The car runs out of gas the next day, and we are forced to start walking. To where, no one knows. Now, we are stuck just wandering around the countryside, hoping that nothing too dangerous is out here.
"We need to stop soon," I huff, dragging my feet behind me. "Cause if we don't, I'm gonna collapse."
And I am not even exaggerating this time. We have been walking since the car broke down late last night, and the sun is just starting to set now. I am barely managing to keep my feet moving, not even bothering to keep my eyes open most of the time. Instead, I am just stumbling behind Finn, who is now holding Viola with Harry walking ahead of us all.
"Same," Jacob says, voice coming out gravely from exhaustion.
"We should get some rest," Finn finally relents. "We'll check out the next place we come across."
The problem with the countryside is that a lot of the people out here are still in their homes, not having a reason to leave when the monsters haven't made it out this far. So, all the homes we have come across have had occupants, some of which didn't acknowledge us at all and the others forced us to leave.
Suffice to say, we have all been pretty snarky about this whole ordeal, but Finn is the only one who has managed to reign back his agitation and keep a clear head.
"Looks like a small place over there," Finn says, pointing to a small house about a half a mile in front of us.
"I swear to god if this place is not empty, I am going to have to slap someone," Jacob mutters.
"Jacob, if you touch me, I swear to god, I will push you in the ditch and leave you," Danny mutters.
"Aw, you don't mean that," Jacob says, bumping into his brother's tense shoulder. "And besides, I'll just drag you down there with me."
Rolling my eyes, I try to push myself to keep moving. These hills are killer out here, and combined with the cold sprinkling rain, all I want to do is curl up in a warm bed and sleep for days. Besides, the brother's are constantly bickering, pushing each other's buttons every chance they get. I truly wonder how they were able to run a store together.
"Will the both of you just be quiet for once?" Finn grumbles, shooting the brothers a hard look with his narrowed eyes. Luckily- for once- the boys actually listen to him. "We are almost there."
Looking ahead again, I see that he is right. The house is pretty close now, and from the looks of it, nobody seems to be inside. No lights are turned on, and there isn't any sound coming from the house. The occupants could just be sleeping, but that isn't very likely seeing as the sun is just now starting to set.
Finn motions for us to move to the tree line, handing over Viola to me before creeping his way over to the house. Shivering, I hold Viola closer to me, unzipping my jacket before re-zipping it over her, wanting to keep her as warm as possible.
It is a little difficult to see Finn since the sun is setting, but I am able to make out his shape. Trying to hold back my worry, I watch as he walks carefully around the house, peeking in windows, before stopping at the front door.
He pulls something out of his pocket before kneeling down on the porch, seeming to fiddle with the door knob for a full minute before it swings open. Huh, I didn't know that Finn knew how to pick locks.
Heat spreads through me at the thought, and I try to tame back the attraction. Now is not the time, and I am not too sure my mom would be very happy about me finding lock picking hot.
Finn warily steps inside the darkness of the house, his gun that had been clipped to his waist raised. He is gone for a whole five minutes, and my heart is pounding the entire time. What if there is someone in there and they shoot him, thinking he is an intruder? Well, I guess technically he is an intruder, but that isn't the point. The only reason I have been surviving this damn apocalypse is because of Finn, and I can already tell that I am starting to fall for him.
What can I say? The whole heroism thing gets my heart pounding.
After what seems like forever, Finn finally steps out of the house, his gun lowered. He motions for us to come over, and I let out a sigh of relief. Jacob and Danny are mumbling to each other, their heads only a few inches apart as they talk. They seem to be arguing again, and when Jacob goes to wrap an arm around his brother, Danny just pinches his side. A pout spreads across Jacob's face, but Danny just raises an eyebrow at him, not giving into his brother.
Shaking my head, I leave them be and start walking over to the house. Harry sticks close to my side, and I almost trip over him twice, but the pup refuses to walk more than an inch away from me. He is probably scared; I know I am.
Finn herds me inside once I reach him, his hand pressed against the bottom of my back. The brothers walk together into the house about a minute later, and Finn locks the door behind them.
"Alright, so it looks like the people living here just went on vacation and didn't come back, since they still have food in the fridge and laundry on the bathroom floor. But, I think we should be fine for now, as long as we keep the doors locked." Finn stands close to my side, and my body starts to warm up from his body heat. "There are only two bedrooms, one upstairs and one downstairs, and there is a lot of food in the pantry, so help yourself."
Jacob and Danny nod their heads before heading off to the kitchen. Looking down at Viola, I see that she is fast asleep, her hand curled into my shirt as she holds on to me.
