[IC] --:|Static|:-- [Fauxbot and Sunflower]

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel's hands shook as he lifted his coffee to his lips, allowing himself to gulp down about half of the piping hot liquid before setting the mug back down on the plate in front of him. He looked down at his hands for a moment, watching them shake ever so slightly, uncontrollably so. He was scared. Why was this happening to him? To anyone? He'd thrown those questions around in his head a lot the past few hours, and he never seemed to find an answer. He sighed as he rested his elbows on the table in front of him, grounding his hands. He turned his head, looking out the window, looking for a change, looking for movement, looking for anything. But his eyes were met with the same thing they've been seeing for the past however many goddamned hours he had been sitting in the diner.

Darkness.

He brought his attention back to the diner, letting his eyes dart about the room, looking at the random collection of people that had been here for their late meals and family outings. There were fifteen of them at first. Then there were thirteen. Then twelve. Now there were only ten. The others had promised to come back, to give them info on what was happening. When they didn't show up, someone went out to find them. And when he didn't come back, two people went out looking for him.

When they heard the screams, they decided to stay inside. Coffee And Pie, Oh My! had become their fortress.

Nobody spoke a word. Everyone was too absorbed in trying to get their phones connected to the internet or the radio to work. Nobody wanted to talk about what was happening. It couldnt be happening, this wasnt possible. How can a clock just stop? How can time just stop? Joel pulled off his baseball hat, setting it down on the table in front of him, next to his empty plate. He knew they couldn't spend all night--day--whatever in here. They needed to find a way out. They needed to do something.

"Everyone?" He said, quietly, but loud enough to pierce the silence. "I dont think we should just, um, sit here. I think we need to do something."

[Sunflower]

"And what would you suggest we do?" Robert Smith, better known around town as Bob, asked. He had seen his fair share of violence and hellish situations but nothing like this. This was something entirely different than the former Marine had seen. There was something ominous about this darkness that had settled over their tiny town. "We can't send more people out there. They never come back!"

A soft whimper came from across the diner.

"That's enough Bob." In the time that they had been trapped in the diner, Bob had been getting on her nerves. It wasn't like she could outright tell the man to shut up, her brother wouldn't allow that. The woman got up and walked closer to the source of the whimper. Tucked into the farthest corner was a boy no older than eight. His brother sat a few tables down, completely sucked into his phone. Her own brother was like that actually. For the past hour or so he had been trying to get his phone to work so he could call their parents. Their parents were off on vacation and it worried them that they couldn't make any calls.

She bent down and smiled at the boy, "Hey kiddo. Let's play a game, okay?" She was just as scared as the boy so the little game would be a distraction for them both. The boy nodded and moved closer to her. His small arms wrapped around her neck and he buried his face into her neck.

"Don't make a mess. You'll have to clean it yourself Rowena." The woman's brother said as he looked up for a moment.

"You got it Sam, now Avery...let's see about that game!"

Avery nodded and followed the woman to one of the tables. She picked a few napkins from the napkin holder in the middle of the table and laid them out before grabbing a few of the crayons that were used for kid menus. "Let's make a map, okay? The first one to finish their map gets...um...a hug." The boy giggled before beginning on his map.

Sam sighed as he leaned back in his seat; his cellphone was discarded on the table in front of him. They couldn't send someone out there, no one came back and if the screams they heard earlier were anything to go by, he guessed that they hadn't made it to safety. Sam got up and approached the table that Joel was sitting at before asking if he could take a seat across from him. "We can't go outside but I agree we can't stay here for much longer."

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel gave Sam a nod, taking his hat and opting to set it down next to him, his arms crossed on the table in front of him. He leaned in a bit on his elbows as Sam spoke, letting out a sigh of relief when he discovered that he was not alone. He nodded in agreement, his eyes darting to the window for a moment, trying to cut through the darkness to see the parking lot and, more specifically, his car. He turned back to Sam, speaking softly.

"I have a gun in my car." He said, picking at one of the threads on the black and red plaid button up he was wearing, pulling it out. "I think I would feel a lot safer if I had that. I dont-- I dont know what the hell is happening out there. But... but I dont think that it's just darkness out there, y'know? I think we all...know that. We... we heard the screams... and the quiet... and I dont think we're alone. And it's only a matter of time before something out there gets antsy and decides to crash through one of these windows. We'd be smart to have a gun."

He made sure to keep his voice down as he spoke, not wanting to alarm any of the younger people. However, as he spoke, Lee, who had been sitting at the bar area near the front, had made her way over to their table. She didnt waste time, leaning against the table top as Joel finished his sentence.

"I agree." She said simply, her gaze shifting between the two of them. "I think that a...gun. Would be the best thing to have in this situation. How are we going to get it?"

[Sunflower]

Sam sighed and he rubbed his chin. He had forgotten to shave that morning, well whenever the last time he had access to a razor. They needed to get the gun but they simply couldn't just walk out there without something happening to them. They needed to send someone who was fast, someone who wouldn't get hurt or caught by whatever was out there.

