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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 22, 2014 1:09:21 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
When he heard Victoria enter the room, he felt her energy shift. Her tone softened. Her energy wasn't compassionate but he couldn't pinpoint the proper emotion. So, he shook it off. 'Going back to the matter at hand.' He straightened, turned his head and looked directly into her eyes. "He shot himself." He wasn't telling Victoria simply because of the fact that it phased him. Travis knew that she was smart enough to know what he is getting at.
If he had a gun, in a locked apartment, and died before all of the shit went down, it meant that the gun and any ammunition he had for it was in there. That could be very little, it could be a lot. Without missing another beat, Travis opened the closet door, holding his breath to keep from gagging and gazed at the scene. He might have once been handsome, but it was hard to tell now that the body was decaying. But, it was almost a pleasant change from seeing a moving one of these things. He knew that reaching in there and digging around, for once, probably wouldn't get him killed.
The took a step into the closet, his shadow hiding some of the blood splatter. He felt around the floor by the corpse and felt the shape of the shotgun. 'How brutal... a shotgun...' He cringed internally and picked it up, sticking it along side his bat and began feeling around for the shape of an ammo box. He knew it was kind of impossible to feel out all of the boxes and know which had ammo in it. "Got a flashlight?" He asked. He began digging around for his lighter, but he realized that he hadn't smoked in almost a week. 'Should find some cigarettes while I'm out today. I'm gonna need one after this.'
Never means forever...
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Post by Victoria on Oct 22, 2014 1:21:17 GMT
"He shot himself." It dawned on her immediately that the man had a gun and close by. The apartment had been locked up completely and if anyone had come in, they would not have bothered to leave the food behind. So she turned her attention to the closet, knowing that it could not be anywhere else. She did not enter the closet with him. It was too dark, too cramped, but she did lean against the door frame to peer into the darkness.
"Nope, but luckily for us ah found matches in th' last apartment." She swung her backpack off her shoulders and rifled through it to pull the box free. Luckily for the both of them the matches were made to light pilot lights or multiple candles. It was the type with the long, sturdy stick and larger head for a longer lasting flame. It took three wipe for the flame to catch and she leaned in closing, making sure to breath lightly as she held the match so he could see better.
"Gotta give ya prop, handsome. Ah haven't met many who could do this..." It was the truth. There were even some Brothers that would not corner themselves with a dead body, darkness, and a stranger at their back. Victoria herself would not be able to do it. She could not even sleep with her back to anyone, let alone allow someone there while fully awake. "Well, is it fruitful?"
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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 22, 2014 1:59:42 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
He heard Victoria rustling through her bag, a few strikes of a match and match box, then came the light. It took his eyes a minute to adjust, but after a moment, they began to focus, shapes beginning to take form and he became able to read labels. He searched for a few moments when he heard Victoria's voice ask him about his luck. "Not just yet." He began searching behind the corpse, coming to the conclusion that he may have to look behind the corpse.
He let out a groan and said "After that one dies, just light another one. This may take some time. He's got quiet a few boxes in here... And dirty clothes." That may be part of the smell, he considered with a small chuckle. Rocking back onto his feet, he took his bat and and put it behind the corpse's back, bending it in such a way that the head was by the toes so he could see behind the body. It was here he was truly fruitful, not only did he find ammo for the shot gun, he found another box that held a pistol. There was less ammo for the pistol. Maybe half a box was missing for the pistol, but there was also another unopened box. The shotgun had two and a quarter box at least of ammo.
"We are fruitful madam!" He said, backing out of the closet. He showed the efforts of his labor to her. "You're welcome to keep a gun and all the ammo for it. I'd like to take one back to my people." He offered to split it, knowing that if he didn't offer, it would mostly likely end up in a brawl. When you come by guns in this day and age, you gotta do what you gotta do to survive. And brawling for guns wasn't out of the question.
Never means forever...
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Post by Victoria on Oct 22, 2014 4:30:08 GMT
Luckily for them she did not have to waste another match. As it was running low he discovered the ammo and announced that his journey into the closet was indeed a success. Stepping back to let him through, she blew out the now much smaller flame before flicking the dead match towards the bathroom where it would not catch anything and start a fire.
"Fair enough." Victoria offered him a smile before turning her attention to the gun. The shotgun had more power, but less range than the pistol. It also had more ammo, which could be harvested for gunpowder if the gun broke. The Brothers would want the shotgun.
"I'll take the pistol." And she told herself it was because she was more proficient with a pistol than with a shotgun. She told herself that the pistol would be easier to carry anyways. She told herself that letting him have the more powerful gun and more ammo was a sign of trust towards him and his people that would get her further in on the good side. Maybe those were factors, but it was because he offered to split. She could not remember the last time someone had done that without her blade or pistol being part of the equation. No one had offered to share something with her without seeing the monster she was. So, in a way, it was her way of thanking him for that little thing. A lapse of judgement she would later kick herself for when she iced back up again. "You probably need it more. More people to protect and all that."
