Clair de Lune

18. Five finger discount

My eyes were heavy when I woke up the next morning. Sleep hung heavy over my shoulders and I let out a sigh, only to find that I wasn't alone as I'd originally thought. Beneath my fingers was cold, smooth skin. My breath hitched in my chest and I felt a sudden heat in my face when I remembered that I'd fallen asleep in the same bed as someone else.

I glanced upward, finding that Necro was still asleep, his free hand tucked behind his head while the other one was wrapped around me. I blinked a few times and let out a deep breath, seeing that he was still fast asleep and was deep in a dream. I could see his eyes moving behind his eyelids as they traced the shape of whatever monster he'd been watching. I'd never taken the time to really examine his features until now, but he was handsome, or he would've been if he wasn't rotting. He didn't smell dead though, in fact he smelled like ash and salt. His hair was curled and seemed almost ashen, as if it's original color had been tainted gray.

My stomach twisted slightly and I realized I was hungry. I managed to worm my way out from Necro's grasp and set foot on the floor, the boards creaking slightly and sending shivers up my spine. Necro made a noise and I turned, listening to him as he whispered something garbled and full of fear. I felt my face fall into a grimace before I reached out and traced my fingers along his forehead, brushing his hair out of his face and watching as he settled down. The warmth must have been what made him feel better. A smile just barely pulled on the corners of my lips and I walked away, leaving him to continue in his dreams while I went to get breakfast.

When I got to the bottom of the steps I found Marshall looking slightly more put together than usual, his hair seemingly brushed back and a long leather coat adorning his shoulders. I paused and raised my eyebrow out of curiosity as he slipped what looked to be a shotgun into the inside of it.

"Going somewhere?" I asked.

"Yeah, I was plannin' on going shopping. We need actual food, not just deer meat." He paused. "You want to come with?"

"I don't really think a girl with holes in her cheeks can go out in public without getting questioned." I snorted, but watched as he pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to me. It was a medical mask, like people would wear when they were sick.

"This should keep you covered." He nodded. "Go wake the zombie for me."

"Someone say my name?"

We turned to see Necro coming down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and pausing to yawn. He was tired but he looked more well-rested than he had the day before.

"Yeah, we're going shopping."

"Oh, I'll go get my coat then."

He did a U-turn and hopped back up the steps, leaving me to pull the mask on over my face. It felt a little claustrophobic but I knew for my safety and everyone else's it would be best if I kept it on. Once he came back down I saw that he'd pulled the hood up on his coat and there was something inside it that he pulled up to cover the lower portion of his face. If anyone were to look at him head on he just looked like some blind guy.

"Alright kids, go pack into the car, we're goin' shopping." Marshall cackled, finding some wicked pleasure in the phrase. I gave him an odd look before following Necro out into the driveway where there was now an old pickup truck I hadn't seen the first time we came through. I clamored into the backseat while the boys took the front, buckling myself in while the engine roared to a start. My eyes were trained out the window the entire way into the heart of the town, watching the old buildings and the pretty blue skies. It had to be May by now, if not, at least close.

After about ten minutes we finally parked and hopped out of the car, finding one of the larger chain supermarkets sitting ahead of us. Everything was air conditioned and the floor was cold concrete. No strange looks were thrown our way when we walked in and I found that we weren't even the strangest looking ones there. My confidence in our actions skyrocketed as I watched Necro peel off from Marshall's path, instead taking his own to another section of the store. I decided to follow after him just to make sure he wasn't going to get himself into trouble.