Chapter 16: Jealousy and the Food Run
Morning brought tension thicker than hunger.
The house on Maple Hill had felt like a sanctuary the night before warm showers, clean sheets, the quiet comfort of walls that didn't shake when the wind blew.
But daylight changed everything. Daylight revealed the cracks. The fear. The small, ugly things that hunger and exhaustion had buried.
Alex woke with Elara curled against his chest, her silver hair spread across the pillow, her breathing soft and even.
He watched her sleep for a long moment, memorizing the curve of her cheek, the flutter of her eyelids, the way her shadows curled around her wrists even in rest. She was beautiful. She was his. And the world outside was still burning.
He slipped out of bed and dressed in clothes from the closet — clean jeans, a soft hoodie, socks that didn't have holes.
Small comforts that felt like a life he'd forgotten. He stood in front of the mirror for a moment, not recognizing the man who looked back. Thinner. Harder. Eyes that had seen too much.
But clean. For the first time in weeks, he was clean.
Downstairs, the kitchen was already occupied.
Lena was standing by the counter, a cup of water in her hands, her dark hair pulled back from her face.
She looked different in daylight—.softer, maybe, or maybe just less scared. When Alex walked in, her eyes tracked him.
Noticed the way his hoodie stretched across his shoulders. Noticed the golden light that still flickered faintly around his fists even at rest.
Noticed him.
"Morning," she said, her voice quiet. "There's water. No coffee, unfortunately."
Alex nodded, pouring himself a cup. "We'll find some eventually. Priorities."
She laughed, a small, nervous sound. "Priorities. Yeah. Food first, then caffeine."
They stood in silence for a moment, the morning light filtering through the curtains, casting everything in shades of gold and gray.
Lena was watching him again. Alex pretended not to notice.
---
But others noticed.
Priya came into the kitchen a few minutes later, Lucas close behind her.
She stopped in the doorway, her eyes flicking from Lena to Alex, reading something in the space between them that Alex hadn't even seen.
Lena was standing too close. Looking too long. Smiling too much.
Priya said nothing. She just filled her cup and left, pulling Lucas with her.
But in the hallway, she caught Sophie's arm and muttered something under her breath. Sophie's eyes widened. She glanced toward the kitchen, then back at Priya, and nodded.
The whispers started before breakfast.
"He's taken," Priya said to Lena in the kitchen, her voice low but firm. The others were scattered around the house, but the walls were thin and everyone was listening. "Elara's his everything. They've been together since the beginning. Don't make this weird."
Lena flushed, a deep, embarrassed red that spread from her cheeks to her neck. She nodded quickly, looking down at her cup. "I know. I wasn't...I wasn't trying to — "
"I'm just saying." Priya's voice softened, just a little. "We've lost too many people already. We don't need to lose each other over something stupid."
Lena nodded again. She didn't look at Alex for the rest of the morning.
But the looks lingered. From Sophie, too, when she thought no one was watching. From one of the other Maple Ridge girls, whose name Alex couldn't remember. Elara felt it— her shadows curling protectively around her wrists, ready to lash out. But she only smiled softly at Alex and squeezed his hand when he sat beside her.
"Jealousy," she whispered, "is a waste of energy we don't have."
He kissed her temple. "I only see you."
She leaned into him, her shadows relaxing. "I know."
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The house settled into a tense rhythm that day.
Curtains closed. No noise. Everyone moved in soft shoes and softer voices, the kind of silence that came from years of hiding instead of weeks. The generator hummed in the basement, keeping the fridge cold enough for the few scraps they had left — half a jar of pickles from Silver Lake, a can of beans that no one wanted to open because once it was open, it would be gone.
Small comforts made the dread sharper. Fresh clothes that smelled like someone else's life. A bed that wasn't a bus seat. A mirror that showed a face that was almost human again. These things should have felt like victories. Instead, they felt like reminders of everything they'd lost.
At noon, Alex gathered everyone in the living room.
Thirteen survivors sat on the dusty furniture, their eyes hollow, their stomachs growling loud enough to be heard.
The sound was almost embarrassing — a collective admission that they were losing, that hunger was winning, that another day without food would break some of them beyond repair.
Alex stood at the head of the room, his golden aura flickering weakly around his shoulders. He didn't feel like a leader today. He felt like a man who was running out of time.
