A gay story: The Havenwood Survivors Trigger Warning: Mentions of child death, graphic depictions of violence, semi-graphic description of self unliving.
Cody straightened the wide brim hat on his head. It’s amazing that he still has his favorite hat given the current world condition. A knock came at the door then it opened with a slight creak.
“They’ve been spotted,” one of the other survivors, David, said as he stepped inside Cody’s room. David had been helpful since arriving, helping build and refurbish much needed buildings for the community.
A sudden cold sweat broke over Cody’s forehead. His throat tightened, and his heart pounded in his chest. “How many were spotted?”
“Eight.” Cody sighed from relief. “They’ll be here in a couple of minutes.” Cody nodded as David turned away.
He ran his hands down to the length of his arms. “Thank goodness.”
Cody hurried off, joining the others to welcome back the group of scavengers. The doors were pulled open, and the eight people stepped through the doors. Cody didn’t care for the other seven people. His eyes fell directly on the man in the front, Marshall, the unofficial leader of their community.
He was about the same height, though slightly taller. His hair, a faint strawberry blonde, was cut short by Hailey, a hairstylist before the world decided to end. He kept his beard short with the straight razor that they both shared. The acid wash denim jacket that he wore Cody had managed to grab while scavenging a JCPenney around five weeks after the world ended. Marshall’s broad chest and shoulders filled the jacket nicely.
Cody smiled, crossing his arms and shifting his weight to one foot. “What’d you bring me this time?”
“Join us in the bank, and you shall see,” Marshall said with a smile.
Cody’s smile grew wider as he followed after Marshall. The seven other scavengers handed off their bags to their unofficial guild leaders.
Marshall held open the bank door for Cody and the others: Gretchen Poole, a school teacher in her past life, Jack Stockholm, an engineer who helped with defense and necessary buildings, Erin Lee, a doctor, Louis Martindale, a farmer, and Richard Liu, a gunsmith in charge of the armory.
The bank was one of the first places they renovated, only behind the nearby motel and the grocery store that they managed to convert into a greenhouse. They had moved around the couches and seats in the bank, giving them enough seats for them to hold meetings and make future plans. The bank vault itself was turned into an armory.
Cody sat down next to Gretchen on one of the couches.
“Everything on the table,” Marshall said. With that, everyone placed the bags on the table that split the room in half, opening them and setting the contents on the table. Marshall went to the filing cabinet, pulling out a file and a pen. “Havenwood, day five, forty. Evening headcount. Gretchen, how many children?”
“Thirty-four,” Gretchen said. “Same as yesterday.”
“Excellent,” Marshall murmured as he continued to write on the form. “Evening inventory has already been counted. How’s the food growing, Mr. Martindale?”
“Fine,” Louis said. “The onions and beets are growing nicely.”
“Perfect,” Marshall said, continuing to scribble on the page. He glanced at the table. “We found this.” He shifted, opening his own bag and gently pulling out a plastic bag. He opened the bag, revealing an overgrown plant with the long roots still attached. “We found this. We thought it to be an herb.”
“It is,” Louis said with a nod. “It’s basil, and the roots are still attached, so they’ll grow easily in the greenhouse.”
“Excellent,” Marshall said. “Mr. Liu, we found three guns. They will go with you.”
“How much ammunition did you use?” Richard asked.
“We used fifty-one bullets,” Marshal said. “There was a horde of, I believe, twenty infected. Plus, more individually, and a few people.”
Cody inhaled slightly as Dr. Lee shifted in her seat.
“You didn’t kill anyone, right?” Cody asked.
“No,” Marshall said. “We had to use five bullets to scare them off though. One bullet might’ve hit one of them, but we didn’t kill any of them.” Cody chewed on the inside of his cheek as Marshall turned back to his paper. “Survivors brought back, zero. Infected killed, twenty-nine. Supplies collected. Three guns.” He turned to the table. “A bottle of Advil. Three cans of tuna. Car belt. Basil. Two copies of Perry Mason. They will go with you, Gretchen, to the library. This–.” He placed his hand on the bottle of Advil. “Will go with Dr. Lee.”
Cody looked over the rest of the supplies on the table before his gaze fell on the bolt of faded red fleece fabric and the grey sherpa blanket next to it. “That could easily make a few more blankets.”
“How many do you think it would make?” Dr. Lee asked.
“I’d have to measure it to be sure,” Cody said. “But even just looking at it, it probably could make four or five. Plus, whatever fabric we have left.”
“How many do we have?” Jack asked.
“We have forty-three in inventory,” Marshall explained. “Plus, whatever Cody can make.”
“We should start handing out extra supplies,” Richard said. “It’s getting colder, and we need to make sure people don’t get sick.”
“We are running low on medicine,” Dr. Lee added. “We need to check the pharmacy that Tommy told us about. We barely have enough medicine as it is. What happens if one of the kids gets sick?”
“The pharmacy is a four hour walk from here,” Jack retorted with a shake of his head. “It would be too dangerous for a group on an eight hour round trip. It would be dark out by the time they start heading back.”
“But Shane’s been working on those cars since he got here,” Cody said. “He nearly has one working.”
“Really?” Jack asked. “What does he need?”
Cody shrugged. “I don’t know, but whatever it is, he doesn’t have it.”
“SAE 0W-20 Dexos full synthetic oil,” Marshall said, closing the file. “How long will it take to make a blanket?”
“Tie blankets are easy to make,” Cody answered. “An hour each. But more elaborate blankets, the ones made from scrap fabric, would take more time.”
“So in one day, you’d be able to make five or six?” Cody nodded. “Tomorrow, you’d be that.” Marshall turned to the others. “We have enough blankets to give each household another one. At morning headcount, I make the motion of giving each household one additional blanket for the upcoming winter.”
“I second that motion,” Richard said quickly.
“All in favor say ‘I,” Marshall said.
“I,” they all said.
“Then it’s done,” Marshall said. “With that, I believe this meeting should be called to an end.”
Marshall set the file back into the filing cabinet as the others stood. Richard and Louis carried the guns to the bank vault before putting them away. Dr. Lee took the bottle of Advil as Gretchen took the books.
Cody fiddled with his fingers as everyone filtered out of the bank until it was just him and Marshall.
“It’s nice to see you like this,” Cody said.
Marshall turned towards him. “Like what?”
“You know, confident and commanding. It’s nice to see that in you.” Cody pulled a thread off of Marshall’s jacket. “You never acted like this a couple of years ago when we worked together. Mr. Somerset seemed to run you over every day.”
“Yeah. It’s strange how the world ends, and then I get confidence.”
Cody nodded faintly before a smile appeared across Cody’s face. He returned his hand to Marshall’s shoulder. “Would it be too much to ask if we got that sherpa blanket tomorrow?”
