For some reason, as he stood, surrounded by three other people, Ellis felt that feeling again. Soaring in the air, jumping from that swing. But he felt it only for a moment. It hurt to much to let it linger. Because with his happiness, there had been Keith. And Keith wasn't here this time. Suddenly, he felt angry at himself, for thinking that way. Keith must have waited for him. Must still be looking... Right?

Pulling him from his thoughts, he heard someone asking for his name. Glancing to his right, he noticed the other people for the first time. One girl, two men. It was the lady who was asking for his name. "Ellis," he replied simply. "Some people call me Ell." Keith called me that. It was only him. "But it kind of sounds like a girl name..."

His smile was forced, though the lady didn't seem to notice. "I'm Rochelle. And apparently, this one's name is Coach. Don't know about him, though," she said absently, gesturing to the male in a white suit.

Ellis nodded towards Coach, smiling a bit, before nodding towards the other male. His smile fell, surprised by the expression on his face. It seemed almost a bit hostile. Cold, gray green eyes were staring straight at him, as if he were assessing a threat. They moved quickly however, as he turned away, walking towards the railing of the roof.

"The name's Nick," he said, a cold edge to his voice. "Don't bother learning it. I don't plan on sticking around long."

Well, he seemed friendly. Ellis didn't mind though. In a way, he reminded him of Keith. Just the way he took leadership of a situation. There had been an unspoken agreement between the four of them in the matter of seconds, where Nick seemed to be the one to call the shots. But Keith was kinder... gentle.

Running a hand over his face, Ellis attempted to rid his thoughts of the other male. He couldn't be dead. It was Keith he was talking about. Keith, who had survived lawn-mowers and flocks of birds attacking him for hours. Besides, it wouldn't do the group any good if he were a downer. Keith had always praised him on his amount of happiness. Said it had a way of effecting people. So, Ellis made the decision to be the light in the group. Always smiling, carefree... That was what he was good at, right?

It seemed helpful, at the end of the day. No matter what had happened, Ellis made sure to keep his worries, fears and pain inside. Rochelle had taken a liking to him, over the next two weeks. They were like brother and sister. Yet, she still couldn't notice half the things Keith would have. Stop it. Stop thinking about him. He's fine.

"Sometimes I wish he would get off his high horse for once," Rochelle complained, opening up a granola bar with a slight grimace thrown towards their 'leader.' The two of them were seated across one of the barricaded rooms, eating their share of food. Coach and Nick were both drifting off into sleep.

"Nawh... he's alrigh'," Ellis replied, shrugging a bit as he took a swig of water. "It's just how he works, 'ya see? My buddy Keith is like him. Just as confident and cocky, but he used it to make people like 'im."

"Well, when he does it, it's just annoying."

Not in the mood to argue, he simply nodded, letting his gaze drift over to the older man. Faintly, Ellis wondered if he had lost anyone to the apocalypse. He seemed like one of those men who kept to themselves, never loving anyone or anything because they were too afraid to lose it.

Seeming to sense a gaze on him, Nick's eyes opened, focusing directly on the Southern boy. His eyebrow raised, asking a silent question. What do you want? For a moment, Ellis simply stared back, not really sure why he felt compelled to stare at the older man. Nick seemed to be able to tell he didn't know, smirking and letting his eyes fall shut once more.

Pulling his eyes away, Ellis stared at the ground, feeling like he had been caught doing something wrong. His cheeks burned and his pulse had quickened, making his heart beat the only thing he could hear in the silent room. Glancing to the side, he saw that Rochelle had shimmied herself into an uncomfortable looking position – probably attempting to sleep.

Something about Nick reminded him of Keith. They looked nothing alike, really. But it was they way they acted. Keith's eyes held the same emotion as Nick's. The only difference was in the tone. Keith's eyes were warm, inviting and friendly. They drew you in like a cup of warm hot chocolate on a winters day. However, Nick's eyes were the opposite. They drew you in, but for all the wrong reasons. They gave you that feeling of wanting to do something, simply for the reason you shouldn't be doing it.

And it seemed Nick was well aware of this.

