At the End of the World [Laine x Pari]

Autumn shrank away from Russell at his outburst, her eyes wide. There was a flash of pain in them. Then they narrowed. "We both worked it out." Her tone was cold, wanting to mask the hurt she was feeling. She lowered her gaze to the floor, picking at her shirt.


"He said that one of the guards had dropped them. They had been looking for someone, got into a fight, and the papers were dropped. He took them and hid them." She didn't tell him where. She didn't feel she could tell him where. And it made her feel lonely. "Russell, I know this is all hard to believe," It wasn't for her, as she felt she had proof, "but please, you have to believe me. It's not safe here. Haven't you noticed? People practically worship Ebony for her supposed 'immunity'."


"Besides, don't you think it's a little odd that they never gave you your bag back? The one that had all the medicine?" The brunette was still unwilling to reveal that she had hidden the rest, and she was even more so when he did not believe her. She was speaking quietly, in case someone was listening, as well as trying to keep her frustration and hurt under control.


"I'm just trying to keep us alive. Okay? I just want to keep us alive. And I don't trust this town, with its-its cult or whatever. People disappear, Russell. I don't want that to be either one of us." She finally looked up at him, a slight scowl on her face. She snatched the paper from his hand, folding it up and putting it back in her pocket. She didn't understand why he didn't believe her. The evidence was right there in front of them. It frustrated her how he didn't see it, and how he always seemed to just brush off her warnings. Before, when they were on the road, she had felt that having him as a companion would be great. He always seemed to be there for her. But when they arrived at Hamden, it was like he changed. Like he wasn't the Russell she had known on the road. It made her uncomfortable, on edge, and lonelier.


Autumn swallowed thickly, not sure of what else to say as she gazed up at him. What else was there to say? He obviously didn't believe her, no matter how much he "wanted to". When he said that, she didn't believe him. She didn't know how she could persuade him something was wrong, and she was beginning to wonder if she ever would.


Autumn started wondering if it was to be best to just leave Russell there. He seemed happier. Though as soon as the thought entered her mind, she pushed it away. Hamden gave her a bad feeling, and she wouldn't just leave him there like that. At the same time, she wondered if he would even want to leave. She let out a quiet sigh to herself, suddenly feeling sad.
 
Russell dragged a hand through his hair, sighing. Deep down he was frustrated and angry, thinking that Gage had fabricated the papers himself in order to trick Autumn into listening to her. Infact, the whole problem he had with her argument was that it came from Gage, who he didn’t trust in the slightest. He almost said something to that effect, but seeing how tense her face and posture were, he left it in his mind, trying to think of a way to talk her around instead.


Contrary to how she saw him, Russell was finding more and more that Autumn was a guarded person in general – perhaps she always had been, or perhaps the apocalypse had made it that way. The more he thought about it, the more he understood that whether they were at her home in Belmont, on the road or in Hamden, she was always keeping an eye out, never wanting to stay anywhere for too long, not trusting anyone unless they had proven themselves. While it was a useful tool then, now, Russell thought, it was just becoming tiring. Not to mention, it probably explained why nothing he was doing was working for her – she was too busy worrying about everything else to even notice him. It made her a very frustrating person to live with, and Russell was beginning to wonder whether she was really worth it.


“She- they took the medicine, as payment. Maybe it wasn’t well explained to you, but Ebony told me, we can stay here as long as we like, because of my donation.” He sighed again, recoiling as she snatched the paper from him, his anger melting away as she spoke. “I’m trying to keep us alive, too. That’s why we came here, remember? Because we were escaping all the gangs and violence in Belmont.” Ebony’s conversation had brought back up the bad memories of his hometown after the apocalypse, and he prayed she remembered as much as he did how much they hated it. “There’s no weapons, no arguments, no zombies, it’s peaceful. Are you really telling me you’re no happier here than you were there?!”


He sniffed, realising he’d raised his voice again, and he paced, shaking his head and biting his lip. “Sorry. Sorry. It’s just…frustrating, isn’t it? Neither of us want to believe the other. There’s only one way you can convince me, and that’s with proof. And something more than what Gage provided,” His tone was bitter as he said his name, and he paused pensively. “If I can hear it from Ebony’s mouth, then I might be inclined to believe you about…all this. Maybe next time we see her – like after carousel – I can speak to her about the disappearances. And I’ll ask her – I’ll ask her about the papers Gage ‘found’, as well. I won’t mention you, obviously, but, it’ll be interesting to see how she reacts, won’t it? Maybe she’ll just laugh it off and then we’ll know that Gage made them up.” His last sentence sounded hopeful, a small smile creeping onto the corners of his mouth as he suggested the idea. To him, it seemed like perfectly reasonable; he was vastly unaware of the trouble he would get in if he even knew about the papers, and his determination to both prove Autumn wrong and make her happy by believing her was forcing him to make irrational and dangerous decisions.
 
"Are you really that naive? Are you?" Autumn's frustration was bubbling to the surface, her voice steadily rising higher before she realized it was. "What makes you think she'll tell the truth? They want you to stay, they want your guard to drop, Russell. You're playing right into their hands." Her tone was bitter and frustrated, the girl getting fed up with the whole thing. He was too blind to see what was wrong, and she was too blind to see how well he fit in with the lifestyle.


She had arrived at Hamden, a wary feeling present ever since she first stepped inside. The people at the hotel in the dining room, as well as Gage's suspicion, only increased the apprehension she felt. And then Gage showed her the papers, which, in her mind, proved that there was something wrong going on. But Russell wanted more evidence, something she didn't exactly have. She chewed her lip, more with frustration than nervousness. Why wouldn't he listen to her? Dangerous thoughts crept into her mind, thoughts that arguing with him was getting nowhere and she should just give up. Leave without him. If he was going to be like this every time they arrived in some seemingly amazing town, it wouldn't be worth the risk that they would face, as well as the countless other arguments that were bound to happen.


The brunette let out a sigh, doing her best to calm herself before speaking again. "Look. The carousel's daily. It happens sometime in the afternoon, before dinner's served, I think. It's like a ritual. And the other thing. Ebony shows this, this fearlessness that's dangerous in this world. You can't just go parading around somewhere out there, opening your gates for an hour. That'll get someone killed, or turned. I'm not saying this place is worse than Belmont, but it's not better, either." Her annoyance was seeping into her words, a trace of bitterness embedded as well. Maybe she was overreacting, maybe not, but either way, Russell was making her angry. The mention of Belmont stirred up memories for her as well, none that helped the situation.


"You saw the dining room last night. It was practically empty. There were ten pages of those names. Ten. You saw how small the handwriting was." She stood up, walking over to the window, looking out over the town. She saw how the sun was lower. It looked to be a few hours after noon. The carousel would start soon, she thought. Turning to face Russell, she crossed her arms. "People don't just leave this place, this 'paradise'." There were air quotes around the word. "They disappear. I don't care what you think about the papers. Those x's aren't just random, and neither are those numbers. Say what you will about Gage," Russell's bitterness towards the other man hadn't escaped her notice, "but I think Ebony is a lot less trustworthy."
 
“Yeah, well, they don’t just let people in here, stupid.” He snapped. The way his idea was so easily shot down made him scrunch his face in anger. “So there’s not a lot of people in here to begin with. But even if people were disappearing – people go missing all the time!...Maybe-maybe they left because they were like you, and were never happy no matter with what they got!” He was almost yelling by this point, his frustration bubbling to the surface as she remained adamant as ever.


