A&AvZ

The Dead Roam at Night (16)

(Third Person POV)

Sitting outside at night during an apocalypse in front of a mostly lit building wasn't the best idea.. at all. But DJ needed some way to clear his head from everything that had happened the past few days.

Everything ached, especially his arm. It was spreading, he could tell from the way his fingertips were turning an unhealthy red. Sometimes they burned, sometimes they felt the same. He could also tell from the fact that sometimes his entire arm went numb. He had gotten a lot sicker, too. Recent coughing fits, at times coughing up blood. Alan asked about it once. He brushed it off as just a cough.

Lying to Alan about this felt like being stabbed in the chest, but he didn't want him to worry. He already had enough on his plate.

DJ felt blood through his jacket. The bandages needed to be replaced. Thankfully, he had some more at hand just in case.

Ripping off the old one, he looked at the bite. It was.. glowing. Actually glowing red. It started to sting again, being exposed to the cool night air. Starting to shake from the pain, DJ slowly started wrapping bandages around it again. He grunted every now and again as he felt the stinging spread to his lower arm, then to his shoulder, neck, and a bit of his upper chest. It got harder to move when that happened, and that sucked to deal with, but he did.

Cutting the roll off, he secured the loose end and put the bandages away.

He didn't feel tired tonight, only anxious. That would always keep him awake. What if he went to sleep and didn't wake up? What if this thing caused him to hurt his friend?

..he didn't even want to think about that possibility.

Getting up, he started to walk slowly through the parking lot, looking around. Pacing seemed to calm his nerves a little, but with how many nerves he had at the moment, it barely made a dent. The thick, blood smelling air wasn't helping any. Another thing he noticed was that his sense of smell, sight, and hearing became a lot more sharp and sensitive. Must be a side effect. Not a good one, he didn't need that much scent. On the other hand, sight may come in handy. He didn't really need glasses anymore. It was a plus, since he was on the move so much. He wouldn't have to worry about them getting lost or falling off. Hearing was a mix of both. It was useful, having sensitive hearing also sucked. Hearing every single little thing always gave DJ a headache.

He could hear everything up to at least 5 miles away. Birds, crickets, snoring, the breeze.. and of course the rampant noises of the infecteds. Those were thankfully way farther away than everything else, and the volume was a little below a whisper.

Pacing for a little longer, DJ stopped and turned back to the door and started to walk back inside. When he reached for the handle, he paused and looked back.

Something in him wanted to go out into the night.

Something..

He shuttered, turning back around and opening the door, walking in and slamming it behind him.

...

Quietly stepping in and closing the door, DJ made his way around the dark room. It was about 2 am at that point. Thankfully, Alan was still asleep. Looking around, he saw Second waving to him from the laptop. Carefully, he made his way over and sat in the chair.

"You're back! Where have you been?" Second whispered.

"I was just.. Outside. Thinking. Not really important."

"You should be more careful."

"I know, I know. I'm fine, though." He let out a small muffled cough. DJ looked over at the new stick on the desktop. "Who's that?"

"Oh.. that's Bubbles. A zombie we saved."

"There's already a cure?"

"Yeah, Blue made one."

"Can it work on real people yet?"

"Well.. uh. The thing is.."

"It's a no?"

"Yeah, but he is working on it. ..I also.. told him about you."

DJ sighed. "I guess it was a given. How long will it take?"

"Months, but he is looking for preventatives, or something to stop the spread at least."

"Well.. that's good at least."

"How is it now?"

"Bad.. probably worse. I've been feeling.. and seeing the side effects." He showed him his hands.

"Oh.."

"The mark has also been.. Glowing. Like, actually giving off light."

"That's weird."

"I know. I don't think I'll be able to sleep ever again.."

"You should still try, you know."

"I know.. I know.. but everything is just.. so damn.."

He laid his head in one of his hands, looking down. Everything started hurting again.

"I just.. don't know."

"Please go lay down, at least."

"..alright." It was probably the only thing he could do right now, anyway. Slowly getting up, he walked over and got into bed, trying not to lay on his already stinging arm. He wished he could just close his eyes and sleep.

But it wasn't easy at all now.

He laid awake and stared at the ceiling until his eyes shut on their own.