Kiivana looked at Daren. He seemed to be reminiscing just like he had. She wondered what he was thinking about. Wait, he was saying eh didn't want to go to Chicago with her! She felt her eyebrows raise. "Wha... haven't you heard the radio? All the Chicago stations work on the transmitters! And, and, they said that for these next few weeks, they're making flights to other countries for the survivors who come. The infected haven't gone there yet. They've got troops surrounding the city making sure none do. The whole city is a safe house. It's perfect. And the cost of a plane ride is only 100 bucks. It's perfect." Kivana said, trying to persuade Daren to comply and travel with her. She knew for sure that she couldn't go on the journey alone. The hoards that she'd heard of that were in some of the cities she had to go through were too much for someone like her. She had the feeling Daren could be just as stubborn as her, though. And apparently, he was good enough of a fighter to not need a companion.

Kivana nibbled her long index finger nail. The chipped nail polish was the only thing she had to occupy herself and let Daren contemplate his options. She'd heard that California wasn't very infected-filled, but that was because the rich people that lived there had fled by plane or jet as soon as they'd heard about the Green Flu outbreak. Well, at least, that's what she'd heard on the radio. Chicago was supposed to be a pretty filled up city, but since no infected had gotten into it, the Green Flu hadn't spread yet. Actually, according to the radio, most of the Chicagoans were immune to the Green Flu due to past infections that were similar to it. The ones who did show to have even mild symptoms of the Green Flu had been killed on the spot.

Kivana took a quick breath of air and then added, "I can't go alone. You can't possibly be that heartless that you'd just leave me, a proven zombie-phobe, to fend for myself." she said, beginning to cry a little bit. She took a stuttered breath and wiped her eye, her finger scratching her eyeball a little and causing another tear to fall. "And plus, you aren't gonna wanna be here when they bomb America." she added, assuming that Daren had heard the radio transmission that had alerted all survivors that if they weren't gone by August 5th (and it was June 20th now.) that they'd be bombing America with heavy artillery to end the Green Flu and kill all the zombies. Kivana wasn't sure how serious they'd been, but she didn't wanna be there to find out.

Daren was shaking his head, a faint smile there that he didn’t particularly notice was there. He sighed out a long breath, blowing the hair out of his eyes. “Chicago’s a long ways away when you consider the distance between here and California.” He said. “It’d be faster to get there, move in to San Diego, and rig an abandoned base’s radio to connect to the island. The ferry crosses the expanse between here and there within a day and a half.” He didn’t know why he was explaining himself to her. Exasperated with himself, he reached into the neck of his shirt, pulling out a chain with five rings on it. They were the only things left of his past loves, his wives, long since dead. With his sulfur eyes trained on the brightest-shined of them, he went on: “Besides, I’ve seen this happen before. Maybe not exactly, and it wasn’t a flu, but I’ve seen the same kind of rage infect people en masse at one time, in Australia. They kept it quiet from the world, though, so it’s not known to the general public. Even the safest place was eventually infiltrated. And you say you have someone in Kansas? They’re most likely dead.”

He grabbed his axe from the floor, dropping the rings back around his neck. He’d heard of their plan to bomb the States. He’d heard of it a day before he left the useless, paranoid, slow-moving group of idiots meandering down the roads and hiding in bulk in random, tiny crevices and alleys. They were all better off dead, and by all he knew, they already were. “Look, Kivvie, I’m not about to tell you I’m afraid of a bomb. I’ve gone through bombs, cave-ins, fires, drownings, falls, an impalement or two, and a lot of other things I’d rather not detail right now. If we’re still here when they let the bomb drop, I’d live through it. I mean, it’d take a hell of a long time, maybe a week or two, but I’d be right back and headed to what used to be California to try my luck swimming the expanse between land and island.”

He stared at her hard for a moment. She didn’t seem that confident in herself when it came to the subject of traveling alone. But she’d made it this far. He couldn’t feel sorry for her. “I’ve been alive over four hundred years. Saw my loves die, my children grow old and die, my friends die, and my entire bloodline fall away until I was the only one left. I loathe making friends because then I have to watch them leave me behind. I can’t give you any sympathy, but to say good luck if you’re still about to try your way for Illinois. Just know that, after this long, they’re probably running out of supplies and shooting survivors too, so they can lower the number of trips they have to make. I’ve seen it happen before, and they won’t miss a couple stragglers like us.” He went to look through the shelves. He’d not leave without something to keep him going. Starvation wasn’t a fun way to die, and neither was dehydration.