Marshall rubbed his chin for a moment, pretending to think. “You know, I might be able to pull some strings for that to happen.” Cody chuckled as Marshall placed his hands in his jacket pockets. “I have something that I want to give to you.” Marshall grabbed Cody’s hand. “Come with me. I can’t give it to you here because someone might see.”
Cody stared at him. His gaze lowered then was raised just as quickly. “What is it?”
“I’ll show you.” Marshall led Cody by his hand through the community to the water tower before they both climbed to the top. “Here.” Marshall pulled a Hershey milk chocolate candy bar from his pocket.
Cody felt his breath catch in his throat. “You really shouldn’t. What if someone finds out?”
“No one will find out. I’ve hidden it well, and if you eat it here, I can burn the wrapper in one of the fire barrels.” Cody frowned slightly as he stared down at the candy bar in Marshall’s hand. “I got it for you.”
Cody hesitated but ultimately took the candy and opened it. Marshall crumpled up the wrapper, placing it back into his pocket. The candy had been warped from the melting and solidifying over the months. Cody broke the candy in half, offering one half to Marshall.
“Oh, no,” Marshall said, shaking his head. “It’s yours.”
“Which means I can do what I want with it, and I want to give half to you.”
Marshall frowned, taking the half offered to him. “Thanks.”
They both took a bite of their chocolate before they frowned at the taste.
“This is not good,” Cody murmured. Marshall nodded in agreement. “Thanks, Marshall.” Cody leaned against Marshall, nibbling on the chocolate.
The sun was mostly set in the distance, painting the sky a flurry of oranges and purples as it caved below the horizon.
Cody opened his mouth to say something, but he immediately closed it.
“What?” Marshall asked, staring down at him.
Cody’s face grew hot. “Nothing.”
“No. You wanted to say something. What is it?”
Cody stared up into Marshall’s warm brown eyes. His heart leaped up into his throat. Cody lowered his gaze, staring at Marshall’s soft lips before looking back up.
I want to tell you. Cody glanced away. But you probably don’t like men.
“Well?” Marshall asked, arching a brow.
Cody frowned. “Can I come with you? Tomorrow, when you guys go scavenging?”
“Oh.” Marshall glanced away from him.
“I haven’t been outside the walls in a couple of months.”
“Yeah.” Marshall shrugged. “We might need to start sending a few extra groups each day to make sure we have enough supplies to make it through the winter.”
“We have a pretty decent supply of food growing.” Marshall nodded. “We could probably be on the lookout for some farm animals.”
“Yeah. The more we have, the better. We can never have too much milk.” Marshall stuffed the rest of the chocolate into his mouth before he stood. Cody followed him a quarter of the way around the water tower. Marshall pointed towards the park that remained mostly untouched. “That would be something worth considering.”
“A nice walk in a park.” Cody smiled at the thought.
“Plus it has a basketball and tennis court. A playground for the kids. If need be, we can convert the open space to places where people could live.”
Cody nodded faintly. “Yeah.” He glanced down at the chocolate in his hand. “You want some more chocolate?”
“Nah. I’m good.”
“Hey, guys!” Hailey shouted from underneath them. They both looked over the railing. Cody hid the chocolate behind one of his arm. “The movie’s about to start if you wanna come to see it.”
“In a minute!” Marshall shouted back.
“Okay! I’ll be sitting with my mom if you wanna join us.” Hailey shouted before she turned and walked back towards the wall.
With the electricity they were managing, Marshall and the others had decided to use the metal walls that protected them from the outside to play a movie once a week to boost the morale of their community. It was difficult having a large collection of movies and television shows as those things weren’t what people were considering grabbing while trying to survive.
“I hope we can find some more movies,” Cody said absentmindedly.
“Yeah. This is, like, the eightieth time we’ve played Tarzan. Don’t get me wrong. I love the movie, but—.” He blew out his cheeks.
“Well, it beats seeing Titanic again.”
Marshall threw back his head, groaning loudly. “Ugh. I hope I never see that movie ever again for the rest of my life.”
Cody felt his pain, having seen the movie a total of twenty times since weekly movie night had been voted on. “We need more than twelve movies.”
“Yeah. I’ll put it down on the list of things to get.”
Cody chuckled before he finished his chocolate.
“C’mon,” Marshall said. “I hate being up here in the dark.”
“Same.” Cody followed him down the water tower before they wandered to their room in the motel, something they had agreed upon to save from using an entire room for just one person.
Cody set aside his hat before settling down on his bed. “Do you think a trader will come by?”
Marshall shrugged. “Not sure. Haven’t had a trader come by in a few weeks.” He started to take off his shoes.
A knock came at the door. The person didn’t wait for an answer before they opened it. Josh, a soldier in his past life and now the head guard, filled the doorway.
“Sorry to disturb you,” Josh said. “We have a situation at the gate.”
The three of them rushed to the gate and up the stairs to the top.
Cody gasped as they all stared down at a man they knew from another community. They didn’t communicate too often with the other nearby communities given the short distance radius of their radios, but the man was the one that came by to trade whenever his community needed supplies. What was important was the truck he drove, towing a trailer with a tan 2015 Chevy Impala.
“Hey, Micah,” Marshall called out. Micah simply waved up at them. “You looking to trade that?” Marshall gestured to the sedan.
“Yeah,” Micah said, almost dishearteningly. “Whatcha got to trade?”
“Whatcha want?” Marshall asked.
Micah frowned. “Food. We’re running low.”
Marshall frowned himself. “Yeah. We’ll have Shane look at it and then we’ll discuss this.” He turned away. They joined the other guild leaders on the ground. Marshall, Shane, and Josh stepped outside and watched as Shane inspected the sedan.
“It works just fine,” Micah said as Shane settled into the driver’s seat. “The key’s in the glovebox.” Shane leaned over, taking the keys out of the glovebox before stuffing the key into the ignition.
The engine roared, and the lights turned on. Shane stared at the dashboard.
“Is anything coming on?” Marshall asked.
“No warning lights,” Shane said. “But I’ll take a quick look under the hood.”
Marshall and Micah watched as Shane opened the hood and checked each part underneath. After a few minutes, Shane closed the hood, nodding faintly at Marshall.
“Alrighty then,” Marshall said, turning to Micah. “We’ll see what we can bring out.”
“What does he want?” Louis asked as Marshall and Shane came back.
“Food,” Marshall said, rubbing his chin. “He says that they’re running out.”
“But if they’re low on food now,” Cody said, “what’s gonna happen when winter comes? They’ll starve. They can’t keep trading stuff.”
“What the hell do you want us to do about that?” Richard asked.
“I think we should invite them here,” Cody answered quickly. “There can’t be that many of them, and we could use more people. We’ve been talking about sending more groups out to scavenge more. With more people, we can do that.”
“But we need to be careful with our supplies,” Dr. Lee said.
“It’s not like food is a problem here,” Cody retorted. “I mean, some of the time, our food goes to waste because there are not enough people to eat it.”