His eyes scanned the people in the diner. They were all a patch work group that wouldn't have mingled prior to this event. Sam stopped when his eyes landed on his sister and Avery. He couldn't sacrifice someone to save the others; it wasn't his place to choose who would go and who would stay. He placed his head in both hands and let out another low sigh. The two had a point, it would be necessary to have a gun to protect the group. They had pots and pans but those might not work. His eyes went to the darkness outside. It seemed like it was pressed against the windows, waiting.

A soft hand on his shoulder made him tear his gaze from the darkness. His sister was smiling widely at him, the crayons and napkins lying discarded on the table. "Avery had to use the bathroom." she said before settling herself in the chair next to her brother. "I couldn't help but overhear...it would be good to get our hands on an actual weapon...but going out there is suicide." She bit her lip and for the first time since the darkness had settled around them, she looked outside. There was nothing.

"I know but it's our best bet and maybe we can find out what's going on here...and how to get out of this mess." Sam said as he brought her into a one-armed hug.

"It feels weird, doesn't it?" Rowena said as she stood up. "Like something is out there. Watching. Waiting."

Sam didn't quite understand his sister. He was never the best at following his instincts. He was the type of person who relied heavily on facts and evidence rather than his feelings. Avery came back from the bathroom, tugging on the short sleeve of Rowena's shirt. The woman excused herself before going back to the table with Avery. Her eyes would wander to the window every so often before settling on the task before her. Maybe it was a suicide mission but if they could get the gun back then maybe everyone would feel a little safer.

"I'll go." Jeff Waters, Avery's older brother and part of the Rosswood High School football team, spoke up.

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel's eyes went to Jeff. He had seen the guy around town a few times. In the store with his younger brother, jogging along the side of the road, sitting silently in the corner of the diner, sure. But he'd never actually spoken to the guy before. As a matter of fact, he couldn't honestly say he'd ever heard Jeff's voice before. It was deeper than he imagined it being, for some reason. It would be surreal hearing him speak if there weren't horrific things going on already. Quickly, he dragged himself out of his own head, back to the topic at hand.

Letting the strong athletic man go get the gun from his car.

"I'm fast. I can make it to your car, grab the gun, and make it back here. In record time." He assured, a small, confident smile forming at the edges of his mouth. And his confidence, Joel would admit, was infectious. HE hadn't said much, but he could tell that Jeff believed each of them. Hell, he had said it with such assuredness that he had to believe him. With a small nod, Joel stood up, taking the keys out of his back pocket, unhooking the larger key from the rest of the cluster and tossing it to Jeff, who caught it without a trouble.

"You're looking for the tan '73 Oldsmobile. It should be by the sign near the exit." Joel said, setting his hat back on his head, tugging it down some.

"Oh! Like the one from Evil Dead, right?" said Valencia, who had been sitting on the other side of the booth. She had gotten up on her knees to peek between the dividers between the booths and had been listening in on their plans. She was strangely cheery, despite the situation. "I love that movie!"

"Oh...um, yeah, thats it. Thats why I got it." Joel said, which made Valencia's smile a little bigger, somehow. He smiled back, confusedly and awkwardly, before turning his attention back to Jeff. "There's a revolver in the glove box. Get in, grab it, get out. Theres a lock on the gun, so when you get it in here, I'll unlock it."

"Now--hold on!"

Everyone at the table turned to the source of the outburst. It was Robert, who was up and on the move, limping with his cane over to them. But even with his very noticeable limp, he was still incredibly intimidating. Hes steps were loud and clumsy, but purposeful. Jeff, uninterested, had already started moving towards the front doors.

"How old is he? Sixteen? You wanna send a kid out there? Huh? He could die! Do you want that on your heads?"

"Calm down, Bob. Im sure he can handle it." Lee said, stepping out, arms crossed over her suit jacket, eyebrow raised as she peered at him over her glasses. "Besides, it's better than sitting in here and waiting for whatever the fuck is out there to come in here, right? And if that happens, it'd be nice to have something to defend ourselves with, right?"

[Sunflower]

She had to agree with Bob. Glancing at the little boy next to her, the woman couldn’t help but speak up. "They've already lost their parents to this darkness...Avery doesn't need to lose his brother too."

Sam looked at his sister before shaking his head. He didn't want the kid to go out there either but he was their only option at this point; he had to side with the others. "We need someone to go. I do not agree that it should be a child but he probably is the fastest out of us, unless someone is holding back just to save their skin." Sam wouldn't take kindly to someone who lied in order to save themselves.

Avery ran to his brother. Fat tears rolled down his cheeks and he begged Jeff not to go. Jeff sighed and rolled his eyes before bending down to his brother's height. "I'll be fine; I am on the football team after all."

"B-but Mom and Dad…" Their parents had been some of the first to leave the diner. They wanted to get their car so they could take their kids home but they never came back.

"They're fine." Jeff said even though he couldn't believe those words. He knew better, he knew that they were orphans now.

Sam got up from the table to talk to his sister but she shook her head. She would have no part in sending a kid out there. He knew that it should have been someone other than a kid to go and it pained him that things had turned out the way they did but they had no other option.

