Curiosity pulls her to the window. Where her gray eyes could see where the green met the dark clouds on the horizon. Already, a faint rumble of thunder could be heard as the storm got closer. So immersed in the view and the sounds of nature. Cole doesn't hear when the bedroom door opens. A sudden grip on her shoulder draws Cole's attention away. She smiles when she finds it's Doctor Lance with a glass of water. "Thank you." Cole accepts it. Bringing it to her lips, Cole gulps it down. Once she finishes, she turns again to find he was staring, as if what Cole was doing was something rare and astonishing. "What is it?" Cole wondered. Vincent finally blinks when she speaks. Seeming to have been shaken out of his thoughts. "N-Nothing. It's… Well…" He stutters, shifting his gaze to look at the time. Taking a deep breath, Vincent seemed to be at a loss for words. "Vin, you can tell me. What's on your mind?" Cole grows curiouser when the doctor didn't rush to set up his kit. Neither did
Over the days, the weather got warmer. Vincent and Eris were hard at work, while Tuck spent afternoons skating in the halls. Often, he left to enjoy the sunny day. However, he always returned to see Cole. Vincent secretly worried Tuck was having too much play time with the patient. As he was much more athletic than Cole... Then one morning, he walked in to find the pair practicing the Warrior Pose and other less challenging exercises. Cole had a smile and hardly had to stop to catch her breath. Unlike the first week, when she could barely get across the room without panting. Today marked the 93rd day, and Cole's strength was returning. "That's it". Tuck smiled from where he posed on his yoga mat. Then he stood straight and watched as Vincent entered the room. "Come on. Not now Doctor Doom". Went Tuck. Meanwhile, Cole kept a smile on her face. "Good morning, Vin". "Good morning". Vincent set a tray of food down, gesturing for Tuck to leave the room. Tuck ignored it and plopped dow
A long hour of decontamination later that Vincent settled into his own bed. A journal in hand as he leaned back against the headboard. Jotting down notes of his patient's health. Tuck slept soundly in a twin bed opposite of his, and Audi on his own cushion beside it. The dog eyed the room before curling up on his bed. Vincent closed his journal after several minutes, placing it on a nightstand to his left. Trading it for one of Doctor Isla's journals which he kept in the drawer. In silence, he began sifting through the pages. Taking in memory of its contents until his eyes finally droop. Sleep takes him, like the breeze takes a candle's flame. Hours into the night, a quarter moon was at its peak over their Florida home. The only sound was the night air as it flowed through wild trees and grasses. The moon was near its fall when Cole got out of bed. Heavy with sleep, she peeked toward the bathroom. Her eyes half open as she drags her feet in the direction. Cole relieved her bladder
"Vin… Vin… BLONDIE!" Tuck's voice calls eagerly from his right. Vincent stirred awake, lifting his head to see that Tuck was pointing at his wrist. Where a similar tech wristlet was beeping away. "Could you turn that off? Jeez…" Tuck groans, rubbing his tired eyes as he was about return to bed. "Oh god…" Vincent stares at his wristlet, which showed an increase in his patient's heartrate. "Why is she awake?" He mumbled, forcing himself to sit upright. "It's 2am… Cole's never up this early." "She probably having a nightmare." Tuck guesses, throwing himself back in bed. Vincent chewed his lip as he thought about it. Eventually, he laid back down and silenced the wristlet. -- "SOMEONE!" Eris opened his eyes, instinctively pulling out his pistol from his clutter. Natalie did the same as she slipped from their bed and entered the hall. "That was Cole!” Tuck came out of his room but was yanked back in by his collar. "Don't leave the room". Vincent blocks him quickly and shuts the doo
Cole turns her head, spotting one of the thieves crawling on the slate of the roof. Her heart began to pound harder, Cole had nowhere else to go. "I'm- I'm infected!" Cole shouts, putting up her palms in a warning for the woman to keep her distance. To her surprise, the woman pulls out a sharp weapon. "Lies". She spat. "We've been watching this place for weeks now… No one lives this long with the corruption. We know what it does and we know who made it". "Who made it?" Cole mumbles, carefully moving away from the window. "What are you talking about?" She questions, secretly hoping to stall long enough to figure something out. “The missile? The weapon unleashed by fools with power. It's the reason we're forced to fend for ourselves and eat scrap". The woman stalked closer and closer, while Cole backed away. Sliding herself further up the slate until she could go no farther. "People like you. The 'important people' with all the resources are the reason we are left to die… While the re
Cole sucked in a breath, and without another thought, threw herself forward. Flashes of her past flood her mind. Like looking at shiny gold treasures in a chest. Cole remembered the moments when her parents smiled, when her sister giggled, when things were simple, safe and beautiful… Her ears filled with distant flutters of bird wings. Until the flutters became pops again and murmurs became shouts. "COLE!" All at once, her gray eyes opened, and the full moon’s glory filled her vision. "COLE WHERE ARE YOU?" A voice shouts. Cole's heart pounds as she realizes it was Tuck shouting for her. She frantically looked around, seeing that she had indeed landed on the terrace. While her attacker lay unconscious on a broken table; which was crushed under his weight. "COLE!" Another shout makes Cole turn her head to the right, finding the house door. Right away she knew Tuck was checking every room on the third floor. The floor creaked, drawing her gaze left again. Cole's gray eyes went wi
Loud shouts and sounds of fists colliding with flesh. They echo within the otherwise peaceful darkness of Cole's mind. Until her lips opened to receive air. Cole sucked in a huge breath, coughing out again as she regained consciousness. Cole's vision was hazy at first and she was unable to recognize the moving shadows in front of her.Time stretched as Cole’s mind takes in the sight of her surroundings. Cole fixed her gaze on someone bursting through the door. Heavy boots land on the wooden floor of the terrace. It was Tuck. He shouts something, but his voice sounds submerged and echoes repeatedly in Cole’s mind. As if he were shouting through a flooded tunnel. His eyes pinned on Cole's body that lay slumped against the rail. His brown eyes fill with terror as his lips part again. Exhaling breath through bloody lips. Cole could tell he'd been through hell and back. Reddened parts of his skin drew her gaze. As if someone had clawed him from head to toe, Tuck's clothes were torn, and hi
A moment passes. Then another, as Cole mentally processes what happened. Turning her head to see the man, Lucas, lying in a pool of his own blood with a piece of a chair leg nearby. The wooden thing was stained at one end. Immediately Cole knew what the Doctor had done…"Oh my god...""Breathe Cole". Vincent touches her cheek again. Guiding her vision away from the sight when her breathing becomes feverish."V-Vin… M-My window". Cole tries to speak, starting to feel the pain in her bones. In her mind, she remembered the trio that broke into the house."I know". Went Vincent. "They broke in. It'll be over soon"."Come here". Vincent carefully lifts Cole to sit up. One hand slipping to cradle the back of her neck, while the other supports her back. Vincent let go, but not for long when Cole began to tilt. She breathed feverishly while her gaze shifted around. As if she were unable to tell (up) from (down.) "Tuck, get the door". Vincent tells him, lifting Cole from the floor. "Cole stay