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He turned and caught her watching him, her smile faint and her eyes distant

"What?" Benny asked

She blinked, and he thought he saw shutters close behind her eyes "Nothing"

Back in town Benny would have let that go, but in a lot of ways he felt like he had left behind the version of himself as afraid to ask these kinds of questions So he said, "No … there was so atin trees for almost five seconds before she answered "Back in town … on your roof … I asked you if you loved me Did you mean it?"

Benny’s mouth went dry "Yes"

"You haven’t said it since"

A defensive reply leaped to his lips, but instead he said, "Neither have you"

"No," she adht "Maybe …town had been easier …"

He waited

"… it would be easier to say," Nix finished "But out here …"

"I know," he said "I feel it too"

"Do you understand it?" she pleaded "I’ve been trying to, but I can’t put it into the right words"

Go for it, whispered the inner voice Tell her the truth

Benny nodded "I think so At least … I understand why I haven’t said it Since we left toe’ve been in trouble Our ‘road trip’ hasn’t exactly been a load of fun Saying ‘I love you’ out here … don’t laugh, but it would feel like taking offit out loud just makes me feel vulnerable Is that stupid?"

She shook her head "No, it’s not stupid"

"My turn to ask a question," Benny said, and even though Nix stiffened, he plowed ahead "Do you wish I hadn’t said it? At all, I reen depths of her eyes "When you think the tiain and see what happens"

Benny’s insecurities wanted to read her co ways, but his inner voice whispered a different suggestion to him He said, "Count on it"

She held out her hand "So … want to go for a walk?"

"Well … it’s that or clean my room, but since my room is a tree …"

He took her hand, and they walked under the canopy of cool green leaves Birds sang in the trees, and the grass beneath their feet glistened withthe flowers, going about their ancient and i pollen fronats spiraled up froht The loveliness of the forest was ical and fresh, but it was also immense Neither of them spoke, unable to phrase their reactions to the ra to trouble the air with the horrors that haunted their hearts

Despite the warm reality of each other’s hands, they felt incredibly alone Desolate Even though they knew that To were somewhere in this same forest, it was as if everyone else was on a different planet Mountainside--home--was a million miles away The jumbo jet could well have been on the far side of the world, or so trees and shrubs, and most of the way there was no evidence of what had happened last night except the smell of ash on the breeze Then they rounded a bend, and all that changed

"God …," Nix said in a hollohisper

The field was a massive ruin Trees had burned to stumps, bushes had been reduced to ash The way station was nothing more than a blackened shell

However, that was not the worst of it Not by a long shot Everywhere--on the field, collapsed over the glacial boulders, twisted into bony knots on the concrete slab by the station--were corpses Last night they had been the living dead; now they were ration Benny had set loose with a tiny match

It was all so still A blasted expanse of ash and cracked bones Nix turned away

Benny lowered his head "I’m sorry," he said

Nix touched his arm "This isn’t your fault You didn’t mean--"

"Yes I did, Nix" He turned to her and brushed a strand of curly red hair away from her face "I started the fire because I didn’t knohat else to do I killed all those …"

"Zoms, Benny They’re zoms You can’t kill them"

"I know … but …"

She looked puzzled "What?"

"They were people once"

"I know"

"What if …" He stopped and took a breath, thinking of the terrible heat and of the fla so rapidly on dry skin and old clothes "What if they could feel it?"

"They can’t, Benny," said Nix softly "They’re dead"

"We don’t knohat they are The dead are dead, they don’t move, they rot and turn to dust The zoms … they move around Sure, they attack people, but that’s the point Dead people can’t do that … so what are they really? Why do theyto say so a zom hurt?"

"Hurt?"

"Fro The wounds that killed the, Benny Their bodies ence"

He shook his head "We don’t really know that, Nix, and don’t pretend we do Tom’s seen them turn door handles and climb steps He says that some of them pick up stuff to use as weapons Sticks and stones The one last night beat on the door That says so on inside"

"Benny, a squirrel will pick stuff up A cat will swat at stuff It doesn’t mean--"