We all got settled down fairly fast after that, and I found enough stuff for us to all have canned chili and peaches for dinner. Beck found an old pot in the safe house and we used the fire to heat up the food. There was a small argument as to whether or not we should wake Abby up and give her food, but it was settled when the little blonde herself walked out of the safe house and asked about something to eat.

After this we were mostly silent. Having Abby up and walking around in an abnormally silent manner, was just a painful reminder that we still had people we cared for that had yet to join us. Beck was in a much better mood, but then again I couldn't exactly blame him. Every time we met each other's eyes we shared a small smile, but at the same time I felt guilty.

How could I be so happy, not knowing that everyone I have come to care about are safe? Chester's final silent words to me rose in my mind each time my mind went down this path, and I had to back peddle away from it, and take my train of thought down a different path.

As the embers of the fire started to die out, and the skies had nearly lost all light, Ben picked up Abby, "Come on sweet cheeks, time to settle down for the night," he said. The way he looked down at her with such care made me wonder how I had ever thought he could be evil.

The best I could come up with, was that back then I had a predisposition that everyone was bad. I watched as Abby yawned and looked up at him with all the trust in the world.

"Story time?"

Ben's face paled, "Do you have your book?" he asked, clearly not wanting to tell her no.

She shook her head, "No Michael keeps it," she said, eyes looking two seconds away from tears.

"I've got one," I volunteered, finding my old copy of Alice in Wonderland and handing it over.

Abby thanked me, and Ben threw me a grateful look before they both went into the safe house. I took a seat next to Beck on the log that he and Adam had found and brought over to sit on. Beck moved his arm so that it was around my waist, and I leaned against his side. I stared at the dieing fire while Beck and Adam talked about the plans.

"So, I say we stay here tomorrow night and head out the next morning," Adam was saying, as he wiped a cloth over the sparkling blade.

Beck's hand rubbed my side while he replied, "Sounds good to me, we have roughly enough food for that, and it gives them enough time."

I picked my head up from his shoulder to look at him, "What if no one comes?" my voice cut through the air like a breeze that brought nothing but chills.

Adam and Beck exchanged a look and they seemed to agree. I understood it without them saying anything, and honestly I hadn't actually expected anything better. We'd wait the amount of time agreed on, but if no one showed up, we were still going to leave. The most we would do would be leave a little bit of provisions, and maybe the direction that we had decided to travel. That way they'd have something to go off of.

I sighed and turned away, making it clear they didn't need to voice this.

We were quiet again, all of us lost to our own minds, and listening to the woods around us until Ben came back outside. He had ditched his ruined clothes in favour of a light blue shirt and some nice shorts. He had a gun holstered, and bow in his hands.

"Kodi, I heard you were pretty good with this?" he said, offering me the weapon.

I hesitated, but took it, looking at him curiously, "Thanks?"

He grinned goofily, "Don't mention it, I liked to carry it around because I thought I was a pretty good shot. Adam liked to tell me otherwise, but I didn't realize how stupid it was to carry around a weapon I couldn't really operate until today. I think you'll do better with it than I can," he winked at me.

"Hey now, no flirting with her," Beck said, a gruff tone in his happy voice.

Ben rolled his eyes and sat down on the ground, "You're no fun," he complained and leaned back on his elbows, "So where are we headed after this?" he said to no one in particular.

When no one offered up a suggestion, I spoke up, "Let's head west.. towards the ocean, " all three guys looked at me curiously, and I went on, "once we get there we can go find ourselves a nice little peninsula, or something, and we'll be able to set up something where we aren't exposed on all sides, plus there will be fishing and if it's towards the north we'll have stuff to hunt for food."

I'm not sure where exactly the idea came from, but once I said it, it sounded like a nice plan.

Adam was the first to speak up, "I like that idea, and if we find something along the way that we like, we can always stop there," he reasoned, looking around the group.

Having Adam like my idea made me a little more confident in it, and when the others shook their heads in agreement solidifying the plan, I was unable to keep myself from imagining the many scenarios. After this, Ben started a game to which Beck didn't play, and Adam and I kept making fun of. We didn't even let him say what color it was before we were guessing wild, out of the blue, insane things like a piggy bank or a taco bell.

Ben stopped playing when he started to yawn, "Who wants first watch?" he asked, standing up and brushing off the dirt and dead grass from his shirt.

"I'll take first watch, Adam can have second, and then you and Kodi both can have the early morning watch," Beck said with a tone of finality.

No one argued, though I wanted to point out that I was perfectly capable of watching on my own. After both Adam and Ben went inside, I stood up and grabbed my new bow. I paused just inside of the safe house door and looked back at Beck.

"Night Beck," I said and walked inside.

Beck's words floated to me before the door fell shut, "Sweetdreams Kodi."

Inside the safe house was marginally better than the outside. The floors weren't clean, but they weren't rotten and falling in like you might expect just from looking at the outside. I passed the useless kitchen, peaking in before I continued on. The cupboards were all hanging open and empty, and the sink was turned on, no water coming out of the old pipes.

I passed the first two doors, which Beck had explained were the coat closet and the bathroom, which also didn't work. The first bedroom I came upon was where the boys had taken up camp for the next few nights, and I didn't look in, respecting their privacy. At the end of the hall was the room Abby and I were sharing, it had two twin sized beds and looked as if it had once held two little boys, one with a love for the movie Cars, and the other who enjoyed sporty things.

The decorations made me smile despite the fact that these boys who had once lived here, would likely never see their old rooms again. Abby clutched my book in a hug while she slept, and I saw her doll lying in a box with a bandana as a blanket. I smiled and set my bag on the bed with little soccer balls all over it.

After I found a new shirt, and a pair of shorts, I made my way quietly down the hall to the bathroom. Ben had put a gallon of water in their so we could wash up, and there were also some wash rags and soap on the counter. A candle was on the counter with some matches next to it, and once it was lit it made the darkness seem somehow more sinister. The light flickered around the room as the flame danced with what little breeze was in the room.

I avoided the mirror completely while using a rag an as little water as possible to scrub at my skin. I scrubbed all of the exposed skin, and then peeled off my dirty clothes, leaving on my underclothes, and wiped down the rest of my body. Once I felt a little bit more clean, I worked on cleaning up the shirt the best I could, and then I worked on the leggings.

Once everything was as clean as it was going to get, I hung the wet clothes on the curtain rod to dry. I was just headed out the door back to my shared room when I remembered the candle, and as I turned to blow it out, I caught my reflection.

I couldn't figure it out, but something about me had changed, and it wasn't the fact that I still had a bit of dirt in my hair. My shirt caught my attention, and while it wasn't the thing that had made my reflection seem like a stranger, it still made me pause. The graphics on it were familiar, though I was pretty sure I didn't know what they meant. It was until I tried to smell the fabric that Chester's scent drifted out, assaulting my nose and making me tear up. Not because the scent was bad, but because the pain was fresh.

I blew out the light and fled the bathroom, not wanting to stick around any longer than I already had. In the hall, Ben was leaning against the wall waiting to get into the bathroom. I blushed, "Oh, sorry, were you waiting long?" I asked.

He shook his head, and opened his mouth to say something. At the last possible moment, he must have changed his mind because all he said was, "Nah, you're fine, I'll see you bright and early," he grinned and then walked past me to the bathroom.

I quietly made my way to my temporary room, and after packing my bag back up, I laid down in the borrowed bed. I fell asleep wondering just how many more temporary places I would be staying at.