Chapter 12: The Negative

I'm soaking wet and bleeding when I get back to Abel. I drop the fuel cans I was sent out for, not waiting for whoever was sent out to collect it. The rain still hasn't let up, and I don't have time to risk getting pneumonia along with infection.

I limp over to the tent, where Dr. Lobatse is waiting. Her face holds a warm smile, but it fades when she sees the blood streaming down the back of my right leg.

"What happened?" She asks, helping me inside, ushering me over to the examination table and handing me a towel so I can dry myself off.

"'It's an easy mission,' Sam said. 'No trouble at all,' Sam said." I roll my eyes. "No trouble my ass. There were a pack of dogs wandering around that old car lot where I was sent to to pick up the fuel cans. I can run, but I can't outrun dogs that weigh more than I do. One of the stupid mutts bit me. Hurts like hell, but I'll live."

"Were there any zombies about?"

"Not that I saw."

She sighs. "I'm going to give you some penicillin to make sure the wound doesn't get infected, and I'll clean it with sterile water and bandage it, but..."

I hear a sudden clicking noise, and feel cold metal against my wrist. My brows scrunch together as I look down and see myself cuffed to the examination table.

"Wha... Kefilwe, what are you doing?"

"Just because you saw no zombies doesn't mean there weren't any there. If the dog that bit you had bitten a zombie earlier, then fluids or blood may still have been in the dog's mouth, and it could have transferred the disease to you."

"But I'm fine. I feel fine," I insist, my heartbeat picking up as I tug on the cuffs. "Please let me out of these."

"I can't do that. After I finish with this, you'll be put in isolation for twenty-four hours. We can't risk it, Runner Five." She picks up a needle, and I flinch, remembering the last time handcuffs and needles and me were added together. I can actually feel the burn of my blood and the roaring pain in my bones.

With all the torture I've been put through, I can honestly say that was the most painful.

She applies that disinfectant to my skin before putting the needle into my arm. I wince, but Kefilwe doesn't seem to notice.

After she gives me the penicillin, she sets the needle down and places a cotton ball against the tiny wound, and then a bandage over it. Then she gets some water and manages to clean out the still bleeding wound.

I know what she's saying is a possibility. I do have a small chance of being infected, but I feel fine. I mean, the bite hurts, but it's a dog bite. I have no cough, no fever... but then again, even if it wasn't just the doctor being cautious, it is protocol to put a runner that has bitten by any animal or human into isolation. And Amelia likes sticking to protocol.

Jaime's gonna kill me for not wishing him goodbye.

It's been two days since Isabel told Jaime about him being the new king, and let's just say he's not happy with the news. I guess I can understand that, seeing as being ruler over a country-even a country that's full of flesh eating undead-is a big responsibility. He's asked countless times if there was any other person who could do this, but Isabel kept on with the same reply.

"There are no other relatives. You are the only one with royal blood we could find."

He's not exactly pleased with that answer.

The Ministry wanted to ship him off to meet the Minister at their main base right away. They said they could eventually let him live at Buckingham Palace, since it's surprisingly still intact and mostly zom free, but Jaime didn't want to leave that day. He flat out refused to. He said, "If I am gonna have to leave, I ain't leavin' right away. I have to say goodbye to my kids."

And that's what he's been doing these past two days. Most of the children cried when they heard he had to leave, but no one had cried more than Carina.

Penelope has tried to find ways to lessen her friend's pain, but her attempts have done little to help. She's heartbroken, and Penelope hates seeing her friend upset, but Jaime has to leave.

And I won't be able to tell him goodbye.

Kefilwe finishes cleaning and dressing the wound, and then she un-cuffs me. It's one of the greatest feeling ever, but it's short lived since I know I'm going to be locked up for the next twenty-four hours. An entire day of being alone in a room with a tin of food, a bottle of water and a bucket for if I need to use the bathroom.

Just great.

The containment area is only a minute away from the tent, since people can sometimes turn zom in minutes. It's still raining, so we sprint to get to the small building. Through the rain, I can hear Dr. Lobatse's sharp breathing; It isn't because of the running.

Adrenaline makes people turn faster. At least, that's what people believe. The quicker the heart rate, the quicker you turn. That's why she's so afraid, because if I am infected, I'll turn faster with my racing heart.

