Finally a new chapter. I know, I'm terrible.
11:27 am
It had been another busy day so far. Everyone was counting food, water and supplies and calculating how many days worth of food they would have per person. They had found additional supplies in the back of the store, including additional water, which they were surprisingly low on. Lance and Hunk were applying what little science they knew to an effort of making household weapons. Lance had fashioned a sort of smoke bomb with windex and bleach. He had remembered from his mother's warning not to mix the two as a child, they combined and created a poisonous gas that would kill you in minutes. Of course it was equally effective on humans and infected, so it came in very handy. Keith and Coran had found a book of u.s maps by state, and were trying to look for weapon shops nearby that nobody else would have gotten to already. They figured if they were going to risk getting in a car and driving to a place with countless infected patients on their tail, and possibly hostile people too, that they would make sure to get something out of the trip. Allura had become disconnected from the rest of the group. She hardly talked to any of them, but she was still there. She spent most of her time worrying about her parents and where they were. The team had tried to comfort her, perhaps lift her spirits, but their efforts were useless. They left her to deal with it in her own, which she preferred.
Lance had gone elsewhere in the store just to get away from everything for a minute. They hardly had the chance for a break, they were so paranoid. But they were right in feeling that way because they were so fragile that one wrong move could cost the whole group their lives. They couldn't afford to waste time. Lance knew that, but he couldn't help needing to step away. He was only a teenager. Maybe he knew how to work, or how to survive high school and prepare for college, or how to cook and clean, but nothing could have possibly prepared him for this. He walked around the Walmart and eventually he came across a big glass door with an even bigger glass wall covering the surrounding area, he realized he was in the gardening section, and he immediately became very excited. He rushed into the room and the smell of moss quickly overtook his senses. He was so excited to see something other than his small group that was alive and well. He gazed at the plants as he walked through the aisles. He began to frown as he realized that most of these plants needed water, and with the lack of rain due to them being in a desert-like area, they wouldn't be able to survive. He needed these plants, and he also knew he couldn't keep all of them. He felt bad having to pick favorites, but it was better than nothing. He began to pick out plants and put them in a designated area. He picked plants he knew could survive without water for extended periods of time, just in case. When he was done, he had a plastic container of 11 small succulents. He put them by an area with decent sunlight. He smiled to himself.
Lance woke to a loud bang coming from another part of the department store. He got up, rubbing his head. He had fallen asleep next to the plants, and as he looked out past the clouded glass panes, he saw that the sun was beginning to set. He began to walk out of the glass room towards where the noise came from. He was cautious about it, stopping every so often to listen. He thought he heard people talking. He got closer and realized it was the group talking, but there was a voice he didn't recognize, and Keith's voice was filled with concern for the new person. He walked out towards the group and was met with a tall, well built man with oddly cut and colored hair and a prosthetic arm. He decided this must be Shiro, Keith's brother. He let out a sigh of relief. Shiro's arrival meant that their group would now be more organized. Shiro was a natural born leader, and he seemed like one too. Surely he would be able to get this group together so they could survive the apocalypse.
Shiro immediately proposed several ideas, proving himself worthy as a leader. His first statement was to have at least two emergency escape vehicles, in case they had to leave on the spot. His next idea was to gain weapons, and train everyone how to use them. Shiro had been in the army since he was 18, but left two years ago when he lost his arm on the job. He knew all about weapons and survival tactics so everyone felt safe with him as the head of operations. Lance had been dozing off through most of Shiro's long group meeting. He's sure it was motivating and smart, he just doesn't remember most of it. Shiro had apparently reached the end of his long speech.
"Any questions?" He asked.
"How is it out there?" Lance asked, not aware of what he said until after it had left his mouth.
"What?" Shiro asked, dumbfounded.
"What's it like out there? I haven't seen it since it started. Is it better? Worse? Is anyone else still alive? Did they make it to the bunkers? Is our government doing anything about it?" Lance was concerned about the well-being of his planet. More importantly, the well-being of his family. He just wanted to know that his siblings and parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles were still alive.
"It's a mess," Shiro began. "There's thousands, if not millions, of infected. They're everywhere, in large numbers. You can't even shoot them because they have extremely sensitive hearing. If you shoot one, all of them within a five mile radius will be on your tail. And they're persistent too. You can't even kill them stealthily because they're smart enough to travel in packs. I've seen people try to fight them, they never make it out alive. As for the remaining survivors, the ones in the bunkers are safe and can't be touched. They screen everyone who enters for the virus, and those who are infected that try to enter are killed on the spot before they turn. Those who aren't in the bunkers are out in the wild with those things. Most of them are in groups. Some of those groups have resorted to terrorizing the other survivors. They kill them and loot for supplies and leave them there. It's terrible."