His fists were clenched as he was met with silence. “And what’s your deal with Ebony?” He hissed, “She let us in her town, and she didn’t have to. So what people respect her? She’s not violent or unfair, and yet she’s managed to make a name for herself. She’s rebuilt what we used to have. That’s incredible, you know?” He folded his arms, now into a full-blown rant as he breathed heavily, “You know what? I get it now. You’re jealous. You’re jealous of Ebony, because she knows what she wants, and she has it. You’re too busy worrying about stupid little things, that you don’t even know what you do want. You don’t even see what you have, here, right in front of you.” He held his hands out, gesturing to him and the rest of the room, representing his frustration of how she’d been ignoring him and what they had around them.


He rested for a few seconds, letting his words simmer. Tears were forming in his eyes, and he suddenly broke into an outburst again, covering up the question of his affection for her by lashing out again. “And you’re bitter, that’s what you are. You’re bitter, because if you’d have known about this place, and Ebony’s immunity before, then you would’ve had a chance to save your friend – Alice – Alex – whatever her name was. So you’re taking it out on me.” He knew full well how hurtful his words were as he spoke, but he was unable to stop himself. When he was done, he breathed heavily, his chest tightening and his stomach churning as he realised what a mistake he’d made. He shook his head, biting his lip to astop the word sorry spilling out in an endless stream. He span around instead, walking for the door and jamming the key in.


As he did so, he was met with a forceful blow from the door as Gage burst in, just as he unlocked it. Russ staggered backwards, holding his nose and crying out in pain, the tears from the argument mixed with the pain from the door streaming from his eyes. Gage blinked, confused at the tension in the room as he walked in. He looked over at Autumn, then to Russell, and then back to Autumn again. “Uh…Autumn…It’s carousel soon. We’d better go, or we might arouse suspicion…” He stammered. He held out a hand for Russell to help him up, but Russ shrugged him off, getting up and wiping at his bloody nose. “Sorry, Russell.” Gage said, feeling his face flush for cutting into the heated conversation.
 
"Don't you dare--!" His words physically hurt her, feeling like knives stabbing her chest. Gone was her attempt to hide her pain, the hurt and betrayal clear on her face. The room and Russell's form blurred, tears streaming down her face as she shook with fury and sorrow. "Don't you dare bring up Alexi like that!" She was practically shouting, her voice higher in pitch from her anger. Emotions swirled inside her; anger, sorrow, guilt. She was glad when he stormed towards the door, she wanted him to leave.


Autumn jumped at the sound of a bang. Looking up, and wiping her tears, she saw Gage. Relief flooded through her. Walking towards him, she shoved past Russell and exited the room. "Come on, Gage." Her voice was suddenly small, and she sniffed as she headed down the stairs, tears still falling. She wiped them away as best as she could, but every time Russell's words returned and she couldn't stop. The brunette slowly descended, not waiting for Gage. She just wanted to get away from her "companion". Her shoulders wracked with sobs that she didn't bother trying to hide. The last thing she wanted to do was attend the carousel, but Gage had said it was mandatory. The last person she wanted to see at that moment was Ebony. It only reminded her of Alexi, and her own failure to save her friend.


What hurt her the most about Russell's words was that he was right. Buried deep inside her was a feeling she hadn't accepted, a feeling that jabbed at her every chance it got. She was bitter. Half of her suspicion towards Ebony was about her so-called immunity. Autumn was bitter because Ebony was immune and Alexi wasn't. And it made her angry. The brunette always harbored feelings of extreme guilt, feelings that hadn't quite disappeared. She always felt like Alexi's death was her fault, even if there was nothing she could really do. Alexi had been bitten while they were moving some of her more important belongings to Autumn's house. Not to mention she couldn't help her even when she had risked almost everything to obtain the medicine, which had landed her in the whole situation in the first place.


Russell's words killed her. "G-Gage?" she asked when he had caught up. "C-can I stay i-in your r-room tonight?" She didn't want to go back in the room with Russell that night, she didn't want to be near him. Autumn took a shaky breath, trying to compose herself. Swiping at her eyes and cheeks, she dried her face off, though her eyes were still red and puffy. Arriving in the lobby, she shoved her hands in her pockets and stalked out of the hotel, still sniffing. There was a crowd gathering towards the stage, and she could see tables set up, lined with dishes of foods and bottles of drinks.
 
Russell glowered at Autumn as she pushed past, wiping at his eyes and blooded nose. He grunted, sniffing loudly and exchanging an angry glance with Gage. “What was that about…?” he asked innocently, taking a step back from Russ as if he was going to strike out at him. “Russell, are you okay…?”


“Keep your beak out, asshat.” Russ growled, one sleeve pressed to his face, pushing the door shut and locking it behind him. Gage stood, bewildered for a second, but decided not to push Russell any further. He instead trudged down the stairs, meeting a tearful Autumn in the lobby. He figured they’d had an argument, and he bit his lip as he realised it was probably his fault. “Uh, well…I mean…sure, if you want, but…don’t you two want to stick together…?” He murmured. She tried to steady her breathing, but her amber eyes were still tearful and puffy from crying. Before he could say anything else, she stalked off, her hands shoved in her pockets.


He paced after her, catching her by the shoulder just as she exited the building. “Autumn, autumn, wait.” He said, twisting her around and pulling her to the side. “Come here. You can’t go to carousel upset like that. Just take a few seconds to calm down.” He leaned down slightly so their eyes were level. “Tell me what happened. Did you try to talk to him…?”


Russell paced around the room indignantly, muttering angry words to himself as he went over their conversation over and over again in his head. He knew he’d spoken out of term, and he felt sick that he’d actually said something so harsh. He desperately wanted to go downstairs and apologise to her while he still had the chance, but at the same time, he was still frustrated by their situation, and how set she was in what Gage was saying. The fact that he was with her, the suspicious individual who had mysteriously ‘found’ the papers, made Russell all the more upset, and he left the room a few minutes afterwards, locking the door behind him and dropping the key in his pocket.


When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he could Autumn and Gage outside the glass doors, in a loose embrace, with Gage’s arms wrapped around Autumn’s shoulders as he tried to comfort her. Russ stalked across the lobby, feeling his heart wrench in his chest as his fears were realised. He felt tears spring to his eyes again, but managed to hold them back, clearing his throat loudly as stood next to them, his arms crossed and his face twisted into a grimace. "Well? I thought we were going to carousel, not hugging to keep warm." He snarled, although most of his malice was directed at Gage.
 
"No." Her answer was short. She didn't want to go back to the room with Russell. Not that night. Not if they had to share a bed. She was upset, not wanting another argument. One was enough, especially if he would bring up Alexi again. Sniffing, she tried to calm down as Gage had instructed, taking deep breaths. She leaned her head against his shoulder. His embrace comforted her.


After her tears had dried and her breathing had returned to normal, she told Gage what had happened. "I tried talking to him. I showed him the paper. He didn't believe me. I...I got mad, and started yelling. He did, too, and it kinda... Hit a sore subject for me." It was too painful for her to tell him about Alexi. Blinking her new tears away, she sniffed. "We were both just so angry. I-I guess it's my fault, too." She bit her lip, their argument fresh in her mind. She closed her eyes. "Gage, I just want to leave this place." Autumn didn't know how they could do that. They could sneak out during carousel, but without weapons, food, or water, they wouldn't last long.


Her emotions were getting the better of her. She hadn't even noticed Russell until he spoke up, and the hatred in his voice felt like it was directed towards her, even if it wasn't. Gently breaking free from Gage, she didn't spare her companion a glance before walking away, shoulders slumped. Ebony was already on the stage, talking. The brunette was barely listening.


