrassed about but Bonnie found it adorable. He must have gotten himself lost, or stuck somewhere. When Bonnie found him, he could tease him about it as they walked home.

He could not be injured or killed. He just couldn't be. Bonnie refused to accept that more likely reality. There had to be another reason.

The more he thought about possibly losing Freddy, the more his heart ached. He has already lost so much of his husband to this outbreak.

Aside from his brain injury, he noticed Freddy's behavior began to change over time.

His energy used to rival Bonnie's. Everyday he was in such a good mood. He was so playful, ambitious, and full of life. He and Freddy were the bright, wild couple in their youth.

Bonnie still loved his husband to death, but he began lacking that glow he used to have. He no longer sang, or wrote music, or engaged in any of his old hobbies. His life revolved around caring for his family, and now, he just seemed lifeless at times. His smiles grew more forced and his energy died down, turning him reserved and more fearful.

But on other hand, Freddy has always been a nurturing, affectionate, family man. He loved spending time with kids and husband whenever he could, and grew sad when being away from them for too long. So at least he still enjoyed that.

But still, Bonnie felt a sense of guilt and loss as he remembered what happened to Freddy. He still held onto hope that one day, Freddy would get better.

The accident is what changed him the most. Bonnie still remembered those few days in horror.

...

It was a rarer occasion for Bonnie and Freddy to be out together, but it was essential this time.

They had to travel past the small town by their house to a different one in order to get medical supplies and weapons, things regular stores did not carry much of. They did this every once in a while, but because of how heavy bringing back the supplies were, and how far they traveled away from their home base, they had to go together for safety.

It was nearly a two hour walk on dirt road surrounded by forest, so they always left early in the morning. Now that they learned to refill their car with gasoline to drive, they no longer had to make this walk. But before then, they still did.

They were over halfway there when Bonnie had to stop. He told Freddy to wait in a breathy voice as he bent over with his paws on his legs to catch his breath.

Daisy was almost one and a half years old now and Gregory was seven. Bonnie was still not fully recovered from having Daisy, as is normal for giving birth. That on top of raising both children and the world crumbling only two months ago, his stamina and muscles were lacking and his hormones were causing him headaches and hot flashes.