Mei jerked awake, heart pounding from the vivid nightmare. She had been back in her house, finding her family murdered again. But this time, their blank eyes stared accusingly at her for not saving them.

"It wasn't my fault," she sobbed, hugging her knees to her chest.

A gentle knock came at her door. "Mei? You okay?" Booker's concerned voice called out.

Mei quickly wiped her eyes. "Y-yeah, just a bad dream. Sorry if I woke you."

The door cracked open and Booker peered in, hair rumpled from sleep. "Don't apologize. I get them too."

He sat on the edge of her bed. "Wanna talk about it?"

Mei shook her head, not meeting his gaze. She didn't want to burden him with her grief.

An awkward silence fell. Mei's heart fluttered being so close to Booker in the dark. She knew it was ridiculous to be developing a crush during a time like this, but she couldn't help it. His kindness and strength gave her hope.

"We'll get justice for them, Mei," Booker said finally. "For your family, and everyone else we've lost. We can't let grief defeat us."

Mei managed a small, grateful smile. "You're right. As long as we stick together, I know we can make it."

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

Booker squeezed her hand supportively. Mei hoped he didn't notice her blushing. She cherished these moments of human connection amidst the madness.

But pursuing romance now would only complicate things. Mei had to stay focused on the team's survival. Still, feeling Booker's comforting presence beside her in the dark, part of her allowed herself to dream of a future beyond this nightmare. A future where they could be more than just allies.

Booker found Astor sitting alone on the back porch, staring blankly at the rubble of their ravaged town. He hadn't left his room since the last incident with Mitch.

"Hey man, how you holding up?" Booker asked gently.

Astor just shrugged, not meeting his eyes.

Booker sat down beside him. "Look, what you did sucked, but it saved Mitch's life. You can't beat yourself up forever."

"I shouldn't have controlled him again," Astor said quietly. "Now he'll never forgive me."

"Well, here's the thing..." Booker hesitated before continuing. "Part of Mitch kinda liked it when you made him care about you. Felt good to have his anger go away. Obviously, he'd never admit it, though."

Astor looked up sharply. "Wait, he told you that?"

"Not in so many words," Booker admitted. "But I could read between the lines. The peace of mind was addictive for him."

Astor put his head in his hands. "That just makes it worse. If I keep exploiting his vulnerability, I'm no better than my manipulative family."

"No, hey, that's not what I meant," Booker said quickly, seeing this was just distressing Astor more. "You were only trying to protect him in a life-or-death situation. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"You don't get it!" Astor cried, jumping to his feet. "I liked controlling him too! I'm becoming … the same kind of monster as those things out there..."

His voice broke, and he hurried back inside before Booker could respond.

Booker mentally kicked himself. He had only wanted to reassure Astor that Mitch didn't totally hate him. But instead he'd stirred up Astor's guilt and self-loathing even more.

Booker resolved to have a real heart-to-heart with Mitch too. If they didn't resolve this tension soon, their divide would destroy the team from within far faster than any external monsters.

He had to help both of them, whatever it took. They would get through this darkness together. Booker refused to lose his friends to anger, grief or despair. Not when they needed each other most.