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Title: With A Whimper (Part Eight)
Author: Mara
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Mentions of violence, sex, underage drinking, character death, murder, and other nasty stuff. Nothing graphic. Yet. (I'll warn for specific chapters if I'm gonna get graphic... and then it'll be for violence and gore... lol)
Summary: Most of the world is either dead or Crazy, but in California a group of survivors tries to find a way to avoid both fates.
Humor is just another defense against the universe.
~Mel Brooks
PART EIGHT
When the first rays of sunshine started to light up the street in front of the house, Ryan left his post to start waking people up. Kirsten was first, wanting to give her the chance to throw up if she needed to without anyone hovering and worrying, then the kids since it always took them a while to wake up. Luke and Alex were after that, and he quietly asked Luke to wake Zach and Summer up while he did one more check of the rover and SUV.
Kirsten carried a sleepy Marnie out a few minutes later, and Ryan got her settled into the carseat in the back while Kaitlin led Jessie and Josh out. "You guys can all go back to sleep once we're on the road," Ryan said, brushing a hand over Marnie's blonde curls before helping Josh get settled and secured. After he was settled, it was Jessie's turn on his other side, and Kaitlin climbed in on Marnie's side, the sound of seatbelts clicking the only one in the silent garage. Kirsten passed a blanket to Ryan, who spread it out over all 4 of the kids in back, then turned to watch as Zach, Summer, Alex, and Luke got into the rover.
"We're gonna be in the lead, you guys follow no more than a block behind," Ryan said. "We want to be in visual contact at all times, but we also have the radios so we can talk. They have a range of two miles, so we shouldn't have a problem."
"What if we get seperated?" Luke asked.
"We shouldn't since we're taking Interstate 5 up almost the whole way," Ryan said. "If one car gets lost in a town, then we'll meet up 5 miles north of town on Interstate 5. Whoever gets there first waits for the other one." He paused and glanced between Luke and Alex. "Just make sure he goes north, not south," he told Alex with a slight grin.
Alex snorted. "Don't worry, I'll navigate. We all know Luke can't read a map."
"Hey!" Luke protested.
"Ryan..." Summer began.
"Let's get going," Ryan said, ignoring Summer, though he did glance over his shoulder at her one more time before he hit the button to open the garage doors and climbed into the SUV. He glanced over at Kirsten, who had her own blanket over her lap, and took a deep breath before pulling out. "Let's go," he repeated quietly.
~~~~
It took a while to reach the city limits, but as they approached it, the radio crackled to life. "How exactly are we suppose to call eachother?" Luke's voice came over the line.
Ryan rolled his eyes as Kirsten grabbed the radio to respond. "What is it, Luke?"
"Hit play on the CD player," Luke said. "I found something at the mall, thought we could use the little bit of levity."
Ryan frowne and muttered, "How does he kow sucha big word?" but hit the button. Then he and Kirsten both started laughing as they recognized the song that started playing: It's The End Of The World As We Know It by REM. Ryan gestured for Kirsten to hold the radio so he could respond. "Funny," he said.
"No it's not!" Kaitlin protested from in back, even though she was giggling.
"Thought you'd appreciate it," Luke said, and they could hear the song playing in the background in the rover.
Kirsten started singing along, making Ryan and Kaitlin laugh harder, but they both joined in at the chorus. The rover pulled up beside them as they sped along the mostly clear Interstate, and they could see Luke and Summer dancing around in their seats, Luke drumming on the steering wheel, while Zach chuckled in back and Alex threw her head back laughing.
Ryan rolled down his window and Alex did the same, everyone screaming out the chorus as they drove. They were so distracted by the moment, none of them noticed the vehicle that appeared briefly behind them, then dropped back around a bend and out of sight.
~~~~
Around midday, Kirsten convinced Ryan to let her drive for a while, and Luke and Alex switched places as well. He glanced in back and saw that both Marnie and Josh had drifted off to sleep. "How you two doing?" Ryan quietly asked Kaitlin and Jessie.
"I don't like long car rides," Jessie said, making a face.
"I know, sweetie," Ryan said, stretching to pat her knee. "But we've got a lot of driving ahead of us. But when we get there, it's gonna be nice and big and comfortable."
Jessie nodded. "Is there a beach where we're going?" she asked.
"No," Kirsten replied. "But there's a lake, and the sand around it is perfect for building sand castles. And in the winter it snows so you can make snowmen, and snowball fights..."
"We can totally ambush Luke," Ryan said in a conspiratorial voice.
"And Zach," Kaitlin said.
"I don't like him," Jessie said. "He called Alex mean names."
"He did?" Ryan asked, looking over at Kaitlin, who nodded in confirmation. "Is this a name that those under 13 shouldn't hear?"
"He called her a freak," Kaitlin said. "And that... she probably likes Summer more than Luke..."
"No he didn't, he called her a..."
"A word that Marnie and Josh do not need to hear," Kaitlin interupted. "The 'D' word," she added to Ryan.
"Zach's parents would be appalled," Kirsten said. "I know Congressman and Mrs. Stevens, they don't approve of that type of language."
