He felt his face heat, feeling a stab of chagrin at the direction this conversation had taken. “That happened pretty much right after I turned her down,” he said, trying not to sound defensive. “We've barely even spent time together or talked aside from in a group.”
“I know. I wasn't trying to say anything.” Gen sobered, walking quietly for a few steps before taking a deep breath and continuing. “Listen. It's probably best that we just clear the air, now that we can finally talk about this without having to pass notes, or shout across twenty feet so half the town can hear.” She gave him a sidelong glance. “I wasn't cool with the entire situation with Val at the time.”
Nick tensed in spite of himself at this cold water dashed over their date. “I know,” he said guiltily. “You deserved better-”
She pressed a gentle finger to his lips, expression stern but a smile in her eyes. “Just listen before you have a heart attack.” He nodded sheepishly, and she finally did smile. “It's not easy to have to stay at arm's length watching while an attractive, classy woman chases the guy you like. But the fact that you shared a camp and it would've been safe to be with her at any time, but you chose to be with the gal you'd have to wait months for . . .”
His girlfriend looked away, cheeks coloring. “Well, that meant a lot to me.”
“I would've waited as long as I had to,” he said firmly. “I didn't chase you to Stanberry just because it was my only option. I'd also missed all the time we spent together before the world went crazy.”
Gen's eyes softened, and she squeezed his hand. As they continued on through the market she changed the subject back to Chet and Aimee's wedding, becoming bubbly and energetic again.
Around sundown they reached a park at the center of town, which looked as if it had been lovingly tended in spite of all the chaos Stanberry had been through. Gen led the way to a raised gazebo surrounded by bright flower beds at the center of the expansive lawns, and they climbed up a short flight of steps to the platform looking out over the town square in all directions.
“This really is a beautiful town,” Nick said, leaning his elbows on the railing. “Not the worst place to end up.”
“I'm glad you finally realized it,” she said, patting his arm. “I know you guys have been on the outside, and Darby and Darrel were pretty awful to you sometimes. But this town is so inspiring with how everyone's come together to face the crisis. I've never seen such good neighbors or such a strong sense of community.”
“Well, if everyone's been as great as you and the Norsons, I can believe it.”
A comfortable silence settled as they took in the view, watching people amble by on the distant sidewalks in the fading light.
Nick could admit that since it had been over a decade since he'd been on a date, with anyone but Ellie that is, he wasn't the most astute when it came to nonverbal cues from women he was courting. Not that he'd been great at that back then, either.
Still, when Gen scooted closer and leaned against his side with a quiet murmur of contentment, he felt pretty confident she'd have no objection to him putting his arm around her. So he did.
She made another contented sound and rested her head on his shoulder. “About time. It feels like I've waited months to be able to do this.”
“Probably because you did,” he said lightly.
“Yeah.” His girlfriend raised her head to meet his gaze, expression sober. “You know, we've spent all these weeks watching the stars come out and sharing our hopes and dreams with each other. If you count all those nights as dates, I'd say we're way overdue for some big dating milestones.”
Nick's heart began hammering in his chest at the implications of that statement. Especially when she fell silent and stared up at him expectantly, lips slightly parted.
He may have been a bit off his game after so long, but he wasn't so off his game that he couldn't spot such a clear hint. He leaned down and gently pressed his lips to hers.
Gen melted against him, returning the kiss with surprising fierceness, and for a few long seconds he was lost in the warmth of the moment.
Then she pulled back and rested her head on his shoulder again. “I'm so glad you're here with me,” she murmured. “I'm so glad you've been here through all this.”
“Me too,” he whispered, holding her close. She felt right in his arms, as if she belonged there.
They stood holding each other as the light faded around them, watching as solar lanterns along the street flickered on to light the way for the dwindling foot traffic. It was a beautiful moment, capping a wonderful evening.
He didn't want it to end. After everything they'd been through, he would've been content to live in this moment forever.
Gen finally pulled away, taking his hand and tugging him towards the stairs. “Come on. Let's go back to the yard.” She smiled, almost shyly. “I've missed watching the stars come out with you, and now that we don't have to stay fifteen feet apart we can lay down a blanket and cuddle.”
That sounded like a perfect way to end this evening; if anything could've pulled him from this moment, that was it.
Nick joined his girlfriend heading down the stairs. She slipped her arm around his waist as they started across the grass, and they walked close together as they made their way towards home.
There was no telling what the future held, but he felt hope knowing they'd be together to face it.
Chapter Fourteen
Peace and Quiet
Ellie was under the tree where she liked to cuddle with Hal, leaning back against his broad chest as they watched the kids play in the yard.
Zolos might still be ravaging the world, and civilization was still collapsing all around them, but things were pretty good right here and now. Tallie had wanted to sleep in Ellie's bed with her for the last three nights, and after being apart from her sweet baby girl for months she'd been just fine with that, even if it put a bit of a damper on her newlywed intimacy with Hal.
Not that they didn't find plenty of opportunities to make up for it, whenever they could snatch a few minutes of privacy.
