Nick reminded himself that his father was likely rotting somewhere, long passed-away and nothing more than a desecrated corpse. The image brought him some respite, though he could not help but feel like that seven-year-old version of himself. A refuge where his new family could flourish and rebuild excited him like the ability to view a creation aged more than a millenia ago. His father would have wasted no time setting him straight.
Pipe dreams, Nick. Always shooting for the stars. Well, guess what? The stars are dying, Nick. Just like all the fairy tales in your head.
The group looting the townhouses before him felt like his responsibility. Nick allowed his overbearing demeanor—a trait passed down from his father—to rule over him, especially in interactions with Kate. It was a wonder she had fallen for him at all. The need to survive and the constant perils that the world kept spring-trapped within its landscape hardened Nick. It kept him alive. And it kept the others alive. Was it enough just to live?
Chapter 31
As night threatened its descent, the group opted for a small patch of woods to camp out in until morning. According to the sign they passed on their way in, the section of forest was acreage belonging to a state park. The section the group chose was a camping site with distinct lots of soft, luscious grass split into rectangles that would typically house a tent or an RV.
In the center of the camping slots, stones stacked atop one another provided a makeshift fire pit. Nick and Ryan collected branches and twigs from the surrounding woods, stacking them within the stone pit. Nick lit kindling beneath the branches with a lighter until they absorbed the flame. Several moments later, the pitfire was rolling, and the group gathered around to relax before calling it a night.
Phoenix passed around a few snacks he had in his pack: granola bars and trail mix. Tatum greedily devoured the offered food before curling up next to the fire and falling asleep.
“Remember when problems were simple? Like traffic jams or the internet going out?” Ryan reflected.
“Shit, I’d give my left nut to binge something on Netflix right now,” Phoenix said with a mouthful of crunchy oats.
“I will never know how all my favorite shows end!” Grace whined playfully.
Kate laughed, though she felt a sense of emptiness as her last experiences of a normal life were further into her past than others. Nevertheless, the thought of kicking back on a sofa watching an episode of an exciting, trendy show beneath warm blankets was a daydream Kate could get lost in.
“Bro, the new Call of Duty was two months away from release!” Phoenix said.
“Oh, man. I was really fucking excited for that game.” Nick took a swig from a bottle of water, then passed it to Kate.
“But hey, at least we don’t have to go to work anymore,” Ryan said.
“Thank God!” Grace exclaimed, laughing and leaning into Ryan’s shoulder. Ryan wrapped his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. The sentiment forced Kate’s lips upward in a smile. Watching Ryan and Grace, she knew she was not the only person in the world holding on to a love made from pieces of a shattered life hastily superglued together. “You know what I do miss? Ryan, remember that little cafe we used to eat at on the corner of Melrose Avenue? Rico’s!”
“Oh, damn. Those fish tacos were amazing,” Ryan remembered.
“Where was your go-to place to eat together?” Grace asked, looking back and forth between Nick and Kate. The pair tensed up. Kate let out a nervous laugh while Nick’s gaze fell to the ground.
“Uhh, well—” Nick started.
“We weren’t together before…before the world fell,” Kate admitted. Ryan’s eyes narrowed in confusion, and Grace’s eyes widened.
“Wait, what?” Grace asked. “You two met and fell in love even with all this shit going on?”
Nick wrapped his fingers around Kate’s. “Yeah.”
“I must know this entire story immediately!” Grace sat forward with her hand on her chin and her eyes wide, waiting for Nick or Kate to explain. As Kate rewinded the events in her head, the start to their story kept getting further away.
“Well, before the end, I was dating this guy—”
“No, baby, you don’t have to talk about that. Just start with how we met,” Nick directed.
“Our story is more powerful knowing what happened in my past,” Kate replied.
“Let’s just say, I was in averyabusive situation, and the only reason I was able to escape from it is because my ex became diseased,” Kate continued, explaining the day she was walking down the backroad by herself when a man chased her into an old farmhouse. She described the terror she felt being chased into the farmhouse, Nick’s rescue, and running through the woods in the middle of the night. Kate went on to tell how they paired up, traveling and surviving together.
Nick took over, talking about the junkyard group and the events that led to fleeing in the middle of the night. He spoke about the mansion home, hearing the transmissions from the radio, and their journey to the hospital. Once there was no more to their story, Nick and Kate smiled at each other. They were already aware they had been through hell together and only gathered strength with each trial, but speaking it aloud had them buzzing with power and affection.
Grace and Ryan were speechless. Phoenix stared at them with his eyebrows almost touching his hairline.
“Holy shit,” Ryan said, finally.
“That is the most amazing story. I figured you both had been together for, like, years before the disease. I can’t imaginemeeting someone new in this world, much less learning to trust them and then falling in love with them,” Grace said.
