Page 42

CHAPTER 41

Noah

“W e should head back to the camp,” Reed mutters against the top of my head. I shake my head, not wanting to let go of him. It feels too soon. “Come on, I’ll hold you tonight, and then we can get up and head out in the morning.”

My brows pull together as I ease my head back.

“Head out in the morning?” I mimic back.

“You’re heading to Florida.” He said it as a statement and not a question.

“You don’t know that; I could be heading anywhere else. Literally anywhere.” I’m lying, and he knows that, but that doesn’t stop me from trying.

Reed raises a brow, waiting for me to confess. My cheeks heat, a shiver running up my spine. Under his gaze I feel my cock pulse, threatening to harden against my zipper. Apparently my body doesn’t care that I just came because one look from Reed, and I’m ready to melt into him.

“Don’t give me that look; you weren’t exactly quiet the last time. And I doubt you can be now, so let’s get back to the camp.”

I roll my eyes, even though he’s right. I’d probably wake everyone up, including the undead. Taking a step back, I swallow down the fear that he’s going to suddenly disappear and turn around. One foot in front of the other, I start walking towards the camp.

“Noah…Noah!” Reed calls.

“What?” I hiss, glancing over my shoulder.

“You’re heading in the wrong direction,” he says, pointing to the left. My eyes move side to side, hating that he’s probably right.

“Yeah, and well, how do you know that?”

“I was the best at hunting—tracking, I mean. I was good at knowing my surroundings.”

I open my mouth, feeling like a fish out of water. How does one even respond to that? Thankfully I don't have to. Reed takes a few steps forward and grabs my hand. Pulling me along, he intertwined our fingers, keeping a grip on me.

The walk back is quiet; a certain ease falls over me. I like not having to look over my shoulder, scared that something was going to jump out at me. It feels like every second I’m glancing over and up at him just to make sure I’m not imagining him. I might have loved the Twilight series, but there is no way I want to be Bella. I don’t want my mind tricking me into thinking he’s here when he’s really not.

Pulling my bottom lip between my teeth, I slowly reach over and?—

“Ow, fuck!” Reed growls, “Did you just fucking pinch me?”

“Uh…” I trail off as we step through the clearing. Sara and Anglea sit near the fire pit with a few guys; I can’t remember their names. My lips curl into a smile when I see Molly doing one of the cheers I showed her before doing a cartwheel and landing in a split.

“That’s Molly; I’ve been teaching her some stuff from my friend, Mallory. She’s one of the girls I was in school with, well, actually, she was one of my best friends. It’s uh one of the reasons I’m going to Florida…” I trail off. I never talked about them to Reed, and I’m not sure why. But the sudden feeling to blurt out everything about them hits me. Thankfully I’m not given much of a chance before Jake catches my eye.

“That’s Jake; he’s Molly's brother. A few days ago I was stuck in some hardware store and found her. A bunch of zombies came out of nowhere, and we had to fight our way out basically. It was wild; I wish you could have been there. You would’ve been proud of me.” I rush out before Jake steps in front of us.

“You’re new; who are you?” He doesn’t bother looking at me, his gaze focused on Reed.

“This is?—”

“His boyfriend, we got separated.” Reed partly lies. It’s odd to think of him as my boyfriend, especially in a world like this. But I can’t stop the giddy feeling blooming in my heart. I know he confessed some deep emotions, even said I love you, and said we were dating back at the cabin. But every single time he shows some sort of feelings towards me, it’s like my heart jumps a beat. I feel this rush every time I’m near him.

“Uh, yeah, what he said.” I tilt my head to the side, agreeing with him.

“You’ve never mentioned this boyfriend. You even said you were alone.” Once again, Jake doesn’t even glance at me, even if his words are meant for me. He’s more focused on Reed.

“Yeah, well…” For what seems like the millionth time, words fail me.

“He thought I didn’t make it.” Reed answers him, not skipping a beat. Peeking up at him, my lips tug up in a smile.

Jake doesn’t look convinced, and I don’t care. Maybe if Reed wasn’t here I would, but the only thought on my brain right now is wanting to be alone with him.

“Are you still heading out with us in the morning?” Jake asks, finally sparing me a glance.

“Um…”

“No, we’re better off alone,” Reed tightens his grip on my hand. Giving him a little squeeze, I hope it’s enough to calm his jealousy. There’s no other explanation for the way he’s acting.

“I was ask?—”

“If you’ll excuse us, we’re tired,” Reed interrupts him. Keeping a death grip on my hand, he tugs me to the side, moving around Jake. I shouldn’t be giddy that Reed is being a jealous hulk right now, but I couldn’t care less. I just want to be alone with him.

He pulls me towards my tent, not letting go of my hand as he tugs the zipper up and pulls me inside.

“You know you didn’t have to be mean to him,” I mutter. Reed lets go of my hand, letting me move barely two feet to my sleep bag. Sitting down, I cross my legs, waiting for him to turn around. The tent is dark, barely lit from the campfire outside, but I can still see the tension in his back.

“Reed,” I sigh.

Slowly he turns around, his shoulder hunched due to the tent being small. Tension grows heavy in the air, silent and overwhelming. He doesn’t have to say anything; I know everything he’s feeling because I feel it too.

