Infection.

Dawn.

-Darcy

I woke up with my brother's arms wrapped around me. At first I was shocked because we were so close, but I remembered how the cold feeling I always have when I was asleep suddenly disappeared.

Thanks Thomas. You are amazing...

I peeled his arms off me and sneaked out of the bed and into the hallway. The muffled voices that came from the boys room amused me and I set off towards the kitchen. We finally had a base with decent food and a water supply. I would've been crazy if I didn't use it. We didn't know when we had to move after all.

"Hmm? You're awake?" Kayden was standing in the doorway and smiled. "I expected you to be vast asleep still."

"I never needed much sleep." I returned his smile with a sheepish one. "And it's over for me when the sunlight gets into the room."

"He doesn't have the same problem I suppose? It's hard to think that you guys are a family." He shook his head. "Never mind that. It's Ian's turn to cook, so I came to warn you. I understand if you want to say your prayers before you start eating."

I chuckled and walked over to the leader of our little group. We turned our back at the kitchen and I started looking at the guys that were already awake. I wondered if they got some sleep even after I woke them up. Would they be angry?

"Bryan went upstairs a few minutes ago to check our surroundings. I hope we can use this place for another day, but I don't want to jinx it by saying it out loud." Kayden informed me with a grin.

"You believe in such stuff? I never thought our leader would be someone like that!" A giggle escaped my lips and Kayden's hand went through my hair.

"Laugh as much as you want, pipsqueak. I'm not the one that always needs to pair up with someone because I can't handle a gun."

Kayden smirked and I wished I had a good comeback to wipe it off his face, but he was right. I needed to learn how to fire a gun without falling on my ass all the time. There were a few guys that used knifes instead of guns, but I didn't want to close in on the infected, so that wasn't an option.

"You're one of the best gunners in the team... And you don't seem to mind it when I ask to show me something, so would it be okay if I... if I watched you practice?" I asked quietly while I stole a glance at him.

"Are you asking me to teach you how to handle a gun?" Kayden raised an eyebrow in surprise and laughed. "You're fine without a gun. We'll protect you. I Was joking earlier."

"I don't want to be helpless! If I know how to handle a weapon..."

Kayden looked at me and I held my breath. His gray eyes mesmerized me and I couldn't bring myself to move. The ticking of a clock was the only noise in the hallway and I started counting the seconds until he spoke again.

Four, five, six, seven, eight... Can't he open his mouth?! It's too awkward! ... Wait, did I say something out of place? Oh god, I didn't say something stupid, did I? What if he hates me now?! I wish I wasn't so clumsy with people! I hope he doesn't abandon me!

"Are you serious?" His voice woke me up from my thoughts and opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out. "... Thomas is going to kill me." Kayden sighed, grabbed my arm and dragged me towards the cellar.

**A few hours later**

I sat down on the ground with my back against the wall. My breathing was irregular and heavy. I never would've thought that firing a gun would ask so much effort.

"Tired already?" Ian snorted and kneeled down next to me. "Drink this."

"But, we don't have enough water... and... and we don't know when we'll find another store!"

"Don't bother, we all got one bottle. This one is mine, and I'm giving it to you. You need it."

I accepted his bottle and started gulping the content down. Ian's eyes widened a bit, but he didn't comment about it. Instead he just gave me a shallow smile and a pat on my head.

There were quite a few of the team that thought of me as a little sister or just someone that needed protection. I wast nervous the first weeks that we joined this team of guys. There were no girls that even considered staying with us after they found out about some of the personalities of the members. I was the only one that could sort of handle them.

This almost seems like an Otome game... One girl and a whole bunch of guys. I wish I could pick one guy and always get a set of choices of what to say though. If it was like that, I knew we'd survive and that at least one person didn't hate me.

"What are you thinking about?" Ian waved his hand before my eyes and muttered: "Are you spacing out again? Kayden is wasting his time trying to teach you."

"I heard that."

"Good, that was my intention."

I threw his bottle back to him, stood up and walked back to Kayden. A quick look at the target told me that he was indeed the best shooter. All of the bullets went through the head of the dummy.

I will never be that good. He practiced years for this!

"Ready for round two?" Kayden looked down at me and I nodded. I refused to be intimidated by his skill. I would be able to protect myself just fine if I practiced regularly. There was no need to be as good as him.

I breathed in, closed my eyes and let go of the air again.

I can do this. I only need to aim and not fall down... and maybe hit my target this time.

----

A/N: I hope you're enjoying the story so far :) I know that I'm still far from good, but I'm trying. I'll also try to edit when I have time, so let me know if I did something wrong.

Thanks for reading~
Feel free to comment/vote~!