All Alone [Norman Reedus] Book Two {{COMPLETED}}

Five

"You think maybe we should take the bags off?" Mack asks out loud, completely interrupting the hostage next to me. I try not to get angry, and I bite my lip hard to keep from shouting out and asking him once more what his name is.

"You can take the dog's off. And Perry's. But not the men." Theo responds.

I hear one of them stand up and walk over to me, and a second later, I'm squinting when the light hits my eye's.

Mack walks back to his seat on the opposite side of the train car next to Rugger, and he pulls the brown bag off of my poor dog's head.

"Cupid!" I gasp, smiling at Rugger.

Rugger tilts his head at me, and I tell him to come. He obeys, but I'm sure he's still quite confused on the name-switch.

"So, Perry?" Theo begins. "Where have you and Cupid been? You look like you've been in a group." he says.

I look at him and roll my eyes slightly. "No. No group. Me and Cupid were holed up in a fort that we found." I pause, looking down at Rugger and then around the car.

I realize it's the first real look I've gotten at all these men. Mack is around twenty. He's Hispanic and good-looking, but a little worn-down and lean. Robert is around his twentie's, as well, but looks nothing like Mack. He has blonde hair that waves up and down his forehead, and gray eyes that catch your attention. And Theo. He's younger than you would guess. He almost looks nineteen, and sounds nothing like he looks. He has a dorky haircut, but it suits his face well. His jawline is very defined, and he has the greenest eyes I've ever seen on anyone before. As much as it hurts to say it, he's quite handsome.

I look away quickly and my stare lands on my shoelace. It's untied.

"Wow." Theo says, "You sure? You look well-fed to me!" he looks at Robert for his approval.

"Yeah, I agree." Robert says, picking at his nail.

I sigh. "I made runs into town with R-" I stop myself before I can say 'Rugger' and then make a swift recovery. "Cupid. We found a whole bunch of stores with supplies still inside them." I explain. 

No one says anything, so I do. "Why'd you get mad at me for talking earlier?" I ask.

"I needed you to know that I was in control. You should be scared of me by now." Theo raises an eyebrow, "Am I right?"

I don't nod or shake my head. I just lean back against the wall and close my eyes, hoping to get a little bit of rest on this train ride.

I don't remember falling asleep, but I know I did when I wake up. My head is on the shoulder that belongs to the man that asked about a "Grace."

"Sorry." I mumble, sitting up.

He doesn't say anything back, so I figure he's asleep. And so is the other hostage. And Rugger. And Theo, Mack, and Robert. I'm the only one awake. Great.

I enjoy the quiet, and am content with listening to the chug of the train on the tracks until Rugger starts snoring. I nudge him with my shoe, "Rugger." I whisper. "Rugger, wake up."

His ears perk up first, and then he opens his eyes.

"I'm bored." I say, a bit paranoid that one of the men is listening. "And hungry." I add. 

I look around. "Why didn't you warn me that they were coming?"

Rugger doesn't move, he just looks at me from his position on the ground.

"Whatever. I should've been more careful." I say, sitting up on my knees, and smile when Rugger lifts his head. "Sorry about your name switch. I don't know what's wrong with me. Maybe the name 'Grace' brings back to many memories of Norman and Sean. Of Auntie Beth and Austin. I can't tell if I'm scared of my past, or if I just don't want to be reminded of it. I mean, Norman and Sean are dead or lost forever, so why even bother keeping my name. Or yours."

Rugger lays his head back down.

"Sorry." I say limply, suddenly feeling hot.

"You think it was the water?" I ask after my whole body produces a mean heat-flash followed by a sharp ache in my stomach.

My throat starts to burn, and I hold my breathe.

It's the water. I think, trying to hold down what's just so happily decided to show up.

My attempts succeed, but I feel miserable and sick. My hair falls over my face as I try to calm my stomach and my spinning head.

"You alright over there?" the second hostage- the one beside the one I was laying my head on- wakes up.

I cough a bit. "Just sick." I choke groggily, accepting that the water had some nasty stuff in it that I shouldn't have drunk.

I hear Theo yawn and then gasp when he sees me. "Dang." 

I'm bent over, shaking like a leaf, and sick as a dog. Perfect. Just what I need.

Rugger gets up and sits right beside me. I sigh and try to speak, "How long till we get to Adin?" 

Robert looks at Theo and Theo answers me, "An hour or so. You need me to unclasp your hands?" he sees how I"m struggling to keep from falling forward onto my face. I nod.

Theo unties the rope and I pull my hair out of my face. It makes me cooler, but I still feel hot.

"Lay on your side. It helps." the first hostage is awake now.

I don't ask how or take a moment, but I flop to my side and try to take deep breathes.

I notice Robert staring at me, and after a second, he pulls his bag onto his lap and frisks through it quickly. "Drink this. I got sick a week ago." he tosses me a purple bottle with no label that's about one-fourth full. "Give it five minutes and you'll feel a whole lot better. It worked for me."

I don't ask any questions. I'm already sitting up and drinking the rest of the liquid. I count the seconds until five minutes is up (give or take a few) and I feel my forehead. It's normal, but I know I should still expect to feel sick again later.

I lay back down, since I was quite comfy on the ground and stare up at the ceiling, thinking of how in the world that medicine worked so quickly.

"Yo, can you take this off my face?" the first man with a bag over his face asks, letting his knees fall so his legs are stretched out in front of him. "What's the big deal if I see the people around me?!"

Theo sighs, "It's more where we're going. I'd rather you not see."

"But you let Perry see!" he debates.

"Yeah, but she's sick. And cute." Theo responds.

The guy sighs, "Man, come on!"

I stop listening to their bickering and focus on how good the breeze feels. It reminds me of peace. Relaxation.

"Whatever. Take it off, Mack." Theo grunts, trying not to look at me in my heep of sweat.

I listen to Mack's footsteps as he crosses to the two guys I havn't seen, and he pulls the bag's off and cuts the ropes.

I close my eyes and try to rest.

I don't realize how quiet the train car is until we pass a Walker and it sounds louder than usual. I open my eyes.

"Did everyone die?" I ask sarcastically, propping myself up on my elbows.

As soon as I sit up, I'm met with two familiar eyes. Not eyes of the men I just met. No, not Theo or Mack or Robert. But eyes that I thought were gone forever. Lost. Dead. Gone.

And it's not just eyes that I encounter; it's lips and arms. Lips that thirst for mine, and arms that have been dying to hold me.

The eyes close, the lips make contact, and the arms pull me down.

I'm drowning in love, and after what seems like a whole ten minutes, the hostage pulls away.

"Norman." I sob, not recalling when I started crying.