The living survive the undead.

Chapter 10 - Understanding the other side

Meanwhile upstairs, Robin and Ryder were talking. "Are you going to explain what happened in there?" Robin asked, sitting across from Ryder. The blond fidgeted, his hands pulling at his sleeves. "I got scared okay? I've never been this close to anyone before. Not even my own parents." Ryder mumbled. "Well I'm in the same boat. Never knew my dad and was always the kid to be picked on. You aren't the only sob story." Tears pricked in Ryder's eyes, "But hey. You've got us now. A new family." Robin gasped as Ryder hugged him and started to sob into his jacket. "Hey, hey, hey. Let it out. It's okay." Words of comfort streamed from Robin as he hugged Ryder back.

"It's not okay. I shouldn't be scared of who I am because of past experiences." Ryder sat up, sniffling and whipping his eyes. "Okay. I started to explain before that I took some of the intruder's blood. Being part demon, means I have a heighted sense of smell; so if we come across this person, I will be able to tell if it's the intruder. With me so far?" Ryder asked. Robin was a small bit confused but nodded anyway. "However there is a downside to having done that." Ryder paused.

"What is it?" Robin asked. The tension between the two skyrocketed as the silence went on.

"I need fresh blood to feed for the next three days to satisfy the demon half of me. I'm telling you this because I trust you." Ryder stared into Robin's eyes, hoping the other would understand what he was asking. Without any further words, Robin unbuttoned the three top buttons on his shirt and pulled it away from his neck to expose it. The doctor didn't want to offer his neck but he knew what happens if a demon doesn't get blood when they need it. They turn into barbaric, raging monsters with no morals or sense of where they are or who they are killing. Ryder looked in the doctor's eyes and only saw trust. It made his heart swell. Acting on instinct, Ryder lunged forward capturing Robin's neck between his teeth. Pain shot through Robin but soon subsided into numbness, he felt as if he was floating.

"R-Ryder?" Robin asked, starting to feel light headed. It felt like Ryder had been on his neck for hours. Ryder took his teeth out of his friend's neck mumbling an apology. "R-Ryder!" the doctor stuttered as Ryder licked over the two holes he had made in Robin's neck. "Shut up. This will make them heal quicker." Ryder snapped and continued to lick over the wounds. "W-wah...How?" Robin asked, hands clenching the blonds coat as he felt a tongue run over his neck in patterns. "Certain chemicals in demon saliva heals wounds; and considering I was bitten by a vampire nine years ago, the saliva will heal that wound." Ryder said, buttoning up the brunette's shirt.

Slowly, Ryder got up looking out of the boarded up window, streaks of daylight running through. "We should get moving," he said turning around seeing Robin attempt to stand, "Here. Let me help you." Ryder picked up the brunette and made his way down stairs. Caleb and Marxihr were still in the kitchen but they had taken refuge on the table with their coats as blankets. An idea sparked off in Ryder's head. He sat Robin down in a nearby chair and told him to stay quiet. Sneaking up next to the kitchen table, Ryder held a glass of water in hand, "Morning boys!" he yelled as he tipped the water over them. Both of them sat bolt upright, Caleb yelled about how cold it was while Marxihr growled and threated to kill Ryder. The doctor across the room was laughing along with Ryder, it made him feel better than he was a couple minutes ago.

"I know you guys hate me now but we do need to find a shower block soon." Ryder said, catching his breath. As the blond looked around the room he saw everyone nodding in agreement. "So that means there's only one question to ask..." Ryder's smile grew almost ear to ear, "Who wants to go to the pool?" Everyone's faces light up. Caleb ran over to the supply, slinging it over his shoulder and at the same time grabbed his bag. "We going then or what?" The hybrid asked. A small laugh filled the room as he headed towards the door. Marxihr followed, complaining about how they will need to go to a mall and get clothes. That left Robin and Ryder. "Think you can walk?" The blond asked, his hand on the doctor's shoulder. "I'm fi-!" Robin cut himself off as he fell into Ryder's arms after trying to stand. "Take my bag, I'm giving you a piggy back until we reach a place to stay tonight. Nope! No arguing." Robin silenced himself as Ryder picked him up and began to walk out the door.

Caleb was kicking some pebbles as Marxihr was smoking a cigarette. "What's up with Robin?" the demon asked, throwing the remainder of the cigarette on the ground. "He twisted his ankle while you 'love birds' messed around on the table." Ryder answered, throwing a look to Caleb. The colour of the boy was almost as red as his eyes. Marxihr stammered to answer or even come up with a comeback. "So it is true! I was just playing but... Wow the look on your face Marxihr is priceless." The blond laughed.

So the four set off. The journey was somewhat, annoying to the four. The weather hadn't helped them as what felt like a heatwave had set its wrath upon the four. While this heat had decreased the chance of them being attacked; it made it harder for the four to keep up a pace. "Are we any closer Ryder?" Robin whispered into Ryder's ear. "We're close, don't worry." The blond felt Robin nod and lean his head on his shoulder. Caleb and Marxihr were talking about the demon realm or something along those lines, both of them making erratic hand gestures about the structures of hell. They carried on through the streets, hearing the groans of distant hoards and the occasional single zombie.

Clouds begun to invade the sky, blocking out the sun and dramatically darkening the landscape. The sudden change in atmosphere set alarm bells off in Ryder's head. "Well then...At least it's better than rai-!" Marxihr was interrupted by a loud crash of thunder. The group stopped and glared at Marxihr. Despite the rain, the group continued and tried to find shelter.