Warehouse ~ A Michael Clifford/ Zombie Apocalypse Fan-Fiction

So close

Avery Rae:     I follow Michael into the house, trying to cover my limp. I hope he doesn't notice it. When he pushed me down, I twisted my ankle. My combat boots are pretty sturdy and kept it from twisting too bad, but it still hurts with every step. "Do you know what time it is?" I ask him to distract myself from the biting pain. He glances at his wrist and I notice a watch there for the first time. "Around 10am." he says plainly, walking up the three stairs that lead to the kitchen. With his back turned to me he unlocks what looks like a minifridge and takes out my box of insulin. I press my back against the wall and use my uninjured leg to hop up one stair at a time. I hop up the last one just as he turns around and I quickly try to play it cool. And fail.

     "What are you doing?" he questions, eyeing me as I lean against the wall. I fake a smile and say "Just looking around. I haven't been in the kitchen before." He raises an eyebrow at me and, for a moment, I think I'm caught, but he just shakes his head and brings me a filled needle. He comes so close, I can't see the cabinet behind him anymore. His chest is pressed against my arm and he traps me in his gaze. I feel the rise and fall of his breathing against my shoulder and vaugly notice just how bright his eyes are. I feel my cheeks warming, but I can't look away. I feel a dull, familiar pinch in my side and finally look down to see him injecting me. "You know, I can do that myself." I mutter as he carefully puls the needle out of my stomach and steps away from me. He drops the needle in a glass container on a shelf. He shrugs and responds with "I'm in charge of everything medical."

     He disappears into a closet, or maybe a pantry on the other side of the room and I can hear him shuffling around. I try to shift myself so my ankle is in a comfortable position but I wince with every movement. Sharp pains run up my foot each time I move. Michael is still in the pantry, but I feel a hand on my shoulder. I jump, causing shooting pain. The blonde boy name Luke stands next to me, giving me a small smile, hands raised to show he means no harm. "Aren't you supposed to be sleeping?" I breathe, not wanting Michael to hear. I don't want to get Luke in trouble. He's so quiet, nobody would notice if he was doing something he shouldn't be. I don't want to give him away. He simply shrugs and his eyes fall to my foot, which is propped up against the wall. He points at it and raises an eyebrow. I look down at it and I can see the redness of the injury at the top of my boots. I bite my lip as I move it to keep from making noise and set it flat on the ground. I pant quietly and look back up at him.

     He shakes his head in a seemingly disapproving way. I can't quite tell. He makes no sound. He pulls out his little notepad and takes a pencil from behind his ear and scribbles something out, showing it to me. "What happened?" I chuckle at the simplicity and whisper "Sparring this morning. Michael." Luke just nods, writing something else. I notice how tall he is for the first time. At first glance, he's taller than most, but when he's right next to me, he towers over me. My head barely reaches the middle of his chest, if I stretch. He wears all black which is sharp against his light hair. He shows me his notepad and I tear my gaze away from my study. "Let me look at it. It's my job." I raise an eyebrow, gesturing to Michael's general direction. "What about Mr. I'm In Charge Of Anything Medical?"

      Luke smirks and writes for a longer period of time. "If by 'anything medical' you mean he can read the back of a bottle of pain killers, then yeah, Michael's in charge." I stifle a giggle at the words. Just from the way Luke acts I can tell the comment was meant to he sarcastic and funny. I sigh and shake my head. "I'll be fine. I just need to walk it off. Don't tell anyone. Keep it...quiet." I whisper, veering off at the end when I realize what I just said. I don't know if he can't talk or simply won't, but I feel bad about the comment, either way. "I didn't mean..." I start again, whispering still, but Luke just shakes his head, giving me a reassuring smile. He ghosts over to the minifreezer that Michael just locked and takes out his own key. He is silent with every movement, taking out a tiny baggy full of ice. He locks the box again and brings me the ice, gesturing for me to put it on my ankle. I bend down a position the bag in my shoe, wrapping it wround the sore area. I stand back up, a thank you on my lips, but Luke is gone. I look around the kitchen an out the doorway, but he's nowhere to be seen.