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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 22, 2014 23:48:04 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
Travis smiled at her choice. "You struck me as a pistol girl, for sure. Glad to know I was right." He winked at her, handing over the pistol and all of it's ammunition. He took the bag off of his back and carefully packed the ammunition in the side pockets, zipping them tightly. He was debating on dropping some of this stuff of at the car. Victoria, for all intents and purposes, seemed nice enough but he still was unsure about allowing her to see that he had come via car.
"Now, that's out of the way. You said the kitchen was devoid of anything edible?" His question was followed by a chuckle and he pulled the straps back over his shoulders. He headed back out into the living room and gazed around once more. No personal pictures, no nothing. Maybe he had shot himself for that reason. What could there have possibly been worth living for? Travis had at least a photo of his mom and his girlfriend. Not much else, but he had them no less.
He thought for a moment, remembering his apartment downtown. It was probably overrun with zombies by now. And besides, there was nothing left there for him. Travis let out a soft sigh and the fond memories that the apartment held for him and ran his hand through his shaggy hair, almost as if to bring him back to the current situation. "Whenever you're ready, we can hit the apartment above us as well." He turned to look at her, a small smile on his face.
Never means forever...
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Post by Victoria on Oct 23, 2014 3:12:19 GMT
"Good guess." She grinned in return as she accepted the pistol and ammo, which she set aside on the bed for a moment. With the effortless speed of someone clearly used to handling firearms, she made sure the chamber was clear unloading and giving it a proper onceover. Although it needed cleaning, the workings seemed to be in fair condition so she reloaded it and stuck it in her waistband beside her other pistol - with the safety on of course.
"Guy was probably all about quick or frozen meals but not very good with storage. Nothing's really worthwhile except..." She shifted her backpack and pulled out a packet of jerky and tossed it over.
After a moment she dug through her bag for the pack of smokes and lit one up before retrieving the pistol ammo from the bed to shove into her bag. Shifting her weight to one hip, she held out the pack's open end towards him. "Ah think this calls for a smoke break. Want one? Afterwards we can hit upstairs. Ah think we have enough daylight for one or two more apartments."
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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 23, 2014 16:25:59 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
Travis was beginning to grow overly grateful for Victoria's company. She not only had shared food with him, she was offering him a cigarette. "Surely you are a mind reading angel, ma'am." His smile was wide as he took her offer for a smoke and lit it up along side her. In took a long drag, inhaling as much nicotine as he possibly could in one puff. "When the world used to be normal and I was in med school, I used to live off of cigarettes and caffeine," he smirked, plopping down on the dead bachelor's couch "But I promised myself I would quit after I graduated. Because it set a bad example for my patients." He was reminiscing really. He was almost positive Victoria didn't care, but it gave him some solace to talk about the world that once was.
"Of course, now" he continued "I can't tell you what I wouldn't give for an energy drink or some fucking coffee." He laughed at himself, taking another drag. He knew he was just rambling. He knew that he should probably get up off the dusty, old couch and head out the door and continue on his mission. He knew a lot of things. But he had no clue what mattered when it came to the moment at hand. It was rare to be comfortable anymore. Travis could probably sit on this couch for hours and pretend he was back home. It looked cozy enough, felt cozy enough. But the smell always reminded him of what was going on in the world outside. As soon as he stepped out of this doorway with Victoria, the world would hit him hard once again.
Never means forever...
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Post by Victoria on Oct 25, 2014 4:30:37 GMT
"Oh, I'm nothing of the sort." Her words and demeanor was bashful, but inside her entire being jerked violently. Angel. No one had ever called her such a thing and meant positive by it since... well, since her parents were still alive. She had been called an angel sarcastically by the Brothers, but everyone else tended to call her bitch or monster.
"Ah smoked every once in a while. Ah was a dancer an' th' stress kind of got to me occasionally." She said nothing else about her past life and fell into a pensive silence as she took a long drag of off her cigarette. It had been such a long time since she had smoked last that she nearly choked on the smoke.
She chose to perch on the endtable near the couch, not risking allowing herself to relax on the sofa near Travis. The mention of coffee and energy drinks actually made her laugh. "Ah have a small stash of that stuff hidden in mah safe house. Ah don't swing by often or drink much, but every now an' then Ah do. For special occasions or when ah'm too janked up t' sleep anyways."
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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 25, 2014 23:47:18 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
Travis was surprised by Victoria's bashfulness. She seemed so shy about his comment, even though he hadn't really meant anything by it. He just gave her a look of confusion and circle back around in his mind to flirting. She was attractive. And he knew that this would probably be the only time that he would ever see her. Hopefully not, but still. She had her people and he had his. Flirting was just for fun, and he was still hoping and praying for his girlfriend to randomly reappear in his life. As he was thinking, allowing his mind to wander, Victoria laughed at his comment about caffeine.
