Larry Stylinson ao3 one shots.

You're My Favorite Story

Written by:ziammehome

Summary:
A zombie outbreak leaves Liam teamed up with Zayn, a stranger with a motorcycle who saves Liam's life. Their world has been turned upside down, and all they really have is each other.

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Work Text:
Liam shivered as he left the library. The trees were just beginning to bloom, but the nights were still cold and crisp, not quite spring but no longer winter. Liam pulled down the sleeves of his hoodie from where they had been pushed up the elbow, and tucked his hands into his pockets for warmth. It had been another long night of studying, and campus was all but deserted at this late hour.
The library had been nearly empty when he left. There were only a few stray reading lights scattered across the desks, occupied by night owls or workaholics like himself. He didn't mind the short walk back to his apartment though, even at times like this, in the middle of the night.
He was almost to the edge of campus when he saw them, silhouetted in the moonlight a few yards off. There were three, stumbling slowly, low groans rumbling through their chests. It took him a moment to realize, to come to his senses and recognize them for what they were.
There had been news stories for weeks, but all isolated incidents, easily shut down and kept under wraps by the government. He recognized their hunched forms from the footage he had seen, ambling slowly across the lawn towards him, bloody arms outstretched.
After a few seconds of shock he took off sprinting. It had been awhile since he'd run, but years of high school cross country had prepared him well. He knew he could outrun the stumbling figures, but that didn't stop his heart from beating wildly in his chest with fear. This couldn't be happening. Things like this didn't happen.
There had been warnings, about precautions to be taken, but none of it had seemed real to Liam. He spared a moment to look behind him, twisting to glance back as he ran. The zombies had fallen far behind him, but he didn't let himself slow his pace.
Campus was behind him now, and he was glad for the lit streets of the city. He ran past a few apartment buildings, praying the tenants weren't a danger, that it hadn't spread so far yet. He knew his legs were getting tired but he didn't feel it. There was too much adrenaline pumping through his veins in his panic.
As he turned a corner he saw several standing at a distance, illuminated under the streetlights.  They were too far to worry about, but enough to crush Liam's hopes that there were only a few, that the three on campus had been the only ones.

He took a sharp left and ducked between two buildings, hoping to reach the main road beyond. He realized his mistake as he neared the end of the narrow passage, and two distorted shapes appeared blocking his exit. He hastily turned to retreat, to run back the way he had come. But when he turned he found the far end also occupied, another stumbling form heading his way. He looked around, frantic, desperately searching for a window or something, anything he could escape through.
In his hasty search, his eyes landed on a shovel, lying with other gardening supplies at the base of a wall. His hands shook as he reached for it, brandishing it with more confidence than he felt. He ran towards the end of the alley, emerging into the open street were the figures stood. The zombies were nearing him, and for the first time he could see them up close. This one was a man, his plaid shirt bloodstained and torn from what appeared to be bites. His skin was still mostly human. Only a slight grey tinge and a blood stained mouth revealing his contamination. Liam would remember this later, when the zombies' clothes were all torn to shreds, and their skin was rotting from their bones. He would remember how human they looked in the beginning, the blood still fresh and red when you killed them.
The eyes that met Liam's were dull and empty, almost like cataracts covering their once bright irises. The shovel felt heavy in Liam's hands. He had never been a violent person, beyond a few schoolyard scraps at the hands of bullies.
But he felt his instincts kick in, his fear escalating as the figure ambled forward. Time slowed and Liam swung the shovel. Aiming for the head seemed like his best bet, and the sharp edge of metal made contact with the zombie with a sickening crunch. Liam took another swing, more confident this time.
The zombie crumpled to the ground, its head bloody and brains smashed beyond repair. Or at least Liam hoped it was beyond repair, he didn't have much experience with how much it took to kill a zombie. He took off, getting a running start on his blow to the other zombie blocking his path. This one was a woman, still eerily human looking except for a bloody bite at the base of her throat. And of course, the eyes. They were just as cold as the others, just as lifeless.
He took a wild swing, but his aim was off and hit her in the shoulder instead of the head. It knocked her to the ground, but did nothing to stop her in her pursuit. She began crawling towards Liam, her twisted limbs pulling her across the sidewalk. She was close when Liam heard a noise like thunder, starting low but rapidly growing louder and closer.

A motorcycle pulled up, jumping from the road to the sidewalk and taking a sharp turn to crush the zombie's head beneath its wheels. Blood and brains shot out at the impact, splattering the tires with gore. The bike screeched to a stop in front of Liam, and the sharp turn caused it to dip low towards the pavement.
Liam looked towards the now lifeless zombie, and then back to the motorcycle before him, his eyes widening. He registered a figure in a leather jacket and scuffed doc martins, straightening the motorcycle from where it had tipped towards the ground. "Get on," a voice said, and Liam obeyed swiftly. He didn't have time to wonder whether or not he should trust this person, but compared to the alternative he didn't really have a choice.
He wrapped an arm tightly around the rider as they took off speeding down the street. It was a bit awkward with the shovel still tight in his other hand, but Liam was still shocked enough not to notice. The sped through the dark streets, and Liam could see a few more zombies wandering down alleys and pathways. They left them behind easily though, not giving them enough time to catch up to the bike or its riders.
"Where do you live?" Liam heard the driver shout over the sound of the motorcycle. "Garden Apartments, down on 8th," Liam shouted back, hoping his voice wasn't carried away by the wind as they drove. But the rider just shook his head. "Everything south of campus is overrun," he yelled, "all those apartments crammed with students, it happened quickly. Its pretty bad down there."
Liam's thoughts drifted briefly towards his roommate Andy, to his friends, wondering if they were okay or...not.
"I'm going somewhere I think might be safe, at least for tonight." The voice brought him back from his thoughts. "Do you want to come?" He heard the rider ask.
"I don't have much other choice, do I?" Liam answered truthfully, and felt the rider's chest rumble with a laugh in response.
"What's your name?" the rider asked. "Liam," he shouted back. He tightened his arm as they went over a bump, nearly throwing Liam off the back of the bike.
"Nice to meet you Liam, I'm Zayn," the rider said, turning to look over his shoulder at Liam briefly.
"Thanks for saving my life, Zayn," Liam shouted back over the loud engine.

They were entering a different part of town, one that had apparently been taken over more quickly than the one they were leaving. There were way more zombies littering the streets, wandering aimlessly.
The motorcycle sped through the crowd, knocking down zombies in its path. They were forced to slow down in the crowded street, and zombies began to eye the motorcycle with curiosity.  "Do you still have that shovel?" Zayn asked, his voice sounding panicked. "Yeah," Liam answered, remembering for the first time since he had gotten on the bike that he had the heavy weight in his hands. "Good, I think we're gonna need it," Zayn shouted back, and Liam noticed a zombie approaching the bike.
He took the handle in both hands and swung at the zombie. The blade of the shovel hit it square in the chest, knocking it out of the bike's path. It wasn't dead, but by the time it recovered they were already gone, out of its reach.
They made their way through the street like that, Liam clearing a path with the shovel, and Zayn running over more than a few fallen zombies in the road. By the time they were out of the worst of it, they were both covered in blood, still red from the newly made undead.
The shovel handle felt slick with blood in Liam's hand, and he was reluctant to release his tight grip even after they exited the fray.

The number of zombies thinned, and eventually they were alone on the road. Zayn wove through the dark streets, and slowed the bike to a gentler pace.
"I don't want the engine to make too much noise," he explained, over his shoulder. "I don't know if it will like, draw them, or what."

They continued cautiously through the streets, but Liam didn't see anyone lurching in the darkness. Suddenly, Zayn came to a stop in front of a darkened building. It looked like it might be a bar, but it was closed and empty.
The windows were shuttered and a grate was pulled down over the door. Liam wondered if it was closed because of everything, it seemed like the sort of place that would usually be open this time of night.
To Liam's surprise, Zayn led him instead to the side of the building, to a set of stairs leading down into a basement. A neon sign hung above the steps, the unlit words "Dirty Vinyl" accompanied by an arrow pointing down. "Want to help me carry the bike down?" Zayn asked, looking around worriedly. "I dont really want to leave it out here, in case, you know."
Liam nodded, and together they lifted the heavy motorcycle down the narrow steps.

Zayn pulled out a key when they reached the bottom and turned to fiddle with the lock, jiggling it a few times before it finally came unstuck. He turned to usher Liam inside, following with the bike in tow. Liam heard the door shut behind him, and turned to see Zayn locking the door once again.
The only light in the room was moonlight, filtered through high and narrow windows at the tops of the walls. Liam looked around in the weak light, taking in stacks of records and displayed guitars. Album covers lined the walls, along with peeling band posters and promotional flyers for local concerts.
"My roommate owns this shop," he heard Zayn say behind him. "It's only got the one door, and the windows are too small for anything to fit through," he continued, walking further into the shop, leaving the bike resting up against the wall. "I figured it's a good a place as any right now." Liam could see Zayn's hands shaking, and he felt his own body trembling. He figured they were both in shock, still processing the apocalypse coming down around them. Their breathing was ragged, filling the empty silence of the shop as they tried to catch their breath from the eventful ride.
"Is your roommate, is he coming too?" Liam asked, his voice sticking in his throat. They both knew what he was really asking.
"No, he's...that's why I couldn't go back to my apartment," Zayn answered, shaking his head. His eyes were trained on the ground, not meeting Liam's.

"Thank you for bringing me here, with you," Liam said quietly, wanting to change the subject. He had a feeling that losing people was something they were both going to have to get used to. Hell, he didn't even know if his family was okay. His cell was dead in his pocket, it had run out of battery while he was at the library. Zayn just shrugged. "You were pretty impressive with that shovel," he said, giving Liam a weak smile, "and to be honest, I didn't really fancy being here by myself," he admitted.
Liam just nodded, understanding. He didn't know what the hell was going on, but it was nice to have someone else there, to remind him that he wasn't crazy.
"Come on, there's a tv in the back," Zayn breathed out after a long moment. Liam followed him down the aisles of the shop, eery in the darkness. Zayn pushed open a door near the register, flipping on the light as they entered.

They were in what looked like a small office. There was a desk littered with papers, a mini fridge, shelves holding random odds and ends. This was probably where business was conducted, where breaks were taken when the shop was up and running. It seemed strange to Liam that it had just been open that day, or the day before. Now everything was changed, it would never open again.

Zayn shut and locked the door behind them, nodding at Liam when their eyes met. He crossed the room to the shelves, and pulled on the cord of a small tv, leaning down to plug it into the wall. It looked like an old set, old enough to have an empty vhs slot in the front.
Liam heard Zayn muttering to himself as he tried to get it to work. A sigh of relief escaped both their lips when it blinked to life. The reception was fuzzy but it was enough, and Zayn flipped hastily towards a news station.
A blonde woman appeared on the screen, looking stressed from behind her desk. "...Los Angeles, Houston, Seattle, Phoenix, Dayton, Las Vegas. I repeat. The following cities have been announced as contaminated: New York, Orlando, Charlotte, Nashville, Boston, Los Angeles, Houston, Seattle, Phoenix, and Dayton, Las Vegas. This just in, Tulsa and San Francisco have also been contaminated."
A map appeared on screen, each section of the country color coded. Fully contaminated areas were red, which were mostly big cities. The areas around them that it had most likely spread to were yellow.  "Shit," Liam heard Zayn breathe beside him. "Its everywhere." It was true, there was almost nowhere on the map that was still green, still safe.
"All citizens are advised to stay indoors. Find shelter where you can. The undead are most active at night. It appears that sunlight weakens them, but they are still mobile and dangerous during the day. The undead can only be killed by destroying their brains. The removal of limbs or even removal of the head will not be enough."
She continued on with more instructions, and updates on contaminated areas, her voice clearly shaking, her smile faltering at every line. They watched for a few more minutes, listening to the repetitive safety information, watching as a few more cities fell.


Zayn reached forward to flip the tv off. "Do you mind?" he asked, turning to Liam and gesturing towards the screen. Liam just shook his head. "There's no point, it's just a bit depressing." Zayn agreed, and turned off the set.
They were left standing in the silence of the room, neither sure what to do. "I think there's some drinks and snacks in here," Zayn offered. He turned towards the mini fridge, crouching down to examine its contents. "Umm, water would be nice," Liam said, realizing his thirst. He was rather hungry too, since he had skipped dinner at the library and then worn himself out fighting, but he didn't want to say anything. 
Zayn handed him a bottle of water, grabbing one for himself as well. Liam drank gratefully. The water was cold and cool on his dry throat, and he had to stop himself from downing half the bottle in one go. Who knew when the next time he would have bottled water was? Everything was uncertain now, he realized. His next meal, his next good night's sleep, even whether or not he would wake up in the morning.
"There's like, a sandwich in here?" Zayn said, pulling Liam from his thoughts. "Its not going to keep long anyway, want to split it?" Liam felt a sharp pang of hunger in his stomach. "Yeah, sure," he agreed, knowing Zayn was right. Any perishables that were left behind wouldn't last too long.
Zayn pulled the sandwich out of the fridge. It was in a clear, hard plastic container with a label, the kind you'd get at the deli of a supermarket, or in the refrigerated section of a gas station.
"It looks like ham and swiss, is that okay?" Zayn asked, opening the container and examining the food. The silliness of the question struck Liam. "Well, you know, I would prefer a BLT, but given the situation," he said to Zayn sarcastically. Zayn looked up at him with a smirk. "I guess you're right, doesn't matter much, does it?" Zayn said, his tone amused.
And then they both started laughing. Laughing because of the ridiculousness of the situation, because something like the ingredients of your sandwich would never matter again, because they were terrified and it felt good for just a moment.

They both settled down, smiling at each other semi-awkwardly. Zayn handed Liam his half of the sandwich, settling on the floor against the wall. Liam joined him on the floor, neither wanting to take the one chair at the desk. The settled into another silence as they ate, but it was less awkward than the ones before. Liam found himself once again grateful that he wasn't alone in this. They were sort of bonded, after what they had been through together in only a few short hours.
Liam surveyed Zayn's appearance for the first time. He had been too panicked before now, the moment too intense to register what he looked like. He had jet black hair and skin a few shades darker than Liam's own. He was wearing combat boots and jeans, and there was a faded t shirt on underneath his leather jacket. All of it covered with dried and darkening blood.
He caught Zayn eyeing him as well. Their eyes met briefly, and both boys looked away, embarrassed to be caught staring.
They finished their food, and Liam felt immediately better. Not quite sated, but the hunger was duller than before. Easy to ignore. They were both still seated on the floor, facing each other from opposite sides of the narrow room, their feet almost touching in the middle. "I guess we should, uh, try to get some sleep?" Zayn said, clearing his throat and taking another drink of water. Liam nodded. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea." He was exhausted, he thought as he checked his watch. 3 am.
Zayn stood up to turn the light off. "Wait," Liam interjected, standing. He went to the desk and grabbed the chair. He carried it the short distance to the door, and wedged it beneath the handle. It was just a small chair, but he figured that every bit might help. It made him feel better at least. "Good idea," Zayn said, nodding at Liam.

Then Zayn switched the lights off, and the boys were plunged into darkness. They both fumbled around trying to find room to sleep in the small space. They bumped into each other more than once getting settled, and soft expletives and apologies were exchanged in the darkness.
They finally got situated, lying on the filthy carpet of the office. The room was narrow, and as his eyes adjusted Liam could see that they were lying close. He would only have to move his hand a few inches for it to brush against Zayn's, and though he wouldn't, the thought was strangely comforting.
He had wadded up his sweatshirt beneath his head for a pillow, and he could see that Zayn had done the same with his leather jacket. They were both still in their clothes from the night before, stiff and splattered with blood. Liam wished he had something, anything else to change into, but it was a small annoyance compared to everything else.
He didn't think he'd ever been so tired. His muscles were aching from running so far, and his arms still burned from the swing of the shovel.  He knew he should sleep, but he wasn't sure if he could. He was jittery, tensing at every faint noise from outside, and he could feel Zayn doing the same at his side.
They lay like that for a while, wanting sleep to come, trying to will away the tension in their limbs and the erratic beating of their hearts. Liam heard Zayn sigh after a while.

"Liam?" Zayn asked softly, a voice in the darkness. He knew Liam was awake, but asked anyway.
"Yeah?" Liam replied, turning to face Zayn. He was reminded again how close they were, even though Zayn was just a faint outline in the black of the room.
"I just - I can't sleep and I figured talking might be nice. Distracting, you know?" Zayn's voice was shaky. He had seemed so tough earlier, riding his motorcycle confidently through the crowd of zombies. But now he sounded scared, almost vulnerable.
"Yeah, I can't sleep either," Liam admitted, wondering if he sounded similarly shaken.
"Everything I can think to ask about seems so silly now," Zayn said quietly, as much to himself as to Liam. "School, work, friends. All gone."
Liam knew what he meant. Even the time he spent at the library a few short hours ago felt like another life, when things like his calculus final mattered.
"Well, it's something to talk about at least," Liam answered. "It's easier anyway, talking about silly things. Otherwise we have to talk about serious things, and those are too sad."
He heard Zayn move beside him, and wondered if it was further or closer or just to get more comfortable.
"That's true," Zayn agreed after a moment. "So, you're a university student then? Or, were? Are? What are you studying?" Liam wanted to laugh at the awkward wording of Zayn's question.
"Engineering," he answered, "I wanted to design airplanes, and cars and all that. What about you?"
Zayn hummed next to him in the darkness. "You'll think it's silly, I mean silly anyway on top of being silly now. That's what everyone else has said at least," he admitted. His tone was defiant, but also a bit shy. Liam just waited for an answer. Zayn sighed, resignedly. "I was an English major, but also, like, pre med?"
It did confuse Liam a bit, now that he heard it. "But isn't that like, loads of coursework?" he asked. "If you're going to medical school, why English?"
"Because I love English. I love reading, and writing, and books. But, becoming a doctor has always sort of been the plan, according to my dad..." Zayn trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid between them.
"Ah," Liam said, understanding. He had a feeling there was more to the story with Zayn's dad, but he didn't know if it was his place to ask. He didn't know the etiquette for mid-apocalypse getting to know you sessions.


