Human Nature

by Finlay Borthwick

  Gwen could relate to Elliot, nodding at everything he said, “I know how that feels as well, Elliot. I think back to my past too, and everyone I see is in black and white now… But do you know what else I think about? I think about now. I think about the present. I think about how everyone in our group is alive because you kept them alive. Erica, Tina, Reed, and even Reed’s jawline beard which somehow grew in a matter of days.” She tried to joke around, but Elliot was all out of laughter.

  “Anyway, the point is… Erica is still in colour. Tina is still in colour. Reed, Zach, Celeste, they’re all in colour Elliot, because of you… Reed’s beard is in colour as well,” Again, she tried to joke, but again Elliot didn’t laugh. “For how long though, Gwen?” There was an awkward silence. “You and I both know that someone else is going to die eventually. First it was Steven, then it was Vincent, then Andy, then Seymour’s group, Fabien, Pierre, Olivia – All of them, they’re all in black and white. People don’t stop dying just because someone else has already died Gwen… You of all people should know that.”

  Gwen swallowed hard, “Yes, I do know that…”

  “Elliot! Gwen! You two need to see this!” Erica busted into the tenth. “What? Why? What is it?” Gwen was in a kerfuffle. “Newcomers… Well, I mean, they’re not really newcomers… Look, you’ll understand when you see who it is. Come on! Quickly!” Erica rushed off again, as Elliot and Gwen looked at each other before heading out after her.

  Elliot and Gwen rushed over to the gate. “Open it up!” Erica instructed one of the guards, who followed through with her command. As the gate opened, Gwen’s face filled with shock and delight – for opposite her now was Annabelle…

  “A-A…” Gwen simply couldn’t believe it, “Annabelle!” She ran towards the gate, as her daughter looked jovially at her as well, “Mum!” They ran towards each other, jumping into an embrace.

  Elliot’s expression of concern and understanding dropped into one of disappointment. Reed watched him carefully.

  “I’m so glad you’re ok,” Gwen told her daughter, her voice muffled as she cried joyfully into her daughter’s shoulder. “You too mum!”

  They pulled out of the hug, clearing their throats. “Listen, about anything and everything I said,” Gwen began, but her daughter put her finger over her lip, “All is forgiven, mum. Don’t worry. I’m just happy to see you again…” They smiled and hugged each other a second time.

  Erica looked just as disappointed as Elliot. Tina noticed her expression, I know what you’re thinking, Erica. I’m sorry,” Tina said. “Why couldn’t it have just been my daughter?” Erica expressed her views, “Just this once. Why did It have to be someone else’s?”

  “So, how is everyone?” Annabelle enthusiastically asked, as Gwen stepped aside. “Reed? My goodness! Look at your beard!” She made a remark similar to her mother’s. “Good to see you again my friend,” Reed walked over to her and shook her hand.

  Annabelle looked to her right, “Tina! And… Erica…” Her happy expression turned into remorse and fear. “What?” Erica squinted at her, slightly alarmed by her expression. Annabelle walked up to her slowly, “I found Keith, Erica…” She saved the best part for last however, “He’s with Cora!” Annabelle looked delighted again, as Erica breathed sighs of relief, tears of joy forming in her eyes.

  Elliot noticed Erica’s relief, looking even more disappointed than he already was.

  Annabelle now turned to face Zach and Celeste. “Zach? My goodness, it hasn’t even been that long and… Crikey, just look at how much you’ve grown!” She referred to his height, but also his facial structure. “Celeste! Bonjour Madame!” They shook hands, as Celeste shock her with an English response, “Well met again, my dear Annabelle. How lovely it is to see you.” She nodded out of impressment, “Remarkable! Fantastic English, my dear Celeste!”

  Now however, the most difficult part came about. Annabelle turned around to face Elliot, noticing a look of sheer disappointment and heartbreak on his face. She walked over to him in long and slow strides.

  “Elliot?” She knew something wasn’t right straight away. She looked around, quickly surveying the area. “Where’s Olivia? And that French guy, Pierre?”

  Elliot’s eyes went droopy, “Pierre was executed.” He blankly responded. A few seconds passed before Annabelle realised he wasn’t continuing his answer, “And Olivia? Where is she?” Elliot stared at her, not saying a word.

