Walking among the dead

Ben

After a long while of trudging through thick mud and rain we finally reach a bar. I glance up to a brightly lit sign that reads "The heel and face". "The heel and face..?" I read the sign a bit confused and glance over at Mike who smiles softly. "Yup it's my second home, or really my only home now." He wraps his arm around James, "Our home." "Why is it called 'The heel and face'?" I asked Mike a bit confused. "Because before all this happened it used to be a biker bar, which of course always had fights. So it's 'The heel and face'." I nod. To be honest, that was my first guess. A man with a black bandana, dark blue eyes, and a long beard which came down to about his chest, poked his head out of the door. "Hey! Big Mike is back!" The man smiled and quickly held the door open for us. "Thanks Smitty." Mike says while quickly going inside with us trailing behind, after we're all inside Smitty quickly closes the door and locks it. While taking a quick glance i notice two other biker men sitting at the bar stools drinking Shiner Bock and a woman with long black hair and brown eyes. Mike calls out to his group "Alright guys, today we have two new members to add to the family. This is Ben and his girl Ellie. Hopefully they'll be staying with us." Everyone smiles and waves. "Alright you already know Smitty-" Mike points over to Smitty who is dressed very similar to Mike but instead he has a jean jacket. "These two are my brothers, Jacob and Charlie." They both smile and wave. Jacob had short, light brown, shoulder length hair and brown eyes. He wore a pair of jeans, leather boots, and a black tee shirt. Charlie had short black hair which was slicked back and goatee. He wore a leather jacket, black tee shirt, jeans, and of course, leather boots. "And last but not least my beautiful wife, Shannon." He points over to the woman behind the counter who had long black hair and blue eyes. She wore a grey tank top, a pair of jeans, and leather boots. "I-It's nice to meet you all.." I said while slowly looking down at my feet. These people were so kind but to be honest, their appearance kind of scared me. Rock music played softly on the jukebox as everyone welcomed the both of us then continued their conversations while drinking. Mike glanced down at my leg and lifted up his sunglasses. "Let's fix that leg of yours up to working condition." He helped me over to a booth and propped my leg onto a chair, he then scooted a chair over for himself while holding a first-aid kit. He lifted up my pant leg and took the bandage wrap off, "Well whoever fixed you up didn't have the intentions of saving you." He opened the kit and took out tweezers. "What happened?" "I was shot.." Mike carefully pulled out a couple of metal scraps from the bullet. "Well, at least your somewhat clean." He took out a bottle of alcohol and a cloth. "This is going to sting." He poured the alcohol onto the cloth and placed it over the bullet wound, cleaning the area. "Ouch!" I winced a bit as the alcohol burned the wound. The last thing he did was put a butterfly band-aid onto the wound and wrapped it up with bandage wrap. "There you go." Mike fixed my pant leg and smiled softly. "Thank you again, for everything..we would've died out there." Mike fixed his sunglasses and leaned back in the chair, "The world needs more helpful people so I try my best to be one. Besides what good comes out of fighting or racism or any other stupid debates people create, like what you look like or who you like. I understand some people have beliefs but that doesn't mean you have to treat people like their lower than you. Honestly i'm a veteran, i fought in iraq. During war you realize things. For example: kids worry about not having the big brand shoes, but being a veteran you realize there are worse things.." He trails off and glances down at my leg "You see people you once talked to die, you see your fellow comrades getting shot at, we all fight for what we believe in. In the end we're all the same, men and women fighting for what we as an individual, believe what's right." He looks up at me "But enough about war and such. So, how long have you been with Ellie?" He asked with a smile. I felt my cheeks become warm and pure red. "O-Oh um Ellie and I aren't- we.." I looked down in embarrassment, Mike seemed to enjoy my reaction since he busted out into laughter. "I'm playing with you!" He patted my shoulder while laughing and looked over at Ellie talking to James. "Well i'm going to get a beer. It's nice talking to you Ben. Oh and welcome to the family." Mike stood up and walked over to the bar. I like it here, the vibe is positive and everyone is friendly. The area is well secured and stocked with food and water.