"I can't believe we just stole their car! She's pregnant! They were nice to us! Why I'm the hell would you do that?!"

I gripped the steering wheel tighter.
I knew they'd freak out. But I could only tell them the bare minimum. If they knew... I decided to stick with a partial truth. "She was infected. And I'm sure he was too."

The silence in the car was defining.

"What..what do you mean?"

"She was coughing up blood and the rash was all over her. I don't know if any of us are infected or not..."

Let me take this back. To this morning, where it all started.

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"We should stop at the next available gas station. We're running low and she needs to go to the bathroom."

We had been driving for four hours, and I slept through the better part of it. I welcomed any sleep I could because I knew we wouldn't be getting a lot while we were on the run. Dave and Ally were really nice to us, although a bit skeptical of four teens being on the run, but warmed up eventually when we didn't murder them.

"So, who does what?"

"Well, I'll need someone to take me to the bathroom."

"I'll go. I need to go anyways. The others can help get food and gas."

Ally's eyes lit up and I could tell she was smiling back at me. "Thanks Percy."

"Well I'm going with Izzy, we'll get the gas if you guys don't mind getting the food."

Dave laughed at Jess's statement. "I'll get the food, that way you three kids can get gas from the pump. It'll be quicker that way. Plus, you'll need all of you working on the pumps just to get enough gas."

Chris shrugged his shoulders. "That's fine with me, as long as you're OK by yourself."

Dave nodded and pulled into a gas station that looked abandoned. My dad always told me that ever since the people became infected, no one dared to go into cities or towns. Stores were abandoned and gas stations were left when people didn't have electricity. No one ever cleared out the gas stations, they just became spots for scavenger missions.

Dave pulled up to the pumps of the seemingly empty place as I pulled out my gun. After I loaded it, I slid open the door and jumped out off the car. Ally followed behind me and we walked to the bathroom, following the signs on the side.

I cracked the door open and peeked inside, seeing no movement I pushed the door all the way open.
"Hello?"

Light flooded the room but the bathroom was silent. I hit the door, just to make sure nothing would come running at us.
"Alright you can go in."

Ally nodded and walked past me into the first stall. "You know, the only problem with being pregnant is the cravings. When I was a kid before all this, they had pizza and ice cream and candy but now, you're lucky to find drinkable water."

She walked out of the stall and took off her mask.
"You know it feels strange to be without a mask now. But goodness, it feels freeing."
I laughed with her until she coughed in my direction and something wet hit my face. I reached up and touched it, mutineers coming away red. Oh no. Looking at her more closely, I could see the faint rash spreading down here arms.

She looked away from me, and coughed again. "Maybe you should go to the car, I'll just be a few more minutes."

I nodded and wiped my face off, hoping i got it all while I backed away from her. I turned and walked out the door and closing it behind me. I took a moment to breathe. This can't really be happening.

"Hey are you OK? You look like you saw a ghost." Dave laughed as he walked towards me.

"Uhh... Yeah. I'm fine." I looked up at him and saw the rash on his neck. They were obviously hiding the fact they were infected from us. And we had been driving in the same car as them. Breathing the same air. Everyone else could be infected too. And if I wasn't before, I probably was going to get the rash very soon.

"She was coughing and told me to just go so I'm just gonna go wait in the car."

He didn't even register what I said after the first three words and started power walking over to the bathroom door. Now was my chance, we had to run. I couldn't risk them turning on us while we were in the car with them. That wouldn't go well at all.

I ran to the car and noticed my friends already in the back seats of the van. I jumped into the drivers seat and ignored everyone's questions as I started the van. A scream sounded through the air outside and I wasn't one to stick around and find out why.

"Persephone you better tell me why in the hell you just stole their car!"

And that is how we got to where we were. Me being yelled at as we sped away from the ever shrinking gas station behind us.

"She was coughing in the bathroom and I saw the rash on both of them."

"What do you mean we could be infected? All she did was cough? She fucking coughed! People do that! They couldn't have been infected, you're just being an overdramatic bitch!"

I slammed on the breaks and turned to Jess. She met my glare and I spoke slowly. "She. Coughed. Blood."

Her glare melted and turned into fear, matched by Chris's and Izzy's. We all knew what that meant and no one would argue with it.

I slammed my head into the steering wheel and started crying. I couldn't help it not only could my friends be infected, but I was infected.

"Percy what's wrong?"

Izzy climbed into the passengers seat, trying to hug me, but I pushed her away. "You can't touch me Izzy."

"Why in the hell not?"

I looked into her eyes, showing the hurt from the rejection of not letting her hug me, "Izzy... She coughed blood. She coughed it on me."

Horror covered her face and I could only imagine what the others looked like.

"Trade me spots."

I did as Izzy said and we swapped seats. I looked out the window as she started up the car and drove away.

I had less five hours until the symptoms started showing and I became contagious to others and I'm going to make it memorable if I was going to die.

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