Pumping blood

Chapter 5 Josh

I'm driving down the street in a sports car, no one else is driving, 15 minutes to spare, best friend beside me, windows down, and it's early October.

"Where do you want to go?" I ask.

"I picked last time. You pick." She says staring out the window.

"Where did we go last time?"

"Walmart to bit of scavenging" she answers.

"Oh you're such a buzz kill let do something fun." I smile "I know just the place."

I drive past the old speed limit of 25mph and go the new speed limit. Which is now anything under 160 mph.

"Close your eyes." I tell her she puts her hands over her eyes and laughs. I love her laugh. I love every thing about her. Her laugh, her smile, her eyes. I pull in to a parking lot.

"Ok, open them." I tell her looks and gasps. We have arrived at her favorite club, or dancing spot. We get out of the car and walk in. I've been here before after the turning so I know there's a generator down stairs. I sprint to the basement and flick the switch. The basement floods with light. I run back up stairs.

"Wow Josh this is amazing!" She has the biggest grin on her face." I did think that any of this still worked".

The lights on the floor are flickering and and the neon signs are glowing. The music is blaring. Mandy always loved dancing. She would force me to come and dance with her. I walked up to the DJ booth and turned on her favorite song and walked back down the stairs and started dancing, pretending there's more people, like it normal again. We mostly danced to hip-hop but her favorite song is strong, graceful, and caring, like her. I dip her and the song ends. I don't know what to do she is in my arm staring in to my eyes. I don't want it to end. I hear a crash and a flash of black on the flashing rainbow floor. I stand many up and as a lighter leaps for us I hop out of the way and push Mandy closer to the door.

"RUN, Mandy plan 24" I let her get the lead. The lighter stood up and prepared to pounce like a cat, more like a big black panther wanting to shred me in half. Mandy and I have done this hundreds of times. We have tons of plans we're prepared. I run under the arm of the lighter as he pounces and I sprint to the door. Plan 24, I think as a lighter jumps for me and I leap to the side. It jumps and I duck. It jumps over me and I run out side. I hear it's footsteps. It's not yet dark out I relies and I run to the car. The car is about 25 feet away. I see about 6 lighters jumping into the car. So close. I touch the car door handle, open it as one jumps for my leg. I slam the door close and finally take a breath. Mandy hits the gas and drives.

"How did they survive that? The lights were on and the sun hasn't set yet. They should all be dead" she screams at me.

I gasp at what I'm thinking.

"They're adapting."