Jeff took a deep breath before moving away from his brother to allow Rowena to grab the boy. He didn't look back as he walked out of the diner and into the darkness with a small flashlight in hand. The flashlight had been Bob's and Jeff had strict orders to 'bring it back'.
I'm doing this for Avery He thought. His brother was the only thing filling his mind as he fumbled through the darkness. It was hard to see the cars through the unnatural blackness that cloaked everything, even with the small flashlight.

It took him what felt like forever to find the right car and he fumbled with the keys and flashlight. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he began to feel uneasy. Jeff stopped what he was doing and turned around to look into the darkness. There was nothing there but the feeling of being watched never left him.

[DELTED293y5gds]

Valencia had her face pressed against the windowpane, hands cupped around her eyes as she scanned the inky blackness, searching for any sign of life, any sign of anything. No matter how much she squinted and strained her eyes, all she could see was a wall of dark. She felt a chill radiate from the pit of her stomach and all throughout her body, riding up her spine and raising the hairs on her arms and the back of her neck. She shuddered as she pulled away, shaking her head a bit. Her cheery demeanor from a few minutes before was gone.

"I cant see anything." She said quietly, almost to herself. "I cant even see his flashlight. The darkness is...thick. Or something."

Joel had moved to the door, his hand clutching the doorknob in a death grip, ready to tug it open in a moments notice. He had hard Valencia's words, and they didnt do anything to help calm him. He was starting to get nervous. Jeff had been out there for more than a few minutes. Did he find the car? Did h find the gun? Was he even fucking alive? Maybe Bill was right, maybe he should have just stayed in and waited for all of this to blow over.

"Hey, man, I'm sure he's fine."

Joel turned his attention forwards again, to Vincent, who was holding the other door next to him. He was giving him a reassuring smile, though it was clear that he was just as nervous as Joel was. He was dressed up in his work clothes still, a brown polo t-shirt, emblazoned with the Coffee and Pie, Oh My! logo across the chest and a pair of black work pants. His hair, which was usually slicked back, was slowly falling down over his face.

"He's fine, he'll be in soon."

"Yeah, or maybe he wont be..." Bill said from his seat at the bar, close to the door, the grumpiness, anger, and fear all very prevalent in his voice. Lee turned her head to him, annoyance flashing across her face, eyes narrowed at him.

"Oh, stop it, Bill. Just give him time, he'll be back. Stop being so dramatic." She said as she lifted he coffee to her lips, taking a small, concentrated sip as she continued to narrow her eyes at Bill.

*******
Back outside, Jeff was rooting through the glove box, and soon enough, he fond his hand on the gun. It was a silver revolver with a wooden grip, a large black lock between the trigger and the rest of the gun. He felt the weight of the gun in his hand, a small, cocky smile raising the edges of his lips again as he slowly turned the gun over, observing the intricacies of the weapon as he leaned back in the worn faux-leather seat of the Oldsmobile.

"Record time." He said to himself, closing the glove box as he did. He stepped out of the car, shutting the door and pushing the key into the lock, twisting it with a quick and calculated flick of his wrist, effectively locking the door. He was about to turn back to the diner, but a noise from behind stopped him in his tracks, mid step, eyes wide.

It was almost like a growling. But it wasnt. Something was off, unnatural, otherworldly. Jeff did an about face, looking in the direction of the noise. His face was calm, his body not shaking, but he could feel his heart beating much faster than before. Backing up slowly towards the diner, he attempted to shine his flashlight in the direction of the noise, but the light barely cut through the darkness. Hell, he could barely see five feet in front of him.

But there was something out there.

[Sunflower]

He'd been gone a lot longer than Sam or anyone else was comfortable with. Sam's eyes flickered to Avery; the poor boy had cried himself to sleep after his brother walked out of the doors. He was feeling a little guilty - okay really guilty that Jeff had gone out there and Sam had been all for it. Jeff and Avery had Ruth, their late cousin's wife. She had come to the diner with them and their parents and at the moment she was all the boys had left.

Ruth was too busy sleeping with her head pressed against the table. Her late husband had been one of Sam's co-workers at the small burger shop at the end of the road and later the two had worked together as fifth grade teachers. It had hit the community hard when he died a few years back. After the death of her husband, Ruth took a downward spiral and developed this intricate story that she was a model who worked out of Rosswood, Ruth had also developed a drinking problem; she still smelled of alcohol hours after Sam had found her sneaking a drink or two in.

Sam was sitting next to his sister. She was focused on looking out of the window trying to look for Jeff or anyone. "None of this feels natural." She whispered. Sam nodded in agreement.

"What would it be then?"

"I don't know but you know that feeling when you watch a horror movie and you know something is off but you can't place it?" Rowena smoothed down Avery's hair before moving him into the small bench across from them.

"Yeah." Sam didn't know where she was going with this. "What about it?"

"This feels a lot like that, you know? I hope nothing's happened." Rowena got up to use the bathroom and on her way back to the booth that Sam and Avery were at, she managed to sneak into the kitchen to take a ladle. It wasn't much of a weapon but she'd be damned if she didn't help in the slightest.