But I'm not infected. I'm not going to turn. I was bitten by a dog, and I feel perfectly fine. I'm fine. I know I'm fine. I am not going to die because of a damn dog bite, not after everything I've been through.

Still, protocol is protocol. I know that.

But telling myself how this is simply protocol doesn't make me feel any better when we go inside and I see that metal door with a little square glass window, nor does it help when I see Runner Sixteen holding a gun and standing straight and tall by the door. He turns to us, raising a brow at my dripping hair.

"Runner Five. Dr. Lobatse."

Kefilwe offers him a small smile. "Adam."

"What are you two..." His voice trails off as his eyes focus on the bandage on my leg, then his eyes widen as he looks up at my face. "You... you were bitten?"

"By a dog," I say quickly. "I'm not infected."

"I have to issue a twenty-four hour containment just to be safe," Kefilwe says, and he nods. Using the keys he has in his pocket, he unlocks the metal door. I cringe at the groan it gives as it's swung open, but I still go inside.

It's only when the door closes do I realize how dark it is in here, and cold. The only light is from the little part of the door that is glass instead of metal. I stand up on my tiptoes so I can see outside, and Kefilwe sends me an apologetic look.

"I am sorry you have to be in here," She says, her voice slightly muffled. "I don't believe you are in infected, but I have to be sure."

"I know," I sigh. "Are you going to stay here with me? Not for the entire twenty-four hours, but just for a little bit. I have a feeling I'm going to get kind of bored since I couldn't grab my Bible on the way here."

"Five, I have patients I need to attend to."

My face falls. "Oh, right. Yeah. Yeah, I get that. I can uh, I guess I could talk to Adam or-or something. I would say I could play 'I spy' but it's too dark in here to really find anything."

Kefilwe sighs and looks at the wall. I think it's the wall. I can't exactly see since I can't find a correct angle to see much through this little bit of glass besides what's directly in front of me. There might be a clock there or something.

"I suppose I could spare a few more minutes, but then I'll have to get to the hospital."

I grin widely. "Okay. A few minutes of entertainment is a start. So, what've you done all today?"

She smiles at my not-so-great attempt at making small talk. "Mostly working in the hospital. With it being so cold, multiple people have been getting ill. Usually just the common cold, but I've had three people come in with strep throat. I'm sure it will only be a matter of time until more people come in with it."

I shrug. "I used to get sick a lot before the apocalypse. Strep, flu, mono, pneumonia-you name it. I mean, I still got sick after the apocalypse. One time at Mullins my mono came back. I was out of running for nearly a month. It was terrible. Thankfully that hasn't made any more reappearances, but I have gotten a few colds and such here at Abel."

She hums. "Odd, you've been considerably healthy during my time here. Not once have I seen you come in sick."

"I know. That's the weird part. I've not gotten any type of sickness since I blew up Van Ark," I say, but then I realize I wasn't sick before then either. Actually, I had a little case of the sniffles when Major De Santa was interrogating Sarah. Usually that means I'm going to get a really bad cold in the next day or two... but I never got sick.

In fact, any sign of a cold went away after...

No.

After Van Ark's treatments.

"Five?" Kefilwe says, snapping me back to reality. Her brows are scrunched together and her eyes hold a certain worry to them. "You've suddenly become very pale. Are you alright?"

"I... do you remember a few months back when you took my blood to see if I had an iron deficiency?"

She looks confused, but still she nods. "Why?"

"Everything came back normal, didn't it? Nothing out of the ordinary?"

"Besides the fact that you did have an iron deficiency, no. You were completely healthy."

I sigh in relief. "Okay... that's good."

"Is there something you're not telling me?"

"It's not important-not important enough for me to tell anyway."

That's good. I mean, if everything came back fine, that must mean that Van Ark's treatments did nothing to me and I'm just being paranoid, right? I mean, he only did one set of treatments, so it's not like they could've done anything. I'm fine. I'm just worrying over nothing. I'm fine.

I'm fine.

I'm fine.

I'm not fine.

Van Ark himself said his treatments work different on everyone, and that stuff he put in my veins couldn't have just done nothing at all. I remember the pain of that stuff flooding through me. I remember the dizziness, and the burning of my veins. There's no way that much pain did nothing to me.

But then why has there been no change?