But Zayn continued on his own anyway. "It's just like, he's always been really adamant about it? And I just don't want to let him down, more than I already have I guess."
Liam didn't know if he should stay silent and let him vent, or provide input. He settled on a soft sound of understanding, hoping it was enough to encourage Zayn to keep talking, or sharing, or whatever he wanted to do.
Apparently it was enough, because Zayn did keep sharing, and so did Liam. He surprised himself, but it was easy to open up to someone when the world was ending around you, when their soft voice next to yours was the only thing keeping you anchored to any sort of reality. He told Zayn things he hadn't admitted to anyone before, about being bullied in grade school, about his dog's death that he had always blamed himself for, about the summer he spent in the hospital.
Zayn did the same, telling Liam about a poem he wrote for a girl in sixth grade who laughed in his face, about the time at camp when he almost drowned in the lake.
It felt nice, talking like that. It felt normal, if such a thing existed anymore. The close quarters were comforting now, instead of confining, and Zayn's breathing next to his was low and regular. They crept closer as they talked, not touching, but lying face to face.

After a few hours of slow stories and drooping eyelids, they forced themselves to discuss plans for the next morning. The television had made it sound like the whole country was going down, and the few shelters that had been created were in distant cities. 
They decided on two main points: that they needed to find food and supplies, and that they should try and contact their families. It seemed like a good enough plan, although the latter part had both boys worried, fearful of what they might discover. After settling that, they drifted off into a fitful sleep. Their words had calmed each other enough to rest, but not enough to stop the twitching of their limbs while they slept, or the  erratic nature of their dreams.
Sometime during the night, their hands found each other. It wasn't much, but it was a small comfort, a small reminder that they weren't quite alone. Not completely. They were tethered, at least a little bit, to something warm and alive and breathing lying beside them in the darkness.

Liam woke with a start the next morning, his body jerking awake sharply. It reminded him of dreams about falling, where you wake with a start just before you hit the ground. Except he hadn't been dreaming, and if he had, he couldn't remember it. Memories of last night came back to him, reminding him of the reason for his panic.
His outburst had woken Zayn as well, who startled awake a moment after Liam. They both registered their linked hands, and separated as they scrambled up to survey the room. Liam's heart was still erratic from his waking, but calmed as they found that they were, apparently, still safe.
The room was dim, only weak sunlight slipping in under the crack in the door. "Uh, morning," Zayn said quietly. His hair was standing up one side from sleep, mussed from tossing and turning. "Morning," Liam returned, giving Zayn a small smile.
"So...we should probably head out, yeah?" Zayn said, his voice trembling under a facade of bravado. Liam nodded. "I have my backpack, it's full of books but I clearly don't need those anymore." He was reminded again of how swiftly everything had been turned on it's head. He emptied the books onto the shelf, and began sorting through his backpack for any useful items.

"Where were you then, when, you know?" Zayn asked, watching Liam go through his things.
"I'd been at the library since about 3, when I left around midnight...well, that's basically where you come in," he answered, turning a notebook over in his hands, deciding if it was work keeping. "When did all this start? Where were you?" He asked Zayn.
"I was at work," Zayn answered, "at a coffee shop. I was closing. I'm not sure when the first...things...appeared, but around 10 I saw one stumble past," Zayn reached for a pair of scissors on the desk, handing them to Liam and gesturing for him to put them in his bag.
"I recognized it, from the news and stuff, and I kind of freaked out. I left the cafe, hopped on my bike, and went back to my apartment. On the way there, things weren't completely haywire yet, not like they were when we were passing through that part of town later. But when I got upstairs, my roommate, Ant...I'm not sure what happened, I think he must have been bit somewhere else, and then made it back to the apartment before it completely set in." Zayn was perched on the edge of the desk, looking at the ground.
Liam could tell Zayn wanted someone to know, needed someone to tell, but that the telling itself was hard on him.
"He was in the apartment, stumbling around. I couldn't kill him.I just-" Zayn was speaking in a whisper now. "He lunged at me, but I just kind of ducked. I grabbed his keys for the shop off the table, and ran. Hopped back on my bike...and that's where you come in," he finished, forcing a weak smile.
"I'm sorry," Liam said softly, and Zayn raised his eyes to meet Liam's. He could see they were holding back tears, and he was once again faced with confusion about Zayn. Fighting, he had been so motorcycle and combat boots tough guy, but right now he seemed so...vulnerable.

Zayn coughed, dispelling the tension of the moment. "Ready? Is there anything else we should grab?" he asked, looking around the office. Liam shrugged. "Should we bring any of the other food or something?" He didn't know if Zayn planned on them coming back here, or if it would even still be safe later.
"Maybe," Zayn replied, and he ducked to grab the apples and cheese sticks from the fridge. After tucking them into Liam's bag, their eyes met. They had no reasons left to stay, but they were both terrified to open the door.
"On three?" Liam asked, tentatively. Zayn nodded. "One," Zayn said. "Two," Liam added. "Three," they finished together.
Zayn moved the chair out of the way and unlocked the door, opening it slowly and peering out into the shop.
"Everything looks okay..." he whispered, and Liam could hear the tremor in his voice. It was different when you were staring something in the face, Liam thought, when it was a real threat in front of you and you had to either take care of it or die. Now, there was too much uncertainty. There could be something behind every corner, waiting.
Liam tightened his grip on the shovel and followed Zayn out into the store. They stuck close, and neither said anything when their hands quickly found each other again.
A quick survey of the shop revealed that it was empty, no windows broken, the door still firmly locked. They both let out a sigh of relief, but kept their hands together, unacknowledged, between them.

They didn't know what had happened during the night. This part of the city, which had been seemingly safe last night, could have been overtaken. They knew the zombies were affected by sunlight, but the news had said that they were still around, still dangerous even in their weakened state.
Because of this, they were hesitant to open the door. They didn't know if they would have enough time to get the motorcycle carried up, but they didn't really have a choice. Liam felt himself subconsciously gripping Zayn's hand tighter, and he felt the pressure returned a moment later before Zayn let go to grab the motorcycle.
Liam undid the lock, and they both took a deep breath. Zayn nodded at Liam, and Liam opened the door, holding it so Zayn could push the motorcycle through.
They couldn't see much from the bottom of the steps, but they didn't see any immediate danger on the street level.
"Should we lock it behind us?" Liam asked, gesturing to the door.
Zayn shrugged, "I guess so, just in case, yeah?" He turned to lock it while Liam looked around again, nervous.

They carried the bike up the steps carefully, and Liam's muscles protested after the strain of last night. They hopped on as soon as they got to the top, and both felt better when they were moving down the street, out of reach. But Liam still held the shovel tightly in one hand, gripping Zayn's waist with the other to keep him on the bike.
The streets were mostly empty, washed out in the bright sunlight. Liam's eyes widened as they entered downtown. It was like an entire world had ended overnight. Windows were broken, cars and trucks abandoned and left with doors hanging open. And bodies littered the streets, both of humans and zombies.
Liam felt Zayn shudder beside him as they drove past the carnage. They saw a few zombies stumbling around, but they didn't give the motorcycle any trouble. What the news had said was right, they were slower, weaker during the day. If there had been more they would have worried, but as it was they drove by without any trouble.
A car appeared at the end of their street, moving towards them. Zayn slowed the bike and the car pulled up beside them, rolling a window down cautiously. There was a man and a woman inside, a few years older than Liam and Zayn by the looks of them.

"You boys alright?" the woman asked, calling from the passenger's seat. Zayn nodded.
"We're fine, m'am, what about you two?" Zayn called back through the open window.
"We're alright, we're headed down to the shelter a few towns over," the man responded, gesturing to the backseat of their car. It was filled with canned food and supplies.
Their conversation was brief, both parties anxious to get moving again. They felt like sitting ducks in the middle of the road, despite the emptiness of the street and the brightness of the day. The couple gave Zayn and Liam directions to the shelter, along with orders to look them up if they ever made their way down there. Zayn agreed, and they filed away the information for later use. They didn't know what their plans were yet, but they certainly weren't prepared to take a long distance journey with no supplies.

They wished the couple luck, and continued down the street. They had decided to stop at Liam's apartment first, to check on his roommates, and hopefully gather supplies. Zayn needed a weapon, and the apples and cheese they had wasn't enough to get them anywhere. Liam hoped the phone lines would be working, that they would be able to call their families. Zayn's cell still had battery, but the service had been out since late last night.
A few more cars sped past them, but none stopped. Everyone was eager to get out of town, or back to their homes, or anywhere that thought they might be safe.
They arrived in the student section of town, and it was apparent that Zayn had been right about it being hit hard. The streets were littered with bodies, and there were more zombies moving around than there had been on the roads near the record store.

Liam took out a few ambling around the perimeter of the apartment, crushing their heads flat with the broad side of the shovel. He felt nauseous all of a sudden, eyeing the gore on the ground before him. His eyes fell to his own body, now splattered in fresh blood.
"Hey," Zayn said, taking in Liam's ashen face. "You okay?" He had stayed behind Liam while he fought, and he was eager for the security of a weapon in his own hands.
Then Liam was doubled over, heaving onto the pavement near the base of the wall. Waves of nausea washed over him even after he had emptied his stomach, which had been nearly empty to begin with anyway.
He was upset at himself for his reaction. He couldn't get sick every time he killed a zombie. He would have to get used to the blood and the gore and push away the guilt. It was the only way to stay alive, he reasoned.
Zayn reached out a hand to rub Liam's back, but pulled it away. He wasn't sure what to do, if Liam would want the contact. He settled on a light hand on his shoulder, resting there reassuringly. Liam straightened, the sickness passing. Zayn was  looking around warily, uncomfortable with staying out in the open for so long.

"Let's go," Liam nodded, signaling to Zayn that he was ready. Zayn nodded, and they entered the apartment staircase slowly.
"Shit," Zayn said as they reached the top, finding a lone zombie wandering through the hallway. Liam pushed past Zayn and took her out with the shovel quickly. "They really are everywhere, aren't they," Zayn breathed out, voice shaking. It seemed different to see them here, inside, where humans are supposed to be.
She had been alone, but there could be others, and the boys entered Liam's apartment warily. The door was unlocked, but the inside of the apartment seemed relatively untouched. Liam made a quick survey of the rooms and found Andy's bed made. Whatever else happened, Liam knew fairly certainly that he hadn't made it home last night.
Zayn came in behind him after checking the rest of the apartment. "Looks clear, mate," Zayn said, joining him in Andy's room. He followed Liam's eyes to the made bed, seemingly untouched since the day before.
"Hey, he could be okay," Zayn offered weakly. "He could be out somewhere, like us, you know?" Liam nodded. "Right, yeah, he could be." But he didn't quite believe it.
Liam turned his attention to Zayn. "You can go ahead and try to call your parents, see if the landline is working." He prayed it would be. "And I'll try and get some supplies together." Zayn nodded, and Liam led Zayn to the wallphone in the kitchen.

He had never used the landline while he had lived here. He wasn't even sure if anyone had the number, he used his cell for everything. But he was glad for it's existence now, glad for his mothers' insistence that it was more practical. She had turned out to be right.
Thoughts of his mother brought a pang to Liam's chest, and he hoped that when he called his family, someone would answer. He left Zayn in the kitchen and headed to his room, pulling his hiking backpack down on the shelf and beginning to survey his room for supplies.
He looked around his room, taking it all in. Nothing had changed. His room looked the same is it would on any other day. But everything was different, and it felt wrong to him that his room had the audacity to ignore the way the world had turned upside down. The normality should have been comforting, but it wasn't.

He had only been a few minutes when Zayn reappeared behind him, leaning against the door. "Nothing?" Liam asked. Zayn just shook his head.
"I tried a couple times, just kept getting voicemail. I left a message, telling them I was okay and everything, but -" Zayn's voice broke slightly, and he fixed his gaze on the floor.
"Hey they could be safe somewhere else, you know?" Liam said, but his words didn't seem to have an effect.
"I'm gonna go try mine," Liam said gently, and Zayn nodded, still not meeting Liam's eyes. "If you want, you can keep looking around for anything useful, I'll be back in a few."
He handed his backpack off to Zayn and headed towards the kitchen. He picked up the receiver and dialed his home phone with shaking hands.

Every ring felt like an eternity. He wondered if this was how Zayn felt, and hoped that it wouldn't end up the same way. But Zayn's family could still be okay, he reasoned. They could be hiding, or in a shelter, there could be a million reasons why they were away from the phone.
But he wanted his family to pick up. He wanted the assurance, and he was sure Zayn had too.
His heart almost stopped when he heard the line pick up. "Hello?" he heard this mother's voice say. She sounded shaken.
"Mom?" Liam said, breathless into the receiver. "Liam? Oh, Liam honey is that you? Are you okay?" There were tears in her voice this time, and Liam felt a lump in his own throat as well.
"I'm fine. Are you and dad okay?" Liam asked. Now that he had her on the line, there were a million things he wanted to say. But he had to take care of the most important ones first.


"We're okay, honey," his mother continued, trembling. "You almost missed us. Your father and I are going with the Nelsons, from next door. We're going to a shelter a few towns over. Where are you?"
She sounded panicked when she asked about Liam. "I'm at my apartment, but I can't stay here. The city its...its not safe."
"Can you make it down here to us? Are you alone? Oh Liam honey, I just wish we could all be together, in case -" At this his mother really started crying. Liam could hear muffled sobs into the phone, and he fought back tears of his own.
"I'm not alone mom, I'm okay. I'm with... a friend. We'll try to make it to you, okay?" He tried to reassure her but he could hear his own voice shaking.
"Alright baby. I've - we've got to go. But I love you, okay? I love you so much," his mother cried into the phone.
"I love you too mom. Be safe." His breath voice was shaky, close to breaking.

He heard the click of the line going dead and broke down. He was terrified by the finality of the conversation. He had just spoken to them a few days before, when everything was normal. His mother had asked about his grades, about his scholarship, about his friends, if he was dating. He wondered if he would hear her voice again.
It was only a few seconds after the call ended that Liam heard a series of crashes from down the hall, and a panicked, "Liam," coming from his room.
Liam wiped his eyes as he stood. He raced down the hall to his bedroom and found Zayn, standing over the body of a zombie. He looked shaken, and in his hands he had Liam's baseball bat, now covered in dark blood.
"Are you okay?" Liam asked, taking in Zayn's pallor. Zayn just nodded.
"I, uh, I found this," he said, gesturing to the bat. "It's a lot less scary with the motorcycle," he added shakily.
Liam eyed the carnage on the floor.
"What happened?" he asked. Zayn shrugged.
"Must have wandered in. I had my back to the door when I heard someone coming in. I thought it was you till I turned, and, yeah. Luckily, I already had this within reach," he added, waving the bat. "otherwise..."

They both knew what would have happened otherwise, and Liam shuddered at the thought. "I'm sorry I didn't hear him come in, I was on the phone -" Liam said. He felt guilty that he had left Zayn unprotected, taking the shovel into the kitchen with him. Zayn brushed it off, he was more interested in the fact that Liam had gotten ahold of his family.
"Are they okay? What did they say?" he inquired.
"They're fine. Well, its just my parents. My mom said they're going to a shelter nearby, they want me to come. Us, us to come," he added, not wanting Zayn to think Liam was ditching him.
Zayn looked thoughtful for a moment. "How far is it from here?" he asked, considering. Liam thought.
"A few days, driving?" he guessed. "If you have any other ideas...I just thought. I don't know." Zayn thought for a moment.
"I think we should try," Zayn said finally. "We have nothing keeping us here, and traveling is about as safe as staying anywhere," he shrugged. He was right, neither of them had any reason to stay.
"So we try?" Liam asked, meeting Zayn's eyes.
"Yeah," Zayn said, looking back at Liam determinedly. "We try."

After the incident, the remains of which were lying gory on Liam's floor, neither of them were too keen on hanging around the apartment much longer. They took what they needed from the rest of the apartment, searching through Liam's things for anything that seemed useful and traveled easily. This mainly consisted of some camping supplies and any food they could take without refrigerating.
They ate as well, making a small meal of some of the perishables in Liam's kitchen. "I guess you get your BLT now," Zayn said teasingly, watching Liam cutting tomatoes at the counter.
"Yeah, I guess I do," Liam joked back, his knife halting. Had that only been last night? That he had met Zayn, that they had shared a sandwich holed up in a basement office. It already felt like forever ago, though it was only a few short hours.
They sat together at the kitchen table as they ate. Liam saw Zayn peeking through the shutters, his eyes widening at what he saw.

