I let out a shaky breath, the puff of air becoming visible in the cold weather. I hugged my arms to my chest, pulling the thin fabric of Grace's sweater closer to my body. 

I didn't know how long I'd been out, but I'd awoken about a couple hours ago. My legs still hurt from the stress I'd put on them, and my bullet wound still ached. The blood had long since dried and made the material of my shirt stiffen. But other than the obvious pain I was feeling, I was alive and more determined than ever. 

"Evan," I finally managed, my teeth chattering.

For the first time since I'd awoken, I saw his body shift. 

"Evan!" I said again, my voice more hopeful. 

A grunt came from deep down in his throat and his eyes opened. 

"I'm not dead...yet," he mummbled. 

A smile broke on my face. "Thank god you're alive. What are we going to do?" I asked. 

If it wasn't clear before, it sure was evident now- we needed a plan. We wouldn't make it much farther- not with the weather below freezing and the both of us injured.

Evan grunted again as he forced himself up into a sitting position. 

"We need to make it to the hotel," he said

I paused for a moment. "I'm sorry, what hotel?" I asked. Not once had he said anything about this hotel and I most certainly had not seen one while running to escape Grace. 

Evan shook his head. "Cassie and I decided on the hotel as a rendezvous point. If she's anywhere, she's there."

My heart stopped. "Wait, you've known this the whole time and you didn't care to tell me?" I asked, exasperated. 

From what he'd said earlier at the base, Zombie was with Cassie. And if Evan knew where Cassie might be, that meant he knew where Zombie might be. 

"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't want to give you false hope of returning to your friends."

I pursed my lips. "Where is it? The hotel?" I asked.

"It's not that far away," he said. "I could make it there in ten minutes- tops." 

"Well then, let's go." I started to get up, pressing my palms against the ground to push myself to my feet. 

"No," Evan said, putting his hand out to stop me. "I'll go. I'll come back and get you if it's safe." 

I shook my head in frustration. "No," I said. "We'll both go. Neither of us are strong enough to go on our own." 

Evan seemed to weigh my words for a moment before standing up. "You might be right," he said. "But if the hotel was taken over by Others, it's not safe for you. I can at least-" 

I nodded, waving my hand as if to dismiss what was about to come out of his mouth. "I get it," I said. 

Evan nodded, satisfied. "I'll be back," he said. "Until then, take this-" he took off his jacket and gave it to me "-stay under the overpass and don't freeze to death." 

"No promises," I said, taking the jacket from him. "Thank you." 

He nodded. "See you soon." 

Evan left the shelter of the overpass, walking slowly, almost as if his legs were full of lead. He must be more hurt than I'd thought. 

I waited impatiently for a full five minutes before shrugging on his jacket and creeping out in the direction Evan had left. It wasn't snowing as much now, if I was lucky I'd be able to follow the footprints he'd left. 

I couldn't sit around and wait any longer for someone else to give me answers. It was time for me to get them myself. 

I began following the path he'd set out for me, shuffling around cars and then off the highway and through the trees in the forest. It was obvious that Evan had tried covering his tracks, but they were still fresh enough for me to trail. Before long, I came across a multi-story building right off of the highway. Some of its windows were shattered and the layer of paint on the outside was peeling. It was crumbling at the top and, as far as I could tell, there were no signs of life. 

I let my gaze drift down to the front door just in time to see Evan slide inside. 

I waited for for a few extra minutes before following him. Once inside, a small sigh of relief escaped my lips. The hotel wasn't much warmer than it was outside, but it was better than nothing. And I couldn't hear any signs of trouble. 

I painfully dragged myself past some broken chairs to the first flight of stairs. The mere ten minutes of walking had taken it out of me- even walking made me want to collapse on the floor in exhaustion. 

A crash interrupted the stiff air and my eyes shot to the ceiling. They were above me. A loud thud caused bits of plaster to fall from the ceiling and the world seemed to quake. My heart thumped against my chest as I flew up the steps.

I arrived to the top just in time to see Evan ram into a boy's side. Evan took him down to the ground, sending his fist sailing into the boy's jaw. 

The boy was wearing a yellow hoodie and a pair of jeans. His one leg seemed to lag behind the other as he kicked his feet around and into Evan's stomach. 

Evan grunted as the boy threw him off and slammed a fist into the side of his head. 

"I knew you weren't for real," the boy said, spitting some blood out onto the floor. 

My eyes widened and I steadied myself on the railing, my legs feeling weak. I knew that voice. 

Zombie. 

I moved to interfere, worried that one of them would kill the other before Zombie knew what was actually going on. 

Before I had time to do anything, Nugget was standing in the doorway, a shotgun in hand. 

"Sammy, do you remember me? I-" Evan started. 

Nugget raised the gun to his face, a confused and frightened expression taking hold. 

