Reckoning

Chapter Twenty One: Never Ending

The first thought I have after talking to Lisbeth is I need a shower.

I head into the bathroom upstairs and ready the hot water. I gently peel the bandage off my right cheek, and a reddish scratch is left from the gunshot.

Living in Haven has its perks.

After the shower, I put on the clothes I had before. The bathroom is misty from the hot water. I swipe my hand across the foggy glass above the sink.

I stare into my reflection in the mirror, my black hair covering the top of my ears, and the scar of a bullet across my right cheek.

I've definitely changed over the course of the past year.

Not only have I grown older, but I've grown stronger.

Hell, I've been beaten, shot in the face, and I acted fast in the face of death. I feel like I don't even recognize myself.

I hang my hawk necklace around my neck, grab my hoodie and switchblade, and exit the bathroom. Grace is on the sofa reading a novel. At the last step of the staircase, I tell Grace, "I'm gonna go see if Lauren plans on releasing Eli from town hall."

"Eli? One of Nathaniel's men?", she asks, concerned that I would mention the "enemy".

"Yeah", I answer, "He helped us escape, and I've argued about this with Lauren so I'm just gonna go."

"Make sure you check on Matt", Grace tells me, closing her book and standing up from the sofa, "I heard he fractured his leg."

"I will. I'll be back", then I'm out the door.

I walk down the street, houses and trees on both sides.
I turn right at the end of the street for a shortcut to town hall. But then the corner of my eye I see someone standing still way over at the south gate, facing the outside.

I start to walk toward the figure, and as I get closer I can see that it's Cody.

He's just standing there, staring at a rotting walker reaching its arms through the metal bars of the wide, tall gate.

I shout, "Cody?"

Cody turns to face me, his blonde hair and light skinned face now clean from the whole ordeal. He has on a fresh, clean grey shirt and black pants.

"Be careful", I tell Cody as I stop in front of him.
"Sorry", he mumbles, turning back away from me to stare at the walker.

The walker is a man dressed in a formal suit, like the kind you where at a wedding. It's skin is decomposing, and it's teeth are a rotten yellow.
"David, how long are we gonna keep living like this?", Cody asks.

"What do you mean?", I ask.

"The life that we're living, it can't last forever. But the life that we live now seems never ending", Cody claims.
"I try not to think about it too much", I tell Cody, who is still staring at the walker, "But here we are now."

"Do you think we should take care of this walker?", Cody asks, referring to the walker on the other side of the gate.

"No, it's not doing any harm. Just be careful", I say to Cody, "I'm gonna go see Matt, I'll see you later okay?"

"Yeah", Cody says, "Okay."

I turn around and walk away from the gate.

But something is telling me that I should remember this talk I had with Cody.

Late night chapter. Yay!