Christa’s eyes took on a softer tone, “Don’t Damion. You are my savior. Everything horrible thing I go through you are there for me no matter what. It’s your love that saves me. It’s you that saves me. If I didn’t have you through the good, the bad, and the really bad I would be lost. You are my rock, my shelter in this storm. The bad things that sometimes happen that we can’t prevent, you give me what I need to make it through. No one else can do that but you. Don’t ever doubt you’re my savior. You save me every day of my life.” With that Christa moved closer to Damion and laid her head on his shoulder. He smiled.
“Oh and by the way I have to pee.”
Damion laughed, “Of course you do. Next gas station we pass I’ll stop off and check the place out and let you actually use a toilet and maybe we can get some snacks if the place wasn’t pilfered previously. Sound good?”
“Sure, whatever. As long as I get to pee.”
A few more miles and Christa got on the walkie talkie to let Gerard know they were turning off for a bathroom/snack run. He agreed because he had to go as well. Three exits had passed with no signs of anywhere to stop and then finally the next exit had three gas stations. They turned off on the exit and chose to go to some small town gas station. They pulled up into the parking lot, which was empty and everyone agreed that was a good sign. Christa got out of the truck first and Damion followed suit.
Damion went in first to check out the bathroom and the gas station itself. There was no sign of anyone so he gave her the ok to go use the restroom. “You go ahead and I’ll be out here gathering some things. There’s actually still some food and drinks left, which is amazing. You want anything?”
“Sure get me a diet Dr.Pepper.”
“Diet? I don’t think you need to watch your calorie intake baby. Are you sure?”
“Yes I’m sure. If I gain weight you will leave me for a thinner version of me.”
Damion smiled, “Nah, you’d just be better at keeping me warm at night.” He winked.
“You dork,” Christa laughed.
Christa walked into the bathroom which smelled horrible, but she was just happy she was not using the bathroom in the elements at this point. It can really cold when you have to pull your pants all the way down just to squat and pee in a blanket of snow. After she was done using the restroom she washed her hands and stared in the mirror at herself. It was almost surreal seeing herself in the mirror. She hadn’t really noticed how much she had looked at herself before when the world was normal. It seemed so odd to see herself now. In the world today caring about your appearance is the last thing on your mind, but before it was definitely a top priority.
It’s so funny how life can put things into perspective for you. You find out what really matters in life when things fall apart because only then will most people take note of it and wish they had always. Doesn’t matter if you’re gorgeous if you end up dead. No one seems to care if you have a blemish on your face. They just care if you’re alive, uninfected, and not a psychotic asshole.
There was a knock on the bathroom door. “You ok in there,” Damion asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I was just washing up.”
“Isn’t that cool yet strange how some places have running water and other amenities but some places don’t? It’s all in how they are run I think and probably how long ago they were abandoned.”
Christa stepped out of the bathroom, “You know, I hadn’t really thought about it until now. I guess it’s just one of those things you take for granted until it’s not there anymore.”
“Yeah well wherever we go next I hope it has water because I would kill right now to be able to take a shower. I swear I stink to high heaven.”
“Lucky for you I stink as well which negates me from smelling you,” Christa laughed.
“Well then there is that I suppose.”
Christa grabbed the diet Dr.Pepper from Damion’s hand. “Awesome. I haven’t had one of those in a minute. Ooh, black licorice! I’ll take some of that. I’m surprised they still have any.”
“I’m not. No one likes it. You are the only person I’ve ever known that likes black licorice.”
Christa puts a piece of it in her mouth and smiles, “I’m unique what can I say.”
“You got that right.”
“Hey guys,” Gerard was motioning them to the employee entrance, “maybe we should see what supplies they have here in the back. We still have a lot of room in those trucks and we’d be crazy not to. We will need everything we can get our hands on.”
“He’s got a point, besides there might be more black licorice back there,” Christa rubbed her hands together and gave them a grin. “You know, so I can work on my girlish figure. Someone has to keep you warm at night.”
