No.

No way did I want to represent as some sort of boss or leader or even someone to look up too. Not in this situation, not in any situation damn it. With Jacob saying that...I had to put my foot down now.

"Let's just keep this clear, you guys, that just because I'm dead set on doing this doesn't make me some figure head in this place." I quickly state so no one gets any ideas.

Lacy snorts. "Don't flatter yourself, pretty boy. You'll just get everyone killed with you in charge."

"Exactly. And don't call me that." I spat out with an irritated scowl.

It didn't faze me that she believed I would just bring everyone to their demise if they all followed what I did or said. Because it was more likely true and I didn't want to be responsible for all their lives, being some leader of the group. It was the fact that she called me pretty boy that was just damn insulting.

She just frowns at me with my statement, probably thinking that she was going to either hurt my feelings or get a rise out of me, which neither happened. Unless she kept up with the pretty boy shit. I have been teased my whole life being a "pretty boy" and I hated it.

"I don't know, I think he would be a pretty decent leader." Jacob says with another smile at me as him and Seth both started walking again.

I'm sorry but was this boy seriously trying to butter me up right now? I just blinked at him with surprise since he didn't know me well enough to actually make that statement. For all he knew, hell for I knew, I could be the worst leader in the history of mankind and have everyone dead within five minutes of my guidance.

Lacy sighs heavily getting my attention once again. I could tell she was conflicted, fighting within herself on the decision of whether to leave us all behind or just go along with it. She stomps her foot once on the ground, releasing some frustration then she slams her axe right into Zared's chest, who quickly grabs it in shock.

"Here. You're going to need this while going in there. I won't go and neither will Lani. We'll wait outside with the dead girl. But you can't go in there empty handed." She says bitterly.

Zared just nods his head and turns to me. I watch him come close and whisper, "You sure you won't back down from this?"

I give him an incredulous look, which he then nods with a smirk. "Yeah, why even ask. Dumb question."

"Very dumb." I whisper back but couldn't help the smile that graces my lips.

He stares at me for a moment longer making my heart skip a beat and my breathing to hitch a bit. The more he keeps looking at me like that since we've been here the more unsettle, I become. It was like a switch just suddenly went off inside me since I woke up the day before, the morning that I was here in this awful place. Even before I saw him, my mind was filled with confusing thoughts and emotions concerning Zared Beauchamp.

We start walking again until we finally came across the big, huge hardware store that stood out ominously, like any abandoned place looked like. Just like the houses around this area, it was overgrown with weeds, leaves, and dust caked on the large windows.

"Place her right there in the center, away from the trees." Lacy informs them, seeing singular trees spaced out in the parking lot to provide shade for vehicles, even though there wasn't a single car in sight of this place.

I look around the space and out beyond, but I don't see anything out of the ordinary. I then look to the large building, wondering what could be lurking inside. My heart starts to race thinking of going in there, of what we could possibly find. Maybe it was a stupid, dumb idea to do this. But I couldn't just leave her there like that. Not like that.

"Okay, we'll head inside, get the things we need and come right back out." Seth starts out as he places his hands on his hips with a look of uncertainty.

"If any of you have second thoughts about going in there, its okay to back out. I won't force any of you to go with me-"

"I'm not leaving you to go alone. I don't have any second thoughts. If you're going, I'm going. Period." Zared cuts me off.

His words send a relief pleasure through me. I was honestly scared to go by myself and deep down I knew Zared wasn't going to let me go alone, but I did have a slimmer of doubt that maybe once we get inside, he'll change his mind.

"I'm going too. I said I'll see this through, so that's what I'm going to do. But I'll be brutally honest, I'm scared as shit to go in there." Seth says truthfully, his eyes shining with a bit of fear.

I knew that feeling all too well, too. I was scared shitless, but in my mind, it had to be done.

"Alright, then. Let's stop wasting daylight and get a move on it." Jacob goes to Lani and reaches out his hand to her.

She frowns at him as if he had lost his mind. "I said I wasn't going."

Rolling his eyes, he says, "Your machete. I'll need something too. Not going to go empty handed."

"Oh." Was all she said as she hands over her weapon.

Gathering all my courage I start heading towards the massive building, praying everything will go smoothly and we can just get this done and head to our next destination.

It only takes us about five minutes to get to the doors. I carefully try to look inside but it was too caked with dust and too dark inside to actually see anything. Frowning, I look over to Seth where he too was trying to look inside. He makes a disgusted look as his hands came off with dust and he wipes them all over his shirt.

"Anything?" I ask him.

"Man, I can't see shit." He sighs.

"The doors are locked. We'll have to break the windows." Zared states as he comes close to my side still looking up and around the building.

