What We Lost

harbored

We weren't alone.

Me and Grayson stay huddled inside the abandoned shop, avoiding the light of the flashlight being panned across the town.

"Y'all think you can hide from me. Shit eating raiders!" A man yowls, firing his pistol at the ground. Grayson pulls me closer into him, covering my mouth to muffle my heavy breathing. We had sworn the town was empty. It should have been. Heavy boot steps approach the front broken window of the shop, the flashlight blinding my vision. The man growls and smashes the rest of the window, toppling in. He was older. Armed. Wrinkled face furrowed with anger.

"Please. We aren't trying to raid you-" Grayson attempts, but the man only gets closer- grumbling under his breath. He shines the flashlight directly in my face, the look of disdain softening ever so slightly. I clutch my chest, trying to breathe.

"How old are you two. And don't lie to me. I'll shoot ya." He questions.

"16." I say meekly. The man nods slowly.

"Stand. Drop your weapons if you have them." He orders. Grayson removes the pistol from his pocket and sets it down. I remove my gun as well and stand to my feet. Grayson follows. The man raises his pistol and points it at Grayson. My breath hitches and I step in front of him. The man falters and slowly lowers it.

"That was a test." He murmurs. "To see if you're selfish." His eyes study me from head to toe, as if bewildered with my presence. I feel Graysons hand clasp over mine and I squeeze, to ground myself.

"Don't play games with her." Grayson hisses, standing close beside me. The man chuckles and shakes his head. "You're awfully brave to speak to me like that. Don't try me, boy. You two follow me. If you try to run off, you're dead." He says firmly. And then he hops out the window. Me and Grayson follow. His hand is trembling as he keeps a hold of mine. We walk down the street for a while, before we reach a tiny subdivision of houses. His is the farthest back in the woods. I look around warily- it was dark out. What if the walkers were out?

Eventually, we reach a small wooden cabin tucked away in the trees. It is heavily protected with a tall metal fence around it, guarded with several security cameras. What were we getting ourselves into? The man approaches a keypad and presses the password into it. The door slides open with a screech. We follow him into the cabin. Inside was warm, a fire in the fireplace. Boxes of supplies stacked up around the room, along the walls. In the kitchen was a woman. She was making eggs.

"You're home late," she murmurs, and turns. When she saw us she dropped the pan. The man held his hands out, trying to ease the woman.

"What do you think you're doing?" She whispers sharply, worry etched onto her wrinkled features. "Think we can take care of some kids. We have enough to deal with already. And how do y'know they're not infected?"

I stand awkwardly beside Grayson, trying to look as least threatening as possible. Grayson slid his hand around my waist, keeping me close to him.

After a few moments of quiet whispering the old man turns back to us. "This is my wife, Joann. And I'm er.. Henry." He scratched the back of his head. "Listen. We are old. And back in the forest behind our house, theirs loads of prey, and whatever- also those damned walkers. I can't go out there every day. And so. If you want to stay with us, that will be your job."

Grayson grumbles under his breath. "So you brought us here, for what? To hire us for something?" Grayson retorted. I breathe in.

"Nothing out there for miles. You'll starve before you even make it to the next town." Henry corrects. "I don't suppose you want your girl to starve, do ya?" He steps closer.

Just as Grayson was about to say something, I cut him off. "We will stay. For a day. Or a few. However long we need to.. prepare."

Grayson looks over at me. Henry claps his hands together with satisfaction. "I like this one. That's the spirit. Right, Joann?" Joann only sighed and went back to the stove, picking up the pan. W

That night, me and Grayson lay on sleeping bags in their basement. I shift closer to him, glancing around as my eyes start to adjust to the dark. I feel his fingers, calloused and gentle, brush against my cheek. I breathe out, my lashes fluttering. His thumb runs over my bottom lip.

"I got us into this," he whispers to me solemnly.
I shake my head firmly.

"It's nobodies fault, Grayson." I assure softly. His hand runs down my neck, over my throat.

"We should have covered our tracks. Been more careful." I press my lips against his cheek before he could finish. He sighs. When I pull away, our noses brush. His eyes glinted. He leans forward and captures my lips in a tender kiss. I immediately lean into him. It was only with him, that I felt real. Whole. I could forget the world was ending, for just a moment. But of course it was never enough.

He pulls away from the kiss to breathe, his lips trailing along my jaw lovingly.

"I love you." He whispers against the crook of my neck. His breath tickled my skin.

"I love you too." I say back.