"Yeah, well, my mom would be appalled that I'm not drinking myself into a stupor," Ryan said. "Doesn't change my behavior."
"I thought Kirsten was your mom?" Jessie asked, confused.
Ryan sighed and turned back again. "Well, you know how I found you, and Josh and Marnie?" he asked. "Well, Kirsten kinda found me, back before everything got so bad. My mom couldn't take care of me, so Kirsten does. So she's kinda my mom."
"Like how I say Ryan's my brother, even though he's not by blood," Kaitlin said. "He takes care of me like a big brother."
"Does that mean you're my brother too?" Jessie asked.
"Sure, Jess," Ryan agreed. He saw her playing with the foot of Josh's teddy bear and kicked himself inwardly. "I'm sorry I didn't get you a doll or bear," he said. "But we can pick one up when we pass through a town."
"It's okay," Jessie said.
"No, sweetie, every little girl needs a doll," Ryan said. "I'll find you something perfect, okay?"
"Can I have a stuffed dog or cat?" Jessie asked.
"I'll find you one," Ryan promised with a smile.
"Okay," Jessie said happily.
Ryan smiled again and turned to sit forward again. "I can't believe I forgot," he said quietly to Kirsten.
"At least she didn't take advantage and ask for a real dog or cat," Kirsten countered.
~~~~
Driving was taking twice as long as it would have before the virus, since wrecked cars littered the road creating obstacles and in some cases almost blocking it entirely. Ryan felt like smacking Kaitlin when she got Jessie playing the liscense plate game using the wrecked cars, but he just groaned and tried to tune it out. He couldn't keep quiet when the game turned to 'spot the dead body', with them getting a point for each body, bonus points if it was a kid.
"Kaitlin Cooper!" he scolded, turning in his seat. "No, you will not make a game out of dead people."
"But..."
"No!" Ryan insisted. "They had families, Kaitlin, they were families."
"It's just a..."
"Would you be okay if I had died driving from Chino back to Newport, and someone got a point for seeing my body? Or if Theresa had still been in the car, would there have been bonus points since she was pregnant?"
Kaitlin hung her head. "I'm sorry."
Ryan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It's okay, Kaitlin, just don't play that part of the game. Go back to the liscense plates if you want, but... but not the bodies."
"Okay."
Ryan turned back to face forward and closed his eyes tightly. "Damn it," he muttered.
Kirsten reached over and patted his back reassuringly. "It's okay, you were right about that game."
"But I yelled at her," Ryan said quietly. "For trying to play a game..."
"It's a horrible game."
Ryan sighed again and looked out the window tiredly. "Yeah, well, it's a horrible world."
TO BE CONTINUED...
Author: Mara
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Mentions of violence, sex, underage drinking, character death, murder, and other nasty stuff. Nothing graphic. Yet. (I'll warn for specific chapters if I'm gonna get graphic... and then it'll be for violence and gore... lol)
Summary: Most of the world is either dead or Crazy, but in California a group of survivors tries to find a way to avoid both fates.
~Mel Brooks
PART EIGHT
When the first rays of sunshine started to light up the street in front of the house, Ryan left his post to start waking people up. Kirsten was first, wanting to give her the chance to throw up if she needed to without anyone hovering and worrying, then the kids since it always took them a while to wake up. Luke and Alex were after that, and he quietly asked Luke to wake Zach and Summer up while he did one more check of the rover and SUV.
Kirsten carried a sleepy Marnie out a few minutes later, and Ryan got her settled into the carseat in the back while Kaitlin led Jessie and Josh out. "You guys can all go back to sleep once we're on the road," Ryan said, brushing a hand over Marnie's blonde curls before helping Josh get settled and secured. After he was settled, it was Jessie's turn on his other side, and Kaitlin climbed in on Marnie's side, the sound of seatbelts clicking the only one in the silent garage. Kirsten passed a blanket to Ryan, who spread it out over all 4 of the kids in back, then turned to watch as Zach, Summer, Alex, and Luke got into the rover.
"We're gonna be in the lead, you guys follow no more than a block behind," Ryan said. "We want to be in visual contact at all times, but we also have the radios so we can talk. They have a range of two miles, so we shouldn't have a problem."
"What if we get seperated?" Luke asked.
"We shouldn't since we're taking Interstate 5 up almost the whole way," Ryan said. "If one car gets lost in a town, then we'll meet up 5 miles north of town on Interstate 5. Whoever gets there first waits for the other one." He paused and glanced between Luke and Alex. "Just make sure he goes north, not south," he told Alex with a slight grin.
Alex snorted. "Don't worry, I'll navigate. We all know Luke can't read a map."
"Hey!" Luke protested.
"Ryan..." Summer began.
"Let's get going," Ryan said, ignoring Summer, though he did glance over his shoulder at her one more time before he hit the button to open the garage doors and climbed into the SUV. He glanced over at Kirsten, who had her own blanket over her lap, and took a deep breath before pulling out. "Let's go," he repeated quietly.
~~~~
It took a while to reach the city limits, but as they approached it, the radio crackled to life. "How exactly are we suppose to call eachother?" Luke's voice came over the line.