Her mind was preoccupied with the argument, and feelings of wanting to avoid Russell. Hands buried in her pockets, she looked downright miserable, sticking out in the crowd of people with faces full of awe and admiration. Fingers touching the paper still stuffed in her pocket, her face twisted into a frown. The paper, that stupid piece of paper. Crumpling it up in her hand, she poked it down as far as it could go in her pocket, barely even wanting to touch it. Staring at the ground, she sniffed quietly. Ebony was talking about her immunity - the brunette didn't look up at her, either, tuning out the older woman's voice. It was only another reminder she didn't need.


Ebony's speech seemed to drag on forever. Most of what she said was nothing new to Autumn, but everyone around her drank it up, no matter how many times they had heard it before. She finished with a flourish, motioning with her hands for the guards to open the gates. They opened. No hordes arrived. The outside streets seemed deserted and quiet. People started murmuring to themselves, dispersing and wandering around to the tables. Autumn herself drifted over, snagging a cup of what looked like water. After crying, she felt thirsty, and she wasn't about to deny herself water. Raising the cups to her lips, she drank.


The liquid burned as it went down her throat, and she nearly choked. It wasn't water. Sniffing it, she realized with a start it was alcohol - exactly what it was, she wasn't sure. It made her feel weird. But a good weird. She felt warm and fuzzy. In her emotional state, she didn't care, tipping the cup back and quickly draining it. It didn't take a genius to know that alcohol took away the pain - even if it was only temporary.
 
“This is all your fault.” Russ said, staring daggers at Gage, feeling helpless as Autumn paced away from them both. Gage sighed, feeling like the only responsible adult in charge of two kids – except they weren’t fighting over anything petty, they were arguing over the best way to survive. Worse still, Gage was firmly planted on Autumn’s side, and had no way of convincing Russell to change his mind, at the risk of infuriating him further. Although Autumn had strictly said they weren’t seeing each other, it didn’t take a genius to work out why Russell was being so protective.


“Russell, I’m sorry you feel that way. I’m only doing what I think is right by her – showing her what I believe to be the truth. It’s up to you whether you believe it or not, just know that it could be quite a costly mistake if you take the wrong side here.” Gage said calmly, walking past Russ and ducking into the crowd to find Autumn. While he knew she could look after herself, he was still uneasy about her going off on her own during her first carousel, especially when he knew there was alcohol around.


“What’s that supposed to mean?!” Russ snapped, tagging along behind him, shoving mindless, adoring fans out of the way in order to get to Gage.


“It means that if you like her, and you want her to like you back, you have to be careful what you say to her.” At this point Gage knew that Russell was too blindsighted to understand the logic behind the perfect town, and so he instead decided to use his apparent feelings for Autumn to talking him around. “She really believes me when I say something is going on here. Arguing about it is only going to make you lose her, because she cares more about her survival than she cares for you. If you acted concerned for her life instead of your own comforts like a spoiled, selfish little boy, then she might actually want to spend the night with you.” Gage shouted behind him, using Ebony’s and the rest of the people’s chanting to cover up his words. “She asked to stay in my room tonight, Russell, and neither of us want that. It’s up to you whether you fix it or not.”


“Oh, I bet she did!” Russell shouted back. Gage’s words were hurtful, but all truthful, which only infuriated him further. He stammered a further response, but, unable to get any meaningful words out, he instead marched ahead of Gage, his eyes scanning the crowd as he searched for Autumn. As he disappeared in the crowd of people, Gage saw a guard grab him by the shoulder, spinning him towards the stage where Ebony was standing, and ordering him to listen. Russell stood there, his hands stuffed into his pockets, half-assedly repeating whatever Ebony was saying while still looking around for his companion.


As Ebony’s speech finished, Gage finally found Autumn by the refreshments table, sipping on her third cup as if it were water. “Are you okay…?” he mumbled, a hand on her shoulder as he once again tried to comfort her. “Do you still have the…you know…? I’d hate for you to get searched and have them find it on you. I’ll go back to you-know-where on the way to dinner and put it back with the rest.” He held out his hand for the paper, mindful of any guards that were watching them.


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Russell felt a little dazed by the speech, squinting at the barely visable open gate at the far side of town. It was open, and yet no hordes dared enter, something that baffled him. He wanted to see how far he could get to it, just to see what was out there, but there were guards stood almost in a line in the centre of town, preventing anyone from seeing what was at the gates or beyond. He bumbled around the town aimlessly, his hunger diminished by the argument. He failed to find Autumn, but instead caught sight of Ebony, who was surrounded by the most pious fans, all standing around her and reaching out to touch her, as if her powers would transfer to them. She dismissed them as the saw Russell, a pleasant smile coming to her face as he cautiously walked towards her. I’ll find out once and for all if Autumn’s right, he thought, we’ll see how Ebony reacts to this ‘news’.


He smiled weakly, taking her to one side and talking with his voice hushed, “Ebony, I thought you should know…I found something, near a house in town, and I wasn’t sure what they were.” He drawled, quickly deciding that as much as he wanted to, Autumn wouldn’t appreciate it if he mentioned Gage in this. Figuring that even if the papers were important, Ebony liked Russell too much to reprimand him, and so he thought he would be safe by putting himself in it. “They’re…papers. Like, ten or so sheets, and they’re covered in names, of people, everyone here, I think. I don’t know who wrote them, but they’re very weird…Each name has a number next to it, and there are little ‘x’s written all over it, too. I just thought I should tell you, because, well – I trust you, and I’m worried that there are people in town that are using this information for…bad reasons.” He paused, checking her facial expression for any kind of change that would give away her involvement.
 
"I'm fiiiine." Autumn swayed a little under the weight of his hand, the drink sloshing around in the cup. She giggled. "The wha-- OH." Digging around in her pockets, if she didn't make immediate contact with it, it wasn't there. "Nope!" she said cheerfully, her words slurred. She looked down at Gage's hand with a blank expression on her face. Then she brightened, as if she had just had an epiphany. "Here!" She placed her own hand in his, still giggling as she sipped her drink. It was obvious how completely wasted she was.


As it was her first time drinking, and she was admittedly underage, she had had more than enough when she only had one cup. She was finishing her third. It was to cover up her sadness and grief. "Heeeey, Gaaage. This is actually reeeally gross. But it feels nice." She laughed a little, though she seemed sadder. So she drank more, her cup almost empty. "Do you think he hates meee?" There were tears in her eyes as she looked up at Gage, clutching the cup in her hand as if it were a lifeline. It was obvious she was a wreck, with her previous emotions and her drunkenness.


Autumn had always been an emotional person. Sometimes, if the people around her were in a bad or happy mood, she would get irritated or cheerful. After the apocalypse, she became guarded, less open with her feelings. There were times when her emotions would get the better of her. When Alexi died, and when Russell brought her back up in their argument. In drinking, her emotions were shifting around - happy and giggling, to suddenly sad. Autumn sniffed, drinking the last of the third cup and reaching for her fourth. All around her there were three empty cups. People were staring at her like they had stared when Russell threw up, but she didn't seem to notice or care. Her fourth cup didn't seem as good as the first three, and she was starting to get a funny feeling in her stomach.


Slipping her hand out of Gage's grasp, she poked her stomach. "It feels weird." Her words were still slurred, if not a bit more so. Taking a swig from her cup, she giggled, though still seeming sadder than before. Looking around, she spotted Russell with Ebony. Her eyes narrowed, and she took shaky steps towards them. She stumbled, giggling a bit. For someone who had been rather serious after the apocalypse, it was clear how the alcohol influenced her. The weird feeling in her stomach was getting stronger, and she was beginning to feel dizzy. Everyone was spinning. It should have occurred to her to stop drinking, but in her state, it did not.


