Page 25

I wake up in the middle of the night.

Alone. Part of me thinks Amos was a figment of my imagination.

How can he be so caring, so considerate, when all he wants to do is test my body to find the miraculous mutation that makes me immune to zombie bites?

But he does care. He helped me through an uncontrollable bout of depression, anxiety, and fear.

Why?

My dry mouth interrupts my thoughts, rolling me out of bed in search of water.

When I enter the living area of my shared dorm room, Cal and Mina look at me with all-knowing eyes from their designated spots on the couch.

Cal speaks first, saying, “There she is. How did you sleep?”

“Pretty good…considering.”

Cal nods their head as if they know exactly what I have been through, am still going through.

“Come sit. Amos told us to keep an eye on you and make sure you’re okay.” Cal pats the cushion next to them.

“Are you okay, Lori?”

“I’m thirsty.”

Mina hops up and scurries over to the corner of the room where we have a rationed supply of water.

She pours the water from a jug into a small cup as I sit next to Cal.

As soon as Mina places the cup of water in my hands, I chug every drop.

“Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Mina says with a smile.

“Better?”

I nod. “Better. What time is it?”

“Oh, well past midnight. Mina and I are night owls, so we take the late night shifts. But Amos relieved us of our usual duties at the perimeter so we could keep watch here.” Cal’s thorough answer makes me feel vulnerable again.

“Why?” I cross my arms, gently rubbing my elbows.

Mina and Cal exchange a look I don’t quite understand.

When Mina looks back at me, she says, “Because he was worried about you. So was your mom. She came by to check your vitals and make sure you weren’t catatonic.”

So Amos being worried about me is normal.

I mean, I guess I am his responsibility since he’s the one who brought me here.

His presence felt more than an obligation though.

Like he was truly, deeply concerned.

I could feel it as he held me in his arms. And I didn’t want to let go of it.

Taking a breath, I move my mind onto a different subject.

“So you guys obviously know where I’m from and how I got here. What about you?”

Cal answers first. “I’m from Colorado originally. Came here as a student. Computer science. Load of good that will do in this new world.”

“My family immigrated to The States from Columbia when I was ten. We’ve moved all over, but settled down in Pennsylvania when I was a senior in high school. I’ve only been at The Valley for a year,” Mina explains.

“I came here with a few others. We were all strangers, picking each other up along the way. I can introduce you sometime if you like. It’s nice to have friends after being alone for so long.”

Mina’s words were laced with so much sympathy I had to look away.

From the corner of my eye, I see Cal elbow Mina in the side.

“Ow! What was that for?”

“Obviously it’s a sore subject for Lori.” Cal grabs my hand to pull my attention back to them.

“Don’t let those memories become who you are, Lori. That’s all I’ll say until you are ready to talk more about it.”

Their words pull me back into the okay mood I was in when I woke up.

I offer them a smile as I say, “Thanks. And it’s okay to say these things in front of me. It would be selfish of me not to hear your own stories and losses. I’m sure you both know what it’s like to feel…alone.”

Mina and Cal are silent for a moment, then Mina asks, “Can I hug you?”

“Me too,” Cal chokes out.

I nod and both of them immediately tackle me into the most comforting group hug I’ve ever been part of.

“It’s nothing against you guys, but I’m still feeling tired, so I think I’m going to go back to bed.” When they pull away from me, I add, “Thank you. Even if you were ordered to be here, I can tell you both care for me. You are strangers to me, and yet you’ve shown me more kindness than anyone in that bunker.”

“That’s what friends are for,” Mina says with a smile.

Friends. I have friends.

“We’ll be here, keeping watch. You have nothing to worry about.” Cal’s kindness is a radiant beam of light that hits me in all the cold places of my soul.

I can’t help but jump at Cal, wrapping my arms around them.

And I’m not surprised when I feel Cal’s arms around me, reciprocating my hug.

When I pull out of the embrace, Mina says, “I’m a good solo hugger too, if you’d like to know.”

I open my arms out for her, and she immediately pulls me in for another great hug.

I smile at the thought that I won’t starve for love and hugs in this place.

“Thanks, guys. It’s really nice to have…friends.”

“Just remember that’s who we are, okay?” Cal looks at me until I nod in agreement.

“We are tasked to take you to the gym in the morning, seven A.M. sharp. You were supposed to train yesterday, but Amos took you back here instead.”

“Train?” I ask, confusion and fear mixing in my chest.

“Everyone at The Valley needs to train at the gym to strengthen our muscles and keep our endurance up. You know, in case we need to run away from biters?” Cal explains.

“Oh.” The relief melts away the fear and anxiety that began to bubble up again.

“See you in the morning then.”

Mina and Cal walk me over to the athletic center at seven o’clock in the morning, just as they promised.