"What's wrong?" Liam asked, panic already rising in his chest. "Come look," Zayn said, gesturing with his hand for Liam to join him on his side of the table.
Liam stood and crossed to the window, separating the blinds to look through. The apartment faced a parking lot on the side of the building opposite from where they'd entered.
Liam understand Zayn's surprise when he looked out. The parking lot was littered with the undead. Some were congregated into groups, other were just standing, or ambling aimlessly.
He didn't think they would see Zayn and Liam through the window, but the view sent chills down his spine anyway. "Shit, there are more than I thought," Liam whispered. Zayn was close at his side, and he breathed out a small agreement.
Zayn straightened first, moving away from the window. "We should get out of here as soon as possible," he said, hastening to finish his sandwich.
Liam agreed, and they ate quickly before hurrying to finish their preparations.

Liam wanted to take a few of the bigger knives from the kitchen, but had no idea how to carry them without accidentally injuring himself or Zayn. He was so completely new to this. He had no idea how to figure out what they would need in a survival situation, what would be useful in an emergency.
He ended up wrapping the knives tightly in a kitchen towel and sticking them at the bottom of the bag. They were safe there, but they weren't very accessible either. He was already frustrated at this point so he left it, slinging the pack on his back and going to meet Zayn back in the bedroom.
Zayn was seated on Liam's bed, planning out a route in an old travel guide Liam had with his books. He looked up when Liam came in. "Ready?" Liam asked, leaning against the doorframe.
"We need gas." Zayn said bluntly. "For the bike. We can't make it this far on one tank." Liam hadn't considered that. It's funny how many things you don't notice you need until the world ends.
"How much?" Liam asked, and Zayn had an answer ready. "For the whole trip...probably about three tanks. I would bet there are at least a few gas stations between here and there, but we should leave the city with a full tank, maybe carrying a little extra to be safe."
He had clearly put a lot of thought into this, and Liam was impressed. Not for the first time, he was glad they were doing this together. "Alright, so we'll get some gas. Do you think the pumps are still working?"
"I don't see why not, its worth a try at least," Zayn answered. They both nodded, and Zayn stood up to collect his pack.

It struck Liam that he was probably leaving his apartment for the last time. He eyed his movie collection, his stack of sports magazines. Things like this didn't matter anymore, and would never matter again.
He felt Zayn's hand find his own, and he took it gratefully. Zayn gave it a squeeze and tilted his head towards the door, signaling that they should probably go. Liam nodded. He noticed the bat in Zayn's other hand, Zayn's knuckles whitened by his tight grip.
They made their way warily out of the apartment. Liam wondered how many of the apartments now housed the undead, how many zombies were wandering somewhere in the halls. He shuddered at the thought, and hurried them down the stairs.
They met no opposition leaving the building, but there were a few zombies scattered around the bike. They parted hands, both taking their respective weapons firmly into their grips.
Liam took the ones on the left, and Zayn took the ones on the right. Liam was glad for the help this time, and he knew that Zayn felt less helpless with the baseball bat in his hands.
Liam made quick work of the few zombies in his line of sight. He turned to find Zayn finishing off the last one, the swing of the bat meeting the side of its head with a sickening noise.
It seemed the tough Zayn was back, and he turned to Liam with hard eyes. He had a smear of blood across his forehead, and Liam could feel blood on his own skin as well.

They had changed clothes at Liam's. Well, Liam had changed. Zayn had borrowed a shirt but kept his own jeans, and was once again wearing his leather jacket. It didn't end up mattering much, as Liam's new clothes were already almost as bloody as the old ones had been.
They climbed onto the bike, and it was a bit more awkward now with the extra things they were carrying. Liam had the large pack on his back, and had given his smaller backpack to Zayn. It pressed uncomfortably against Liam's chest when he climbed onto the back, but it wasn't impossible.
He held the shovel in his hand, and Zayn's baseball bat lay across his lap, pinned in place between their bodies.
Their ride to the gas station was, thankfully, uneventful. Once they left the city proper, the roads cleared. They still saw a few stray zombies wandering, but none gave them any trouble.

Zayn pulled up at a gas station on the outskirts of town. It was connected to a small mini-mart, and the neon on the sign was still glowing.
"Should we...Do we have to pay to get it to work?" Liam asked uncertainly. Neither of them were sure what to do, what the best way to get fuel was.
They ended up paying for it anyway, Liam swiping his credit card with a shrug. It wasn't like it mattered much, he had a feeling money would be of little use to them later on.
The tank began to fill, and the boys relaxed a little. The area seemed deserted. They had seen no signs of life, undead or otherwise.

"Im gonna take a piss," Zayn said. He walked over to the building and stood facing the side wall.
Liam averted his eyes politely, but a few moments later he heard a disturbing moan. He turned to find a woman lurching from behind the building towards Zayn.
It all happened so fast that Liam had no time to react, no time to help Zayn.
Zayn jumped, startled as he was tucking himself back into his jeans. He ducked out of her way just as her bloody arms reached out towards him. He tried to evade her further but she was moving faster than the others had, and she was close on his heels.
Zayn dealt her a sharp elbow to the face, which offset her balance enough for him to knock her to the ground. From there, he brought his heavy boot down onto her head and neck. He stomped again and again until there was nothing left.
"Shit," Liam said, sprinting over to where Zayn stood. This time Zayn looked peaked, still reeling from the attack. And probably from having to kill her so gruesomely, Liam thought.

"Are you okay?" Liam asked urgently, putting his hands on Zayn's shoulder's to support him.
"She was - fuck she was moving so fast," Zayn let out, his breathing staggered and shaky.
"Her wounds looked fresh," Liam added. "She must have been newer, it must have just happened."
"That means..." Zayn added. They came to the realization at the same time. If she had just been bitten there was at least one more around. They both rushed to their weapons, Zayn shaking off the trauma of his attack.
Just then, a group of zombies appeared on the same side of the building the woman had come from. There were about a dozen, more than Zayn and Liam had taken on without the motorcycle.
They both glanced at the gas gauge as the zombies made their slow approach. They either had to leave without enough gas, or brave the pack of zombies. Liam was panicking, his hand sweating around the wooden handle of the shovel.
The zombies were almost upon them, and then it was too late to leave in time.
Liam looked over at Zayn, and they exchanged a brief look of affirmation before they set to it.
Liam swung the shovel wildly. He felt surrounded, bloody hands and gaping mouths reaching for him. The shovel kept them back, but no amount of injury deterred them while their brain was still in tact.
One blow wasn't enough to knock their brains out, but it was enough to get them on the ground. From there he smashed it with the shovel head, or with his boot, taking a lesson from Zayn.

He had taken out about three, leaving him three more to deal with. One of them, a man in a suit and tie, had large bites taken from his neck. When Liam swung at him with the shovel, his head was knocked clean off, rolling to the side.
Liam quickly took out the other two, one of them just in time. Her hands had been around Liam's arm, bringing it threateningly close to her mouth.
When she finally lay splattered on the ground, Liam looked to find Zayn. He was finishing off his pack with the baseball bat, just smashing the last of them menacingly in the head.
Zayn looked up at him and his eyes widened. "Liam," he shouted warningly, pointing behind him.
Liam turned just in time to see the headless body of the suited man approaching. He wrapped his arms around Liam, but without the head he couldn't bite.
Without the head, Liam couldn't kill him either.
Liam fought against the bloody limbs, unable to reach his shovel. "The head, Zayn!" he shouted, "Find the head!"
Zayn jumped at the command and nodded, setting off to search for the dismembered head. Liam continued to wrestle with the corpse, his arms pinned at his side with surprising strength.
It was about a minute later that Zayn shouted victoriously, and Liam heard the crunching of a skull from a few yards off.
The arms around Liam went slack, and Liam pushed them off eagerly, brushing instinctively at his clothes, as if he could wipe the contact off.
Zayn returned from smashing the head and rushed to Liam's side. "Fuck, are you okay?" he asked, looking at Liam with concern.
Liam nodded, catching his breath with his knees on his hands. "I guess. Fuck. I guess we know now that its not enough to just slice the head off," he panted out. He recalled that the news anchor had mentioned it last night. He had heard it, but it had been forgotten in the panic of the fight.
"And that they travel in packs, apparently," Zayn added, his own breath ragged as well. "You're okay, right?" Zayn said more softly, sounding genuinely worried. Liam nodded, and they stood in silence for a moment.
The tank had filled while they were fighting, and they got going quickly. They were both eager to be away from here and on the road again, leaving the carnage of the fight behind them.

They continued down the road until the sun began to go down. It was a beautiful sunset. From the back of the motorcycle Liam watched the tinges of deep orange and pink begin to spread across the horizon.
It was almost night, when the zombies were stronger, bolder. They decided to find a place to stay the night before it got too dark to stop. They could continue riding through the night, but they were both exhausted, and Zayn admitted that he wasn't sure he could keep riding without sleep.
They pulled off at a small farmhouse, isolated on the long road. They both figured it was safer than a more populate area, but in all honesty neither of them really knew which areas would be safer. They were both new to this, figuring out a predator that had barely existed for 24 hours.
But the house seemed safe enough. They killed two zombies in the living room, a man and a woman who set on them as soon as they entered. It wasn't until they were lying immobile on the carpet that it occurred to Liam that they had probably lived here, before.

"I feel a bit bad," he said, looking at Zayn, and then back at the figures on the ground. "It's like we're killing them and taking their house." He frowned.
"It's not like they could really live her, Li," Zayn said reassuringly. He put a hand on Liam's arm and guided him further inside.
They searched the rest of the house together, hands grasped tightly between them. They opened every room, every closet, checked under all the beds. They were both paranoid, terrified of being attacked while they slept.
It was a nice house, with decorative rugs and embroidered pillows and pictures lining the walls. They didn't look too closely at the pictures, didn't want to see any faces resembling the bloody ones they had been met with when they entered.
The house was empty, and they both breathed a sigh of relief as they shut the last door behind them. But the house was still far from secure, there were too many windows, too many doors that could be broken down in the night. Liam thought longingly of the small basement office of the record store.
"What room do you think is the safest?" Liam asked turning to Zayn in the dark hallway. Zayn thought for a moment.
"Maybe, that bathroom on the first floor?" he suggested. "There aren't any windows, and there's just the one door. Plus it's sort of tucked away, we'd hear them coming before they arrived."
Liam agreed, and they started getting set up to rest for the night. They mostly stuck together, but Liam had ducked into one of the rooms to grab blankets and pillows when he heard Zayn call his name.
It didn't sound alarmed, but Liam hurried out to find Zayn anyway. He was standing in a room they had already checked, gazing at one of the walls.
"Yeah?" Liam said, following Zayn's voice inside. Zayn nodded his head towards the wall, and Liam followed his gaze.
There was a rifle hanging on the wall. Liam's eyes widened when he saw it. It would definitely come in handy for them. Zayn was smiling at his side, excited about his discovery.
"There's gotta be ammo around here somewhere," Zayn said, and they began searching through the drawers. They soon found several boxes of bullets, and tucked them away with the rest of their things.

The sun was set by the time they finished, and they prepared to settle into the bathroom. They set up as many barriers as they could between them and any entrances to the house. They locked the outer doors, and then pushed the heaviest pieces of furniture they could find in front of them.
They dragged one of the heavy dining room chairs into the bathroom with them, and wedged it between the handle and the floor like they had in the office the night before.
The bathroom was small. It was really just a powder room, with a toilet, and sink, and a few cabinets. They had brought in blankets and pillows from the bedroom, which now sat in a pile on the bathroom floor.
Liam looked over at Zayn, who was slipping out of his leather jacket and boots. He followed suit, and began helping Zayn arrange he blankets into a little nest on the floor. They had stuck their backpacks on the toilet and in the sink, trying to leave themselves as much floor space to sleep as possible.
Once they had set up a bed they settled, sitting on the floor together in the middle of their nest. Liam could tell it was going to be a tight fit for sleeping, even sitting now their knees brushed  as they faced each other.
Zayn let out a sigh, leaning his head against the wall and closing his eyes. It was the first time all day that they had really been able to stop, to rest. And even now they weren't completely safe, praying their makeshift barricade would hold should any danger come.

"Tired?" Liam asked Zayn softly. Zayn opened his eyes to meet Liam's.
"More hungry, I think," Zayn said with a smirk, and he got up to grab the food they had foraged from the house's kitchen.
They had a dinner of cold mashed potatoes and apple pie. There had even been a pitcher of fresh orange juice in the fridge.
They ate ravenously. Liam knew that under any other circumstances the cold meal would have been unappetizing, maybe even repulsive. But tonight, after their day of endless riding and terrifying encounters, it was the most delicious thing Liam had ever tasted.
Liam knew that they had been lucky. Soon the food in fridges would start to rot, and they would be left with whatever non-perishables they could forage. There wouldn't always be dinners like this.
Afterwards they settled in on the bathroom floor, content and sated. "Here, let me -" Zayn said, gesturing to Liam to hand him the shovel and bat. Liam obliged, and Zayn leaned them both up against the bathroom wall. "That way we can reach them easily if..." he didn't finish his sentence. He didn't need to.
Liam had noticed in their short but eventful time together that Zayn was smart. Not just book smart, which Liam was sure he was, but he was clever. It made Liam even more glad they were traveling together, as he had already benefitted more than once from Zayn's quick thinking.
They double checked that everything was in its place before flipping off the light, plunging them into the same total darkness as the night before.

Liam could feel Zayn right beside him as he settled in. Their bare arms were touching, and he felt Zayn's knee brush against his leg.
To be honest, he didn't mind the proximity at all. It was comforting, having Zayn close, and he was getting used to it. The farthest apart they had been in the past 24 hours was the few feet between them when they were fighting the zombies. They had spent last night close in the office, and most of the day pressed together on the motorcycle. Liam was growing accustomed to the reassurance of Zayn's body close against his, warm and living.
After a while he heard Zayn's breathing change beside him, hitching every few seconds. "Hey," he said quietly, turning towards Zayn in the complete darkness. "Are you okay?"
He brought one of his hands up to find Zayn's arm, curving around it gently.
"I, yeah I'm fine," Zayn sounded embarrassed. "Just thinking about my family," he finished. Liam felt a pang of guilt that he had been able to reach his parents, while Zayn hadn't.
Liam rubbed his hand gently up and down Zayn's arm. "They could be safe, you dont know..." he started, but Zayn cut him off.
"You're right, I DONT know. And if I don't know now I probably never will, because even if they're alive there's no way I'll be able to find them."
His tone was angry but Liam could hear the tears beneath it, the sadness breaking through the facade. Liam didn't know what to say.
Zayn was right. Not just about his family, but about anyone they had ever known. Sure, they might run into some people in shelters, but most people would just be a question mark forever. Either dead or unreachable, and it didn't much matter which it was.

"I'm sorry." he whispered to Zayn. He heard Zayn's breath hitch again beside him. It was such a sad sound. 
And then Zayn was curling into Liam, bridging the already short distance between them. This surprised Liam, but he wrapped his arms around Zayn and held him close anyway. 
Zayn muffled quiet sobs in Liam's chest, and Liam rubbed his hands up and down Zayn's back. He murmured whatever he could think of, that it was okay to cry, that it was ok to be sad, that he was right there and they were ok.
After a while Zayn's breath slowed, but Liam could tell he wasn't sleeping. "Shit, sorry, I -" Zayn said suddenly, moving from Liam and sounding embarrassed.
"It's okay, really," Liam said. He didn't want Zayn to feel bad, and he sort of missed the comfort of Zayn's body pressed against his.
"To be honest I was crying like a baby in the kitchen earlier when I called my mom," he confided, hoping it would assuage Zayn's embarrassment. It wasn't like they didn't have plenty of reasons to be sad, to cry.
"Yeah?" Zayn asked, hesitantly settling back against Liam. "Yeah." Liam confirmed, feeling a lump rise in his own throat.

They lay curled together for a long moment before Zayn spoke again, his voice still thick with tears.
"Tell me...tell me a good memory. One of your favorites." Zayn said quietly. Liam recalled the night before, how talking had calmed them both down.
"About what?" Liam asked. "Anything," Zayn said, his head back on Liam's chest.
Liam thought back, to birthday parties, family vacations, memorable moments he had clung to over the years.
"Hmm...When I was in ninth grade, I joined the cross country team. I had always liked running, and it just seemed like something fun to do. But then I ended up being pretty good. Really good, actually, for my age. My coaches even guessed that I would make it all the way to state as a freshman. I had never had a lot of things I was good at, enough for people to take notice, so it felt good."
He paused before continuing, listening to Zayn's breathing. "Im still awake," Zayn offered, as if reading his mind. "Keep going."
"So, anyway, my dad wasn't really able to make it to many of my meets. He saw a few, but work kept him busy. He missed most of my races, but it wasn't a huge deal to me. I knew he would have been there if he could.
Anyway, I did make it to state, which was in a town a few hours from ours. I knew my parents wouldn't be able to make it, but I was fine with it. So I ran my big race, and I won, and I was pretty ecstatic because its kind of a big deal for a freshman to win. And then I saw my Dad, pushing through the crowd towards me. He had taken the day off to come surprise me, so he could see me race. It was just really nice."
Liam hadn't expected the story to make him emotional, but his throat felt thick by the time he was finished.
"That does sound nice," Zayn said, rubbing a hand on Liam's arm soothingly.
"Alright, your turn now," Liam said, clearing his throat, willing away the tears brimming in his eyes.