“Well black licorice it is. Let’s see what’s back there.” Damion kicked on the door, but it held strong.
Gerard stood in between him and the door, “Stop!” He turned around and turned the knob and opened the door. “It’s open dude.”
“Oh.”
They all walked inside and found various boxes of snack, drinks and candy. They also found other items like toilet paper, paper towels, cups, lighters, and an assortment of every other thing you might find in a gas station.
“I’ll start carrying things out,” Gerard said.
Christa was rummaging through the boxes looking for more black licorice. She went over to a big box in the corner which looked like it had been opened before. She opened the top of the box and something inside moved really fast so she jerked back. She didn’t catch a good look of what it was either.
“Is someone in there? Tell me now if there is. I’m not going to hurt you.” She peered her head over the box with her knife above her head when a tiny voice replied, “Then why do you have a knife?”
Christa instantly was taken aback by the voice. She could tell it was a child in the box. “It’s to protect myself from the zombies, not to hurt people.”
“Some people need to be hurt though.”
“What do you mean?”
“Some men came and took my mommy. She told me to hide so I did. I’ve been here for a few days by myself. I hid when I saw you pull up. I thought the bad men were back again for me.”
Christa peered over top of the box and saw a little girl inside the box crouching down. She was obviously scared. “You can come out. I promise I won’t hurt you.” Christa reached in to help the little girl out but she flinched away from her. “Come on. It’s not safe here for you by yourself. You can come with us.”
“No! I can’t! What if my mommy comes back for me and I’m not here? She’ll never find me.”
“Well, here’s what we can do. We can leave a note for your mommy so she knows which direction we are heading in and what to look for. How does that sound? That way you won’t be left here in the cold and all alone. I don’t know if you realize how dangerous it is out there. A child isn’t safe alone, especially one that is about, seven?”
The little girl stood up in the box and corrected Christa, “Eight to be exact.”
“Oh well my bad. I should have known. You look like a grown up eight year old.”
“I know.”
“So if you’re a grown up eight year old then you know I won’t hurt you.” Christa extended her hand once again to the little girl. She hesitated only for a moment and then grabbed it. “My name is Christa, what’s yours?”
“Shelby, Shelby Jenkins but you can call me Shelby. Who are those men with you?”
Just then Damion came in with Gerard, “What the, where did she come from?”
Shelby hid behind Christa when they came into the room. “Don’t scare her. She’s lived through some traumatic events already. Damion, this is Shelby. Shelby, this is Damion, my husband.”
Damion came over to Shelby and Christa, “Nice to meet you Shelby. I’m a nice guy, I promise.”
“Yeah well that depends on who you’re asking,” Gerard scoffed as he walked over to Shelby, “and my name is Gerard. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”
“Hi,” Shelby said as she peered around Christa just enough to look at them with one eye.
“Some men came here and kidnapped her mother. I think that’s why she is a little scared of you two. I told her she was coming with us and we’d leave a note for her mother if she came back here.”
“Christa I don’t think her mom will-“
Christa cut him off abruptly with a look and motioned to Shelby as if to say not around her. “Like I said, we’ll leave a note so she can find us. Ok.”
Damion nodded understandingly.
“Do you need to use the restroom or anything before we leave Shelby,” Christa asked while the others finished loading up the boxes.
“I’ll try. My mom always told me even when you don’t have to go you should try.”
“Ok, I’ll take you. We don’t go nowhere alone, understand? Not even the restroom.”
Shelby nodded and took Christa’s hand as they headed off for the restroom. When inside Shelby asked, “Can I change my name? I always wanted to be called something else.”
Christa thought about it for a moment, “I don’t see why not. If there was ever a time to start from scratch it’d be now. What would you like your name to be?”
“Annabelle. I always thought it was a pretty name.” She smiled.
Christa tucked Annabelle’s hair behind her ears, “Yes, it’s a beautiful name for a beautiful little girl. Annabelle it is.”
