Run. (Team Crafted Fanfiction)

Chapter 33- Tunnel People

Mitch's POV

Brrrrrring.

I shake my head, groaning. I don't want to get up.

Brrrrrring.

I moan and cover my eyes. I don't want to record today.

Brrrrrring.

My eyes shoot open. I'm still sitting at my desk, papers and books scattered around me from last night. Blearily, my eyes focus on the phone sitting at the corner of my desk.

Brrrrrrrring.

I seize it and put it up to my ear.

"Hello?"

A familiar voice answers. "Um, hi. Who is this and why have you been calling us for the past year? Oh, and how?"

I whoop and jump up. Running upstairs, I let out another whoop and burst out of the basement door. Gerald, Anne, and Olivia sit around the table. Their eyes all widen at the sight of me.

"It's me! Mitch!"

I hear the voice on the other end cry out. "Mitch! Where on earth did you go? We thought you were dead!"

Olivia jumps up and runs over to me.

"Looking for you, my good looking gamer! Where'd you people go? Is everyone okay?"

Olivia screams. "You found them!" I shush her as Ryan answers.

"Dude, we never left LA. We've been living in the hospital for like, a year."

Gerald motions for me to put the phone on speaker. I do so, setting it on the table.

"Aw man. I left! I thought you guys had headed out! I was heading for Seattle!"

Ryan laughs. "Why Seattle, of all places?"

I frown. "I figured you would've went back there with Adam......"

The line's quiet until Ryan's voice comes out again, barely a whisper. "We.....We're not with Adam anymore........"

I gasp and lurch back. Covering my eyes, I moan. "No. No! Come on! Ryan, is everyone else safe? Are they okay? Please tell me they're not dead as well!"

Olivia and Anne gasp and cover their mouths. Gerald looks as if he wants to get up and comfort me, but he doesn't move.

"No.......no. The rest of the team is still here. I wouldn't exactly say they're all okay, but they're here."

I bite my lip. "What do you mean, not okay?"

He sighs. "Mitch, it's Jerome. It's kind of hard to explain. Just, come back. Please."

With that, the line goes dead. I jump up and head downstairs.

"How do I get back, Ryan?"

Bending over my desk, I mutter to myself.

"Mitch?"

Olivia stands behind me.

"What?" it comes out sharper then expected. She recoils, and I soften.

"You never told me you've been trying to reach them."

I sigh. "I didn't want you to worry. You were so happy out here."

She joins me at the desk. "I could've helped."

I snap back to reality. "Probably not. It was pure luck that I finally got in contact with them. Now I have to get back."

She draws back her hand, which was reaching towards my zombie book. "You're leaving? Am I coming?"

I shrug and start to shove the things in my bag. "If you want to."

She takes the bag from me and starts to walk up. "I do. But you're telling Anne and Gerald."

Of course. This is gonna be the worst. Mentally cursing, I head back upstairs to the kitchen.

They both still sit there, heads bent in conversation. When Anne sees me, her eyes soften.

"Mitch, we don't blame you if you want to go."

I start. "Really?"

She nods. "These are your friends. And by the sounds of it, one of them needs you. You should go."

I nod and start to leave the kitchen.

"These friends of yours, how many are there?"

I swallow and turn around. "Five. Why?"

Gerald frowns. "And they're in the hospital in Los Angeles? I don't like that. I've been hearing things."

Curiosity takes over. "What things?"

He shakes his head sadly. "There's an awful group down there. Called th' Cavets. From what I heard, its a nasty group o' people."

"What people?"

Anne gets up. "His 'tunnel people' as he calls them. There must be a good 200 of them."

Gerald answers me unasked question. "Tunnel people are a group that use my tunnels. Most of them have escaped from the apocalypse and other groups through them tunnels. After a while, they started meeting up and formed a group. Anne and I stay in touch with the tunnel people."

I don't know how to respond. "Ummmm, okay."

He gestures wildly. "Listen to me! These people, a lot of them come from Los Angeles. They told us about the Cavets. If your friends are in that area, they're probably in danger from them!"

My eyes widen in shock. I thrust my hand down into my bag and dial Ryan's number again. Luckily, he answers.

"What?"

"Ryan, do you know of any other groups in LA?"

There's silence for a moment. "Yeah. We only know of one. Big, rich group. They live in an old apartment building a few blocks away."

My next words come out as a whisper. "Oh, crap."

"Yeah. They've been under us, too. They fixed the electricity. That's how I was able to call you. But anyway, Ian seems to think that they know we are here. He's concerned about an attack."

I lower the phone slightly. "Ok, hold on." I turn to Gerald. "They're in danger from them."

He shrugs. "Thought so. Ill see if I can get any tunnel people together to go back with you. Maybe your friends and them can push out them Cavets."

*three hours later

All around me are the sounds of feet. We got around 100 tunnel people to come back to LA with us. Currently, we were back in the tunnels. According to one of the tunnel people, this tunnel leads to the edge of LA.

The water from the ceiling drips down into my hair. Olivia walks next to me, clutching the strap of my bag. Even though we're surrounded by the tunnel people, I think she's still a bit scared.

The people in front of us stop. A crack of light appears, which soon opens into a door of light. Cheering, we file out.

Los Angeles lays below us. From out view on this hill, I can see the old hospital. I point it out to one of the tunnel people, and we take off.

---------------------------------------------------

I knock on the door of the hospital. It opens a crack, and an eye I recognize as Ty's peers out. It opens wide. "Mitch!"

The door is thrown open, and we all spill in. Ty looks around, shocked at all the people. Laughing, I introduce him. "Ty, meet the tunnel people."

_______________________

FINALLY STUFF IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING. IM SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG. ANYWAY, THIS IS GOING TO START GOING DOWN SOON.

I'm already starting to plan a sequel to this book. Anyway, happy reading.

Falloutfandoms out.