But there has been a change.

I haven't gotten sick since he gave me those treatment. Not once. I haven't even gotten sore throat from the cold weather that's made its way back. I mean, I still feel pain and my wounds don't heal rapidly or anything, but I don't get sick anymore.

I hope that's the only thing those treatments did to me.

"Why the hell has Five been put in contamination?"

I jolt at the sudden new voice, and I strain to see out of the small glass window. I mean, I recognize the voice instantly, but I still want to see him. I also want to know why he's so angry.

"I had to, Sam. Runner Five was bitten."

"By a dog. I was on coms. I saw it happen," He insists, his shoulders tense and his jaw clenched.

"I have to follow protocol. There is a chance she may have been infected if the dog had recently bitten or attacked a zombie."

"She's not infected," He growls lowly.

"You guys know I can hear you, right?" I cut in, gaining their attention.

"Five, are-are you alright in there?" He asks, his demeanor changing completely when he turns to me.

"I'm a little cold, but I'll be okay. And wet, but that's because of the rain." I giggle at this black hair that's completely flat and sticking to his forehead. "But it looks like I'm not the only person in that same boat."

He smiles sheepishly. "Yeah, I practically sprinted here when I heard Dr. Lobatse was putting you in containment."

"How did you know I was putting Five in containment?" Kefilwe questions with a raised brow, and he sends her a narrow eyed look.

"Because Five left her headset on." He sends me a knowing look. "And I heard you complaining too."

I don't say anything. Instead I'm thanking God I only complained about Sam instead of bringing up how I feel about him. Kefilwe does ask me about my feelings sometimes, since she is a good friend and wants me to be happy... Being older than I am, she does tell me to just tell him, but I know I'll never work up the nerve to do that.

Face hordes of zombies and go up against crazy, power hungry villains? I can do that. Tell the person I love about my feelings? Hell no.

"If you heard that, why did it take so long for you to get here?" I question.

"Because your children wanted to know where you were. They wouldn't stop pestering me about it. I told them to wait under the little porch thingy outside while I talk to Dr. Lobatse."

"Why?"

"Because you don't like people cursing around your kids, and I was pretty certain I'd say at least one word that you wouldn't want them hearing." He chuckles. "Pretty funny though, since you curse more than I do."

"Not in front of my kids, I don't."

As if on cue, I hear the door of the building open.

"Can we come in now?" Milo questions. "Penelope won't stop complaining that she's cold."

"But I am cold."

Sam nods. "Yeah, you can come in. Your mom's on the other side of this door."

In seconds the two are rushing over, their feet padding against the tile floor. I see the doorknob jiggle.

"Why won't it open?" Penelope asks. "Why's she locking us out?"

"It's not to lock you out, it's to lock me in," I answer.

Milo's about the same height as me, so he stands on the top of his toes to see me through the tiny window, and Sam has to pick Penelope up so she can see me.

"Why?" He asks, and then his eyes fill with horror. "You're not-you're not actually infected, are you?"

"We aren't sure," Kefilwe answers before I can. "I don't believe she is, but we cannot take any chances."

"She's not infected," Sam says, sending a glare at the doctor. "If Five was infected, she wouldn't have gone back to Abel. She's not selfish."

"You flatter me," I laugh, which causes him to crack a smile. "But it's protocol. Dr. Lobatse's just doing her job. I was bitten by a dog because I didn't run fast enough. It's my fault really."

"I'm sure that's not true," Kefilwe says, but I just shrug her words off.

"But you're gonna be okay, right?" Penelope questions, her eyes wide. I nod.

"Yes, I'll be fine. I'll just to stay in here for awhile."

"How long?"

"Um, I think... twenty-three hours and forty-five minutes." I rub my hands against each other in attempt to warm them up a bit. "I'll be okay though."

Neither of them exactly look convinced, but they don't question it. I hope this will make Milo less interested in becoming a runner. I mean, if some good can come out of this little annoyance, then I'd be happy. He's been pestering me about it more and more, saying that he just wants to do mundane missions, like collecting supplies and getting games for the teenagers and kids.

I have a feeling it's those friends of his that are wanting the games, since he's always been interesting in crafts and drawing. I'm beginning to wonder if letting him be friends with Polly and Zach was the best idea.

