The First Days (As the World Dies 1)

Katie laughed and sat back down slowly. "I wish I could go along just to enjoy the banter. "

"We don't banter," Juan said with a sniff.

"We argue," Jenni agreed.

"We hate each other," Juan added.

"Viciously," Jenni said with a nod.

Travis regarded both of them, then looked at Katie. "I think they're secretly dating. "

Juan sputtered and Jenni made a face.

"Yeah, definitely," Katie agreed.

Juan and Jenni eyed each other for a moment and both shook their heads vehemently.

"I'd rather date you, Travis," Juan said firmly.

"Oh, how cute!" Katie laughed and wagged her finger at both the men.

"It would be a match in heaven. "

Jenni flung her arms playfully around Katie's neck as she sat on her lap.

"And I have a woman. "

Katie just giggled and missed Travis' stricken expression.

If Jenni had seen, she would realized her kidding had hit a nerve, but she missed it and the two women began to joke around.

Travis and Juan slipped away.

"Told you," Juan said simply.

"Yeah," Travis said glumly.

"Want to hold my hand?"

Travis snorted. "Ha, ha. "

"What? I'm a sexy bitch!"

Travis just kept walking.

3. What Have I Become

Katie felt trapped within the fort now that others were venturing out into the town. It was three days since the great battle and she was a walking bruise. Her jaw ached and her eye looked worse than ever. She was healing, but her bruises were still rising to the surface and revealing themselves in all their colorful glory.

The first group to go out of the fort had returned with truckloads of food from the local grocery and survivors from the convenience store she and Travis had stopped on the way to Nerit and Ralph's. Unfortunately, they had become too confident and two zombies had dragged down one of the fort's men in the grocery store. It was a sobering moment that reminded everyone vividly that the danger still existed even though the zombies were not crowded outside their walls. It was a bitter irony to add ten new people to their company while losing another.

Travis had called off any other sojourns out of the fort for another day.

He enlisted Mike to once more go over gun safety and procedure, with Curtis helping him out with demonstrations. They couldn't afford to lose anyone else.

As her body struggled to heal, she sat in on planning sessions for the new entrance and the taking of the hotel. Though she didn't understand all the logistics and the terminology, it became apparent that Juan and Travis were clever and resourceful. If she were well enough, she would be joining the team that was going in to clear out the hotel. Meanwhile, Jenni had volunteered to go into town to the library with Juan and had also volunteered to stand guard at night.

Katie suspected Jenni was interested in standing guard due to Travis taking the late shift. It was pretty clear to her that Jenni was interested in Travis. Whether the attraction went both ways, she wasn't sure.