Zayn hummed against Liam's chest. "Alright, in high school, me and my buddy Ant wanted to go to this music festival really badly. Radiohead was playing, which we were dying to see, but it was in a town a couple of hours away, and it was during the school year." he adjusted himself against Liam, rearranging the blanket a bit before continuing.
"We decided it was worth it, so we skipped school that day and drove down. It was pretty fucking amazing. The concert was outside, and the weather was kind of perfect and the crowd was incredible. And the band was fantastic, so much better live. We ended up getting plastered and not driving home until the next day. We got in shitloads of trouble for it, but it was worth it. It was just one of those moments, you know?"
Zayn sounded happy as he finished, and Liam was glad that the memory had comforted him. "That sounds great," Liam said, absentmindedly rubbing Zayn's back before realizing that it might be weird.
Liam thought about his family, his parents. It had been less than 24 hours since he had spoken to his mom, but it was enough. Enough time for something bad to have happened, for them to have been...Liam gulped. He didn't want to think about it.
He hoped they would reach them soon, reach the safety of the shelter.
Zayn stirred softly against him.
"Zayn?" Liam said quietly a moment later. He wasn't sure if Zayn had fallen asleep yet or not. "Hmm?" Zayn hummed quietly in response.
"I'm glad I'm not alone, I mean, I'm glad you're here," Liam said. It was a normal enough thing to say, but it felt embarrassing to Liam, and he felt vulnerable admitting it to Zayn.
But Zayn just agreed sleepily, and searched for Liam's hand underneath the blankets. For the second night in a row, they fell asleep holding hands.

They spent the night safely, tucked away in the small bathroom. Zayn had set the alarm on his watch, and they awoke to its incessant beeping right next to their heads.
Liam groaned at the noise as Zayn tried clumsily to turn the alarm off, mashing buttons until the beeping quieted.
They allowed themselves another moment before they got up, lying quiet but awake. It was still dark in the bathroom, only weak morning light filtering in through the crack beneath the door. They had set the alarm for 6:30, not wanting to waste any daylight.
Zayn sighed beside him, and reached up to flip the light switch on the wall. Liam groaned and threw his arm over his eyes, squinting at the sudden brightness.
He was relieved that they had made it through the night. His sleep had been shallow, but he felt more rested than he had the night before. His joints popped as he stretched, and his muscles were still sore from the strain of the past two days.
"Come on sleepyhead," Zayn's voice came teasingly, closer than Liam expected. He opened his eyes to find Zayn leaning over him, propped up on one elbow.
"I'm awake," Liam protested, pulling himself up and out of their makeshift bed. There was still running water in the sink, and Liam rinsed his face and neck. Zayn followed suit, and flinched as the water ran a brownish red from blood he was certain wasn't his own.
After packing up, they opened the door to the house cautiously. Liam listened for any noises of movement, venturing further out when he heard none. It appeared that the house had been undisturbed during the night.

"Maybe we should put all the blankets and stuff back," Liam offered, gesturing to the mess they had left in the bathroom.
"I know they aren't coming back -" he said, cutting Zayn off when he opened his mouth to answer, "But someone else could come? Like us? I don't know, I just feel bad leaving it like this."
He didn't quite understand why it was important to him. Maybe he was just clinging to the last shreds of normality, of humanity. He wasn't ready for those things to not matter, not yet.
Zayn nodded, and his eyes were soft. "Sure, Li. We'll clean it up."
Liam could tell Zayn was humoring him, but he didn't care. They gathered up the blankets and pillows they had taken and carried them back to the bedroom.
Together, they made the bed. Zayn even put the decorative pillows back on, arranging them carefully at the top of the bed. He looked to Liam for approval and Liam nodded, satisfied with their small efforts to return some normalcy to the empty house.
They slid all the furniture back into place, dissembling their pathetic barricade.
For breakfast, they foraged in the fridge once again. They found a tupperware full of homemade jam, which they ate spread on bread from the breadbox. It was delicious. Even in a normal context it would have been a good breakfast, Liam thought.
They topped it off with the last of the orange juice from the pitcher, warm from spending the night in the bathroom but good nonetheless.
Zayn checked the map briefly, spreading it out across the kitchen table. He traced the route with his finger, following the thin highways and freeways. After a few moments of careful study he folded it back up, tucked it away, and nodded to Liam that they were ready to go.
The motorcycle was waiting in the hallway where they had stashed it for the night. Zayn began rolling it towards the door while Liam loaded the full pack onto his back.
He added the rifle this time, slinging the strap around his body. The safety was on, but the rifle was loaded, and it made him a bit nervous to wear. He didn't have much experience with guns, only a few trips to the shooting range with his dad growing up.
But he carried it anyway, knowing it would be useful if, when, the time came to use it.
Liam averted his eyes from bodies lying in the front room as he left. It was ironic that he was worried about leaving the house clean when its owners were lying dead on the carpet in the living room, he thought.

Zayn was already outside, straddling the motorcycle while waiting. Liam hopped on, arranging everything and wrapping an arm around Zayn.
He felt a slight ache between his legs when he sat, and he winced slightly. The soreness, he assumed, was from riding all day yesterday.
"Do you ever get sore from riding this thing?" he shouted over the motor as they started down the driveway. Zayn's chest rumbled with a small laugh at Liam's question.
"I don't usually spend this much time on it," he shouted back, looking slightly over his shoulder. "But it'll do that to you, yeah."
Liam wiggled uncomfortably, settling in as they turned onto the road and increased their speed.
They hadn't seen any zombies since they left, but Liam assumed they would when they reached more populated areas. He shivered at the thought, despite the sunny sky.
It was a nice day, the first really warm one that year. Even on the bike, with wind flapping through his t shirt, the sun was warm on Liam's skin. 
He could see blossoms on the trees they passed. Clearly nature hadn't noticed the apocalypse. It was still bringing new life, heedless to the death and destruction around it.
More irony, Liam noted, and he wondered why the end of the world had turned him into a philosopher.

Zayn had foregone the leather jacket today, and the t shirt he borrowed from Liam flapped in the wind as they rode.
Liam noticed how nice the sun looked on Zayn's golden skin, contrasting against the white Queen t shirt nicely. His black hair ruffled messily in the wind, the carefully styled quiff from the other night long gone now.
Liam noticed these things, but he didn't stop to think about what they meant. Zayn was just there, in front of him, pressed against him, and Liam was glad for that. That was all he knew for now, but it was enough. Anything else would make things too complicated in an already unfamiliar world.
They had been riding for about an hour when they entered another town. It looked just as abandoned as they one they had left, aside from a few stray zombies wandering around. There were corpses littering the streets, and cars abandoned in the middle of the road.
It was eery, and Liam tightened his arm around Zayn's waist as they drove.

"Should we top off the gas?" Zayn said, turning his head to the side briefly to address Liam.
"Do we need to?" Liam returned. He wasn't eager to repeat yesterday's incident any time soon.
"I mean, we're fine for right now but I'm not sure when the next station will be," Zayn responded, sounding as wary as Liam was about stopping.
Liam thought for a moment, weighing the pros and cons. They had been unprepared yesterday, they would be more careful this time. And they had been fine yesterday in the rest of the city, it was only at the gas station that they were attacked by so many.
"Let's fill up, it shouldn't take too long, yeah?" Liam decided, and Zayn nodded in agreement.
He pulled off at the next station he saw, and both boys eyed the area warily as they hopped off the bike.
Zayn quickly got the pump running, holding his bat tightly in his hands.
"It won't be as long as yesterday since we're not getting a full tank," he said, but he sounded shaky. There were two zombies down the road from them, but there weren't close enough to worry about yet.
There were no cars in the parking lot, which was reassuring. Anyone who was had been here when the contamination spread could still be around, alive or...not.
They both breathed a heavy sigh of relief when the pump signaled that the tank was full. Zayn hurriedly screwed the cap on the tank and they climbed on, departing as fast as they could.
"Well, that wasn't so bad," Liam said, trying to keep his tone light. He wondered if everything would be that way from now on. If he would consider anything that didn't end in his death a rousing success. Probably.
They rode for a few more hours without trouble. They did see a pack of zombies, similar to the one they had encountered the day before, roaming around on the outskirts of town.
They were far off, but the sight still sent chills down Liam's spine, and he could feel Zayn shudder as well.
"I guess that's like, a thing?" Zayn said, sounding scared. "They must travel in packs. Or at least some of them do, apparently."
It was a sort of terrifying prospect, considering the trouble they'd had yesterday with twelve. Liam was glad they had the gun now.

After a while they came to an exit leading off to a lake. "Mind if we stop for a bit?" Zayn said. Liam knew driving was tiring for Zayn, especially looking into the sun like they were now.
He wasn't keen on being sitting ducks, but the idea of stopping did sound appealing. Especially since the ache in his legs had grown worse since the morning, the seat feeling lumpy and painful beneath him.
Liam agreed and they pulled off. Zayn slowed near the edge of the lake. They hopped off gingerly, stretching sore legs, and Zayn put the bike into park.
Zayn stretched out on the grass, slipping his pack off and resting back on his elbows. Liam joined him, dropping the heavy bag at his side and settling in next to Zayn.
They were facing the lake, and Liam had to admit it was gorgeous. The vegetation was mostly scrubby on their side of the lake, but there were tall trees lining the opposite shore. The sun was at just the right angle to gleam on the water, but not low enough to be blinding quite yet.
Liam suddenly felt hot and sweaty. His shirt was sticking to his back from where the pack had been, and the prospect of the cool water sounded kind of irresistibly refreshing.
He knew it was a stupid idea. A really, really stupid idea that could get them killed if their luck was bad. But he was feeling sort of reckless.
Maybe from too much sun or maybe from the way that Zayn looked next to him, just as hot and sweaty as he felt.

"I - this is probably really dumb," he said, turning towards Zayn. "But, do you want to swim?"
Zayn looked disbelieving at his side. "Swim. As in, go for a swim in this lake?"
Liam nodded. "Like I said, I know its dumb, but you have to admit it looks nice. And we could keep all our stuff near the shore, in case we had to fight."
Zayn's face was still skeptical, but there was something else in his eyes as well. "I'm, uh, I'm not a very good swimmer," he admitted. His voice sounded vulnerable when he spoke, but afterwards he looked at Liam defiantly, like he was daring him to tease him about it.
Liam remembered Zayn's story about almost drowning, from that first night. It made sense now.
"Its shallow," he said, gesturing to the lake. "But we don't have to." He didn't want to pressure Zayn into something he was uncomfortable with. Especially when it was kind of an idiotic idea anyway.
"You can, if you want," Zayn said a few moments later. He looked at Liam and nodded his head towards the water. "I'll stay here and keep watch."
Liam was reluctant to leave Zayn behind.
"It's fine, really," Zayn smiled. "I don't mind, and I can tell you're itching for it," he teased, "so just go."

Liam relented, standing up to peel his sweaty shirt from his back. He hadn't considered the fact that he would be basically stripping for Zayn. He could feel the boy's eyes were on him, and he felt suddenly self conscious.
His jeans clung to him uncomfortably as he pulled them off, stiff with dark blood and dust from the road. And then all that was left were his boxers.
He really didn't want to ride in wet underwear later, but he didn't fancy the thought of getting completely naked in front of Zayn either.
When he looked, Zayn was starting pointedly in a different direction. He had apparently anticipated Liam's anxiety, and was letting him know it was safe. 
Liam quickly pulled off his boxers, leaving them in a pile with his other clothes. The water was cold when he stepped in, but he was eager for the cover of the water on his body. He waded in quickly, until he was up to his waist, wincing at the cold.
But it felt good. Really good. Oh God it felt so nice.
Liam dunked his head under as well, wiping away sweat and blood and letting the water soothe his aching muscles.
When he turned, wiping water from his eyes, Zayn was watching him again.
"How is it?" he called from the shore, loud enough for Liam to hear but not enough to draw attention to them.
"Fuck, it feels so good," Liam called back elatedly, "you're missing out!"
Zayn laughed, shaking his head at Liam's enthusiasm.
Liam dove under again, heading into the deeper part of the lake. He swam a few tentative strokes, relishing the feeling of the water sliding against his body.
He laid back and let himself float, his eyes closed against the burning sun. It was so relaxing. He could almost forget everything else.

He had been floating for a few minutes when he heard the water ripple near the shore.
The sound put him on the defensive, and he stood abruptly in the chest - high water. He turned to find Zayn, standing in the water close to the shore. It was up to his waist, and he looked sort of terrified.
"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," Zayn called, after watching Liam's mini panic attack.
"Its fine, I just wasn't expecting it," Liam answered, wading closer to Zayn. "What made you change your mind?"
"It just looked sort of nice, and I..." Zayn trailed off, faltering for a further explanation. Liam could see the pile of Zayn's clothes, sitting on the shore next to Zayn's.
They were a few feet apart now, maybe two yards of water between them. "It's really fine," Liam answered, smiling at Zayn. "I'm glad you're in."
Zayn smiled back, but he still looked a bit scared, and Liam noticed that he was shaking. He hadn't been kidding when he said he was afraid of water.
"Are you going to come further out?" Liam asked, cocking his head at Zayn.
"Uh, no I'm pretty comfortable here," Zayn said, trying to sound nonchalant.
Liam didn't want to push him if he was scared. His eyes grazed over Zayn's bare chest, revealing tattoos Liam hadn't seen before. He was thin, slighter than Liam, but the outline of wiry muscles stood against his golden skin.
"Alright, but you know I won't let you drown or anything," Liam said, braving another step towards Zayn.
Liam was very aware of the fact that they were both very naked. There was a trail of dark hair on Zayn's stomach leading down into the water. He had the sudden urge to reach out and touch it.
He wanted to help Zayn loosen up or something. He was still shaking like a leaf in the shallow water. Liam moved closer, and Zayn backed away out of instinct, holding his hands up to ward Liam off.
"I'm not gonna dunk you or anything, I promise," Liam said, smiling at Zayn.
But Zayn looked unconvinced. "You better not try anything," he warned, the aggressive tone of his voice wavering. "Or I'l...I'll.."
"You'll what?" Liam teased, moving closer just to get a reaction from Zayn.
"I'll... splash you!" Zayn said, mock menace lacing his words. He was being silly now, but Liam was glad he was relaxing a bit.
"Oh no, anything but that!" Liam snorted. He was rewarded by a splash of water right in his face. It caught him off guard, and some of the water went uncomfortably into his nose.
"Told you," Zayn said smugly, crossing his arms in front of his chest as Liam sputtered.
"Now you've done it," Liam said, splashing Zayn back. Zayn stepped back as the water hit is face and chest and...was that a giggle? Zayn was actually giggling, and it was kind of adorable.
Zayn splashed him again, harder this time. Soon they were mercilessly flinging water at each other, laughter ringing across the empty lake.

While Zayn was preoccupied with water in his eyes, Liam ducked below the surface, hiding from Zayn.
He could hear Zayns voice above him as he moved through the water slowly. "Liam?" Zayn asked, looking around confusedly. "Liam?" he called again. Worry colored his tone.
Liam was close now to Zayn, and he reached out to wrap a hand around Zayn's ankle.
Zayn jumped at the touch, shouting and flailing away. Liam stood up quickly to reassure Zayn, but he was on the defensive, responding instinctively to being grabbed.
"Hey," he said, trying to grab Zayn's thrashing arm. "Hey, it's just me."
When Zayn calmed enough to register what had happened, he was angry.
"Really fucking hilarious, Liam!" he said, shoving Liam away forcefully. "It's not like theres fucking zombies around or anything!" He moved a few feet away and turned his back to Liam, fuming.
Okay, so maybe it wasn't the best idea Liam's ever had.
"You're right, I'm sorry. Fuck, I --" Liam sputtered, making his way through the water to Zayn.
He wrapped a hand around Zayn's arm gently when he reached him. "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice penitent.
"I was worried about you, you prick." Zayn said, turning to Liam. He still sounded mad, but his eyes weren't angry.
"I'm sorry," Liam said again, grinning this time. "I won't scare you again, I promise." He added, and he meant it.
Zayn gave Liam another playful shove, but he kept his hand on Liam's chest instead of pulling it away afterwards.
Liam was suddenly very aware of their proximity, standing close in the cool water. And the fact that they were both naked. There was that.
He still had his hand wrapped lightly around Zayn's forearm, and Zayn's hand stayed resting on Liam's chest.  He moved his thumb gently to trace one of Zayn's tattoos, and he felt him shudder beneath the light touch.
Liam kept his gaze on Zayn's tattoos, wondering what he would see in Zayn's eyes if he lifted his own to meet them.

The moment was broken by a moan coming from the shore. Liam snapped his head up quickly to find a zombie, stumbling at them from the road.
Both he and Zayn ran for their weapons, splashing through the water to reach the weapons on the shore.
Zayn got to his first, and rushed towards the zombie. It was a man, and one of the more gruesome ones they had seen. His body was covered in bloody wounds, probably bites, visible through stained and shredded clothes.
Zayn swung the bat mercilessly against its head, and it was only a few moments before the zombie was lying on the ground, immobile. Zayn looked around hastily, checking to see if it had been alone, relaxing when he saw that it was.
Liam let out a sigh of relief, his heart still pumping erratically at the surprise.
He looked at Zayn, standing over the body, naked, with the gory baseball bat still in his hands. His bare skin was flecked with blood.
And then Zayn started laughing.
This confused Liam. "Uh, are you ok?" he asked Zayn. He could feel his eyebrows furrowing together.
"Perfectly fine," Zayn breathed out between fits of giggles.
Liam supposed it was a bit funny. They were both standing stark naked on the shore of a lake, in the middle of nowhere, Zayn covered in Zombie blood and brandishing an old baseball bat.
And then Liam was laughing too, the tension of the moment dissolving. Liam was sure they looked like complete maniacs, but neither of them cared. There was nobody around to see, anyway.
When their laughter had dissipated, they both noticed the low angle of the sun and decided it was time to find shelter for the night. They didn't know where the next town was, and neither of them wanted to get stuck without a place to sleep.
Zayn dipped back into the lake as Liam dressed. He scooped up water with his hands, washing himself of the drying blood.
Liam turned his eyes away from the way Zayn looked in the water, wet skin gleaming and smooth.
A few minutes later they were ready to go. They hopped on the motorcycle and sped off, leaving their small oasis behind.

