Roleplay

She didn't open her eyes. She didn't look at him. If she did, she worried she'd start to cry, and she couldn't really afford to be a sobbing heap in an unknown place, at night, with Neighbors she didn't know.
"It's called the Lullaby of Takeda... and... it's honestly a terrible song." she chuckles, smiling sadly. "It's a young person... complaining about having to babysit after the Bon festival... since the Bon festival takes place in early autumn, to celebrate the lost." she lifts a hand, allowing herself to get lost in the words as she speaks. "Thousands of little orange lights... dancing across the water of the river, souls of the lost, and souls of those not forgotten, joining hands to dance and sing, and be joyous in their new and old lives..." She closes her hand, and tilts her head down, looking at him.
"Basically... the young person is saying that... as the days get colder, the child complains more, and gets meaner. That they cant even enjoy the festival because they can't afford the nice clothing, or the expensive food that comes with it. That every day they get a little thinner... and they just want to go back to how it used to be... Go back to living with their parents."

She chortles, and wrinkles her nose, "Would that we could.... would that we could. I used to sing it to my son when he'd fuss at night. Sometimes I even agreed with the words, to some extent.... when my husband went into the hospital, and bills were tight... when I had to get two jobs, and spend all my time away from my Shin, and his hospital room..." she paused, "When the virus started taking everyone..."

He became aware of a light pattering of rain outside. He hadn't checked the sky since earlier. The storm must have rolled in.
"I'm sorry..."
His jaw twitched as he heard the first calls of the infected as they readied themselves to go out for the night. He remembered with a start that they might track their smell, and his heart sunk. There was nothing they could do about it now other than wait and hope for the best... He hoped the rain would wash away the scent.
He focused back on Rose. Every time she answered a question about her life, a million others popped up. He wanted to know everything about the only person he'd seen in years, but he didn't want to overstep boundaries. They'd only known each other for a few hours: they were acquaintances at best... But he wanted to know about her. She was so hard to read... So mysterious.
He wondered if she thought the same about him, or if she could read him easily like how the girl used to.
Either way, the storm didn't care. It poured on relentlessly. Thunder even rumbled in the distance. He wondered if they'd even come out tonight with how stormy it was. He hoped not. He hoped that he and Rose made it through the night.
(Should we time skip to morning or keep going with the night?)

(In this case, I'd say it's up to you, but lets wait for Arrayth to pipe up, lol)

The Male sighed, and while there was still a bit of light left, he continued forward..making his way to the public bathrooms, his eyes trailing along the doors...He'd seen and heard something off not too far from them, it almost sounded like a song, perhaps his hearing was playing tricks on him, perhaps not...He'd have to figure it out at a later time...The Bathroom door itself was old, rusted, covered in what could only be described as clawmarks,, and he sloowly slid it open, tensing as the waft of fecies filled the air...that...was a definete no go since he still had time to move..He wouldnt have minded if he didnt have other options,, tying the cloth infront of his face... breaking the wall and affixing it properly..but not tonight.. That would have to wait, there wasnt nearly enough time....

The cane was still held in a vice grip underneath its head as he turned around, he had a few minutes at best...so he continued forward...towards the edge, towards a broken down building, He was certain it was roughly in the direction he had imagined something, but he couldnt hear anything now, save for the rumbling breath of the beings he imagined would descend upon him if he stayed in....The door was grasped...and slowly opened...before he slowly stepped in, it was broken down..Run down to the brim..but it had seen some use rather recently, his eyes trailed the surroundings as he reached up, adjusting his hat..and then his hand dipped into the coat...gripping onto something, there was a faint click...and a little shift as he stepped in, and closed the door..inaudibly...sticking close to the wall as his eyes adjusted to his surroundings.. It...had started raining, He liked the rain now...It covered tracks, scents..and masked sounds during the day..making it harder to be tracked down...and he took a quiet breath...one hand tightly gripping the cane..and the other, buried in his coat as he waited...He could hear...Voices? a bit further in...but he remained in the dark of the entryway...silent, or well..as silent as he could...shifting his head back to move the gray speckled hair out of his face...Footsteps?..none yet..
(had some difficulty kinda mentally putting a image to the location so hopefully I didnt ruin stuff now sorry.)

