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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 9, 2013 17:34:22 GMT
Gage let out a slight groan, then rolled around onto his side, only opening his eyes to look at the clock that had been hanging on the wall on the opposite side of the room. It read 11:15, and he groaned around, only this time, a bit louder. He had woken up three hours late, and now, it was probably impossible to get substantially out of the city by nightfall. Sure, getting out of downtown would be a big ass relief, but who the hell knew what came out after the sun went down? The ideas that plagued his head was enough to make him want to go back to sleep and forget all about the chaos he and his girlfriend, Odette, lived daily.
After a couple of moments, he pulled himself up into sitting position, then turned slightly to gaze at the sleeping girl beside him, and smiled. If anything, she was worth killing anything that stood in their way, and the thought of loosing her was absolutely unbearable. He had gotten a taste of that the day before. They had been walking through Washington Park at dusk, and he had told her to stay put while he walked ahead to make sure it was safe. After a few minutes of surveying the path in front of them, Gage had made his way back, and only to his horror Odette in the clutches of some fucker who wanted to 'save her' by 'taking her away'.
An immediate shot to the bastard's head shut him up pretty good, and even though Odette reassured him that she was fine throughout the night, he couldn't help but hate himself for not being able to protect her fully. What if something like that happened again?
The dark thoughts left his mind after a minute or two, and Gage leaned over to rub her back gently. "Babe, we have to get going. It's almost noon."
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 9, 2013 18:22:27 GMT
A hand on her lower back woke Odette from the most pleasant dream she had experienced in quite some time now. It involved one of the most important people in her life - Gage. The two had gone out for a rather expensive date to one of the most prestigious restaurants in Atlanta, and after a couple glasses of wine, the two were enjoying each other's company to the fullest. Silly jokes, a bit of flirting, and now it was time for dessert. Of course they had to compromise to decide on one, since he preferred creamy, chocolaty desserts while she liked desserts of the fruity variety. After much debate, they finally came to a consensus to order a slice of cheesecake with the strawberries in a separate dish on the side - allowing them both to win.
Once the waiter returned with the dessert, Odette raised her brow momentarily as Gage got up from his seat. "Where are you going?" she asked as the plate was set down in front of her. It wasn't until then that she realized what was going on. Her eyes flicked down to the cheesecake, and placed in the center was a beautiful diamond and sapphire ring. Her eyes instantly widened as she looked to Gage, who was now on one knee with the biggest grin she had ever witnessed. He asked her to marry him, and just before she was allowed to give her answer, she was awoken to find herself lying in her bed at her apartment.
'Well, a girl can dream, I suppose,' she thought to herself before sighing and rolling over groggily to face the love of her life. He mentioned leaving, which made her more nervous than anything, but she knew as well as he did that they couldn't stay there. They had to get out of there as soon as possible.
"Okay," she said softly, offering him a sweet smile. She was more than grateful for everything he had done for her ever since the initial outbreak of the virus. He fought tooth and nail to keep her alive every day, and she felt blessed to have such an incredible partner to take on the chaos with. If it had just been her, she was sure that she would have turned on the first day, or even if she had survived this long, she would be mentally unstable and have locked herself in her apartment to waste away alone.
She slowly sat up and got to her feet, scanning the room which once looked like it had been plucked straight out of an interior design magazine. Now, it was in shambles - supplies and clothes thrown everywhere, trash and used cups and plates lying about from her initial depression over the end of the world. She shook her head and began to gather some necessary belongings for their trip in silence. Though she had always been relatively quiet, she was more quiet than ever now - hardly speaking at all unless she was spoken to first.
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 9, 2013 21:49:21 GMT
The smile he saw that spread across her entire face was enough to make him smile right back at her. He had never realized until recently how much Odette had changed him as a person, and he considered that a damn good thing. He was also convinced that had he never met her, he probably would have gone back to his old habits...the ones he had tried to leave in Chicago. And, for the most part, Gage had. He didn't have the urge to stir up any kind of trouble in years, and he credited her for that. They were complete and total opposites, but at the end of the day, she did make him a better person, and she did save him from a life that so desperately tried to cling to him until he had finally let it go. Sure, there were days when he wanted to go punch someone for no reason, or steal a car, but it wasn't daily like it had used to be, and for that, he was grateful.