They found shelter easily that night. They stopped in another house, this one further off the main road.
It was empty, implying that the tenants had either left voluntarily, or had been killed elsewhere. Liam still felt like they were trespassing, but there weren't really any other options.
Their evening passed similarly to the one before. They ate a cold dinner, gathered from the fridge, Zayn pulled out the map to check their progress, and they made their bed in the most secure room. Tonight it was a small office. There were a few windows, but they were narrow and close to the ceiling. It was the best they could do, at any rate.
Together, they pushed a heavy oak table in front of the door.
Zayn investigated the bookshelves while Liam set up their bed on the floor. He wandered around the small room, letting his finger slide brush the spines gently.
"You like books?" Liam asked, his curiosity peaked.
"English major, remember?" Zayn said teasingly, casting Liam a glance over his shoulder.
"Oh, right, yeah," Liam answered, returning his attention to getting them settled. "What are your favorites?" he asked.
Zayn sighed. "Oh, anything really. If I had to pick, maybe Slaughterhouse 5? Or Wuthering Heights."
Liam hadn't heard of the first one, but he had read Wuthering Heights for school. At least the sparknotes, he thought as he tried to remember the plot.
"Wuthering Heights, that's the one with...Heathcliff right? And its kind of fucked up but also romantic?" He was sure he sounded like a neanderthal, but what the hell.
Zayn laughed. "That's actually a pretty good description."
"Why's that your favorite?" Liam asked, finishing his task and standing to look at Zayn.
Zayn turned around to face Liam. "You said it pretty well mate. It's pretty fucked up, and the main characters are definitely fucked up, but its insanely romantic anyway. Almost heartbreakingly so."
Something about the way Zayn said it intrigued Liam, but he decided to leave it for another time.
The room was bigger than the night before, but they still laid close together in the blankets. They gravitated towards each other as they settle in, and neither of them said anything when they end up cuddled together.
  Liam thought it made them both feel better, an unspoken agreement.
They each told a happy memory again as they lay in the darkness, and Liam wondered if it was going to become a thing. He didn't mind, it was nice getting to talk about normal things. And he knew Zayn liked it too.
They drifted off easily, exhausted from their day.

Liam awoke a few hours later to a crash coming from somewhere in the house. "Did you hear that?" Zayn said tensely, shaking Liam to make sure he was awake.
"Yeah," Liam breathed out. He was frozen, his sense on high alert. More noises came, accompanied by a series of moans. Too loud for just one voice.
"Shit," Zayn said, and he and Liam scrambled to get their stuff together. Liam pulled his shoes on with shaking hands. He secured his pack on his shoulder and took the shovel in his grip. The rifle was heavy, slung across his shoulder.
He looked at Zayn, who looked as scared as Liam felt. They exchanged a nod, and slid the table out of the path of the door.
It didn't take them long to find the source of the noise, and Liam's heart stopped when they saw it.
A group of zombies was pouring into the house. They had broken down the back door, and were climbing clumsily over the heavy desk that had been pushed in front of it. More were amassed outside, groping for entry.
Liam tried to count, terrified, and he guessed there were about fifteen, maybe twenty. He and Zayn couldn't get to the front door from here. They were trapped. 
The distorted figures were stumbling towards Liam and Zayn, arms outstretched, bloody mouths gaping and hungry. He heard Zayn swearing at his side.
There wasn't enough time to run. And then there wasn't even enough time to be afraid. 

The fight was bloody and terrifying in the close quarters of the house. Liam swung the shovel wildly, taking down as many zombies as he could with each blow. Zayn took care of them once they were on the ground, smashing their brains to a pulp.
Liam quickly realized that this system wouldn't hold them. They would have to split up. He turned his back to Zayn, taking on three of the zombies that had come stumbling in.
There were a few close calls. More than once Liam knocked a zombie out of the way just as it was reaching him, it's mouth too close to Liam's skin for comfort.
Ten minutes later, it was almost finished. He was bloody and tired and his arms were on fire, but there were only a few left. Some might have been lost to other parts of the house, but they could pick those off. One by one.
The crowd had thinned, and Liam was taking on the last of his side when he heard Zayn shout.
He turned to find Zayn struggling with a zombie. It looked like he had surprised Zayn from behind, and he had Zayn's shoulder only inches from his mouth. Zayn had his arms twisted behind him, holding the zombie's head off, but Liam could tell he was struggling.
He couldn't kill it with the shovel, he was too far away. He only had one choice.
But when he had the rifle in his hands, he didn't know if he could do it. He had purposefully been avoiding using it, relying on the familiar shovel instead.
Liam brought the gun to his shoulder, but his hands were shaking like crazy. He could hit Zayn. They were so close together.
"Shoot, Liam!" Zayn shouted, his voice breaking as his grip on the zombie slipped further.
Liam knew he had to do it or Zayn would be gone for sure. Dead, or worse, one of them. He couldn't lose Zayn. He had to take the risk.
Liam took a deep breath. He steeled himself. He shot.
The recoil jabbed into Liam's shoulder painfully, but he didn't even notice. He could only focus on the zombie, slumping to the floor, and Zayn, covered in blood and brains but alive.
He was alive.
Liam hadn't shot him, and he was okay.

"Fuck," Liam breathed out, trembling.
"Thanks," Zayn said, voice shaky. He wiped a bit of brain from his face, and Liam saw him trying not to gag as he cleaned himself off.
They heard commotion from other parts of the house, where a few zombies had wandered off.
"We should go," Liam said, and Zayn nodded. They were scrambling out through the broken french doors when a zombie stumbled into the living room behind them. Zayn was out already, but Liam was still climbing through.
He hurriedly pulled himself the rest of the way out, a shard of glass driving deep into his thigh in the process.
"Shit," Liam mumbled, watching fresh blood spread across his jeans.
But he didn't have time to worry about it now. They sprinted to where the motorcycle was parked on the front porch.
It was pouring outside, and they were already soaked from the short run to the bike. It definitely wasn't optimal motorcycle riding weather, especially at this time of night. But they didn't have a choice.
They climbed on the bike and Zayn took off straight from the porch, flying over the wooden stairs leading up to the house.
They hit the ground with a thud, and took off into the storm.

The wind was picking up, and the rain was pelting them painfully at the speed they were moving.
"We've gotta find somewhere else to stop soon, I don't think I can make it too far like this," Zayn shouted at Liam over the storm.
Liam agreed, and began scouring the landscape for any sort of building to stop in. Visibility was next to none, and Liam had to squint through the rain.
He felt warmth against his hand, and looked down to see even more blood soaking his jeans. The bleeding in his thigh didn't seem to be slowing.
The glass was still in there, embedded deep into his skin. He didn't know if he was supposed to pull it out or not, but it hurt when he tried, and he didn't think the back of a moving motorcycle was the best place to do it anyway.
The bike swerved dangerously on the wet road, and Liam registered that Zayn had taken an exit. They pulled up outside of a mini mart, its neon lights eerily unlit.
They hopped off the bike and wheeled it into the store with them. A bell above the door rang to signal their entrance.
There were two zombies inside, wandering through the aisles. They started towards the sound of the bell and the smell of humans, but Zayn made quick work of them with the baseball bat.
Liam stood by, watching. He felt weak, and his limbs were suddenly heavier. His thigh ached painfully, throbbing when he moved.
He followed Zayn to the back of the store, into a thankfully unlocked storage room. There were wire shelves holding extra merchandise, and a desk with a computer tucked away in the corner.
There were no windows, and Zayn flicked on an electric light. It bathed the room in a dismal fluorescent glow.

Zayn turned to Liam, and it registered for the first time that something was wrong.  "Li, what the mat-" he stopped when his eyes fell on Liam's bloodied leg.
"Zayn, there's a piece of glass stuck in my thigh," Liam said weakly, leaning casually against the wall. "I believe I may have lost a lot of blood."
Liam heard Zayn let out a string of expletives as he began to panic.
He let Zayn lower him gently to the ground. Zayn had Liam lie down and placed their pack under his feet, elevating the wound. He knelt down to look at Liam's leg, his eyes widening with panic.
"Fuck, Liam, I think it hit an artery," his said. He sounded scared. "That's bad, yeah?" Liam replied, his own voice shaking. Zayn nodded. But then he leaned close to Liam, his face hovering a few inches away.
"But don't worry, it will be okay, yeah? It's gonna be fine." He sounded like he was reassuring himself as much as Liam, but Liam nodded obediently nonetheless.
"I'll be right back, okay?" Zayn said frantically, standing from his position on the floor. Liam nodded, and Zayn rushed out of the office and back out into the store.
Liam turned his cheek against the cool of the tile floor. It felt sort of nice, despite the fact that he was already shivering uncontrollably. It distracted from the hot pain in his leg.
Zayn returned a few moments later carrying an armful of things from the store. He kneeled back at Liam's side. With careful hands, pulled the glass from where it sat lodged in Liam's skin. Liam winced at the sharp pain.
And then Zayn had his hands at Liam's waistband, unzipping Liam's jeans. He pulled them carefully down over the wound, and then slipped them off entirely.
Liam was strangely unembarrassed to be lying there in his boxers. Maybe because of loss of blood. Or maybe because they had been fully naked in front of each other earlier. He considered. Probably both.
Zayn had his hands on Liam's leg, pressing a towel there firmly. "Fuck, Liam, I thought you promised not to scare me anymore," Zayn said. He was trying to sound angry, but he just sounded frightened.
"I'm sorry," Liam said weakly. Zayn looked upset, and Liam wanted to reach out and comfort him. But his arms felt too heavy, lying like lead at his sides.
Zayn held the towel there until it was soaked. Liam heard him cursing under his breath. "Pressure...pressure should make it stop...fuck..please"
His hands were shaking as he pressed another clean towel against Liam's leg. Liam didn't know how long they sat there for, Zayn going through towel after towel, trying to clean up the fresh red blood.
After a while the bleeding apparently slowed, because Zayn's expression cleared and his hands weren't shaking so much. Liam was sleepy. He wanted to close his eyes and rest against the tile, but Zayn kept shaking him awake.

When the bleeding had slowed sufficiently, Zayn wrapped gauze around Liam's leg, pressing a cotton bandage to the deep cut.
"I'll clean it later," he said, taping the gauze in place. "But for now, I just need to get the bleeding stopped."
Liam nodded weakly. He was so tired. He let his eyes flutter shut again, but opened them when he felt Zayn's hands shaking his shoulders again.
He was exhausted, he just wanted to sleep. Why wouldn't Zayn just let him sleep?
"I'm sorry mate, but I've gotta keep you awake. You've lost too much blood, its dangerous," Zayn said apologetically.
Liam groaned crankily, but complied. "Here," Zayn said, helping Liam lift his head a little. He pressed an open water bottle to Liam's lips. "Drink this, there, thats it."
Liam drank the water gladly. It felt good on his dry throat, moistening his cracked lips. Zayn's hands were on his face, cradling it soothingly, fingers carding through Liam's hair.

"Am I okay? I'm not gonna die or anything?" Liam asked quietly. Zayn's panicked reaction to Liam's wound had scared him, and the towels stained bright red were terrifying.
"You'll be okay," Zayn reassured softly. He stood to flick the lights back off, plunging them into darkness. He settled down next to Liam so they were lying side by side.
"Fuck, Liam, why didn't you tell me you were hurt sooner?" Zayn said quietly. Liam turned to look at him, their faces close together.
"It's not like we would have been able to do anything about it," Liam shrugged. "We were a little bit busy."
"I know," Zayn whispered, "I just, fuck, I had no idea, and then there was so much blood and I was worried, and I," his breath hitched a little as he spoke. "I was terrified that you would leave me alone." Zayn finished, sounding vulnerable.
Liam reached a hand out and ran his finger along Zayn's eyebrow, tracing the smooth arch. The loss of blood had him uninhibited, craving closeness.
Zayn closed his eyes under the touch. Liam continued with the other eyebrow, then his nose, then his cheek, stopping when he got to Zayn's lips.

He brought his face closer, resting only breaths away from Zayn's.
"Can I kiss you?" Liam asked quietly. Zayn still had his eyes closed, and Liam heard his breath catch expectantly as he nodded.
Liam crossed the short distance slowly, before pressing his lips gently against Zayn's. His lips were warm and gentle and everything Liam wanted right then.
They were both sort of gross and dirty and Liam was sure his breath was horrible, but neither of them cared, too caught up in the moment. Zayn moved his lips against Liam's, and Liam felt a hand just under the hem of his shirt.
Zayn's fingers were warm and light on his skin, tracing his stomach, ghosting over his hips bones. Liam slid his own hands up Zayn's back, feeling the smooth, warm skin there.
Zayn parted his lips and Liam's slid his tongue into the warmth of Zayn's mouth. He felt Zayn moan softly and soon their tongues were touching, sliding against each other as the kiss grew more heated.
They continued that way for a few more moments, clinging to each other in the darkness, seeking comfort in the sliding of their lips against each other.

Liam let out an involuntary shiver. "Shit, I forgot we were still in wet clothes," Zayn breathed out.
Liam was going to protest, tell Zayn that he wasn't shivering from the cold. But then he realized that he was only in his wet shirt and boxers and that yeah, he was pretty freezing.
"I'll go see if I can find us something dry to wear, yeah?" Zayn said, standing and moving towards the door.
Liam whined at the loss of contact. He wanted to tell Zayn to stay, that they could both just take their wet clothes off, and that would rectify the matter just fine in his opinion.
But he didn't fancy getting naked on the cold tile floor, and he wasn't sure he was up for anything much more than kissing with his injured leg despite the growing bulge in his boxers.
Zayn returned a few moments later with a few items of clothing in his hand.
"I'm afraid this is all they had," he said, handing Liam a lumpy sweatshirt. The front read "Make no moose-take about it!" and had a cartoon moose embroidered beneath it.
Liam snorted, but a it was warm and dry. He peeled off his wet hoodie and t shirt, handing them to Zayn who spread them on a shelf to dry. He pulled the sweatshirt over his head, immediately warmer inside its fuzzy interior.
Zayn was pulling off his own wet clothes as well, and soon his t shirt and jeans were joining Liam's on the rack. Zayn's sweatshirt had a wolf on it, silhouetted against a rising moon.
Liam giggled at their ridiculous outfits.
"I got a blanket as well," Zayn said, unfolding it and holding it up for Liam to see. Zayn rejoined him on the ground, spreading the blanket over the both of them.
Liam was glad for the extra warmth. Since the store sold no pants, they were both in their boxers. Liam felt Zayn's legs tangle with his own beneath the blanket, gingerly avoiding his wound.
Zayn was warm and close and he pulled Liam in for another kiss when they were both settled.

"Mmmm, much better," Liam said, cozying into Zayn beneath the blanket.
"How's the leg?" Zayn asked. He was rubbing his hands up and down Liam's back and Liam thought it was the nicest thing he's ever felt.
"It's better...do I still have to stay awake, doctor?" he asked Zayn playfully.
"I'm afraid so," Zayn replied in an authoritative voice. "But don't worry, I'll stay up with you," he added.
Liam turned to face Zayn, pressing their foreheads together and rubbing noses softly.
"Hmm, whatever will we do," he asked in mock innocence. But his hands were sliding beneath Zayn's sweatshirt, and Zayn shuddered at the touch.
"I can think of a couple of things," Zayn murmured against Liam's lips.
It shouldn't have felt safe. It shouldn't have felt that way to be lying on the floor in a supermarket in the middle of an apocalypse, after almost dying from blood loss. It shouldn't have felt secure to be there when there were zombies roaming the countryside, desperately, mindlessly, in search of human flesh.
It shouldn't have felt safe, but it did.
It felt warm and comforting for Liam to move his lips against Zayn's. To feel Zayn's tongue on his neck, sucking marks and leaving kisses. To slide his hands agains't Zayn's back and feel him growing hard against Liam's leg.
It was everything. It was enough.
They talked too, murmuring stories and memories to each other. Zayn talked about his dad, about never feeling good enough for him, about being a disappointment as the only son.
Liam listened, holding Zayn close and stroking his skin and wanting to tell him that everything about him was more good enough for Liam.
They kissed until their lips were sore. Zayn kissed Liam's neck and ears and cheeks and Liam held Zayn's hand against his lips, holding it there for a long moment.
It felt intimate. And Liam knew it was probably from sharing a number of near death experiences over the past few days, from going through the same insanity together.
But he felt like maybe it was something else too. He trusted Zayn, he felt close to him. And that felt like something that was lucky to have at times like this.