Kivana watched Daren. She saw he was serious. She scratched her forehead and exhaled. "So, I guess this is the last time I'll see you ever. This is it. Y'know, I still don't get how you can lose your life for someone and then not give a rat's ass if they live or not. That's a waste of a life." she said angrily. She folded her arms across her chest. "Fine. Be like then. I DON'T GIVE A DAMN." Kivana said as she grabbed a bag of dill pickle flavored potato chips and began shoveling them into her mouth as soon as she popped the bag open.

Her cell phone vibrated in her pocket, causing her to jump and clutch her side. She looked at the caller ID. It was Janae. She grabbed the phone immediately and answered it. "Nae Nae? Hey... It's Kivana... no, I'm heading down there- what? I don't know! About 2 days. Alright. Bye. I love you." she said hanging up the phone. Janae had told her that more infected were swarming closer to Wichita and that she needed to come by the end of the week or she'd be forced to leave without her. Kivana still needed rest. "Will you at least stay with me here for about another day so I can sleep safely? I don't wanna just fall asleep and wake up surrounded by zombies. But, I understand if you say no, now that I know you don't like me." Kivana said, laying her head on the wall after sitting down in a corner.

Kivana applied a coat of lipgloss and rubbed her lips together, thanking god that she'd found the gas station. It gave her the chance to replenish her drug; lipgloss. She needed that to keep going. Without it, her skin felt tight and she felt like everyone, animals and zombies included, thought she was the ugliest thing on Earth. She put another coat, the shiny substance making her feel slightly warm in the cool room, and she looked at Daren, feeling less frantic and a tad more zen, like she was floating on air.

Daren threw his bag down on the ground, swinging the axe blade into the wall. “I don’t like anyone.” He said bluntly. “Except a few select people I’ve grown to respect over a long partnership. Don’t take it personally.” He snickered. “You’re not the only one I dislike, believe me.” He leaned against the wall, sliding down. “I can’t believe I’m doing this. I’ll stick with you on one condition.” As he spoke, Daren reached into his pocket and pulled out his own phone. Earlier it wouldn’t work, he’d been in a more desolate area with no cell towers, none that worked, anyway. “We’ll go get your little cousin. Sure, that’d be no problem. But! We’ll avoid Chicago for the overcrowded, possibly-contaminated hellhole it is and go back to California, where I’ll have a boat waiting. See, my island is run well, much more than this place. It’s got its problems, but it’s a safe place.”

He fell silent, dialing a number he knew too well. Though he hated technology, Daren loved cell phones. He was just glad he hadn’t crushed it out of anger the other day. It could hardly finish the first ring when a frantic voice answered. “Matt.” He said with a sigh. “Glad you’re still around. What? Oh, I’m fine, you idiot! Don’t you know who I am anymore? Sure... Hell, I dunno, New Mexico or something. But look, I want you to bring out the ferry immediately. Stay offshore with plenty of provisions, it’s still not safe. No, I’m not there yet, in fact, I’m headed to Kansas with a kid. I--- What? No, she looks about twenty or something, but she’s a kid to me. Just get Ron and Benny and get going. I’ll be there sometime in the near future.” He rolled his eyes, pocketing the phone again. “There, Kivvie, it’s all set up. Now if you don’t want to come with me back to California, that’s your decision, I’ll just say you died or something. But I’ll stick around a while longer, can’t say no to a good time.” He laughed to himself.

He decided to ignore the fact that she seemed to be clinging to that tube of artificial beauty as though it were a life raft. To him, it was ugly. Natural appearances were a thing of the earth and didn’t need to be glorified with colored or tinted products that just stained the body and mind alike and covered the true humanity that was life itself, no matter the race. It was her choice, and he wouldn’t point it out. A shocking kindness that nearly made him question who he really was.

Kivana listened to Daren's plan and her eyes widened with every word he spoke. She already knew that Janae might be a little skeptical on the plan, but she would comply. Kivana had the strong impulse to hug Daren, but he seemed like the type of person who wouldn't want to be hugged. "Alright! When do you wanna leave? How about tomorrow?That way, we can both rest up." Kivana said, smacking her wrists together like she always did when she was excited. She usually clapped them together until they turned bright red, but she didn't want to annoy Daren too much.

Kivana felt herself slowly drifting to sleep in her sitting position, pieces of her hair were stuck to the wall, and the bags under her eyes seemed to go away with time. She dreamt about everything, zombies being the main subject. She thought about Janae, and about Daren going with her to Wichita, then she saw one of the special infected in her dream, too. It was one of the witches. It looked so sad, just crying in a corner by herself. Kivana had always had a soft spot in her heart for witches. They were the only zombies who weren't super destructive, but just wanted peace, and to be left alone to mourn.

