Infected

The Fence

-Sage

"Sage! Kite! Where are you two idiots?" The feminine voice grew quieter towards the end of the sentence, as if she were moving farther away.

I held the giggling boy in my arms, shushing him with a small grin. "We don't want her to find us, do we?" I whispered to him, watching his rich brown eyes, identical to hers, light up in excitement.

"No!" He all but shouted, and I knew it was over then.

The door flew open and I felt a soft body fall onto mine, pushing Kite further into me. The scent of an ocean breeze filled my nose as I heard soft laughter.

"Found you," She gloated triumphantly, wrapping her arm around his shoulders. "Shouldn't have yelled so loud, bud."

He groaned, then began squealing as she tickled him relentlessly. Scrambling out of my lap, he was up and out of the closet, running down the hallway. She took his place and I immediately brought my arms around her, feeling her lips touch my collarbone, a smile stretching across my face.

"He's got your energy," She stated playfully, poking my stomach. "I wonder if he'll be as obsessed with the gym as you are."

I bit her nose, receiving a small squeak. "I'm not obsessed, baby. And besides, don't act like you don't enjoy it," Smirking, I gestured with my free hand to my body, and she rolled her eyes.

"You're lucky I fucking love you, Sage."

It didn't matter how many times she said it, I'd never get tired of hearing it. But of course, being me, I had to make a joke of it.

"Oooooh, you said a bad-"

Lacing her fingers through my hair, she pulled my head down towards hers, cutting me off. "Shut up and kiss me already."

I awoke with a start, grief all but crushing my lungs as I struggled to breath unsuccessfully. Sweat drenched my shirt although it didn't even have sleeves, and it felt as if my sheets were constricting me. I shoved them away, clutching my pillow to my chest as if it were an adhesive that could hold together the pieces that I felt breaking off.

When my heart rate finally slowed, I sat up, running a hand roughly through my hair.

"Fuck," I cursed, swinging my legs over the side of the bed. A glance to my window showed that the sun had yet to rise, but I had left the lamp on in my room.

I shook the dream from my thoughts, unwilling to face them yet. Cooper stirred from the foot of my bed, his striking blue eyes blinking open. As if sensing my distress, he scooted along the bed on his tummy, laying his large head on my lap.

I ran my fingers through his soft fur, playing with his ears. I could feel the sleep draining from my limbs, which were aching to get the day started, even if the earth wasn't ready.

I shut off the lamp, then navigated my way around the dark room to change into a fitted royal blue work out shirt and a pair of basketball shorts, although I hadn't played the game in years. I then laced the familiar black cloth around both of my upper arms, sliding knives into their folds. I tied my already short hair back into a ponytail, grabbing the strap of the assault rifle that I slept with and dropping it onto my shoulder before exiting my room, making sure Cooper was out before locking it behind me.

Making my way to the kitchen, I was startled to see Nicole sitting at the island, a lost look on her face as she traced the outer edges of an empty mug.

Pursing my lips, I opted not to say anything to her, moving through quickly to get to the back door.

The girl had been with us for a week, and I wasn't sure what to make of her. From the very beginning I'd been weary about having someone I didn't know in my home, but she was just a kid; I couldn't leave her out to be zom chow. She did her work without complaint, training, and spoke only in short bursts. Though I rarely paid any actual attention to her words, I could often catch her staring at me when I was around.