They were still curled together like that, kissing and cozying and being unabashedly close when the sun came up. They saw the first light break through the crack beneath the door, orange and warm.
Zayn made Liam drink more water, and sat up to check his bandages. He smirked playfully at the hard on Liam was sporting from their most recent round of making out. Liam blushed.
Zayn undid the gauze carefully. The wound was red and angry beneath it, caked with dried blood. It was a gory sight, he had to admit.
"The bleeding stopped!" Zayn said happily, and he leaned down to place a chaste kiss on Liam's kneecap.
He cleaned the cut gently, stroking Liam's leg sympathetically when he winced at the antiseptic.
Soon it was rebandaged by Zayn's careful hands.
Zayn settled back beneath the blanket, and Liam immediately nuzzled into his chest.
"I think you're okay to sleep now," Zayn said quietly. His fingers were carding through Liam's hair soothingly. "You've had a lot of water, and you're not losing any more blood."
"Only if you sleep too," Liam answered. He reached a hand up to trace the bags beneath Zayn's eyes, evidence of the long night they'd been through.
Zayn agreed, and got up to double check the locks on their door. There was really no way to secure the outer door of the store, since the walls were all but made of glass. So they just locked the office, slid a chair beneath the handle, and hoped for the best.
They were too exhausted to do anything else, honestly.
Zayn snuggled back down beneath the blanket, wriggling back into Liam's welcoming arms.
They fell asleep almost instantly, holding each other close.

Liam must have been having a nightmare, because when he woke his pulse was racing and his palms were sweating and shaking. And Zayn was there, warm and assuring and looking at Liam with concern in his golden eyes.
It only took Liam a moment to calm down, to slow his heart and shake the images from the night before out of his head.
Luckily, they had stayed safe while they slept this time, curled up in the back of the supermarket. The sun was high by now, and Zayn got up to unlock the door. He left it ajar, letting some light into the room from the wide windows out front.
"How do you feel?" Zayn inquired, kneeling to check Liam's leg again. "Hurts a bit," Liam mumbled back. He winced as Zayn pulled back his bandages revealing the raw skin beneath.
"I'll redress it before we go, just to be safe. We'd be kind of screwed if it got infected."
How comforting, Liam thought.
Zayn's hands were careful and sure at his side, just as they had been the night before. It struck him that he probably would have bled out without Zayn's care.
"I don't think I ever thanked you properly, for saving my life." Liam said. He put his hand over Zayn's, and Zayn paused his movements to meet Liam's eyes. "Thank you, Zayn." Liam said sincerely.
The moment was long and sweet. "Well, you're just lucky you got stranded with a future doctor, yeah?" Zayn said teasingly. The mood lightened, all seriousness dissipating.

Liam wondered about the intimacy of last night, what it meant for them now. Things had been close and soft and unashamed tangled together in the darkness, but Liam wondered how it would look under the bright light of the day.
They didn't talk about it while they packed, but Liam wondered if maybe they didn't need to.
They both dressed, gathering their dry, stiffened clothes. Liam's jeans looked pretty gruesome, he had to admit. There was a rip in the thigh from the glass, and the entire upper leg was stained with darkened blood.
He had no other choice, so he pulled them on begrudgingly anyway. They laughed at the tacky sweatshirts as they slipped them off, opting instead for their own dirty t-shirts.
"Hmm," Zayn hummed, looking at Liam appraisingly. "What?" Liam asked, growing self conscious under Zayn's calculating gaze.
"I'm just worried about the rip in your jeans, I don't want any dirt or anything to get in while we're riding.
It was true that the motorcycle made them filthy, kicking up dust and coating their clothes and skin.
"Follow me," Zayn said, gesturing for Liam to follow him out into the store. Zayn led him to the rack where, presumably, he had gotten their sweatshirts from the night before.
It was stocked with all sorts of tacky souvenirs, snowglobes and baseball hats, engraved shotglasses, and t shirts, which Zayn was currently reaching towards.
He grabbed the first shirt he saw and began ripping it, tearing it enough to get a decent sized strip.
Zayn knelt in front of Liam and began wrapping the shirt around his thigh, covering the rip in his jeans. His hands rubbed along Liam's leg and groin in the process, and Liam's heart raced.
Don't get a boner, don't get a boner, don't get a boner. Liam willed himself not to react to Zayn's proximity.
Zayn knotted the cloth tightly, patted Liam's leg and stood. "That's better," he said, sounding satisfied with himself.

They began gathering food items from the shelves for breakfast. Liam was elated to find that the refrigerated sections were still running.
It reminded Liam of the movie Jurassic Park,  where the characters hurry to eat the ice cream before it melts. He wondered if anyone would be around to eat this ice cream when the freezers finally turned off. He hoped so.
They sat back in the office to eat, sitting cross-legged facing each other. Zayn had a bagel with cream cheese balanced on his knee, eating it between bites of banana and swigs of orange juice.
Liam opted for Coco Puffs and an orange. Zayn teased him for his juvenile taste in cereal, but Liam just grinned as he drank the last of the chocolately milk.

"You know, as unsafe as it is, I must say a supermarket has been a convenient place to stay." He thought back to last night, wondering what would have happened if no medical supplies were available to Zayn while caring for Liam. He had been lucky.
Zayn agreed, finishing off his banana. Liam tried to ignore the way Zayn's lips wrapped around it, he really did. He wondered again what last night had meant.
After finishing breakfast, they both rose and began to gather their things. They cleaned up their mess as best they could, throwing away their wrappers and folding the clothes they had worn. Liam was still sensitive to not leaving a mess behind, already feeling a bit guilty for the things they had taken from the store.
"We should only be about a day and a half more, I'd say," Zayn said, not looking up from the map he was studying. Liam was elated at the news. They were so close. To shelter, to his family.

They were standing with their packs on, about to leave when Zayn surprised him. He looked at Liam hesitantly, before leaning forward to press his lips against Liam's. It was a small kiss, light and brief.
Zayn pulled away quickly but stayed close to Liam, their foreheads almost touching.
"Was that okay?" he asked, almost shyly. Apparently he was just as confused as Liam was.
He nodded and pulled Zayn close again, bringing him into another kiss. Whatever this was, they were doing it. And Liam was okay with that.

They kissed for a few more minutes before breaking. Zayn turned from Liam and climbed onto the motorcycle, throwing Liam a lopsided smirk as he went.
Liam returned with a grin of his own and climbed on the back, giving Zayn an extra squeeze as he wrapped his arm around his middle.
Zayn's moods confused Liam. He was so confident, almost cocky one minute, and the next he was vulnerable and sweet and kind of a dork.
Zayn was a complicated person, Liam knew that already from a few nights of quiet confessions and whispered heart to hearts.
The boy curled into Liam's side in tears so sharply contrasted the one riding the motorcycle now, but Liam resolved that he liked them both, anyway.
He didn't mind a little complication every now and then.

A few hours in, they were forced to stop by a pack of zombies in the road. There were too many to ride straight through, but not enough to give them any real trouble.
Liam noticed how little killing them fazed him now. Sure, he still got nervous when they were close, adrenaline pumping through his veins. But it was a far cry from his reaction the first few times.
He recalled vomiting against the wall at his apartment building at the sight of the brains on the sidewalk. It had only been a few days since then, but he felt completely changed.
And he noticed a change in Zayn, as well. He swung the bat more confidently, more ruthlessly. Liam didn't want to wonder whether or not these were good changed or not. They were necessary.

The sun was low in the sky when Liam started to feel weary. He was still weak from the loss of blood from the night before, and even though Zayn had been making him drink plenty of water, the long day of traveling had taken it out of him.
He leaned forward to rest his head on Zayn's shoulder sleepily. Liam felt Zayn's muscles move beneath his cheek as he steered the bike.
Zayn reached a hand back to brush Liam's knee.
"You okay?" He asked, glancing behind him briefly as he drove.
"Yeah, just tired," Liam answered, not lifting his head from Zayn's shoulder.
"We'll stop soon, yeah?" Zayn said comfortingly, before lifting his hand from Liam's knee and bringing it back to the handles of the bike.

A town appeared on the horizon, visible through the sun and the dust the bike was kicking up. Zayn pushed them onward, towards the city and (hopefully) safety for the night.
A few stray cars passed them on the road, and Liam wondered where they were running to. Or from.
Most of the houses on the streets of the city looked deserted, just like the other towns they had been to. They were wary after the attack last night, and any houses with too many windows or doors were ruled out.
Liam just wanted somewhere safe, if such a place even existed anymore. His thoughts drifted to the shelter where his parents were. He hoped they were safe. His eyes dampened a little at the thought.
He shook it off, returning to scanning passing houses for viable options. After a few streets, they entered a more upscale neighborhood. The houses stood tall and elegant, with wide lawns and elaborate looking facades.
As they neared the end of the street, they came upon a house that didn't quite match the others. It looked custom built, in a kind of modern looking style.
The walls were tall concrete,and the windows on the first floor were long, thin slits. It was sort of ugly, at least in Liam's opinion, but it was also sort of perfect.

"How about this one?" Zayn asked, stopping the bike outside the imposing house.
"Looks good to me," Liam said with a shrug. They dismounted the bike, and Zayn rolled the motorcycle up the short driveway.
The house had an outer gate, which Zayn climbed over to unlock for Liam and the motorcycle. They locked the gate behind them, and looked around at the courtyard they were now in.
It had the same thick grey walls, except for the tall fence at the front. The yard was clearly meticulously cared for, filled with manicured bushes and neatly trimmed grass.
It still looked well-kept, but Liam imagined how it would look in a few weeks. Or months, or years. Overgrown and wild.
The front door was impressively tall, made of heavy looking wood with no windows. It was unlocked when they tried it, which made Liam think the residents left in a hurry. Or didn't leave it all, he amended, remembering the first house they stayed at.
They entered the residence warily, checking each room for evidence of zombies. The decor was as unique as the architecture of the house, all abstract looking paintings and funny statues.
It was clear that whoever lived here was extremely rich, with an obvious penchant for modern art. One of the rooms Liam entered was lined with bookshelves, and Liam scanned the spines briefly before following Zayn into the kitchen.

"What do you think?" Liam asked. His eyes scanned the stainless steel appliances, the large skylight in the ceiling that illuminated the empty kitchen.
"I like it," Zayn answered, turning towards Liam. "It's got that huge gate, barely any big windows on this floor, and that door is fucking huge."
"And we get to sleep in a real bed," Liam added with a grin, pulling Zayn close. He kissed him up against the kitchen counter, the taste of dust and sweat and Zayn filling his mouth.
Zayn returned the kiss eagerly. His hands slid up Liam's back, rubbing small circles through the fabric of his shirt.
"Hows your leg?" Zayn asked breathlessly when Liam moved his lips to Zayn's neck. "It hurts, but not too bad," Liam mumbled, not wanting to move his mouth from Zayn's warm skin.
"I snagged some painkillers," Zayn continued, pushing Liam gently off of him. "Let's go get settled and you can take some."
Liam was reluctant to part from their embrace. He lingered by the counter until Zayn took his hand, pulling him out of the kitchen and towards the bedroom.

They had settled on the first floor master bedroom, deeming it the safest. It housed the narrow windows they had seen from outside, and the walls were painted a deep, burnt orange. Liam figured it was not unlike the sensation of being inside a jack-o-lantern.
Zayn handed him two white pills and a bottle of water. "Take these, and then I'll take a look at your leg after we eat, yeah?"
Liam nodded and swallowed the pills gratefully, his leg throbbing angrily.
They had brought fresh food with them from the store that morning, so they hadn't needed to forage in the kitchen for dinner.
Bread and apples and cheese wasn't a gourmet dinner, but it was enough for Liam. He was craving meat, but he had a feeling he was going to have to get used to going without.
He downed an entire bottle of water with the food, chugging it with loud gulps. He had been drinking all day, but he still felt parched. Zayn said his body was still trying to make up for the blood he had lost.
Zayn was eating seated criss-cross on the edge of the bed, and Liam sat below with his back against the mattress. They oriented themselves around each other, neither wanting to be too far away. When Zayn moved, Liam moved, and vice versa.
Liam wondered when that had started happening.

"Alright, hop up here," Zayn said, tugging on Liam's hair playfully when they were finished eating. "And pants off," he added, getting up to rummage through his pack for gauze and bandages.
"Bossy, bossy," Liam muttered under his breath, just loud enough for Zayn to hear. Zayn gave him a withering look and Liam complied, smirking as he undid his jeans.
He laid on the bed, leaning back on his elbows. Zayn came over, carrying a few things in his hands.
He joined Liam on the bed and began undressing the wound carefully.
"It looks like the t shirt did a good job keeping the bandage clean," he muttered, more to himself than to Liam, sounding proud. 
He began cleaning the cut, and Liam winced at the sharp pain of the antiseptic. "It doesn't look like it's getting infected, thankfully," Zayn observed, examining the wound gently.
Zayn re-wrapped Liam's leg in fresh gauze, his hands careful and practiced.

"So, doctor, whats the diagnosis?" Liam asked playfully. Zayn smiled and pretended to consider for a moment.
"Hmm," Zayn pressed a kiss against Liam's knee. "You're going to make it, probably," He kissed Liam's thigh.
"But don't," his lips pressed against Liam's stomach, "under any circumstances," then the hollow of Liam's hip, "get over excited."
"That should be easy," Liam teased, purposefully nonchalant. "I really don't see anything to get excited about."
"Oh really," Zayn said, giving Liam's good thigh a bite. "I bet I could make you think otherwise."
Liam's heart was racing how, and he was half hard in his boxers.

Zayn looked up at Liam through thick lashes from where he was situated near Liam's middle. Zayn's eyes were burning when they met Liam's, and Liam felt his palms begin to sweat.
Zayn settled himself carefully on Liam's legs, careful not to put any weight on his injured thigh.
And then Zayn's lips were on Liam's skin, kissing down his belly as his fingers toyed with the elastic of Liam's boxers. He stretched the waistband up and over Liam's cock, freeing it from the confines of his underwear.
It was hard and leaking, but Liam didn't have time to be embarrassed by the exposure before Zayn's hand was on him, stroking up and down teasingly.
"Excited?" Zayn asked with a smirk. Liam shook his head. "No," he breathed out, his tone giving him away.
Zayn took the head into his mouth gently, rolling his tongue over and around it. Liam let out a low moan, and Zayn took him further into his mouth.

Liam let his hand tangle in Zayn's hair, needing something to anchor him. Zayn continued bobbing up and down until Liam felt his tip brush the back of Zayn's throat.
"Fuck, Zayn, I'm gonna-" he tugged at Zayn's hair, hastening to pull him away. Zayn lifted off of Liam's cock with a pop of his lips, and started pumping him harder with his hand.
Liam came hard over Zayn's fist, a series of embarrassing moans escaping his lips.
"So fucking hot," Zayn muttered, leaning up to kiss Liam. Zayn's lips were slick with spit and precome but Liam didn't mind one bit.
Zayn was palming himself through his jeans, and Liam reached down to help. He unzipped his jeans and slid a hand in, searching for Zayn's cock through his boxers.
He pulled Zayn's length out and began fisting him up and down as they kissed. It was only a few moments before Zayn was coming as well, hot and fast onto Liam's hand.

Zayn collapsed onto Liam, and they both tried to calm their erratic breathing. Liam's legs felt like jelly, still shaking from the incredible blow job.
"I think," he said breathlessly, "that I have definitely disobeyed doctors orders."
He felt Zayn's lips at his neck. "Well, as your doctor, I think I'll let it slide," he whispered back, his voice sounding completely wrecked.

They took turns rinsing off in the shower afterwards. Liam would have preferred showering together, but Zayn insisted that it was safer one at a time.
Liam had to agree, but he also couldn't get images of Zayn wet and naked out of his head. Fuck.
A few minutes later his dreams were realized when Zayn appeared at the bathroom door. He had a towel wrapped around his waist, and his skin was still glistening with water from the shower.
"I really don't want to put my dirty clothes back on," he said grumpily. He picked up the filthy jeans between his fingers, giving them a look of contempt.
"I can think of a solution to that," Liam said lewdly, grinning at Zayn from where he lay on the bed. Zayn gave him a stern look, but Liam could see a smile fighting on his lips.
"Too dangerous, babe," Zayn said, crossing to the bureau. "Do you think it's okay if I just...borrow something from here? To sleep in?"
Liam shrugged, busy admiring Zayn's wet shoulders. "I guess, I mean, desperate times you know?" he finally answered.
Zayn ended up in a far too large tee shirt and some gym shorts, and Liam left him in the room to take his turn in the shower.

He stepped into the glass shower, eyeing the expensive looking marble and shining fixtures. These people must have had some serious money, he thought once again.
The water was still hot from Zayn's shower when he turned it on, quickly filling the small space with steam. It felt so good on his sore muscles, and he stretched and groaned beneath the stream.
He washed himself with his hands, pouring shower gel into his palm and sudsing it up before scrubbing at his chest and arms. Liam hadn't noticed himself smelling bad, but he was almost positive he had.
Hopefully Zayn hadn't noticed either.
He washed his hair then, scrubbing quickly at his short hair, giving himself a mohawk before rinsing it out. He was torn between wanting to stay in the heat of the shower and wanting to join Zayn in the bedroom.
The latter won, and he was soon wrapping himself in a fluffy towel and leaving the bathroom.

He shivered as he entered the bedroom, leaving the warm steamy air of the bathroom behind. Zayn let out a wolf whistle from the bed, and Liam threw him a wink.
It surprised Liam how close he and Zayn had grown in the past few days. Beyond the fact that they'd been hooking up (or whatever they were doing,) Liam felt close to him emotionally as well.
Nights of fear and fighting and trying to hold themselves together had bonded them, more quickly than Liam would have guessed with a perfect stranger. But he wasn't complaining.
Liam settled on a t shirt and a pair of sweatpants from the drawers. They felt warm and soft and fresh against his clean skin. His dirty clothes were still in a pile on the bathroom floor, covered in blood and filth and Liam wanted to forget about them for now.