"Keep an eye on Avery." She said to her brother before heading over to the front windows. She would help look for the boy; Rowena remembered when she used to babysit Jeff on the occasional date night and she couldn't separate the image of the teen from her past experience with him.

---

He could hear things fumbling around in the dark. He hadn't even heard a dog bark in hours so it was a little unsettling to him. Even though the gun couldn't do much to protect him at the moment, Jeff still felt better knowing that it was in his hand. Gone was all of his confidence and cocky attitude, in its place was fear - pure, unadulterated fear.

The urge to run was strong and he counted to ten, giving ten reasons why he needed to run, before taking off through the darkness.

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel looked over to Rowena, who had re-positioned herself near the front of the building. He gave her a once over, noticing that she had, somehow, gotten her hands on a ladle from the kitchen. What she thought she was going to do with it, he didn't know. Why didn't she grab a knife, he wondered? But, it was better than nothing, and, looking at the way she was holding it, she looked like she could really do some damage with it. She leaned up to the window, pressing a hand against it as she peered out into the darkness, looking for Jeff.

Joel followed suite, looking out the door, into the blackness, though he knew it was in vain. You couldnt see shit. God, what was going on. What the fuck was going on? He already accepted that this was supernatural. That didnt take him any amount of changes in his beliefs. It was entirely clear that this was not natural. It was absolutely clear that something out there was killing people. He just wished he knew what the hell it was.

Whats out there... what is it... Jeff, where the fuck--

He didnt get to finish the thought. Because, suddenly, there was Jeff, slamming against the front door, pounding on it with his fist. Joel's heart jumped out of his chest. He yelped in surprise, his eyes going wide. Jeff was frantic, the cool demeanor from before replaced with pure, unadulterated fear. But he had the gun.

Holy shit he had the gun.

Quickly, Joel threw open the door, and Jeff wasted no time tumbling through. He quickly slammed and locked the door behind them as Jeff stumbled onto the floor, the gun sliding out of his hand, across the linoleum floor of the diner and coming to a rest next to one of the booths. Almost immediately his brother was upon him, sobbing and slobbering and cheering that he had made it back. Jeff, still clearly frazzled and trying to act cool, hugged his brother tightly, that smile on his face again.

"Jesus---Jeff, you--yes! Yes, great, awesome, good job!" Joel said as he scrambled across the floor for the revolver. "Jesus, man, you were gone for a while, it was getting grim in here."

[Sunflower]

The ladle was more of a security blanket for the woman. They all needed something to keep them calm - for Sam it was the buttons on his shirt sleeve, for people like Bob it was the memories they carried, and for some like Ruth it was the bottom of a bottle. When Jeff had come into view most in the diner hurried to the doors.

Sam was in disbelief that the kid had gotten the gun when it clattered to the ground. He was one of the many who were congratulating the teen. His eyes flickered from the scene before him to his sister. She was standing with her back to them, hands clutched around the handle of the ladle until her knuckles were white. "He's fine. He made it back." Sam understood her fears. He knew all too well that in a small town like this, where most of the people knew each other, it was hard to detach yourself from certain situations. He was a teacher for crying out loud, he knew that he had been worried about the kid. It was in his nature for fuss over kids, that's part of the reason why he became a teacher.

"Here you go, kid." Barb, a waitress for another small diner across the street, handed Jeff a cup of water to help calm him down. He took it from her with shaky hands and took a drink. He clutched his brother tightly with one arm and he handed the cup back to Barb before wrapping Avery into a tighter hug.

"Well what happened?" Bob, who had nearly broken his back when Jeff came, tumbling into the diner, asked. He was glad that the boy had made it back in one piece but he was now nursing a hurting back.

Sam and Rowena wanted to know as well. Jeff had been so confident before stepping out of the diner doors, what had happened to the boy to make him whimper like a scared child.

[DELTED293y5gds]

As the commotion began to die down, Joel took out his key ring, shifting through the small assortment until he came upon one that was much smaller than the rest. He pushed it into the lock, and with a small click, it loosened and fell to the floor of the diner. Almost imediately, a small bit of relief washed over him. He felt safer already. He didn't feel safe necessarily but he did feel safer, and honestly, right now, that was all he really needed. He pushed out the chamber, looking down at the six shots that were neatly loaded into the cylinder, biting his lip a bit as he did so.

Six shots, thats all you get.

The sound of Jeff slamming his cup down on the table caught his attention, distracting him from the gun. HE pushed the cylinder back in as he moved over, still gripping the gun tight in his hand. Everyone in the diner was pretty much crowded around the two brothers. Rowena was closest to the two of them, her hand resting gently on Jeff's back, probably trying to comfort him. The rest formed a small circle around them, save Bill, who was slightly away from everyone else, nursing his back, and Lee, who was standing in front of Jeff, arms crossed over her chest.

"Did you see something out there, Jeff?" She asked, one eyebrow raised. She knew he knew something, and she wasn't going to settle for nothing. "What was it?"

There was a small moment of silence before Jeff looked up at her.

"I didnt...see anything. But I heard something. Something was close, and it was growling at me. I just... I ran back here when I heard it. I didnt take the time to fuckin' get a look at it, lady."