The witch in her dream was the one that she'd seen on her way to the gas station. It had long dirty fingernails, and was wearing a summer outfit of an orange tank top and short shorts. Her head had been in her hands, which were rested on her knees, and her dirt-filled hair was covering her face on both sides. Kivana could hear her cries. They were low and muffled, but none the less, very saddening. She had had the strong impulse to tell the wich it'd be okay, but she knew that even though it seemed sad, the girl was still evil on the inside. Kivana had instead been forced to walk further in the woods away from it. She remembered thinking about how if she were a zombie, she'd be a witch.

Daren didn’t want to talk anymore. He simply widened his eyes in agreement when Kivana requested resting up in the old back room before moving on. Maybe she would be more... herself... by the time the sun rose the next morning. Daren knew she was hiding or suppressing her real personality, he’d seen the real thing earlier, yet it’d vanished with his death and regeneration. And her calm, less-than-hysterical reaction at his telling her the truth about humans and nonhumans, other than the walking dead outside, wasn’t strange to him. She’d most likely already known, like others pegged as insane by the rest of the human race.

With a sigh, he crossed his legs where he sat and reached into his bag, fishing out his digital camera. The batteries had died a while back, but miraculously enough, he’d discovered more AA batteries the previous day. Turning on the power, he flipped through the series of photos, memories both young and old. The first one that met his eyes was a witch. A gray-skinned thing, hair over her face, sitting doubled-over at the mouth of a dark alley. Her pale blue dress was stained, ripped as though she’d used her filthy, bloody claws on herself. When he snapped the picture, she’d been slightly startled out of her mournful cries, but the following silence and dark of night had calmed her again. Another image was of a hunter, tearing up a survivor who had really annoyed Daren. He’d been happy to see that one die. A few more were of mobs, both human and nonhuman, taken from the tops of buildings and windows.

But when he left those behind, Daren was met by the healthy, bright-eyed face of Matthew Black, the one he’d only just talked to minutes ago. Bright red hair shined in the island’s dry-season sun, covering his odd maroon eyes. A lanky thing, moved from Florida to the island not five years ago, and yet he was already accustomed to life among nonhumans. Another image, this time of Ron Sumner. About fifty years old, Daren had met him when the man was no more than twelve years old. And he’d watched his friend grow, age, and finally become chief of police, a big deal on Snow Island. Another image, this of his own home, a Gothic-style thing, massive and sprawling, built a year after the first settlers had arrived on the island. It was built for thirty people, but now, only Daren resided in its cold halls. With a sigh, Daren turned off the power and threw it back into the bag. He’d spent a lot more than a month away from the island, but not with the threat of the undead at his heels. Through half-closed eyes, he looked toward Kivana.

Kivana awoke the next morning, immediately slathering lipgloss on her dry mouth and brushing her teeth with the tooth brush from her bag. She looked at Daren, who seemed to be staring right back at her. She was never one to be shy when people looked at her. She knew she always looked acceptable, so she just let them look. She never blushed, or looked away. She just stared back until the other person looked away or until she got tired of staring. Kivana was tired of staring very fast with Daren. She looked at the door. It was closed, and the supply room smelled of her vomit.

Kivana realized what was to happen today. Today was the day that they were heading to Wichita! Yay! She'd get to see Janae, and finally relieve herself of the scary, special infected filled town that she was in. She stood and stretched her legs, her feet held a tingling sensation that just wouldn't go away. She was too happy. She didn't want to look like a dork, but she just had to ask one question. "When do you wanna leave?" she said with the meekness of a servant and the excitement of a child. She felt her hands shaking slightly and her cheeks felt warm, like they always did when she was excited.

Kivana's excitement was quickly interrupted with a firm shake of the ground, that caused her thighs to jiggle slightly and her eyes to get wide. That was the shake of a boomer's feet getting closer to the gas station. Kivana darted back to her corner and let her eyes settle on the boarded-up window. Boomers scared her. Besides smokers and spitters, they were the most disgusting of the special infected. Their nasty vomit which always seemed to attract all of the other zombies, and their humungous torn rolls of fat made her want to throw up. Kivana felt the vibrations become more sharp, and soon she heard a gurgling sound that made her blood run cold in her veins. Kivana looked at Daren, knowing that they'd have to tackle this monster if they were going to go anywhere. She stood, her perfect blond curls bouncing, and she took a deep breath while she cocked her gun. It was business time.