All of my 5sos work

Running: II

A gentle touch to my arm alerted me, instantly I reached for my gun and held it out in front of me only to see his blue eyes wide with fear as he held his breath. Letting out a short sigh I lowered my gun and he exhaled turning away from me he raised his arm to see into the distance as the sun began to make a brief appearance. Across the back of his forearm a large scar extended from his ripped top to his elbow, the healed skin left a daunting mark, not everyone is so lucky after all. 

Seeing the orange break through the dark shadows of the burnt trees amongst the smoke wondering what this day could bring, he turned back around and I tore my eyes from him as the air remained oddly peaceful. Standing up on the large branch I gripped onto the branches above me to help ensure balance, looking around below us to see whether the coast could be considered clear or not as the day was only just beginning, who knows what will await us as we depart from some stability. 

Glancing over to Luke who focused on me as opposed to the limited view ahead of him I carefully sat back down opposite him, thinking whether or not I could continue without him holding me back. It's not that I don't do company, I've been alone for months and talking to others hasn't been something that has been a focus for me on this journey, the most communication I've done is swear at the dead who try and attack me. 

"We're going to head out now, the coast is clear as far as I can see but we need to move quickly. My aim is to make it to the nearest shop to begin with, ensure it's clean then from there keep walking until it starts to get dark. Deal?" Explaining my day seemed weird, my usual routine that could seem alien to a feeble runner as opposed to a now skilled survivor. 

The stunned look written across his face said it all, he didn't have much choice in the matter if he wished to survive and make it to the haven; he is a stray, but I guess this is one I can help for a while. Getting my bag back onto my back and gun in my hand I lowered my rope, being the first to climb down efficiently with little noise being made. 

Sound was something they're extremely sensitive to, their eyesight lacks but this is made up in their ability to hear even the smallest of movements from the crunches of leaves beneath my boots or my clenched teeth. They may be dumb, but they do have something about them that means they can keep going. Once I was on the ground I reloaded my gun, seeing I need to get more bullets which hopefully this shop will have. Keeping my gun in a tight grip I waited for him to come down, watching out for anyone or anything in our perimeter. 

He looked to where I was with some worry in his eyes, his face seemed torn between staying put and continuing. Impatience coursed through me as I stood my ground afraid to sigh or tell him to hurry, it may be 5:29am but before we know it they will be wandering too, hungry in the search of something to eat. 

Eventually he began to lower himself down the rope, it was obvious it was something new to him, a skill he'll need to acquire. Once he got close enough to the ground he jumped, stumbling over his feet and fell to his knees. Holding my hands out to him he gladly accepted, mumbling a thank you as I pulled on the rope with some force to get it back down before we could start our day. 

Walking in a quick pace we remained silent, the only visible sounds were the grass beneath our feet and his pants, the nerves creeping into his mind. Neither of us speak up as I focus on direction, checking the grass to see if there has been any embedded sloppy foot prints, whether there are drags within the grass to suggest they've been here, they're close by. 

Luke pauses as he notices me observing the grass, seeing a slight drag in the opposite direction that we were heading. Letting out a sigh of relief I continued to walk in the direction of the shop where we can re fill my supplies, well our supplies now. 

"So," Breathless he began to speak up from behind me but I didn't have time to stop, time is crucial in these last few days, I can't afford to miss my one chance at a new life because of a straggler. "how long have you been doing this then?" It sounded like a question about a hobby or a job, it didn't seem right regarding this. 

Huffing I continued walking, remaining quiet as the sun was now clear in the sky amongst the thick clouds of smoke. "The shop is about ten minutes, we shouldn't be more than half an hour but we need to be wary." I stated and no response was given as we approached the store. 

From afar it looked fairly normal, the windows had been smashed to pieces and blood covered the edges of the shards, all of the lights were off and remained half hung as the wires could not hold with ease. Standing on the broken glass I observed the inside of the shop, taking a look at all of the angles without having to step foot until I was certain we could do a sweep without interference. Stepping off of the glass and hearing the light crunch I walked over the window display, being agile to not cut myself knowing that is the last thing I need at this point. I've had my fair share of injuries, I have the scars to prove it, some of them self inflicted to save those I loved. Now they serve a reminder of what I've lost, skin may heal but the marks on my heart will remain. 

I motioned for Luke to follow me as we walked up and down the aisles, slipping my bag off of my shoulders I opened it up to get as much as I could in quickly. He remained right behind me as my eyes scanned the remainder of the items here. "Sixth months is a long time, I doubt there are many supplies but we'll take what's good." It was barely a whisper but he heard it, the silence echoed throughout the shop as we picked up various canned goods and put them into my bag. 

Going separate ways to cover as much as the store as we could I began to look underneath the aisles to find more food or dropped ammunition the slightest noise caused my ears to perk. Pulling my arm out from the gap keeping a hold of the bullets I was able to find, slowly stood up and took cautious steps to find Luke as quickly as possible. As I reached the end of the aisle, gun now in hand and bag secured on my back I held it by my side as the faint smell of rot filled my nostrils.

There were a mixture of them, it was evident in their smell of rotting flesh, fish and dirt. Some of them were new, their flesh wasn't falling off and they still had ease with movements in their joints, they tended to be rabid, unable to control their actions as they were losing their minds and every ounce of what makes them human. Whereas the older ones made the bizarre noises, what was left of their flesh was hanging off along with leftover bits of their previous meal. They had slow movements, they were much stiffer and less agile as they had no control, only their yearn for hunger controlled their actions. 

If only it was the older ones, they're easier to take out. They hadn't spotted me and I continued to walk, hoping to find Luke before he hears gunshots and causes a commotion. He stands staring at empty broken photo frames, a solemn look held in his eyes, "Hate to interrupt a bittersweet moment, but we've got company." The fear that radiated off of him coursed into me, he grabbed onto the knife I gave him and nodded, following close behind me. 

Mentally I had a rough idea of what to do, it just involved us to not make a single sound, not to breathe too much, not even blink. As we got close enough I aimed my gun up to the hanging light above their aisle, shooting the light creaked off of its last hinges crashing to the ground shaking the entire floor. Groans of anger could be heard from here and we quickly moved to the aisle next to theirs, with Luke's help we pushed the display over onto them, seeing the dust spread and blood pour from beneath the discoloured floor and cans roll on by. 

"We better move it," I panted, "others would've heard that, they're bound to find us." Moving out of the shop Luke remained uneasily quiet. "Guess you're not used to that?" A light laugh escaped me but he looked horrified. 

He shook his head and he couldn't stop shaking, the knife in his hand barely visible with his violent shakes. "How, how are you okay about this?" His tone took a different route to the one I expected, he sounded disgusted in me. "You just did that with no remorse!" He began to speak up and I placed my hand over his mouth, now a close proximity between the two of us as I kept my eyes on his. 

"Listen Luke." No more joking, I wasn't going to die because of him. "This is something we have to do now, I didn't chose this life, it was forced onto all of us. You may not have experienced much of this but I've seen all the violence, taught myself the resilience and skills to keep myself alive." I kept it blunt, I wasn't going to seem boastful, I was hurt as it is, the weight on my shoulders continued to grow with every step I took. "They are dead," I whispered, my voice cracking ever so slightly as I fixated on his blue eyes, seeing the hurt in them. "I did them a favour." With that I removed my hand and walked on, whether he followed or not.