Finn turns so that he is standing directly in front of me. "You hungry?"
Shaking my head, I look up at him. "No, just tired. I'll eat in the morning."
Finn nods his head, eyes moving down to rest on Viola, a softness coming over his face. "Okay," he says. "Why don't the two of you go up to the bedroom on the second floor while I sort through some of the food and make sure the brothers don't eat all of it."
Nodding my head, I drag myself upstairs to the tiny little bedroom. It is barely big enough for the queen sized bed, and besides a dresser, there is nothing else in here. With a tired sigh, I shrug off the pack I had on my back and set it down on the floor. Viola stirs when I set her down on the bed, but stays asleep as I quickly change her diaper and slip her into a warm pair of pajamas. We were able to get some clothes from Mrs. Logan, who still had some from when her grandchildren visited, along with some clothes that her friends gave us as well.
Grimacing, I try not to think about what happened to the Logans, knowing that they most likely didn't survive the attacks of the monsters.
Harry whines when I go to climb onto the mattress. Rolling my eyes, I bend down to pick him up, setting him on the bed. The tired puppy walks in circles before letting out a huff and laying down. Picking up Viola, I move her so that she is laying in the middle of the bed. Honestly, it scares me a little bit to have her in the same bed as me, since I don't want to accidently roll over on her, but there is nowhere else to lay her. And there is no way I am putting her in a different room, not when we might have to leave here at a moment's notice.
As quickly as I can, I strip out of my jeans, leaving me in just my briefs and t-shirt. The bed is not as comfortable as the one at the bed and breakfast, but it will do. At least the blankets are heavy and warm.
Viola snuffles a little bit as I move her so that she is laying a little higher than me. I don't want her to be smothered by the blankets, and when I pull them up, they come to rest at her stomach.
It is only a matter of minutes before I am fast asleep, my exhaustion quickly pulling me under.
I don't know quite how long I am asleep for, when I hear the bedroom door open and soft footsteps on the floor. The rustling of clothes are the only sounds in the room, and soon the person slips under the blankets as well.
Cracking open an eye, I watch as Finn gets comfortable, his hand settling on Viola's stomach for a minute before he looks over at me.
"I thought you'd be asleep by now," he says, his voice soft in the night air.
"Mm," I hum relaxing more now that Finn is here. "I was, but I heard you come in."
"Sorry."
The bed shifts again, and then I feel a hand settle onto my waist, pulling me closer to Finn. A smile spreads across my face, and I don't even try to stop it.
Things are definitely becoming more clear. Because I have a feeling that maybe Finn is not as uninterested as I thought he was. If that is true, things from before are definitely starting to make more sense. The whole fact that he doesn't like Jacob probably has to do with the fact that Jacob had flirted with me.
And Finn was jealous.
Something warm bubbles inside me, because I never even thought about the prospect of Finn liking guys. I have never been too good at knowing if someone was gay just from looking at them, usually they had to blatantly tell me.
But I think Finn has been clear enough, and I have just been oblivious.
"What are you smiling about over there?" Finn whispers, his thumb rubbing circles into the small of my back.
Opening my eyes, I scoot a little bit closer to him, leaving just enough room so that Viola isn't squished between the two of us.
"I think I have finally figured something out," I say, watching as Finn's brows scrunch a little bit in curiosity.
"What's that?"
Instead of answering him, I rest my hand on his cheek before slowly winding my fingers through his auburn locks. Without saying a word, I pull him closer to me, so that I am able to press my lips against him.
Finn seems shocked for a moment, but just when I am starting to feel uncertain, his hand presses me closer to him, and he deepens the kiss. He nips at my bottom lip, catching it between his teeth before letting it go. My breath catches in my throat, but Finn doesn't allow for me to catch my breath. Instead, he deepens the kiss for just a second, his tongue brushing up against mine before he pulls away completely.
Neither of us says anything, trying to catch our breath, but I can see the smile spreading across Finn's face. I have absolutely no doubt that my own is just as big. Laying back down on the mattress, I slip my leg between Finn's relishing in his warmth while once again closing my eyes.
This is the happiest I have been since this whole outbreak happened, and I am more than happy that it is Finn who happened to be working that day at the lab. Because we are perfect for each other, able to balance one another out.
I know that this relationship is still new- we have only known each other for about a month- but it just feels right. Before my doubts can start creeping into my overthinking mind, Finn presses a kiss onto my forehead, calming my thoughts.
This is something new in a world desperately trying to fall apart, and I won't let either him or Viola go without a fight.
Because they are my family now, and as Lilo had said, family means no one gets left behind.