Disclaimer: I do not own Generation Dead, so stop asking me how many of those short skirts Karen has. :)

Back to Life

The dream started ordinarily enough. A small meadow adorned with brightly colored flowers, birds chirping from within the confines of large oak trees. A sudden facade of thick mist enveloped her vision and she could no longer make out the colors of the flowers around her.

Everything was gray. The mist swirling her curled around her feet like a snake preparing to strike. The sound of the birds taking off from their shelter made her flinch. Her own heart pounded too loudly and she tried to steady her breathing.

A figure walked slowly toward her from out of the fog. With a sigh of relief she recognized Tommy shuffling toward her. Other girls might find it terrifying to be alone in the middle of nowhere with only a dead boy for company but not her. Not Phoebe Kendall.

Tommy's pale skin and gray-blue eyes fit in perfectly with this fog-induced dream. He was still as mesmerizing to her as ever. He looked at her sadly with those eyes that seemed like they could see right through her.

"Phoebe……"

He said her name like a prayer, as though without her he would lose all sense of gravity and everything tying him to the universe would float away.

"Tommy," she whispered, "why didn't you move?"

He stared at her sadly and she felt like shaking him.

"Why didn't you move?" She asked again, screaming this time.

"I'm sorry," he answered, "I was… scared, for myself, for you, for Adam and I froze. I just froze."

"You froze," she repeated angrily. "Pete Martinsburg pointed a freaking gun at me and you froze."

"Well guess what Tommy? Adam didn't freeze and now he's DEAD." She screamed the last word so loudly that it made her throat throb with pain. Tears started to form in her eyes and she wiped them away furiously.

"Now Adam's a zombie too Tommy. All because you didn't move."

Didn't move.

Didn't move.

All you had to do was move.

The words repeated in her head like a mantra and she grabbed her head to make it stop.

Suddenly, the mist cleared and Tommy gave her one sad look before disappearing.

"No, please," she yelled. Her hand reached out longingly only to find nothing there.

"Don't leave me," she whimpered brokenly.

"Phoebe."

She turned and her eyes grew wide.

"Adam," she said softly.

He moved toward her intently, his large frame closing the distance quickly.

This wasn't the Adam of the present. The one who had such difficulty taking just one step. This was the strong, foreboding Adam of the past. This was Adam before he died and came back. For her.

"Adam," she said, "I'm so sorry."

"I'm not," he said smiling tightly. "I've always loved you Phoebe. Always."

There was no hitch in his speech like the real Adam currently possessed. This dream Adam had no problem saying what he wanted.

"If it wasn't for me you'd still be alive," she said miserably. "If you hadn't stepped in front of me…"

"NO!"

The word bounced off the walls and she looked at his face expecting to see anger and betrayal. Instead, he was looking at her so tenderly that it made her heart physically ache.

She reached out a hand to him and he took it within his own large hand. Twining their fingers together he whispered her name softly.

"Never feel guilty for what I did. It was my choice; I knew exactly what I was doing. I would do it the exact same way a million different times."

Phoebe shook her head rebelliously.

"Adam don't," she started.

"Shhh," he whispered placing one massive hand against her cheek. His skin felt warm and alive, not the cold dead skin the real Adam would have.

"I would do it all over again because I could never live in a world where you weren't in it. I couldn't take the chance that you wouldn't come back to me."

Tears fell down her cheeks openly now and she hugged Adam to her roughly.

"What do I now? Everything's so wrong, you're having such a difficult time and I've been avoiding Tommy…." Her breathed hitched; maybe talking about her confusing feelings about Tommy wasn't such a good idea right now.

Adam lifted her chin so that they could look into each other's eyes.

"You have to bring me back to life Pheeble. You are the only one who can do it."

"You have to bring me back to life."

The words rang in her ears and suddenly she was no longer in the dream.

Lying there on her bed Phoebe tried to control her erratic breathing. She felt moisture on her fingers and looked down to see Gargoyle's wet muzzle nudging her hand curiously. She tried to give him a reassuring smile and patted his head affectionately. The dog yawned widely; put his head back down on the soft covers and promptly fell asleep. Smiling, Phoebe got up carefully so as not to wake the sleeping mutt. She walked over to her desk and took out an old picture of her and Adam, his arm around her tiny waist and her head on his bulky shoulder. She wouldn't rest until Adam was smiling again the same carefree way he was in that picture.

She would bring Adam back to life dammit. She had no idea what the future would bring for her, for Adam, for Tommy but she knew this with crystal clear certainty.

She would bring Adam back to life.