WELCOME BACK TO MY STORY GUYS. HERE IS THE NINTH CHAPTER. TO BE HONEST I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO NEXT IN THIS BECAUSE I RAN OUT OF IDEAS, SO I NEED SOME NEW ONES. PLEASE COMMENT DOWN BELOW WHAT YOU THINK ATHENA COULD DO NEXT AND LET ME KNOW HOW DID YOU LIKE THIS.
The stars gave me company till it was five in the morning. My alarm started beeping, notifying me that it was time to wake up others and start our journey towards a new base. I got up, went towards the Watchers that were with me and told them that it was time to go. We reached downstairs and started waking up others. I went to Natalie and slipped back into our bed. I kissed forehead then her nose and her cheeks. Her eyes slowly fluttered open and I again lost myself in those pretty brown eyes. I rested my palm on her cheek and caressed her cheekbone with my thumb.
"You are so beautiful." I whispered. She simply smiled and hid her face in the crook of my neck.
"Baby, it's time to leave. We have to get up." I said.
She hummed in response, pulled back and slowly got up on her feet. She stretched her arms above her head which resulted in her jersey riding up a bit and showed the silver of her stomach. My jaw slacked at the marvelous sight in front of me and I felt my mouth go dry. Holy Sweet Mother of Jesus.
"You're drooling babe." Natalie giggled.
I immediately tried to compose myself. The key word being tried. That image was burnt in my brain. I would be lying if I say I am not turned on a bit. I mean who wouldn't? I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand in case I really was drooling and got up too.
"You get freshened up till then I will go and see if my friends are up." I said, my face flushed and heat rising up and scrambled to look for my friends.
I soon found them, up and fresh. I went up to them and chat for a while. Everyone had slept fine and were excited to go out. I had anticipation bubbling in me. I didn't want to look nervous but I was worried. Remember I had said that I was having a bad feeling before? Well, it had returned and saw stronger than before. My gut told me that something big was going to go down. I voiced my concern to my friends but they told me not to worry and assured that nothing would go wrong.
It was six o' clock by the time everyone was completely up and ready to go. I gathered everybody around so that I could elongate the plan.
"Okay guys, here is how we are going to enforce the plan. Seth your car will be in front with Mrs. Borris so that she can point out the directions. Then the two buses and I will bring in the back. Here, each vehicle will have two walkie-talkies and a map. We will not be stopping often so, I request everyone to take a leak or at least get down and stretch every time we stop. If one has to stop because of an emergency, everyone stops. The first thing we do is pull up on a petrol pump, fill the tanks and few canisters with extra fuel and then continue our journey. Each one of you pack your bag with two water bottles, some energy bars, and some other food packets. That will be your ration and the only thing you will get to eat, so be careful of how quickly you finish it. The rest of the items will go in the bus's trunk. Also, every Medic should have a first-aid kit handy. You get to choose a weapon of your choice too so choose wisely. Gabriel and Hayden, you're in charge of driving the buses. Ronald and Carlos you both will change with them when needed." I ended my little instruction speech with this.
"Um Athena, if you don't mind can I ask for a detour?" Akira asked.
"Detour for what?" I asked.
"You see, some of the girls were discussing that we should hit the mall and get some new clothes. I mean these are three days old clothes and they reek of sweat and dirt, I don't think anyone of us should carry on with this. It is just a suggestion though." It was Kayla who spoke up.
I looked around and found many of them nodding and even got a few 'yeses'. I also thought that change of clothes is necessary. It wasn't hygienic to stay like this and with infection spreading fast, we were an easy target.
"Yeah, we should do that. So, first clothes, second fuel and then onwards to the farmhouse." I said.
"Shouldn't we go for the fuel first?" Oliver asked.
"Once we get the fuel, we will just drive off and try to cover as many miles and also if we get the fuel first, all of us won't be able to go at once, as it risks the chance of getting the vehicles stolen." I answered.
"So, are there any other questions or suggestions?" I inquired.
"No."
"We are good."
"Let's do this."
I got my answer and we all started to move towards the supplies, chattering, to pack our bags and pick up weapons.
"Ha, that is your plan? It is as ridiculous as you are." Max's voice boomed over others stopping us on our tracks. I turned around to face him.
"What was that?" I asked.
"I said, that plan is stupid. Just like you." Max replied.