Em awoke when the howling quieted. She shifted in the queen-sized bed, feeling for her sister. Her hand gently found her sister’s shoulder, and Em quietly rolled out of bed, going to the bathroom.
She clicked on the lights and stared back at the person in the mirror. A weary face looked back, with dark rings under its eyes and disheveled long hair.
“Em?” coughing. Then again, “Emma?”
She pulled her hair back and entered the bedroom that she and her sister now shared. “What do you need?”
“It hurts to breathe.” more coughing.
Inwardly, Em cursed. Outwardly, she forced a smile and responded as positively as possible.
“I know. Sarah, I’ll do a run today and get you some antibiotics. Promise.” She crossed her fingers and put them over her heart. Her sister laughed at the gesture, and Em died inside as the laugh turned into a cough.
After changing, and a breakfast of canned milk and cereal, Em slung a shovel over a shoulder and went out. It was cool, fall just coming on, so Elko no longer felt like the Inferno. She slowly wandered through the streets, looking for the car that she had used yesterday. Prius, blue, come on, I thought it was on this street. Em saw the car and hopped inside, starting the engine.
The streets were empty, but that wasn’t much different from when Elko wasn’t infected. Em passed a herd of cattle, which warily glanced up at the car before going back to grazing. The town was dead silent, which scared Em more than the shrieks and howls of the Darkseekers. She parked in the handicap stall of the small pharmacy that was currently unknown.
It was a last resort, but she had taken antibiotics from almost every other safe zone. Em walked to the entrance, which looked like it had been forcibly opened. Already a bad sign. Roughly 15 minutes later, she emerged with a slightly bloody shovel and a small bottle of antibiotics.
At home, Em put a red dot on the elaborate map of Elko that her sister had drawn. It was a five by three-foot map, with hand-inked streets and fields. Red, blue, and green dots marked out hives, safe houses, and clear spots.
“Em?” cough, “Can we try to listen to the radio? Maybe someone broadcasted.”
“Sarah, I don’t think it’ll work.”
“Could we at least try, with Will’s truck? It’s got a CB.” Sarah burst into a coughing fit, and Em’s heart broke for her little sister.
“Fine.” Em relented, scooping Sarah out of bed and taking her to the truck in the garage. The pair sat in the front as Em fiddled with the CB.
Then, all the sudden, it crackled to life.
"Uhhh. Hello? Hello? Anyone out there? My name is Farren Wilde. I am in Chicago Illinois, USA. I am a survivor... I know it's a long-shot, but I hope that there are others out here like me. I know there has to be. If anyone is out there, head to Chicago, Millennium Park, I'm there for several hours a day in the middle of the day. I have a place that's well fortified. I have food, and all the water you could work for, and most of all, I have companionship. My name is Farren Wilde. Chicago Illinois. Millennium Park. Broadcast over.
That night, she faced a choice. Em ran a hand through her hair, considering the small possibility that there were others.
Others like her and Sarah. She looked at her sister, who had been ecstatic after hearing the voice on the other end. [do it for her.] She got up and made her way to the garage, getting in the truck and grabbing the radio.
Hello, my name is Em, and I am in Elko, Nevada. I am safe. My sister though. . .
She’s sick.
Farren, I am coming tomorrow, I promise.

(... that is a looooong drive)

"Hey there you!" The girl smiled at him with that wicked smile she had.
He had nodded at her awkwardly. Usually when she said it like that, with her voice higher pitch and nonchalant, it meant she was going to do something brash and stupid, and that she was planning on dragging him into it.
That friend of hers was sitting next to her at the table. The boy was always hovering. The boy acted like she was more fragile than she actually was, and would often try to boss her around to keep her "safe", not that she ever let anyone boss her around...
Still, he didn't like it.
"We're planning on raiding the cornfields tonight!" She grinned wildly.
He did not understand why. All they ever took was corn. All they ever accomplished in doing was pissing off the farmer.
Yet it seemed to be her favorite past time for some reason he didn't understand.
"See you there?" She tried to widen her eyes to look innocent, on the verge of begging, as if to mask that it was actually an order.
An order she knew he'd follow.
They were stupid; the adventures she dragged him on, but they were with her. That's what mattered.
He nodded. "See you there."

He blinked, trying to clear his groggy vision. He kept falling in and out of a hazy half-dream like state, but he was too tense and fearful to sleep. He felt like a cat in the dark, muscles all bunched up and ready to spring --but in his case to fight or flee for his life instead of to make the kill.
It wasn't too hard to stay awake. A few blocks away, he could hear them screaming and howling and making those awful noises. He'd heard some sort of animal go down before they started ripping into it. Probably a deer. There were a lot of those around now...

"Here's a flashlight, just follow me." She handed him the light, making sure her fingers brushed his for a second longer than they should have.
He knew she was teasing him on purpose, he just didn't know why. He didn't like the look her friend gave him every time she did something like that, as if he was doing something to her that would put her in danger. He never wanted to put her in danger. Ever.
Maybe he understood her friend more than he thought.
Maybe the boy's motivations were just to keep her out of danger. He could understand that. She seemed to want to jump into danger head first as often as possible.

His throat convulsed. The thunder outside almost made him jump. He could almost hear footsteps in the distance.
I'm imagining things. He told himself. It's nothing.
He glanced nervously over at Rose. What would he do if it was something? What if it came in here and killed her before he could kill it? He didn't want to lose someone, especially after this long of having no one.