***********************


Ebony was careful not to reveal anything. "Oh, those old things?" She laughed a little, placing her hand on Russell's shoulder. "Where did you find those? They're not very important at all, don't worry abut it. I just want to know where they are. It's mostly just to keep track of who comes in and who leaves. There have been so many of you lately!" She smiled warmly at Russell, though she was calculating. How had he found them, when her guards hadn't? Not dropping her facade, she looked at him. It didn't seem like he had guessed what the papers truly meant - something that was good for her. If he had them, but didn't know their meaning, they were good. "No one else really has any use for them except me, but thank you for your concern! How sweet of you."


At the sound of a rather loud voice, Ebony glanced up, her eyebrows furrowed. "Is that..?" Out of all the people to get drunk, Autumn was the least expected. She had seemed too quiet, too guarded, but there she was. The older woman shook her head. "No matter." All she cared about were the papers. That was really it. Russell was safe. He knew about them, but if he believed her lies, then he shouldn't be too much trouble, and he could keep living on oblivious. If there were other people involved, however, she would have to check on them separately to see what they knew. Or rather, what they thought they knew. If they would be as easy to persuade as Russell, who seemed to believe everything she said, it would be alright.
 
Gage frowned, smoothing her hand in his, which turned out to be empty still, no paper to be seen. He sighed, picking up a cup of his own and sniffing it. “No, you’re right, this stuff is not good. Christ, how much have you had to drink?” He gently tried to lift it out of her hand, but she clung to it, giggling and swaying like a typical teen getting drunk for the first time. He held her free hand to steady her, shaking his head. “I’m sure he doesn’t hate you.” He groaned, noting the quick shift from happiness to sadness. He looked around, feeling embarassment as the people gathered around to stare at her. Most of the people were too wrapped in their own surprise to drink at carousel, and even so, the stuff served there was a nasty purified homebrew, which was very high in alcohol content as well as having a vile taste. It was only the young people or the truly sad who came to drown their sorrows, and even then they would usually only take one cup. Autumn was clearly quite a bit more wasted than that.


He saw her start to waver suddenly, stumbling out of his grip and squiggling around as the town began to spin. “Are you okay? Here, come sit down for a second, I’ll get you something to soak it up.” He murmured, catching her before she stumbled over. He half-dragged her towards a bench, pushing her down on it and finally wrenching the cup from her hands. He paced back over to the table and grabbed a large glass of water, and took back over to Autumn, who looked a little green around the gills.


“Here, sit up straight and sip at this. Didn’t your folks ever tell you that underage drinking was bad…?” He said, obviously irritated by her drunken behaviour, but also concerned for her all the same.


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Russell was immediately relieved by Ebony’s response – no anger, no suspicion, no irritation. If anything, she seemed happy that he’d mentioned those, and her casual replies were comforting as he shrugged. “Oh just…you know, around. Yeah, yeah, I thought they were for something like that. I mean, you need to keep track of us all, I guess. It makes sense. It’s no problem, I just thought you should know about them.” He smiled under her praise, feeling like he’d done something right for a change.


He turned his head as Ebony did, narrowing his eyes as he saw Autumn, bumbling around, slightly drunk, with Gage hastily shh-ing her and shaking his head. “Autumn…? Is she…drunk?” He murmured, not knowing that they even had alcohol at carousel, let alone for underage people to drink. He turned back towards Ebony, nodding. “So, um…Did you want them back? I can go get them for you, if you want. Or…well, Autumn can go get them for you. I don’t know where she hid them, to be honest.” He turned back towards Autumn, slowly starting towards her, “…I’ll just go ask her…”
 
She let out a sound of protest when he took the cup from her. "Nooooo. Gage give it baack." Even sitting down, she was swaying slightly, she was that drunk. Gage came back, giving her another glass. It was clear, like what she had been drinking previously. It looked similar to her if she had been sober, so while intoxicated, it might as well be the same thing. She noticed the difference as soon as she drank some. "Gaaage, this isn't the same," she whined, though she drank it anyway. It was a welcome relief from the burning sensation of the alcohol. The water was cool, and she hadn't realized how thirsty she was. "They did, I think. But they're dead now." She sniffed, clutching the water glass close. "Do you hate me, too?" Autumn had ignored the fact he had said that Russell probably didn't hate her. In her mind, he did, and Gage did, too. She stuck her bottom lip out. "Why do you hate mee?" Taking more sips of the water, it helped the feeling in her stomach, but she still felt nauseated. Drinking four and a half cups of crappy alcohol in a short amount of time was catching up to her fast.


"Gage why do you hate me? Why does Russell hate me? Why does everyone hate me?" She wiped away the tears in her eyes, or at least, tried to. Not be very coordinated at the moment, it took her a little bit before she was able to, but even then she wasn't very successful. Holding onto the water glass like it was the only person who didn't hate her, she frowned. "I don't feel too good," she murmured, words slurring. She drank more water, leaning back against the bench She was slowly sliding down.


"Can we just go back to the hotel room?" It was clear she was in no position to even stand up, let alone walk up six flights of stairs. Autumn could barely even sit down. Giggling a little, she sniffed and drank more water. "I feel sick..."


**************************


Ebony nodded pleasantly. "Yes please," she said. Though as soon as Russell had turned away and was out of earshot, she signaled for her guards. "Search the room. You must find the papers." She glanced suspiciously at the drunk girl. Russell had just barely let it slip, but she had caught it. So he hadn't 'just found them' after all. It was obvious questioning Autumn would have to wait for another day. There was no way she could receive any coherent answers from that one. Though, she might not even have to. She could just get Russell to do it for her.


With a rather savage grin, she turned towards the guard who had stayed after the others had run off to the hotel. "Who's next?" she asked. The man leaned forward, whispering in her ear. "Ah, excellent. Thank you. I'm assuming that'll be done soon, yes?" The guard nodded. "Wonderful." Now all she needed to take care of was the business with getting the papers back, which wouldn't be hard. With Russell wrapped around her finger and him not even realizing it, getting the papers and saving the secret would not be difficult at all.
 
Gage rolled his eyes, wrapping an arm around her and rubbing her shoulder slightly. “Nobody hates you, Autumn.” He groaned, trying to push her up as she slid down the chair. She almost spilled the water all over herself, and Gage had to hastily tug it from her hands to stop her from sloshing it in his direction. “That’s why you shouldn’t be drinking.” He scolded, although he didn’t blame her – he’d had a fair few drinks the first time he’d attended carousel, just to make things more interesting.


He felt her shudder slightly, and he pushed her to lean forward, biting his lip in disgust. Don’t be throw up, don’t throw up, don’t throw up…he pleaded mentally. He pushed the glass back into her hands and up to her mouth, urging her to drink it. “I think you’re a bit past walking now, Autumn. We’ll sober up here for a little while then I’ll take you up, alright?” She groaned and shuddered again, leaning against him in a nauseous anguish.


Russell approached them steadily, feeling the expectation to get the information from Autumn weighing down on his shoulders. He was suddenly compelled to follow Ebony’s orders, although he didn’t entirely know why – he didn’t count it as a betrayal that he’d let it slip that Autumn knew as well, either, since it ‘wasn’t a big deal’ according to Ebony. He furrowed his face in disgust as well, knowing her nauseous expression well from when he’d been drinking with his brother, just as the apocalypse had started. He shook her gently by the shoulder, ignoring Gage’s hand that was perched there.


