[center][u] Nathalie Soltero – Gift Shop/Mall – Finn & Nicole [/u][/center]

Nathalie smiled as she watched the two eat. She wanted to reassure them that she was trustworthy and hope that this could bring out the good side of them so they could form a friendship. That was her thinking optimistically though. Nothing ever worked out the way that Nat wanted. She listening to Finn as he spoke and kept her eyes on him. She had seen many men since the outbreak, but they were all hideous. Some not physically hideous, but their personality and what they had grown into was completely monstrous. Finn on the other hand seemed a decent young man. She could tell that they were near in age, but she couldn’t pinpoint exactly how old he was. He was handsome and his sister was really pretty as well. It must have been the fact that they were the first out of many to treat her kindly and with respect that made her look at them so fondly.

Once they had finished eating, Nathalie stretched as far as she could to wake her muscles up and moved towards the barricaded door. She pushed a bit but noticed that the shelf would make too much noise and attract unwanted company over to them. She sighed and pushed some hairs out of her face before looking at her two new companions. “The shelf is too heavy and will make too much noise. I feel like the dead might be on alert now, so I think the window is our best bet.” With that being said, she walked over to where they had entered and propped the window open once more. She made sure to look around before taking her backpack off and passing it first so she wouldn’t get caught on anything. Once it was on the floor, she quietly sat her machete down on it before making her own way out of the shop.

While she waited for the other two to come out, Nat quietly slid her backpack back on and grabbed her blade, her eyes never stopping from surveilling. “I think we will have better luck in the food court.” Her voice came out soft. Not exactly a whisper, but definitely not as loud as they had been speaking in the gift stop. “It should be on our way out towards the main parking lot. This is a half outdoor, half indoor mall so we will have to go in some doors to get to the food court.” Her eyes met with both of theirs to make sure they were okay with it. She had been here before twice after the outbreak and once before. It was a smaller mall but still had many small shops to go to in case she ever needed clothes or camping supplies.

After the two had agreed, Nathalie motioned for them to follow her. She carefully walked towards the ends of the halls where she would stick her blade out to see if she could make out any dark shadows. She could hear a few moans and groans coming from the dead, but they seemed to be no where in sight. They must have been making their way towards the gunshots and screams so they were all walking in the same direction. Nathalie didn’t want to push luck, in case it was on their side, so she kept moving forward until they got to the doors of the food court. The chains that had once locked the main entrance were broken off, but before the two suspected foul play, Nathalie spoke up. “Don’t worry, these chains were broken by the community after the outbreak. We broke in to get food before the cops came. Keep your eyes open though. Not everyone made it out.”

Taking in a deep breath, Nathalie forced one of the doors open with her body weight. It had rusted over time due to the rain and humidity and lack of use. The door made a creak that was louder than she expected, which caused her to quickly stop and look around. “Come on,” she whispered as she made her way further in. There were plenty of shops around with several doors that could either hide their means of survival or more of the dead. “I’ll start over there,” she said pointing her machete towards the left. “If I find anything, I will gather it and bring it to y’all.” She looked at the two and smiled genuinely, wishing them luck before walking off.

[@Juniper]