An air of unease fell over the room. Joel tightened his grip on the gun. Valencia edged closer to him, probably taking solace in the additional safety of the gun.

What the fuck was out there?

[Sunflower]

Sam felt pity for the boy, he was shaken up and it didn't help that he was being questioned. What really worried Sam was the fact that Jeff said that he couldn't see whatever it was. Well Sam couldn't even see beyond the windows but there was something eerie about the way Jeff spoke about the mystery creature.

"Rowena you stay with Jeff and Avery." Sam said as he gathered everyone else on the opposite end of the diner. They needed a plan and they needed one fast.

The woman sighed, she wanted in on whatever they were talking about but she decided to stay put and comfort Jeff. "It's okay if you didn't see whatever it was." Rowena said to the teen. "We'll find out what it is and how we can stop it."

Jeff scoffed and shook his head. He stayed quiet and eventually Rowena had coaxed him and Avery to fall asleep in the corner where she could guard them. The two brothers huddled under one of the tables; Avery's face was buried into Jeff's shoulder and the older boy had his arms wrapped tightly around his younger brother. Rowena sat a few feet away staring off into space. Her legs were crossed and she gripped the ladle loosely. It was easy to snag something when everyone else was preoccupied.

"How much food is left?" Sam asked. If they needed to stay here for an extended period of time they needed to ration the remaining food.

"A few days maybe." Vincent said, "I'll have to go check..."

"Barb you go check the kitchen with Vincent. And you," Sam said as he gestured to Joel, "We should take rounds watching tonight with the gun. Who else will volunteer? I can take the first watch."

"I'll take one of the watches." Bob volunteered from his spot. "I used to take the night watch back in my prime days."

Sam didn't have any idea of what to do and he was sure that the others had ideas of their own but they were all tired and he thought it would be better if they got a night's rest and some food. When Barb and Vincent reported back with the food supply Sam ran a hand over his face. They had enough for maybe three days and that was stretching it. They'd need to either leave or send one or two people on a supply run soon.

"We'll talk more tomorrow," Barb said finally, "Let's all get some food and some rest. We need it." With no way of knowing what time it was they had to make sure that they were well rested.

Lee crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. She wanted to make a plan now, not later. Who knew if those things were going to wait to attack?

Sometime later they were served some left over pastries with water for dinner. Sam and Rowena sat at one of the back booths. Jeff and Avery's rations sat on the table between them. Valencia was trying to wake the two brothers so they could have dinner. When Jeff and Avery woke up they crawled from under the table and sat with Sam and his sister before moving to talk to some of the other people. Avery had taken a liking to Bob and the older man was telling the boy a war story.

The next morning, well what she assumed was morning; Rowena looked around the little cafe. She was the only one awake, save for the lone person doing their watch. She yawned before tip toeing her way over to them. "Hey." She smiled, "Why don't you get some sleep? I can take over." Rowena knew that it wasn't Sam because he had been sprawled out on one of the tables with his legs hanging over the side.

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel had taken his shift from Sam around 3:30 in the morning, positioning himself at the window near the front of the diner. He pulled up one of the chairs from the table closest to him to get comfortable, leaning forwards in it and resting his forehead against the glass in front of him. He sat like that, gun gripped in his right hand, perfectly still, for the next four hours of his shift. He let his eyes scan the blackness outside for any trace of movement, though it felt useless, considering he couldnt see three feet in front of himself. But he knew he wasnt going to fall asleep. Not in this situation.

Her voice startled him a bit, causing him to jump in his seat a bit. It was the first noise he'd heard all night. Hell, he didnt even know anyone had woken up yet, it was only seven o' clock. He hadn't expected to hear anyone stirring until at least nine. He turned around to face her, his shoulders relaxing a bit when he saw who it was. He and Rowena had only spoken a handful of times. In the line to pay for groceries, sitting down on a bench in the park, exchanging hellos as they passed on the sidewalk. But during every encounter he had with her she was always very warm and welcoming. She was a very sincere woman, and she was very easy to talk to. Even for Joel.

"Oh, um, sure, you can do that. Actually, if you want, we can just...both do the watch. I'm not going to be falling back asleep any time soon, and maybe having two sets of eyes would help us out, y'know?" he said, offering her the best smile he possibly could at the moment. "Its also really lonely and boring doing this alone."

He shifted nervously as he stood up, looking down at the gun and turning it over in his hands for a few moments before holding it out to her, wondering if she would take it.

"What do you say?"

[Sunflower]

There wasn't much to look at honestly, everything outside was hidden behind the thick blanket of darkness, so Rowena focused her attention on the man sitting beside her. She had brought another chair close and sat cross legged on it, her hands rested in her lap before the gun was held out towards her.

Her Dad had taught her how to shoot a gun when she was younger but that had been a BB gun and she was sure that the pistol was a bit different. Her Dad was a nice man who adored the outdoors. He was a good counter for her Pap who didn't know how to shoot anything when he came to Rosswood. Her Pap used to live in the city with Sam so there weren’t many opportunities for them to use guns.

