CHAPTER IV
Everything Has A Bright Side

"THIS IS where you'll stay." Otis unlocked the front door of one of the many mansions the community had to offer. "The owners went away before the apocalypse and sadly never returned."

He held the door as the delinquents walked inside. The exterior was far more than gorgeous, and stepping in, they saw the interior was even nicer.

"You have food, clothes, running water, everything you need." He continued as the teens began to explore their new home. "There are three rooms, so most of you will have a roommate. I hope that's okay."

"I call not to share a room!" Collin quickly exclaimed.

They admired the house with compassion. The warm welcome made them forget about the apocalypse and Ethan's mysterious disappearance. Britton opened a cabinet, finding many cans of soup and other non-perishables. He smiled, turning to the old man.

"Thank you, sir." He said gratefully, giving him another friendly handshake. "We owe you big time."

"We'll discuss that later." He released the grip on Britton's hand and walked over to the door, "I'll give you some time to settle in. Meet me outside when you're done." His gaze fell to Britton's shoes and slowly traveled back up to his freckled face. "We have some things to discuss."

With that, Otis left, shutting the door behind him.

"Does anybody else think he's creepy?" Evelyn asked, brows drawing together in disgust.

"Who cares?" Aria scoffed, mouth full of fresh bread. "He's treated us better in five minutes than those shitty detention workers ever treated me in two years."

Hayden swiftly snatched the food from the other girl's hand, taking a bite, "Lucky me only spent a month there." She eyed Britton with a glare, "Don't understand how I'm the new girl when I know every tip and trick there is to sneak around in there."

"The rest of us spent years in there," Britton replied nonchalantly.

Hayden rolled her eyes. Aria took her bread back, giving Hayden a playful push.

"Hey," Collin noticed worry wiped all over Evelyn's face, "Don't stress. We're safe now, right?"

"There's no safety in a world where dying tomorrow is almost guaranteed." Said Archer, arms wrapped around his torso.

Gracie shook her head, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, "We are safe. Look at this place! They have food and water! And most importantly, no zombies."

"Let's just worry about roommates and getting settled in for now." Britton leaned against the counter, tired of the worry.

"Well, with Collin being a dickhead, there are three rooms and six of us," Hayden said, lips spreading into a smile that revealed a dimple on her cheek. "Who wants to room with me?"

"I'll room with you," Aria winked at her, "New Girl."

Hayden punched her arm, chuckling.

"I'll bunk with Archer since he's the only other guy." Britton sent a nod to the smaller boy. "That makes Gracie and Evelyn roommates."

Collin climbed the stairs, looking through the rooms. He claimed the biggest one before anyone else had the chance to. He opened the curtains to allow the light to leak in. It almost reminded him of home before he was locked up. He would look out the window, watching his neighbor plant flowers or children run around and play.

Though, he still felt lost. As if he wasn't living the same life anymore. He wished Ethan was by his side, telling him a joke or simply just talking. Collin wiped an isolated tear off of his face. At the very least, Ethan wouldn't have to suffer in a brutal dystopia. He had to move on.

*

His vision was hazy as consciousness was regained once again. His head was throbbing like his brain would explode at any second. He was nauseous. The acid in his stomach was rising and causing his throat to burn. Ethan pinched his eyes shut, the light hanging above him only causing more pain.

Ethan groaned. He became aware of a powerful pain in his arm. It was so severe, the ringing in his ears no longer mattered. His eyes shot open. His right bicep felt as if it was being set on fire. His pupils shrunk, letting out an ear-piercing scream, laced with agonizing anguish.

His gaze darted to his burning limb. A scalpel was beneath his skin, slicing flesh directly off of his muscle. It stopped mid-way, the skin hanging off of his arm by a thread and revealing the pink layer beneath. Warm, bright red blood dripped down the length of his lean arms.

"He's awake." Stated a familiar voice.

The scalpel was put on a tray. His eyes skimmed the room frantically, being met with the faces of many strangers staring back at him. Each of them was wearing a blue, blood-stained gown and a white mask to cover the lower half of their faces. He was in a different room than before. The room was cold and gray, sending a chill down his spine. Bloody handprints and splatters were packed on the dirty walls.

Adrenaline coursed through his veins. He screamed, trying to rip himself from his restraints once more. The doctors stepped back, exchanging looks as he lost his sanity. He put his face down on the ropes around his wrist, biting down hard repeatedly.

He cut his lips on the rope but suppressed his pain for the sake of escape. He had enough of the pain, the ringing in his head, nausea, the fear. He was done. Ethan let out another cry, sitting up straight and looking at the unfamiliar faces with a vengeful stare. Blood dripped down his mouth and off of his chin, rolling down his boney neck and chest.

"Calm down, kid." A man whispered.

"Shut up!" Ethan screamed.

His eyes ragingly darted around the room, his world beginning to spin. The acid in his stomach escaped from his mouth and onto his gown. He grew dizzy from dehydration. Ethan threw his head back onto the metal bar on the back of his bed. He was overwhelmed with sickness and pain, begging to be taken to the other side.

"Give him some water," The woman ordered. "I think he has a concussion."

Ethan leaned forward as far as he could before throwing himself back once again. It was enough to nearly knock him out, dark spots clouding his vision. The woman put a pillow on the bar to prevent him from killing himself. She then stood in front of him, a strong hand pushing down on his chest to stop him from moving.

"You can't save us if you're dead." She spoke softly. "You're going down in history books, alright?"

Ethan had no words, staring blankly at her face. He couldn't stand the sight. The person who took his sanity within hours of being in her presence. It made him sick.

"You're doing a good thing. The pain won't last forever, and neither will zombies thanks to you." She moved her hand up from his chest to run it through his greasy dark hair.

Ethan's expression didn't change. If she hadn't taken notice of the quick rise and fall of his stomach, she would've thought he was dead. To her surprise, he leaned forward, his blank stare slowly transforming into a vindictive glare. He licked the blood from his lips, revealing a large cut on his bottom lip.

"Kill me." He whispered, his voice hoarse and strained.

"I'm afraid we can't do that." She ran her thumb across his lips to clean the rest of his blood away.

A man returned with a bottle of water, handing it to the woman. She screwed the cap off and held it in front of Ethan.

"Now do us a favor and drink. You don't want me to get the ax."

Ethan allowed her to put the water to his lips. He took a second to see if there were any unusual smells and found none. He took the water and closed his eyes as it went down his raw throat. It felt nice to finally be showed a slither of humane treatment. He knew it wouldn't last long, so he cherished every second. He never thought he'd be so grateful for a drop of water.