“Food isn’t the only supply we have to worry about,” Jack said. “What about water? What about clothes, bedding, the sleep situation?”
“Medicine,” Dr. Lee added.
“If we have more people, we could send more people out to find those things,” Cody said. “We always say that we could use more people and how we should bring anyone we find back with us. I mean, they’re so desperate that they’re trading a working car.”
“True,” Josh murmured. Everyone looked at him. “Look, as much as I am concerned about our supplies, we need people to send out to get more supplies. Two groups of four going out twice a day isn’t going to be enough soon.”
“Well, if some of us were even allowed to go out,” Dr. Lee said, crossing her arms as she shot a look at Marshall.
“You’re our only doctor,” Marshall reminded. “It would be devastating if we lost you. It would be devastating if we lost Gretchen or Rhonda. It would be devastating if we lost Richard. Even with you teaching others, none of us are able to take over for any of you. We need more people.” Dr. Lee glanced away. Marshall glanced at Jack. “Do we have enough space for their community?”
“Depends on how many there are of them,” Jack said, shrugging. “We only have four rooms in the motel left. Four people comfortably in each, but we can squeeze some more people in if we need to. We can always build more places.”
“But do we need to?” Cody asked. Jack and Marshall looked at him. “I mean, we’ve been eyeing that apartment complex a couple of blocks away. We never had a reason to expand, but with them, we can expand a little further out.”
“Do we have enough supplies to expand the wall?” Josh asked.
“Yes, but that apartment complex isn’t near the park,” Louis said. “We’ve been wanting to get to the park before winter sets in.”
“True,” Richard murmured.
“If we don’t bring them here today, what can we spare to trade for the car?” Marshall asked.
“Well, we still haven’t butchered that one deer,” Louis said. “A bag of onions, half a bag of beets. Some kale.” He shrugged. “We are pretty good on just about everything we have, so we can spare a little bit of everything.”
“I’ll speak to him about it,” Marshall said, turning and going back up the gate.
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” Dr. Lee said, shaking her head.
“If they have a doctor,” Richard said.
“It would be helpful,” Cody added. “Take some things off your plate.”
“If they have a doctor,” Richard repeated.
“Yes, if,” Dr. Lee said quietly. She tightened her cardigan around her chest. “That would be the only way I’d change my mind.” They all waited until Marshall returned. “How many people?”
“Forty-one,” Marshall said. “Seven are children.”
“How many doctors do they have?” Dr. Lee asked impatiently.
“Three doctors and two nurses,” Marshall said. Dr. Lee sighed from relief. “They also have a few mechanics, a couple of teachers, and a carpenter.”
“We can also build another building before they get here,” Jack said.
“Well, they would have to accept our offer before we do anything,” Richard said. Cody shrugged slightly. “They would also be bringing their supplies over if they do accept.”
“But we don’t know how much supplies they have,” Gretchen murmured.
“What if—?” Cody started, but he paused. Marshall looked at him. “What if we trade for the car now, but give him the offer to join today to which he’d talk to his community and come back tomorrow and give us their answer?” Richard shrugged slightly as he thought. “We could also give them a week to pack their stuff if they agree. That would give us some time to build more houses.”
“It would,” Jack said.
“I would stand behind that idea,” Marshall said. “All in favor, raise your hand.”
Cody, Marshall, and Dr. Lee raised their hands immediately. Gretchen hesitated before she raised her hand.
“We can never have too many teachers,” Gretchen said.
Richard frowned, but ultimately raised his hand. Louis and Jack took a moment, glancing at each other and thinking, before raising their hands.
“It’s done,” Marshall said. “I’ll go tell him. Louis, go and grab the food.”
Cody smiled to himself as he watched Marshall go back up to the top of the gate. It’s nice seeing you in a different light.
He rubbed his face, running his hand over his light stubble, as he thought about how far they both have come in the past two years. They both changed, one more so than the other, but change is good. Needed, in the world they currently live in now.
“He is beautiful,” Gretchen whispered, stepping near Cody.
“Yes.” His face grew hot. “What—? No. I mean—.” He looked away from her. His face grew hotter.
“You remind me a lot of my son, Anthony.” She reached up, running her thumb over some dirt on Cody’s face just underneath his eye. “He was scared to tell me, but I knew. I always knew. He never told that boy— I don’t remember his name. But that boy got bitten and he turned. Anthony still regrets never telling him.”
“I doubt he likes men, let alone me.”
Gretchen stared at him. Her brows raised in a way a mother would when she’s listening to her child tell blatant lies. “I don’t think you have to worry about that.” Cody lowered his gaze. “You’ve loved him since before the turning?”
Cody chuckled softly. “Actually, no. I mean, I did find him attractive and everything, but—.” He looked at her. “I didn’t like him. He was a bit of a pushover. He allowed people to bully him.” Cody frowned. “He was honestly kinda pathetic.”
“People change when they’re forced to. He lives in a world in which he needs to be commanding, confident. Before he could’ve lived his entire life being a pathetic pushover, but not anymore. It would literally kill him.”
Cody nodded faintly. “I want to tell him.”
“Then tell him.” Gretchen smiled. “You might be surprised by his response.”
Cody merely shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Her smile disappeared slightly. “Why don’t you sleep on it?” She ran a hand of hers over Cody’s scalp. “You can tell him tomorrow.”
“Yeah.” Cody faked a yawn. “I’m tired anyways. Goodnight.”
“Night.” Gretchen frowned as she watched Cody walk off.
Cody folded his arms over his chest. His mind raced as he thought of Marshall.
The way his hair fell around his face and ears. The way his chest moved with every breath. The way his arms flexed whenever he carried something.
Cody felt himself harden in his jeans. The heat pooling into his stomach. He moaned softly. His erection rubbed against the somewhat rough fabric of his boxer briefs and his jeans.
He hurried past the crowd of people watching the movie until he reached an isolated spot behind a tree inside the motel sitting area. With everyone distracted by the movie, Cody didn’t bother looking around as he unzipped the front of his jeans, holding himself in one of his hands. He braced his other arm on the tree.
He gently squeezed himself, moaning as he did. His mouth watered. His mind filled his vision with images of Marshall touching him, kissing him, bending him over and fucking him. Cody thrusted into his hand, tightening his grip around his erection.
“Fuck.” He pressed his forehead against his arm. “M-Marshall.” He squeezed himself again. “Fuck me, Marshall.” He imagined Marshall gripping his hips, pulling himself back on his erection.
Cody rocked his hips, moaning and gasping for air. His heart raced in his chest. “Yes. Like that. Oh, fuck yes.” His eyes rolled to the back of his head.
His erection grew harder in his hand. His entire body shuddered, spilling out onto his hand and the tree. Cody swallowed hard as he continued to shudder.
“He’s gonna hate me if he finds out about this.” He wiped his hand on the ground before he hid himself back in his jeans. He frowned at the thought of Marshall disliking him.
