Run Little One

Goodnight Zoe

Poppy's POV

After having their similar dreams, May and Sean seemed extremely jumpy. As if someone was going to hurt them. As if one of us were going to hurt them.

"May" I ask as we are changing into new clothes for our journey.
She looks up at me.

"What exactly happened, in your dream? Is that why you and Sean are so...jumpy?"

She looks down at her shoes. What is she thinking?

"Ever since the dream, I keep seeing Mark...so does Sean..."

I freeze in my spot...

"I'm not crazy...you have to understand-"

"I don't think you or Sean are crazy, May." I state.

"I think you both are just experiencing some trauma from yesterday." Sean, after all, was the one who shot Mark.

"But he keeps showing up...and talking...he says all of these terrible things and I-I just can't get him out of my head" May whimpers. I pull her in to an embrace as she shakes with sobs.

"He's gone May, he's gone. He can't hurt you ever again..."

We stay there for about ten minutes, May letting out all of her emotions that had been built up from the beginning, and me, being the one to cover it all up and lift it off her shoulders.

Zoe's POV

After breakfast, we gather some of Mark's old belongings-especially his most meaningful possessions, which I keep tucked away in my bag, and head out to our cars. Our next stop is London: to find Joe, Caspar, Oli, and the rest of our friends who might still be alive among the ruins.

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We hop into our cars: Myself, May and Garrett in one, Poppy and Sean in another, and Alfie in the third. We decided Alfie should lead, followed my myself and then Pop and Sean.

The ride seemed too calm and quiet. Garrett sat in the back dozing off while May and I kept our eyes on the road. It had been just like this before I stopped at Mark's...what a stupid move...

"You know Zoe," May says smiling, something I had never seen on her.

"Me being a fan and all is kind of risky to show me where Joe lives" she smirks towards me and I laugh at her fangirl instinct.

"Well I guess you'll have to close your eyes when we get there" I remark back, earning a laugh from May.

"As if!" She fires back.
"I didn't sign up for this shit so I better be getting something good out of it." She states and I laugh hysterically. The sad reality of our situation was enough to drive us mad, but instead we laughed at our own sadness.

May looks out the window and I see her tense up.
"What's wrong?" I ask, until I see what she is seeing.

Two men stand on the side of the road, looking more beat up and dirty than us, thumbing for a ride.
"We can't Zoe..." May trails off.
"I know we should, I want to, but we can't take that risk again-"

"I agree" I say blankly. After what happened with Mark, we can't afford to make any other mistakes.
We drive past the men as they beg and plead outside our car. I feel my heart aching for them, to be in such a horrible situation with no shelter. But this is a game that we have to win. We can't take any chances.

We pass about sixteen more groups of people along the way to London, at one point, throwing some food out the window to a boy, maybe 16, who just sat on the side of the road. Whether he was a Shrieker or not, someone must have ended up with at least a days worth of food.

My eyes are growing weary and I can feel myself getting drowsy. May senses my tiredness and speaks up.

"Zoe you need to rest. Let me drive" she says.

"Aren't you only like 16?" I question. I never actually asked.

"I'm almost 15" May states. "But who's here to stop me? I did drive to your house after all, and we made it there." She does make a good point.
"Okay, but if you scratch up this car, you are fucking dead" I say, attempting dry humor.

"Sir yes sir" May retorts, her hand resting on her forehead.

I chuckle as I stop briefly and swap sides with May. She hits the gas and starts our journey once again, gliding along the streets like she had been doing it for years.

As we drive, I notice my vision becomes blurry and I fall asleep for minutes at a time, not daring to completely relax and have a good nap. May begins to hum a song who's lyrics I've long forgotten and I feel myself slip into sleep.

I wake up to an empty room...if you could call it that. There is nothing...it's all black abyss. Standing in front of me is Alfie, his back turned to me.
"Alfie? What's happening?" I ask. I reach forward to touch his shoulder, but as I do so, Sean and May's words echo in my mind..."It was all black and they killed me. They were all dead and didn't look like them"... I was having the same dream... this is just a dream...

I step back

"You aren't real" I say to the Alfie standing in front of me. This isn't real. This isn't real! I say over and over.

"Are you sure this isn't real Zoe?" A voice echoes from behind me.

Mark

He is holding someone with his arm clenched around their throat...his black hoodie covering his victims face.

"This seems pretty real to me" he sneers looking off into the distance.
"How do you know you aren't dead? That this right here is hell?!" He begins to shout.

"Who is that?" I question, my voice breaking.

"Care to see my masterpiece? I think you'll find it quite...astonishing..."

Mark pulls the hoodie off of his victim and I scream out. It's Joe. My Joe.

His body drops to the ground, he's only barely alive, and he moans out in agonizing pain.

"This isn't real Mark! You are dead! Joe is alive! You died Mark!" I scream, running over to my brother. As I approach him, he disappears, leaving Joe to suffer in my arms. I gingerly place his head in my lap and stroke his hair back.

"Joe-Joe please you're gonna be okay! I promise you just stay awake for me Joe! Please don't go to sleep!" I plead with my dying brother.

He reaches his hand up to my face and holds it.

"I won't go to sleep Zo..."

I see him take something out of his pocket

"But you will"

Joe rips out a knife and in one swift motion, plunges it into my chest. My body becomes numb with cold. I drop to the ground beside him and shake uncontrollably. Black liquid spewing from my chest and my mouth as I feel as if my life is being pulled from my body. Screaming isn't an option.

Joe stands up, perfectly normal, as looks down at me, his eyes black.

"Goodnight Zoe" he says snickering.
He raises his foot the last thing I see is the bottom of his shoe, followed by a sudden crack, and then darkness.

I can't move. I can't think. I'm not even breathing. But I am alive.

"Zoe...Zoe..." I may not be able to make a sound, but I can hear my name. A sudden bright light appears and I feel as if I am being lifted...

"ZOE PLEASE WAKE UP!" May is shaking me and crying. I wake up with a startling scream that scares all three of us in my small car.

It was a dream...?

I look out onto the road and see him... Mark...

May looks out...staring at him...

"He's got you too..." she whispers...

I heave a huge sigh and sink back into my seat.

What
The
Hell?