As Odette started around her room, Gage quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt before shuffling around her stuff and into the living room, searching for the atlas that he had been looking at the night before. The thing was, Atlanta was turning into a literal hell day by day, with the undead plaguing its streets in legions. If they could get out of the city, and soon, they would stand a better chance, and Gage was determined to make that happen. He knew her parents were located just outside the city itself, in Douglasville, and he knew that she'd want to go see if they had...well, made it or not. Although he despised his own parents, Odette's were awesome and he considered them to be the closest thing he had ever had to family, so a part of him was just as eager to go find them as she was.
Spotting the atlas on the floor under a pile of clothes, Gage quickly snatched it up and plopped down onto the sofa, flipping it open to the state of Georgia. "Dette? Wanna go find your parents today?" He called over his shoulder.
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 9, 2013 22:14:12 GMT
'These pajamas simply will not do, but perhaps I should take a pair with me for the trip?' A trip? She had to be kidding herself; this was no time to think of the hell they lived in as being some sort of vacation for the happy couple. She quickly shook that thought from her head and tried to think more practically as she slipped out of her sleeping attire and into something a bit more appropriate. A pair of skinny jeans would stuff well into her combat boots, and a tanktop would be airy enough for her to not feel suffocated in the sunlight. She packed another pair of jeans, a couple fresh tanks, and a lightweight hoodie into her back as well in case she were to get cold that evening.
The rest of her bag was occupied with more medical supplies than anyone could possibly need - even in a zombie apocalypse! Gauze, bandages, medical tape, antibiotics, enough prescription painkillers to kill an elephant, some Tylenol and Advil to reduce fevers, peroxide and rubbing alcohol for cleansing, equipment for stitches, a scalpel and pliers for removing bullets, and even some anesthetics and syringes in case she needed to put anyone under in order to perform some sort of crazy operation. If something was going to happen to Gage, she was going to be prepared for anything that ailed him. She was not going to lose him in this calamity.
At the mention of searching for her parents, she swallowed thickly - the lump in her throat putting up a strong fight to not go down, almost causing her to choke. She had held onto hope for her parents' survival for so long, and she was beginning to doubt it more and more with each passing day. Still, she had to find out for herself and know for sure what had become of them. "Yeah," she said quietly and somewhat reluctantly as her stomach began to churn.
'This is no time to chicken out, Odette. This isn't just about you anymore. It's about him, so get yourself together and be just as brave for him as he's being for you.' After a couple more minutes of coaching, she somehow managed to cram an extra outfit into the bag for him as well, knowing that he wouldn't think to bring it himself. He would carry all but the two weapons she had become acquainted with, batteries, flashlight, water, and a bit of nonperishable food in case they weren't able to find any along the way.
After readying herself and grabbing her bloody shovel from the corner of the room, she stepped out of the bedroom and into the living room where he was seated. She slung the back back onto her shoulders and nodded to him with a faint smile, signaling her readiness.
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 9, 2013 22:30:00 GMT
Fuck. Seriously? Why are these things so god damn hard to read?
Gage glared into the atlas, trying to memorize the streets around the city that he figured would probably be the best route to go. The only problem was, Odette's apartment building was surrounded by zombies that walked around on the ground below them. If they were gonna get away, they'd have to fight through a few of the things. There weren't that many, though, so he was sure that they'd be able to make it by with no problem.
It was settled...they'd have to walk along 78 to get into Douglasville by around evening. Staying or walking anywhere past dark was too dangerous, and he wasn't willing to try their chances-not this early. With a sigh, he stood up and shoved the atlas into his already filled backpack before slinging it over a shoulder, then turned to meet his girlfriend's gaze. She looked...well, anxious as hell, even though she was doing her best to try and hide it. Gage smiled at her softly, then walked over in front of her, taking his hand in his. "We're gonna be alright, okay?" He promised her before pulling her hand up to kiss the top of it softly. "We will. This isn't gonna be that bad."