"We need food." His voice was steady, but it cost him. "The grocery store is two miles in. Zombies are thick there...we saw them from the attic window last night. We send a small team. Four people max. Fast in, fast out. The rest stay hidden and guard the house."
Tension crackled through the room. Everyone wanted to go —or no one did. It was hard to tell the difference anymore. Going meant danger. Staying meant waiting. Both felt like dying.
Lena raised her hand. "I know the town. I grew up here. I can get us there fast."
Marcus stepped beside her, his jaw tight, his eyes fixed on Alex. "I'm going with her." Their new duo, already protective, already unwilling to let the other face danger alone.
Theo raised his hand next. "I'm fast. Track team. I can run ahead, scout the perimeter."
Alex nodded. "I'm the fourth."
The room went quiet. Elara's hand tightened on his knee, her shadows coiling around his wrist like a warning. He looked at her — really looked — and saw the fear she was trying to hide.
"Come back to me," she whispered when the others left the room.
He pulled her close, his arms around her waist, his forehead against hers. He kissed her forehead. Her cheeks. Her lips. Promising with every gentle touch that he would fight, that he would survive, that he would find his way back to her no matter what waited in the flooded streets.
"I always come back," he murmured against her mouth. "That's a promise."
She kissed him one more time, hard and desperate, then let him go.
---
The four left at dusk, slipping out of the house like shadows.
The flooded streets of Maple Ridge reflected the violet light of the portals, turning everything shades of bruise and rot. Alex led the way, his golden blade flickering in his hand, ready. Lena walked beside him, her knife drawn, her eyes scanning the windows and doorways they passed. Marcus and Theo brought up the rear, their footsteps splashing softly through the shallow water.
The grocery store was where Lena said it would be — a small market on the corner of Maple and Main, surrounded by water but accessible through a broken side window. The front doors were chained, the windows boarded, but the back was open, inviting, a mouth waiting to swallow them whole.
Alex held up his hand. They stopped. Listened.
No groans. No movement. Just the distant sound of packs somewhere deeper in town, and the soft lapping of water against the building's foundation.
"In and out," Alex whispered. "Three minutes max. Grab everything you can carry."
They climbed through the window, one by one, landing in the back storage room. The shelves were still stocked—canned soup, beans, crackers, even a few boxes of protein bars that hadn't been looted. Alex's heart raced. This was it. This was what they'd been fighting for.
They filled their bags in silence, working fast, working scared. Lena found a case of bottled water. Marcus grabbed peanut butter and jam. Theo stuffed his backpack with canned vegetables and pasta.
Alex was reaching for a box of granola bars when he heard it.
A groan. Close. Too close.
-----
COMBAT ALERT
Threat detected: Pack of 6-8 infected approaching from the east.
Estimated arrival: 90 seconds.
---
"Go," Alex hissed. "Now."
They climbed back through the window, bags heavy, hearts pounding. The infected were already in the street—eight of them, moving with that eerie intelligence, fanning out to block the way back to the house.
Alex's golden blade flared. He stepped forward, putting himself between the infected and his people. "Run. I'll hold them."
Lena grabbed his arm. "We're not leaving you."
"You're not leaving me. You're taking the food back to the house. That's an order."
For a second, she didn't move. Then Marcus pulled her away, and they were running, splashing through the flooded streets, their bags slapping against their backs.
Alex turned to face the pack.
The fight was brutal. His blade was weak from hunger, his body slow, his reactions sluggish. He killed the first infected with a thrust to the chest, the second with a swing that took off its head. The third caught him across the ribs, claws tearing through his hoodie, drawing blood. He stumbled, fell to one knee, kept fighting.
Four. Five. Six.
The last two turned and ran. Alex didn't chase them. He was bleeding, shaking, barely standing. But he was alive.
He turned to follow his people— and saw Marcus on the ground.
---
The gash on Marcus's arm was deep, bleeding black, the veins already spider-webbing up toward his shoulder. He'd been bitten during the escape, a claw that had found its mark in the chaos, and he hadn't said a word. Hadn't slowed down. Had just kept running until the food was safe.
Lena was kneeling beside him, her hands pressed to the wound, her face wet with tears. "No, no, no — Marcus, you're going to be fine—"
Marcus looked at her with love in his eyes. The same love Jamal had shown Alex. The same love Tyler had shown. The same love that made this world worth surviving, even when survival meant saying goodbye.