He perked up almost immediately. 'Here's the best opportunity you could possibly have to flirt with a stranger.' A smile spread slowly across his face, as he look at Victoria while she sat on the end table. "It's a shame coffee dates aren't a thing anymore. I would have loved to had some with you." Lame. He's just so lame. Travis felt like beating his head into the wall, but settled for resting his elbow on his knee and his head in his hand. He felt pathetic, so he rearranged himself, running a hand through tousled hair. "I mean, I guess, they COULD still be a thing. Ya know, if you wanted to make coffee and drink it with me sometime." He hadn't even meant to say it, the word's just tumbled out of his mouth. Travis hoped he hadn't embarrassed her or anything, but just have her a sheepish grin and a shrug from his spot on the couch, taking another long drag off his cigarette.
Never means forever...
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Post by Victoria on Oct 27, 2014 21:45:54 GMT
"Most people don't even think about angels anymore. Not in this world," She explained away her bashfulness and waved her freehand in the air to bat away smoke and the topic itself. It was not like it mattered if he, or anyone else, thought well of her. One of them was likely to end up dead before too much longer and even if they did meet again, it was unlikely to be on friendly terms.
"Smooth Casanova." Victoria could not help but smirk at her flirting. She would never invite her to her safehouse where she kept her coffee and energy drinks. Even the Brothers were never invited. They did not know she had one and was keeping it that way. They thought she was out scouting or hunting for supplies on the few nights that she did stay there and she kept her supplies there well hidden so they would not find it if the ever shadowed her.
"You're cute. Maybe one day I will make you some coffee," She was just flirting back and had no intention of inviting him to her safehouse one day. At least, that was what she told herself. He was a nice guy and nice people died. The last thing she needed was to develop even a small attachment to someone. Everyone died in the zombie apocalypse. It was only a matter of time. "I even have some powdered creamer and sugar."
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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 27, 2014 23:50:53 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
Cute. No one had called him cute since he was a child. He furrowed his brown, frowning slightly. Cute was something you called your little brother or your nephew. Not what you call someone who is trying to flirt with you. He raised his eyebrows. Either she was mocking him or taking him seriously and flirting back. Seeing as he was unsure at this point, he didn't say anything. But at the mention of cream and sugar he jumped about a foot in the air. "WHAT?!" He knew he was just being silly at this point, but the thought of cream and sugar and COFFEE got him more excited than he had been in awhile.
"Weather or not you believe in angels in this day and age is up to you. But, SURLY you are mine." He was of course referencing to the fact that she had offered to share coffee with him. As well with cream and sugar. Travis didn't realize how romanticized the statement had been, and it made him blush slightly. So he felt the need to add "I mean, it's not every day you run into someone who is attractive and has coffee. Not in these days anyway." He looked over his shoulder and winked, walking towards the door.
"Are you ready?"
Never means forever...
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Post by Victoria on Oct 29, 2014 4:28:40 GMT
His reaction to her mention of cream and sugar nearly had her falling of her perch on the endtable in surprise. Such excitement over something so simple, while she could understand it, was so foreign that at first she was flabbergasted with how to react. She could not remember the last time she had seen someone react that way, let alone had a reaction like that herself.
"Aren't you a sweetheart." Victoria settled back into the flirtatious role, purring at him and fluttering her eyelashes prettily. She stood and stomped her cigarette out before following him to the door. "Yeah, babe. Ah'm as ready as ah've ever been."
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Post by TRAVIS CHURCH on Oct 30, 2014 16:40:30 GMT
Clap until your hands hurt...
Travis scoffed internally at her pet name. He didn't mind it of course, but it may have been a slip of the tongue. He watched her put her cigarette out and head his way. He opened the door, and pulled his bat out. You never know what could have been lurking out there. "Did you want to hit the apartment above us? We could try the door first, or I can just go ahead and lift you up. Your choice." He pondered for a moment, he could try the door knob first. He started to realize that his flirting might be more suggestive than he wanted it to be. Even when he was being lame, most of his compliments had been very physically focused. He wasn't that type of man and he never had been.
He let his thoughts wander as he stared up at the apartment above the one that they were in. "Or we can hit another building. Some of the town homes toward the back that held more people might have more in it." The young man was just throwing ideas around at this point. He knew he was running out of room in his bag, and he didn't know how long it would be before Victoria needed to head back to her group. The town homes that were towards the back of the complex weren't a far walk, but they were hidden by a hill. There was no telling what was down in that valley.
He fell silent, thinking and listening to the sounds around him. The birds were still singing for now, so there couldn't possibly be any danger near, right?
Never means forever...
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