Ryder

"Did you get everything we need for tomorrow?" I asked Durbin as he walked out of the elevator into the hallway.

"Sure did," He replied, stepping around me, making his way towards Doc's suite.

"Are you sure?" I pressed. "You got the guard shifts all switched up? The guns? The hair dye? We can't afford anything to go wrong."

"What are you, my mother?" Durbin snorted, stopping in his tracks, turning to face me. "Don't worry about what I'm supposed to be doing and worry about yourself." He pointed his finger at me. His voice became low, almost intimidating.

"You better not let anything happen to Desi tonight in the match because if she dies, that boy in there dies," He said, motioning to Doc's suite. "Cody went through hell and back to get here, to get to her. He's already torn up because you can't keep your hands where they belong, which is not on her."

"What are you, my mother?" I asked him the same question he asked me, irritated that he was bossing me around. I took a step towards him.

Durbin cracked a smile. "I can be if you want me to be, baby" He winked and turned towards the door. "Don't let anything happen to you either. Technically, you are our only way out of here Mr. Air Force."

I followed behind him as he walked through Doc's door, feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. If I fail tonight, I fail them all, I thought to myself. The only way out of here, without having to fight our way through the troops of guards, was the helicopter on the roof of the hotel. And the only person who knew how to fly a helicopter was me.

I knew what had to be done tonight in the match, but could I really just watch out for myself? Or should I put the girl I love first, even if that means I die?

Cody

I couldn't help but keep looking Desi's way. She sat on the couch across from me in Doc's suite, staring at the wall, off in her own world. Her blonde hair was pulled back tightly in a ponytail, the ends drifting over onto the shoulder of her white shirt.

There was heavy tension between us. I hadn't spoken a word directly to her, and she hasn't spoken to me. I was afraid that if I opened my mouth I would beg for her to choose me, literally get on my knees and beg. I couldn't even be near her without my hand itching to brush away a stray hair away from her face or to pull her close to me and never let go.

But it was obvious she didn't feel the same way. She still talked to Ryder, even looked him in the eye without glancing away quickly. Every time she met my gaze however, she tried to find something else in the room to grab her attention; anything that wasn't me.

"Desi..." I spoke her name quietly, watching as her breathing stopped and her body went still. Slowly, she turned her head to look at me. "Can we talk?"

"Sure," Desi said, her voice sounding shaky. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I've been thinking--" My voice was cut off by the front door swinging open, revealing Durbin and Ryder. I mentally slapped myself for not speaking sooner.

I envied Ryder as Desi locked eyes with him, and he took a comfortable seat next to her on the couch. My fists clenched at my sides and I pushed them down into the cushion hoping to hide them.

"Durbin said he's got everything ready," Ryder announced, as Doc and Aundrea wandered into the room. "I went through the checklist with him."

"Like a true mother," Durbin said before breaking off into a scratchy laugh.

Ryder turned his head to look at him before continuing. "Does everybody understand the plan?"

The room was silent for a moment, until I spoke up. "No, I don't," I said, even though I understood what we were doing. I just didn't understand why.

"What part of it don't you get?" Ryder asked me, slightly annoyed.

Desi reached her arm out to shut him up, her eyes searching mine. "What's wrong Cody?" She asked.

"This plan is wrong," I said, guilt creeping through my body as I thought of what we were going to do tomorrow night. "How can we unleash the infected on all of these innocent people?"

Ryder and Desi's eyes both hardened, their jaws twitching in sync as they clenched their teeth together.

"There is absolutely nothing innocent about them, Cody," Desi said, trying to keep her voice calm, but it was breaking. "We have been forced into the matches just for their entertainment."

"But does that mean that they need to die?" I countered. "Durbin has done some pretty messed up things, so does he need to die too?"

"Hey!" Durbin interrupted. "Don't you be talking about me like I'm not in the room."

Desi ignored him and kept her blue eyes fixed on me. "I forgave Durbin for those things and apparently so did you considering that you came all this way with him."

Somehow, I found it funny that nobody else was involved with this argument. This seemed to just be between me and Desi.

"These are people that live here," I said, my nerves starting to tremble with the confrontation. "People just like you and just like me."

"How dare you compare them to us!" Desi yelled, rising off of the couch. "They are nothing like us. They bet on how much damage we will do to an infected in the match. They bet on whether we will live or die. They care about no one but themselves and enjoy seeing us in pain. I know I'm not like that. And I know you aren't like that."

I sat quiet, watching the furious beauty in front of me, her chest heaving up and down with each breath she took.