"I'm sorry, baby," he whispered. "I'm so sorry."
Alex knelt beside them. His golden blade formed in his hand. It was weak, flickering, but it was enough. It would always be enough for this.
Lena looked at him, her eyes wild. "There has to be another way. The System — you have powers — can't you—"
"There's no cure," Alex said gently. "You know that. We all know that."
She broke. Sobbing, clutching Marcus's hand, pressing her forehead to his. "I just found you. I just - we just—"
Marcus used his last strength to squeeze her hand. "It was worth it," he whispered. "Every second. You were worth it."
Alex waited. He didn't rush. He didn't look away. He owed Marcus that much.
When Marcus nodded — a small, almost invisible movement—Alex drove the blade home.
---
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
Ally lost: Marcus Webb
Cause: Infected bite (combat)
Warrior Essence progress: 38% to Tier 3
Emotional toll: Severe
Party size: Twenty-six survivors
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They carried Marcus's body back to the house. They buried him in the garden behind the white colonial, under a rose bush that had somehow survived the apocalypse. Lena stood at the grave long after the others went inside, her hand on the fresh earth, her shoulders shaking.
The group ate their first real meal in days — small portions, tears mixing with soup. Derek opened a can of beans and passed it around. Chen found crackers that weren't even stale.
Priya divided a box of protein bars into Twenty-six piles, each one the size of her thumb.
No one spoke. There was nothing left to say.
---
Alex found Elara upstairs afterward.
She was sitting on the edge of the bathtub, waiting for him, her shadows curled around her like a shroud. When he walked in, she stood and crossed the room without a word. Her hands found his face. Her thumbs brushed the tears he hadn't realized he was crying.
"I'm here," she whispered. "I'm here."
He pulled her into the shower, turning the water as hot as it would go. They stood under the spray, the steam curling around them, and he let her wash away the blood. His hands shook as she worked shampoo through his hair. His breath came in ragged gasps as she traced the new scars on his ribs.
"Every time I leave you," he whispered, "I fight harder to come back."
She turned him gently, pressing his back against the tile, her body against his. Her shadows wrapped around them both, warm and soft, blocking out the world. She kissed him - slow, deep, full of everything she couldn't say.
Their lovemaking was even softer than before. Slower. More emotional.
He lifted her, her legs wrapping around his waist, and when he entered her, it was like coming home. Their eyes locked. Their bodies moved like one soul. Her shadows intertwined with his golden light, glowing softly in the steam, holding them together when everything else was falling apart.
She cried quietly - pleasure, love, grief, all of it tangled together. He kissed her tears, tasted salt and her, felt his own eyes burning.
"I love you," he breathed against her mouth. "I love you, Elara. I don't know how to do any of this without you."
She held him tighter. "You'll never have to."
Their climax was quiet, glowing, a shared breath in the steam. They stayed under the water long after, holding each other, letting the heat wash away the grief.
-----
Downstairs, the new duos held each other tighter.
Lucas and Priya curled together on the couch, their legs tangled, their foreheads pressed together. They didn't make love tonight. They just held on.
Sophie and Theo sat in the library, Sophie's head on Theo's shoulder, Theo's arm around her waist. They whispered about Marcus, about Lena, about the fragile, terrible beauty of finding someone in the middle of the end of the world.
Lena sat alone in the guest room, staring at the wall. She didn't cry anymore. There were no tears left. But when Jenna came in and sat beside her, taking her hand in silence, Lena leaned into her and let herself be held.
Three couples now, clinging to the only warmth left.
The big house felt safer tonight. The food would last two days, maybe three if they stretched it. The walls were thick, the doors were locked, the generator still hummed.
But outside, the town was waking up. More portals had opened overnight, their violet light bleeding through the curtains, illuminating the flooded streets. The groans were closer now. More intelligent. More organized.
They would have to move again soon. Alex knew it. Elara knew it. They all knew it.
But tonight, they had this. Each other. A meal in their bellies. A roof over their heads.
Tonight, that was enough.
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Marcus is gone. The food is secured. Jealousy flared and faded. And Alex keeps coming back, no matter what waits in the dark.
Got a power stone to spare? Very much appreciated - drop a comment if you're holding on with them