I walk to the doors and brace myself to do just that. It was going to be loud and more than likely draw major attention. But what other choice did we have? I silently look to Zared, reaching out my hand for the axe that he held in his hand.

He raises an eyebrow at me as he hands the thing over. "I could have done it you know."

"Yeah, but knowing you, you'll be a little too happy to destroy this."

"You just have to rob a man's fun of finally being able to be destroy shit." He sighs, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Um, hello. I'm a man too." I smile with mischief as I don't wait a second longer and hit that axe right through the door, shattering glass all over the place.

"Whoa!" He shouts as little pieces flew all over the place and nearly hitting us in the process.

He playfully gives me the stink eye. "You just wanted to be the one to be destructive. I should have known."

"Hey, if I didn't do it now then I'll never be able too since you and most likely the others will take all the fun this place barely has. So, I took it." I tell him as I peered inside.

"Stay back. Wasn't expecting you to do something like that and thankfully nothing happened so far, but with all that noise let's wait to find out if anything will come out right now." Jacob says as he too peers closely inside.

Right. Forgot about that. I forgot that my actions could have caused us serious danger. That was way too loud and immature of me. I stand still waiting for something drastic to happen, but after several minutes of nothing I was able to breathe a little easier.

"I think it's safe to enter. If there were any monsters in there hiding, they would have come out by now or at least shown themselves." Jacob takes a step pass through the broken door.

"Careful!" I couldn't help but cry out when I saw him barely skim by a sharp jagged piece of glass sticking straight up from the door frame that his leg just barely missed.

He freezes in his position, his eyes wide in realization that he was close to shredding his leg wide open. He slowly maneuvers the leg over the glass and proceeds with caution the rest of the way. Once he was safe over, he looks to me.

"Thanks." He says gratefully.

"Yeah." I go to head in next, but Zared stops me.

I swing my gaze over to him just for him to look at the broken glass sticking out in different places of the door. He takes the axe from me, and I watch as he starts shattering the glass that was remaining, making sure nothing was left for any of us to hurt ourselves.

"Right, guess I should have thought to do that first. Smart." Jacob chuckles awkwardly.

I felt stupid as well. I knew better than that to try and risk myself when I should have made sure to completely clear the way for us first. Heat races across my ears and neck for the embarrassing non-thinking I was doing in the last twenties minutes.

Zared doesn't say a word as he goes in ahead of me and waits for me to follow. I wasn't sure if I should feel insulted or to feel completely stupid right now. I walk in with Seth just right behind me. I shut my mouth and quickly think on where the store would place the firewood.

"This place is too big to search everywhere, so it's best to think in what aisle-"

"It's this way." Seth cuts off Jacob and doesn't wait for anyone as he takes a quick right and starts speed walking to nearly the other side of the store.

We all quickly follow him until he disappears further into the dark at the back of the store. I slowly stop as both Jacob and Zared continue at the same speed. I don't know if it was because of my nightmare or the trauma I went through the day before, but my body starts to hyperventilate, and my breathing becomes shallow.

I slowly take a few steps, waiting, listening to the others' footfalls until they finally fade. I know I shouldn't have stopped, and I know I just risked being alone, but it was like my mind and body was refusing to go any further than this.

Clenching my fists tightly, I take a huge exhale and relax my body and emotions. This was not the time to start acting like a freaking invalid because of my fears. I was the one who wanted to come in here. I was the one who wanted to do this, demanded to do this, so I needed to get my shit together and help them out.

Feeling like I was able to move again I take a few more steps in their direction, gaining speed and hopefully I'll be able to catch up to them. But I no longer could hear their movements and I was starting to freak a little that I may have lost them.

It was a lot darker in here than I first thought it would be, and it was amazing we were able to navigate around this place at all. I take another step, about to call out Zared's name since he was the first one to pop into my mind at the moment when something wafts into my nose.

I stop completely and frown. I turn in the direction of the strong scent that was coming from my left down another aisle that I was just about to pass. Strange, I don't remember Zared wearing his aftershave. But then again, he also left before I had even woken up.

Did they turn down this way? But why would they head to the middle of the store? Wasn't firewood stationed near the garden area? I go to turn down the aisle when the scent becomes stronger. I was just about to call out Zared's name when his warning suddenly slams into me.

"Since rule number three states not to let out a scent, I promise to never wear aftershave while we're stuck here. So, if you ever smell my aftershave, know that it isn't me. So, don't come looking for me if you smell it."

I had almost completely forgotten. My eyes widen and my heart starts slamming into my chest. I slowly start backing away back to where I was before. Shit, if I'm smelling his aftershave then that meant I was being lured by my drive to find Zared.

And that wasn't him, and if it wasn't him, then there was only one thing it could be.

We weren't alone in this place after all.