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 9, 2013 22:37:45 GMT
She could sense his frustration in trying to read the atlas. He was always too proud to ask her for help, even though she knew the route they needed to take by heart. In her numerous trips over the years between her parents' home and her new home in East Atlanta, she could pinpoint every landmark along the way and even knew all of the shortcuts. Still, she was going to let him lead and wouldn't put up a fight about it or remind him of her knowledge of the designated roads.
He always had a way of giving her hope, and she found herself appreciating it more often now. As his lips graced her hand, a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth and she nodded to him. Of course he would still be able to see the anxiety and worry in her eyes, but she knew her smile would make it a bit more bearable for him.
Without lingering over her emotions for much longer, she moved towards the door, bringing along her keys just in case they would ever need to return to the place. It was hard to imagine leaving the home that she had shared with Gage for years now, but she knew it was time that they got a move on before things got any worse. Besides, after the fit of tears she was whirled into before falling asleep the night before, her tear ducts were filling too dry and exhausted to cry over leaving the apartment. "We better get moving if we're going to make it by nightfall."
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 9, 2013 23:46:08 GMT
He shot her a reassuring smile before squeezing her hand. As they made their way over to her front door, he yanked it open, realizing something in a split second. That was probably the last time they'd ever stay at her place, or sleep in her room, or eat at her dinner table. Even though he wasn't one for sentimental shit, Gage felt himself oddly sensitive about the situation at hand. Her apartment was practically his second home, and it was something he had known for close to four years. Leaving something that meant a lot of Odette would be hard, but he would make sure that he'd be there to take her mind off of it. Besides-at the end of all of this, maybe they'd be able to find an actual house to settle down in, instead of just a small apartment. Or hell, maybe they'd discover an abandoned mansion and shack up there. The possibilities, at this point, were pretty much endless. Nothing was out of the question anymore.
He only looked back to watch her shut the door of her place for the last time, then without hesitating, lead her towards the staircase and started down it hastily. The seven flights of stairs seemed to take seven fucking years to run down, and as soon as they reached the bottom, Gage slowed his steps, quickly grabbing a handgun out from his back pocket and crept forward on the edge of the wall slowly. Once he made it to the corner, he peeked around, aimed the gun at a zombie, and fired a couple shots. The monster fell to the ground, lifeless, and he rotated his arm to the only other zombie on the other side of the street and shot at it as well, watching with a silent victory as it too collapsed onto the ground, not moving. "Alright," Gage motioned behind him, "Come on, baby."
It was eerily and almost dangerously quiet as they started down her street. Gage's eyes were wild as he looked from side to side, gripping the gun in both of his hands, in case something, or someone...decided to come popping out.
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 10, 2013 6:48:09 GMT
The sound of the door latching shut behind them set in motion the thoughts that Odette had tried to suppress in her head. They would likely never return to this place, she would never see her things again and would have to find things of new sentimental value somewhere down the road, and the life they once lived there was now completely over. With a sigh, she still locked the door - wishing for the apartment to at least stay in its current state and hopefully not be any more destroyed than it already was.
She followed swiftly behind him, standing a ways behind him and watching their backs as he began to clear out the couple of walkers gracing the streets. Once he gave her the signal, she moved to his side and accompanied him down the street, holding on tightly to her shovel as they walked. "It's too quiet," she whispered, glancing about her anxiously, trying to prepare herself for any sort of enemy that might approach them.
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 10, 2013 7:03:32 GMT
All of his senses were heightened as Gage swung his head to either side as they made their way down to the corner of the street. "I know it is," He whispered, looking to the side, "Stay close."
The way the streets and buildings looked was enough to make anyone slightly paranoid-everything was empty and deserted, like a brand new ghost town. As they walked down another street, he gazed for a few seconds at what appeared to be a fairly new black ferrari. The car was awesome as fuck, but just like everything else, it had been left to decay and waste away among the other things sprawled out on the sides of the streets and the sidewalks. Ahead of them seemed to be some kind of makeshift barrier, and Gage slowed to a halt in front of it, quickly pocketing his gun and craning his neck to peer over it. The barrier was made of old sofas, dinner tables, and arm chairs, and he imagined whoever made it did so to keep not only the undead out, but unwanted visitors in. With a sigh, he glanced quickly back at Odette, then motioned over the barrier, silently signaling to climb over it as quickly as possible. She did so with no hesitation, and Gage watched her back closely. Once hearing her feet hit the pavement on the other side, he hoisted himself over, landed on his feet, and froze at the sight in front of them. There had to be ten walkers just a few yards in front of them, and they all sluggishly began to walk towards them, disgusting and horrifying looks on their rotting faces.