They don’t stay though as it’s now their bedtime.

I walk through the glass door hesitantly.

Not sure what to do, I look around at all the exercise equipment.

When I spot a treadmill, I change course.

That’s something I know how to use at least. Halfway to my destination, I’m stopped by a man who looks like he could be Captain America.

“You must be Lori. Amos is waiting for you over there,” Cap says, pointing over to a corner of the large gym where there are machines I have never seen before.

“Should I be scared?” I ask with a hint of amusement.

“Terrified.” His green eyes shine with false terror.

“I’m Kyle, by the way.”

“Nice to meet you, Kyle.” I reach out my hand to shake his.

“Don’t leave tall, dark, and handsome waiting too long. He will never forgive you for that.”

“Yikes. See ya, Kyle.” I spin on my heels and walk toward Amos at a brisk pace.

Amos doesn’t notice me as I approach him while he works out on one of those rowing things.

I can’t help but admire the muscles in his arms as he pulls himself forward.

Each bulge of his triceps is hypnotic.

After a minute, I realize I’m staring awkwardly at Amos’ sweaty, well-toned body and pull myself out of the trance by clearing my throat.

“I was wondering how long you were going to just stand there, Copperhead.”

I’m mortified.

How did he know I was standing there?

When I look up, I notice a partial reflection in the window in front of us.

Yes. Mortified. “Sorry. You make it look so…easy.”

The sound that comes from Amos could be called a chuckle, but the deep, rich tones of his laugh stir something wild inside of me.

Amos carefully lets go of the bar and stands up to face me.

“Easy, huh? Well, I do not intend for you to have an easy morning. Have you warmed up yet?”

I shake my head.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been in a gym and never one like this.”

“They don’t have one in the bunker?”

“There is one, but I wasn’t allowed in. It’s exclusively for the Praetorian Guard.”

“Then how did you train for your fights?”

I’m taken aback by Amos’ question.

Fury bubbling up from my core.

“You think I was allowed to prepare for that? I was a lab rat. They threw me in a pit to see if I could find my way out alive.”

“Sorry, that was a thoughtless question.”

I grind my jaw, holding my anger in because I know Amos didn’t mean to be hurtful.

But I can’t help thinking that this was his way of not-so-subtly continuing the interrogation.

Still, I let him guide me over to a mat where we stretch, warming up our muscles.

Amos eyes me with apprehension the whole time, treading lightly.

He starts me on the treadmill, the same one I was heading for when I first walked in.

Thirty minutes later, I’m on a horizontal leg press.

My legs are burning after a hundred presses, but Amos doesn’t tell me to stop.

His focus is on my legs, not in a creepy way.

It’s as if he is studying the way my muscles move, seeing them get stronger with each press.

“Okay, Copperhead. Take a break and stretch your legs before we move on to the next exercise.” Amos hands me a metal water bottle, which I take large gulps from.

“So, are you my personal trainer or something? I don’t see anyone else with one,” I say, putting my hands on my hips.

“If that’s how you want to think of me, yes. I’m your personal trainer.”

“Why?”

“One of the rules at The Valley is that everyone needs to—”

“Cal and Mina explained that to me. But do you train everyone here?”

“No.” Amos’ curt response tells me he doesn’t want to talk anymore.

“Arms next.”

I follow his direction and every suggestion, pushing my body to its limits.

I understand the importance of being in shape, even when the world wasn’t a dangerous pit of walking dead looking for a quick bite of flesh.

Now it’s even more important to maintain our physical health so that we can outrun and outlive these zombies.

But I am exhausted after two hours.

I’m starving. And I have to pee.

“Amos,” I say during what I’d hoped was the end of our session, but turned out to be another water break as he is now directing me to a piece of equipment I have no interest in figuring out.

“I’m done.”

“You are done when I say you’re done.” His face is stone cold, so unlike the kind man I thought I was getting to know.

“Are you going to hold me prisoner and break your promise?” A fissure breaks the cold frame of his face.

I use his hesitation and sprint out the door, not stopping until I reach the cafeteria.

I’m so freaking hungry.

The adrenaline from my long sprint to the other side of campus has my lungs sparkling in flames.

I take a slow deep breath in, letting it out in a controlled release.

Once I feel stable enough, I walk into the cafeteria.

As I step through the glass doors, I realize this is the first time I’ve been unsupervised at The Valley.

The freedom feels refreshing.

Even when I was with my mom, I still felt like I was on a leash.

Maybe I broke the rules by running away from Amos.

I’ll likely get into trouble, but I don’t care.

I grab a bagel and a peach, then turn back to the door.

As I make my way out, I catch sight of Norman, who looks offended that I’m free ranging right now.

I give him my best smile before taking a bite out of the bagel and walk out the door.