Misery Loves Company

[Ruby]

Ruby finished what was left on her plate and placed her fork down in the center of it, making a CLINK. "Well," she started, "I don't know where I'll be going after I run out of firewood, but I've got a couple of weeks worth left here before I have to think about that." she looked down at her lap.

"If you'd like to stay here, you can. I'd just ask that you help me scavenge."

Feeling the blood rush to her cheeks, she quickly stood, picking up her dinner plate and bringing it to the sink where a few dishes had piled up already, waiting for extra rainwater to be washed. What a horribly awkward question to ask a complete stranger, she scolded herself while she placed the plate on top of the rest. 

She turned, resting both of her palms on the sink's edge and leaned against it. "I'm sorry, that was inappropriate of me to ask. You can decline if you want to and I will completely understand."

[greyfeathers]

Grey nodded at Ruby's mention of running out of firewood. For most survivors setting up permanent residence was not viable. Most of them. Grey had passed through several settlements that looked fairly nice to live in. But he couldn't stay with them. He hadn't been used to communal living for quite some time now.

Grey looked up, surprised at her offer for him to stay. Well, that was a bit sudden. What surprised him more was that he was actually thinking about it. A few months ago he would probably scoff. But now...

Ah, there it was. The first sign of regret. He knew it couldn't have been far. But Grey was equally surprised when she didn't withdraw her offer. He stayed silent as he pondered what to do. He actually felt...tired of living alone. Sure there were a number of benefits, namely being that he moved as fast as he wanted, where he wanted, when he wanted. But that freedom came with a price. When Death would finally find him, there would be no one there to try and stop it, no one there to try to help him avoid it...no one there to even care he was gone.

"A roof over my head, a nice couch to sleep on, hot meals...where do I sign?"

[Ruby]

"Okay." Ruby nodded her head, letting Grey's answer sink in. Since this had all began, she had been alone. It suited her because she was never good at talking to people. If she had to pick, people were probably more intimidating than the infected.

She walked back over to the table and took her seat. Looking at her new temporary roommate, she smiled nervously. "So I guess we should go search for supplies tomorrow?" she asked him. "The food we have now won't last us very long." Had she known she was going to have company, she would have looked for more food earlier that day.

She finished the last few sips of water in her glass before refilling it halfway with the gin. "If we leave at dawn we should have more than enough time to poke around town." She paused to sip her gin. "And if you'd like, you can take the bedroom. I don't mind sleeping on the couch. You're the guest."

[greyfeathers]

Grey nodded at the mention of supplies. He was running low on food himself, and it was definitely a good chance to resupply.

"Know of any old military surplus stores around? Or hunting goods?"
Ammunition was running low, and Grey knew that when it did, people died. He knew how to fight hand to hand, but he would prefer not to when dealing with infected.

Grey smiled as Ruby mentioned leaving at the crack of dawn. That was something that he was quite used to. Hell, crack of dawn was sleeping in by his standards.

"The couch is fine for me. Where I've been sleeping the past couple months, a couch is a five star hotel..."

[Ruby]

Ruby pondered, trying to find the answer for Grey. "I believe there might be a hunting store about five blocks from here. I haven't seen any military store around here, though, but I also haven't gone more than 10 blocks in any direction."

She took another sip of gin before continuing. "I wouldn't mind scouting for one though. Seeing the same thing every day gets tiring, I'm ready to explore something new." The boredom of her surroundings was driving her nuts, and losing it during the end of the world probably wouldn't end well, which is why she liked keeping busy.

"Okay, well, I've got blankets and a pillow if you need them. I'll also leave the door open just in case." She finished her gin and after pouring another half glass, she held out the bottle to Grey, gesturing with it. "Want some more? I still don't know much about you and they say the truth comes out when you drink." she said with a grin. "Not to mention I've been drinking alone for a long time."

[greyfeathers]

Grey smiled. Maybe he could even find a better shotgun. Any gun would do though...

"Sounds like a plan."

As Ruby extended the bottle to him, Grey leaned back in his chair a bit. He would have accepted gladly if she hadn't mentioned the truth coming out. What could he tell her? Who he was before? That man was killed years before the Apocalypse, and Grey had no intention of digging him up just yet. But refusing would be impolite, and he also didn't want to rob her of a drinking buddy as soon as she found one.

"Just one more..."
And at that moment Grey realized that the worst hangovers always began with that particular statement...

[Ruby]

Ruby handed off the bottle and clapped her hands together. "Awesome. I love being a bad influence." she smirked at Grey and sat back in her chair, taking her glass with her. It was nice having someone around after being alone for so long. Having company made things seem normal, and she was so excited she had almost forgotten there was a wasteland beyond the apartment's walls.

She kicked her boots off under the table. "How about an easy one to start? What brought you to this part of town today?" she questioned him, taking a sip from her glass after.

[greyfeathers]

Grey filled his glass while allowing himself to smile. The last time he did this was...
His smile lowered a bit, but remained nonetheless.
"Church tower at first. It looked like a better option than in most of the other buildings. Then I saw your smoke, and here I am..."

Grey's smile returned as he took a sip of the gin, the wonderful brew warming his insides as it slid down his throat. He then leaned back in his chair and extended his arm to top off Ruby's glass.

"So now it's my turn eh? Okay...How did you end up in York?"

[Ruby]

Ruby watched Grey fill his glass and a smile cross his lips. Ah, the smoke gave my location away.

She watched him smile once more, this time noticing he had a nice smile. It was almost contagious. She leaned forward and extended her arm so he could top off her glass, the bottle almost gone.

"How did you end up in York?" Grey asked her. She smiled at him.

"Ah," she said as she rested her back against the seat again. "Good question." She brought the glass to her lips and took a long sip. The gin was starting to take effect.

"I saw the fence about a year ago while I was in Scotland. I was running from some trouble so climbed the wall and took my chances in here." Ruby shrugged. 

Ruby ran her finger along the rim of her glass. "Have you been alone the whole time?"

[greyfeathers]

At this point, Grey didn't even seem to care that the bottle of gin was getting very close to becoming just a bottle. The last time he was able to lay back a bit was years ago. After taking another sip the room started to spin ever so slightly, and he knew right away that may it was time to put the booze down.

Then Ruby smiled back, and Grey decided that killing this one bottle with her wouldn't be too bad, seeing as how there was maybe two glasses left in it. He nodded knowingly at her mention of running from trouble. He had been in that position plenty of times himself.

And then Ruby asked her question, and Grey suddenly realized that indeed he was. He had had a few contacts, maybe even a couple of drinking buddies, though the Apocalypse had probably killed most of them off by now. Ever since... that night, he really couldn't say that he had any friends. His capability to feel emotion had been severely damaged, some had even said permanently nullified directly after...the incident. And Grey never even paid attention to it until now. Contact with people he saw since Apocalypse happened was too brief for any lasting bonds to form. He had been consumed with one thing, and honestly he couldn't say that he still wasnt. Revenge.

"For the most part..." Grey said before taking another sip of gin, holding it on his mouth for a few seconds before swallowing.