"Sounds rough." Keith said thoughtfully. "...So have you come across... her...yet?" Keith asked softly.
"No. I don't know where she wandered off to. Even if she was still walking around I wouldn't want to see her. Not the way she is now. I don't even want to imagine it."
"...We have a lot to talk about." Keith said to Shiro.
Hours Later
It was late, and everyone was falling asleep, they had set up an extra air mattress for Shiro. Keith had gone up to the roof to watch the stars again, something he usually did. Lance relaxed in bed, trying to fall asleep. He couldn't stop thinking about his family. He was so scared for them. He had never been separated from them for so long. He was so lost in thought that he jumped when Shiro got out of bed. He went off into the dark towards the door. He was going upstairs. Probably to talk to Keith. Lance figured he would get up too. Maybe he would go visit his plants and try to get some sleep. He carefully lifted himself off the mattress so he wouldn't wake anyone and quickly tiptoed over to the glass doors. When he had made it to the room, he looked at his plants gladly, and out at the night sky. He was once again startled when he heard footsteps above him. He looked up and saw that the whole ceiling was glass as well, a lot thicker though. It was in a triangular shape. He looked at the edge of it and noticed two sets of feet and legs resting on the outer part of the glass. He had been up there before, but he never realized that the glass dome next to the roof was the gardening section of the store. The night was so quiet that he could hear their voices almost clearly. It was a bit muffled but he could make out most of what they were saying.
"Keith, how have you been? You know, with mom?"
"I'm just at a loss of words for it. I don't really know how to describe it. It's really hard to talk about actually, I'd rather not." Keith said, slightly agitated. Shiro didn't notice the agitation in Keith's voice though.
"Keith, I'm your brother, you know you can trust me." Shiro said, putting a hand on Keith's shoulder.
"I know, I know. I just don't feel like talking about it."
"Well let me know when you do." Shiro paused for a minute, taking in the stars. "Look, I need sleep, I'm exhausted. I spent so much of my energy looking for you and I hardly got rest. Goodnight."
Lance heard Shiro's footsteps wander back down the stairs and away from Keith. It didn't feel right though, something was up with him. Lance wanted to go up there, but he didn't want Keith to know he had been eavesdropping on their conversation. He tried to ignore the feeling. It wasn't until he heard Keith begin to sob. He knew he was right, something was up, and he couldn't just leave him. Especially when he knew better than anyone else in the group what he was going through. He got up and began walking towards the roof.
Lance walked up to Keith, who was still sobbing. He felt bad.
"Mind if I sit here?" He asked.
Keith lifted his head from his knees and looked up at him, nodding. Lance sat next to Keith and without hesitation, put his arm on his shoulder and pulled him close. Keith rested his head on Lance's shoulder, still crying.
"You wanna talk about it?" Lance asked, looking at him with sympathy. Keith was crying so hard he could barely even speak. He knew he wanted to talk, he just couldn't. Lance pulled him into a hug, slowly but surely calming Keith down. When he was calm enough, he spoke.
"I wasn't prepared for this. I don't know how to deal with all this. My mom was all I've ever had most of my life. She taught me everything. She was so nice and generous and selfless. She was the most pleasant person you could meet. She didn't deserve what happened to her."
"What about Shiro? You had him, didn't you?" Lance asked, still holding Keith.
"Barely. He was either always in school or working at one of his jobs to bring food on the table. I only ever saw him at dinner. We barely knew each other. He had to do so much to keep the family together. My mom couldn't work. The only reason I was relieved to see Shiro was because of his experience in the army. I knew he would be crucial for our survival. I appreciate everything he did, but he tries to act like my brother. He wasn't ever there for me as a brother. I can't really trust him personally because I barely know him. If he knew me, which he doesn't, he would know that trust isn't something I give away for free. I just wish things worked out differently."
"I miss my family too Keith. I don't know where they are, or if they're alive. But I still get by, day by day. You just have to find something to keep you going. And if you're having a hard time with that, just find something to keep you alive for one minute, and another thing for the next, and pretty soon you've made it through a day. You need to live Keith. I don't know how many people will survive the apocalypse. I don't know if it'll ever end. But I don't want to die like this."
They stayed and talked all night about things, eventually falling asleep in each other's arms. They didn't really care though, they were satisfied knowing that they each had someone to go to, and someone to trust. They just needed to make it until tomorrow. Tomorrow was the start of Shiro leading them. He would increase their chance of survival.
Albums listened to while writing this album:
Twenty One Pilots - twenty one pilots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8k5DEnU0R4
Regional at Best - twenty one pilots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_NdwoTQykY&list=PLd5Lky4G5oAYxFOciYWKXMQq4NcAw_oBL
P.s. If you guys are going to draw art based on this fic, let me know so I can see it. I would be honored to have artistically inspired someone.