Why?
Ruby had been there. Christian swears he saw her. He tried to convince himself, he did. Nicole? His face fell, as he stared with an open mouth with words that died on his tongue. Eyes frozen in place. Perry. She stepped forward, expression being one of disbelief and utter desperation. No tinge of hope.
"R…Ruby?" Nicole's voice shook violently. None of them seemed to care about the zombies. Not right now, no.
"Ni.. Nicole.." her voice weak, she managed to mutter out. Nicole practically lunged forward from his spot, throwing and bashing zombies aside with a kind of strength that only came from fear and a terrifying pain.
And the zombies didn't care about them.
Why would they? They'd gotten their food. Still feasting on her blood around their mouths as of being thrown to the side. The bomb? It never went off. The kind of silence Perry was always afraid of settling between the group. Each second only became quieter than the last. Nicole's breathing fell ragged and before he could stop himself, he hugged Ruby. Christian stepped in, making sure the zombies stayed at the side. And still, at that. His mind was still reeling and blank.
When the zombies were all good and dealt with, zero words had yet been spoken since the once lively Ruby laid against the wall, eyes losing its life and yet, open staring at Nicole. Her blood poured out from being eaten alive.
As many times as they've seen lifeless bodies and countless organs being ripped out, this one was the worst and the most terrifying.
"Ruby..— wait, Ruby.. wait, please.." Nicole couldn't utter a proper sentence. His eyes fixed on her, tapping on her shoulder to keep her awake. Her eyelids felt as heavy as tonnes of bricks.
"..Nicole.." she managed, eyes glancing back, movements slowed and calm. A kind of calm they didn't like. "..Did you ever… love me back?" Her voice quieter than it had ever been. The loud girl, never once so quiet.
Nicole's heart nearly stopped. His breath hitched as he stared at her, mouth open. His throat felt tight, his vision blurry. And behind him? Perry stared. Christian was mid step towards her unsure of what to do. What could he possibly do? Axelle covered her mouth with both hands, turning her head away, but then back at Ruby. She couldn't not look. It was damn hard not to look, but also to do so.
"Ruby? Hey—.. I do love you, okay? So please, please stay with me. I'm.. I'm so goddamn sorry I didn't say this before. I'm so sorry I.. I didn't apologize before. I was such a douche bag.. I.. I promise I'll make it up to you, so please.. just.." His shaky voice trailed off, holding her body in his arms as he didn't care to let go. As she was now unresponsive, he buried his face into her cold neck, sobbing he didn't care to keep quiet about being heard.
Everyone, every single one of them was dead silent. Christian stepped forward too lost in his own pain and sat next to them, hand on Ruby's shoulder. He didn't cry. Not immediately. He stared at her still face, his breath hitching. How was he supposed to react? Was she really gone..?
He slowly buried his face in both his hands, his head falling to her lap, hands pressed over it as he couldn't help but start crying himself. He wasn't loud, and wasn't sobbing loudly. But the way his shoulders shook, the way he panted after a moment gave everything away.
Perry was still stunned. Her mind didn't process it. She wasn't slow, she was goddamn near shocked. More than that. Petrified.
She was overwhelmed with the many mixed emotions that coursed through her. Sadness, pain, anger, sorrow,
and a deep sense of loss and emptiness she couldn't explain. What was she supposed to do? Go over there and hug her with them? Cry? Shout and run away in denial? Or murder whoever even was the closest to the cause of it? She didn't know.
She stood there, fists slowly clenching. So hard they bruised her palms.
The rest of the group didn't know what to do. Rexine was crying silently standing there, wiping her tears with her arms desperately trying to calm herself— but the thought that Ruby, the one who had initially saved Rexine and acted towards her with such kindness was eaten away? It struck something nothing else could come close to. Maverick, Eli, Axelle and Waylen stood there in horror. They weren't all that close with Ruby.. but still, they were all her friends. And it still struck them with immense pain even if they didn't know just how to think, act, or feel about this.
"Ruby.." Rexine's voice, soft and pained through her silent sobs, came through as a hitched breath.
Afterall, what were they supposed to do? Call an ambulance? The police?
Perry finally stepped forward, eyes shutting. Ruby was really…
To take that information in would take a while.
Nicole felt the kind of remorse he hated. He regretted not accepting Ruby's confession earlier, regretted leaving them all in the first place. He now started to realize that maybe, it was more selfish than he'd thought.
And now? He faced the consequences of it. The harsh reality was now really weighing him down now.
The room was in a sorrowful silence. It stretched as no one had the words to express what they felt or what to do, if there was any. Perry stared, she didn't know if she wanted to cry or wanted to run out. The two best options— yet when she couldn't do either, all she could do was keep her gaze fixed, mind still racing with a million thoughts per second.
Christian's sobs died down. He kept himself against her cold body, unable to move. He stared into the darkness of his hands, unsure if he should lift his head. He was lost.
Ruby was his best friend. What was he even supposed to do without her?