Zombie kicked him and Evan made an advance on Nugget, holding out his hand. 

I raced forward, but a short, blonde haired girl moved quickly past me, my body colliding with the wall. 

"Sammy!" she called, pushing him back. she brought up her gun. she aimed. she fired. 

Bang

"Evan!" I shouted. What was she doing? This boy had saved her life and Cassie had the audacity to shoot him? 

I pushed past her to stand in the doorway. 

"Canary!" Nugget exclaimed, throwing his gun down to hug my waist. 

"Lucy?" Cassie asked from behind me. 

"Her name is Canary," Nugget corrected, tightening his grip on me. 

Zombie made a step towards me, his mouth slightly open and his eyes large. 

My heart began to beat faster just at the sight of him. Aside from the light stubble and disheveled hair, he looked like the same boy I'd spent days, months thinking about. 

I ruffled Nugget's hair and bent down to hug him, not wanting to meet Zombie's eyes. I buried my face in his curls, holding him close to me. 

"I missed you, Canary," Nugget whimpered, his body beginning to shake with sobs. "You have no idea, we-we thought you were d-dead." 

I pulled him out to arms length, bringing a hand up to wipe the tears from his cheeks. 

"I know, I know," I said soothingly. "But I'm here now. Everything is going to be ok." 

Nugget nodded, a small smile spreading across his lips. "Z-"

"Wait- is Lucy the girl that Zombie left behind at the base?" Cassie interrupted, moving past us to sit beside Evan. 

I began to stand up, my fingers curling into my palms. My eyes met Zombie's for a split second before he looked at Cassie. 

"Yes, Lucy is the girl," Zombie said. "But I didn't leave her behind," he continued with a slight edge to his tone. 

"Ok, whatever, Ben," she said, reaching to brush the hair out of Evan's eyes. 

My heart sank. Hearing her say his name brought me back to our days in high school...when Ben was Cassie's.

"Canary, are you ok?" Nugget asked softly, reaching up to tug at my sleeve. 

"Uh yeah I'm fine, I just-" 

"Lucy-" Cassie said slowly. I turned away from Nugget to glance at Cassie. "-Is Lizbeth-"

I shook my head, diverting my eyes from hers. "No," I said, my voice breaking. 

So I'd found Cassie. Cassie was alive. And Cassie knew about Lizbeth. Hopefully now I could move forward without having the weight of her death- and last request-on my shoulders. 

"How did she die?" Cassie asked. Cassie smoothed down the fabric of Evan's shirt and ran her hand over his bare lower arm until she reached his hand. She intertwined their fingers together, a ghost of a smile taking place on her lips. 

"The plague," I said, my tone hardening.

She nodded once, just a small dip of her head. "He's freezing," Cassie murmured. "Doesn't he have a jacket?"

I looked down at the second jacket I was wearing, it's sleeves ran past my fingertips and its thick material reached the middle of my thighs. I suddenly felt embarrassed and a little bit guilty. 

"This is his," I said, shrugging it off. I handed it to her and she took it without much of a thank you or expression of gratitude. 

The five of us stood, sat, or slept there in complete silence. I ached to say something to Zombie- whether it be how much I'd missed him or just a simple 'hello'. I also ached to wind my arms around his neck and bury my face in the crook of his neck for the rest of eternity. But both of those seemed completely unfathomable with Nugget clinging to my leg and Cassie a few feet away. 

I glanced at Cassie, my mind beginning to spin. I was still trying to figure out whether something had happened between her or Zombie. It was still possible, right? Just because she was currently draped over Evan didn't mean she hadn't been draped over Zombie last night. I mean, she had shot him. And everyone else called him Zombie, but she had called him Ben. 

"Where is everyone?" I asked, trying to distract myself from my thoughts. 

"Ringer left to find us a different place. Teacup followed her and I sent Poundcake out to bring her back. And Dumbo and Flintstone are off trying to find medical supplies." Zombie said, finally deciding to speak. 

"Well Dumbo better be back soon- Evan needs a doctor," Cassie said. 

I noticed Zombie's jaw setting and his eyes narrowing at the mention of Evan's name. He took a step forward, towards the both of them on the ground. "Listen-" 

"Zombie." I interrupted. "Can I talk to you, alone?" 

The last thing any of us needed right now was Zombie beating up someone who was already unconscious. 

Zombie's eyes flickered to mine and his lips parted slightly. "Yeah." 

I carefully pried Nugget off of me and planted a kiss on the top of his head. "I'll be right back," I said. 

And without looking to see if Zombie was following me, I walked through the door and out of the room. 

<><><>

Happy 2017! I hope it's an even better year for you all than 2016 was! Remember to do something amazing and make this year one to remember! 

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Let me know your thoughts in the comments! Predictions? Hopes? Dreams? 

And tap that little star button if you love Ben Parish (and I know you do ;)!