Francis got into his seat and shut the car door.She gave Jake a sad smile and said, weakly, "Well, let's go."Jake did not challenge.Lucas remained stationary as the vehicle drove off.Rob would need a long time to grieve before he would be willing to go anywhere, so there was little chance that they would survive. He was aware that Ryan had passed away.Which, for some reason, Lucas found to be of no concern at all.He calmly knelt, picked up his aviators, and put them back on his forehead where they belonged.He ignored the thought that this was the end as he raised his shotgun and pointed it at the creature that was closest to him.Jake had already reached fifty miles per hour when he reached Main Street, which was only a few dozen or so feet from his apartment complex's exit.He barely slowed as he turned and moved into the farthest left lane because there was really no need to worry about traffic.Even when he would go out at two or three in the morning, he had never seen the world so e

Jake put all of his focus back on the road.Buildings that were unoccupied and lifeless parking lots rushed by to their left and right.The view didn't seem right to me.This simply cannot be the world in which he grew up;not in the absence of bustling crowds everywhere;not without life, which is omnipresent and overwhelming, barging in from all directions, making him want to hide in his room."How did the world end up in the hellish pit?"He mostly spoke to himself, and he didn't really care who heard him.No one responded.He had no response from anyone.By the time they reached the abandoned hotel, Nancy was beginning to look much better, with new bandages covering her wound and painkillers in her system.She was able to speak coherently and her head had cleared enough that color had returned to her face.Not that there were a lot of words spoken among the group members.They were all exhausted, beaten, and possibly even scared or terrified.Just a few weeks ago, they would have only been in

Oh, that's right, and anyone who talks to someone a lot must obviously be dating that person.I mean,” he said in a slur as he looked around for an illustration.Skyler and the elderly man she was eating next to caught his attention.I mean, it's obvious that they're also a couple, right?Jake shrugged and gave the two people a thoughtful look.Hey, the end of the world has arrived.Who should I judge?The comment caused Jay's eyes to widen, and despite himself, he laughed.Yeah, he said absently, as if he were still thinking about the comment.He said, "Fair point," then quickly turned and headed back in the same direction he had come from before they interrupted him.After a brief chuckle, Daniel shook his head.I guess you got him there, then.”He turned to look at Jake again to continue their conversation, but when he saw the young man, he abruptly stopped.Jake now looked distant, his eyes pointing down toward the ground but giving the impression of staring into space, in contrast to how he

As they rushed by him, someone said, "Good, you're here."That accommodates everyone.We need to get out of here!Jake observed that everyone seemed to be using a side exit as he followed the motion.He tried to think of a small map of the area, which showed that this exit was closer to their cars than the front exit, so he trusted the group and went behind them.Francis had vanished from his view, but he had no idea if she was still at the car or somewhere else.Realizing that his group would have to wait outside until he could get to them, he pushed his way through the crowd of people heading out the door.When he burst through the door, he saw that a group was waiting by his car.He pressed the keychain's unlock button until the appropriate lights flashed.He was so focused that he almost missed the fact that a woman had stopped directly in front of him before almost running into her."Who are you?!"He demanded, but when he saw where she was looking, he stopped."Someone is up there!"She ye

Jake's expression changed to one of doubt.He commented, "You don't really look that old."Which wars have you participated in?"It's not important!"The man objected, but he became silent, pulling back, and muttering something to himself about how different his day had been.Jay introduced himself by saying, "This is Stephen, by the way," not realizing that Jake already knew who he was.And Kelly is that."He made a motion across the vehicle with one thumb.Kira is the redhead who is attempting to avoid attention.Without really looking at them, Kira said, simply, "Hey."Richard stood straight and let out a shrill whistle as he returned to the first vehicle.Let's get started bringing it in, he called, waving his arms in front of himself as if he were calling out to everyone.Before nightfall, we still have a long way to go.The group turned and observed as individuals began to emerge from the woods and return to the cars.Stephan said, "Yes, let's get going," and he opened the door to the bac