I tilt my head, watching him carefully, waiting for him to break the silence, but he just stands there. Jaw clenched, his hands tightening into fists at his side. He’s too stubborn, and I’m too weak to just let him stand there. I need to touch him—feel him.

“Come here,” I mumble. Reed doesn’t move, doesn’t blink. “Reed, come here, plea—I need you.” I rush out, emotions choking me.

In an instant he’s in front of me, sitting down. My eyes slid shut as I hurriedly cupped his face. It felt like a dream having him here, seeing him—feeling him. I spent the last week hating myself for walking away from him. There’s always truths that are hard to let out, and while I hated that he wouldn’t trust me enough with it, I shouldn’t have walked away.

But for now it didn’t matter. Not when he was here, kissing me. His tongue glided over mine, a soft sound coming from his throat. I hated that I felt like I couldn’t get close enough to him, even as I climbed over his legs into his lap, straddling him. I want to crawl into his skin and live there.

My breath catches when his hands slide up my side. A shiver runs down my spine, my dick stirring in my pants. I groan against his mouth, my finger digging into the side of his face. His hands travel over my hips until they cup my ass.

His mouth moves anxiously against mine like he thought he was never going to kiss me again. Our tongues grow more aggressive with each passing moment. My cock already feeling like a pulse steel bar against my zipper, I move my hips, needing some friction. I was so horny that I didn’t care about the others outside this tent. I wanted him. I needed Reed to make everything better in a way he knew how.

But then his mouth suddenly stops moving. I groan in displeasure and move back. When I open my eyes, Reed’s gaze is settled on the tent's zipper, his brow furrowed.

“Wh—” He gives me a sharp glare, shutting me up. I tense, my limbs stiffening when a scream reaches my ears; only then a crash quickly follows.

We scramble for our stuff before rapid gunfire starts, followed by multiple voices. Reed rips the tent open, the cool breeze meeting my skin. Gunfire echoes around us just as a large whoosh of fire breaks out.

Reed glances back at me, his eyes following a trail that leads to an abandoned barn. Suddenly he’s grabbing at my hand, and we’re running for the building.

Every breath is jagged, burning in my throat as my lungs fight to keep up. My heart slams against my ribs; the sound of screams and flesh tearing reaches my ears.

“Don’t stop!” Reed screams at me. The ground blurs beneath my feet, but all I can focus on is the pounding of footsteps behind me. My mind is a mess of instinct and terror as we reach the barn. Suddenly Reed lets go of my hand and leaps into the air. I watch in amazement as he pulls himself up on the window. I’d probably laugh and call him Spiderman, but when I hear a scream get cut off abruptly, I can’t help but turn around and see. The fire burns; multiple bodies lie around on the ground, zombies tearing at their flesh. Chaos, screams ripping through the air, raw and desperate. Zombies swarm around like starving animals. Bones snap like dry twigs; blood sprays across the ground. The stench—thick, metallic, and rotting—claws at my throat, making me gag.

I should look away, but I can’t.

I’m unable to watch as the people who took me in fight, swinging whatever they can, trying to shove the undead things off. But it’s useless; there are too many zombies. Limbs are pulled in opposite directions, hands clawing at their faces, teeth sinking into their skin. I watch Molly, the girl who made me breakfast this morning, reach out, her eyes wide with terror, mouth forming a silent plea for help before another zombie latches their mouth into her neck.

“Noah!” Reed yells. Tears blur my vision, hot and endless. I try to wipe them away, but it’s useless. “Reach up!” He shouts. I do as he says, fear licking up my spine as Reed grabs a hold of my wrist. He grunts as he pulls me up the side of the barn into the window. My feet scramble to land on something as he pulls me through the small hole and into pitch darkness.

“I–I can’t see?—”

“Just hold onto me and be quiet.” Reed clamps our hands together, pulling me further into the barn. My eyes try to adjust to the darkness, but it’s pointless. I don’t even understand how Reed can see.

He drags me to a set of stairs; I trip multiple times climbing up them. I hear their screams turning into choked gurgles, cries for help that are swallowed by the sick, wet sounds of feeding. Suddenly Reed stops and moves behind me. I’m motionless as he grabs me around the waist, shoving me upward into what I’m assuming is a raft or some sort of. It’s high enough that nothing alive can climb up here.

When Reed climbs in beside me, he grabs a hold of my face, and his gaze remains unmoving from mine.

“You’re okay,” he mumbles. But I’m not. A sob chokes me. A raw, broken sound barely escapes my lips before Reed shoves my face into his hold. He’s hugging my head, trying to keep me quiet, and while I know this isn’t the time to break down, I can’t stop it. My chest heaves, my hands shaking so hard I can barely breathe. I should be helping them, fighting with them, but I’m not. I’m in here with Reed, watching—listening— to their lives drain from their body. My stomach plummets, my pulse hammering as Reed holds me tightly against his body. Panic rises, twisting in my gut. I don’t have time for this, but Reed lets me fall apart.

It’s not until one by one that the screams fade do I realize we’re the only ones who made it out alive.