They walked out of the bathroom and Christa left a quick note on the countertop. “There. If she comes back she’ll read this note and know where to find you.” She took Annabelle’s hand and went out to the truck.
“Cover up with the sleeping bags Shelby. It’ll keep you warm.”
“It’s not Shelby, it’s Annabelle,” Christa corrected Damion.
Damion shot her a look of utter confusion, “But you said-“
“I know what I said but she wanted to change it. So I didn’t see the harm in it.”
Damion turned around, “Oh, I’m sorry Annabelle. You can take the sleeping bags and cover up if you get cold though or take a nap.”
They pulled out and headed down the interstate once again. Not too many miles down the interstate and Annabelle fell asleep leaned up against Christa. Christa put her arm around her and held her. It was a painful reminder of what she lost, but a reminder of what she saved as well. Annabelle.
Chapter 13
They had traveled for days. The whole time Annabelle had formed bonds with everyone in the group. Darren had made a remarkable recovery due to Christa’s diligent care. The travel had been slow but they finally had made it to South Carolina. The weather, roads being blocked, herds of zombies or the occasional zombie, and their daily needs made the trip a tedious one. They had no notion of where they were headed either. They figured when they found a great place they would know it and that would be their destination.
“It’s kind of nice to be able to drive down the road with the window down. I haven’t done that in a long time.” Christa closed her eyes as the wind whipped through her hair.
“I know,” said Damion. “I was kind of hoping we could make a trip to the beach.”
Christa leaned her head back and looked over at Damion and smiled, “If you did that I’d want to stay.”
“What’s so bad about that?” Damion smiled back.
“I don’t think a beach side condo has the potential to be a forever kind of home.”
“Hmm, true.”
“Maybe we should find a prison like in ‘The Walking Dead’ or a mall like in the movie ‘Dawn of the Dead’.” Christa reflected on the words she just spoke. “Wow. That sounded so surreal to say. I love horror movies and every time I reference one it makes this seem all the more real. Then again I’m expecting to hear the director say ‘cut’ any minute now.”
“I wish he would have said ‘cut’ a long time ago. I’m ready to be out of this nightmare.”
“You’re not the only one.” Christa looked back at Anna who was playing with some dolls they had found on one of their stops.
“Breaker Breaker one nine. This is Big D on-“
“No, no, no, no. ‘I’m’ Big D.”-replied Damion.
“Breaker Breaker one nine. This is Baby D on the walkie,” Damion laughed at Darren. “I’m getting mighty growly in my tummy. Let’s stop for some grub. I eat another Funyun I’m going to turn into one.”
Damion grabbed the walkie, “Sure thing little D.”
“Hey, it’s Baby D, and no I’m not little. Hey Christa, you get tired of being with a boy you can have a man. Did you hear that Christa?”
Christa laughed and rolled her eyes.
“No little D she did not, Big D over and out.”
“You two kill me. Big and Little D.”
“It’s Baby D,” Annabelle corrected.
Christa and Damion busted out laughing.
They pulled off on an exit to a semi large city but as soon as they took the ramp off they could tell it was a bad idea so they took the ramp back on. “That’s the only problem about big cities,” Christa added. “They have a lot of resources but they also have a large population and nine times out of ten it is the undead. I think we need to stick to smaller cities.” Damion agreed.
“Onward to the next city. Sorry Darren.”
“That’s ok. I rather wait than eat with the crowd we just passed.”
“Something told me you might say that.”
They traveled further down the road till they got to a smaller town. They took the first exit and stopped off at a barbecue place. They drove around the parking lot scoping out the restaurant before they parked in front.
Christa turned to Annabelle, “Stay put, you hear me? Don’t open the door for anyone but us got it?” Anna nodded.
“Maybe you should stay with her while Gerard, Darren and I clear out this place. It would make me feel better, besides then I wouldn’t have to worry about protecting you inside here.”
“You’ll say anything to get me to stay in the truck won’t you.”
Damion leaned over and kissed Christa, “Yep.”
“Fine. I’ll stay.