Instinctively, he shoved Odette behind him, yanked out his gun, and began shooting at the advancing walkers multiple times.
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 14, 2013 2:59:45 GMT
The barrier that had been stacked in the middle of the street towered far above both Odette and Gage's heads, and it made her a bit uneasy as they approached it. Though she wasn't weary of what lurked on the other side of the barricade in her naive ways, she kept imagining the tower of various furniture toppling over and killing them both. She was naive, yes, but this world cause her to picture the worst scenarios in her head. Then again, how could she survive being any different? The world was in shambles and there seemed to be no end in sight for the chaos that had consumed the country.
As they weaved through a gap towards one of the sides, she froze in her steps as her gaze fell onto the walkers before them. As she was pushed back and away from the creatures who were lazily stumbling towards them, she gripped the shovel tightly in her hands. She wouldn't step in unless she needed to, knowing Gage would scold her if she were to act too recklessly. He seemed to take down the walkers with ease and came off as a complete natural, but she knew he was just as afraid as she was.
Then, the worst scenario she could imagine began to dance upon the fabrication of her thoughts. A walker managed to sneak behind him and grabbed his shoulders, and she closed her eyes to erase the vision immediately. When they shot back open, she realized it wasn't a figment of her imagination and that Gage was seriously in trouble as he called out for her. Instantly, her instincts kicked in, and she charged at the walker, rearing back with her shovel and delivering a heavy blow with the corner of the shovel, slicing through the cranium of the undead that was latched onto her boyfriend.
"Gage!" she squeaked, watching the lifeless body fall to the ground before moving to his side. "Are you okay?" she asked before preparing her stance for any other zombie that may decide to throw itself at her.
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 14, 2013 3:33:16 GMT
Most of the walkers seemed to be going down with ease, falling dead as the bullets Gage shot at them would sink into their rotting and decrepit bodies. Fighting against the small hoard only pumped adrenaline into his system, and he quickly fired expertly; one after the other, as walker after walker would stop in their advances towards both of them, then drop down to the ground. Knowing Odette was probably literally right behind him just fueled him even further-to the point where missing one target wasn't an option. It wasn't like he had an unlimited supply of ammo-to miss was to waste, and he sure as fuck didn't plan on wasting anything.
As Gage took in the image of the walker going down in front of him, he lowered his gun and let out a deep sigh. There were no more in sight...or so he thought, until he felt cold and ravenous hands take his shoulders in a death grip. A walker...a fucking walker was right behind him. Acting on instinct, he dropped the gun, then quickly flipped around to face the zombie pointedly, then pressed both of his hands into its face, pushing its mouth away from his throat.
"Odette!" He managed to scream, "Odette! Hit the fucker!"
Seconds later, she did, and pretty damn well. The blunt of the shovel she had been carrying had sunk into the top of the walker's head, causing it to instantly stop its advances and toppled to the ground. Gage stepped back from the scene, finding himself slightly overwhelmed, but quickly recovered and regained composure before going over to snatch the gun that had been laying on the ground. "Yeah," He started, shoving the weapon into a pocket. "I'm fine. We need to..." He paused then, taking a moment to look around in front of him. There were various cars, bikes, and even a few motorcycles around them. Was it even possible that one of the cars still worked? "We need to find a car," Gage finally said, looking down at Odette moments later. "It's the only way we're gonna be able to gain any ground. I can't keep doing this every damn mile."
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 14, 2013 4:06:42 GMT
Odette was nearly overwhelmed with emotion after her actions against the walker, but she knew this was no time to freak out or cling to her lover like he had nearly died - even if his life was in incredible danger only moments before. Slowly, she nodded her head to him as he mentioned needing some sort of transportation aside from their own limbs. Shaking the chills from her skin, she began to advance towards a rather luxurious looking Acura TL that hadn't been harmed in any way from what she could tell - only abandoned. The driver's door was open, and as she moved around to the side to peer at it, she couldn't believe her sights. The giant pool of blood on the ground not only contained a half-eaten corpse but also a shiny and bloodstained set of keys.