On the subject of her husband, it was his 24th birthday today. Cara had made a point to publicly announce that this morning to the group over breakfast, a not so subtle way of once again drawing attention to their age disparity.
Her attempts had flown right past their friends, who'd simply used it as an opportunity to wish Hal a happy birthday. For a while, Cara had been a bit more cautious about openly antagonizing people who could kick her out when she had nowhere else to go, but since moving back to the Norsons' place she'd begun to let more of her true nature show.
Not that most people hadn't had ample opportunities to feel the bite of her acid tongue; she was tolerated in the group, but no one sought out her company.
Ellie shook her head, dispelling thoughts of her unpleasant mother-in-law. It was too nice a day for that.
Hal felt the motion and rested his cheek against hers. “What's up?” he asked.
She wasn't about to bring up Cara. “Is there anything you wanted to do for your birthday?” she asked instead.
“Mmm,” he murmured, nuzzling her neck. “I can think of a few things.”
Ellie laughed and playfully slapped at his arm. “Well of course we'll be doing that.” They'd even have their half-completed dugout all to themselves tonight, since Nick and Cara had the kids. “But I meant more family friendly stuff we can do for your party tonight.”
Hal mulled that over for a few seconds. “Well, I have been trying to convince everyone to take a break long enough to get a flag football game together.”
That was true. He played catch with the kids, and occasionally Nick and some of the scavengers joined in for some casual plays. But they'd never played a formal game.
“Okay, let's get it together,” Ellie said, patting his arm. “I can show you my cannon of a throwing arm.”
“Oh?” he asked. “You been hiding a quarterback career from me?”
“Not in the slig
htest.” She laughed. “When I throw the ball to someone more than ten feet away, it always ends up going down and left and hitting the ground halfway to them.”
“Sounds like your arm isn't properly warmed up, and you're trying to muscle the throw and waiting too long to release,” he said. “You can solve that by stretching, relaxing while you throw, and focusing on technique.”
Ellie shook her head wryly. She'd never had much interest in sports, although she'd played for fun with friends when she was younger. Usually frisbee, volleyball, and basketball. While she had no objections to learning how to play football better, she harbored little hope of ever being very good.
Meanwhile, when her husband and the other men in their group tossed the ball around, they usually had one guy in the middle and Hal threw all the way across the yard to the farthest guy, because he could literally throw twice as far as anyone else in the group.
She doubted she'd be doing that anytime soon.
“Also,” Hal added, “I'd like to take Nick up on his offer to help me with the roof today. With any luck we can get it finished before the party.” He nuzzled her neck again. “If we're going to have the house to ourselves tonight, I'd like it to be a proper shelter.”
Ellie made an appreciative noise and settled back against him. “So finish the roof, and flag football. Anything else you really wanted for your big day?”
“I've already got everything I want,” he declared, holding her close. After a pause he added, “Although I wouldn't say no if Winn made another cake like the one she brought to the reunion party. That was amazing, especially considering how tough it is to get half the ingredients or cook it properly in an outdoor oven.”
She couldn't help but laugh. “Oh don't worry, you'll love this cake too.”
“Can't wait.” Hal kissed her cheek, then sighed and reluctantly shifted behind her to stand up. “Well, I'd better go find Nick and get started on that roof.”
“Okay.” Ellie held out her hand for him to help her up, then leaned in and gave him a lingering kiss. “Happy Birthday, honey.”
“Best one yet,” he said, then glanced around ruefully as if drawing her attention to the pandemic and the situation they were in. “In the ways that matter, at least.”
She watched as he strode purposefully off towards where Nick was working in the garden, then briskly brushed off the seat of her pants and headed over to join Gen watching the kids.
“Any last minute changes to the party?” her friend asked, stooping to pick up a wayward ball and tossing it back to Ricky and Todd.
“Football,” Ellie said. “And a roof by tonight.”
Gen laughed. “Wasn't he planning to have that done today anyway?” Ellie nodded, and her friend shook her head wryly. “Don't ask for too much from the end of the world, and you'll always be content.”
True enough. “Speaking of content,” Ellie teased, “you and Nick seem awfully cozy now that you don't have to stay fifteen feet apart.”
The plump woman turned a bit pink, although she took the ribbing in stride. “Just making up for lost time.”
“Look, Mommy!” Tallie called, dashing over while waving a piece of paper over her head. “Linny helped me draw a picture for Hal!”
Ellie couldn't help but laugh as she stooped to scoop her daughter up in her arms, taking the opportunity to hug her. After months apart from her sweet girl, she didn't think she'd ever be able to hold her again without being profoundly grateful for the opportunity.
She'd come so close to losing Tallie, and hadn't even known until weeks later. If Ellie was never blessed with another miracle in her life, she'd still be eternally grateful that her baby girl had pulled through her bout with Zolos and was now happy and healthy again.
At her daughter's insistence, she and Gen solemnly inspected the enthusiastically drawn picture of stick figures holding hands beneath a cheerful yellow sun. “Good job, honey,” she said. “I think Hal will love it. He'll probably want to hang it on the wall of our new house.”