Rowena grabbed it carefully before giving Joel a smile and resting the gun in her lap. He was a nice man, a bit quiet but she enjoyed his company. They sat in silence save for the snores and other noises that came from everyone else. She turned around to check on everyone before looking back out the window. A soft sigh escaped her lips before she adjusted in her seat. "What do you call a spaghetti noodle in lasagna?"

Rowena didn't mind the silence but there was something about the unnatural stillness of everything that was getting to her. Usually by now Sam would be up and making some coffee. They chose to share a place because neither wanted to live on their own yet, despite being in their mid-twenties. Sam was afraid to live alone, although he'd never admit it, and Rowena was a social woman, she needed the contact with another person to keep going.

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel had his face back up against the glass again by this point, peering out into the darkness now. Once again, useless. Honestly, he was getting really tired of this whole "totally opaque black wall" situation, ad he made it known audibly, letting out a loud, exasperated sigh of defeat as he flopped back in his chair, draping his head over the back of it as he did. He was done with this, for the time being. He wished the darkness would go away. He wished the sun would come up. He wished he had normal problems to deal with. He wished--

"I wish something would just happen." he said, turning his head towards Rowena, who had been giving him strange looks since he started his mini tantrum. "If there's something out there---if somethings going to attack us, why cant it just fucking do it and get it over with, y'know?" By this point, he had leaned forwards in his chair, resting his head in his hands. He ran one of them through his hair, pushing it out of his eyes. He was getting angry, and he was getting annoyed.

"Hey, c'mon, Joel, it's gonna be okay." Rowena said, resting a reassuring hand on his shoulder, causing Joel to look over at her. "I know, it's messed up and everything, but we... everyone is going to be alright." Her voice was calming and soft. She was good at this, calming people down. Hell, she practically did it for a living. It worked on children, and it was working on Joel. He was a bit calmer than he had been mere seconds ago. Not completely, not by a long shot, but still, it was a start.

"Yeah... yes, yeah. Thanks." He said, sitting up, looking over at her still. He gave her a small smile in return for her kindness, letting her know that he wasn't totally lost in his head. She smiled back. They held a look for a moment before Joel broke it, turning his head back to the window in front of him, ready to continue has scan for movement.

"What the fuck?!"

Joel nearly jumped out of his skin, his body shooting up out of his chair, sending it skittering across the floor behind him. Rowena jumed at his sudden reaction. Sam was awake, scrambling to his feet, trying to get to the window, get to Rowena, make sure she's okay. Joels eyes were wide in fear, fixated on a very particular spot in front of him. Because something was out there. Something was in front of the window. He could barely make out what it was. But he could see it's shape. He could see it's too tall, too thin figure.

And he could see its deep purple eyes, glowing like an unnatural, otherworldly fire in it's deep, sunken sockets.

And it was just standing there, outside the window.

Watching them.

Waiting.

[Sunflower]

It would be an understatement to say that she wasn't worried about the man. He had been acting strange since he handed the gun over to her. Sam was worried as well because he was still half asleep and had no idea what was going on. "Look at me," He grabbed Joel by the shoulders and swiveled him around to face away from the window. "What did you see?"
By now the others were awake as well.

"I told you there was something out there!" Jeff said as he pulled Avery closer to him; the younger boy was still trying to sleep, unaware of the danger that lurked outside. Lee was pissed off. She was tired and had been woken up by the screams of a lunatic. Honestly she didn't see what Joel did and it was getting on her nerves.

Sam was trying his hardest to keep everyone under control. They all began to talk at once, some said that Joel had gone crazy while others, like Sam and Rowena, believed the man although they couldn't see whatever it was that had scared him.
Rowena still clutched the gun in her hands, mindful of the trigger.

"I don't know what the fuck it is." Joel said as he pushed his hair from his eyes. It was still there, luring about like the cat after an unsuspecting butterfly that he had seen in the park a few days ago.

Sam looked at his sister before looking back to Joel. He didn't know what to think at that point but it was clear that they needed a plan soon. Vincent was the next in line for guard duty and Rowena carefully handed the gun over to him before looping her arm with Joel's and dragging him to one of the back tables. Sam was helping Jeff and Valencia with moving around some of the tables to make a barricade while Bob was busy watching over Avery. Lee leaned against the edge of the table with her arms crossed over her chest.

"What did you see?" Rowena asked, "Was it an animal or was it something else?"

"Like what?" Lee asked with a raised brow. She didn't buy into the idea of there being something out there. To her, the man had simply lost his mind. There was no other explanation for his behavior.

Once the barricade was built Sam and Valencia went back into the kitchen to get breakfast.

[DELTED293y5gds]

Joel's eyes were glued to the window now. He refused to take them off of it. He saw it. He knew that there was something out there. He had seen it clearly. Well, as clearly as one could see a completely black figure in that fucking void. He was shaking slightly, eyes narrowed in concentration. Rowena handed him a mug of something hot--presumably tea-- and he picked it up, not peeling his eyes from the window, and took a small sip from his shaking hands as he set the mug back down on the table. HE exhaled audibly, then began to speak. His voice was quiet, almost calm.