"I think this might be it," she said softly as she bent down to pick them up, reaching into her bag to grab a small cloth to wipe the blood off of the key rings. Upon further inspection, she noted that they were, in fact, the corresponding keys. How in the world did they manage to luck out on the first try? She wasn't sure, but she also sure as hell wasn't about to start complaining about it either.
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 14, 2013 4:23:00 GMT
Gage let Odette start ahead of him a bit while he shrugged off his backpack, taking a moment or two to organize it really fast. Noticing all the...well, all the shit that he had thrown into it late the night before, it was kind of alarming. Literally, everything they would need was confined to the bag, and knowing that Odette's tote was stuffed full as well, he wanted to be as positive as possible. Maybe he wasn't giving either of them enough credit. They had just beat the shit out of at least fifteen walkers, and on their own, too. That had to be some kind of sign.
They stopped in front of a white TL, and his eyes trailed over the car quickly as his girlfriend walked around to the drivers side to inspect the interior. The outside wasn't bad at all...sure, there was a scratch on the back passenger door, and one of the rearview mirrors was cracked, but other than that, the car was in good condition, and seconds later, Gage could hardly believe his ears when Odette announced that she had found the keys. He cursed loudly, then hurried over to her side, looking over her shoulder to take in the find. Sure enough, a handlful of silver keys filled her palm, and Gage grinned.
"Well, shit!" He yelled, quickly bringing her into a side hug, "We can get out of here, babe. Here, lemme just..." He continued, and stepped in front of her to reach in and pull the disgusting half body out. Ignoring his repulse, Gage quickly grabbed a rag from his bag and wiped the seat off. "I'll drive, and you can look at the map. We should be able to get to your parents in an hour."
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Post by Odette Dubois on Oct 14, 2013 4:44:19 GMT
Though the sight of the body falling to the ground from Gage's grasp was foul, she didn't find her stomach churning even in the slightest. Odette feared the walkers more than anything, and they truly terrified her - but as for the gore? She had seen plenty of it during her nursing classes at Emory, and she found herself feeling rather insensitive to it. Still, he wiped off the interior and she nodded to his instructions before stepping behind him. She knew her way through Atlanta like the back of her hand, but she knew he would feel more comfortable if she at least had the map out and pretended to read it whilst in the passenger seat. She unzipped his bag and retrieved it before returning the zipper to its closed state.
"Alright, let's get out of here," she said with a small sigh of relief and an even smaller smile. She was always filled with such joy before the epidemic, but now it was almost like forcing herself to vomit. After swiveling around the car and opening the door, she plopped down in the rather comfortable seat and buckled up. You couldn't be too careful, right?
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Post by Gage Chambers on Oct 14, 2013 7:20:01 GMT
Gage slipped in momentarily, then slammed the door closed to his left. With a sigh, he quickly ran his hands over the steering wheel, silently wondering how in the hell they had gotten so lucky. Who were they-out of everyone in the city, to make it out of Odette's apartment complex alive, then find a reliable, working car? Shit...if they were that fortunate...then he concluded one of them was probably lucky enough to win the lottery.
As he threw his back into the back seat, it clattered against something, and he frowned before turning around and taking in the sight of a carseat, a box of clothes, and a stuffed bear that had been on the floor of the car. "Shit..." Gage muttered, keeping his gaze on the grim sight behind the both of them. Right then, he felt guilt flood his system. They were taking a car from someone. Sure, it had more than likely been abandoned for weeks...but seeing the stuff in the back only made him feel all the more worse. The last thing he wanted to do was to upset Odette, but at the same time, memories of the things he had done in Chicago made their way back into his mind. Instead of acting on them and portraying himself as weak, Gage simply stepped back out of the car, opened the passenger door, and hastily grabbed the items and tossed them over onto the sidewalk. Once done, he closed the door, then slipped back into the drivers seat, sparing a glance at his girlfriend.
"Say bye to Atlanta," He commented with a sour smirk, then pushed the key into the ignition. With a roar, the car came to life, and he quickly shifted into drive mode and pressed on the accelerator.
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