"If you're in here for twenty-four hours, you won't be able to see Jaime before he leaves." Milo frowns. "I don't think he'll be very happy about that. He doesn't like a lot of people, but he said you were alright."

I smile, feeling oddly proud that he said that about me, but then my smile fades. "That does stink, especially since I got him a going away present. I guess you two could give it to him for me."

"What'd you get him?" Sam asks.

"Yesterday I got Kefilwe to work coms and take me back to that lighthouse we went to. I got him that bracelet he really wanted to get-the teleportation bracelet from that show. I also got him some tiny gloves. Don't know if it's actually anything special, but I thought I might as well try to get him something. I mean, I know we're planning on shipping some of that stuff to him later, but I thought I might get him something now, ya know? You'll tell him goodbye for me, right?"

"Of course," He nods. "Although I hate knowing you'll be in here all by yourself."

I shrug, but I don't think he can really see it since you can just see my face through this tiny window. "I'll be fine."

"So you keep saying," He murmurs.

"I'll stay with you," Penelope says. "We could talk and I could read you some books and-and I want to tell you about the plants that we're growing in the greenhouse and-"

"That's sweet," I interrupt. "But I think Carina would want you with her when she says her final goodbye to Jaime."

"Speaking of which," Kefilwe says, causing Sam to frown, "aren't they going to be having a small party for him?"

"Yeah, but I don't think he actually wanted a party," Milo replies, and I nod.

"He's not really a party person, is he? When's that supposed to be starting?"

Sam looks at the clock is, and pales. "In a few minutes. Crap. We have to-we have to go."

"Then go," I say quickly. "Give him his gift for me. Tell him I hope he has fun being king or whatever."

"But-"

"If you do this, I'll... I don't know. I'll owe you one. Go. I'll be fine. The only thing I'll have to worry about is boredom."

Sam and the two kids look a bit hesitant, but they final give that agreeing look after I glare at them.

"We'll be back, you know."

"Good. I love talking to you guys."

That gets a smile out of all three of them. "Now go. You'll know where to find me."

•

It's funny how bored and lonely I am seeing I've only been alone for a few hours. If this had been my choice, being by myself would be completely fine... but this wasn't my choice.

Of course, being put in isolation is never fun. The A.M.T.B. put me through an isolation test when I turned thirteen. It was to see if I could stay sane if I was ever on my own in the outside world, or captured and placed in isolation as a form of torture.

I was in that room for ten days, and the closest I came into contact with humans was when I was given my meal once a day. It was slid through a small hole in the door. I felt like the Count of Monte Cristo, which is one of the reasons I stayed sane. I acted out the scenes I could remember from the movie, and sang the songs from the musical. I also did a lot of push-ups, and wall sits, and planks-basically anything to keep me from growing still for too long.

'Cause if I would have stopped, even for a second, I would have lost my mind. I think I did lose a little bit of my sanity in there.

I've lost a lot more of it here in Abel though. I look down at my hands. With what I've just discovered about what I think Van Ark's treatments have done to me, it looks like I lost a bit of humanity as well.

I hear the entrance door open, and then soft footsteps. I stand up, pushing myself up on my tiptoes to see who's come to visit me.

"Five, are you still-" Sam's whispering stops when he sees me waiting wide eyed at the steel door. "Guess that answers that question."

"What time is it?" I ask, and before he can answer, Milo pops up into view.

"It's almost nine o'clock. That means you have about eighteen hours left in here."

I groan in annoyance. "Lovely. So how was Jaime's going away party?"

"Eh," He says with a shrug. "He didn't like it very much, but he did like your gift. The teleportation bracelet and Jimmy's fire gloves."

I smile softly. "Good. I was wondering what those gloves were. Was there anything that happened that you would mind telling me about in more detail?"

"No, not really," Sam answers with a shrug. "It was mostly Jaime frowning while people awkwardly told him they'd miss him, and his kids begging him to stay."

"Carina cried a lot," Penelope says, and Sam picks her up so she can see me. "It stinks the Ministry won't let Jaime to take her with him."

"The Ministry just plain stinks," I mutter. "The only thing good about them is that they've helped out a little bit on finding leads that could leads us to Comansys and where they might have our people."

