I put my phone down and moved over to Sam. She had sweat pouring down her and she looked restless. I decided to wake her up. As I did she lashed out and screamed, hitting me in the jaw. As I recoiled she put her arms around me and started crying saying she was so sorry.
After a few minutes she sat back and I could see that look in her face again. She had a secret that was burning away in her, and she had just realised that I had known that for a while.
"I'm sorry. I should have said..."
"What are you holding from me Sam?"
She just looked at me for a while and sighed. "I'm bi-polar... I, I didn't think it would affect me now things have changed. I haven't had my medication since I was separated from my family. And it never was bad, I mean it affected me but I could always cope"
Some things made sense then. Distraction techniques: playing with the carpets in the shop.
"So it flickers on and off? How manic and how depressed do you actually get?"
She stared for a moment "It varies. Sometimes it's really bad, other times it's not. I went through a really bad patch once and that’s why I got put on medication. But before I would just go OCD on things then feel a bit sorry for myself for a day or two"
"I know that it is difficult, but if you feel like you are slipping away a bit, you need to say. Else you could be risking our lives. Okay?" She looked down, stifling tears. I leant forwards and hugged her "I'm not having a go okay, I just need to know because if you aren't in the right frame of mind to be out there then we need to wait, or I need to be extra vigilant."
She sniffed a few times, "okay. I'm sorry"
I stood up and went to get my bag, then walked back and opened it up. "Any of these what you were on?" She gasped. I hadn't shown her the contents of my primarily medication filled bag. Then rummaged through and looked at me with a disappointed face and said "no such luck"
We spoke more, but there is no need to go into that.
We both sat with our backs against the wall, out of sight from anyone outside and fell asleep against each other. I woke at 6am, turned my phone off and went back to sleep. We were both woken by a noise outside about 2pm. For a moment I thought 'Oh not again!' then realised this was slightly different. I moved to the window as Sam tidied her stuff up a bit more and prepared my bag, but I motioned her to stop. She moved over to me and looked out the window.
We saw a group of people around a car, moving it out of the way for their van. Sam was jubilant. More people.
"I'm afraid you can't be that positive Sam"
"What?"
"Those down there. They are Day 4."
She went quiet. She knew some of what happened, and knew none of it ended well.
We waited for a long time and saw their struggle. Eventually a Rani rounded a corner. I sighed and got my rifle and opened the window a little. Just enough to get the shot, and I waited in hopes they would see it. It got closer and closer until it picked up their scent and made the groan now familiar to us. "Crap", I took the shot and the Rani fell over.
In the same instant the Day 4 people looked at the Rani, then to where I was. 'I guess this will prove their worth' I thought. I went to get my bag to ready myself to meet them again and I heard the van engine. Rushing back to the window I saw them racing down the street, past the car they just moved.
I looked to Sam, still at the window, who said "point proven".
Ungrateful idiots. They already owed me, and they screwed me over again. I guess I should be thankful it was less this time
Regardless, now we had to move. The shot would either attract Rani or the Dodge men (as it has become easier to refer to them as).
So we finished packing up and started moving on, just as Rani started to appear out the front. Again we slipped out of the back and into the alleys in search of another rest stop.
The travelling was uneventful; Now we rest again, and the look has gone from Sam's face. Another has replaced it. A look of questioning. Of how I seem to know the answers to any question she asks. The answer to that look sadly lies in the life before all of this, and I care not to enter those thoughts again.
I hope you make another day
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