  Annabelle turned around to look at Gwen, “Mum?” She inquisitively looked at her, as Gwen looked down, shaking her head. Annabelle’s eyes widened with sorrow as she turned back around.

  “Elliot… I… Wow. I’m so sorry,” Annabelle was just as shocked. “She was truly amazing that woman… There’s so much I would’ve loved to talk to her about. Elliot, you have my eternal condolences and my deepest sympathies… That’s just, wow…” Annabelle too was struggling to get her head around it.

  Erica coughed to get the attention back on her, “Not to interrupt this emotional moment or anything, but… I would like to know where my daughter is, and why she isn’t with you. On top of that, I’d like to know who that man there is,” Erica nodded to Tobin who had his shotgun lowered.

  “Is there some indoor place which we can talk perhaps? Away from any people who may live here?” Annabelle looked to everyone.

  “The trailer,” Elliot spoke up, pointing to his trailer. “Go in there. Whatever you need to tell her, you can tell it to her in there. No one will go in.” The tone and the way in which Elliot was speaking made it clear to Annabelle just how much the loss of Olivia had affected him.

  “Alright… Thank you Elliot. And of course, I’m very sorry for your loss…” She put her hand on his shoulder momentarily, before departing towards the trailer. Erica and Tina followed her as Reed watched them.

  “Reed,” Gwen nodded to him, “Go with them. You know, just in case…” Gwen had anticipated bad news about Keith and Cora, therefore believed Reed could be used to maintain a civil atmosphere. He nodded, and headed towards the trailer as well.

  Gwen approached Elliot, “So, do you want to continue our little discussion? I’m sure that tent is still available…”

  Chapter 29

  Erica sat down on the other side of the desk, facing Annabelle, “So go on then. Tell me what happened, please.” Erica asked her. Annabelle took a deep breath, “You have to promise that when I tell you what happened, you aren’t going to do anything which will harm me…” This was a bizarre request which took a few moments for Erica to process, but she nodded nonetheless. “Alright…” Annabelle took deep breaths and recalled her story…

  … Annabelle watched as Vanessa and Keith grew closer. She found their interactions with each other to be rather sweet. On the other side of the terminal, she could see Miguel watching them closely out of jealousy. She walked over to him.

  “See anything you like?” She jokingly remarked, as Miguel continued to concentrate on Keith and Vanessa’s interaction. “Come on Miguel, don’t be jealous.” He shook his head despite having gone bright red, “I’m not jealous! There’s no time for jealousy anymore… In fact, why are we still in this damn terminal?” He clapped his hands loudly, “Chop, chop! Time to go! We need to get a move on if we’re going to find Annabelle’s group again. Hurry up!” He forced Keith and Vanessa apart as the group prepared to move out.

  With their things packed and their firearms ready, the group headed out of the terminal. “Right then… Where do we start?” Miguel asked. “The map,” Keith pointed to Vanessa who had taken a map from a terminal store. “Let’s see… Keith can you help me read this?”

  As he went to move around, Miguel got in the way, “It’s alright Keith, I’ve got this one my friend. He blocked him out, assisting Vanessa with the map. Annabelle was trying not to laugh at this situation.

  The group travelled down an empty and continuously ongoing road. There were no cars or any form of transportation lying about.

  “Christ!” Miguel wa
s becoming tired and impatient. “Alright calm down, we’ll find something soon.” Annabelle tried to reassure him, but she wasn’t very convincing. “Except we won’t, will we? That’s just a load of bullshit and you know it, Annabelle. We’re going to die out here on this road. You know that too. I’m hungry, I’m thirsty, and I’m very tired. This place is desolate, which really doesn’t help at all.” Miguel kept presenting the bad news to the group.

  “Hold on, what’s this?” Cora picked a cake box on the ground.

  “Oh God, please, please, please just let there be something inside to eat!” He literally put his hands into a praying gesture. Cora opened the box, but it was completely empty.

  “Dammit!” Miguel stomped so hard that he injured his foot. “Look, mate, why don’t you just calm down? Getting angry won’t do us any favours!” Keith suggested in a patronising voice.