It wouldn’t be the first time someone he loved hated him in return.
He frowned as his mind drifted to his parents and older brother.
“I shouldn’t think about them after just masturbating.” He rubbed his eyes with his clean hand.
It had been months since he last thought of them. Tears formed in his eyes. He missed them though he wasn’t sure as to why. It wasn’t as though they treated him like family.
Cody couldn’t stop the tears from falling down his face. His legs wobbled with every step he took to his motel room. His legs finally gave out once he was safe in his room. He pressed his back against the door, pulling his knees against his chest. The last conversation he had with his father echoed through his mind.
The door opened slightly, hitting Cody in the back. Marshall stuck his head in the crack of the door.
“You okay?” Marshall asked.
Cody quickly wiped his eyes with his shirt sleeve. “I’m fine.” He stood and walked more into the room.
Marshall opened the door, stepping inside and closing the door behind him. “You’re not though.”
Cody shook his head, sitting down on the edge of his bed. Marshall didn’t hesitate sitting next to him.
“What’s wrong?” Marshall asked.
Cody fell silent for a moment before he turned to Marshall. “I just thought of my family.”
Marshall’s face hardened. “Oh.”
“I didn’t see them for years, and then this happened. The last time I spoke to my family was ten years ago, when I told my parents that I was gay.” Cody lowered his gaze. “My father said that he wished my mother aborted me.” Marshall tensed as Cody heard him draw in a breath. “My mother wasn’t really any better. She asked me if she could keep it under her hat.” Cody rubbed his eyes. “I loved my parents, but their opinion of me changed that day, and my opinion of them changed as well.” Cody shook his head slightly.
Marshall placed an arm around Cody’s shoulder before pulling him against his chest. “I’m sorry about that.”
“I moved out later that day. I haven’t seen them since.”
“Do you think they’re still alive?”
Cody hesitated. “My brother, maybe, but I’m not sure about my parents. They’re likely dead.”
Marshall tightened his arm around Cody, setting his chin on Cody’s head.
“I would like to think they’re alive,” Cody continued. “But I don’t think that’s very likely.”
“Before this all started, I read an article saying that when we miss people who hurt us, it’s not them that we miss, but rather we miss when we felt good with them. They once made you happy. You miss that, not them.” Cody remained still. “Tomorrow’s gonna be a bit of a busy day for us. You should get some sleep.”
“Yeah.” Marshall let go of Cody before they both stood and dressed for bed.
The next day went by quickly. Each household was given a new blanket. Cody smiled wide when he just so happened to be given the grey sherpa blanket that was brought back the day before.
Cody measured and cut the fabric, making them into simple tie blankets. With the extra fleece fabric in inventory, he was able to make an additional four blankets on top of what he anticipated with the help of Hailey, ending up with a total of thirteen blankets left in inventory.
“Thanks for the help, Hailey.” He folded the final blanket, setting it on top of the pile of newly made blankets.
“Not a problem. I wanted to learn how to make these types of blankets.”
“They’re rather simple to make.” He picked up half of the pile while Hailey took the other half, carrying them to the supply closet.
“I hear that you’re going out today.”
“Yeah. Marshall’s taking me to the pharmacy. Shane was able to get that car Micah brought over to work. Hopefully we can find some more medicine there.”
“Hopefully.” Hailey nodded in agreement. “It would be nice.”
Marshall stepped closer to them. “You ready?”
“Yeah,” Cody said with a faint nod.
“Bye, guys,” Hailey said as she walked off with a wave. They waved back at her.
“Here,” Marshall said, handing Cody a hunting knife. “Richard’s been getting on my ass about how much ammo we’ve been using when we go out. We need to conserve as much as we can until he can make more, so two guns to each group now.”
“Oh, fun.” Cody took the weapons. “Who else is with us?”
“Josh and Shane. Josh thought it would be safer if he came with us.” Marshall started for the gate with Cody right behind him. “We’re taking the car that Micah brought last night.”
“That’s good.”
Josh and Shane were already waiting by the car. They got inside and waited as the guards on the wall scanned the surrounding area. One turned towards the others, giving them a thumbs up. Only then the gates were opened.
Marshall pulled the car forward before turning down a road. The pharmacy was over a four hour walk from their community, but with a working car, it would be only around twenty-five minute given the road conditions and them being cautious.
They crested over a hill. A person laid on the side of the road, barely hidden in the overgrown grass. The person’s bright red gym bag stuck out from the green.
Marshall slowed down. “Stop or keep going?”
“He has a bag,” Josh said. “That itself could be helpful.”
Marshall stopped the car but didn’t put it in park, glancing around at the sides of the road. The overgrown grass swayed slightly in the wind. He shifted the car into park. “Cody, stay in the car.” Marshall and Josh stepped out of the car before they crept closer to the person.
Josh raised his gun as Marshall pulled out his knife. He hesitated for a moment before he kicked the person’s foot. They both jumped back.
Nothing.
Cody sighed from relief. Marshall inched closer, raising his knife, but he stopped again.
“Nevermind,” Marshall said, relaxing when he spotted the bullet wound in the dead man’s left temple. “He’s dead.” Dirt and soil caked on the dead man’s skin. “He’s cold.”
“He’s been dead probably eight or so hours,” Josh said. “It’s been cold for the past few days.”
Marshall grabbed the gym bag and pulled it off of the dead man. He examined the bag before frowning. “This pocket is torn.” He stuffed his fingers through the torn fabric. He flipped it to examine the other side. “This zipper is broken.”
“What’s inside?” Josh asked.
Marshall unzipped the main pocket and looked inside. “Hoodie.” He pulled out and handed Josh a dark blue hoodie. “Hoodie.” An off white and faded green hoodie. “Hoodie. Why do you have so many hoodies?” Marshall glanced down at the dead person.
“He’s dead,” Josh said. “He’s not gonna answer.”
“But seriously. Three hoodies for one person?” Marshall looked back into the bag. “Playing cards. A lighter. Hammer. Half a roll of duct tape.” He frowned. “That’s it.”
Josh kneeled beside the dead man, running his hand over the corpse. “A key.” Josh pulled out the car key from the man’s pocket.
“That’s good. Maybe we’ll find the abandoned car.” Marshall lowered his gaze. “He’s wearing a belt. Shoes are useless. They’re being held together by duct tape. Not worth the trouble.” Josh nodded as he removed the belt. “That’s everything. Let’s go before things change here.”
Climbing into the car, they started back on their journey as Cody inspected their finds.
“This barely has any oil in it,” Cody complained as he raised the lighter.
“It’s a quarter full though,” Josh said. “It’s not gonna last long, but still.”
Cody set the lighter back before placing the bag by his feet.
The grass and other greens were completely overgrown. The branches of trees outstretched over the road, scratching the roof and sides of the car when Marshall drove too close. Any car they passed was stripped of anything valuable. Rust had replaced the paint from the months of exposure to the rain, snow, and wind.
