Us Against the Apocalypse

Epilogue

Nick and Ryder had been walking for days, fighting against the buffeting wind and relishing in the glowing sun. After fleeing the pool their first thought had always been when to go back, but Nick had eventually suggested that they temporarily find somewhere else. Now, they'd set up camp a little while away, but still far enough out of the reach of zombies.

Or they'd have thought so, but the pair that had attacked the pool shouldn't have been there either.

'I've never known zombies to travel in pairs,' Nick muttered thoughtfully as he flattened out a blanket against the bare earth. 'This is all we've got to lie on, so deal with it.'

Ryder was doing his best to keep the fire alive, as had been his job since the two of them had first left. He'd struggled at some points; the wind had been wild lately, but overall the endeavour had been successful and he hoped Nick was impressed.

'You don't mind using the same blanket, right? Ryder!'

'What?!' Ryder hurried towards his friend uncomfortably upon realising he'd been close to zoning out, something Nick hated.

'Using the same blanket. Do you care? I can't do shit about it if you do.'

Ryder shook his head vigorously; he didn't, honestly, if anything it would do well to keep them both warm.

'Good.' Nick grunted with relief before getting to work ridding the blanket of creases and making sure it was in a relatively safe location. They couldn't be sure that no zombies were around, not after what'd happened at the pool.

All the teenagers had scattered, but not before arranging to reunite at the pool in two weeks or so. They knew that not everyone would survive, but if the two zombies made a nest then they couldn't return before they'd gone. They'd been lucky not to have any fatalities already, though several people had suffered extreme wounds.

Nick guessed about five of them wouldn't make it.

All he cared about was protecting himself and Ryder.

Ryder had shuffled back over to his fire while his friend was distracted. He wanted to keep it alive, but that was impossible when he was a good distance away talking to Nick.

Nick didn't initially notice his absence and instead continued sorting out the blanket which they were fated to share. Ryder didn't think he'd sleep much that night anyway; he'd been restless ever since they left the pool.

It was both the thought of zombies coming in their sleep and the trauma of almost being murdered that hindered his sleeping schedule. He hadn't confided in Nick yet and wasn't sure if he ever would.

'Weird not getting harassed by Bluebell, huh? Speaking of which, those guys must've had a nasty shock when they got back.'

Bluebell had crossed Ryder's mind once or twice but he hadn't dwelled too deeply on her. 'They'll figure out what happened,' he responded faintly. 'I hope they do.'

'They might get murdered,' Nick joked, but Ryder didn't find it very funny and prodded his fire with a stick.

'Maybe.'

'Lighten up, Leo won't let anything happen to them,' Nick pointed out, brows furrowed. 'It's us we have to worry about, not them.'

Ryder supposed he had a point there - their safety was the top priority for now. Even in a place lacking in zombies they were at high risk and needed to keep their wits about them. Spending time worrying about the others would do nothing but compromise their safety.

'Okay,' Ryder finally agreed, once again messing with the fire. It was dying quicker than he would have liked, though he supposed he'd been keeping it going for an hour or so now.