"You have got a better one?" I questioned.
"I am sure I can hatch a better one than this. And you all are even more of a nincompoop for following someone like her. You all chose someone who cannot save one person and expect to take the responsibility for everyone?" Max bellowed.
Anger once again started boiling inside me. I was trying hard not to think about Alex's death and keep everyone safe but Max had to bring that up.
"I regret killing Alex too Max. I hate that I had to make that decision and feel guilty for not being able to save him. I am trying to move on. You should too." I said in a raised voice.
"How can you even think that? He was my best friend and you killed him." He shouted.
"What did you expect me to do, huh? He was going to die anyway, I just made it easier." I spat back.
"You coward! You should have saved him." With this, he ran towards me with his fist raised. I sidestepped and punched him on his face. He stumbled a bit but again started to charge at me. But, before he could attack again I set a grip on his jaw and locked his right arm.
"Listen to me very carefully-" I said in a low and cold voice- "you need to control your anger. Alex's death has affected me too but it was better for everyone. I had to choose between a whole group and him. So it is better for you to try and forget it. No matter how hard it is. Do you understand?"
He gave no answer and kept glaring me.
"I asked DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" I shouted angrily.
I saw him tremble a bit and he squeaked a small yes. I let him go and turned to face the crowd behind us.
"Gabriel, Hayden, and Seth get the car and the buses, we are leaving immediately. Others pack your bags quickly." I ordered in a stern voice.
Within ten minutes of time, everything was packed and ready to go. The buses were parked right outside. We all moved in one single line. Seth's car was a Mercedes E-class and could occupy 7 people. Seth, Mrs. Borris, Renae, Keith, Jocelyn, Carlos, and Kayla were together. My car occupied Natalie, Rhea, Yasmin, Oliver and myself. The rest of them had split in the two buses. We began moving out of the school premises.
At first, my car was totally silent. Rhea and Oliver were snuggled up in the back seat and Yasmin was looking out of the window. I looked beside me and my eyes met another pair which was already looking at me intently. I gave her a small smile which she returned and moved her hand to hold mine. She drew small circles on the back of my hand with her thumb, an action which was calming me and made me smile.
"It wasn't your fault, you know." She said in a small voice, afraid that I might lose my temper.
"I don't want to talk about it please Nat." I answered in a calm and somber voice.
"You will have to eventually, babe." She responded.
"Yes eventually, but not now. I will talk, I promise." I said.
"Okay, whenever feel so. I am always here." She said with a bright smile.
"Thank you." I lifted our hands and kissed her hand.
"You know what?" She suddenly asked leaning towards me. She came even closer, almost out of her seat.
"What?" I said, my pitch slightly higher than normal.
"You are so hot when you get angry, it really turns me on." She said in a husky voice and swiped her tongue over my earlobe.
My eyes involuntarily roll back and there a feeling in the pit of my stomach. I was going to reply but was cut in. I let out a low growl and shot a death glare at the other passengers.
"You love birds do realize that we are sitting here, right?" Yasmin said.
"Of course how can we forget when you interrupt like that." I said in an annoyed voice.
Laughter rang in the car. It went silent the moment the walkie-talkie crackled.
"We are stopping, a mall is in sight. We can raid there." Keith's voice came through.
I picked up and answered affirmatively. Soon we had stopped in front of a huge mall. All of got down, weapons ready in our hands.
"Remember, it is a huge place, a big chance we will encounter a handful of zombies. To kill them aim for their heads and nothing else. Be quick, be quiet and we will be okay. Don't take a lot of time, especially girls, take whatever fits. Also if possible take two or three extra pairs. Let's go." I said and we all scrambled in.
I went up to the boys' section and picked up three pairs of black, fitting jeans which were very comfortable and wore one of them. Next, I took three shirts of black, blue and red color and wore the blue one. I kept the two extra pairs in my bag. By this time the boys were done too, so we went downstairs. The girls were still changing so the boys hastily covered their eyes and rushed out and waited by the cars. That was a very amusing scene for me. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Natalie changing. She had worn black leggings which fit her in all the right spots, accentuating her curves. On the top, there was a grey hoodie that had a thin orange lining on the edge and zipper of the same color. That looks like my hoodie. I thought. I walked towards her and realized that it was indeed my piece of cloth.