Marshall stopped the car, again not putting the car in park. He glanced around before continuing.
The buildings decayed from the lack of care over the past two years. Windows busted. Doors bashed in or completely removed. Glass, rubbish, and empty bullet casings riddled the street and sidewalk.
Marshall pulled in front of the pharmacy, turning off the car, before they all stepped out.
“There’s another pharmacy down the road,” Cody said, pointing at a half-fallen pharmacy sign down the road.
“We can certainly check that one too,” Marshall said with a nod. “We just need to be quick about everything.”
Josh stepped around the car, scanning the surrounding area. “Hold it.” The three of them froze as they all turned towards him.
“See an infected?” Shane asked.
“No,” Josh answered with a shake of his head. “That car though.” He gestured to a black 2010 Ford Fusion. The paint had been chipped away from the weather and not being taken care of, but not as much as the cars that were abandoned on the streets, and though a few windows were busted, the car remained in relatively good shape, given the circumstances.
Someone sat in the backseat, slumped up against the car door.
“Keep your eyes peeled,” Josh said. “Could be a trap.” He turned to Marshall. “Give me the gun. I’m gonna approach. Stay back.” Marshall handed over the gun.
Cody glanced around at the cars and buildings. His heart seemed to pound in his ears. Josh approached the car quickly, giving himself space as he studied the scene.
The person remained still inside the car.
Josh stepped forward again. His gun, aimed at the nearby buildings’ busted windows. He glanced down at the car again.
The person was nothing more than a boy, barely older than fifteen. His skin was pale and had a faint blue tint to it.
Josh frowned. He placed two fingers against the boy’s neck, just under the jawline, confirming his fear.
“False alarm,” Josh said, turning to the others. The three of them stepped closer.
“Does that mean—?” Cody started.
“Yeah,” Josh interrupted, not looking at him. He turned to Marshall. “Hand me the key. Let’s test it out.”
“There’s always a chance,” Marshall murmured, handing over the car key.
Josh clicked the unlock button on the key. The car clicked as the locks moved to the unlocked position. All four of them gasped.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Josh said, mostly to himself.
“Why would they abandon this?” Cody asked.
“Probably outta gas,” Shane said. He held out his hand as Josh placed the key in his hand. “Most likely.” He opened the front door and tried the engine. The car sputtered, but nothing happened. “Lights turn on, and the car unlocks, so it’s not the battery.” Shane got out, pulling the hitch for the hood, before he and Josh stepped in front of the car.
Shane checked the car for any and all damages. Then again and again, just to be sure. He opened the lid for the coolant container before cupping his hand around the opening and his mouth and blowing into the opening. He immediately crouched down and checked underneath the car.
“What are you doing?” Cody asked as he did it a second time.
“Checking to see if the containers are cracked,” Shane answered before doing the same to the washer fluid. Dark blue liquid leaked out from the bottom. “Not a big deal, but still.”
“Anything wrong?” Marshall asked.
“Nothing major,” Shane said, closing the hood. “Washer container is broken on the bottom. Barely any antifreeze, but we have that. Tires are pretty decent on them. Oil’s low, but we can maybe find some.”
“Take it,” Marshall said. “We need another car.” He glanced over at the boy. “Set him in the grass.”
“Should we bury him?” Cody asked.
Marshall glanced up at the dark sky. Thunder sounded in the distance. “We don’t have a lot of time.” Shane opened the back door. “You two take care of that. Afterwards, see what you can find out here. Cody and I will check out the pharmacy.” Marshall turned as he spoke with Cody following after him.
Stained blood painted the walls. Bullet holes riddled the walls, floors, and the ceiling. The windows and door were busted in. The shelves and counters were bare.
“People tend to hide things,” Marshall explained. “So make sure to check under things.”
Cody stepped behind the counter. “Found something.”
“Already?” Marshall arched a brow. “What’d you find?”
“Some cough drops, a belt, a handgun, and a stick of chapsticks.” Cody stood. “Nothing major.”
Marshall blinked. “There’s a dead guy behind the counter, isn’t there?” Cody nodded. “How many bullets?”
Cody checked the gun. “None. Must’ve saved the last one for himself.”
“That’s rule number one.” Marshall stepped around the counter and looked down at the dead man at Cody’s feet.
Blood stained blonde hair, blue-tinted skin. Red athletic jacket torn at the shoulder and the wrist cuff, ripped jeans, dark brown boots. Large black and yellowish-green bruises still lingered around the reddish-orange bite mark on the man’s wrist.
“Take his jacket and shoes,” Marshall said. “We can fix the jacket, and the shoes can fit someone.”
Cody did as he was told before placing them inside the bag he held along with the other items.
The two of them searched the pharmacy, finding only a few more items: a couple of unused bullets, a crushed granola bar, a barely used and cracked candle, and a couple of fishing lures.
They stepped out of the pharmacy and rejoined Shane and Josh outside.
“What’d you find?” Marshall asked.
“Not much,” Josh said. “The best thing we found was a broken shotgun.”
“And a half a can of gas,” Shane added. “Put it in the other car. Found some notebooks. We could use the paper as tinder or give it to the kids.”
“Good,” Marshall said.
“Did you see a safe in there?” Josh asked. Marshall shook his head. “Damn.”
“Let’s check out the other pharmacy,” Marshall said.
Their drive was slow, with Shane siphoning any and all gas that he could from the eroded cars on the street.
Josh stayed by the cars as the three of them went inside.
The pharmacy was just as bad as the other one, just as destroyed and empty.
They heard soft moaning from the back. A silhouetted figure moaned slowly back and forth.
“Down,” Shane said. The three of them crouched down to the ground. “Careful.”
Cody glanced at Marshall and Shane. He turned his head, spotting a hunting knife duct taped to the bottom shelf of one of the display cases.
“Let’s try to flank it,” Marshall whispered to Shane. “You go that way.” Marshall gestured to the right side of the pharmacy. “I’ll go this way.”
Shane went to the right while Marshall went off to the left. Cody gripped the corner of the duct tape.
The infected had dark gray skin with thin red lines that ran up its face and down its neck. Silva ran down its chin. Dried blood stained a side of its face.
Marshall peered around a display case, readying his knife.
Cody peeled back the duct tape. The sound screeched throughout the pharmacy.
The infected turned, growling loudly.
Fuck, Cody thought, tearing off the rest of the duct tape.
The infected stepped forward. Its head, going back and forth. It growled once more before sprinting towards Cody.
Cody sat up on his knees. He gripped the hunting knife tightly, pulling it out of its sheath. The infected leapt on him.
They both fell backwards. Cody felt the knife grow stiff.
Marshall and Shane ran over to him. Cody shifted, pushing the infected off of him. The hunting knife embedded deep into the infected’s neck. Cody’s heart pounded in his chest. His breath, ragged.