This
time, but don’t think I’ll let you talk me into it every time. I feel better when I have your back.” She watched him walk off and hoped she wouldn’t regret not going with him.
“Are they going to be okay?”
Christa caressed Anna’s hair, “Yes, they’ll be fine. They’ve done this a hundred times. Just relax and soon we’ll be inside and we’ll hopefully be cooking something.” Anna went back to playing with her dolls.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“Did you ever have kids? You and Damion.”
Christa’s face contorted and all at once those emotions came flooding back. “Yes. We did.”
“What was her name?” Anna asked nonchalantly.
“Bree. Bree was her name.”
“That’s a pretty name. Where is she now? Are you traveling to get her?”
“I wish Anna. I wish.”
“Well then where is she?”
“She’s dead.”
Anna gasped and stopped playing with her dolls, “Oh no! What happened??”
It was painstaking for Christa to recalls such facts. “She ran off. That’s why I stress the importance of you always listening and staying put. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.”
“How did running off get her dead? Did someone kill her?”
“One of those walking undead killed her. It was her grandparents so I figured she got too close to them which is why she got bit. I should have never let her out of my sight. It’s all my fault really. I wasn’t watching her and I should have been.”
Anna put her hand on top of Christa’s hand, “Sometimes bad things happen. Remember what you told me the first day I met you? There are bad people and things in this world. It’s not your fault Christa. You are a great mommy. I’m sure Bree knew that. If I didn’t have a mommy I’d want you to be my mommy.” Anna’s face grew sullen. “I’m starting to think my mommy isn’t coming for me. Then I won’t have a mommy.”
Christa put her hand on the side of Anna’s face, “Don’t say that. You don’t know for sure. You always have to keep hope alive. This might be a treacherous world but there are still good things in it.”
Anna sat up on her knees and put her little hands on each side of Christa’s face. “I know. You found me didn’t you?” Anna put her arms around Christa’s neck and hugged her.
“I sure did babygirl. I sure did.”
Just then the doors to the restaurant opened up and Damion waved them in. Christa got out of the truck and helped Anna down. As they walked through the door Christa saw an upscale restaurant which was not what she expected from the outside view.
“Wow. This place is nice. I totally didn’t expect this from the outside appearance.”
“I know right,” Darren replied.
“Is there anything here food wise?” Christa asked.
“They aren’t stocked full but they do have some food and drinks. Enough for us and that’s all that matters,” Damion said as he strolled out of the back with some steaks in his hand which he threw down next to the grill.
“Oh dear God, Steaks!? I might just die and go to heaven tonight,” Darren exclaimed.
Christa laughed, “So I guess that beats Funyuns huh?”
“They aren’t even in the same league. Hell yes!”
Damion fired up the grill and cooked the steaks. After everyone had eaten they sat there for a few enjoying their drinks and discussing where to go next.
“We’re gonna need to find some place we can hold up in. You know so we have some semblance of a life. We can’t just keep driving around every day. That is going to wear on all of us, especially poor Anna. I’m going a little stir crazy myself personally.”
“I agree with Christa, but where would there be such a place? I mean we always have the option of building a place too, but obviously it’d have to be somewhere we wouldn’t have to worry about walking corpses jeopardizing the work site. That’s all we’d need,” said Gerard.
“Oh my gosh,” Christa ran off for the bathroom clutching her mouth.
Damion ran off after her, “Christa! Are you okay?!” Damion followed her into the bathroom where she disappeared into a stall. All he could hear next was her vomiting. He put his hand to the stall door, “Oh baby are you okay?” He could hear her getting sick again.
“I’m fine. I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Ok. I’m not going anywhere. I remember the last time you were in a bathroom by yourself. I’m not about to make that same mistake twice.”
Christa couldn’t explain the sudden stomach upset, but whatever it was came on strong and fast. She opened the bathroom stall and went to wash her face in the sink. Damion came up behind her and rubbed her back. After she washed her face and mouth out he felt her forehead.
