Apocalypse [will not be finished]

Chapter Nine

We'd set off away from the wall a few hours ago, and the streets were verging on darkness. The sun wasn't visible because of the thick black clouds, but through the few patches that we could see through, the sky was pink and yellow, confirming that it was sunset.

We'd seen a few creatures along the way, but not many. The streets weren't too much of a maze, but every second I was losing more and more hope of ever finding Lou. At this rate, I would never see my little sister again.

My heart lurched at the thought. Never seeing her smile, the one with the cute dimples at either side of her rosy cheeks. Not ever glancing at her sparkling eyes that were always bright with excitement. Even now, she managed to see the best in everything. According to her, there was beauty in everything. And her eyes were able to see it all. She could see the single flower in a meadow of dank weeds. Her mind was able to penetrate the walls that someone had up, no matter how thick they were. She was like a little diamond in a cave shadowed by darkness.

She was more perfect than any story book character.

I swallowed, a dry lump in the back of my throat. I was trembling, expecting the worst. A creature jumping out and killing me. Killing Quinn. Maybe it would just be for the best if I did die. Quinn could find Lou without me tying him down, and he would be able to look after her properly, like I am no longer able to. I'm not stable, not old enough to be a Mum to Lou. Quinn, on the other hand, would be a perfect Dad. He still had love left in him to give. My lips were dry, and my heart hadn't felt so empty since the death of my Mum and Dad. Quinn had filled it for a while, and there was something about him that made my breath hitch, but I still wasn't sure what my exact feelings for him were. There was still a tiny bit of me that seemed to be tugging at my heart, telling me not to trust him. That his intentions weren't as good as I suspected. But, for once, I tried to ignore it. I wasn't used to doing this, but I found that if I really put my mind to it, it was relatively easy. Just like ignoring an irritating little fly that kept buzzing by your ear.

I trod along the street, trying to avoid anything that may be noisy if stepped on. Quinn was walking alongside me, every few moments twisting around to look behind us. I was glad he was alert, because I felt like my head was made of cotton wool. I blinked hard, trying to clear my brain of this unusual fuzziness.

Our footsteps were quiet and I was glad for this, as a bunch of creatures were gathered at the end of the street. They hadn't noticed us yet, but if we carried on moving towards them then they surely would. I nudged Quinn slightly with my shoulder, and his head immediately whips around to face me. I nod in the direction of the creatures, and his eyes show me both fear and understanding. He grips my wrist and pulls me to a house that's just to the right of us. The door isn't in place, so we are able to slip in easily and without being noticed. A dustbin stands right by the bottom of the staircase. There are bloody hand prints and scratches leading up the stairs ahead of us, and I gulp down the dry lump in my throat. Was it possible for me to go a single day without feeling pure terror?

We walked silently up the steps, dodging the dustbin, not wanting to say aloud what we were feeling. We made it upstairs without any turbulence, and we came to a closed door that seemed to have been attacked fairly recently. I barely have time to take in the crumpled up newspaper that lies on the floor and the blood that is splattered across the door knob in the shape of a small hand before a chilling voice snaps both of our heads up.

"Who goes there?"

I freeze up, but Quinn remains oddly calm.

"I'm Quinn, and this is Laurie." The emptiness of his tone unnerves me. Like he has no emotion.

"Children or adult?"

"Children." Quinn raises an eyebrow at me when I answer. I'm trying to convince both him and myself that I'm not scared, that I'm mature enough to do this. I can't let Quinn feel like he has to protect me. I can survive by myself.