He was almost to the bed when he remembered something, changing his course towards their packs in the corner.
"I almost forgot, I have a surprise for you," he said, digging through their supplies.
"For me?" Zayn asked, clearly confused.
"Yeah," Liam answered. He quickly found what he was looking for and tossed it towards Zayn.
"Slaughterhouse 5, thats the other book you said you liked right?" he was suddenly shy, worried that Zayn wouldn't like it, would think Liam was weird.
But Zayn looked pleased, almost touched.
"Yeah," he said, stroking the spine softly. "Where did you get this?"
"It was on the shelf downstairs, I figured I'd grab it for you," Liam said, flopping down onto the bed rolling onto his stomach.
Zayn was seated against the headboard, still admiring the book.

"Have you read it?" he asked, turning to Liam.
"No," Liam said, fluffing his pillow and turning to Zayn. "What's it about?"
"World War II, and life, and a man who comes unstuck in time." Zayn said, smiling fondly.
He looked happy.
"You should read it," Liam said, "out loud."
Zayn looked up at him, puzzled. "What, like, right now?" He looked amused at the idea.
Liam nodded. "I want to hear the story, it sounds good. And its a good distraction," he added. He didn't include "and I like how your voice sounds next to me at night when I'm falling sleep," but that was true, too.
"Alright, if you want," Zayn agreed skeptically, but he sounded kind of excited too.

They flipped off all the lamps except the one next to the bed, giving Zayn enough light to read. He sat leaning against he headboard, and Liam lay curled up at his side. He started reading.
Liam started out just listening to Zayn's voice, listening to it rise and fall soothingly. But then he got sort of interested in the story, too. It was a strange plot, but moving at the same time.
He found himself engrossed in Billy Pilgrim, in his life lived out of order. He was moved by the story of war, of bombings and love and loss and fear and whether life had any meaning at all.
He wondered if maybe he and Zayn had come unstuck in time as well. The past few days had certainly felt like it.
More than a few moments brought tears to his eyes, and he hoped Zayn didn't notice from where he sat above him.
Liam's head ended up in Zayn's lap as he read, and Zayn's fingers played in Liam's hair absentmindedly.
It felt safe, like Zayn was weaving another world for them with his words. One where they were safe and warm and together and the terror of outside world didn't exist.
Zayn's voice was soothing and close, making already beautiful prose sound like poetry. Liam didn't read much, but if stories were always like this he would do it more often. 

Zayn had been reading for a few hours when Liam heard him pause and close the book.
"We should sleep," he whispered softly, still brushing through Liam's hair.
Liam hummed sleepily in protest. "But I want to know how it ends," he whined.
"Don't worry, I'll bring it and we can finish it tomorrow okay?" Zayn offered quietly, like he was placating a fussy child.
Liam nodded and sat up from Zayn's lap, letting him lean over to turn the light off. The room was dark and close and quiet, and Liam cuddled into Zayn as soon as he slid between the sheets.
"I'm glad you like it so far," Zayn said, barely a whisper in Liam's ear. Liam responded with a kiss, sweet and chaste and sleepy.
They were both soft and clean and smelled like soap and shampoo.
"We didn't do a good memory," Zayn said a few moments later, reaching to find Liam's hand under the covers. "I mean we don't have to, I know you're tired..."
"I want to," Liam protested, lifting his head to look at Zayn in the moonlight. "You first." he added, snuggling back into Zayn's chest.
"Hmm alright. When I was in second grade, we had the day off of school so my mom took my sisters and I to a museum. I had never been before, and it was, wow it was incredible. I had never seen art like that before, and even at 8 I was awed. I begged my mom to buy me a book of the paintings there in the gift shop, and I used to sit and look at it for hours. I definitely wouldn't be as in to art as I am now if we hadn't gone."
He sounded wistful as he spoke, recalling with fondness the day with his family.
"Are you an artist?" Liam asked. He had talked about art so passionately.
"Oh, not really, I mean I like to draw, and sometimes paint," he answered bashfully. "I'm not very good."
"I don't believe that, I'm sure you're great," Liam refuted.
Zayn just nudged Liam and reminded him that it was his turn, but he sounded a little pleased anyway.

Liam searched for a memory worth sharing from the piles of birthday parties and trips to the beach he had stored away.
"Okay, over the summer when I was like, 13, my family rented a beach house on the lake for a week. There was a girl around my age in the house over, and we started hanging out every night. At the time, it felt like, oh my god summer romance. We went for walks and talked about whatever shitty music we both liked at the time. And the night before I left, she kissed me on the beach. It was my first kiss. And in retrospect it was such a ridiculous pseudo-relationship. But fuck, it felt so profound at the time," Liam laughed at the memory. "First kisses and all that. Good memory."
"Favorite first kiss?" Zayn asked, rolling onto his stomach to look at Liam. Liam considered for a moment.
"Hmm, I'd have to say the one where I was lying on the floor of a supermarket bleeding out, with the impending doom of apocalypse threatening my every move." he answered teasingly. He reached over the grab Zayn's sides, pulling him closer as Zayn giggled.
"Good answer," Zayn whispered, close to Liam.

They woke up the next morning to the beeping of Zayn's watch. It was a familiar sound to Liam by now, but it didn't lessen the annoyance he felt hearing it.
He groaned and pulled Zayn closer, cuddling against him to avoid waking up. Zayn turned off the watch and cuddled back, indulging Liam in a few more minutes in bed.
"Good morning," Liam said, his voice raspy from sleep. He rolled on top of Zayn and began kissing his neck sleepily.
"Good morning," Zayn chuckled back. He played with Liam's hair absently, enjoying the touch of Liam's lips and tongue on his sensitive skin.
"Hmm, we should get there today, yeah?" Liam murmured between kisses, not moving his face from its spot nuzzled in Zayn's neck. "To the shelter?"
Zayn's hands froze in Liam's hair for a moment. "Yeah, yeah it should be today," he let out shakily.

"You okay?" Liam asked, pulling away to look down at Zayn, frowning slightly.
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine," Zayn answered hastily. He pulled Liam down into a searing kiss. He pushed his tongue against Liam's lips until they partied, licking into Liam's mouth hungrily.
The ferocity of the kiss took Liam by surprise, and the way Zayn's hands scraped down his back had him letting out a moan.
Zayn trailed his lips against Liam's neck. "Fuck me, Liam," he growled against the sensitive skin there.
Liam was sure he hadn't heard him right.
"I - what?" Liam asked, breathless from the kiss and baffled at Zayn's command.
"I want you to fuck me," Zayn repeated, rolling his hips up against Liam's.
And okay, that felt really, really good. But Liam was still flustered by the speed at which they were moving.
"I - we don't have lube or anything," Liam protested, but he felt himself hardening quickly at Zayn's advances.
Zayn took two of Liam's fingers and slid them into his mouth, sucking on them wantonly until they were slick with spit.
"There," he huffed out, giving Liam a smirk.

This was so different from the things they'd done before. Zayn was all confidence and urgency and lust, grinding up into Liam shamelessly.
But they way he felt and looked and the way he wanted Liam was so, so sexy, if a bit disarming. Liam slid his now wet fingers into Zayn's shorts, seeking out his hole and stroking gently.
He slid a finger in and out tentatively, adding another when Zayn moaned insistently. Soon Zayn was grinding down onto Liam's fingers and Liam was achingly hard.
"Im ready," Zayn said breathlessly, sliding off his pants and pulling at Liam's.
"Are you sure, I mean I don't think spit will be enough -" Liam said skeptically, his own breathing erratic.
"It's fine," Zayn cut him off, spitting onto his palm and slicking up Liam's cock. The contact had Liam groaning, and he lined himself up at Zayn's entrance. He was worried about hurting Zayn, but Zayn seemed adamant about it.
"Tell me if it hurts okay?" He whispered before pushing in, stroking Zayn's bare chest softly.
"Right, of course, yeah," Zayn said, and his eyes softened a little. "Just get on with it yeah?," he added after a moment, closing his eyes.

Liam pushed in slowly, giving Zayn time to adjust before moving. Zayn bucked his hips up into Liam's again, and Liam took it as a sign to move. He pulled back before thrusting in again, building a gentle rhythm
He trailed kisses softly down Zayn's neck as they moved together, and Zayn's nails scratched bluntly at his back.
Zayn whimpered beneath him and wrapped his legs tightly around Liam's waist. Soon Liam was groaning, feeling himself getting closer.
He picked up the pace a little, eliciting moans from Zayn when he changed the angle. He let his hand travel down Zayn's chest to wrap around him, stroking to the same rhythm as their hips.
Zayn came first, and Liam thought he looked incredible. His pink lips mouthed Liam's name softly and his dark lashes fluttered against his cheeks.
The way Zayn was clenching around him sent Liam over the edge, and soon he was coming too, hips stuttering with one last thrust.

Liam pulled out gently, collapsing onto Zayn and nuzzling into the crook of his neck.
"That was unexpected," he whispered, tracing his fingers up and down Zayn's arms and chest. His voice sounded completely wrecked. "But so nice," he added nuzzling in further.
"Hmm," Zayn murmured noncommittally. "I'm gonna go clean up," he said after a moment, extricating himself from Liam's embrace.
He gathered his clothes and walked quickly into the bathroom, wincing a little as he went.
Liam was left alone and confused in the big bed.

"Is everything okay?" Liam asked when Zayn emerged fully dressed a few minutes later.
"Yeah, of course, why wouldn't it be?" Zayn answered nonchalantly, already beginning to pack his things.
"I don't know - I was - I didn't hurt you right?" Liam inquired concernedly, wringing his hands a little.
Zayn softened and turned to face Liam. "No, Li. You didn't hurt me."
Liam got up, still naked from their encounter, and crossed to where Zayn stood. He stroked Zayn's cheek softly with his thumb, and leaned down to kiss his lips tenderly.
Zayn kissed him back for a few moments before turning his head to the side.
"You should go get ready," he whispered. He sounded pained.

Liam cleaned up and dressed, and they ate breakfast in near silence. Liam sat close to Zayn on the bed, letting his hand rest on Zayn's knee, brushing their shoulders together. But Zayn was unresponsive, focusing intently on his food.
When they were about to leave, Liam noticed the book still sitting on the bedside table.
"Oh, here," he said, picking it up and handing it to Zayn, "don't want to forget that."
"Right, thanks for reminding me," Zayn said as he took it. Their eyes met for a long moment, and Liam saw something flicker in Zayn's. He wished he knew what it was.
Liam was sad to leave their makeshift home, his favorite house they had stayed at by far. It was the only place he had really felt safe since everything that had happened.
But they had to keep moving, and Liam was keen to get to the shelter and find his parents, so he reluctantly packed his things and climbed onto the motorcycle with Zayn.

Liam was baffled and kind of hurt by Zayn's change in behavior. Sure, he had seen Zayn's different sides before, and he knew he liked to act tough sometimes. But that usually didn't extend to he and Liam.
And it was never as hardened as it was now. Zayn had barely said two words to him since they woke up.
They had been so close, Zayn had quickly become Liam's...what? Friend wasn't the right word. They had been through too much together to just be called friends. He knew they were more, but he didn't know what.
Liam wasn't stupid, he knew it had something to do with their sex this morning, but he had no idea what it was. Zayn had been so insistent, pushing Liam towards it and then ignoring him afterwards.
He hoped it wasn't something he had done wrong. He wracked his brains as they rode, replaying the events of the morning over and over again.

They stopped midday for gas at an abandoned station in the middle of nowhere. There were a few zombies lingering about, and Liam took care of them with the shovel while Zayn stood nearby studying the map. Liam didn't need the help, but Zayn could at least act like he cared.
Liam was finishing the last of the zombies when Zayn spoke up.
"We should be there in about an hour," he called, not looking away from the map in front of him.
"Really?" Liam asked excitedly, and Zayn nodded.
"Fuck, I can't believe it, " Liam breathed out. It didn't feel real after all this time. After days of traveling and fighting and exhaustion, they were almost there. "I'll get to see my parents," he murmured to himself in disbelief.
"Yeah, that must be nice," Zayn snapped, screwing the lid onto the tank hastily.
Liam's heart sank.
"I - Fuck, Zayn I wasn't thinking, I didn't mean -" he fumbled his words, desperate to apologize.
Zayn cut him off before he could finish. "It's fine, I know you didn't," he said resignedly. It was like he was torn between acting normal with Liam and keeping up his new facade of coldness. Liam didn't understand.
They got back on the back without further words, but Liam wrapped his arm especially tight around Zayn's waist as they drove.
It wasn't the same, but it was something, and Liam wanted to hold Zayn tightly for as long as he could.

They pulled up into town just before sunset. It wasn't as abandoned looking as other places they had been, they passed at least three cars on their way in.
A police officer stopped them a few streets in, pulling up her motorcycle next to their own.
"You boys looking for the shelter?" she asked, taking in their ragged clothes and dirty motorcycle.
"Yes, ma'am," Zayn said, giving the officer a nod of affirmation.
"Alright, it's at the high school, so you're gonna wanna head down this street, hang a right at the hospital, and keep going down main until you reach it. It should be pretty clear, there are guards stationed at every entrance," the officer said in an authoritative voice.
Zayn thanked the officer for her help, and they continued on their way towards the hospital.

They arrived a few minutes later, and Zayn reluctantly parked his motorcycle in the lot they were directed to.
The school was surrounded by officers with guns, stationed every few feet along the chain link fence that bordered the school yard. The only entrance was heavily guarded as well.
They were checked at the fence, just to make sure they weren't infected, and were finally allowed to enter the building.
Liam was nervous. He wanted to reach out for Zayn's hand, but he was afraid he would reject him. If the rest of the day were any indication, it was almost certain that he would.

They were directed towards a desk in the front office where another police officer greeted them. "Alright you two, welcome to the shelter," he said, looking up from his clipboard as they approached. "We'll assign you a classroom to sleep in, you get two meals a day, and you'll probably be asked to contribute to the work in some way."
Liam nodded impatient to locate his parents, to find out if they were safe.
"What if we're looking for someone? Someone we think is already here?" he asked nervously. Zayn was silent at his side.
The officer checked his watch before answering. "Well, since the suns almost set we're about to lock down for the night. Finding someone will have to wait till tomorrow," he replied with a shrug.
Liam was frustrated, but there was nothing they could do about it.

The officer assigned them a room number, a classroom on the second floor. Liam's eyes wandered as they walked through the halls.
Liam saw injuries being treated, supplies being organized. In other areas people were just reading, or watching tv. Some even appeared to be playing board games.
It was strange to Liam, to be around this many people after days of only Zayn and zombies for company. It was almost overwhelming, and he was glad for Zayn's proximity at his side, even if it was a reluctant proximity on Zayn's part.
He should have felt safe, or relieved. This had been their goal along, and now they were finally here.
But really all he felt was lost. The things around him didn't make sense to him, and Zayn's coldness has him worried and upset. He thought longingly of their time together last night, safe and warm in their big grey house. Before Zayn turned away from him.

Zayn remained silent as they entered the classroom, but moved closer to Liam when they saw the other people inside.
The desks had been pushed to the side, and cots stood in two straight rows down the middle of the room. A man and a woman stood leaning against the chalkboard, engaged in what appeared to be a heated discussion.
The strangers gave them a nod when they entered, but thankfully didn't try to initiate conversation. Liam wasn't in the mood for socializing.
They chose two cots next to each other on the end of the row, setting their bags on the ground between them.
The two others apparently decided to have their conversation in a more private place, and left Liam and Zayn alone in the room.

Liam winced as he squatted to sit on the cot. He could feel his cut pulling, and he hissed a little at the pain. 
Zayn turned sharply in response to the sound.
"Is your leg okay?" he asked, his voice more sincere than it had been all day. It caught Liam off guard, and he nodded tentatively.
"Just aches a bit," he replied with a shrug, thrown off by Zayn's sudden attentiveness.
"I should probably change the bandages," Zayn murmured, turning to his bag to get the necessary supplies.
Liam shucked his jeans off obediently, lying on his cot so Zayn could attend to him.
He saw Zayn cringe as he began to unwrap the gauze.
"Shit, I forgot to wrap it this morning, it looks like some dirt got into the bandage." He sounded frustrated. "Sorry, Li," he offered, beginning to clean the wound.
Liam didn't mind getting an infection if it meant Zayn would treat him normally again. This was the first time since that morning that Zayn had really talked to Liam, had met his eyes when they spoke.
Liam had missed it even more than he realized.
Zayn's hands were tender as he bandaged the wound, even allowing himself to stroke Liam's leg when he winced at something painful.
"Alright, that should be better. Let me get you some more painkillers," Zayn said as he finished, turning to his bag to fish out the white bottle of pills.
Liam wanted to prolong the moment, for things to stay like this instead of the way they had been all day. 

But as soon as Liam's pants were back on, Zayn had his impenetrable wall back up.
He kicked off his boots and climbed onto his bed, his back facing Liam.
"I'm gonna get some sleep, 'Night," he said bluntly, void of emotion.
"It's like, 8 o' clock?" Liam protested confusedly, checking his watch. They usually wouldn't sleep for a few more hours, at least.
"So? I'm tired," Zayn spat back, not turning to face Liam. He looked so small lying there in bed, curled in like he was trying to hold himself together.
"I - what about the book?" Liam offered weakly. He knew he was grasping at straws now, but he didn't want Zayn to shut him out anymore.
"You know how to read. It's in my bag." Zayn replied, his tone annoyed.
Liam thought half-heartedly about asking for a good memory, but he knew it was useless.
Anger flared within him, and he decided to confront Zayn.

