"Save me a seat." Chance says as Tim and his friends load onto the bus that was heading for the zoo.

"Okay." Tim smiles as he steps onto the bus. 

His friends follow him, chatting excitedly about the trip. Daryl remains quiet as he looks around cautiously for any zombies that might be lurking around.

Austin grabs a seat, refusing to let anyone sit with him. There wasn't room with Virgil sitting there.

Tim grabs a seat, refusing to let anyone sit with him. He was saving it for Chance.

Avi and Adam sat together. Adam was chatting non-stop about every animal that they would be seeing. He informed Avi everything that he knew about the sloth, whether Avi wanted to hear it or not.

Daryl sat alone. Mainly because the other patients were scared of the quiet man.

A huge smile comes across Tim's face as he sees Chance board the bus. He quickly scoots over next to the window.

"Hey, Cutie. You excited?" Chance asks as he sits down next to his boyfriend.

"Extremely. My heart is racing so fast." Tim smiles.

"Okay! Can I have everyone's attention, Please!" Tina shouts from the front of the bus. "We have the whole zoo to ourselves and I know everyone is excited. BUT, I want everyone to listen to me. It's a big place. Very easy to get lost. I don't want anyone venturing out alone. Got it? There will be three groups. Chance and Jenika will have a group. Nate and Olena will have a group and Sami and I will have one. Stay within your group. We're here to have a good time but we want to stay safe in the process. Any questions?"

Adam raises his hand.

"Yes, Adam?" Tina smiles at the blonde.

"Can we just go? We're wasting time." Adam says.

Tina laughs and shakes her head. "You heard the man, let's go." She tells the driver before taking a seat.

"Is this seat taken?" Jenika smiles as she looks down at the loner.

"Uh, no. No, it's not taken." Daryl says as he moves over to let her sit down. He eyes her through his dark shades. Shorts, tank top, her hair tied up in a messy ponytail. He wasn't used to seeing her so .... normal looking.

"I think Daryl has a crush on Jenika." Tim whispers to Chance.

"I think Jenika has a crush on Daryl." Chance whispers with a smile.

Tim giggles as he turns his attention to the passing scenery. He hasn't been off the hospital property since he was admitted by his father when he was just a teenager.

"Did you bring your camera?" Chance asks.

"Of course." Tim smiles. "Did you remember to get a chip?"

"Of course." Chance says as he hands the chip to the photographer.

Tim loads it into his camera and checks the batteries for the millionth time.

"I also brought extra batteries just in case." Chance chuckles.

"I hope this place is as beautiful as I have pictured in my mind. I wanna take a bunch of pictures." Tim says as he looks back out the window.

"Avi, how much longer." Adam whines.

"You just asked me that no more than five minutes ago." Avi chuckles.

"Can't they drive any faster? All the animals will get tired waiting on us and they'll go to bed." Adam huffs. 

"They won't go to bed, Adam. They're too excited about seeing you." Avi laughs as he looks out the window.

"What are we going to eat? HEY!, Ms. TINA!! WHAT ARE WE GOING TO EAT!!??" Adam shouts.

"They have food there, Sweetie!" Tina answers.

"Animal food. What about human food? But then, I like bananas. Reckon the monkeys will share their bananas?" Adam asks.

"Are you going to be the one to ask them?" Austin chuckles as he looks around at the blonde.

"Heck, yeah. If I get hungry enough." Adam answers with a nod. "Can we feed the animals? I wanna throw apples to the bears."

"They're going to have a restaurant open just for us, Adam." Nate answers from across the aisle. "And I'm sure you'll be able to feed some of the animals but not all."

"How much longer, Nate?" Adam asks.

"We'll be there in about ten minutes." Nate answers.

"Ten whole minutes?" Adam whines as his shoulders slump.

"You know, it's okay to relax and enjoy yourself." Jenika says softly as she rubs Daryl on the arm.

"I can't relax. They're out there." Daryl says as he watches out the window.

"Sweetie, the zoo has a wall around it. Nothing can get in." Jenika replies. She knew exactly what he meant by 'they'. "Have you ever been to a zoo before?"

"When I was younger. That was my parents' favorite place to go." Daryl nods.

"What was your favorite animal?" Jenika asks, trying to get his mind off the zombies that he was watching for.

"Oh, I don't know. I guess I like the aquarium. That was pretty cool." Daryl says.

"Me too!" Jenika giggles. "I'm obsessed with sharks."

"WE'RE HERE, Y'ALL!!" Tina announces as the bus pulls into the massive empty parking lot. "No pushing or shoving exiting the bus."

"Wow!! This place is huge." Tim says as he steps off the bus. He automatically starts taking pictures of the entrance.

Chance could only smile at the excitement on his lover's face. He was like a child on Christmas morning.

The owner welcomes them at the gate to let them inside.

"See. There's a huge wall around the place and once we get inside, he'll lock the gates behind us." Jenika says as she sees Daryl glancing nervously over his shoulder.

"Chance, I need to use the bathroom." Tim whispers.

"Hey, guys?" Chance calls over his shoulder as he takes Tim by the hand and starts toward the restrooms. "I suggest that you use the restroom now because it may be a while before we come across some more."

"Okay, we'll take our groups in different directions." Tina says as she hands maps of the zoo to the employees. "We'll all meet back at the restaurant at twelve for lunch."

"Got it." Chance says as he takes the map and hands it over to Adam. "Adam, you can be our navigator."

"Really? Cool." Adam smiles widely as he grabs the map. "Where're the sloths?"

"You know there's more to a zoo than just sloths, right?" Daryl says with a smile. With Jenika's support, he was beginning to relax a bit.

"Well, let's see...." Jenika says as she and Adam look over the map. "The sloths are in this direction. (pointing) But there's a lot to see before we get there."

"Then that's the way we'll go." Adam says as he begins to lead the way.

"Austin? Be sure to watch Virgil. We don't want him wandering off and getting lost." Tim says with a smile as he looks back at his friend.

"Don't worry. I've already warned him to stay with the group or he'll get left." Austin replies.

"Austin, can I ask you something?" Daryl asks as they walk up the path.

"Sure. What's up?" Austin says.

"I've been wondering this ever since we've got to know each other. We all have our reasons for being in the sanitarium. What's Virgil's reason?" Daryl asks.

They all stop to look at Austin. No one had ever thought to ask that question.

"He thinks he's invisible." Austin answers with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

**********

Thanks for reading. Don't forget to smash that VOTE button and leave a COMMENT!!