Sam perks up a bit. "Oh, yeah, I actually have some news about that. Not tomorrow, but the day after that, you and Louise are going to go check out another lead we found. We're still going over what was on that documentary on Comansys, by the way. Anyway, we heard of some people who seemed to know a bit about mind control."

I grin. "That's great. You think they'll know about Comansys?"

"Maybe. If they know how it works on people, we might be able to find any patterns to where our missing residents might be." He uses his hand to stifle a yawn, and I force a small smile.

"It's been a long day. I think you should all get to bed. Curfew's in about an hour and I'm sure you have something you'd like to do before b-"

"Oh, no. We're stayin' with you," He says with a shake of his head. "Since Dr. Lobatse refuses to let you out until the twenty-four hours are up, we decided we're going to spend the night with you. That way you won't be alone for the entirety of the twenty-four hours."

I stay quiet for a moment. "That's sweet, but you really don't have to. And don't be mad at Kefilwe; She's just doing her job."

"But it's clear you're not infected!" Milo exclaims.

"But it's protocol. And really, you don't have to stay in here with me. Sleeping on the floor just not comfortable and..." My words trail off when Milo holds up some pillows and blankets.

"We came prepared."

I blink. "Huh... So you did."

"Do you have anything in there?" Penelope asks, tipping her head to the side innocently. "You look cold."

"I'll be fine."

"So that's a no," Sam scowls. "You'd think your friend would know how much you hate the cold."

"Sam," I say warningly, and he just rolls his eyes. "Just because you don't like her very much doesn't mean you can be mean."

"Why? You're mean to Amelia," Penelope points out, and I laugh.

"Hun, I'm not mean to Amelia. I'm blunt and I state facts."

"Anyway, we'll be staying in here with you until it reaches the morning. Then Milo and Penelope will have to go to school," He cuts in, and I raise a brow expectingly.

"And you?"

He shrugs. "I don't have any runs to do until the afternoon, so I could stay here a little longer, unless Janine comes in and nags me for not doing anything. But Amelia's been keeping her busy so I don't think I'll have to worry about that."

He sends me a silly grin, and I can't help but laugh. "Thanks, Sam." I hold my hand over my mouth to suppress a yawn. "I would love to talk a bit more, but I'm super tired."

It's true. I really am tired. I've been walking around this room for the last five or so hours, plus I had a run right before I was put into this room. Hopefully I'll sleep for a good while so that way I won't have to stay awake in boredom, doing push-ups and sit-ups until I can't do anymore.

"Yeah, I'm pretty tired too. Stress can really do that to you."

"Aw, were you stressing over me?  You do care," I say playfully, and he just rolls his eyes.

I lay down on the floor, pulling my knees in to keep in some warmth. It's not terribly cold in here, but I'm not exactly comfortable either. But I guess I'll have to make due. I don't think I have any runs tomorrow, so I could just crash in the coms shack or in the sleeping quarters if I'm still tired when I get out.

"Goodnight, guys," I murmur, closing my eyes. "Love ya."

"Love you too," Penelope and Milo both say in unison. A couple seconds go by and I hear a quiet peep.

"Hey," Penelope whispers, "why didn't you say you love her too?"

My eyes snap open. You've got to be kidding me. I'm too tired to deal with this embarrassment right now.

"Me?" Sam asks, sounding completely confused. "I-I think she was just talking to you two."

"Then why didn't she say 'goodnight, kids'?"

"I don't know. Because she was just tired and wanted to mutter out the words before she fell asleep?"

"No, because she loves you too. You're one of her best friends. Of course, she loves you." She scoffs as if that's something he should already know. "Everyone loves their best friends. That's why they're best friends. Duh."

"I though Caleb was her best friend," Milo pipes up.

"They're both her best friends."

"How can you have two best friends?"

"Because you just can, okay?" She snaps. "So tell her you love her back and goodnight."

Sam stays silent, and I sigh. "Might as well just say it, or else she'll be keeping us up all night."

"I... goodnight, Five. Love you too." His voice wavers a bit, and I pull my legs in closer to my chest, knowing that that's the closest I'll probably ever come to him saying those words to me.

But thankfully I'm tired, so I fall asleep before the pain of it can become too great.

A/N: Wow. That was totally not how I expected to end this chapter. Funny how sometimes the characters take over and completely change the scene. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please be sure to vote and comment. Thank you and have a blessed day!