“Uh…Autumn? Can I talk to you a sec…?” He murmured, trying to meet her eyes. Her vision was swirling in front of her, he could tell, and she still didn’t look good. He shook her a little harder, suddenly worried that she wouldn’t tell him what he needed to know. “Autumn, I need to know where you put the papers…” He said, avoiding Gage’s vindictive expression.


Neither of them had seen Russell speaking to Ebony, and Gage hoped he hadn't mentioned anthing that would get them into trouble.Gage gently tugged her closer towards him, “Can’t you see she’s sick, Russell? She doesn’t know what day it is, let alone where the you-know-whats are.” He was concerned for her, but also hoped she wouldn’t let loose about his shed, especially in such a public place, since it was where he kept not only the papers, but the rest of his supplies as well. He moved his arm behind Autumn in an attempt to straighten her back, however her head just lolled to the side, her pale face looking all the more queasy as she spoke.
 
"I think it's been a second by now," she mumbled, face pale. Him shaking her didn't help her sick feeling, in fact, it only made it worse. "Russell, stop that." She drank more of her water, feeling sicker by the minute. "I don't know what you're talking about. What papers? I didn't put them anywhere. Trying to focus on Russell, she couldn't, everything was spinning and it was making her dizzy. "Make it stop." Grip tight on the water glass, she was beginning to think that downing three cups of alcohol was not a good idea.


Suddenly she brightened. "Oooooh, I know what you mean now." She tried to concentrate, but the details were fuzzy, at the very least. "They were... in this one place... Oh! In a small thing." She tried to gesture how big it was, nearly spilling her water again. Her behavior embarrassing, and had she been sober she would have just wanted to leave Hamden then and there, not wanting to face anyone from there ever again. Though she just nodded, seemingly satisfied with her explanation.


Though her content was soon wiped off her face, feeling sick again. Autumn tugged at Gage's sleeve. "Can we pleeeease go home?" she pleaded, not realizing she had said 'home' instead of 'hotel room'. All she wanted to do was go home, though it was miles away and occupied with a put down zombie. "I want to leave," she murmured, hanging onto Gage's sleeve. Taking another sip of water, she closed her eyes, but it did little to relieve her of her dizziness.


She felt like she was going to puke. With a quiet groan and a shudder, she clenched her teeth. Why weren't they leaving? She wanted to leave. Whatever the papers were, she didn't care about them. All she wanted to do was go home. She let out a breath, drinking more water. "I don't like this feeling." Biting her lip, she held the glass of water to her lips, but changed her mind. "I think I'm gonna-" She leaned forward, feeling like she was going to be sick. Nothing happened, and she relaxed. Then her eyes widened, and leaning over further, she puked.


...If Russell hadn't already hated her, he would hate her by then.
 
“…Oh my god…” Russell breathed, his eyes wide, his body frozen in violent disgust as he felt the warmth of vomit crawl up his pants leg. The chattering of townspeople around them suddenly became hushed, tens of pairs of bewildered eyes once again focused on the couple. Russ’ stomach began to churn as the rank smell crept into his nose, and he shook his head, holding a hand to his mouth, “Autumn…what the f*ck?!” he cried, his voice trembling.


“…She can’t help it Russ…” Gage replied, although he was equally disgusted. He’d shifted away from the sick girl, wrinkling his nose and biting his lip as she leaned forward again. She heaved again, taking sobbing, laboured breaths in between hurling. After the initial shock was over, Gage moved slowly back over to her again, pushing her hair away from her face. “Alright. Alright. Just, uh…get it all up.” He murmured, patting her softly on the back, though still keeping his distance.


Russell stood there, wilting and shaking a little, feeling intense embarrassment as the pale-faced girl threw up. He turned and pushed through the group of people, the sick dripping off him as he went towards the hotel. He heard Ebony’s voice behind him, but he ignored it, knowing that he couldn’t possibly see her in that state. He himself felt ill at the sight and smell, and he heaved several times on the way, but luckily wasn’t sick.


“Do you feel better now?” Gage asked, still sat on the bench next to her. It was fifteen minutes later, and she had stopped heaving and was reluctant still to drink the water, but she looked less nauseous as she sat up finally. He helped her stand, though she was still shaky, and wrapped one of her arms around his neck, helping her walk back to the hotel. “I’ll help you up the stairs to my room, okay? Then you can lie down and rest a little before dinner.” While he knew it wouldn't win him any brownie points with Russell, he knew that her being out in public was not helping her, and she needed somewhere to get cleaned up. They walked very slowly and unsteadily, having to stop every few minutes for Autumn to heave or catch her breath. By the time they got there, Russell was still standing in the lobby, arguing with a group of guards, who seemed equally grossed out by the greasy stain on his leg.


“What do you mean I can’t go to my room?! Look at me, I’m covered in puke! Get out of my way!” He snarled, trying to push past them, with little success. Gage and Autumn walked up to them, only to be stopped by the guards as well. "No-one allowed up." One stated ominously, eyeing the three with a frown. He knew that the suite was being searched for the papers, as Ebony had ordered, and knew he would get in to big trouble if anyone found out that his fellow guards were rooting through their stuff. As well as this, their latest target had put up a violent struggle, leaving blood and scratch marks across that hotel walls that would definitely arouse suspicion. "Your rooms are...being cleaned" the guard said quietly, despite giving an uneasy glance towards Autumn's sickly face.
 
Autumn felt miserable as she heaved, struggling to get a breath in between. It took her a whole fifteen minutes before she was finally able to stop and sit up. "A little." Her words slurred still, but they were coherent. Gage helped her up, and she was still unsteady, her balance off. It took them a while to get to the lobby, as she was constantly having to stop. Without Gage, there was a very good chance she would have fallen, as she was still very much drunk.


At the lobby, they discovered they couldn't even go up to their rooms. She swayed slightly. All she wanted to do was go up to Gage's room and sleep. Leaning over she heaved again, but nothing came up. It seemed she felt better after puking so much outside, and she was relieved. After throwing up on Russell, she would probably die with embarrassment if she puked on the pristine lobby floors in front of the guards. Though it wasn't like she was really feeling embarrassed in the first place.


Poking Gage on the shoulder, she drank more of her water, most of which she had spilled on the walk to the hotel. "Gage, I want to sleep with you," she spoke drunkenly. All she meant was in his room, since she just wanted to lie down so the dizziness and nausea would go away. It never occurred to her what it might have sounded like to Russell or Gage, or even the guards. In her mind, it was just an innocent statement.


Her face pale and sickly looking, she appeared as if she would puke again, when she didn't. The weird feeling was still there, but not enough to make her be sick again. It was more just the fact she had drank so much alcohol for the first time. Finishing her water, she wasn't sure what to do with the glass, so she just held onto it. She avoided looking around the hotel, as it made her too dizzy. She was, however, enchanted by the floor, which seemed so bright and clean. Though she was squinting - everything was starting to become too bright and too loud. "Why can't we go up to Gage's room? That's not the suite." Her voice was quiet, so she didn't wince from her own loudness, though it made her harder to understand with her soft, yet slurred words.


"Besides, why are you cleaning now? I thought you had to be at carousel." Normally, she would be too quiet and careful than to say such things, but she was speaking what came to mind. Though the papers were forgotten thankfully - in front of the guards, if she had spoken about them, that would have truly been bad.
 
“Christ, Autumn, just…shh, okay?…” Gage groaned, rolling his eyes as she slurred the double entendre to the whole lobby. Russell noticeable stiffened, stopping mid-rant and turning his head slowly towards the two standing behind him and glaring. His face had grown a not-flattering beetroot red from the embarrassment and anger. If hanging out with an older guy and puking on him hadn’t been enough to tip him over the edge, loudly proclaiming to the town that she wanted to sleep with Gage did. He glared at them for a few seconds, his mind boiling over at the gall of the two. Meanwhile, the two guards were mentally trying to work out which one was Gage and which was Russell.


