Nicholas' eyes cracked open when Mattie put her hand on his shoulder. For some reason, it was very comforting, and his heart ached when she removed it. He gratefully took the water, nodding at her in thanks. As he drank the water, his eyes were trained on the boy - Darrin, wasn't it? Apparently, he was Mattie's brother...but he was nothing like her at all. He seemed rude and...rude. The way he spoke to Mattie upset Nicholas.

[i]And the way he's talking about me,[/i] Nicholas thought. It made him somewhat depressed. Why [i]hadn't[/i] they just killed him? What good was he now, what with having one arm and all?

Again, his eyes focused on Darrin. The boy had a vertical scar along his face. Where could he have gotten that? Maybe he put up a huge fight with one of the infected. Maybe, maybe not. Maybe he was more like Mattie than Nicholas thought, and fell. He was shocked that, seeing how Darrin was her brother, he hadn't asked about Mattie's own bandaged up leg. How inconsiderate.

---

As Mattie got the water out of one of the backpacks they'd been carrying, Jacob approached Darrin, though keeping his distance because this boy obviously wasn't in the mood for friendliness. As Jacob had his arms crossed, weight to one side with an alpha attitude, Darrin seemed to mimic him, which made him angry. This was [i]his[/i] house. Not this kid's.

[i]"That's not the proper way to talk to a lady, especially your sister,"[/i] he wanted to say, but held his tongue. Instead, he carefully said, in the lightest tone possible, "I was going to shoot him, but Mattie seems pretty attached to him. Plus, this guy sacrificed his arm to save Mattie and that baby's life," he jerked a thumb back at Nicholas. "His name's Nicholas. He deserves respect."

---

When Jacob spoke of how he deserved respect, Nicholas cringed. He hated that Jake was pointing the attention of this guy to him, because Darrin obviously was not the type to make friends with. Nicholas wasn't worthy of respect - he was a coward. A weakling. He expected Darrin to laugh in Jake's face at any moment, but silently prayed he didn't for fear of Jake's reaction.