“You okay?” Shane asked. His eyes widened as he stared down at Cody.
“Yeah,” Cody said in between breaths. “Found this.” He pulled the hunting knife out of the infected’s neck.
“And you nearly died for it,” Marshall scolded. His face grew hard.
“I’m sorry,” Cody started. “I–.”
“Just put it in the bag,” Marshall ordered dismissively. He turned away as he spoke.
Shane helped Cody to his feet, and they both followed after Marshall, carefully listening for more infected and scavenging whatever they could.
Until they reached the back.
“Holy shit,” Shane said.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Marshall added.
“Do you think we’d be able to carry it?” Cody asked as they all stared at the large four by four safe.
“It looks heavy,” Shane said.
“Go get Josh,” Marshall said, stepping closer to the safe.
Shane turned and quickly ran off.
The safe’s buttons were faded with numerous people over the years attempting to guess the code, some more so than others. The door suffered from scratches and attempts of people trying to pry it open by force.
“Holy fuck,” Josh said as he stepped beside them. “Tommy really wasn’t lying.”
“We can try to guess it,” Marshall said. “Can you crack it?” He looked at Josh.
Josh shrugged. “I dunno. Wasn’t my expertise in the military. But I could try.” Josh stepped closer to the safe and stared at the buttons. “We can’t carry it, but maybe. Three, seven– nine. Zero.” He turned to the others. “Those are the numbers. I think.”
“That’s only twenty four combinations,” Cody said. “We have time to guess.”
“So long as the battery hasn’t died in it,” Shane said, pessimistically.
“The light is still on,” Josh reminded. “So it’s still good.”
Josh pressed some buttons. The red light flashed, and the safe buzzed.
“Well, that wasn’t it,” Marshall murmured.
Again and again, Josh pressed the buttons only for the red light to flash and the safe to buzz.
“Oh, c’mon,” Josh complained as the red light flashed once more. “We have like two left.” He huffed. “Nine, zero, three, seven.”
The green light flashed. The safe clicked as it unlocked. The four men cheered as Josh opened the door.
The safe was full with a gun sitting next to the ammunition hidden away in the back behind the bottles of pills and medicine.
“Clear it out,” Marshall said. “We’ll take inventory later.”
Josh readied an empty bag before emptying the safe’s contents in it. The bag bulged and groaned as Josh zipped it up.
“It’s still light out,” Marshall noted. “We can look around a bit more.”
“I saw some walls a couple of streets down to the east,” Josh explained. “We can make contact and maybe make a trade agreement.”
“Good,” Marshall said. “We’ll try there.”
They all left before pulling beside the wall. Rust crept across the metal walls.
“Hello!” Marshall shouted. “Friendly out here!”
Silence.
They glanced at each other before turning back to the wall.
Several groans came from the other side then came light thudding against the wall.
“Boost me,” Shane said, looking at Josh.
“Careful,” Marshall said as Josh interlocked his fingers. Shane stepped a foot inside Josh’s hands before Josh lifted him.
“Oh shit,” Shane whispered. He looked down. “Infected. Looks like they overran the place.”
“How many do you see?” Marshall asked.
“About twenty,” Shane answered after counting. “Do you think we can take them?”
“We can’t leave the cars,” Marshall said, rubbing his chin.
Shane peered over the wall. About five feet to his right was a door and next to it was a large garage like door.
“Maybe we can funnel them through the door,” Shane said. “There’s like eight here.”
“We can maybe find something,” Marshall said, still rubbing his chin.
“Something like a truck?” Shane asked. “We can pull the cars in so long as I can get to the door.”
“Why don’t we go around?” Cody asked. “They’re drawn over here.”
Shane peered over the wall and smiled. “Well, not anymore. They all wandered off.”
“Can you make it to the door?” Josh asked. Shane nodded again. “Go over. We’ll be right there.”
Shane leapt over the wall as Marshall and Cody got into each of the cars. Shane threw open the garage door before they steered inside.
The infected turned towards them just as Shane closed the door again.
“Get ready,” Josh said as the infected rushed towards them.
“Stay,” Marshall said to Cody with his hand.
Cody sat in the car, watching as Marshall, Shane, and Josh went through the horde. Dried blood splattered over their clothes. Their chests heaved with every breath.
Cody stepped from the car as they started to drag the corpses off to the sides.
“Gross,” Josh said, making a face as he rubbed his hands along his jeans.
“Hold it,” Marshall said, holding up a hand.
They all froze, turning to where Marshall was staring.
Three children stood in the doorway of one of the trailers. Two of them, the elder boy and girl, looked to be around fifteen while the younger boy, holding the hand of the girl, looked to be around three or four. The elder boy was darker in skin tone, a soft clay color, clearly of Hispanic descent, while the girl and younger boy were light peachy tones.
The elder boy had his dark raven black hair cut short around his ears. The girl’s platinum blonde hair was pulled back into a messy bun, and the younger boy also had his brown hair cut short.
The elder boy wore an oversized denim jacket over top of his plain black shirt and jeans. The girl wore a zipped up pink faux leather jacket and some jeans while the younger boy wore an ill-fighting yellow monkey shirt and some pants that were held up by a belt.
“Hello,” Cody said, stepping closer.
“Careful,” Marshall whispered.
“We’re not bitten!” the girl cried. “We’ve been hiding.”
“What happened here?” Josh asked.
“Someone lied,” the elder boy said. “About being bitten. Then all this happened.”
“Is there anyone else?” Marshall asked.
“No,” the girl said. “Not that we know of, but we haven’t seen anyone else.”
Marshall stepped closer. “You all were held up in here?” The elder boy nodded. “How many people were here?”
“About sixty of us,” the elder boy said.
“What are your names?” Shane asked.
“I’m Miguel,” the elder boy said. He pointed to the girl. “This is Jessica, and he is Tristan. We found him wandering around. We don’t know his real name, but our teacher, Mrs. Pike, started to call him that.”
“Where is she?” Marshall asked.
“She’s inside,” Jessica said. She gestured inside as she spoke.
A rock clattered on the ground.
“What the fuck?” Marshall asked, looking at the rock.
“That’s our signal,” Miguel said.
“Whenever the scavengers can’t call out, they throw a rock over the wall,” Jessica explained.
“Which means they’re back,” Miguel said, rushing to the door and opening it before anyone could stop him.
Three adults rushed inside, carrying whatever they could, before closing the door behind them.
“Uncle Dean!” Jessica cried, rushing over to the man in the middle and giving him a big hug.
Miguel glanced around at the three adults. “Where’s the other three?” Dean didn’t look at him. The other two lowered their gazes. “Are they really gone?”
Dean nodded slowly. “We got jumped by a horde.” He shook his head. “I don’t know about the other group.”
“No one else came back,” Jessica said.
“Who are you?” Marshall asked.
