Will POV

The inside of the house was bland to say the least. The walls were a dirty beige colour and the wooden floors creaked with every step. There were paintings of the previous occupants still adorning the dusty walls.

The place smelt of sweat - which was no surprise. Walking through the hallway we came to a stop by a relatively open planned house.

What was once the living room became - what appeared to be - the command center. Maps pinned on the walls, soldiers scrutinizing the massive one covering the dining table. There were walkie-talkies everywhere and used candles placed on almost any surface. The men and woman looked tired but... extremely determined. I couldn't help the bubble of respect that grew in my chest.

"This way", that infuriating guard told me. I didn't pay him any attention as he showed me to a door on the right of the house. Instinctively I looked back and saw the stairs that led to the second story of the house.

Does she live here?

The guard knocked on the door and her firm voice answered, "Come in."

The guard opened the door for me and I scowled at him. He just gets on my nerves. I grabbed Logan - who was gawking slightly at the setup of the house - by the hand and we walked into the room. The guard tensed slightly - but his sunglasses, scarf and beanie made it impossible to read him. I just hope I upset him. I want to upset him.

Why would he hit Logan? That was irrational and irrationality irritated me. That's how I survived by myself, using my head and not my heart. Using your heart just got you hurt.

Maybe he hit Logan because the guard saw him as useless or as baggage. I couldn't keep the scowl that was sketched onto my face. I had to calm myself down. We are facing Valarie. I can't show any emotion. She'll use it to her advantage.

"How did you sleep", she asked disinterested. The question was aimed at me and I was getting very irritated that people were overlooking Logan.

"Fine", I said coldly, "What about you Logan, how did you sleep?"

"Oh I slept well, thank you", he gave my hand a firm squeeze. I had forgotten that I was still holding his hand. I didn't want to make him uncomfortable so I slid my smaller one out of his larger one.

Why are my cheeks feeling so warm? Am I sick?

I returned my attention back to Valarie who was staring at us with barely a hint of acknowledgement. Her eyes wandered to the strange guard, "Why are you wearing that?" She snapped at him.

"T-to show my shame, Sir", his voice faltered, making me think he was disguising it as well. But it could have just been muffled by his scarf.

"Just get out", she said harshly.

The guard didn't hesitate to leave. But I could have sworn he spared one glance at me before he left. However, I hadn't slept. So it's very likely that I was seeing things.

"I called you here-"

"Us", I cut her off, "you called us here."

Her lip curled in distaste - she was irritated. Good. So was I.

"Watch yourself Will", she spat my name, "I only tolerate your insolence because you could yet be useful. If your insolence quickly outweighs your usefulness, I will kill you."

The room was enveloped in an icy silence for sometime. Her staring me down and me staring her down. Our expressions must have been identical.

Logan cleared his throat and both pairs of eyes snapped to him, "You called us here because..." He left the sentence hanging.

Her eyes snapped to mine one more time before she spoke.

"Because, whenever we get new members we interview them to find out what they know about the Freaks. Once that is done I will assign you your jobs", she said insipidly.

"Well firstly we refer to them as Cannibals. There's quite a lot of information I've gathered about them - but I'm sure you've heard all of them. They're attracted by very bright lights - specifically bright light - considering they are almost completely blind. Some form of advanced cataracts. They seem to rely on sound as their primary sense, I've noticed outgrowth in their ears. These hairlike outgrowths seem to amplify their sense of hearing. The sounds they're attracted to are distinctly human - though I'm not entirely certain about that, I haven't tested it. Temperature has a clear effect on them, when it's cold they are slower. When it's hot they are faster. And lastly, based on the rash the infection seems to be fungal in nature - the Cannibals have bleeding gums and that's the primary mode of transmission. Blood."

Those were the most words I have ever spoken in weeks. It felt foreign and uncomfortable. Valarie raised her eyebrows slightly in mute impressment, "Do you have a medical background?"

"Yes I do."

She nodded vaguely then quickly looked at Logan with an expecting expression. Logan looked from her to me before finally adding, "I-if you hit them on the head they, like, die."