“Okay.” Tallie squirmed in her arms to get down, pushing the picture into Ellie's hands. “Can you hold this for me? I want to draw another one.”
Laughing, Ellie did her best to smooth the rumpled paper as her daughter ran off to where Linny was busily drawing at the outdoor dining table.
“Hard to believe she's only five,” Gen said. “She does such a good job forming sentences.”
Ellie smiled after Tallie. “Well she'll be six in less than a month, but yes, she certainly is precocious.”
Billy's voice abruptly rose in a wail, and they turned to see him on the ground, crying. Nothing too serious judging by the tone of his voice, but they still went over to investigate.
It amazed Ellie to think that in the midst of this pandemic with death and suffering all around, they'd found this refuge of peace and safety where the worst they had to worry was the usual issues you'd expect to encounter caring for children.
It was something to truly be grateful for.
✽✽✽
Between his scavenging, then his part in the fight against Jay, Nick had been pretty close to the center of events for a while.
That had completely changed when he'd gone into isolation for what he hoped was the last time, effectively cutting himself off from the action. Thankfully, as far as he was concerned.
And there'd been plenty of action to miss, from what he'd overheard and all the rumors that made their way to his ears.
First off Borden, the acting mayor in Stanberry, had proposed to Denny that with Jay gone, the survivor patrols should resume Darrel's and the Stanberry patrols' previous efforts to venture out and turn people away from town, funneling them safely to the quarantine camp. His ultimate goal was to stretch the envelope around Stanberry to turn the area a hundred or so yards in all directions from the barricades into an enormous quarantine zone going through its 21 days.
When that was done, the people who'd fled into town for safety would be able to return home to the remaining houses outside the barricades, and the people in the quarantine camp who'd gone through their three weeks would be able to settle in that area.
And more importantly, the nearby fields would be open for the large scale planting of crops, a coordinated effort by Stanberry's residents and the new settlers.
The number of Zolos survivors in camp had grown along with the camp itself, but the survivors still remained overworked compared to everyone else, and not just because of the patrols. Denny had also resumed the scavenging efforts Nick had abandoned, sending out several teams of scavengers to offset the near-critical shortages the town and camp would be experiencing within the month.
The man had approached Nick to get a detailed description of everywhere his scavengers had already searched, so they wouldn't waste their time, but that had been the extent of Nick's involvement there. And he'd never been involved in the events in town because he'd been on the outside, and that hadn't changed during his isolation in spite of the news Ellie and Gen had fed to him during visits to the house.
Which was why Nick had taken to leaving his radio behind, since he never used it and there was never enough chatter on it to make listening in for entertainment worthwhile. He wouldn't even have known something big was happening at all if Bruce hadn't burst out of the house and made a beeline for his truck, clutching his rifle in one hand and pressing his chattering radio to his ear with the other.
Nick had been in the middle of helping Hal install a roof on the new house the man was making for his family, but as Bruce bolted across the yard they exchanged glances, then rushed to retrieve their rifles.
Even though the Wensbrook group seemed long gone and Denny's patrols remained vigilant, they'd all kept their guard up and their weapons nearby at all times. So it only took a few seconds to gear up and rush after Bruce, catching up to him while he was still starting the engine.
The older man curtly motioned for them to pile in the passenger's side, barely giving Hal time to slam the door befor
e peeling out of the driveway and gunning the engine as he turned towards the south side of town.
“What's going on?” Nick demanded.
Bruce impatiently waved him to silence and moved his radio to his lips, shouting into it as he drove one-handed. “How about instead of all going crazy, we shut up and actually listen to what Denny's seeing out there?”
His words seemed to have the desired effect, because the chatter died down almost entirely. “Thanks,” the leader of the survivor patrols said, sounding out of breath. “It's a convoy, heading right up the highway towards the southern entrance to town, maybe five miles out. Half a dozen military vehicles, about that many official looking cars, and three semi trucks with multiple trailers.”
Nick exchanged looks with his two friends, blown away by this news. “So someone actually is alive down there, even though they never bothered to answer us,” Bruce muttered.
“That, or they've come a long ways,” Hal said.
The radio had predictably exploded into pandemonium again with this news, and a new voice had to shout repeatedly to be heard. It took a second to recognize the speaker as Brant, who'd replaced Darrel leading Stanberry's patrols. “If they're less than five miles out, that doesn't leave us a lot of time to figure out what to do about them.”
Bruce snorted and lifted his radio again. “Do about them? We got our butts handed to us trying to deal with a few dozen yokels with a grudge. Even if they've come looking for trouble, which seems unlikely for an official relief convoy, I hope nobody here is stupid enough to think we're going to fight the United States Armed Forces.”
“Yes, thank you,” Brant said dryly. “I meant how do we greet them? Who's going out there? Do we risk Zolos and let them in if they insist?”
“Well me, Statton, and Westmont are headed to the southern entrance to town. I guess all the leaders from the town and the camp should gather representatives.”
Starr's gruff voice cut in. “Westmont as in Hal, or Ellie? Seems like she'd be useful to have on hand since she's worked with relief workers before.”
Isolation | Book 4 | Holding On Page 22
