Run

Chapter 7

 When I woke, it was quick and startling. 

My eyes shoot open and I sit up straight. I could tell that I hadn't moved all night by how stiff I was. The muscle ache that was almost a burn in my legs and.. just everything else was the terrible reminder of the running that we did yesterday.  Not to mention, my throat still ached and I dread seeing my reflection.

I place my feet firmly on the floor and ignore the ache anyway. Victor is by the front door, sleeping. Over my shoulder I see Jameson curled up tight, facing my way and I listened to his soft breaths for a moment as I gather the energy to get up. 

Stretching my arms and back a little, I decide to clean up, hating the sticky way I feel from yesterday's dried sweat. I grab my pack that I practically threw on the floor at the end of the bed last night and head to the bathroom. 

I use the water I keep to clean myself and a cloth to take a makeshift shower. 

After I'm clean or at least, don't look quite so dirty, I tie my black hair up into a ponytail. After which, I head over to the bed and see Jameson in the same position, this time with Victor curled in his arms. 

Sighing, I pad over silently and lightly shake his shoulder. 

Nothing.

Victor has now woken up and decides to help me out when I walk to the other side of the bed and proceed to shove him off. 

At his startled shriek, I crack up laughing while Victor barks. "Good job, Victor. What a good boy." 
Walking around, I look down at him and Jameson looks at me with a raised brow. "We leave in fifteen. Get up and ready before I take Victor and leave." 

As I walk to the table, Jameson mumbles. "Was that really necessary?" 

My stomach growls I rummage through my pack and ignore him. 
"For fucks sake." I mumble to myself and turn around as Jameson walks to the bathroom. "What happened to the food, Jameson?" 

He shrugs, "Maybe the dog ate it?"

As the door shuts, I roll my eyes and tell him to stay put before climbing out the window with my own pack. "Can't believe his punk ass." Pursing my lips as I land on the ground, I roll my eyes again. "And now I'm mumbling to myself. Good going." 

This is exactly what adopting an annoying boy does. They come in and act like a baby, which requires you to fucking take care of their shit for them and what good does it do me? 

I shake my head and find a convenience store. 

The place is out of all non-perishables. Boo. I guess it's all junk food for breakfast. 

Smiling to myself at the cinnamon buns and powdered donuts, I decide that I should take the three energy bars left and, surprisingly enough, the two water bottles I find that are unopened. 
Happy with my finds, I make my way back to the apartment. Too bad there wasn't more food. 

I'm more than halfway back when I hear a shuffle in the debris. 

Stopping mid step, my knees bend just slightly and my hand goes to my knife. 

"Help!" 

Walking slowly to where the sound came from, I hear a groan before I see a man covered in dirt and pinned by some debris. 

Gasping the man sees me and pleads. "Help me, please. I need your help. Please." 

My eyes narrow slightly as I look around but he's alone so I hesitantly go close and crouch by his side. "Christ, what happened?" A piece of metal has impaled his shoulder and the rest of it has him pined to the concrete.  He wasn't here before, no one was.

I go to touch it but he shouts for me not to. 

"Every time I try to move it, it goes deeper into my arm."

"How long have you been here?" My brow furrow in thought as he grunts. There's blood crusted to his face and dried on his hands, more leaks from his shoulder as some of it has congealed. 

"God," another groan "Just- fuck- just kill me, p-please. Please! Just make it stop." The man begs as he writhes. 

Stuttering, I shake my head and then shake it again to clear it as this man grabs the hand that I had hovering over him. "No," I shake my head once more and clear my throat because this man is bleeding out. "I- I'll. I will be right back. I promise, I'll get you some help. You'll get through this, don't worry. Just-Just wait. I promise." 

I dart back to the apartment and ignore the man as he shouts in pain. 

I'll get Jameson and the med-pack from my other bag. 

Both Jameson and Victor are quick to follow me. They're sitting and munching, totally sharing a granola bar. But there's no time to dwell on that. 

We make it in close but are forced to hid behind a car. I hear his screaming, I can hear the squelch of muscle and blood being eating by the creature and I can see the gore. 

"Oh god, no." I cover my ears as I sink behind the car and tuck my face into my knees. "No,no,no, no. Shit!" 

He's dead and it's my fault and images of the past flood behind my lids. My family. The sounds, all of it, it's like what happened to my family. And once again, it's all my fault. We should have risked it, just now, I should have taken that thing off of him and we could have at least made it to the apartment where Jameson could've brought us supplies. 

Here, I let him sit and wait for death. 

He could have bled out but the more likely thing happened. The creatures smelled the blood.

I felt something touch my leg at the same time as I heard something soft in my ear. Reacting on instinct, I shove my elbow out but it's caught and I see Jameson. He grabs my wrist in his hand and the other goes to cup my face. It's a moment before I finally listen and hear what he's saying.

I realize his other hand released my wrist and is now over my mouth to stop the loud cry that escaped me. "Haylee. H-Haylee, listen. Listen to me." He whispers softly and I want to yell at him to firstly, get off me and secondly that he doesn't need to baby me. "It's not your fault Haylee. There was nothing we could do. And we can discuss this because I see in your eyes that you're going to yell at me but we need to save that for when its safe." 

He lets go of me when I nod and helps me up, I push him lightly but it doesn't stop the tears that leak out and fall from my face. Jameson gives me a heartbreaking frown before he hugs me and that's when the dam breaks. 

In his arms, pressed tightly to the side of this flipped car and on the cold ground, I break down as silently as I can.

There I mourn for that man, my family, Jamesons' family. I mourn for how shit the world has turned.