[u][b]LOCATION: EMORY UNIVERSITY - CAFETERIA COURTYARD[/b][/u] From the safety of the brush and the shadow of the wall, he watched people gather in front of the doors. Though he could only see them pass to and fro in front of the gap he had burrowed down in, it was obvious that there was a plethora of non-moaning folks coming into the area. Jesse felt his hands tighten on the grass beneath him as words were shared between the group that was just out of his sights, mind whirring with anxiety and heavy relief. In a situation like the end of the world, it might be best to be in a group. Sure betrayal was a possibility, but a group, where people with different skills can help and protect each other, sounded like heaven after the last three days he had experienced alone. But... His mind ached for a moment as red filled his vision and then faded. Slowly, Jesse sat up, gray eyes narrowing as he crawled towards the clearing, but a sudden cry of excitement made him draw back again, hand already reaching into the sack to close around the familiar tazer. “Lemon Balm!” The person had cried, crouching down a few feet off to clip up some grass. Jesse glared at the woman’s general direction, eyes as dark as storm clouds as he saw another person approach with a weapon, prepared to strike down on the plant-centric woman, but it seemed they had a change of heart as instead they suddenly burst into conversation about the aid center, which he knew nothing about. He sighed, allowing his shoulders to relax once more as words were passed lightly in the courtyard. No, words still couldn't be trusted, they didn't seem ready to fight it out yet, but Jesse found he had trouble trusting anyway outside of his hiding spot. Someone else had entered the fray as Jess became lost in nervousness, just as someone began complaining about a dog, and overall a slightly cooler tone filled the yard, as if these few strangers were slowly getting used to each other. Jess took note of how all of them were human, and how human nature craved attention and people, so it would make sense for groups to form in an unnatural situation easily. There were, however, other things human nature craved. Like security, freedom, good health, love, belonging. A lack of humanity can drive someone crazy. [i]dont wanna go crazy better join better talk but what if but what if O god[/i] He slunk towards the crowd, the shadows that had stained his clothes and skin sliding off as the sun pierced his hiding spot. The greenery and far of city grew as the tight alley fell behind with each slow step her took until he was at the end of the wall, slender hand clutching the brick wall of the cafeteria building as his foot dug deep into the soft earth below. The idea of approaching was there in his mind, urging him forward, but his body was shaking with fear and an unfamiliar shyness. He clutched the bag tightly, trying to convince his feet to move, to approach one of the few people, to hold out his hand and say a simple ‘hello’, but sudden thoughts of murder stunned him. Jesse didn't want to die. Strangers, with weapons and unknown intentions, stood before him in scattered groups, some knowing each other and some not. His voice was lost in his throat, replaced by heavy breathes and a cold sweat that swelled and slipped down the back of his neck. Perhaps such a cynical, unintended nature was a good thing to survive in an apocalyptic situation like this, but Jess just knew that he wouldn't survive alone. He was weak and weaponless, and these people before him were probably stronger, and were definitely well armed. Then the memory hit him, the one he had blocked out (or, at least, attempted to block out) those two days ago... --- [b][u]TWO DAYS PRIOR[/U][/B] "Please, lets just go, lets just go." A girl's voice, Stacy Roman, echoed through the halls of the building, pleading briefly with the boy, Matthew Thomas that stood before her, whose eyes were focused intently on the screen of his still-working cellphone. The hall was quiet save for them, and fully empty, as the other people who had passed through the halls earlier were either gone or dead. Jesse, who was hiding in one of the classrooms within the corridor, had watched countless people walk by. Their tears and blood stained the linoleum floor, as well as his memory, and his body was tired and mind dull from all the excitement. He couldn't move from the room, so instead he watched. Stacy clung to Matt, shaking with fear as he simply ignored her, chewing on his lip as his thumbs typed and scrolled over and over again. There, in the silent hall, they were found by a group of at least four or five. A group of older men. At first, they seemed kind, friendly. Managed to grab Matt's attention and keep it for a bit with conversations and plans to get out to the South where there would be fewer mobs of whatever was walking around outside. Jesse would have attempted to go out to join them if not for his aching legs and breathless chest and slow mind, but then the smile appeared. Jess couldn't forget that smile, a small sliver of white against hardened, tanned skin that focused directly on Stacy. A whisper or two he couldn't catch were passed, and then one of the men rose a crowbar, easily cracking it down over Matt's head. Blood sprayed from the collision point, and it oozed from his nose instantly as he fell back with a heavy cry, the phone becoming loose and slipping from his hand. By then, Stacy was shrieking, veering back as hands reached for her, and Jesse watched for a moment in terror before sliding down under the window, hoping to hide his presence as the screams and laughter grew and grew until finally a shot rang out. Then another. Jesse was crying by then, with one hand slapped over his mouth while the other held a shaking tazer, ready to pounce on anyone who enters the room. Instead, something slammed against the widow above, and Jesse yelped and glanced upward to see Stacy's face, bloody, snotty, and broken, smashed against the window. The girl was still very much alive, and she glared wildly into the room as screams behind her continued on until finally she saw Jesse. Her eyes were wide and pleading as she began to moan for help, and Jesse stared back with terror as she was suddenly dragged away by her hair, just out of view, and a final gun shot filled the hall. --- He drew back into the shadow, breathing hitched. No, Jesse didn't want to die by the hands of someone else. He needed to get to New York, he needed get to Kimbel and mom and dad. But, they were so far. Jesse didn't have a car, and her bike was probably gone by now, which meant she had to walk. From Atlanta, Georgia, all the way to New York City, a walk that far in a world that is dying would kill him. And what if he did make it, all the way through Washington and Baltimore, after walking eight hundred miles through kudzu-infested towns and empty streets, what if he made it to that apartment and found a pile of bodies reeking of rotten flesh. Or maybe no bodies at all, and then hands would wrap around his neck as he searched and screamed for them to come out and he would die from the bites of his family who he had abandoned. And Jesse didn't want to die in that way. Perhaps... His mind began to whirl with thought as he focused on the crowd in front of the cafeteria. They, again, seemed to all be strangers to each other, unlike the group of men who definitely were all in cahoots. If one suddenly attacks, then others will surely be ready to defend themselves and anyone else they thought to trust. And, if someone were to attack, they'd probably aim for the men or stronger looking people first out of fear or knowledge. That fact would ensure his survival, or his entire prediction would be entirely off, but in the end the idea gave him some feeling of security in front of these strangers. Jesse slowly reached into his bag and pulled out the tazer, sucked in a deep breath, exhaled, then approached as casually as his anxiety would allow, making sure to keep the weapon hidden within the large sleeves of his sweatshirt as he slowly lifted his hands in the universal sign of 'do not shoot'. "Uhm, uh..." Jesse smiled a small, frightened smile, sharp features crinkling ever so slightly as he focused in on the two women who had been talking about lemon balm and the aid center, "why, uh, why are you guys here?" He kept one close eye on the people to his left, especially the dog, while attempting to converse with the two in front of him, and while his face was as natural as it could possibly be, the shakiness of his shoulders was a very obvious telltale sign of his anxiety.