“I’m Dean.” He gestured to the taller, more muscular dark raven black man behind him. “That’s Garrett.” He turned to the plump woman. “And that’s Amber.”
“I’m Cody. This is Marshall, Josh, and Shane. We thought this place was empty.”
“Fucking Keith,” Dean murmured under his breath, looking around at the corpses piled on top of each other. “I knew that fucker was lying.” Dean turned as Tristan staggered over to Cody’s side. Tristan smiled as he raised his arms. Cody bent over and picked him up. “You must be great with kids. He’s a shy little boy.”
“Yeah,” Cody said. “I like kids. I wanted some before–. You know.”
“Yeah,” Garrett said in agreement.
“You know,” Marshall said. Everyone turned towards him. “We have a community. We are more than willing to extend the invitation for you all to come with us.”
Dean glanced at Garrett and Amber.
“Let us have a minute,” Dean said. He and the others turned away. They stepped away, far enough for Marshall and them to not be able to hear them.
“You think they’ll come?” Josh whispered.
“I think so,” Shane said. “Everything’s destroyed over here.” He gestured to all around them. “I doubt they wanna stay.”
“Same here,” Josh said. “It’ll be a few hours before we can grab everything.”
Thunder rolled over their heads.
“Hopefully we have that much time,” Marshall murmured.
Dean, Garrett, and Amber turned back towards them before they all met halfway. Dean frowned as he looked around again.
“There’s a lot here,” Dean said. “But if what Miguel and Jessie were saying is true, there’s really no one here besides us.” He sighed, glancing at his niece. “As much as I don’t want to trust complete strangers, none of us would survive if we stayed here.”
Marshall smiled. “We’re happy to have you. Now, let’s gather any and all things that we can. Josh, whatever we don’t grab today, I want you to come back tomorrow with a group and gather whatever is left.”
“How many people do you have?” Dean asked.
“A hundred and twelve,” Cody answered. “We also might be getting more people next week.”
“Might,” Marshall repeated.
“Can you afford more people?” Amber asked, crossing her arms. “We were living pretty good here. We don’t wanna go back to struggling.”
“Yes,” Marshall said quickly. “We wouldn’t have offered it if we were struggling ourselves.”
“We need to go quickly,” Dean said. “It looks like it’s about to rain.”
They all hurried, gathering everything they could. Blankets, mattresses, bed sheets, clothing, shoes, food. Anything they could get their hands on, not caring about the importance of the item. Dean showed Shane the truck and sedan their community were working on, and with a quick change of batteries and a few tweaks on both, they were up and running.
Garrett gathered up the office water containers, setting them in the trunk of one of the cars. Miguel shifted the book bag on his shoulders.
“Whatcha got in there?” Josh asked.
“My Pokemon cards,” Miguel answered. “And some movies.”
Josh’s eyes brightened. “What kind of movies?”
“Mostly Disney movies, but we also have some full seasons of old tv shows. Perry Mason, Bonanza, Gilligan’s Island. You know, the boring stuff from the fifties.”
Josh frowned. “Bonanza is one of the best shows ever made. There’s something clearly wrong with you if you dislike it.” He paused. “The first season wasn’t that great, but they were trying to find their footing.”
“We only have the first season.”
“Of course you do.” They fell quiet for a moment. “What else do you guys have?”
Miguel pulled out the large disc organizer from his bag before handing it over. Josh started to flip through the sleeves, flipping past every Disney ever made, before getting to the other movies and full season TV shows.
“We raided a daycare to find the Disney movies,” Miguel said.
“That’ll explain it.” Josh flipped the pages some more. “Xena: Warrior Princess. I used to love that show. Have you seen it?”
Miguel shook his head. “The adults didn’t let us watch whatever we wanted when we wanted. Conserve the electricity, they always said.”
“We’re the same way.” Miguel frowned. “But we watch a movie every week. Everyone gets to vote on it.”
Miguel’s face brightened. “Oh cool.”
“C’mon, guys!” Dean called out. They turned and hurried to join the others.
“Out of room or out of stuff to grab?” Marshall asked.
“I think we’re out of stuff,” Shane said, looking around.
“We should start heading out then,” Marshall said.
Thunder crashed again as lightning shot through the sky. The clouds burst, allowing the rain to fall to the ground.
They all quickly rushed into a car before they drove off. Only the sound of the study hum of the engine and the rain hitting the cars’ rooftops were heard.
The gate opened for them. What little crowd was around them stood in amazement as all four cars rolled in.
All the goods were quickly counted before being transferred to the factory, the nearest building where the larger items could be left until the rain went away.
It rained throughout the meeting, even as they carried the smaller items to their respective places. The medicine cabinet was fully restocked. The library nearly doubled its inventory of books and board games though some of them were copies of what they already had.
Though they weren’t too happy about it, Dean and the others were placed in quarantine with Dr. Lee monitoring their temperatures and heart rate every so often.
Cody laid on his bed. He sighed into his pillow.
“Hey,” Marshall said as he finally came in from the rain.
“Hey.” Cody yawned, turning to lay on his back.
“Micah talked to his group,” Marshall said, sitting on the edge of the bed.
Cody sat up and looked at him. “Really? What did they say?”
“They’re gonna be joining us.”
Cody’s face brightened. “That’s awesome.”
“They’ll be here in a week.”
Cody smiled. “Where are we gonna put them?”
“We’re gonna discuss it tomorrow, but I’m gonna nominate that we expand the wall to include the two apartment buildings to the north of us.”
“Excellent.” Cody continued to stare at Marshall before leaning back, bracing his weight on his hands behind him and raising his gaze to the ceiling.
“I’m sorry.”
Cody looked at him. His brow furrowed. “About what?”
Marshall sighed. “For yelling at you earlier. At the pharmacy.” Cody continued to stare at him. “I was just so worried about losing you.” His face grew hotter, turning a bright red. “Especially before I worked up the courage to tell you.”
Cody scooted closer until they were sitting next to one another. “Tell me what?”
Marshall frowned, turning slowly towards Cody. He remained quiet. His gaze dropped down to Cody’s soft lips.
“I love you,” Marshall said after a minute.
Cody blinked. “Like as a friend?”
Marshall frowned as they stared at each other. “No.”
Cody stared at Marshall. Slowly, his face turned bright red. “Really?”
Marshall glanced away, nodding faintly. “Yeah.” He frowned harder. “I know you probably don’t like me.”
Cody frowned. “Why is that?”
Marshall shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe because of how we were before all this.” Cody chewed on his bottom lip. “I know that you’re gay, but that doesn’t automatically mean that you’d like me back.”
“But—.” Marshall turned towards him. “I do love you. Like a lot, Marshall.”
Marshall’s eyes widened. A smile danced across his lips. “Okay.” His face grew red.
“Yeah.” Cody felt his heart pound faster in his chest. His own face grew hot.
“So what do we do now?” Marshall kept his gaze down.