"You look so hot in my hoodie, especially when it is a tad bit bigger for you." I hugged her from behind standing on tiptoe so that I could rest my chin on her shoulder.
You see, although I have an impressive height of 5'9, Natalie was still towering me being exact 6 feet. While I had broader shoulders than her and in all had a muscular built, she was a bit on a leaner side. Her features were bit delicate than mine but had strength. Hence, my hoodie was a size larger than her.
"It has your scent and I love it so I am keeping it." She replied.
"It looks way better on you. Where did you find it anyway?" I asked.
"On the back seat." She said.
All of us were done with our 'shopping' and went back to our designated vehicles. We went in search of a petrol pump, which was found without many difficulties. Soon all the tanks were full and we had filled up extra canisters too. Now we were headed to the final destination. Surprisingly, we didn't have to take more than four breaks and the journey ended smoothly. It was five in the evening when we ultimately reached the farmhouse. It was quite enormous. It could easily fit us plus a few more. I loved it, enough open space, wide and bright. In all it was perfect.
We started moving in, taking few things with us. Within fifteen minutes, we all had settled in and the only thing remained was assigning of the rooms. It was not that difficult, mostly everyone mutually divided the rooms among us. The Medic and the Ground Searchers had occupied the ground floor and the rest had settled on the first floor.
"Holy Shit!" I exclaimed loudly.
"What happened now?" Mrs. Borris asked.
"I forgot to bring sleeping bags." I answered. "Don't worry I will be back in a jiffy."
"You're not going alone." Natalie piped up.
"I am. I swear I will be safe. I got walkie-talkie this time, I will contact if anything happens." I promised
"But-" I silenced her with a firm kiss.
"I promise." I said and ran out so no one stops me.
I got into my car and swiftly drove away. I sang in my car as I reached a store which exclusively kept the camping stuff. I broke in and instantly found what I was looking for. I picked a few went out and dumped them in the trunk. It took me four or five trips to get the desired amount. As I shut the trunk, I heard growling and scuffing of feet behind me. A group of zombies was headed for me. I took out my Machete out of its sheath and promptly jumped into action. The cutting and bashing didn't last for long but covered my face in blood and sweat. I took out my napkin from the back pocket of my jeans, wiped the blade and my face and kept it back in its place.
The ride back farmhouse was a short one, yet grim. Incident with Max still bugged me, there was an underlying prick that bothered me. I couldn't help but think that he will create problem in future. I had to do something about him otherwise he might pose a threat to my people because the look that he had in his eyes was wild. Alex's death had affected him immensely. I understood that he was his best friend, I mean Rhea's death would affect me too, but this was something else.
In short time I came back to the farmhouse, parked my car and locked it. I was going in to ask few people to help me get the bags inside but my way blocked by Max.
"What do you want Max?" I asked.
"You coward! You deserve to die!" He lunged forward with a sharp blade and swiped it across my stomach.
I roared in agony and stumbled back. When I had regained my balance, I saw him coming at me. I dodged his two swings and kicked him in the gut. He doubled in pain and I hit him on his nose with my knee and he fell down on his back. Getting back up again, he kicked me in knees which caused me to fall but I was able to block his attack with my Machete. I pushed back and swung my Machete which sliced through his dominant hand and resulted in him dropping his blade. I surged forward and struck the hilt on his chest and gave a left upper hook. He went down and I, without wasting a second straddled him and punched him to unconsciousness. My pain which was forgotten due to adrenaline rush came back to me. I sheathed the Machete, picked up Max and wobbled inside. I opened the door and dropped Max on the floor and lean against the door frame.
"I need Medic!" I shouted.
Many people rushed in. Lifting Max up they went into a room.
"Oh my God Athena! You're bleeding." Natalie's voice reached my ears. That was the last thing I heard when I was consumed by the darkness.
SETH'S CAR
THE BUSES USED. BOTH IDENTICAL SO YOU ALL CAN IMAGINE.
OKAY HERE IS THE NINTH CHAPTER. IT IS A BIT SHORTER THAN THE PREVIOUS ONE. DID YOU LIKE THE TWIST? WAS IT UNCALLED FOR OR TOTALLY PREDICTABLE? LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS. ALL THE MISTAKES ARE MINE SO FORGIVE ME. I HOPE YOU LIKE IT AND PEACE OUT.