Radioactive

"I never knew the face hiding behind the mask."

---

Taniss stood frozen, his feet staying firmly planted to the concrete. He stayed there until his legs ached. His gaze remained on the spot she had last been standing, right before she disappeared down the stairwell. His mind was whirring. What had just happened?

A drop of water landed on the top of his head, jolting him back to the present. He looked up just as it began to drizzle, the rain splattering down on his face. He started towards the door, clambering clumsily down the stairwell in his drunken state.

He almost didn't notice her, slumped on the bottom step, her arms over her face, the gun resting on the ground beside her. He stopped for a moment, wondering if he should leave her or not. After a moments hesitation, he reached down and scooped her into his arms. Being drunk made carrying her extra difficult, but he was determined. Somehow, he found his way into the furniture store. He chose a bed at random, positioned away from the front of the door, and set her in it. He pulled the blanket up over her head, shooting her a fleeting smile that came out as more of a grimace before stumbling clumsily through the store in search of somewhere to sleep.

-*-*-*-*-

Taniss awoke in an arm chair, wrapped tightly around himself to fit in the small space. He blinked at the wall in front of him for a long moment before he stretched his arms above his head, his legs dangling off the edge of the chair. With a tremendous amount of effort, he shoved himself to his feet, his arms trembling. He felt unusually weak. His stomach growled, so he wandered slowly from the store in search of the others.

They were all crowded, unsurprisingly, in the middle of the mall. Harper and Matt were sitting on one of the couches, so he went to join them. They weren't surprised when he sat down without saying anything.

"Hungry?" Harper asked, holding up a can of peaches.

He nodded, taking the can from her. She watched him with wide, questioning eyes as he tilted it back, allowing the smooth peaches to slither down his throat. He'd always loved peaches, but today they seemed tasteless.

"Have you seen Amaryllis?" Matt asked, taking the can from him when he finished.

He shook his head, "she slept in the furniture store. Is she not there anymore?"

"I saw her for a second this morning, but then she just disappeared." Harper put in, eyeing the can of peaches until Matt finally handed it over.

Blaze was sitting on the floor near the couch, an old newspaper in hand. He flipped through the comics as he spoke without glancing up. "Check the roof. She asked me about it last night."

Taniss tensed, but Harper didn't seem to notice. She sighed, "I guess I should go find her."

"No, you stay here, i'll find her." Matt put in. Harper looked as if she was going to protest, but she finally sighed.

"Fine, but i'm only giving in because my back hurts."

Matt rolled his eyes as he got up and turned to Blaze for directions to the roof.

-*-*-*-*-*-

Matt pushed open the door to the roof. A blast of chilled, damp air hit him, pushing the air from his lungs. He shivered in the sudden cold, zipping up his jacket as he glanced around. Amaryllis was leaning against the wall, her palms pressed against the cold concrete, her fingers splayed out in front of them. She was leaning forward, into the wind, her blond hair streaming out behind her, whipping back and forth by the wind. He joined her by the wall, startling her. "Oh, hey, Matt." She said gloomily, turning back to frown at the adjacent building across the street. Low moans and growls were echoing from below, their anguished voices wafting through the chilly air.

"What are you doing up here?" He asked curiously, leaning forward to look at the parking lot below them.

"Just thinking."

He looked towards her, only just noticing the bottle of whiskey beside her. His face darkened. "You're drinking?"

She glanced at him in surprise, "no."

He gestured towards the whiskey, "then how did that get there?"

She turned her gaze towards it, her eyebrows furrowing together. "Taniss. Last night."

Matt blinked at her, looking surprised. "Taniss was drinking? He didn't seem hung over." She only shrugged in response. He lifted himself up and sat on the wall, dangling his long legs over the side. "What happened last night?"

Amaryllis stood still for a long moment before she joined him, carefully hanging her feet over the ledge. She braced her arms beside her, keeping herself steady. "Taniss has been having a hard time." She said vaguely.

Matt turned his gaze on her, obviously unamused. With a sigh, she relayed the events of the night before to him, leaving out who it was that had died, and the kiss. When she finished, she snuck a glance at him. He looked horrified.

"He thought about taking his own life?"

She nodded slowly, feeling chilled by more than just the cold weather. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself. "But he didn't."

"We'll have to keep our eyes on him. Watch him. Make sure he's okay."

"I don't think he'll try that again." Amaryllis said, careful to keep her voice steady.

"What makes you so sure?"

She thought about what had happened last night; the feeling she had got when they kissed. She wondered if he had felt the same way. "Just a feeling."

Matt took a deep, shuddering breath. "You're not telling me everything." She kept her gaze locked on a broken down vehicle at the edge of the parking lot. He shook his head roughly, "I don't think anyone should be alone with him at this point. Especially not you and Harper." She shot him a look, her eyes narrowing as he continued. "Especially after how he treated you last night."

