Apocalypse: The Dead Lives
Chapter 42: Brain Activity

Chapter 42: Brain Activity

"We have to leave," I told Marco.

I was still skeptical about him. I didn’t believe a single word that came out of his mouth. His green eyes shot up at me, they stayed fixated on me.

"Where are you headed anyway?" He asked before carefully rising from the booth he had been sitting in all night.

"LA." I shortly responded.

"Seems like we’re heading in the same direction then. I’m heading back to base. In Washington state." He said and I narrowed my eyes on him.

"That’s very convenient," I uttered before making my way to the door.

"What’s that supposed to mean?" He asked, confusion lacing his every word.

"It means that I don’t buy it. Your whole, we’re heading in the same direction story." I pointedly stated before stepping out into the cold. It had only stopped snowing a few hours ago.

"I didn’t ask you to buy it. I simply answered your question." He answered.

"Sure you did."

"Why are you going back to LA?" He curiously asked.

"That’s none of your business, Marco." I blankly stated.

"Damn. Well, don’t say I didn’t try to make conversation with you." He muttered before placing his hand across his chest.

We quietly continued down the snow-covered road.

I wondered what Ronan was doing right now. If he was thinking about me or if he was looking for me.

He shouldn’t look for me.

I deserved this.

My friends deserved to be indoors, warm and cozy. Safe from this cruel new world that we live in.

"So-" Marco started talking after an hour of silence. "Where are we going? We need shelter for tonight and I won’t sleep outside like a homeless person." He uttered.

"You’re literally homeless, Marco," I told him and he frowned at me.

"I’m not though. I have a house in Washington, a vacation home in Sacramento, and a condo in Chicago." He proudly stated.

"I bet you did and I bet that they’ve all been destroyed during the bombings." I blankly uttered.

"Are you always this pessimistic?" He asked while sizing me up from head to toe.

"Only when I’m talking to you." I smiled at him and he bit into his bottom lip. He licked his lips before smiling to himself.

"I’m gonna marry you one day." He told me in a promising tone.

"Yeah, I don’t think so." I pulled my face in distaste at his words.

"Yes, I am and you’re gonna be in love with me." He continued.

"Do you have an off switch? Because I can’t deal with this right now." I tiredly uttered.

"I need brain activity, Fiesty. That’s my way of dealing with the cold. Obviously, you’re not gonna get naked and keep me warm anytime soon, so talking sounds like a good alternative." He uttered while trying his best to suppress a smile.

"You’re hilarious." I sarcastically told him.

"So, do you have a middle name?" He asked me.

"No, it’s just Hailey-Jade," I answered.

"Who named you?" He curiously questioned.

"My mom."

"Where is she now?" He continued and I squeezed my eyes shut at the sting I felt in my heart.

"She died- she had cancer," I uttered while pushing my tears back.

"I see." He softly uttered. "Well, I’m sure she was great." He uttered, I could feel his eyes on me. So quietly and intensely.

I stopped dead in my tracks before frowning at him. I was frustrated and confused all at the same time.

"Why did you do it?" I uttered, my voice only a mere whisper.

"Do what?" He frowned at me while stopping ahead of me.

"Why did you let that rotter bite me? Why did you ruin my life?"

"Sooner or later you were going to find out if you were immune to the virus or not. We’re all going to die one day. Death is uncertain. I took that uncertainty away from you. I was only trying to help." He explained himself.

"I didn’t ask you to. I didn’t want to know if I was immune to the virus or not. You’ve turned me into a monster, some kind of abomination. You forced me to become this person and I didn’t deserve that." I uttered with tears in my eyes.

"I’m sorry." He said before taking my face into his hands. "I hope you can forgive me for what I’ve done someday." He stated in a gentle tone.

"How many was there before me? How many people did you experiment on until you found- someone who was immune to the virus, like you."

"You were the only one, Hailey. When I saw you for the first time, I was done for. You were so beautiful it made me lose my mind. I know it’s hard to believe but I can hear the virus inside my head- I can feel it crawling under my skin. The virus recognized you. I recognized you." He said and I just quietly watched him.

For a moment we just stared at each other.

Now I know he’s not lying. I hear the virus sometimes too. I feel it moving under my skin, and yes, I recognize Marco now, too.

The mutated strain that I carry inside of me recognizes him.

"That doesn’t excuse what I did to you. I should’ve fought it, the urge to infect you. I knew I couldn’t do it myself so I took an alternative route. I let that rotter infect you so that the virus would leave me alone." He uttered.

"It wanted you to infect me?" I asked him and he simply nodded at my question.

"It’s slowly starting to take control of my mind. Which is why I need brain activity. When my brain is active the virus is quiet." He stated and I curiously watched him.

"How long have you been infected?" I softly asked him.

"We should keep moving." He uttered, avoiding my question. He continued walking through the thick snow and I shortly followed behind him.

"Wait up," I uttered before struggling my way over to him. He held his arm out to me and I eagerly grabbed onto it. He held onto his chest with his free hand and made his way through the snow with ease while dragging me along with him.

I guess everything in life comes easy for tall people. Like Ronan for instance-

Ronan...

I quickly pulled my hand back from Marco as I realized how pissed Ronan would be if he saw what just happened.

Never again.

I can never let Marco touch me ever again. I won’t let him touch me again.