"Alright, what the fuck, Zayn?" Liam growled. He was getting really tired of this shit, of Zayn acting like an asshole for no reason, leaving Liam truly alone for the first time since this all started.
"What's your problem? You've been ignoring me all day, and being kind of a dick to be honest. Did I do something to piss you off?" He was trying to sound angry, but he could hear hurt creeping into his voice.
Zayn stayed in his bed but turned to face Liam. "I'm just tired," he said weakly, knowing it was a shit excuse.
"You're lying," Liam said, shaking his head. He wasn't going to let this go until they talked about whatever it was that had changed things.
"All I know is that last night, things were...nicer. A lot nicer. I liked how it was a lot, okay?" Liam continued, embarrassed. "And then this morning ever since we..." he broke off, straining to keep emotion out of his voice.
"I want the truth," he finally added.

Zayn sat up and perched on the edge of the cot, his back to Liam once again. "Look, I, fuck, it was just really easy the past few days, to forget everything, okay?" Zayn whispered. He sounded vulnerable for the first time all day, and Liam hoped that he was finally opening up.
"It was easy to forget that we were just together for convenience, until you could meet up with your parents here. To forget that you had something to come home that didn't include me. So it was fun playing house and everything," his voice turned cold, detached. All traces of vulnerability gone.
  "But, its just easier this way. We'd have to say goodbye soon anyway, doing it a day early doesn't make a difference."

Liam blanched at Zayn's words. Is that what he had thought? True, Liam hadn't given much consideration to what would happen after they got here, but he never assumed it would include leaving Zayn.
"That was never what I - I never thought that," he protested, unsure of where to begin. "I wasn't going to ditch you, and I wasn't just fucking around," he continued angrily.
He reached for words to explain, but he had never been good at expressing himself that way. The right things to say always evaded him.
He was still wrestling with his words when a thought clicked.
"This morning, when we...it was about this, wasn't it?" he asked quietly.
Zayn paused for a moment, and then nodded.
"It was goodbye," he said. Zayn was trying to keep his tone light, but failing miserably.
Liam felt his heart sink, and a lump rose in his throat. He fought desperately to push the emotions back, to keep the hurt and disappointment off of his face.

Zayn took a look at Liam's expression and snorted, a bit too loud to be natural.
"Come on, don't act like you didn't like it," he said sarcastically. "It was a great fuck." But Zayn's eyes gave him away, piercing through his bravado and revealing the pain underneath.
"I think I would have liked it a bit more under different circumstances," Liam said quietly, looking at the floor.
Zayn gave another forced laugh, but his voice broke at the end.

Just then, an announcement came on the loudspeaker, the crackle of the radio breaking the tension in the room.
"All citizens, please report to your classroom for the night, I repeat..."
The announcement continued, but Liam barely heard it. Others began trickling into the room, and Liam quickly climbed into his bed to avoid any interaction.
A few minutes later, the fluorescent lights were flicked off, leaving the moonlight streaming through the window the only light in the room.
Liam tried to sleep, he did. He tried to forget that this was the first night since everything happened that he couldn't feel Zayn right next to him. He didn't have a hand to reach out for, and that left Liam feeling more alone than he maybe ever had.

After lying sleepless for a while, he climbed out of bed silently. He couldn't stay in there anymore. He needed to think, needed some space. He crept quietly out of the classroom, and wandered out into the empty hall.

Liam was hurt. He felt sort of...used. He had thought things between he and Zayn had meant something, and now...Zayn never said they hadn't, but he was so cold.  And this morning...
Is that the kind of person Zayn thought he was? That he would just leave him as soon as they arrived?
The thought of saying goodbye to Zayn made Liam's heart ache. They had been through this together from the beginning. They had faced it together, fighting side by side.
It had only been a few days, but that first night felt like a lifetime ago. 
He had gotten so used to having Zayn around. More than that, he had gotten attached. He thought they had bonded, had some sort of connection.
But apparently Zayn didn't agree.
Half of Liam wanted to apologize, to assure Zayn that he wanted them to stay together. Because he did. A lot.
But shouldn't Zayn be the one apologizing?

Liam's thoughts ran wild as he wandered the halls of the school. He probably wasn't supposed to be out of his room, considering the warning they'd heard over the loudspeaker. But he needed some air, to work through his emotions and let himself calm down before he spoke to Zayn again.
The overhead lights were off, only the emergency lights illuminating the dim hallway. It gave everything a sort of eery glow, and Liam shivered despite the comfortable temperature.
All of the classroom doors he passed were shut, and he wondered what people were doing behind them.
Sleeping? Crying over lost friends, or family? Making love?
There were so many people here, had they been through the same things Liam and Zayn had? And were his parents here, behind one of these doors somewhere?
Liam recalled his mother's voice on the phone, comforting when everything had been falling apart.
But Zayn was there too, when everything came down around him. It had come down around both of them, and they had clung to each other to hold themselves together.
His thoughts drifted back to the classroom, to Zayn curled up on his cot. Liam wanted to rush back, to apologize, to do anything that would make it all okay again.
But he didn't know if things were fixable, and that broke his heart.

Liam was still out wandering the halls when it happened. The fire alarm started blaring, startling Liam as it broke the silence of the night.
Over its incessant ring he heard commotion outside, and he darted to the nearest window to look for the cause.
What he saw sucked the air from his lungs and left him trembling at the windowsill.
There were hundreds of zombies just outside the chain link fence surrounding the school. Their bodies were beating against it, moaning hungrily into the night.
They were focusing their efforts on the fence itself, using the weight of their combined force to push against the flimsy wires.
The sight was bone-chilling in the moonlight, the zombies casting ghastly shadows across the wide lawn.
The guards were holding them off, but just barely. Liam knew it was only a matter of time before the fence snapped, before the guards weren't enough.

A cry strangled in his throat.
Zayn.
He didn't know where his parents were, he couldn't help them.
But he sure as hell wasn't losing Zayn.
He began sprinting back to the classroom, hoping he remembered the number correctly. But the halls were filling up, making it harder for Liam to get through the crowd.
People were stumbling sleepily out of classrooms, poking their heads into the hallway. He heard more than one scream at the sight out the window. He didn't blame them.
He fought through the crowd of people, moving against the tide of bodies rushing against him. He was anxious to get back to Zayn, terrified of finding him gone.

He was about halfway there when he heard his name. He looked around wildly to find the source, and his eyes fell on Zayn, making his way through the crowd towards Liam. Seeing him was like letting out a breath Liam hadn't known he'd been holding.
"Zayn!" he called back, shoving against the flow of people to reach him.
"Where the fuck where you?" Zayn said angrily when he reached him. He was carrying both their packs, and Liam quickly took his own and lifted it onto his shoulders.
"I wake up and the alarms are going off and everyone's panicking and you were fucking gone," Zayn continued hysterically. The tension of their argument had evaporated, the fear of losing each other was too potent.
The hallway was flooded with people now, and Liam grabbed Zayn's hand and dragged him to the side, out of the flow of bodies.
He just pulled Zayn close, wrapping his arms around him and holding on tightly.
"I'm sorry, I'm right here," he murmured into Zayn's hair. Zayn's body felt so small in his arms, his shoulders narrow and his bones light.
"I'm not going anywhere. I should have made that clear, before, I don't want to say goodbye," he knew he was rambling now, but he couldn't stop.
And he knew the middle of a zombie attack wasn't the best time for declarations, but sometimes things just sort of happened that way.

"I should have told you, that I wanted you to stay. With me." he finished, moving his hands to sit on either side of Zayn's face.
Zayn shook his head, brushing off Liam's apologies.
"I'm so sorry, about everything I said, I didn't mean it," Zayn countered. He buried his head in Liam's neck, holding him like he might disappear.
"It meant something, all of it, everything we did," Zayn continued, and Liam' felt his lips warm and urgent on his neck.
And then they were kissing, slow and soft and filled with apologies. It was funny, Liam thought, that they stood peacefully intwined in the middle of all of the mayhem.
They were like an oasis, and island of escape in the middle of the sea of panic. Bodies jostled them as they kissed, desperate to escape the school, but they didn't pay it any mind. They were in their own little world.

After a moment, Liam broke the kiss, meeting Zayn's eyes.
"Let's get out of here, yeah?" he said with a smirk.
"Deal," Zayn agreed, returning it with a smile of his own.
Liam took Zayn's hand and they ran, following the crowd down the stairs to the first floor.
Whatever happened now, they knew they were in it together.

In the few minutes since Liam had looked, the zombies had all but managed to break down the fence. It finally gave in just as Liam and Zayn came out into the yard, and suddenly zombies were pouring in through the gap.
Liam could sense those around him stiffen, preparing to fight with whatever they had. Liam felt the solid weight of the shovel in one hand, the other still clasped tightly with Zayn's.
"I'm not sure we can make it out of this one, Li," Zayn said softly, meeting Liam's eyes with glistening ones of his own.
Liam squeezed his hand and kissed Zayn briefly on the lips.
"We've made it out of everything else, haven't we?" he said, a sad smile on his mouth.
Zayn nodded, they turned to face the impending swarm.
They held hands for as long as possible, breaking at the last moment to begin the fight.

If he was being honest, Liam wasn't sure if they would make it out. The odds weren't good, that was certain.
But the paralyzing fear he felt watching from the window was gone. Maybe it was fixing things with Zayn, or maybe it was some weird hormonal reaction preparing him for the fight, but he was strangely calm.
He swung the shovel hard, making contact with the head of the first zombie he saw.
The fight had begun.

They were surrounded on every side, and Liam saw more than one person fall around him. He swung mindlessly, letting his instincts take over.
He was covered in blood and brains after only a few minutes, and he had lost track of Zayn. That scared him more than anything else.
He didn't have a moment to spare to look around for him, hoping to see a black quiff sticking up among the onslaught. He knew Zayn could take care of himself, but he couldn't imagine losing him now, not after everything.
Shots rang through the yard, and he prayed that more guards had come, that they had some salvation beyond the fifty or so people he was currently fighting alongside.
Liam wondered where everyone else had gone. He hoped they had gotten away.

He was fighting harder than he ever had before, swinging the shovel wildly into the sea of zombies. It made every other encounter they'd had seem like cake, even the onslaught at the house the other night.
He didn't know if they were even making a dent. Maybe it was better not to know.
Liam didn't know how long they'd been at it for when he saw Zayn again. He was just as bloodied as Liam, wearily swinging the bat into a zombie's skull.
Their eyes met, and wordless communication passed between them.
The tide of zombies didn't seem to be ebbing, and they were both growing tired. Most of the other humans had already fallen, leaving them and just a few others to fight.
Things didn't look good
.
They sidled up back to back, the zombies quickly closing in.
"Liam!" he heard Zayn shout from where he stood behind him.
"Yeah?" Liam responded breathlessly.
"You were the only good thing to come out of all this," Zayn shouted to Liam over his shoulder. "and this sucks, but I'm glad I met you, yeah?"
Liam could hear Zayn trying to keep emotion out of his voice. Maybe this really  was it for them.

He wanted to turn around, to reach out to Zayn, to kiss him and have a proper goodbye. But goodbyes were sad.
He much preferred their last kiss, warm and hopeful and forgiving amidst the terror around them. Goodbyes were overrated anyway.
"You too, Zayn," Liam called back over his shoulder. "I wouldn't have missed a minute of it."
The zombies closed in, and Liam swung the shovel furiously. He felt Zayn at his back, fighting off his own attackers. If they went down, they would go down fighting.


Suddenly, a spray of bullets filled the yard. Liam had been hearing shots all night, but these were different. They were machine guns.
A voice rang out over the crowd, a megaphone ordering all remaining humans back inside.
Liam and Zayn exchanged looks.
Help had arrived.

They had been fighting wit their backs to towards the building, so only a few stray zombies stood in their way as they sprinted back to the school. They fought through quickly, one last surge of adrenaline pumping through Liam's veins.
An officer was waiting when they entered the building, guiding them towards the gym with the other survivors. They followed obediently. Liam's thoughts were disjointed.
He could hear the rapid-fire of the machine guns continue outside. His limbs suddenly felt like they weighed a ton as the exhaustion of the fight hit him.
The gym doors shut behind them. They were safe.

"Li," he heard Zayn mumble at his side, and Liam turned to face him.
They were both covered in blood and flesh and who knows what else. But they were okay.
Liam reached a hand out and gently ran his finger across the arch of Zayn's eyebrow, like he had the night they kissed. Zayn closed his eyes. Neither of them spoke.
A moment passed, and they were in each other's arms. They fell into each other, sinking down together to the varnished floor of the gym.
"We're okay, yeah?" Liam asked, almost disbelieving. He was still in shock from the fight, from facing almost certain death. His brain was still catching up to the fact that they'd been saved.
"We're okay, we're okay," Zayn assured him, placing kisses all over Liam's head and neck, despite the state of filth they were both in.
They clung to each other desperately, Zayn's hand fisting Liam's shirt and Liams arms snaking around Zayn's waist tightly. He wasn't ever going to let go if he had any say in the matter.
Zayn kept murmuring, soothing himself as much as Liam, over and over again.
They could hear the fight continuing outside, but the ghastly moans were diminishing, replaced by the thunder of gunfire.

Soon Zayn's voice was drowning out everything else, soft and calming Liam's ear. He felt his heartbeat slow, the adrenaline of fighting slowly ebb. But his arms stayed locked around Zayn, unrelenting.

It was then that Zayn noticed Liam was bleeding again. He hadn't seen it before, since they were both covered in blood from the zombies, but his eyes widened in horror as he saw the fresh red blood pouring from Liam's thigh.
"No, no, fuck," he murmured, panicking.
"What's wrong?" Liam asked, before following Zayn's eyes down to his leg.
Oh.
"The wound must have opened up again during the fight," Zayn whispered frantically. He slid Liam's hoodie from his shoulders and balled it up, pressing it tightly against the wound. "You can't afford to lose more blood, you're still recovering from before."
His voice sounded pained, and it terrified Liam. The loss of blood explained why he felt so weak, so listless after the fight.
"Don't worry, its gonna be fine," Zayn whispered, but he couldn't keep the fear out of his voice.
"As soon as the fight ends, they'll let us out of here. People will come to check on  us, there will be doctors, or nurses, or something," he rambled, sounding like he was assuring himself.
He was cradling Liam in his arms, his hand still pressing firmly against his leg. Liam's sweatshirt was already soaked with deep red.

The night dragged on and the fighting outside didn't cease. The bleeding hadn't slowed and Liam could tell Zayn was terrified, even if he was acting brave for Liam. Liam felt weak, slipping in an out of consciousness.
Zayn was trying desperately to keep him awake, sounding almost hysterical at times. But he was so tired.

"How does the book end?" Liam asked, his voice barely audible from between cracked lips.
"What, Li?" Zayn asked, looking down at Liam with concern.
"Slaughterhouse 5, what happens to Billy Pilgrim?" Liam repeated weakly.
"You'll find out when we finish it later, ok?" Zayn answered, his voice thick with tears. "We'll have plenty of time for it later, after this, I'll finish reading it to you," he continued, rocking Liam.
Liam nodded but he didn't believe Zayn. He wasn't going to make it. He reached up a hand to wipe a tear from Zayn's cheek.
"Tell me another story, then," Liam said, looking up to meet Zayn's eyes.
"Alright, yeah," Zayn answered, nodding and wiping the tears away.
So he told Liam stories from his favorite books, stories from his childhood. He made things up, desperate to keep Liam awake and distracted.
And he made sure they all had happy endings.

Time wore on and Zayn could feel Liam weakening in his arms. His eyes were fluttering closed more frequently now, and it was taking longer and longer to open them again, even with Zayn's incessant efforts.
Zayn could feel him slipping away.
"Liam, Liam," he said frantically, bringing him back. "I want to tell you my favorite story, ok?" he whispered, holding Liam close.
Liam nodded, listening.
"Once upon a time there was this guy, and he thought he was kind of a hard ass. He acted really tough, and he rode a motorcycle, and he didn't like to let people get too close to him." he was crying as he spoke, tears trailing through the blood and dirt on his face.
"And then the world ended, and he was left with this other guy. One he hadn't met before. They were all alone in an empty world." Liam blinked up at Zayn, and Zayn wondered if Liam even knew what he was saying.
"And the guy, the guy with the motorcycle, he realized he wasn't so tough after all. Because he cared a lot about this guy he was left with. More than he had ever expected." His voicing was shaking so hard he could barely continue, but it was Liam who spoke next.
"Did they fall in love?" Liam breathed out, barely a whisper in the darkness.
Zayn smiled, but it was sad. "Yeah, yeah they did." He answered shakily, stroking Liam's face.
"Does it have a happy ending?" Liam asked after a few minutes. Zayn almost lost it there, trying to hold himself together for Liam.
"Of course it does," he answered confidently, ignoring the tremor in his own voice.
"Good," Liam whispered, his eyelids fluttering down.

Zayn was sobbing, curling his body around Liam's. Liam didn't want Zayn to be sad, but he was too weak to help. Too weak to wrap his arms around him and let Zayn cry into his chest.
He could barely keep his own eyes open, couldn't think through the fog clouding his thoughts, swirling confusedly in his head.
Zayn was still crying when the doors opened, filling the gym with blinding morning light.