"Are you telling me that if and when we get the hell out of here that they should get to stay, inflicting pain to people who are actually innocent like Ryder and I?" Desi's voice was shaking now. I could see tears forming in her eyes. "You have no idea what I've been through here. I'm not letting these monsters get away with what they are doing. They are going to face the terror that I have to face everytime I step into that cage. And you, out of all people, are not going to be the one to stop it."

Desi turned, a tear slowly falling down her cheek, and walked towards the door.

"Desi, wait!" I yelled after her, completely oblivious to everyone else in the room, but it was like she didn't hear me as she walked through the door, slamming it behind her.

Ryder stood up off of the couch, and I quickly got to my feet. "You better sit the fuck down," I told him, my voice dripping with venom. Taken aback by my sudden hostility, Ryder sat back down and let me be the one to come to Desi's rescue.

Desi

I heard Cody yelling for me, but I slammed the door, and took a step further into the hallway. Completely exhausted from our fight, I melted into the wall behind me, sliding down until I was sitting on the floor, my knees bent up to my chest. I put my head in my hands, waiting for the sobs to escape from my throat.

The door to Doc's suite quickly opened and closed and I glanced up, my heart filling with nerves again when I saw who it was.

"You've got to be kidding me," I said to myself, quickly glancing away from my intruder.

"No, sorry," Cody said. "This is completely serious."

Cody stepped in front of my vision, crouching down so that we were eye to eye. I had forgotten in just a couple of days how mesmerizing his silver gaze was, and I found myself relaxing.

"You just don't understand, Cody," I told him. "These past several weeks have been torture."

"Then make me understand," Cody said, his voice sounding so sweet after the anger that had plagued him just moments ago. "Tell me everything."

"Go to the match tonight," I said, not wanting to relive all of the horrible things Vivian and her followers had done to me. "Watch from the bidding, all the way to the end of the match. You'll see."

"I was already planning on it," Cody reached out, placing his hand on my shoulder. His touch sent shivers though me, reminding me of how much I'd been craving it. "I can't just let you go in there and hope you come back. I need to be there. I need you."

There. He had said it. He said the one thing that made my heart flutter, something that I'd been waiting to hear.

"I need you too," I said, finally giving in to what I'd been feeling.

Cody's hand slowly slid up from my shoulder, to my neck, finally cupping my face. I leaned my head into his hand, enjoying the warmth that spread from him to me.

"Desi," Cody said, his voice like velvet. "Listen, I know I told you that I'd be here for you either way, if you chose me or Ryder, but the truth is, I lied."

I lifted my head away from his hand, my brows twisting with confusion. "What do you mean?" I asked, scared of what he might say; that he might not love me anymore.

"I mean that I made you a promise. Do you remember the promise that I made you?" Cody reached his hand back to my face, his thumb caressing my scarred cheekbone.

I drifted back to the woods, those many weeks ago, to Cody and I gazing up at the canopy of trees, trying to spot the stars peeking through the leaves. I had felt so safe, even then, because I was with him. He had made me a promise. A promise that we didn't know would be so hard to keep in that world that is so different from the one we are in now.

"Of course I remember," I told him, my voice a whisper. "You promised that we would be together at the end of all this."

"And I'm not about to break that promise," Cody said, his voice matching mine. "Forget our fight in there. Forget the time we've spent apart. Just remember, what we had and what we can have."

"I'll never forget that.." My voice trailed off as Cody's face inched towards mine.

His other hand reached up to mimic the other, cupping my face. His silver eyes bored into mine, making the world around us grow fuzzy. All that mattered right now was us. Until I remembered we were in an open hallway where anyone, especially Vivian, could see us.

"Wait," I said, pulling my head back so quickly it knocked against the wall. "You can't be out here. What if someone sees you?"

"Nothing matters right now," Cody said, his eyes fierce with want. "Except for you and me."

Pulling my face to meet his, he pressed his lips softly against mine. My world exploded, as the hallway melted away and all that was left was Cody and I. My arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer to me, as I unfolded my legs so that he could come closer.

His hands left my face, one trailing down my side and wrapping around my waist, pulling me away from the wall, the other wrapping around the back of my neck. Our kiss deepened, and I wanted nothing more than to stay in the hall, and keep my lips locked with his, but he pulled away, a smile on his face.

"You ready to go back?" He asked, not taking his arms away from me.

"No," I told him, reaching for another kiss. His lips lingered against mine.

"Unfortunately," Cody said, pulling away again. "We still have some things to discuss in there."

Cody unwrapped his arms from me and grabbed my hands, helping me stand up. His hands didn't let go of mine until he grabbed for the doorknob, swinging it open and stepped inside. I prayed that my lips weren't red when Ryder looked over.

I have a POLL for you!! :)

Cody or Ryder?