Cody frowned, raising a hand. He gripped Marshall’s chin, turning him gently so they could face each other. Cody leaned forward. He hesitated as he felt Marshall’s breath on his lips before leaning forward again. Their lips finally touched.
Cody felt electricity seep deep into his skin and shot through his entire body.
Marshall gripped Cody’s hips, twisting him so Cody’s legs were on his own.
Cody felt Marshall grow hard underneath his thigh. Marshall deepened their kiss. They fell back onto the mattress. Marshall hovered over Cody as to not to crush the smaller man with his weight.
Cody wrapped his arms around Marshall’s neck. Marshall lowered a hand underneath Cody’s shirt, pushing it further up his chest. Cody gasped at the touch. His nipples hardened when they met the cold air. Marshall lowered his mouth, taking one of Cody’s nipples in between his teeth, suckling it gently.
Cody sucked in a breath. “Fuck.”
Marshall released Cody with a pop. He raised his arms, pulling his shirt over his head and tossed it aside. He returned his mouth to Cody’s. Their tongues touched. One of Marshall’s hands slipped underneath the waistband of Cody’s jeans. Cody gasped again as Marshall wrapped a hand around his member.
“I’ve wanted this,” Marshall whispered. “For so long.” He shuddered.
Cody’s hands went down to the front of his jeans, undoing the button and zipper. Marshall pulled Cody’s hardened member out before sitting back on his ankles.
Cody grew hot underneath Marshall’s gaze. “I have too.”
Marshall shifted on the bed, kicking off his shoes and removing his jeans.
Cody shifted, doing the same. His shoes clattered onto the floor.
Marshall leaned forward after another moment. His mouth found Cody’s neck, biting hard enough to leave a bruise. Cody ran a hand through Marshall’s hair. Marshall lowered his mouth, running kisses down the length of Cody’s chest and stomach.
Cody gasped as Marshall licked his length. Cody felt his face grow hot. His mouth went dry. He pressed his hips against Marshall’s mouth.
Marshall raised his head slowly. Cody gasped and moaned as Marshall bobbed his head. Marshall pressed a finger against Cody’s opening before pushing it forward.
Cody hissed a breath through his teeth. He gripped more of Marshall’s hair.
“Fuck me, Marshall.”
Marshall quickened the pace of his finger, striking the hard yet sensitive spot inside of him. Cody clawed at Marshall’s shoulders. His nails, scraping his skin.
Cody moaned. “M-Marshall, please.” He started to tremble.
Marshall raised his head finally, pulling his finger out of him.
Cody groaned at the absence.
“You’re so beautiful,” Marshall said, settling in between Cody’s legs, snugly fitting their hips against one another.
Cody felt his face grow hot. He bit his bottom lip, smiling wide. He widened his legs. “Please.”
Marshall shifted, grabbing his own hardened member. He ran the head along Cody’s opening.
They both gasped as Marshall breached him.
“Oh fuck,” Cody whispered as Marshall continued to fill him until their hips touched.
Marshall threw back his head. His hands, still gripping Cody’s hips.
Marshall rocked his hips back then forward again. Cody tightened around him. Marshall allowed a low growl escape from his lips.
“That feels nice,” Marshall murmured. He raised Cody’s hips, pushing forward again. His fingers dug into Cody’s skin.
Cody tightened around him again.
The mattress creaked as Marshall began to move. The headboard thudded lightly against the wall.
Cody felt his face grow hot. “Yes. Just like that.”
Marshall slammed his hips against Cody’s.
Cody ran his hands up Marshall’s arms, scraping his nails along his skin. Marshall hissed out a breath. Blood pulsed fast as lightning through their veins. Cody gripped Marshall’s shoulders, driving his nails into his skin. Heat pooled in his stomach. His member ached, begging to be touched, weeping from a mixture of the pain and pleasure.
Cody felt his lungs burning. His skin felt electric wherever Marshall touched him. His face grew hot, turning a faint red. He gasped again and again as Marshall quickened his pace.
Their moans and gasps filled the room. Cody was sure anyone walking by outside would easily hear them.
Cody ran his nails down Marshall’s chest, eliciting a deep groan from the other man. They both tensed at nearly the same time, both exploding onto Cody’s chest and stomach, leaving them in pants as they tried to catch their breaths.
Marshall swallowed, sitting back on his ankles. “Damn.”
Cody smiled. “You can say that again.”
Marshall shifted before he stood, walking over to the sink. He opened the cabinet and pulled out a body wash wipe before handing it over to Cody. “Here. It’s the last one.”
Cody smiled faintly as he took the wipe from Marshall, running it up and down the length of his chest and stomach.
“You think anyone heard us?” Marshall asked. Thunder crashed overhead. Marshall frowned slightly. “I guess not.”
Cody tossed the wipe in the nearby waste bin before climbing into bed, pulling the covers up underneath his chin. Marshall climbed in next to him.
Cody scooted closer to Marshall, placing his head on the older man’s shoulder. Marshall wrapped his arms around Cody, resting his chin on his forehead.
“Goodnight, Cody.” Marshall kissed his forehead.
Cody smiled. “Goodnight.”
Sleep came over them rather quickly with their already fatigued state and the sound of the rain from outside.
Over the following week, Marshall oversaw the extension of the community walls. Though progress was somewhat slow with the rain coming and going, they, thankfully, finished the expansion by the end of the week. Dean and Jessica were given one of the remaining rooms in the motel while Miguel and Tristan were taken in by Gretchen and an older couple, respectively.
Micah and the rest of his community walked in through the gate, carrying all that they could. A couple of cars pulled in after them, carrying their elderly and those unable to walk the distance.
As Dr. Lee took their temperatures, they lined up in front of Josh and Marshall.
“Name, age, and occupation,” Josh said, readying his pen.
A man holding a young boy, presumably his son, stepped closer. “Ricky Thompson, thirty-eight. I was a carpenter.” He gestured to the child on his hip. “This is Harry. He’s seven.”
Josh nodded faintly. Cody helped inventory the weapons, medicine, and what little food the group brought, adding them to his community’s inventory.
“Cody!” Marshall called out. Cody turned to see Marshall standing next to several adults and the seven children. “They’re the families. We’re gonna put the smaller families in the motel, and the larger one will get the first pick of the apartments.” Cody nodded faintly. “Can you show them around?”
“Of course.” Cody stepped around Marshall before turning to the crowd. “If you guys will follow me.”
The group followed after him as he showed them the bank, the factory, the hospital, before leading them closer to the motel.
“This is where most of you will be staying,” Cody said. He turned to the group. “We will be hopefully building more houses after winter. Families get first priority on houses, so it shouldn’t be more than a few months.”
“Who were those men earlier?” Ricky asked. “The ones at the table?”
“The one with dark hair is Josh,” Cody said. He blushed faintly. “The other man, the blonde one, is Marshall. He’s—.” Cody fiddled with his fingers. “My boyfriend.”