"He didn't hurt me."

"Maybe he didn't, but what would've happen if you'd stayed on the roof longer? He had a gun, and I know Taniss isn't afraid to use it."

"He wouldn't shoot me." She insisted, her voice sounding desperate, pleading for him to understand that.

"He might. I don't know what he's above at this point. I've been wondering since he went on that rampage back at the lab."

"Matthew!"

"And right now he's down there with Harper. But they aren't alone. You shouldn't go anywhere alone with him, okay? Deal?"

They gazed at each other, Matts look was determined, while hers was pleading. "Matt, he's not going to hurt me. If I wasn't sure of it before, I am now."

"You can't know that, Scotty. He's dangerous."

"He's not dangerous." She snapped, her voice losing the pleading edge it had had before. "If he was dangerous, I don't think he would have kissed me!"

Matts eyes widened, and he swivelled around to look at her, his mouth falling open with an audible snap. "He did what?!"

She tried to back pedal, her expression matching his. "I--um--he didn't--well--"

"He kissed you?"

She laughed bleakly, "don't friends do that?" To prove her point, she leaned forward, her lips only momentarily brushing his.

Matt jerked back in surprise, his eyes widening even further. "Amaryllis!"

"It's something I picked up in france!" She said in a panicked voice. "I'm just trying to bring culture to the group!"

He blinked at her, his mouth still hanging open in shock. "Well can you not bring it in my mouth?!"

"Excuuuuse me!" She cried, exasperated, throwing her arms up into the air.

"Friends don't kiss, Amaryllis!" He continued in surprise.

"Unless your friends with benefits!" He only gaped at her, unamused by her attempt at humour. "Ha. Haha." She laughed fakely, her smile appearing as more of a grimace.

"So he just kissed you like that?"

She slowly nodded, but after a moment, she let out a loud, dramatic sigh. "No, it was a kiss kiss. Like, an amazing kiss. He's a good kisser."

"I do not need to know that."

She sighed again, putting her head in her hands. "What am I going to do?"

"I don't know." He answered honestly, earning himself a sharp look from her. He back pedalled, "I mean, um, go down there and talk to him. That sounds like the best idea." He waited a long moment before he continued, "you guys only kissed, right? I mean, I think we have one too many pregnant girls around here."

"That is your own fault." She mumbled into her hands.

"Curse you cruel fate." He sighed. He turned the conversation back around. "You just let him kiss you?"

She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them, staring out over the parking lot. "I may have wanted him to." She answered in a soft voice.

He gave her a blank look. "You wanted him to kiss you?"

She shrugged, her body feeling stiff, not only from the cold. "I don't know. Maybe?"

Matt ran his hands through his hair. "Explain everything." It was more of a demand, but his voice was soft.

She sighed. "I feel like i'm in a damn romance novel! This is a zombie apocalypse. Zombies are eating people alive, and i'm here fantasizing about a dumb boy!"

"How long have you felt like that?" Matt asked curiously.

"I don't know. Since he went missing, maybe? Atleast that's when I realized it. And then I had to lay there on the floor, listening to him cry. He just doesn't seem like the type to do that. I've never seen him show any emotion like that. And I just--" she roughly shook her head. "I don't want to see him like that again."

Matt rocked his legs back and forth. "You could've walked out."

"I couldn't leave him." She answered honestly. "I didn't want him to be alone."

Matt kept his gaze locked on her as she stared out over the parking lot. "Are you going to be okay?"

She nodded slowly. "I'm done crying. I'm done being such a baby about things. I have too much to worry about. My life, Harpers, the baby." She glanced towards him, the soft smile on his lips drawing one out of her. "There's no room in my life for a petty little crush."

"You really think that's all it is?"

"I don't know. But I don't want to think about it." She turned around, swinging her legs back towards the roof, dropping down so that she was standing. She stretched her arms above her head. That seemed to be the end of the conversation. They walked back towards the stairwell. He stopped, his hand on the door handle, turning towards her.

"I understand you're confused. But if you ever kiss me again, I may puke."

She squinted at him, putting her hands on her hips. "You mean i'm not good enough for you, Baker?" She gasped, feining surprise.

"No, you're beautiful, and you're sweet, and you're extremely dangerous for your small size, but.." He shrugged. "Harpers having my baby. And it's not just that. She's...she's the one I want to be with."

Amaryllis dropped her humorous expression, a sly grin spreading across her face. "Awwww!" She squeaked, causing him to raise an eyebrow at her. "I would totally warn you not to get to cozy with her, but she's already pregnant, so!" She gave him a rough pat on the back before throwing open the door and marching down the first few steps. She paused before she was even halfway there, glancing back at him. "By the way, let's not mention this little incident to Harper. She'll go on some hormonal rampage and possibly kill me."