“Hmm, your head isn’t hot. Maybe something didn’t settle right on your stomach.”
“Yeah maybe,” Christa’s face instantly got flush as something hit her all of a sudden.
“What? What’s wrong?”
Christa looked in Damion’s eyes with a sense of urgency and anxiousness, “I haven’t had my monthly in quite a while Damion. It’s not like we’ve been using any protection either.”
A look of shock spread over Damion’s face, “Are you sure?”
“Yes I am sure that I’ve skipped a period Damion. We’re going to have to stop at some sort of pharmacy or store so I can get a test.”
“Talk about complicating things that are already complicated. Not that I’m saying it’s not a good thing I’m just saying that’s going to alter our plans greatly; and I have no idea what we are going to do about a doctor or a hospital. None of us guys have delivered a baby. I mean what if there are complications or something happens to you-“
“-Damion, Damion! Baby calm down. Let’s find out for sure before we go off on a tirade about anything else. Ok?”
Damion went over to Christa and held her. “Whatever it says, we’ll be together through it all. That’s all that matters.” He places a kiss on her forehead and walks back to the table with her.
Gerard had a look of concern on his face, “Are you okay Christa?”
“Yes I’m fine. My stomach is just upset a little bit but I’ll be fine.”
Christa didn’t want to tell anyone until her and Damion knew for sure. She couldn’t help but wonder about all the worries that Damion had. It was easy to tell him to not worry but harder for her not to let those worries take over her own mind. Having a baby is a big thing, let alone in a world where zombies flourish and doctors are scarce if not extinct.
“Let’s head out. We need to stop at a pharmacy or a store really quick.”
Gerard was confused, “Why?”
Damion went to open his mouth but Christa spoke before he could, “Women stuff Gerard. You really wanna know?”
“That’s ok. I’ll take your word on it.”
“I didn’t think you wanted to know.” She took Anna’s hand and headed to the truck. Sitting there she couldn’t help but wonder why anyone would want to bring a baby into this kind of world. How would she raise a baby in this kind of world? A million thoughts were swirling around her head. She couldn’t help but be scared. She broke from her train of thought when Damion opened the truck door.
“You feeling ok?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. We’re going to go to the first store we see. You and I will go in. No since in all of us going in and besides that will eliminate anyone from seeing what you’re getting.”
Sounded good to her. She just wanted to know as soon as possible. She wasn’t sure if the not knowing was stressing her out more than the actual thought of being pregnant. She would soon find out though.
The first store they ran across was down the road a ways from the restaurant. It was a Walgreens. They pulled in the parking lot which seemed to be undead free. Gerard and Darren got out of their truck as soon as Damion and Christa got out. Christa gave a look to Damion, then turned to address Gerard and Darren, “Can you guys stay out here and watch Anna? I will be right out.”
“Why don’t we all go in just incase,” Gerard asked.
“Well I would feel safer if someone was watching Anna. Please?”
“Sure, we’ll stay out here.”
“Thanks Gerard.”
“No problem.”
Damion and Christa went inside the store cautiously which was very quiet. “Which section would that be in Christa? I have no idea.”
Christa smirked, “In the feminine section. It will be where the tampons, pads, douches are and etc.”
“Ah, ok.” They walked down the end of the aisles so they could see down each one individually. When they got to the aisle they walked down it slowly.
“Here it is. I’m going to get a couple just incase. It wouldn’t hurt. I guess we could get anything else while we’re here.”
“No more black licorice. Last time you got some of that you got a child as well.”
“Oh really,” Christa held up the pregnancy test, “Maybe that’s a sign.”
“I’m starting to think it is.”
All of a sudden Gerard starts to run down the aisle towards them. “I don’t mean to interrupt but there is a small herd of them coming this way so I think we should hurry up as fast as we can. It’s not a tremendous number but it’s enough you wouldn’t want to be caught in this store with them.” Gerard notices the pregnancy tests in Christa’s hand. “Whoa Christa…..seriously? Are you pregnant!?”