Autumn was staring at the floor and murmuring softly to herself about wanting to go back to Gage’s room. Gage cut in, sensing Russ’ building rage as he slowly turned back around, his knuckles whitening. “No, no, Russell, it’s not like that, she doesn’t mean-“ Gage stammered, but it was too late. Russ span around, his fist connecting forcefully with Gage’s cheekbone in a powerful right uppercut. Gage staggered backwards in shock, leaving Autumn to stand by herself as his arm dropped from her shoulder and he doubled over in pain. A bright red mark was visable on his cheek seconds later, and Russ growled at him, almost spitting with rage. “Shut up, just shut up, Gage, you sack of shit!”


Russell tried to pace towards him, swinging his fist in an attempt to land another hit, but a guard caught him, wrenching his arms behind his back before he could do so. He struggled, never breaking eye contact with Gage. “I don’t care if you want to feed her lies, give her alcohol until she throws up, sleep with her, whatever!” He yelled, as one of the men tried to lead him away to calm him down. It was clear from the fuss he was making and the tears welling up in his eyes that he did care immensely, however much he refused to believe it. “Just stay away from me, unless you want a - f*cking broken nose, understood?!” He kicked out and grunted as the guard tightened his grip, pulling Russ briefly out of the lobby.


Just as he was gone, two more guards appeared from the stairway, carrying a few cleaning materials and a large trashcan. They whispered amongst themselves, before nodding to each other. The guard in charge motioned to Gage and Autumn, “Someone had…an accident, just before carousel, so we’ve had to clean it up. Uh…thank you, for your co-operation.” They pushed past them, giving the two a sympathetic glance as they walked out.


Gage was still rubbing his cheek as he began to help Autumn up the stairs, grunting in pain as he did so. “Damnit. I bet that’s going to bruise.” He grumbled, “Is Russ always this jealous?”


*******************


“They didn’t find them, then?” One guard murmured to another, looking around suspiciously incase anyone was listening in. “No. We found some food and stuff smuggled away, though – no idea how they snuck through.” He said, showing the other guard the trashcan, where he’d stashed all of Autumn’s goodies. As they went outside, they motioned to the guard who was still restraining Russell to let him go, and he did, leaving the enraged boy huffing and sulking outside the lobby. “We’ll have to tell Ebony about that one.” The guard sighed, breaking away from the group and starting towards Ebony’s office.
 
She nearly fell, when Gage let go of her. For once, she was quiet, startled in even her intoxicated state. She barely realized why Russell was so angry, she hadn't known what she had said wrong. All she knew was that Russell was speaking loudly, too loudly, and she winced. Autumn would not know the true consequences of her words until the next morning. The guard had dragged him out, practically kicking and screaming. Even when the guards started talking to Gage, she wasn't sure what was happening, her drunkenness slowing down her processing of the whole situation, which was why she was barely understanding anything.


It was difficult for her to go up the stairs, and she kept tripping, nearly face planting several times. She looked at Gage when he spoke. "Jeeealouss? Why would he be jealous? Gaaaage, does he hate me now?" Her (rather annoying) feelings of sadness had returned, and she sniffed. "Was that why he kept yelling? Does he not want to be with me nooow?" She had to lean on the railing for support, clinging to it and the glass as she made her way up the stairs slowly.


The drunk brunette wasn't sure which room was Gage's, she didn't even remember which floor it was on. "Gage, where's your room?" It was probably a good thing Russell wasn't there to hear her say that, she had gotten him angry enough for one day. Autumn didn't even remember why she had gotten drunk in the first place, and that made her confused as to why Russell seemed so angry, as well as not knowing what exactly she had said. Everything was still spinning as she trudged up the stairs, trying not to fall backwards which was a very real possibility.


They reached the third floor, and Autumn frowned, looking around. "...Is this it?" she asked, though she wasn't sure. "Aren't we supposed to go up higher?" She was getting Gage's room mixed up with the suite, which would be rather risky since it was obvious Russell wouldn't want to be around them at the time being.


The girl sniffed, stumbling around the hallway, reaching for the handle of a random door - which was a meter to the left of where she was reaching. "Gage, I can't get the door open."


********************


Ebony was in her office, going over everything. Russell had initially claimed to have found the papers, then he had said something about Autumn hiding them. The girl was too drunk to get questions from at the moment, so she knew she couldn't question her. Russell, maybe, but he hadn't returned from asking Autumn, and she couldn't help but wonder how that had gone. The woman had left before the whole incident had occurred, so she was slightly out of the loop. At the sound of a knock on the door, she looked up. "Come in." It was one of the guards she had sent to the hotel. "Yes, what is it? Did they find the papers?" she asked.


After the guard had briefed her on the situation and left, Ebony mused to herself, spinning around in her chair. Yes, Russell had started the fight with a rather violent blow, and she frowned. At the same time, both Autumn and Gage were suspicious in her eyes, and she wasn't sure what to think of them in that situation. She was feeling biased towards Russell, though in the end, she decided to increase his number by one, and the other's numbers by two. If she only had her papers.
 
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It took Gage a while to answer, tempted to drop Russell in trouble after he punched him. But he knew that’d only cause more trouble, and he sighed, shaking his head. “No, I’m sure he doesn’t hate you.” It was partially true – Gage only knew that Russ hated him, and it was likely that even if he stopped seeing Autumn, he’d still have feelings for her because of the history they had together.


“He just doesn’t like you spending time with me, that’s all.” He sniffed as they reached his floor. Autumn staggered around, and he watched for a few minutes in slight amusement, although frankly he was also getting quite sick of her drunken behaviour. He stood outside his door, pushing the key in and turning it quickly, pulling Autumn along into the room with him. “I mean…he doesn’t have any friends out here aside from you, right? I know how that feels, and it can get pretty lonely.” This again, was only partially the truth – he knew that Russ probably would be lonely, but the jealousy he held was probably more of the romantic kind, as opposed to a lonesome, friendship one.


What he couldn’t understand for the life of him was why Autumn was seemingly the only person in the town that hadn’t got the message yet – they were given a shared room, shared meals, and Russell had traded all of his supplies alone to get in, everything that pointed to either a very strong friendship or something more. The fact that she was so oblivious to him made Gage a little sad, since it made their relationship very fragile – something which could be easily seen by the bruise developing on his right cheek. No matter how it seemed to Russell, Gage wasn’t really interested in being with Autumn, and was only using flirtatious language to stop Ebony from becoming suspicious as he talked to her. He too, had been lonely, and talking some common ground with someone had been a welcome relief. But even that had it’s consequences, and he felt a pang of guilt as he thought about the two younger teens, who he’d split up because of his selfishness and suspicions about Hamden.


His room was far smaller and less well-kept than the suite – it only had two single beds, although one was covered in Gage’s stuff. He shoved it all back into his bag, walking into the bathroom and stuffing it in the space behind the toilet. As he walked back in, he noticed that Autumn had already flopped on one of the beds, her eyes closed but her face still furrowed as the room span slightly.


