Beneath A Dying Sky

Chapter 10 - Trust

Edith didn't know how to feel. Alice had killed someone before, and now they were in the bunker together. All alone. With Alice fixing up her face as Edith watched silently. That serial killer joke had aged badly.

"You gonna just keep staring or ask what you want to?" Alice asked, setting aside the first aid kit and looking at Edith.

"You've killed someone?" She just needed to hear it again.

"Yes. I think we established this." Alice nodded, "It's not something I'm proud of." She looked away, "Things are a lot more complicated than I think you realize."

"How could you do that?" Edith shook her head; she didn't get it. Never in a million years was she capable of killing. But then again, she never would have threatened to hit someone with a pipe, much less do it. Her hands were still shaking from it.

"It was self-defense." Alice sighed, rubbing her eyes before wincing, "That's all I'm going to say about it. I honestly don't care if you believe me."

Edith pursed her lips, what was she supposed to say to that? "Why should I believe you?"

Alice shrugged, "I don't know, that's something you need to figure out for yourself." She shook her head.

But Edith couldn't, Alice had proven herself to be ruthless, she was going to leave that man to die. She hardly blinked at the idea that Edith might have killed him. She didn't even seem to care.

Alice was a stranger, a dangerous, reckless, and somewhat cold stranger. There was nothing for Edith to trust, it wasn't like Alice had proven herself to be trustworthy outside of not killing Edith in her sleep. "That serial killer joke aged badly."

Alice chuckled, "Yeah I realize that now. But I'm not a serial killer."

Edith didn't even know what Alice considered self defense, she didn't know anything about her. They both knew nothing about each other but maybe that was for the best. The past was the past, and she had a feeling she was a completely different person than she used to be. If she changed her name it'd be like Edith died in the blast. For some reason she liked the idea, she wanted to forget.

But she couldn't forget that Alice had killed someone, and she had no way of knowing if it was actually self defense. She would just have to trust her, and she wasn't sure she could do that. She may have hit a man with a pipe for Alice, but it was for purely selfish reasons. She just couldn't be alone again, not yet, which also meant she'd have to take Alice's word at face value. She'd just be sleeping with one eye open.

She didn't want to live what little life she had left looking over her shoulder, "Tell me how it happened."

"I told you already I'm not getting into it." Alice shook her head.

"Just tell me please." Edith insisted, watching Alice who looked at her, her expression stony.

"No, do I need to say it in Spanish?" Alice tilted her head, "Now I am leaving in a week, are you in or not."

"Tell me. I need to know."

"No Edith! I don't want to talk or think about it! Can't you just drop it? I'm not a murderer! It was self fucking defense because this world has gone to complete shit now are you in or not?" Alice snapped finally, her face a mix of anger and something else Edith wasn't sure about, it looked like sadness or regret, and it tugged on Edith's heart.

"Fine."  Edith looked away, pursing her lips, "I'm in." She said it before thinking but realized she meant it. She didn't want to be alone, and she didn't want to be stuck. Maybe bashing someone over the head had given her some sick confidence, but she wasn't as scared anymore. Not to say she wasn't afraid. She needed to do this, or she'd spend the rest of what little life she had left pacing around a small hole with her dog, missing the one person she'd managed to befriend.

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The week came and went, and before Edith knew it she was outside, a backpack pulling down on her shoulders as she looked at Sampson, "You ready boy?" He smiled cluelessly at her and wagged his tail, she wasn't, and she looked back to see Alice climbing out of the bunker with a backpack.

"Alright, we wasted enough time in there. We need to get south before things start to freeze." Alic fixed the backpack, looking at Edith. " Are you ready for this?"

"No. Not even a little." She wanted to go back inside, but her body and mind screamed at her to leave this gray, dusty world behind. "But I guess I have to be."

"That's the spirit." Alice nodded, "There's a lot you need to learn, and you need to keep up, if you drag me down I'll leave you behind got it?"

"I got it." Edithr rolled her eyes, "I'm entirely unimportant and a massive burden." She was writing the tropes herself, "At least I'm not a murderer."

Alice glared at her, "You don't know anything. But you will. Now let's go." She turned and began walking, and Edith followed with Sampson at her heels. She'd kept an eye on Alice, she didn't trust her, or how explosive her personality was, she was mean, crass, and just a negative person. But she was the best Edith was going to get.

The burnt earth crunched under her feet as they walked beside the road, the devastation hurt more than the cold air, it was just them now. Survival was all they lived for, and the blind hope of something better. Were humans so simple? To chase after a fantasy instead of giving up? Was this fantasy enough to make Edith leave somewhere safe? Evidently yeah, or maybe just the idea of being alone again was. She looked at Alice's back, what had she been through out here for so long? What could have brought her to kill? Edith had a feeling she'd probably never know, and she was okay with that, they were just using each other for different reasons. It was how it had to be. She took a deep breath of the musty gasmask, this was going to be a very long walk.

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Authors Note-

Finally back! Hi! Midterms were a success, and I gained a follower! Hi Follower! Thank you!