More Than a Battle, Less Than a War || tøp AU

9

"I can't believe you forgot the badges!" Scarlet screamed.

"Oh, so now you're putting all the blame on me?!" Josh screamed back.

Josh and Scarlet have been arguing furiously for some time, shooting words at eachother like bullets into empty space.

"Guys, we have 200 miles of land to cover until we reach the protection radius. We have plenty of time to think things through." I gently said to break the argument.

Scarlet flicks her eyes towards me and pauses for a second.

"The kid said something right for once." she chuckles, calming down.

Excuse me?! She just made it sound like everything I say is wrong! And if I heard correctly, she called me "kid". She did not just call me kid! Talk about rude.

"Says the youngest person here! You can't call me kid when I'm two years older than you and at least a foot taller than you!" I whine, cheeks flushed. She sighs and begins walking forward.

"Whatever. Anyways, Tyler, you're right." Scarlet inhales deeply and exhales. "We have time to think about how we're going to bypass the protection radius. We shouldn't worry about it now.

"What we really need to worry about right now is where we're going to stay for tonight. The night is approaching."

A bell rang in the back of my mind. All of the old ways I used to find shelter for the night came flooding back to my memory.

To my left, an abandoned hotel stands wearily on each of its bricks. Jackpot.

People who raid for resources usually scavenge stores, thinking that stores are the only source of stock. Hotels, however, have more travel friendly and longer lasting resources.

"Care to stay at a hotel tonight?" I ask, pointing to the structure.

"That hotel looks super sketchy." Josh coolly commented.

"C'mon, I've stayed at abandoned hotels a hundred times."

We enter the main entrance of the hotel cautiously, huddling close together. I take out a flashlight and shine it on the dusty front desk. Josh and Scarlet take out their own flashlights and begin searching the area.

I anxiously walk towards the cedar wood front desk, patches of dust falling off of the surface from the draft of my movement. A calendar, knocked over cup of pens, and an old computer lay untouched on the desk.

Sweeping the dust off of the calendar, I read the date.

August of...

2077.

"Hey, guys!" I yell aimlessly. "Did you find anything?"

"The kitchen!" Josh replied from afar.

"A hotel room, get over here! It's up the stairs, down the hallway, the second door to your right!" Scarlet called.

I guess I have no choice. I weave my way through scattered furniture and clutter until I reached the hallway. The hall appears to be once beautifully decorated, but now remains as rubbish of the past. Places like this make me somewhat nostalgic to the times I never lived in.

"Over here!" Scarlet peeked her head out of the hotel room door.

The hotel room was not impressive. Paintings hang crooked on the peeling walls, white bedsheets stained grey with time, air feels thick and motionless.