Steve and I pushed through the small crowd of nurses and doctors, following after Thor and Grace. There was yelling and screaming. It was Max. Another yell sounded as we finally got to the windows to see into the room Max was staying. She was kneeling on the ground with her hands over her ears.

"Turn it off! Please!" She screamed

Next to her was a bed with her father strapped into it. He was convulsing and trying to break against the straps. Even from behind the glass, I could hear him growling and sneering like a feral dog. Hawkeye stood over Max, his pistol raised and pointed at her head. I felt a scream escape my lips as I took off towards her, but was stopped by Steve putting his arms around my waist. Thor pushed Hawkeye away and the gun went off, the sound erupting over the alarms and screaming. The bullet skimmed Max's arm, making her fall back onto the ground. Almost like a switch was flipped, she looked up at the men with her teeth bared. A growl rumbled the windows as Max jumped up and lunged towards Hawkeye and Thor. Grace was there with a tranquilizer as Thor held Max back. The needle was put into her neck and she crumpled to the ground with a scream.

I slowly sank to the ground with Steve still holding me. All I could do was watch as Grace and the other doctors lifted up Max and secured her back into the bed. Grace hurried over to Max's dad and inserted another syringe into his IV bag. He calmed down after a while, laying still on the bed. Thor grabbed Hawkeye by the arm and shoved him outside of the room as I just sat there and watched Max's slow heartbeat on the monitor.

It has been two days and she hasn't woken up. Grace has been in the room basically all day, watching over Max and her dad. He hadn't gone through a fit since Max woke up. They both looked equally infected, even with her dad being infected before her. Max's skin was basically translucent with the black veins crawling up her arms, legs, and neck. It seemed like it was getting worse each day. I was noticing her fingers twitching and her eyes moving under her eyelids at times. Staying out in the hallway would do that to you. I was allowed to stay outside of Max's room. After just running up to this floor as the commotion of Max getting loose, Grace believed that it would be okay to let me sit in the hallway. Steve was out with Thor, patrolling the boarder. Hawkeye wasn't thrown in a makeshift slammer or anything, but he was given a stern talking to by Thor.

He should be thankful that I was held back.

He was so ready to shoot Max. She was on the floor on the her knees and he held a gun to her head and pulled the trigger. At least Thor had some sense to not kill her while she was begging. It was all the commotion that made her go rabid. I still didn't quite understand why she was freaking out due to the alarm. The noise was probably too much for her eardrums due to the disease. The zombies were basically animals and no wonder they could hear us from miles away. However, she was herself before the bullet hit her arm. She was scared and confused. She was infected, but hadn't turned until she was threatened. It was almost like a defense mechanism.

The door to her room opened and Grace walked out, rubbing her hands and shaking her head. I stood up and walked towards her to ask, "How is she?"

"Same as she has been for the last few days," Grace said exhaustively, "Still in a medically induced coma, but still responsive. Her brain activity is off the charts."

"Do you think the slight immunity in her blood is keeping her from turning completely?" I asked and started to follow her down the hall.

Grace sighed softly, "That is what it seems like. Her body is rejecting the virus, but it's still bubbling through at times. The only way we can really monitor it is while she's out."

"And Ron?"

"He's more infected than she is." Grace stood in front of the elevator, her hand reaching towards the button. She paused and glanced at me. "I don't exactly know how all of this is happening or how this will end. This is Grimes' doing. He mutated their cells and it'll take time to break through. All we can really do is monitor their vitals and activity. Hopefully things will be clear up soon."

Grace's hand hit the button as I stepped forward to ask, "Why don't we find him? Get him to reverse this? He can't be far. We need to-"

"We don't need him." Grace interrupted me, "We're breaking ground with the cure. It's just a long process. He's coming for us anyways. When he does, we take him down."

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Grace walked in to the elevator before turning back to me, "Go get you some food. Maybe take a shower and change your clothes. It'll make you feel better," She said before pressing the button. The doors slid close as Grace gave me one last smile before I was left to stare at my own reflection.

***

Things were normal around The Homestead. People were doing their own responsibilities and jobs. The only thing that really changed was the border. Grace informed Thor that there are people coming for us. She didn't give him all the details, but they still beefed up security. Every army guy and a handful of able bodied citizens with gun training were guarding the border. They even made posts on roofs of nearby buildings just in case. Most of the army guys were out there while the citizens stayed inside the border.

Steve was at the east border, at the road where the guy showed up. He's been acting like a Mini Thor ever since the threat was established. Almost all of his time was spent out at the border, watching for whatever was out there. When I stepped out of the hospital, the sun was setting and he was laying on the hood of on of the cars. Surprisingly, he saw me and slid off before jogging over.

"So she is able to walk outside." Steve said with a grin as he started walking with me towards the hotel, "How goes it?"

"She's still just laying there, same as she has the last few days." I said, pulling Max's jacket closer around me. "Her dad too. They're both just laying there."

Steve stopped me with a hand on my shoulder before looking in my eyes. His tone was more serious as he said, "And what about Ashley? How goes it with you? When did you last get some rest?"

I shrugged and shook my head slightly, "I got a nap in a few hours ago."

"You need to go get food and actually sleep-"

I interrupted his sentence by brushing his hand off my shoulder, "Why does everyone keep telling me that? I'm fine! I'm not the one sick and in a coma!"

"You're going to be if you keep running yourself down like this!" Steve countered, grabbing both my shoulders this time. "I understand that you are worried about her. I'm worried about her. However, you need to take care of yourself. You're not going to be able to help Max if you're sick because you haven't been taking care of yourself. You hear me?" Exhaling, he took a step back from me and a sad smile, "I can't lose you too, Ash."

That hadn't exactly occurred to me these passed few days. Steve has been out at the border, not waiting in the hospital for Max to wake up, but he still cared. The three of us were really close, then it was him and Max. Sure, I saw him every so often, but he and Max were inseparable. His father was the only real family he had and now it's just Max.

I stepped forward and wrapped Steve in a hug. His back was stiff for a moment before he returned my hug. I pressed my cheek against his chest before saying, "I'm sorry, Steve. Really."

"I'm sorry too, Ash." Steve pulled away and gave me a kiss on the forehead. He rubbed my shoulders as he said, "But we just need to be hopeful and ready for whatever will come."

"What do you think will come?"

My question made Steve look out towards the road before responding, "Nothing good."

Blinking a few times, I stared at him before patting his shoulder. "Alright, Steveo. I'll let you keep being dramatic. I'm gonna go shower."

"Let me know if you need anything!" Steve called before jogging back over to the border.