A New Type of Realism

(9) Shot Yourself In The Foot Again

The sound I had heard...

...it was unmistakable, though of course I'd never heard it in real life. I'd never had any desire or reason too. Yet here I was, in the middle of an apocalypse, I was trapped in a building surrounded by infected and the ominous 'Cloud', my only companion had disappeared into the room beyond, and the last sound I had heard had been a gunshot.

"...Kyle?"

..............................................................................

I called out cautiously. My heart was pounding at a thousand beats a minute, a feat that was completely impossible for my seemingly weak, human heart, yet there is was. Was it a miracle? I doubt it, yet it could quite possibly be my heart finally telling me that it had had enough and was ready to give in the gauntlet. It was a sign that I had put it through so much stress and so many nasty surprises, that it could no longer cope with life.

I guess it would have to find a way of coping.

I put my hand to my chest as if to quieten my racing heart. I found myself unable to move, fear had taken over my body to such an extent that my mind no longer had control over it. I didn't even to attempt to move forward, as I knew that, if I did, my foot would become limp, causing me to fall flat on my face.

I waited for what seemed like an eternity, in silence. My mind was completely blank for the entire time. I don't quite know why, though if I had to guess, it would probably be something to do with my inability to contemplate the implications of the gunshot. I didn't think I could even comprehend what it would mean to lose somebody else that I'd put my trust in.

Finally, I picked up the courage to call out again. My voice cracked half way through the word 'Kyle', so my shout ended up becoming a whimper, or at least sounding like someone who had a severe throat infection. My hands began to shake, but I told myself that I was being stupid and shook my arms in an attempt to stop the trembling.

Suddenly, something happened that completely changed the feeling in the room that I was in. Somebody called out. That somebody, was Kyle.

"Dile? You might want to get in here...now." He said.

A small smile made its way onto my face as I realised that my only companion at the time had not died or fatally injured. The effect of this knowledge was instantaneous. My body immediately stopped shaking. My racing heart became a jolly, hopping, skipping and jumping heart.

It was only much later, when I looked back on how I had reacted, that I would realise how dependant I'd become on the company of others. Even though I had only been stranded in this world for just over three days, I probably would have lost my mind if I hadn't have encountered the people I had. If I'd been alone up until this point, there was no way in hell that I would have been able to cope mentally.

With Kyle's call, I found myself immediately able to move, and I took a step forward towards the door that the gunshot had echoed through. I placed my hand on the door knob and slowly opened the door.

Kyle was standing with his side to me, and looked in my direction when I had entered. He nodded his head at me and motioned for me to come closer. With a quick look around the room, I did.

Kyle was stood behind waist height, island counters, that took up most of the space in the middle of the room. They were light grey in colour, though the work surfaces were a darker grey with blotches of black. I assumed that it was an attempt to make the surface look like stone, though it didn't resemble the material in any way, shape or form.

Cabinets lined the walls at head height and they too, were light grey in colour. They had thick black handles that jutted out of the doors of the cabinets at ninety degree angles. A three legged stool made out of wood stood in the far left hand corner, though it was hard to make out, as it was shrouded in darkness, as was most of the room.