Ashlynn pov
The silence in the parking garage was suffocating. We sat in the shadows, catching our breath, each of us wrapped in our own thoughts. The chaos outside had faded, but the echo of those screams lingered, etched in my mind. I kept expecting to hear the heavy footsteps of one of those gray creatures, shuffling closer, sniffing us out.
But all I heard was our own ragged breathing, punctuated by the occasional creak of metal from the structure around us.
After a few moments, Caleb broke the silence. "We can't stay here. The mist is getting thicker, and we're running out of time. We need to find a real shelter, somewhere with supplies."
Zoe nodded, looking out at the swirling fog outside. "If this mist is getting in the buildings, we need something to protect us. Some kind of filter or… anything."
"There's an old clinic down the street," Luke said quietly. "I used to pass it every day on my way to work. It might still have some supplies, maybe even oxygen tanks."
"Worth a shot," Caleb said, his expression hardening with determination. "Let's move."
---
We stuck close as we made our way down the deserted streets, slipping through alleys and staying low, the mist curling around our feet like ghostly tendrils. The clinic wasn't far—just a few blocks—but every step felt like a risk, like we were balancing on a knife's edge.
When we reached the clinic, it looked untouched. The windows were cracked but intact, and the door was still locked, which Caleb took as a good sign.
"We'll go in pairs," he said. "Less noise that way. Luke and Zoe, you're with me. Jordan and Lila, stay on watch out here."
They slipped inside, moving as quietly as possible, leaving Lila and me to stand guard in the mist-covered street. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching us, lurking just beyond the gray haze. I kept glancing over my shoulder, expecting to see a pale face staring back at me.
"So… what did you do? Before all this?" I asked Lila, trying to distract myself from the silence.
She gave a small, bitter laugh. "I was a waitress. Nothing exciting, but… it was enough. And you?"
I hesitated, feeling a strange pang of loss. "High school. I was supposed to graduate this year."
She glanced at me, sympathy in her eyes. "Feels like another lifetime, doesn't it?"
Before I could answer, we heard footsteps coming from inside the clinic. Caleb and the others emerged, carrying a few bags stuffed with supplies.
"Found oxygen tanks and some masks," Zoe said, a rare hint of a smile on her face. "They'll buy us some time if the mist gets worse."
"And these," Caleb added, holding up a pack of inhalers. "They should help with breathing if we start to feel the effects."
I felt a wave of relief wash over me. It wasn't much, but it was something—something that could give Luke was the quietest among us, rarely speaking unless it was absolutely necessary. He'd work in the background, fixing broken locks or jury-rigging a trap with a steady hand and a grim expression. There was something haunted about him, like he was carrying a weight none of us could see.
One night, while we were resting in an abandoned apartment, Caleb sat down beside me, breaking the silence. "You're doing good out here, Jordan. For someone who's never… been through this."
I shrugged, not sure how to respond. "Just trying to keep up, I guess."
He studied me, his gaze intense. "You've got more fight in you than you think. We need that, all of us. And…" He hesitated, glancing at the others. "I know it's hard to trust people out here. But I need you to trust me. Trust all of us. We're all we have now."
I nodded, feeling the weight of his words sink in. Out here, trust was as fragile as hope, but it was also the only thing keeping us together.
---
The next morning, we were packing up to leave when Zoe called us over, her voice urgent.
"Look," she said, pointing down the street.
Through the mist, we could see a group of people approaching, their figures hazy and indistinct. At first, I thought they were more of the gray creatures, but as they drew closer, I realized they were survivors—like us. They moved quickly, glancing over their shoulders as if they were being followed.
Caleb tensed, pulling out his makeshift weapon—a crowbar he'd scavenged from one of the buildings. "Stay back," he whispered to us. "We don't know if they're friendly."
The group spotted us, their leader—a young woman with dark hair and a fierce expression—raising her hands in a gesture of peace.
"We're not here to hurt you," she called out, her voice low but steady. "We just need a place to rest. Please… we're running out of places to hide."
Caleb exchanged a glance with Zoe, then stepped forward cautiously. "Who are you?"
The woman sighed, glancing at her group before meeting Caleb's gaze. "My name's Maria. This is Finn, Leo, and Ava." She motioned to the others—a wiry guy with a scar across his cheek, a tall guy with a quiet intensity, and a girl about my age, her face pale and tired.
