The End.

12

"No no no no!"
David muttered a few profanities when we saw the scene in front of us.

There were three guys with pistols standing right in front of the store we were going to loot.

We couldn't get out and just shoot them, as Kyle suggested. It would draw attention to us and there could be more of them inside the store with even bigger guns.

No one asked what we were going to do. Everyone was thinking and reacting the same way. We were scared.

David gestured out the window of our jeep to the one behind us that held Marcus, Alyssa, Wes, Spencer, and Toby. The vehicles were packed to the max. Ours had David driving, Mali-Koa in the passenger seat, and Calum, Ali, Kyle, and I were squished into the back seat.

We made a sharp turn down the street we were on, and I watched the people outside of the store as we left. They watched us leave but never raised their guns.

"We're taking a detour. We don't have enough gas to go all the way to the next Cosco, so we're gonna have to live with a Foodlion until we can get rid of those guys."

We all nodded in approval, I swallowed hard, feeling my heartbeat throughout my entire body and swearing that everyone else feels it too.

I looked out the window, searching for any sign of civilization or human life. I didn't see anything.

We passed through a small neighborhood that didn't seem to be as lucky as we had.

'Leave while you can' was spray painted in each individual word on different houses in bright red paint. A cold shiver seemed to wash through me even though it's quite obviously more than eighty degrees outside.

Suddenly, a horrifying smell tortured our noses. I looked out the window of the other side of the car and immediately regretted it. Two bodies were sprawled out in the front lawn of one of the houses. A man and a woman with evident gun-wounds.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from them. There were flies swarmed around the entire house and a few large vultures were flying around in circles above them. Alison gagged, Kyle pretended to puke.

"Sorry you have to see that, but we have to be prepared to see these kind of things." David said, peeking back through the rear-view mirror and giving us a cold, hard look that I assumed was meant to be sympathy.

We drove in silence, with the occasional cough or throat clearing, the whole way to the store. It took us about a half an hour, -give or take a few minutes; to get there. When we pulled up, I saw a few stray cats wandering around, probably confused about the lack of population trying to pet them. But then again, who knows what they could be thinking. Maybe they just got finished snacking on a rotting human. Maybe not.

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard the closing of a car door and the click of a gun being loaded. I looked up, and jumped out of the car to begin loading my gun to go inside.

I got my backpack out of the trunk/back of the jeep and everyone was talking about our game plan.

We go in, grab a few shopping carts, and grab what we need. One cart will have batteries, one will have medicines (pain relievers, cold medicines behind the counter antibiotics) and one will be filled with non perishable foods.

Calum and I are given the task of retrieving medical supplies. I cringe, knowing absolutely nothing about medicines. Cal just shrugs, probably feeling the same but still wanting to help.

When we finish going over the exact plans, we walk to the door. Toby and Spencer have to keep an eye on the outside and the jeeps to make sure no one comes to try and steal anything or jump us, and everyone else has an individual or partnered up task.

While Toby picks the lock, -and claims he only knows how to do it because of being a police officer, I make eye contact with Alison, silently asking if she's okay and giving her the thumbs up until she gives it back.

Then, we walk in, and automatically get smacked in the face by yet another rotten stench.

"The meat and vegetables must have gone bad." Spencer spoke, eying around the darkened, smelly store.

"Okay, we're going on in. Don't forget to say something even if you just think you see something. We can't get caught in a fight or anything." David said, reminding Spencer and Toby of how important their job is.

Calum looked over at me with concentrated eyes and I gestured to him to follow me towards the pharmacy section.

I grabbed what seemed like the loudest shopping cart and began pushing it, with it. Since Calum had his gun ready to shoot, I made sure my safety was clicked on and I threw it across my back for quick access.

My shoes squeaked against the floor as I searched for the sign of the medicines. My gun was no longer strapped against my back, but was loaded and aimed towards the ground for quick access incase something happened.

I continued to squeak along the floor in silence. My attention was not toward being nervous for my first raid, but I was listening for Toby and Spencer to shout that there was trouble.

We arrived at the medicine aisle without me even noticing. Calum had to whisper my name for me to be interrupted from my state of silence.

I could hear someone's shopping cart squealing across the floor, and there was also the sound of squeaking boots. It wasn't me.

"Well. Here goes nothing." Calum said, strapping his gun to his back and reaching for a bottle of medicine.

Reaching up on the shelf, I grabbed four of the largest bottles of ibuprofen and placed them quietly into the cart, still not wanting to make noise.

Then, I moved on, grabbing random bottles of cold medicines and whatever else was there. Obviously, Calum was doing the same because our cart was nearly halfway full. Next, we raided the pharmacy bar. Honestly, I don't know much about antibiotics; but I did the best I could by one or two of each bottle of pills they had. I intentionally strayed from the liquid medicines, because they obviously are harder to get from place to place, and with pills all you need to do is swallow one, while with liquid you have to measure it out and usually it tastes absolutely disgusting.

Our cart was about full when we reached the bandages and such. Calum and I worked together to get all of the necessities, and we were done. I looked at the cart and wondered how we would get all of this stuff back to camp.

After I arranged the things in the cart so that they wouldn't fall off when we walked outside, we were on our way.

"So far this hasn't been bad." I said, talking in a normal voice, while still trying not to be loud.

"Yeah I guess. But it's not over yet." Calum said.

People were starting to re-appear near the entrance, carts full and guns out.

Toby gave us the okay sign of two thumbs up, and we opened the door to leave. Just like when we came inside, it was a deadly silent outside. I guess with my concentration on finishing my task successfully, I forgot about what had happened.

Then, a single, muffled gunshot fired. My heart seemed to stop beating, while also seemed to beat straight out of my chest. That hollow feeling that you get when something has gone horribly wrong circled through my gut, literally weakening my knees.

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{an}

carlum or calter???

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Teaser; Things still aren't going as planned on this raid...