Collapse (TyVan Fanfiction) ((discontinued))

XI

"Evan! Hold up for one goddamn minute!!" A familiar voice yelled across the field as I tried to run from the Resistance's new base. 
Finally, I got fed up with being chased and turned to face the freakishly tall man. "What? What do you want, Wildcat?" I asked sourly. He looked slightly taken aback as he skidded to a halt. 

"I'm really sorry, dude. I-I... I overheard Brian and the others talking after you ran out. It's true, someone set you up." He gasped in a quick breath. This behavior wasn't fitting for him, it sent a chill down my spine.
I clenched my jaw, looking him dead in the eye. He really did look apologetic. After a second, I nodded my head and glanced down. "I don't blame you guys. It's someone you trust, and... It's okay, man." My anger subsided as Tyler finally released a breath of relief. "So what now?" I asked after another second. 

Chapter 11
Partner In Crime

Tyler was the one looking me in the eye, completely serious on his part. "Let me come with you."
"You serious?" I questioned after. "All I ever do is run and kill."

He nodded, adjusting the bag on his back for me to take note of. "I want to stay with you. Not kidding." His voice was sincere as he stressed you. I tried to ignore my heart beginning it's rapid beating. 

Seconds turned into minutes, us standing there, staring at each other. The cool breeze brushed against my skin, making goosebumps travel up my arms. It was quiet, not a sound disturbed the light swaying of the trees, even our breathing was silent. 
This dude...

Finally, I managed to snap myself back into reality. "We should leave now, then." My voice seemed to startle him back to existence as well. He nodded, taking one last glance back at the building where we left ten minutes earlier. 
The two of us trudged through the rest of the overgrown field to the edge of the woods that surrounded this place, to try and hide amongst the brush so if anyone watching couldn't keep track of where we were. 

The sky eventually darkened gradually over the sound of silence. Tyler and I managed to find a road after walking through the trees for an hour, which was good. The wood is never a place you'd want to find yourself stranded in in the dark. 
Not a word was breathed between us, though it was comfortable. Ty now versus him a couple weeks ago seems very different. 

"Thanks for getting me out of there," He finally broke the silence, staring ahead. "Brian treated me like crap after you left. I told him that I thought he was keeping something a secret, since he was immediately buddy buddy with the new kids. After I was bested, it was just a thing where I had to keep quiet. And after the way I yelled at him... I was scared. Looking for something to save me from it." Tyler glanced over at me sadly, his blue eyes becoming shinier with the small tears he was holding back. 

I felt angry, surprised, sympathetic, happy... Angry at Brian, surprised that Tyler opened up, sympathetic from his feelings, and happy that I was the one who got him out of there. My chest hurt as I shook my head. "Sorry, but I'm going to end up killing him one day. I was fine with him being an asshole to me, but to you? Wish I was there with you guys... fuck." I cursed under my breath. 
Tyler's hand clamped onto my shoulder, as if he were keeping me from blowing up. That simple gesture immediately calmed me, though it didn't help the odd feeling in my chest. 

"You were forced out. There was nothing you could have done, and if anything, I should've stuck up for myself." He disagreed. 

"Still, Ty," My walking stopped, causing him to as well. "I can't help but feel bad. This-this... I made a promise to protect you all, best I could. There's no way I can't stop feeling like part of all this was my fault." 
He sighed. "Okay. But you let me come with you, basically saving me from that Irish bastard. At least think like that?" 

"Alright." I nodded, giving into his reasoning. "You're so compassionate. We can't even argue correctly."
My comment made a small smile spread on his face, all his sad emotions seemingly subsiding. Now that, that made me feel good as well, like he himself was just contagious. "Now, let's go find somewhere to stay for a bit. I'm betting you're exhausted, eh?" I began walking again. Tyler let out a dramatic yawn, agreeing with me in his own, weird way. "Yeaaahhhhh. There should be a neighborhood close by. As far as I know, it's not yet been raided for supplies." He commented. 
"Yessssss." I whispered, earning a chuckle from the taller male. 

Put us together like this three weeks ago, there'd be no way either of us would be this laid back. 

As Tyler had said, there was a neighborhood that we stumbled upon only twenty minutes from where we first talked again. The whole walk, we were telling stories of our lives before the fall. And I would've never guessed Ty worked at a family owned computer store, where he would always coax the teenagers into buying videogames. 

"Finally. It's almost nighttime, too." He let out a sigh of relief as we walked up to a random house, barging in without a thought. 
It was surprisingly clean, like someone lived here by themselves. There was a small couch in the living room, a coffee table lined up with it. No dining room, so I guess they just ate all their food on the coffee table. 
It was a small house, so there was no basement or second floor. Quite cozy and welcoming, if you ask me. 

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm gonna raid the kitchen. Maybe there might be some dinner laying around." Ty nodded, dropping the bag of his belongings onto the floor next to the door. 
A small smirk was on my face as I watched him walk through the open house, heading for one of the cabinets. "You do that, I'll go find the bedroom." I called out, not too loud though. 
My hand grasped his bag, which was a bit light. 

The bedroom was on the other side of the living room, which really added to the 'one person is meant for this place' claim I made. 
It was a decent size in comparison to the rest of the house, at least a Queen sized bed fit into it comfortably. The bathroom was inside the room, which honestly did make the place seem cooler. 

I dropped Ty and I's bags by the bedroom door absentmindedly, my focus on the room itself. 

"This dude was living the life." Tyler commented behind me, making me jump in surprise. 
He was holding essentials for a decent sandwich, the ingredients not even rotten or stale. 

"I know, right? It's like someone was here for a while, probably grew and made their own food or something." He noticed my confused stare. "But now is the time to feast, not ponder on how this person did it."
As though on cue, my stomach grumbled lightly. "Can't help but agree." I smiled. He returned it, slipping past me and through the door. 

We both took a spot on the couch, only slightly bigger than a love seat. Tyler grabbed a couple knives before, handing me one to slice up the bread. He took the liberty of being in charge of the slices of turkey and the makeshift cheese. 



Dinner was a great success. We both ate several sandwiches, which were some of the best I've tasted in a while. It felt like hours passed while we were chatting about some of the randomness things, mostly about how surprised we were at how pleasant the food tasted. 
And, as it turns out, we're a lot alike. He shared the same love of games as I did, some of the same music and tv shows as some examples. It must have been around midnight when we finally put away what was left of the food and retired to the bedroom. 

As soon as Tyler's head hit the pillow, he was out like a light. Though, I stayed up a bit after, replaying our conversation in my head. Learning that this 6'5" macho guy was a geek still awed me. 

"Good night, you tall bastard." I mumbled before fully falling asleep.