  “Calm down? Why don’t you get your lips off of Vanessa then?” Miguel pushed Keith away from him.

  “Oh come on you two, stop it,” Vanessa lightly remarked, unfazed by their drama. “Are you serious, V? You like him? You’ve only just met this guy! Look at him!”

  Cora and Annabelle looked at each other and nodded, thinking the exact same thought. They walked off, leaving the other three to argue amongst themselves. “They’ll come around eventually.” Cora smiled at Annabelle, “I know.” She jokingly responded…

  … “That was the first mistake we made,” Annabelle told Erica, Tina and Reed. “We should’ve never left them with each other, even if it was pathetic and squirmy drama.”

  Erica looked intently at Annabelle, “Why was it a mistake, Annabelle?” Her eyes became ferocious, causing Annabelle to gulp.

  “As it transpired, it turned out that those three actually didn’t come around eventually. Not in the way that Cora had predicted anyway.”

  Erica slammed the desk, making Annabelle jump. “God dammit! Stop speaking so cryptically and just tell me where the hell my daughter is already!” Tina put her arms around her girlfriend, taking her hand off the desk, “Remain calm, Erica. Getting angry won’t change whatever happened.” Tina slowly took her hands off of her, as Annabelle nodded appreciatively.

  Elsewhere, Elliot and Gwen had continued their conversation. “Don’t get me wrong, Gwen… I’m really happy for you that Annabelle came back. But at the same time, I envy you and I hate the fact that she is here…”

  Gwen wasn’t cross with Elliot at all, she understood his point of view.

  “It just seems like everything goes right for everyone that isn’t me. Why am I still even on this planet? Am I God’s punching bag? His dartboard? What’s the grand prize, Gwen? Because Olivia’s demise to me feels the same way a dartboard must feel when the player gets a bullseye… Stings like hell.” Elliot was still shaken up by the events of what had happened.

  “If this was the other way around, Elliot. If Annabelle had died, and if you had found Olivia again, I’d be feeling exactly the same. This conversation would be exactly the same. Except you’d be sitting here and I’d be sitting there.” She gestured between their two positions.

  “Gwen…” Elliot cleared his throat, “I have something I want to ask you. It’s a big question though, and it’s a bit unordinary nowadays. But I just want you to consider it at least. Can you do that for me?”

  She nodded, “Of course I can, Elliot. What is it? What’s on your mind?”

  He looked up at her, “I want you to adopt me. I want you to be my stepmother, Gwen.”

  She looked at him bewildered, yet also she looked as though she felt privileged. “Elliot, I,” Before she could give her answer, Elliot interrupted her.

  “I know it’s a big ask, Gwen. But I need family now more than ever. Steven was like a brother to me, but he’s gone. Olivia was my girlfriend, but she’s gone. Goodness knows where my sister is as well, dead or alive, it doesn’t matter, the point is I won’t be seeing her again. But you Gwen, you’re right here, in front of me. Be my stepmother. Let Annabelle be my stepsister. Please, Gwen?”

  She stuttered momentarily, before warmly smiling at him, “Elliot, I would be delighted to accept you as my son.” He breathed a sigh of relief with an upbeat expression, bringing his new stepmother in for a hug. “Thanks mum…”

  “Pretty much half a day passed,” Annabelle was still telling her story, “Before Vanessa and her two lovebirds caught up with us. When they did, it was clear they’d all had a big argument. The amount of space in between them was enough to fit an entire military convoy.”

  Erica rolled her eyes, “You’re not funny, Annabelle. In fact, you’re the most boring and blandest girl I’ve ever met. You’re not nothing like my daughter at all, I take it all back. At least if it was Cora sitting there and Gwen sitting here, she’d already know what happened to you. But unfortunately, things are the other way around. So stop wasting my time, stop wasting my patient, and stop pushing your luck.” Her ferocious look returned, sending chills down Annabelle’s spine.

  “Alright, alright. Fair play,” Annabelle gave in…

  … That evening was rather quiet. The group slept in an abandoned house, each in a different room to another. Annabelle slept by the fireplace – one of the few things which actually still functioned properly in the end times. As she nearly fell completely asleep, she was rudely awoken by a noise outside. It was as though someone was trying to break in. Instinctively, Annabelle grabbed the red hot poker which had been left in the fireplace. In her other hand she readied her pistol as well, headed towards the source of the noise.

