Abeyance

"Oh, so you get to sleep with her, but we don't."
Vic's annoying voice was what I woke up to that next morning.
"What are you talking about?" I asked sleepily. I slowly opened my eyes, seeing my arms were still wrapped tightly around Lights.
Oh. That...
"I didn't sleep with her. Well, I did. But not in a sexual way. She couldn't sleep, so she came to me."
I made no effort to let go of her.
Vic chuckled. "I was only playing, bro. Where'd Jack pass out?"
I shrugged. "Kitchen, I think."
"Jamie's still asleep."
I nodded.
Vic walked off to the kitchen to find Jack. And once he was gone, I debated on how I'd wake Lights.
Do I shake her awake? Should I talk to her? Should I kiss her? Maybe I should kiss her, she was a sleeping beauty. ..
But it didn't matter anymore, because she ended up waking up herself, my arms still holding her.
She yawned and rolled onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. Then she turned her head and looked at me.
"Morning." I smiled.
"Good morning." She sighed contently. I wasn't sure if that was because she woke up this morning, or because she woke up in my arms.
We sat up and quickly got our gear back on to head out. The sun was out again, and would soon dry up last nights rain storm.
When Jaime was ready, he stepped forward towards me and Lights. He didn't say anything though. He just gave Lights a dirty look.
It was a little creepy, yeah...
Vic and Jack came out of the back. I couldn't help but laugh at Jack's appearance. He was hung over, for sure. I imagined Vic and Jaime would be too, but they don't seem too bad. Maybe they're used to it. Jack isn't.
"I need some food." Jack mumbled miserably.
"We're getting there." I told him.
They all geared up, and we set out for food.
We had cleared out 12th street yesterday, so today, we searched on 11th Street.
On 11th Street, we found a food store. Vacant, to nobody's surprise.
"Lets pig out!" Vic grinned. But I tugged on his shirt.
"No, lets not pig out. Eat a generous amount, we're not eating again until sundown. But eat things that expire quickly first!"
Vic nodded, and Jaime said "Good idea." Everyone else knew that drill already.
The fruits and vegetables had already started getting moldy, so they really weren't an option anymore. I settled on Poptarts. They didn't expire quickly, but I've been eating like this for a week now. I wanted to treat myself. Sunday's could be my cheat day.
I told them to try not to take water every day. Water, I know there's tons of it, doesn't expire. Alternate between some kind of sweet drink that can go bad and water every other day. I also asked they took a drink to keep in their bags since we'll be walking all day, like a sports drink. It was a hot one today. Again, I felt like their parents. But in a sense, I was. It was my job to keep these people alive. We need as many people as we can.
After eating, we continued down 11th Street. Seeing Lights take out her hand gun reminded me I should always be armed and prepared. I shared that theory Lights told Jack and I with our newbies. Come to think of it, I wouldn't have been as strong of a leader without Lights. She's a big help. I felt bad that I baby her with the rest of them.
"You should keep one of your guns out at all times when we're walking. You never know when we're going to find something."
Vic reached into his backpack and took out a handgun. It was a revolver, not too bad.
I noticed Jaime didn't have one.
"Jamie, where's your gun?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't have one."
Lights had three guns. Her usual handgun, (a semi automatic pistol) a shot gun, and an extra caliber. But I knew she wouldn't give one up to Jaime. And I knew better than to ask her to.
"Here, take this." Jack offered Jaime his caliber, "I have my rifle."
"Thanks." He cocked it, and we started moving again.
I noticed Lights moved especially close to me once Jaime had a gun in his hands. I knew she was scared since he hit her with a gun last time he had access to one.
After a few hours of walking, we took a break. The sun was strong today.
"I'm taking a piss." Jaime grumbled and walked behind the building we stopped at. We sat underneath it for shade. When Jaime was done, we'd leave again. So far today, we found no survivors.
"What the hell is taking him so long?" Jack wondered.
I shrugged. We were siting around waiting for a good 10 minutes.
"Maybe he's-"
Just as I started speaking, my eyes widened. The sight in front of me was unbelievable.