They looked worn down, their clothes torn, faces streaked with grime. But they didn't have the gray pallor that marked the infected. They were like us—survivors, struggling to breathe in a world that had turned against them.
Caleb's gaze softened, and he nodded. "Alright. You can stay, but we move at dawn."
Maria and her group joined us, and we shared what little food we had, exchanging stories in hushed voices. Finn told us about the town they'd come from, now overrun with gray creatures. Ava spoke of her family, lost to the mist. Leo was quiet, his gaze distant, as if he were still haunted by something we couldn't see.
As the night wore on, I found myself sitting beside Maria, listening to her talk about her old life—a job in a small bookstore, a cat she'd left behind, a world that felt like a distant dream.
"Do you think it'll ever go back to normal?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.
She looked at me, her expression weary but resolute. "I don't know. But if there's a way… we'll find it."
Her words lingered, a fragile thread of hope in the midst of the darkness. And as I looked around at the faces of my new family—Caleb, Zoe, Luke, Lila, Maria, and the others—I felt a flicker of something I hadn't felt in a long time.
We weren't alone anymore. And maybe, just maybe, that would be enough.
us a fighting chance.
---
Luke was the quietest among us, rarely speaking unless it was absolutely necessary. He'd work in the background, fixing broken locks or jury-rigging a trap with a steady hand and a grim expression. There was something haunted about him, like he was carrying a weight none of us could see.
One night, while we were resting in an abandoned apartment, Caleb sat down beside me, breaking the silence. "You're doing good out here, Jordan. For someone who's never… been through this."
I shrugged, not sure how to respond. "Just trying to keep up, I guess."
He studied me, his gaze intense. "You've got more fight in you than you think. We need that, all of us. And…" He hesitated, glancing at the others. "I know it's hard to trust people out here. But I need you to trust me. Trust all of us. We're all we have now."
I nodded, feeling the weight of his words sink in. Out here, trust was as fragile as hope, but it was also the only thing keeping us together.
---
The next morning, we were packing up to leave when Zoe called us over, her voice urgent.
"Look," she said, pointing down the street.
Through the mist, we could see a group of people approaching, their figures hazy and indistinct. At first, I thought they were more of the gray creatures, but as they drew closer, I realized they were survivors—like us. They moved quickly, glancing over their shoulders as if they were being followed.
Caleb tensed, pulling out his makeshift weapon—a crowbar he'd scavenged from one of the buildings. "Stay back," he whispered to us. "We don't know if they're friendly."
The group spotted us, their leader—a young woman with dark hair and a fierce expression—raising her hands in a gesture of peace.
"We're not here to hurt you," she called out, her voice low but steady. "We just need a place to rest. Please… we're running out of places to hide."
Caleb exchanged a glance with Zoe, then stepped forward cautiously. "Who are you?"
The woman sighed, glancing at her group before meeting Caleb's gaze. "My name's Maria. This is Finn, Leo, and Ava." She motioned to the others—a wiry guy with a scar across his cheek, a tall guy with a quiet intensity, and a girl about my age, her face pale and tired.
They looked worn down, their clothes torn, faces streaked with grime. But they didn't have the gray pallor that marked the infected. They were like us—survivors, struggling to breathe in a world that had turned against them.
Caleb's gaze softened, and he nodded. "Alright. You can stay, but we move at dawn."
Maria and her group joined us, and we shared what little food we had, exchanging stories in hushed voices. Finn told us about the town they'd come from, now overrun with gray creatures. Ava spoke of her family, lost to the mist. Leo was quiet, his gaze distant, as if he were still haunted by something we couldn't see.
As the night wore on, I found myself sitting beside Maria, listening to her talk about her old life—a job in a small bookstore, a cat she'd left behind, a world that felt like a distant dream.
"Do you think it'll ever go back to normal?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.
She looked at me, her expression weary but resolute. "I don't know. But if there's a way… we'll find it."
Her words lingered, a fragile thread of hope in the midst of the darkness. And as I looked around at the faces of my new family—Caleb, Zoe, Luke, Lila, Maria, and the others—I felt a flicker of something I hadn't felt in a long time.
We weren't alone anymore. And maybe, just maybe, that would be enough.