  She reached the basement door, noticing it was slightly ajar, hearing someone or something beneath her. She took a deep breath, and fired a warning shot down into the basement. The gunshot rang out as the entire house fell silent momentarily.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Vanessa tied up a dressing gown – which was now hers – as she investigated what Annabelle was doing. “Someone’s down there!” Annabelle whispered to her, as she handed Vanessa the poker. “Wait up here,” Annabelle instructed her, as she pushed the creaky basement door open slightly – it was too dark to see anything.

  “Open the blinds!” Annabelle called back to Vanessa, who rolled the blinds on the window up, allowing the moonlight to shine in, lighting up the basement dimly, but also enough for Annabelle to see down there.

  As she creaked down the stairs, she noticed where the bullet had hit as a hole had been made. She looked at the area behind the stairs, but there was nothing.

  “Hurry!” Vanessa peered down, concerned for Annabelle and also for her own safety. She screamed slightly, as Miguel grabbed her from behind.

  “Jesus Miguel! Don’t ever do that again!” She gritted her teeth at him. “Sorry Vanessa, but this is for your own good… Well actually, it’s more for my own. But at least you won’t have to deal with that prick Keith anymore.” He pushed her into the basement as she tumbled down the stairs before closing the basement door on her, barricading it from the outside.

  “Vanessa! What the heck?” Annabelle crouched down next to her, as she drearily put her hands over her head. “My goodness, you’re concussed! What happened? Vanessa?” Annabelle shook her, but she didn’t respond.

  Upstairs, Miguel pulled out his pistol and primed it. He held it out in front of him, “Time to end this.” He headed towards the stairs, headed for the upstairs rooms…

  … “And that was the second mistake we made.” Annabelle followed up. “Should never have gone into the basement. Even now I’ve still got absolutely no idea how he did it – How he made all that noise in the basement, or maybe if it was just a coincidence. I guess I’ll never know now though…” As Annabelle began to daydream, Erica clicked her fingers, breaking Annabelle’s trance.

  Erica leant across the desk, “Now listen here, you bitch. Now’s not the time for daydreaming. You can do that once you’ve finished your little story. Hurry up and tell me already, where is my daughter?”

  Annabelle nodded in fear and accepta
nce, “Alright. This is the hard part…”

  … Miguel busted into every single room upstairs, but they were all empty. “I know you’re up here, Keith! You as well, Cora! I’ve no intention of harming you… So long as you comply with me,” He checked each of the rooms more thoroughly now. “You’ll be liable for the consequences if you’re not careful!” He reiterated.

  Miguel checked behind one of the doors, revealing a terrified Cora hiding in the corner. “Aha! There you are. It’s ok my dear child! Do not be afraid. I’ve no ill-will towards you. Just tell me where Keith is hiding and I’ll let you go… Or,” He bent down and put the gun right in her face. Cora stopped breathing heavily, and tried to calm herself, swallowing hard.

  From behind, Keith made a battle cry, swinging a lamp down. Miguel rolled out of the way and dodged it, the lamp narrowly missing Cora’s feet. Keith turned around, keeping Miguel on the ground. “I don’t think so!” He tried pulling the gun up, but Keith overpowered his arm, keeping it against the ground. “Cora… Run!” Keith winced, struggling to get his words out. Not needing to be asked a second time, Cora ran out of the room

  As Cora ran downstairs, she heard Annabelle and Vanessa banging on the basement door. “Hang on! I’m coming!” She rushed over to them, quickly decompiling the blockade in front of the door.

  “Nearly there!” With difficulty, she shifted the last heavy box out of the way, as Annabelle and Vanessa pushed the door all the way open. “Where’s Miguel? What’s he doing?” Vanessa wasted no time, but Cora didn’t have an answer.

  From upstairs, a gunshot rang out. The woman all looked at each other, before rushing upstairs.

  “Keith!” Vanessa ran in to the room, noticing Keith clenching a bullet hole in his chest. Cora covered her mouth, shocked. “Take care of him you two! I’m going to find that bastard Miguel!” Annabelle ran out of the room looking for him.