novelraw Chapter 93: Am I Going Crazy?
Chapter 93: Am I Going Crazy?
One thing that bothered Sera the most was the fact that the lights were still on.
She just walked into the cabin, switched on a light and there was light.
In a way, it was not all that big of a thing, having access to light was considered to be a norm in modern society.
But in another way, it was starting to make her feel crazy.
When all the supplies were finally loaded into the cabin and the guys were off doing whatever, Sera went straight to the bathroom and leaned over the sink, looking at herself in the mirror.
Everything was too normal. And it was grating on her nerves.
With an impatient swipe of her sleeve, she roughly wiped one cheek of make up off, letting the pale purple of her skin shine through. The light overhead flickered just for an instant, but then it was back to normal.
Just like everything else.
Everything but her.
"I am not going crazy," she whispered to herself in the mirror as she turned on the water and started washing her face. Normally she kept the makeup on as long as possible, never really washing it off unless she was in the shower, but right now, she needed proof that she wasn’t just living in her head.
Today was the first real day of seeing other people. Other people who were ransacking, and hording supplies, and everything else she thought they should be doing. Only she thought they should have started weeks ago, the moment the EMP hit Country M.
But that was the problem, wasn’t it?
Most people thought that the end of the world came with a big bang. Something loud, deadly, where people screamed as they ran down the streets or their radios and cellphones started to broadcast an emergency line.
That was what happened in Country M.
But not here.
Sure, there were zombies wandering around the area, but after the first week or so, they barely ran into them. And even then, the government had an explanation for it. Mental patients, ones that had cannibalistic tendencies, but they weren’t a threat.
Reaching up, Sera dried off her face and stared back into the mirror. The contacts were still in... still driving her crazy.
As quick as she could, she took them out, letting herself see the proof of what was to come next.
The creature stared back at her from the mirror, reassuring her that this wasn’t a nightmare. That she wasn’t asleep in Adam’s cage, only to one day wake up to another round of torture. She hadn’t survived that the first time around, and it was only thanks to the Devil that she even got this second chance.
But still, the whispers in her brain told her that it really wasn’t that bad. That maybe, just because something happened in Country M when she expected it to, that didn’t mean that Country N would fall, too.
A faint knock sounded on the bathroom door as she continued to reel. "Busy," she bit out, her teeth changing just a bit at the sudden sound.
"It’s just me," murmured Lachlan, his voice soothing on the other side of the wooden barrier. "Can you let me in? Unless, you know, you are actually using the washroom. Then I can just stay out here until you are done."
"What do you want?" hissed Sera, gripping the edge of the sink even harder. It started to crumble beneath her hands as she never looked away from the mirror.
"A lot of things," replied the man, and Sera could practically picture him shrugging his shoulders as he leaned against the wall beside the bathroom door. "But I’m starting to get cranky at this newfound distance between us. It wasn’t there before, and I want to know how to fix it."
Sera blinked a few times as both her and her creature tried to make sense of his words. It was the end of the world. Were they really supposed to be taking the time to cuddle, and kiss, and profess their undying love?
Sera shook her head.
Spinning around, she unlocked the door and went to go stand behind it, just in case there was someone else in the hallway she didn’t want to see her like this.
"It’s unlocked," she grunted, trying to work around her teeth.
Lachlan walked in and closed the door behind her. "You okay, Sweetheart?" he asked, looking her up and down. "You’ve seemed to have been on edge for the past few days. Is there anything I can help with?"
Sera just blinked at him, cocking her head to the side as her creature rose just a bit more. He had only seen her like this one time before when she was fighting the zombies in the back yard, but he didn’t even flinch when he saw her now.
"Am I crazy?" she aske, before quickly shutting her mouth. That wasn’t the question she wanted to ask... so why did she?
"Nope," smiled Lachlan, going over to the toilet and taking a seat on the lid. "Not even a little."
"But it doesn’t seem like it’s the end of the world. We still have lights!" Seras started pacing back and for as she threw her hands up in the air, almost smacking Lachlan in the face. "Maybe I am crazy. Maybe the world isn’t really ending... maybe I am just doing all this for no reason and I dragged you and your friends into this shit when really it’s just another Monday... or Tuesday... fuck I don’t even know what day of the week it is! See?!? I’m going crazy!"
Ever so slowly, Lachlan rose to his feet and stood in Sera’s path. Despite her protests, he wrapped his arms around her so that her face was buried in his chest. "First of all," he started, his voice low as his chest started vibrating around her. "I have yet to see you be wrong. You told me not to take the vaccine, that it wouldn’t go well."
"You still took it," pointed out Sera, her shoulders dropping the more she breathed in Lachlan’s scent.
"And I turned into a smurf with extra large teeth and a creature inside of me demanding that I rip out the throats of anyone and everyone around you, including my friends and teammates." The chuckle was soft and soothing like it wasn’t that big of a deal, but Sera knew that he must be still reeling about that whole thing.
"Just wait until the mutations hit," she muttered under her breath. "I’ve heard horror stories about the users."
"See," said Lachlan after a moment. "I didn’t know that was coming at all. You are the only reason why Zubair, Alexei, Elias, and myself are still alive. Don’t cut yourself short. I trust you more than I trust anyone else right now. If you say right, I will not go left."