He'd had no one for so long, but since he'd moved here, he'd had the girl. Her teasing and her feisty and her ultimately caring presence had been there ever since he'd moved in across the street.
So had the boy.
He had never actually been alone with her before now...
She grinned again, flashing her not-quite-straight white teeth at him. She'd told her friend to split off from the two of them a few minutes before.
"So." He tried, mustering the most serious voice he could given the context. "The great corn raids. What do I have to do?"
She laughed. "You actually think that's what this really is about? You're hilarious." She shook her head, hair flying out of her face. "I just do this as an excuse to hang out with someone I haven't gotten enough time with. Usually it's him." She gestured over to the direction her friend had gone in. "This time it's you." She stopped walking and tilted her head at him, nose wrinkling in an amused way. "What's your secret?"
"What?" He pinched down a panicky feeling.
"Your secret. Come on you've got to have one. A boy as cute as you who doesn't use that to his advantage or even talk? You've got to be hiding something." Her eyes twinkled. "I'm going to figure it out you know, I'm good at that sort of thing."
Oh please don't. He thought.
His eyebrows twitched together nervously.
"Oh I'm joking!" She laughed, punching him lightly in the shoulder. "And frankly, I'm trying to flirt with you, ya nitwit. Wanna go to homecoming?"
"Uh. I--" He ducked his head and went red. "Yeah... Yeah let's do that. That's good. I like that plan."
She reached up and kissed him on the cheek, before lightly shoving him. "Come on, let's grab a couple thingies of corn so he won't be suspicious when he undoubtedly comes back. God, I actually hate corn. I mean, I would suggest going down to the river as the thing we did on days like this, but we all know what happened with that. You know, corn is a weird word. It's a weird food too. Grows on a big green stick and has hair. So weird--"

He shivered lightly and shook the memories away like a fog. There were those footsteps again. He clenched his jaw fearfully and adjusted the way he leaned against the wall, hand grazing slightly against his gun.
He had to stay awake.
Stay awake.
It wasn't that hard.

Staying awake wasn't a problem for her... every now and then she'd pop one of the honey candies in her mouth, her eyes half-lidded, but alert in the dark of the room. She was listening... more to the storm... but every now and then she heard it...

The soft 'tap tap tap' of shod feet. The neighbors didn't wear shoes. Even with the sidewalks overgrowing with grass... Even with the old linolium of the halls warping and lifting... The familiar 'tap tap' of hard rubber was there. Someone was coming. Someone human.

She pressed a finger to her lips as she looked over at him, and rolled from her seated position, onto her feet, the soft soles of her shoes whispering across the floor as she moved toward the door, and dropped to the ground to look under the jam. Lightning flashed, and she saw the shadows of feet. Smaller than one of the Neighbors, for sure, and she lifted a hand, placing it against the door. She tapped on it.

'knock-knock knock-knock-knock...' The sound was soft, just barely audible. Another little signal. After all... who didn't know that old song.

He took in the Room, well what he was slowly starting to see...the sound of someone shifting, adjusting was clear now...the grip within his coat tightened, his breath stilling completely as he shifted with complete quiet...pinning his form against the wall...He'd have to be quiet, completely still...the thunder slammed down outside...he counted...one...two...three four... five...and then the sound...about a mile out huh...It wasnt too close..not close enough to worry..His breath remained stilled while he took in the room...and then there was a tap...two taps...a pause...and then three...His eyes drew down.. That was too Sophisticated for them....a human?...more dangerous than the beings perhaps...his grip tightened further and the cane let out a little clicking noise...as he waited...and he pressed it down against the floor...in silence... Tap..tap tap...tap...tap..tap.. He knew no such song so tappings all you get stranger..

An eyebrow arched and she shook her head, before shifting to the side of the door and cracking it open to peer out into the hall. Only her eye, and a thin portion of her face was visible as she peered out at him, before silently lifting her other hand to crook her finger. A silent "Come in".

This was the second person in one day... Just how many people in the city had survived, not just the virus, but the initial realization of the change? Or were two of them just from outside of the city... If this Farren? Farris? Whatever, person was still alive, that would make FOUR... Though she was beginning to realize something...

There was a serious gender-disparity going on here. This... worried her on a level she didn't want to consider. Then again, repopulating the human race wasn't exactly high on her to-do list anyway. Four years may have passed... but those four years were filled with trying to stay alive. Focusing on the garden, her fitness... anything to keep from dealing with their death...

Now that there were people around... it was getting harder. The wound was torn open again, and the raw, bleeding flesh revealed, and now starting to fester.

Either way, this salt-and-pepper man, with his cane, and his sunglasses didn't look like a threat.