Ellis knew he was supposed to be on watch. Three weeks had passed, since the day the helicopter had abandoned them. They had a system now, for night time look-out. Each one of them would switch every two nights. It was Ellis' first night. Normally, he liked to think he was good at the job. Not once had they been surprised by a special infected lurking outside the safe room while he was on watch.

But tonight, his mind had other things to think about. He had gone two whole days without thinking about Keith. Consciously, at least. And if you didn't count the number of times he spouted off stories to the group. Now, however, his mind could only picture his best friend.

They were running, faster than both of them thought they could manage. Of course, Keith was ahead. He always was when it came to speed. "Wait, Keith! I gotta catch up!" But he kept running, glancing over his shoulder to cast Ellis a cheeky smile.

Ellis hadn't noticed the branch in his path, too preoccupied with catching up with his friend. He hit the ground without a sound, hot pain bursting in his chin, legs and hands. Before he had rolled over, Keith was by his side, eyebrows pulled in a frown.

"'Ya alrigh', Ell?" He questioned, green eyes darting from the scrapes on his knee, to the one on his chin. Ellis nodded, ignoring the urge to cry.

"I'm fine," he said, putting on a brave face as he sat up, wiping at one of his eyes. It stung something awful but he didn't want Keith to think he was a wimp. After all, Keith had already broken both his arms and one of his legs by now. The other boy frowned, his lower lip jutting out for a moment. Ellis could tell he didn't believe that he was fine. With a small movement, Keith kissed his cheek, seeming satisfied with that solution.

"Feel better? My momma always kisses my cheek when I'm hurt..." Keith explained, giving him a shy half-smile.

The memory was cut short by the sound of the sudden sound of someone slamming the door behind him. Lucky, this safe room turned out to be more of a safe house. There were two separate rooms, giving all of them a bit of privacy.

Turning around, Ellis blinked at the sight of Nick, leaning against the door. "You deaf now, too? I'll take over duties for you. By the looks of things, the only thing your keeping track of is the drool on your chin."

Ellis felt his cheeks flare, embarrassed that Nick had caught him day dreaming when he was meant to be on guard for the group. It was the first time it had happened...

"Nawh, it's alrigh'," he replied, frowning at the con-man as he folded his arms over his chest. "I was just thinkin' about some things. 'Ya don't gotta worry again, Nick."

Raising an eyebrow, Nick looked slightly amused as he pushed himself off the wall, making his way over to stand beside the shorter male. "You're right. I don't. Because I'm taking your shift. You can make it up to me, Overalls."

Inwardly smiling at the nickname, Ellis made sure he scowled, just in case Nick realized he actually enjoyed their banter. He couldn't remember when it had begun to be fun for him, it just happened. Like everything else in life...

"I'm stayin' with you," he argued, stubborn as a mule. "I 'aint movin'." He gave the older man a satisfied smirk, cocking an eyebrow in a challenging manner. Even though he missed Keith more than anything in the world, that didn't mean he could deny he felt some sort of attraction to Nick. Even if it was some psychological compensation for the fact that Keith had disappeared, he was okay with that. He had grown less innocent in the four years that he had been together with Keith. It was impossible to avoid with that boy.

Seeming a bit amused, Nick took a step closer, studying him intently for a few moments. The intensity of his stare caused the Southerner to falter a bit, swallowing thickly. But he wasn't about to give up. He hadn't felt this alive since Keith.

"I've seen you looking at me, Overalls. At first, I was worried. Thought you were going to murder me in my sleep. I cross a lot of people. But, that's not the point..." He paused for a moment, smirking in that confident way he always did. "You like me or something?"

Ellis was silent for a moment before he shrugged, uncrossing his arms. "And if I did?" His heart beat was loud in his ears, making him wonder if the other male could hear it.

Nick's expression changed for a moment, to something unreadable. It seemed as if he were contemplating something. "I might be okay with that, Overalls." With that, he stepped away and sat on the dusty couch, crossing his legs with a small laugh to himself.

He knew he was distracting himself. He knew it wasn't right, deep down. But he didn't mind. This was better than lingering on Keith. And besides, he liked a challenge.