Ryan rolled his eyes as Kirsten grabbed the radio to respond. "What is it, Luke?"
"Hit play on the CD player," Luke said. "I found something at the mall, thought we could use the little bit of levity."
Ryan frowne and muttered, "How does he kow sucha big word?" but hit the button. Then he and Kirsten both started laughing as they recognized the song that started playing: It's The End Of The World As We Know It by REM. Ryan gestured for Kirsten to hold the radio so he could respond. "Funny," he said.
"No it's not!" Kaitlin protested from in back, even though she was giggling.
"Thought you'd appreciate it," Luke said, and they could hear the song playing in the background in the rover.
Kirsten started singing along, making Ryan and Kaitlin laugh harder, but they both joined in at the chorus. The rover pulled up beside them as they sped along the mostly clear Interstate, and they could see Luke and Summer dancing around in their seats, Luke drumming on the steering wheel, while Zach chuckled in back and Alex threw her head back laughing.
Ryan rolled down his window and Alex did the same, everyone screaming out the chorus as they drove. They were so distracted by the moment, none of them noticed the vehicle that appeared briefly behind them, then dropped back around a bend and out of sight.
~~~~
Around midday, Kirsten convinced Ryan to let her drive for a while, and Luke and Alex switched places as well. He glanced in back and saw that both Marnie and Josh had drifted off to sleep. "How you two doing?" Ryan quietly asked Kaitlin and Jessie.
"I don't like long car rides," Jessie said, making a face.
"I know, sweetie," Ryan said, stretching to pat her knee. "But we've got a lot of driving ahead of us. But when we get there, it's gonna be nice and big and comfortable."
Jessie nodded. "Is there a beach where we're going?" she asked.
"No," Kirsten replied. "But there's a lake, and the sand around it is perfect for building sand castles. And in the winter it snows so you can make snowmen, and snowball fights..."
"We can totally ambush Luke," Ryan said in a conspiratorial voice.
"And Zach," Kaitlin said.
"I don't like him," Jessie said. "He called Alex mean names."
"He did?" Ryan asked, looking over at Kaitlin, who nodded in confirmation. "Is this a name that those under 13 shouldn't hear?"
"He called her a freak," Kaitlin said. "And that... she probably likes Summer more than Luke..."
"No he didn't, he called her a..."
"A word that Marnie and Josh do not need to hear," Kaitlin interupted. "The 'D' word," she added to Ryan.
"Zach's parents would be appalled," Kirsten said. "I know Congressman and Mrs. Stevens, they don't approve of that type of language."
"Yeah, well, my mom would be appalled that I'm not drinking myself into a stupor," Ryan said. "Doesn't change my behavior."
"I thought Kirsten was your mom?" Jessie asked, confused.
Ryan sighed and turned back again. "Well, you know how I found you, and Josh and Marnie?" he asked. "Well, Kirsten kinda found me, back before everything got so bad. My mom couldn't take care of me, so Kirsten does. So she's kinda my mom."
"Like how I say Ryan's my brother, even though he's not by blood," Kaitlin said. "He takes care of me like a big brother."
"Does that mean you're my brother too?" Jessie asked.
"Sure, Jess," Ryan agreed. He saw her playing with the foot of Josh's teddy bear and kicked himself inwardly. "I'm sorry I didn't get you a doll or bear," he said. "But we can pick one up when we pass through a town."
"It's okay," Jessie said.
"No, sweetie, every little girl needs a doll," Ryan said. "I'll find you something perfect, okay?"
"Can I have a stuffed dog or cat?" Jessie asked.
"I'll find you one," Ryan promised with a smile.
"Okay," Jessie said happily.
Ryan smiled again and turned to sit forward again. "I can't believe I forgot," he said quietly to Kirsten.
"At least she didn't take advantage and ask for a real dog or cat," Kirsten countered.
~~~~
Driving was taking twice as long as it would have before the virus, since wrecked cars littered the road creating obstacles and in some cases almost blocking it entirely. Ryan felt like smacking Kaitlin when she got Jessie playing the liscense plate game using the wrecked cars, but he just groaned and tried to tune it out. He couldn't keep quiet when the game turned to 'spot the dead body', with them getting a point for each body, bonus points if it was a kid.
"Kaitlin Cooper!" he scolded, turning in his seat. "No, you will not make a game out of dead people."
"But..."
"No!" Ryan insisted. "They had families, Kaitlin, they were families."
"It's just a..."
"Would you be okay if I had died driving from Chino back to Newport, and someone got a point for seeing my body? Or if Theresa had still been in the car, would there have been bonus points since she was pregnant?"
Kaitlin hung her head. "I'm sorry."
Ryan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It's okay, Kaitlin, just don't play that part of the game. Go back to the liscense plates if you want, but... but not the bodies."
"Okay."
Ryan turned back to face forward and closed his eyes tightly. "Damn it," he muttered.
Kirsten reached over and patted his back reassuringly. "It's okay, you were right about that game."
"But I yelled at her," Ryan said quietly. "For trying to play a game..."
"It's a horrible game."
Ryan sighed again and looked out the window tiredly. "Yeah, well, it's a horrible world."
TO BE CONTINUED...