I bit my lip to hide my smile.

What is he doing to me?

Valarie looked at him unimpressed before finally speaking again, "As you are new here, you will understand that we can't grant you the more glorious jobs immediately. You work for that right. Therefore, your jobs for this afternoon will be to help the kitchen workers serve food to the other members. Your shift starts in five minutes", she got up from behind the desk and walked to the door. She opened it and pointed at the guard who hit Logan, "What is your name again?"

I saw the guard visibly tense. He seemed to be trembling almost. She must have them all under her boot, "Never mind, I don't care. He only gets half rations for slacking off. That is all. Leave."

Logan walked behind me as we exited the room, Valarie kept talking to the guard as she glanced at me every now and then.

Logan grabbed my hand and held it in both of his, "You have such smooth hands Will... Like after all this time how are they still so smooth...", he sounded hypnotized and it made me blush so I just bit the inside of my cheeks.

Pink dusted across his tan skin as he ran a hand through his blonde hair, "I... Thank you for... Like, standing up for me in there. I think they treat me badly because they think I'm unnecessary baggage."

"You aren't though. You know that right? Just because you didn't fight Michael doesn't mean you aren't as 'useful' as I am or even as she is. You aren't baggage Logan..."

I whispered the last part, "You're very important for several reasons..."

I didn't expect him to hear it but the pink covering his cheeks told me he did, that caused me to blush. He went to hug me but the guard interrupted - again.

"Let's go", the guard said grufly.

We left the house and went a little further left until we came to a big folding table draped with a white cloth. I had no idea what the purpose of the white cloth was other than aesthetic.

The guard cleared his throat and quickly turned around, took the scarf off and took a gulp of air before fixing it and turning back to us.

"The camp is divided into four sectors, Sector A is this part. The bottom right of the camp. Sector B is the bottom left. Sector C is the top left - where you and your... friend stay. And lastly sector D is the top right. Each Sector will come and collect the food that you two serve. As punishment for your disrespect, Will, Valarie has instructed to leave the serving duty to just you two."

I bit my lip but shrugged - I could live with that. There was a bottle of hospital grade hand sanitizer and so I squirted some on my hands and watched in disgust as the massive amount of dirt and grime came off my hands. The guard reached for something but Logan beat him to it, "I've got it man", he said to the guard.
"Here", he handed me some plastic gloves with a toothy smile. I smiled back at him and put them on.

The food was precious peanut butter, some sort of vegetable soup and a bottle of water. I had no idea where they were getting these resources from or whether Logan or I would get some. It's the most appetizing food I've seen in ages.

Line of people after line of people came and Logan and I served them but when Sector C's people lined up I didn't see Mrs Reynolds. I noticed Valarie coming out of the house.

"Hey Will", I turned to Logan. He had a slight dust of pink on his tan cheeks, "I think that we should...uhh...get you, like, new pants. You know because well... those one's are kind of ripped and I-I well... I don't want you t-to, like, trip or whatever."

He avoided making eye contact.

Whats going on with him?

Valarie approached the table,"You, take food to to Gloria."

She pointed to the strange and infuriating guard. Gloria must be Mrs Reynolds.

"I'll take it to her, if that's alright?" I said uninterested.

Valarie narrowed her eyes at me, "I spoke with her last night and she seems like a nice lady. I'd like to see her again."

There was a softening gleam in Valarie's eyes before they froze over again. "Go with him", she turned around and went back to the house. I prepared Gloria's food and made my way to her tent with the guard following behind me. His mere presence irritated me.

Eventually we got there and she was sitting outside her tent, staring at something. Her eyes glazed over until she noticed me and smiled, "I figured out your name, it's Will."

I smiled at her, "It is."

She looked at the guard and quirked a brow at him while I handed her food to her. The atmosphere seemed to become more tense for some reason. I could feel a storm coming but the skies were perfectly clear.

"I know that watch", she pointed at the guard's watch. The guard tensed.

I looked over to the guard.

"Who are you hiding from Matt?"