Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

It took Lois to blink a few times trying to understand Kaley's word as to why he needs to wear body armor. He alternated looking at us waiting for an explanation. He's kinda like me in a way before. He excels at a few things but in things that he isn't familiar with, he really sucks at it.

*chuckle*

"Dad is really a hard-ass and he wants the best for us though maybe a little too much. I doubt he'd really shoot you but he would let loose a few rounds to see how you'd react. I don't know how his head works but I guess it's best to try everything." Kaley explained.

"Olivia is actually training with Kaley and the rest. You're only going sometimes in the morning, right? You'd have more time with each other and you're kinda safe tonight since Matthew is drinking with the president." I added as he was in deep thought.

"Hmm~ I guess I'll give it a try..." Lois trailed.

"I know what you're feeling dude. I plan everything I'm doing today the day before and a change of plan sucks. But yeah, we need to do what we got to do." I said as I tapped his shoulder.

"..." he was silent.

"My sister is gonna appreciate the effort too if you think about it. You also need my approval, not just dads!" Kaley smiled.

"Me too!" I added.

"What?! I thought we were family!" Lois is scratching his head.

"Hah! Don't give us that look. Take it like this then, don't do it for Matthew or even Kaley, do it for her. If you're really serious about it, this is gonna be a bit corny but be the person that your special someone deserves. You won't need to do much if you think about it. Look at me, I spent years to be what Kaley deserves even if I'm not certain we'll be together. That's something, right?" I seriously said.

I think what I said convinced him but he's looking at Kaley. The moment I looked at her, I was given a surprise. I thought she would be about ready to attack me for my cheesy remark but she's about to cry. I immediately wrapped my arms around her and she held me tight. Her eyes are watery and she's sniffing a few times.

"You okay?" I asked Kaley as I'm rubbing her back trying to calm her down. Lois signalled for me that he's gonna go to the gym and he would only get a change of clothes.

Then she kicked me in my shin.

"Ow! Kaley?! The fuck?!" I exclaimed but she's still not letting go of me.

"D-don't suddenly say that kind of thing out of the blue… sorry for kicking you..." she whispered.

"Hmm, is that so? I meant every word of it though. You know we're still outside and a few people are looking at us..." I whispered back.

"I don't care… I'm just hugging you..." she replied.

"Hah! Let's go now, I think they've already started upstairs." I said as I could feel her slowly letting go of me. She whispered the words we rarely say to each other but we always mean when we do. I did the same and whispered it to her as I held her hand when we went up.

We saw everyone still warming up and I left Kaley to Tatiana so they could get on with their training. I did my usual training. I'm running on my treadmill first and I'm scanning over everyone. Tatiana actually talked Nikolas and the rest to give training to our trainees since Oscar and Johnny are out for the count. Marvin and the rest have made substantial progress from the time that they've been here but it wasn't enough to compare to real ones. Like Tatiana, Nikolas didn't hold back with their training but there was always a show of strength first so the people he would be teaching would know he's the real deal.

Mikhail surprisingly got along with Bing and Russel. They're now in a contest to who could bench more but Mikhail is winning by a landslide. Alexei and Vera were simply lounging around and chatting with anyone that would come up to them. I thought Nikolas would ask for his match but he's more committed to following through with Tatiana's request. Lois came up a few minutes after we did and he's copying what I'm doing. He immediately veered off the path when his brother started a competition to who could do more squats. A few joined in and it made the dull workout fun. I continued on with my own and time quickly passed.

I cleaned up and I prepared for the things Kaley and I would be bringing for our trip. I already informed the rest of my group what to bring and I told them to simply drop by my place if they don't have it or have difficulty procuring a certain item.

I first double-checked the water bottles that we would be bringing and even if it already has a built-in filter, I prepared a couple water purification tablets just in case. The amount of water we would be taking with us is around 1-3 quarts per person. It's taking into account how long we would be there and I'm accounting for three days.

"Oh, yeah. I also have to prepare a tent, tarps, and maybe a sleeping blanket in case we don't have proper lodging. I might drop a few of them if it would be too heavy. A couple of raincoats and a change of clothes wouldn't hurt." I thought to myself.

I then went down to our storage area to get a couple packs of MREs. I took my favorite Chili and Macaroni and I bet Kaley would also like this. It also contains a pound cake, jalapeno cheese spread, crackers, and a couple of candies. The accessory packet contains coffee and some matches so I could brew a quick one though not as good as what I usually make. I also grabbed a couple of protein and candy bars for our extra pockets.

I combined our first aid kits and trauma kits in a single pack so I would have access to items treating life-threatening and non-life-threatening injuries. I even sneaked in a few hygiene items like baby wipes, a small bar of soap, and a few feminine hygiene products.

On tools, we already are carrying them on some of our runs when we head out. I have multitools in my possession and it could act as different tools for different instances.

"Hey, sorry I took so long. Oh! What are you doing? You need some help?" Kaley opened our door and saw me with two bags near the bed with several items spread around the bed.

"The things we would be bringing. It's one of the times where we would be away from our base for a few days and it is a given that we should be prepared. I'm just about done though. I'd clean the guns we would be using and I might bring an extra something just in case. I might also give Jude and upgrade. A CZ Scorpion or something could work for him." I replied.

"Wow, you already prepared a lot. What else haven't you prepared yet?" Kaley asked.

"Hmm~ Don't worry, I got this. However, I'd let you pack your share in your own bag so you'd know where to get them. Take a shower quickly or you might catch a cold." I replied.

"Really? Are you sure? Well, I'd take a quick one and I'd see to that." Kaley said after getting a change of clothes and her towel.

She bid her goodbye and I started to pack everything inside my bag.

I made sure that the items we would be carrying wouldn't make us over-encumbered. It is great that we have everything that we need but it would be troublesome if we couldn't carry them at all. Having lightweight versions of some of the items you would be bringing is a plus though it is much more costly. Well, we don't have to pay for anything now though I have already bought them even before this thing started. It pays to cut weight whenever possible so I decided to not feed my obsession about bilateral symmetry and focus more on the former category.

I decided to use my hip holster instead of my torso holster so I could cut more weight. I never had the chance to use two pistols at the same time and its purpose was more of feeding my own demons. I even used the Maxim 9 which has the shorter barrel which Kaley uses to cut a bit more. I'm tempted to use a CZ Scorpion like I would be lending Jude or a UDP-9 or maybe a Lone Wolf G9 SBR but I stopped myself since I'd still like to have rifle rounds in the mix of what we would be bringing.

"Now all that's left are the items for trade and we're set." I thought to myself.