Apocalypse: The Dead Lives
Chapter 54: Heat

Chapter 54: Heat

I avoided Ronan.

It wasn’t easy. He had a way of always being around, of being just close enough that I could feel his presence even when I wasn’t looking at him.

But I made myself scarce. I slipped out of rooms whenever he entered, I kept my head down when we bumped into each other.

But I knew he noticed.

Ronan wasn’t stupid. If anything, he was too damn perceptive. He’s always watching me with those sharp, knowing eyes, waiting for me to crack.

But I didn’t.

I couldn’t.

Because if I let myself get close to him again if I let myself sink into the comfort of his touch, I’d forget.

I’d forget the way Marco had looked at me. I’d forget the fire I saw in his eyes, the heat crawling under his skin like he was coming apart from the inside out.

I’d forget that, for a moment, I was afraid of him.

And I couldn’t afford to forget that.

The halls in the hotel felt suffocating. The air was thick with tension. I kept my head down, walking forward, hoping that if I kept walking, I wouldn’t have to think about any of it.

But then I heard the screams.

And then the heat.

I stopped. My body tensed as the familiar prickle of something unnatural swept through the air.

I turned the corner. And there he was.

Marco.

He was surrounded by flames, his body glowing from the inside out.

It was like watching lava crack through the earth. His skin pulsed with fiery veins, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

The heat radiating off him made the air shimmer, distorting the space around him like a mirage.

And his eyes-

They burned.

Not just with fire, but with something deeper. Something raw.

I didn’t know what had set him off, but it didn’t matter. He was losing control.

Again.

I took a cautious step forward, stretching my hand out to him.

"Marco-" I tried but I only startled him.

The heat spiked, and suddenly, the wall beside him exploded.

Chunks of stone blasted outward. I stumbled back as a way to shield myself from him.

"Stay away from me," he muttered, his voice raw and thick with emotion.

I swallowed hard, my pulse pounding in my ears. My instincts screamed at me to stay out of it, to let someone else deal with him.

But I couldn’t.

Not when I knew I was the reason he was like this.

I stepped forward again. "Marco."

His head snapped toward me, his chest heaving, his entire body thrumming with barely contained energy.

The fire under his skin pulsed brighter for a moment. Like a heartbeat. Then they flickered, unsteady.

I kept my voice even. "You need to stop."

His jaw clenched, and for a second, I thought he might ignore me. Might let the fire consume him completely.

But then, slowly, the glow beneath his skin started to fade. The air cooled. The ground stopped trembling beneath my feet.

And just like that, it was over.

Marco’s shoulders sagged, his breath ragged as he turned away, his hands gripping his knees. Neither of us said anything.

Then, without looking at me, he walked away.

And I let him go.

●●●

I found Ellie outside, sitting on the edge of one of the old, rusted-out trucks near the perimeter. Her back was to me, her hair messy from the wind.

I hesitated.

We hadn’t talked since our fight. Since I shut her out.

I almost turned around. Almost convinced myself that this could wait.

But I was tired.

Tired of running.

Tired of fighting.

Tired of being alone.

So I walked over and sat beside her.

Ellie didn’t look at me, but she didn’t tell me to leave either.

Progress.

We sat in silence for a moment, watching the sky darken as the sun set lower on the horizon.

Then, finally, she sighed. "You avoiding Ronan now, too?"

I stiffened, but she wasn’t looking for a fight. She just sounded... tired.

"I don’t know what I’m doing," I admitted.

Ellie let out a short laugh, shaking her head. "Yeah. I figured."

Silence stretched between us again, and for a while, it felt like neither of us knew what to say.

Then, quietly, she said, "I was scared, you know."

I frowned, glancing at her. "What?"

Her fingers picked at a loose thread on her sleeve. "That day. When you ran off. When I didn’t know where you were, what you were doing. I was scared, Hailey. And then when you came back, acting like none of it mattered, like you didn’t owe anyone an explanation-" She cut herself off, exhaling sharply. "I didn’t know how to deal with that."

Guilt twisted in my stomach.

I had been so caught up in my own mess, in my own fears, that I hadn’t even considered what it must have been like for her.

I sighed, leaning back on my hands. "I wasn’t trying to hurt you."

"I know. I wasn’t trying to hurt you either." She was quiet for a beat. "Neither of us wanted to hurt the other but we did."

I swallowed. "I’m sorry."

Ellie finally looked at me, her blue eyes searching mine. "Me too. So- are you gonna stop shutting me out?"

I hesitated.

Not because I wanted to lie.

But because I wasn’t sure how to stop.

"I’ll try," I said honestly.

Ellie studied me for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. I’ll take that."

Just like that.

We weren’t yelling anymore. We weren’t fighting anymore.

We were just two friends, trying to meet each other halfway.

I let out a slow breath, the weight in my chest easing just a little.

"Friends?" I asked, my voice lighter than it had been in days.

Ellie smirked. "You’re still a dumbass."

I rolled my eyes. "I’ll take that as a yes."

She nudged me with her shoulder, her smirk softening into something real. Something warm.

And for the first time in a long time, I let myself believe that maybe- just maybe- I wasn’t as alone as I thought.