Heavy duties

The barbershop

- '' This way! Don't give up now!'', Murphy was trying to motivate me and Doc into running faster away from a flock of zombies. My chest was already hurting way too much for me to continue as I tried to stumble forward. Murphy grabbed me by my sleeve and pulled me toward a barber shop with him.

- '' This way!'', he said. Doc tried to get the door open with poor results.

- '' It's locked!'', he said, but just then we heard a noise coming from the inside of the barbershop.

- '' Pull the door!''. We did as were told and got inside the place just in time before the zombies rammed against the door. Hopefully, the door was a sturdy kind. Once we caught our breaths for a moment, we started to look around. 

- '' Wait a minute. Sketchy? Skeezy?'', Doc said as we recognized those two immortal fellas getting a haircut and a shave by some unknown guy.

- '' That's right Doc. Murphy. Lady'', Skeezy said while looking at all of us individually. 

- '' You arrived just in time, it's time for a haircut and a shave'', Sketchy said, jumping out from the barber chair.

- '' Well if you insist'', Murphy said but Doc stopped him.

- '' We have to find Warren and the rest'', he reminded us. Murphy turned to look at me.

- ''Warren is probably somewhere safer than us. We can wait for the zombies to lose interest in us and get neat while waiting'', Murphy answered. He gave away his weapons in a big container just like that, and we had no choice but to do as he did. I and Doc quietly sat down on a bench as Murphy was getting ready for his haircut. 

But something was off with Sketchy and Skeezy. They seemed very nervous about everything which was not really in their nature. They kept whispering to each other and giving meaningful looks to all of us. Too bad we had no idea what they were supposed to mean. 

Murphy was trusting all of this, just like he always did. He got his haircut and shave down and was amazed by the results. 

- '' What do you think? I'm a new man!'', he said with a cheerful tone.

- '' Good, good, now shall we go?'', Doc asked.

- '' No way man, you are next''', Murphy answered him and made him sit down on the barber chair. Murphy sat next to me, clearly looking for compliments. It wasn't really something I'd normally do, and even less now since I didn't feel fully like myself. The passing of Lucy was still a big knot in my heart that kept pushing me down even when I wasn't thinking about it. 

- '' Haven't looked this good since Zona. I miss being in Zona. Endless food, activities, proper sleep...'', Murphy started to talk, waking me from my thoughts. 

- '' I suppose'', I said.

- '' Come on, you'll have to admit things were pretty good back there''.

- '' I don't know, maybe. I mean, I only got to experience it for a while''. 

- '' But you did get to see the best parts of it''.

- '' The part where people started to eat each other?''.

- '' No. The part where breakfast comes in bed and hot water never runs out''. 

- '' Oh, that'', I said and looked at him for a while.

- '' But yeah, this haircut does suit you well. You look good'', I said, giving him his compliment.

- '' Thank you. You look quite good yourself even without doing anything'', Murphy said back but deep down I knew it was just to make me feel better than actually telling the truth. My sorrow-filled eyes were sunken into my head and I couldn't even remember the last time I properly brushed my hair. 

Murphy noticed my expression getting darker again and decided to do something quite unusual. He gently placed his hand behind my head and kissed me. This sudden action made me dumbfounded, and I noticed Sketchy and Skeezy staring at us. I felt myself blushing a little, but the feeling was quickly cut off by the sound of Doc.

- '' Oh man, I knew there was something familiar with you!'', he said to the barber before the guy pulled a lever next to the barber chair that was supposed to drop Doc in a pit of zombies under the floor. Sketchy and Skeezy managed to save Doc just in time and fight off the barber, but just then we heard gunshots that made holes in the floor. A guy dressed in a mink coat jumped down from the roof holding a weapon that made us all lift our hands. 

- '' Man, you can't have shit in the apocalypse'', Murphy grunted. 

As we were held hostage, the barber and his mink-coated friend were explaining to us how this was a robbery that would end in our death like usual. Since we gave away all of our guns we couldn't do much. I really hoped Sketchy's and Skeezy's unreal luck would just kick in again and save us from this situation. 

Just then the door opened and inside ran two people, quickly closing the door to prevent the zombies from getting in. Just like us, they looked around for a while, taking in what they saw. 

- '' 10K! Lily!'', Doc said half happily and half worried. 

- '' Where's Warren?'', he added.

- '' Quiet! Your new friends will now nicely join you on the bench and sit quietly. This is still a robbery'', the barber said, and Lily and 10K did as told because they were unarmed. I looked around to see if anyone seemed to have a plan, but all of us seemed equally confused. 

- '' Alright now. You will now leave all your belongings here and walk nicely in a line to the backroom with the zombies'', the barber man said. Since the two men were holding us at a gunpoint, we again had no other choice than to obey. 

- '' Mama come pick me up I'm scared'', Doc said as we were heading towards the backdoor. The noises of zombies made it clear that we would meet our end once we'd get in. Sketchy and Skeezy were the first ones on the line, and they kept talking to each other about something.

- '' Go in! Now!'', the barber ordered us. Sketchy grabbed the door's handle and flung the door open, hiding behind it. A herd of zombies flew in, but we were prepared and started to push them toward the barber and his company. They started to shoot the zombies recklessly, which made the zombies even more interested in them rather than going for us. Murphy, Doc, Lily, 10K, and I hid in a solarium room and closed the door behind us. The noises of zombies eating the poor men alive were cruel to listen to, but to be fair, they tried to kill us. 

After a while, more gunshots were heard, and eventually, the noises of the zombies stopped. 

- '' What was that?'', Lily asked.

- '' I don't know but can it be worse than the zombies?'', 10K asked, and together we got brave enough to peek behind the door. In the middle of the barbershop were Warren and a pile of dead zombies around her. 

- '' Warren!'', Doc yelled happily as we all got out to meet her.

- '' Seems like I came in the right time'', Warren said.

- '' You sure did!''. 

- '' Alright now. The zombies outside are gone. It's time we move''. 

/toxic trait is writing a rough version and then later on coming back to it and just saying whatever and publishing it like that