"blinking my eyes open, i see figure sitting there. at first i thought it was my imagination. they just stood there, staring at me, not moving. then the shadow shifted and i thought it was one of the corpses. but it didn't rush to me. maybe this was another stage of the transformation. patience and smarts. sit and wait for the prey to trust you, then strike. but that didn't happen. the figure just stared blankly back at me. in the dim lighting, it looked almost like Hexicaius. but i had already come to grips with my desolate situation of loneliness. maybe my prediction was right and it was just a dream. but then why would he be here instead of ashton? i didn't trust it. he could still be an infected. he shifted and started tapping his foot to the beat of a song, but i couldn't recognize the tune. my mind was so on edge that it couldn't think properly. part of it screamed 'he's your friend! you idiot. you asked for a companion, and here is one! run up to him, stand, do something, let him know you're ok!' but the rest of me hesitated. on one hand, he could be a human, and think i'm a corpse if i rush. but on the other, he could be an infected and bite me if i run to him and that would be the end of humanity as a species. my mind was having a civil war when he spoke. "this is a nice bunker you've got here. pretty tough to break into. but you left a few gaps that someone, or something, that was really determined could get in. but not bad for a start. i can tell you're trying to decide if im friend or foe, but i assure you, and you can check, i'm not a bitten. none of us are." my voice broke as i asked "us?" he laughed. if felt so good to hear another human being laughing, that i almost forgot the situation. questioned warred for center stage in my mind. is this a trick? have they learned how to cover up their marks? did the virus learn how to use their vocal chords? but my thoughts were cut off when he answered"us. me, ashton, deriah, sasha, skie, christina, stephanie, elisa, emerick , and jalieke. none of us are bitten. ashton is the leader and the one who has kept us alive for this long. and he hasn't stopped looking for you. not since we were all separated that day in the courtyard. we've been hiding out in what's left of the schoolhouse. but this looks like a better place to hide. ashton will be so happy to know your okay. i'll go get him now." with that, he let me alone with my thoughts. this time, the questions were the same, except for one. the question blaring the loudest in my head was 'could it be true? is he looking for me? how?' i realized i had been standing and sunk back against the wall, resting my head against the cold stone. i think im going to close my eyes for just a minute to try and sort things out in my head.
this is a very tired and confused amy rose, signing off.