"It wasn't an animal." he said, shaking his head slightly. "It was absolutely not an animal. It was... it was tall. and it was black. And it had purple eyes. And--and it was thin--it was way too thin. It's body...proportions...whatever. They were way off. It's arms were really long and--and It was just watching.... it was looking at us, and it was watching us.

He looked over, first at Lee, then at Rowena, gauging their reactions. Lee was clearly in disbelief, but Rowena was listening intently. She believed him, and that made him feel a lot better. He continued, directing what he was saying exclusively to her now.

"It looked like it was waiting for something." He said. He shifted his gaze to the front again, his eyes settling on Vincent. HE had the gun. He was watching the window. Everything was fine. Everything was going to be alright.

"Rowena, it looked like--"

The sound of shattering glass filled the diner, followed by the sound of a million tiny shards raining down upon the cool linoleum floor. Anyone who was still asleep jolted awake. Joel's head snapped to the front of the diner. He let out a small sound of fear as the creature stepped through the window, ducking its head slightly to get in. Vincent was still standing near the front. HE screamed. It was across the diner, on the opposite side. ut it turned to him, it looked at him. It moved to him. It was on him in nearly three steps. He had barely had time to aim the gun before it brought down one of its hands on him, slamming his body to the floor violently, smashing his head into the tiles.

The gun skittered across the diner floor, under a distant table somewhere now. Blood was dripping off of the side of Vincent's head. HE was mumbling incoherently, looking desperately for the revolver, his hands feeling for its weight, but they were only finding air. He gave up after a few moments of searching, instead deciding to scramble away from the creature on all fours, his eyes up on its featureless face.

Before he had another second to react, the lumbering creature grabbed him again, this time by the neck. Vincent's movements ceased, his hands went to the creatures as it lifted him up into the air. His breathing stopped. His legs kicked and flailed as he tried to pry the things grip from his throat, his eyes wide, staring deep into the monsters sunken, purple holes. It tilted it's head slightly at Vincent. Innocently, one could say. Like a puppy trying to figure out why it cant run through a sliding glass door.

"Help--"

It was all Vincent was able to squeak out. The creature flicked its wrist ever so slightly, and in doing so, snapped his neck like a twig. The crunching and breaking of his bones echoed throughout the diner. His body went limp in its arms as the life drained from his body. His hands fell from his throat and down to his side, swaying gently.

Vincent was dead.

Seemingly without a care, the monster tossed his body aside, through the other window. Vincent smashed through that one too, his lifeless body crumpling on the sidewalk outside somewhere. Avery screamed. Joel had his hands over his mouth, suppressing any sounds, and Rowena mimicked him, suppressing a sob. What the fuck was happening. What the fuck was that thing?

It turned towards them, and Rowena could swear it was looking at her. Was she next? Was it going to--

Before any more of that thought could go through her head, three shots rang out through the diner, and all three of them connected with the monsters head. Two in the forehead, one piercing one of it's large eye sockets. And it's eyes stopped glowing, turning a deep black. IT stopped moving. There was a moment of silence. And then it collapsed. It was dead. Was it dead? Was it that easy? How? What the fuck was it? Who--

"Alright. I'm keeping the gun from now on." Lee said as she lowered the gun, breathing heavily, not a trace of fear on her face as she turned her head to face Joel and Rowena. "Joel, I'm sorry. You were right. I'm sorry."

Joel was right. Jeff was right. They were in trouble, and there were two big fucking holes at the front of the store.

They were exposed.

[Sunflower]

Sam had been helpless to save Vincent. He had been standing right there, right fucking next to Vincent when the monster had grabbed the man. Sam could have saved him. He should have fucking saved him. The barricades they had been erecting, made of over turned tables, had splintered everywhere along with the glass. They were no longer safe.
He couldn't stop his arms and legs from shaking. His stomach emptied its contents at his feet and he began to cry. Sam crumpled into a small heap upon the floor and he bawled. He could have saved him.

Barb, who had been standing fairly close to Vincent as well, looked down at her stomach. A deep, sharp pain had erupted once the monster stopped moving. Her eyes widened and her hands came to clutch the piece of splintered table that stuck out of her abdomen. It didn't seem real to her until Valencia was running over. Barb fell back into the floor and she began to let out wails. Bob quickly joined the two and stuffed something into Barb's mouth - a spoon. "Bite down on it." He commanded before scanning the remaining people. Ruth had been a nurse turned alcoholic.

The blonde woman was crying in the corner, sure that they were all going to die. "Snap out of it woman!" Bob yelled angrily as he hobbled across the room and grabbed her roughly by the shoulders. "There is a woman that fucking needs your help, now go tend to her." Bob was just as shaken as the rest of them; it was never easy to see someone die. He let go of Ruth and went to check on Rowena and Joel. They still hadn't moved from their spots and Bob took it upon himself to comfort the woman. Sam wouldn't have been able to.

Bob said nothing as he brought the woman into his arms and smoothed down her hair. "Go check on Sam." He said to Joel before turning his attention back to the woman. She was beginning to hyperventilate. "Take deep breaths." He said as he moved to rub her back in a soothing manner.
Avery had a panic attack as well. Bob wasn't any good with panic attacks, he used to suffer from them in his younger years after he got back to the states. He watched Jeff comfort his brother and repeated the motions with Rowena.

