𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐑 | on hold

CHAPTER 23

'Are you sure about this?' Ethan asked me, his arms folded. He leant up against the wall, his eyes following me as I paced back and forth. My mind was racing, making me too impatient to stand still. I had told Ethan everything Nadeen had told me and was now waiting nervously for his response.

'I'm sure, but what do you want to do? Nadeen needs to know by tomorrow.'

After my talk with the Sergeant, I spent the rest of the day contemplating my decision. I wanted to be a part of their team - I wanted to help them in gathering supplies - the only thing I wasn't sure about was whether it was the right call. There was a part of me that wanted to trust Nadeen but there was just something about her. My brain would scream at me, warning me to keep my distance. When I got a feeling about something, it was usually right.

'Well, I can't let you go out there by yourself. Of course I'll join.'

I let out a breath, secretly relieved that Ethan had agreed. I was afraid that he would decline and try and talk me out of it but to my surprise, he did quite the opposite. 'Alright, so there's a scout scheduled for tomorrow. Nadeen didn't give me any details so I just assume things will be the same as last time.'

'Alright. . . I guess that means we need to go to bed early tonight. That way, we can get up and leave before anyone else knows we're gone.' Ethan said coldly, his eyes now glued to the floor.

Okay, that one hurt. 'You know I didn't do that on purpose.' I countered defensively, 'That's not fair.'

'Well, so is leaving without saying a word.' He exclaimed, his face contorting with anger.

I thrust my arm out, motioning to the bedside table, 'I left you a note! It's not like I left without saying anything. You know I would never do that to you. . .'

'Haylee--' Ethan stopped himself, '--I know, okay? Just. . . You should have woken me. I could have gone with you.'

'I know I should have but I didn't. I'm sorry, alright? How many times do I have to say it before you finally forgive me?' Ethan ran his hands through his hair as he paced back and forth. 'Where is this coming from?' I asked quietly as I turned to face him, 'You weren't angry when I came back.'

Ethan stopped, his teeth gritted. 'I was angry, but I was more relieved that you were alive. That's why I didn't even give it a second thought. Now that I've had time to process, it's all coming back to me.' Ethan sat down on the edge of my bed, his head in his hands. I slowly walked over and sat down beside him, placing a hand on his back. Ethan let out a shaky breath, his voice trembling as he spoke, 'I was just so worried. You said you would be back soon and when you didn't return. . .' There was this look of defeat on Ethan's face, his shoulders slumped slightly. 'I don't trust them, Haylee. I don't trust any of them.' He said softly, slowly meeting my gaze.

As I stared back, I noticed something. His eyes were wide with fear, emotion swimming through his irises. I had never seen Ethan looked so terrified. When we faced infected, he was never this frightened. He looked more afraid now than he ever had back then. There has to be something he's not telling me. That's the only explanation.

I chewed my bottom lip nervously, 'We should try and get some sleep.' I said, breaking the silence. 'We can talk more about this tomorrow.'

Ethan smiled weakly, 'Yeah. . .'

***

We got up early and headed to the garage. There were more people this time. Joining Carmine and the others was the other scouting group. Ethan and I made our way down the steps, walking towards them. Standing beside Carmine was, who I assumed to be, Markus. He was rather tall, relatively a few inches then Carmine, with tanned skin and short brown hair. His pale green eyes found mine as we crossed the garage.