Outbreak

Chapter 28

Chapter 28: Marlowe

Avi rests her head in my lap. She has calmed down quite a bit, but I still stroke her soft, blonde hair reassuringly. I lean against the side of the truck as Toni probes her ankle for breaks. It is already very swollen.

Jon and Nikki ride up front, while the four of us are in the storage area of the truck. I hold the rifle and pistol in my lap, grateful I had grabbed them in time. My pack sits directly in front of me, and Easton looks through it for food. When he finds a small can of corn, he pries it open hungrily with a knife, then bends the lid in half to create somewhat of a spoon. He scoops some out, and kneels next to Avi, offering it to her. When she refuses him, he offers Toni. Toni rudely ignores him and wraps avi's ankle with tape and a thin bandage.

Rejected, Easton slides next to me, offering me some. He moves his makeshift spoon towards my mouth, and makes ridiculous airplane noises, like you would do for a baby. I laugh at his silliness and open my mouth.

"God, get a room." Toni whines.

I look out the back of the truck. We haven't closed it, because it would get too hot. The abandoned highway seems to stretch on forever. It is mid-afternoon, and the hot, white, sun shines brightly overhead. Heat waves rise off the barren desert around us.

Avi whimpers loudly when Toni touches the sides of her ankle.

"I think it's sprained, but not badly." Toni explains. "I have a friend a few days from here, he's a doctor. He'll know for sure."

"Then what?" Avi demands. "Do we split up? We're miles off track, and zeke block the entrance of the city. We need to find Reyes." She eyes me.

"Avi, you need to take it easy. You won't be walking, let alone running on that for a few weeks at the least." I scold her.

"She's right. You need to rest some and then we will figure out what's next. Maybe we can talk about it later." Easton agrees with me. My eyes flicker to him in appreciation.

"Stop trying to tell me what to do, you act like you're my mom or something. Also, I don't need advice from your fucking boyfriend. I can do things for myself, and make my own decisions." She argues.

"Yeah, stupid ones." I mutter. I don't think she hears me. I shake my head in disappointment. I'm in an awkward position and her head is crushing my leg. "I need to stretch." I tell her. She lifts her head a little so I can stand up. I stretch my arms above my head, but don't return to my original position. Instead I plop down next to Easton. He reads the faded ingredients label on the corn. He chuckles.

"What?" I ask.

"She called me your boyfriend." He answers.

"And...?"

"You didn't disagree." He mutters, doing his little half smile.

"Oh my god!" I punch him in the arm lightly.

He laughs, rubbing his arm. His smile suddenly fades, and he sighs. "So... What is your plan for after Avi's ankle is better.?"

"Well, I guess we have to look for Reyes." I say softly.

"You know, you don't have to. You could just come back to our camp. There are a lot of people there. They'd love you." He answers.

"But I do. Avi would go without me and God knows what would happen to her. I owe it to Reyes to keep her safe. He really loved her. I mean he loved both of us, but her in a special way." I sigh, and lean on his arm. "I wish I could be with you, though."

"Well there's only one solution." He looks at me seriously.

"What's that?"

"We are going to have to help you look for this 'Reyes'." He explains.

"We?" I question.

"Me and Toni." He says.

"Toni probably wouldn't want to." I say quietly, so Toni can't hear me.

"Nah. We're partners. He would do almost anything for me, and I would for him."

I suddenly worry about him. "No, no you can't do that." I disagree. "I can't let you guys do that for me. You would be risking your life , and I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if you...." I fade out. "Besides, there's probably some girl back at camp who would miss you too much." I say this only to discourage him, but the thought makes me jealous.

"There's no one else, Mar. You are the only girl I've ever really, well..." He doesn't finish his sentence. "Anyways, you guys can't do this alone, and you don't really know the area well. You're going in blind. Let us help you." Easton reasons. "On top of that, you need someone to scare away the nightmares." He grins.

"Please. That's only happened once." The thought of the dream still scares me, bringing a tightness to my throat, so I change the subject. I clear my throat. "Don't they need you back there anyways?"

"No. Toni and I go out for weeks at a time, they won't miss us."

"Are you sure?" I look into his dark eyes.

"Absolutely." His hand gently brushes my face.

I lay my head on his shoulder, and hug him from the side. "Thank you." I whisper. We pull over. I hear the loud thunk of the truck door. Jon walks around the truck.

"Is everyone alright?" He asks, nervously eyeing Avi.

"Fine." Toni answers. "A sprained ankle here and there, but mostly fine."

"Thanks, Jon." He nods at me.

"We have enough gas to get to the next town, but we will need more if we stay in this truck. Here is far enough away from both towns, we should be safe for the night." He looks at me. "Nikki has been telling me she's hungry for the last hour. Do you have anything?"

I nod, and toss him a can of peaches. The expiration date is soon, but she should be fine.

He goes back to the driver's seat, and pulls us further off the road.

I eagerly hop out of the truck, with Easton's assistance. We stretch, and walk around a little.

When it's night, we close the door, and sleep in the pitch black. Toni is convinced that it's safer this way. Jon and Nikki are still in the front seats, in case of an emergency. I try to lay still, but the hard floor of the truck is uncomfortable.

"Can't sleep?" Easton asks.

"Still getting used to not sleeping with mattresses." I explain, bunching up my jacket to try to make a pillow.

"C'mere." He requests,

"Easton, I can't see you." Still, I feel around blindly in the dark. My hand makes contact with a face. "Is this you?"

"Yes." He laughs under my hand and I can feel his warm breath. He is propped up against the side of the truck. "Your hands are so cold." He grabs both my hands and pulls me towards him. "This isn't much better, but you can use my arm."

"Shhh!" A disembodied voice says from somewhere in front of us.

"No this is a lot better." I whisper.

"I have an important question for you." Easton whispers back.

"What's that?"

"What's your favorite color?"

I smile in the dark. Although I can't see him, I can tell he is too.

"Blue. Like the color of the ocean." I answer. "What about you?"

"Red. When I was little, my mom used to buy me a balloon every time we went to the park, and I always picked the red one."

"I can see that. Little Easton, skipping home with his balloon." I giggle softly. He laughs, and we talk for hours, late into the night, until I fall asleep sitting up, leaning against him.