Gage sat on the bed next to her (there was no table and chairs like there was in the suite), rubbing his neck as he mumbled to her. “You know…he does care about you, Autumn. Probably more than you think, too. Maybe once you’ve sobered up, you should go talk to him about it. Sort this mess out.” He was trying to be diplomatic, although deep down he wondered how much use it was talking to her about it - she only seemed to be caring about Russ’ feelings now she was drunk. The fact that she was hideously drunk also led him to believe that she wouldn’t really remember much of what happened until a while after, and he sighed, not knowing how she’d react to waking up in his room instead of the suite and not knowing why. He let her sleep, though, leaving another tall glass of water and a bucket by the bed incase she woke up feeling queasy. Gage stalked over to the small window and peered out of it, his eyes narrowed in suspicion, lighting a cigarette and blowing the foul air in defiance to the town below.
 
"...God." When the brunette woke up the next morning, a killer headache and a dry mouth and throat greeted her. Spotting the glass of water by the bed, she immediately grabbed it and started drinking. She didn't stop until half of the water was gone, though her headache still killed her. The water she had drank the afternoon before hadn't been enough to prevent the hangover she was feeling.


When she looked around, her eyes squinting from the light filtering in through the small window, she realized what was wrong. She was not in the suite. The room was smaller, with two beds instead of one. "...Gage? Please tell me that's you," she mumbled, spotting him on the other bed. "And what happened to your face? Just... what happened?" All she remembered was having the argument with Russell, and then going to carousel. Was that why she was in Gage's room? She couldn't recall anything past listening to Ebony. It was fuzzy, too fuzzy to remember details. Had she, for whatever reason, passed out? Her brows furrowed in confusion and mild fear. Why couldn't she remember?


She couldn't even remember what Gage had said to her right before she fell asleep. Drinking more of the water, slower than she had at first, she sat up on the bed, her eyes closed as she ran a hand through her hair trying to work everything out. Everything about the afternoon was a blur, though she felt like something important had happened that she should remember. Nothing came to mind. She didn't remember puking on Russell, crying about everyone hating her, or loudly saying she wanted to sleep with Gage, nothing. It frustrated her. "Um... Where's Russell?" she asked timidly, wondering if it was still too early to see him. Though she was talking about their argument, not anything that had occurred after while she was drunk. "...Wait. Don't tell me I was drunk yesterday."


She barely remembered that was what she had done before everything became fuzzy. She had taken one of the cups from the table. Autumn let out a loud groan. It was no wonder she had such a horrible headache. "How much did I drink?" Enough to knock her out through the rest of the afternoon and through the night, apparently.


This was, in her mind, awful. Having not touched a single drop her whole seventeen years of her life, her first time drinking had already made her decide she was never ever drinking ever again. She had survived years without it, going to rest of her life and never drinking didn't seem that bad to her. She massaged her temples. "Please tell me I didn't do anything stupid." She was almost afraid of what Gage would tell her, and she had every right to be.
 
Gage grinned smugly as he was her stir, groaning and rubbing her head. “Yeah, it’s me, Gage. Morning.” He shifted off his own bed and shut the thin curtains as soon as he realised she would probably have a killer hangover, her painfully squinted eyes giving it away.


He chuckled as she reeled off timid questions about the day before, “You really can’t remember anything? Ohh boy. You got pretty damn wasted on the homebrew at carousel. I haven’t seen anyone drink like that since I went to college.” He sniggered, amused by her confused and slightly embarrassed expression.


“Well, I took you back from carousel, although you were so bad you could barely walk. We got back to the hotel, and some guys wouldn’t let us in, and you started loudly complaining about how everyone hates you and you wanted to sleep with me, in the hotel lobby where everyone could see you. Russell was there, too, and uh…” He sniggered again, tapping the side of his face where a proud, purple bruise had taken over. “He got kinda upset and started a fight. That’s what happened to my face.”


Autumn’s face had changed from irrational of her physical state to pure despair over her behaviour. Gage scratched his chin, sighing, “Yeah, It wasn’t a great day all round, really. I left you to sleep while I went to dinner, and when I got there my food ration got decreased. I only got a measly plate of beans and tinned peaches.” While he only sounded annoyed to Autumn, both of them surely knew what it meant when he said they’d let him have less food – his ‘number’ had increased, most likely because of the fuss they were causing in the hotel lobby.


He shifted on his bed, scrunching his face. “Russ was there, though. I was a little worried he might’ve gone missing after they dragged him kicking and screaming from the hotel. But he was there, although a little miserable and not eating much.” He was slightly relieved, although Russ had not been the same way to see him – he’d spent the short time he was there avoiding the boy, scared that he might start a fight again if he got too close to him.


He ended his record of the day on a positive note, grinning smugly again as he turned to face her, “Oh yeah, and before we got back to the hotel, you threw up on him. Barfed right over his shirt and pants. Poor guy.” He handed her a refilled glass of water, placing it on the table next to her, stifling an amused chuckle at her facial expression. “…Yeah. You might want to go and see him to apologise to him for that at some point.”
 
By the time Gage had finished telling her of her drunken adventures, Autumn's face was a bright tomato red. She buried her face in her hands with a muffled groan. "Oh my god. Gage, you have got to be kidding me." The amount of embarrassment she felt was indescribable.


She was speaking in a soft voice, as she was sensitive to loud sounds and bright lights. Autumn cleared her throat, feeling the need to clear something up. "...Uh." If it was possible, she looked even more embarrassed than she already was. She rubbed her neck, not quite meeting Gage's eyes. "Um. Y-you're pretty cool, Gage, b-but I, uh, I wouldn't..." The brunette swallowed. "...Yeah."


She wanted to ask why Russell had gotten so upset, but she decided not to. Maybe it was because she had gotten so drunk. Dismissing it, she sighed, drinking more water and unsuccessfully trying to ignore her headache. "I'm sorry," she murmured after a while, feeling guilty that his number had increased. She felt it had been her fault, even though it wasn't exactly. Sipping her water, and finally finishing it, she set it back on the table. The brunette stood up, feeling a little unsteady but ultimately more stable than she had been before.


"I think I'll go see Russell," she said, making her way over to the door. She glanced back at Gage, giving him a small smile. "I'll see you later." As she had been drunk, she was unaware of the full extent of the tension between the two - she only knew Russell had punched him, but that was all. Exiting into the hallway, she gently pulled the door shut before heading to the stairs, wondering how Russell was. The brunette certainly hoped he had found cleaner clothes, or at least washed the ones she had puked on. Her face reddened at the thought. How embarrassing that she had done such a thing.


Arriving at the suite, she swallowed. Autumn hadn't forgotten the argument from yesterday, but she decided to be wise and not bring it up. "Russell?" She knocked on the door, wincing as the loud sounds only made her headache worse. "Are you there? I'm sorry I threw up on you! And for pretty much everything else." A few minutes had passed, and she was wondering if he was even in the room. "Are you okay?" He wasn't answering her.


She let out a sigh, sitting beside the door and waiting. Maybe he was out. Maybe he just didn't want to see her. She couldn't blame him. Studying the tile floor, she looked rather pitiful; a hungover girl just sitting on the ground and waiting. Tapping her fingers on the floor, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. "...God. What a mess."
 
Gage chuckled, with an embarrassed smile spreading across his face as she spoke. “Oh god, no, no, no, it’s fine. I already have a – I wasn’t interested in – I mean you’re a nice girl but-“ He stammered, rubbing his neck as he looked at her. “It’s fine. Really, it’s fine.”


He sniffed, not sure how to feel about his number being changed – if he was right, he’d been changed to a 6, which means he was only one more increase from being moved down to the second floor. It worried him a little bit, especially because it meant that Ebony was still keeping tabs on everyone, even without the papers. The thought made him realise it’d been a while before he’d checked on them, and he walked out at the same time as Autumn, nodding in agreement.