Sam was still crying as Joel approached him. "Sam?" The man said as he knelt down, mindful of the large amount of glass and wood that littered the floor. Sam didn't look up. "I could have saved him but I fucking stood here like a god damned-!" Sam punched the ground. It hurt and it was an outright stupid move but he couldn't help it.

When Rowena calmed down enough the man moved on to see how Barb was doing. She was asleep and her wound had been bandaged but without the proper medical supplies she would be dead by morning. Valencia wiped her cheeks with the backs of her hands. "We can't stay here." She said, looking towards the window.

[DELTED293y5gds]

"We need to... we need to get out of here. We need to get weapons and we need to leave." Valencia said calmly, restating her point and walking off back to the kitchen. Was she shell-shocked by the events? Probably. Was she currently trying to internalize all of the fear and despair and crippling anxiety she had inside of her? Most definitely. But was she correct? Absolutely. They needed weapons--more than what the diner could provide--and they weren't going to find them by sitting around here doing nothing but crying. So, she decided that the next best step would be to grab something big and heavy from the kitchen. A few moments of searching led her to a janitors supply closet near the back, where she was able to find a pipe, probably left there after the "plumbing incident" the diner had a few months back, as the owner called it. She felt the weight. Swung it a few times. Pretended to block with it. She decided that yes, it would be a good temporary weapon.

"Yeah. This'll work."

Meanwhile, Joel was doing his best to calm the distraught Sam that was in front of him. He figured out quickly that he wasn't very good at it. He barely talked to anyone to begin with, and for good reason. He didnt like talking to them. He wasnt experienced enough to deal with them. He got nervous. And now he was tasked with helping somebody through emotional turmoil? Who the fuck signed him up for this? ut he steadied himself, and spoke the first thing that came to his head.

"um... dont punch the floor." He said, immediately regretting it, looking up to the roof, shaking his head, asking the gods why he was given such poor socialization skills. But he wasnt ready to give up. Maybe one more try. He looked back down at Aam, who was looking at him now with an expression that Joel couldnt pin down. Maybe it was anger? Confusion? Just sorrow, still? Regardless, Joel did the only thing he could think to do in a time like this: just let words pour out of his mouth in hopes that it would somehow turn out something meaningful.

"Look...uh, that thing was fucking big... and it was strong, um, obviously. And so theres proably nothing you could do about it, and theres no point sayting its your fault because, i mean, come on, clearly it wasn't. Because there was a giant fucking thing in here and it killed him. It was that things fault. I mean, it came in and killed someone, how is that your fault right?"

[Sunflower]

Ruth scrambled back on the floor away from Barb and the others. It had been so long since she last took care of a patient and she was nervous that she had done something wrong. I need a drink she thought as she searched through her bag with shaky hands. Ruth couldn’t find her precious bottle with her hands being so bloody and so distracting. The woman frantically tried to wipe the drying blood off of her hands and onto her pants and the floor, anything other than her skin. She was a nervous wreck.

Rowena was watching her quietly as she smoothed some of Barb's hair back. Ruth would be someone to watch closely and although she was a valuable asset to them she was also one of their greatest liabilities.

Lee, who had taken charge of the situation, began giving orders. She was the most levelheaded of the entire group. Vincent's death was on the back of her mind but she could not mourn him. He had been a stranger to her and she was determined to not suffer the same fate. "You," she pointed to Sam and Joel, "Will both carry her."

"Where to?" Sam asked as he finally stood. His hand was sore but he could move all of his fingers with some difficulty.

"There's a hardware shop a few buildings down." Bob said as he went into the kitchen with Rowena and Avery.

They were all given a job to do. Avery and Rowena were going to be carrying all the food and water that they could. Bob had found a box that he packed with as much food as possible. Rowena and Avery filed as many water bottles and other jugs that they could get their hands on. There were a few of the reusable grocery bags that the water was put in. Avery almost fell over trying to pick it up so the job moved to Rowena while Bob and Avery took the box of food. It was mostly little things like pastries that they had wrapped in plastic wrap. There were some pies and a few other things like instant coffee. Jeff was to walk behind them.

Sam and Joel would follow behind the trio while Ruth and Valencia would take up the rear.

Lee was the first to exit the back of the building. Bob had given her the basic run down of where and how to find the back door of the hardware shop. As a carpenter he spent most of his time working with various power tools and going to the hardware shop for new ones more often than he cared to admit. She paused and gave the signal for the next three to exit. They followed behind her as quietly as a child and hobbling old man could. Rowena walked behind Bob and Avery with the ladle ready. It wouldn't do much damage but she'd try at least.

The backdoor to the shop was locked and Lee cursed. They were now exposed.

"I'm scared." Avery whispered as he shifted his weight from foot to foot. Jeff, being impatient and afraid, quickly hurried out behind the trio. "Here," He said as he began to work on the lock. He wasn't no expert lock pick but he could smash the lock with a rock. It took a while to find one and each moment was hell until he began smashing the rock into the door.