Chapter 20: Fallout

'Are you really going to let her go that easily?' Mary asked with seriousness toward my bummed attitude. I groaned. "I don't even know what I'm fighting for! She's a real hard-headed bastard! A really... Really sexy one." Erin then took the floor as confident as always. 'Stop acting like you lost! You're the one in control here! Did you forget how much these people rely on you? Molly will be begging for you to stay if you threaten to leave. Nothing will make you feel more like a man than having an inferior grovel at your feet.' I questioned his idea of manliness but he did have a point. "That wouldn't be a half-bad idea if it wasn't manipulation, Erin."

Erin spoke with a smirk in his tone. 'What's wrong with manipulation? You get to watch as other people crumble before you.' I didn't respond and was surprised to hear John who was on the fence. 'Perhaps not in that way, but if you were to think about it, it wouldn't be manipulation if it was true. You really would leave if Molly refused to see you.' Erin then quickly added another comment before I could respond. 'You know, all of this wouldn't be a problem if you just did what I told you to do and kidnap her. Just saying.' I sighed deeply. "I'm just going to go. No point in telling anyone. All they care about is my strength. That's all she cares about. If she wants to let herself believe that James isn't a cheating asshole then I'll let her."

Just then I saw the team jog back to the dock and load the supplies they found into the helicopter. I turned to walk back and didn't say anything to them as I hopped back into the front seat. I noticed that Molly had glanced at me but I continued to keep my mouth shut. No doubt she was curious as to why I didn't follow her again and try to apologize or something pathetic like that.

It was a fast trip, but it needed to be for this kind of risk. Molly, James, and Jay returned to the back seats in the same order as they were before and James told the pilot we were ready to go. I could tell that the pilot was nervous when starting the helicopter as if he didn't know if it would turn back on again. There was relief in the air when the blades began to spin and the engine vibrated the seats. We rose into the air with jolts and clanking sounds from the engine, and then we started flying back the way we came. 

On the way back everyone talked about what they had found on the island and how they were only able to find food with the limited amount of time they had. I blocked out most of what was going on around me until there was a huge jolt from the engine. The whole helicopter bucked like a bronco and I heard Molly yell from behind me. I turned around to find out what happened and my eyes widened once I saw that she had fallen out of her seat. She plummeted toward the water and created a splash as she landed in the canal. James grabbed one of the straps that was hanging on the ceiling so he could lean out of the doorway. "Molly!!"

I didn't scream or think about my next move and immediately jumped out after her. I dived into the water a short distance away from her and the cold sting of the ocean rattled through me. I tried to get used to it as fast as I could and swam up to the surface. I wiped the water out of my face once I emerged and when I spotted Molly I swam over to her. Before I could help her, she splashed the water in front of me so I couldn't get closer. "What the hell do you think you're doing?! I can swim, you idiot!!" I spit out the water that she splashed into my mouth and looked up at the helicopter that was flying right past us.

"Sorry guys!" I heard the pilot yell. I barely caught a glimpse of James before they got too far away and saw that he was frozen with shock. I wanted to smirk at him but the severity of the situation started to set in. There were nearly two miles of water between us and the mainland, so our only option was to swim back to the island and wait until they could come back for us. Everything had changed so quickly and Molly was panicking. She breathed heavily and after a moment of splashing, she began to swim toward the island.

I swam after her and was surprised by how fast I was. I caught her after she took a few strokes and she struggled fiercely once my arms were around her. "Hey! Let go of me, you bastard!!" I ignored her and continued to swim with her in my grasp. We reached the dock in only a few minutes and once I climbed up the ladder I set her on her feet. We were both soaking wet and shivering from the cold, but Molly didn't let that deter her anger. "Why the hell did you jump out after me?! You're a fucking psycho!"

Her words stung but I kept my head and wiped my hair out of my face. "I believe you made a grammatical error, honey. What I believe you meant to say was, 'Why the hell did this guy jump out after me instead of my oh-so-faithful boyfriend who loves me so much?' Am I right?" She pursed her lips and her silence confirmed how much I was right. She then sighed and turned away. "I don't need you to save me. I always save myself and James knows that. Now, I am going to survive and find a way off of this island on my own, damn it!"

She then ran away from me and disappeared into the streets of the island. I panicked at how fast she had run off. "Molly! Do you know how stupid that plan is?!" I didn't get a response and started to sprint after her. I couldn't believe that she would rather take her chances on a zombie-infested island without a gun than with me. After I turned the corner I stopped to see that she had vanished from sight. I clenched my teeth with worry as my eyes searched for her, but only saw zombies. They were running toward me and in no other direction which made me wonder whether she had successfully sneaked passed them.

I easily dodged out of the way of the corpses' attacks and ran through the town while looking to where she could've gone. I decided to climb up onto a roof so I could see better and once I reached the top I heard a cluster of growls behind me. I turned and saw Molly being cornered by walkers in an alleyway. My panic increased and I jumped onto the roof of the building she was leaning against. I then dropped onto my feet on the ground in front of her and punched the closest zombie in the face. Its head burst open like a melon rind and I kicked the next one that jumped at me in its stomach. Its body fired back into the others and I continued to obliterate any one of them that got close.