“You go do that. I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you.” He wasn’t too sure about that, but he didn’t want to dampen Autumn’s already bad mood. He locked the door behind him, whispering to her as he left. “I’m just going to check on the you-know-whats. I’ll see you around…” Gage caught her just before she walked up the stairs, looking her steadily in the eye. “You’ll be careful, won’t you? Try not to talk to Ebony or any of the guards if you can. And check the stuff you have in your room – I’m pretty sure they were searching for the papers yesterday when they wouldn’t let us up.”


*****************************


Russell had lost much of his appetite after his conflict, in his eyes losing both his only friend and companion in one fell swoop. He’d gone down to breakfast, and became slightly worried when neither Gage nor Autumn was present. He’d pushed the idea that they’d disappeared because of yesterday’s conflict to the back of his mind, feeling slightly guilty over his outbursts the day previous.


He was trying on some new clothes as Autumn knocked, and he ignored her at first, casting a look towards the bunched up clothes at his feet. He’d spent the night trying to wash them out, however they still smelled a little by the morning and also had shrunk a great deal. It wasn’t the vomit-covered clothes that had bothered him most, thought – it was the fact that she’d opted to stay with Gage, and in her drunken state had said…things that made him wonder why she was bothering to see him at all.


He sniffed, suddenly hearing a thud and an exasperated sigh as she waited for him to respond. He considered leaving her to think that he wasn’t there, or didn’t that he want to talk to her, but it didn’t last for long – Russ missed her company, and he too felt like he had some kind of apologising to do, for the argument they’d had the day previous.


He slowly padded over the door, opening it slowly so she wasn’t shocked or fall backwards when he opened it. “…Hi.” He sniffed, meeting her still ill-looking face with solemn eyes. She was tragically hungover, from what he could see, although he felt as if she partially deserved it. He leaned out the door, looking up and down the narrow corridor, a hint of irritation in his voice as he asked, “Where’s Gage?”
 
Autumn had though about leaving, thinking Russell wasn't there, when he opened the door. She seemed a little disappointed when she answered, "He had to get some fresh air." It wasn't that she was disappointed that Gage couldn't accompany her, it was that Russell didn't seem as excited to see her as she was to see him. Though she supposed, when thinking about everything that had happened, she couldn't blame him.


"Can I come in?" Without waiting for an answer, she slipped past him into the room. It looked messier than she remembered, and she didn't think it was because of Russell. Stepping over the pile of clothes, and feeling sheepish as she did so, she leaned against the wall with a sigh. "Russell?" she asked timidly. "...Do you want me to leave?" Because if he wasn't ready to talk, she would, but she still felt guilty and she wanted to apologise. She looked down, fiddling with her shirt and she wasn't quite sure how she felt.


She sighed. "I just wanted to..." She sniffed, looking hesitant. "I just wanted to say sorry. For, you know, getting drunk, and, uh, vomiting on you." Biting her lip, she hugged him. "So... Sorry. Please don't hate me." She murmured the last part to herself, burying her face in his chest. Gage had said she had complained about everyone hating her, but if Russell hated her, she wouldn't know what to do.


Autumn had always been the type of person to hug her friends and family. Even though when she was really young, she had been shy and had never liked physical contact. Her friends liked to hug as well, which she claimed had rubbed off on her. "I didn't mean what I said to Gage." Her voice was quiet, almost like she wanted him to hear it, yet didn't at the same time.
 
Russ sighed, disliking the weird atmosphere between them both – he’d never experienced anything like it, and he resented that it had begun with a silly argument. Considered what they’d been through together, this was the last thing that should cause this kind of tension. He peered at her for a few seconds, and shrugged, mumbling. “Well, you can, if you want. I mean, it’s your room too, but, if you prefer to stay somewhere else then, uh…I don’t mind.” He tried to avoid answering the question directly, leaving the door open on purpose incase she did decide to leave suddenly, as much as he didn’t want her to.


“It’s uh, it’s okay, I guess I needed some new clothes anyway –“ he was taken by surprise as she wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his chest and mumbling softly into it, so he could barely hear her. He tensed up as she squeezed him tightly, unsure of what to make of it. She didn’t break off immediately as he expected her to, and he reciprocated it as best as he could, wrapping his arms loosely around her waist and pressing her into him. “I don’t…hate you…Autumn…” he mumbled back, although he was ultimately unsure of how to feel about her now she’d argued with him, humiliated him, and gone off with Gage…


“Wait…So…You mean you didn’t…you know…?” The unsure words fell out of his mouth, and he pulled back slightly, regarding her with a cocked eyebrow. “But you…stayed with him, didn’t you?” He asked, his tone suspicious but his eyes were tinged with concern – he suddenly thought that if she didn’t stay with Gage or in the suite, she must’ve slept on the streets or in the lobby or something. These fears were quickly put to rest, but he still felt uneasy. “Oh.” He mumbled, suddenly feeling embarrassed that he’d assumed they had, just because she’d drunkenly mentioned it. “Well uh…okay. I guess. I’m sorry, too.”


He closed his arms back around her, extending the embrace perhaps a little longer than would be considered normal. He sighed, “I shouldn’t have said what I did – about Alexi – when we were arguing. I regretted it the second I said it. And…all the other stuff I said, to be honest. I’m just really, really confused at the moment…” And it was true – amongst all the stuff with Ebony and Autumn’s suspicions about Hamden and Gage’s random appearances, Russell was still trying to deal with the feelings he had for Autumn, not knowing whether to act on them or not. Of course, he wasn’t going to tell her this, and he swallowed thickly, savouring the embrace between the two of them.
 
"Yeah. I stayed in his room, but we didn't do anything." Her face flushed as she said the words, remembering her little chat with Gage when they were just about to leave. "There were two separate beds." She just felt relieved that he didn't want her to leave, though she had noticed how he had avoided answering the question directly. Autumn didn't seem to mind, though, content they he didn't hate her at the moment. "I'm never getting drunk again," she muttered. Her head still hurt, though it was starting to feel better. The water she had drunk the day before and that morning had helped.


Finally she pulled back, a small grin on her face. Though as soon as he mentioned Alexi, it slid off her face. "Oh. Well, I said some pretty horrible things, too. I'm sorry." She noticed how she hadn't said he was sorry - all he said was that he shouldn't have said it. And she wasn't sure why he was confused, but she didn't say anything, not wanting to have another argument with him. "So." Stuffing her hands in her pocket, she felt the edges of the paper, and her face paled. "...Oh." Swallowing, she glanced at Russell, feeling really uncomfortable, as she knew Russell really wasn't on good terms with Gage.


"Uh, um." She bit her lip. "I, uh, I have to... I'm going to, uh... Go for a walk." The brunette skirted around Russell, glancing back at him nervously before leaving the suite and heading down the stairs. As she exited the lobby, she headed in the direction she remembered the garden shed was, glancing over her shoulder every now and then to make sure she wasn't being followed. She felt bad; leaving Russell like that, but she had forgotten bout the paper and she needed to return it. Remembering Gage's advice, she avoided the guards and Ebony as much as she could. The few people she passed whispered and stared at her, and she ducked her head, knowing what they were talking about.


It took her a while, but she found the shed. "Gage?" she whispered, poking the door open. She wouldn't be surprised if he was already gone. Locking the door, she let out a breath. Looking around the pots, she lifted them up, until she saw the one the papers were in. Depositing in it the crumpled paper that had been in her pocket, she sighed. "I wish we had never come here," she murmured to herself, rubbing her aching head. Pretty much the only good thing that had happened was her meeting Gage, and even that had had its ups and downs. Not that she necessarily regretted meeting him, of course.
 
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