Orthodontics in the Zombie Apocalypse

12. Zombies See Me Naked (2/2)

Mikah's eyes shift down to the floor.

Why did I ever fantasize about this guy? He looks like a puppy that peed on the floor. Shameful. Guilty.

"Well? What do you have to say?"

"It was the end of the world..."

My eyes narrow.

"There aren't a lot of people left, you know. And even though you're crazy, I figured you'd be a better bet to hang around than zombies. So, I lied."

I stare at him through slits, nostrils flared and heat rising. "I hope you don't mean what I think you mean," I growl through clenched teeth.

"My uncle..."

I shake my head. "Don't say it."

"He's not..."

"Don't you dare say it!"

"An orthodontist."

I scream. The noise tears through the house, shaking its walls and the very floor I stand on. "How could you? I wasted two days with you because I figured you would be of worth to me!" My lips catch on a bracket during the second sentence, but I barely notice the stinging sensation or the blood that pours out of it. It's a deep cut.

Mikah jumps out of the chair he had been lounging in. I stagger back.

"No! Don't you dare come near me! I'm upset with you." He waits patiently as I continue my dramatic rant. "How could I be so stupid? You killed my car and forced me to let the orphan twit tag along!" I glance quickly at Angel. "I would say 'no offense', but..." I turn my fury back to Mikah. "I dreamed about us running off into the sunset! I thought we were going to use the upstairs bedroom to get frisky. But then all you did was tell me, in great detail, how your mom died. Call me crazy all you want, but I think it's you who's the psycho!"

I storm out the front door, only then remembering what I'm wearing. Or...not wearing. Somewhere in that long rant, my towel dropped off. It takes a moment to notice the horde of zombies staring hungrily at me, heads cocked in anticipation. One of them, missing half of his cheek, licks his teeth with a long, slimy, greenish tongue. I can't help thinking of a game I used to play with my friends when we were younger.

Would you rather...?

Would you rather lose your towel in front of the only known living people left in the country...

Or get eaten by a bunch of zombies. Still naked, I might add.

"Decisions, decisions."

I stare silently down at the zombies as they stare back at me, both of us waiting for me to make up my mind.

The door opens and a hand drags me back into the sanctuary of the house, pulling me so forcefully that I land on my butt. The zombies surge forward all at once, grasping with bony fingers missing flesh and tendons dangling. They gnash their teeth, exposed through deteriorating lips, revealing their rotting and blackened gums.

I shrink backwards on the ground and kick the door closed as Angel locks it. Mikah kneels next to me, again focusing too hard on my eyes.

"Thanks, I guess."

Shaniya throws the missing towel over me. "You lost something."

I smile at her gratefully, and she returns the look with her own grimace. I turn back to Mikah. "You saved my life."

He half-shrugs. "I figured I owed you that much. After lying to you and all that. I'm sorry I lied, Piper. I really am. Times have been...strange...lately, to say the least. I didn't know what to do except offer the one thing you're looking for. It was wrong of me."

"Damn straight!" I try to maintain my stony glare, but his hopeful eyes force a smile to slip up.

"I can help you find a new orthodontist. I promise I will."

In the background, Shaniya and Sean kick open the door and blast the crowd of zombies with weapons I would have considered illegal a week ago. Enhanced semi-automatic assault rifles shower the zombies with bullets as fast as any machine guns. Sean tosses Angel something from his pocket. She catches it, pulls a ring of metal out of it, and chucks it into the mass of distorted limbs. It explodes, frying the zombies and reducing them to merely twitching pieces of flesh and bone.

"Time to go," Shaniya says, jogging down the hallway past the kitchen. She enters the cramped office and returns from it with a large, olive-colored duffle bag. "You got the car picked out, Sean?" The brawny man nods. "Perfect." She looks at Mikah and Angel. "It was a pleasure to meet you. Good luck in life!" She squeezes Angel's hand. "You're so strong; I know you'll do well for yourself."

"Wait. You're leaving us?" Mikah asks, incredulous.

"Yup. Your girlfriend there just attracted all of these zombies, and our grenade to make them go away just attracted more. So we're out."

"Do you have any other guns? We have nothing. We're just vulnerable to the zombies."

Shaniya scrutinizes the blonde boy. "Tell you what. You can join us for awhile under one condition."

Mikah tries to hide his giddiness. "What?"

"Get your girlfriend a chill pill. I'd say ditch her entirely, but I'm sure she'd just follow anyways, so here's the deal: You three can tag along as long as she doesn't say a word with that annoying voice of hers."

I scoff, jaw dropped. "Mikah, you aren't seriously considering..." But it's too late. He's already shaking hands with her.

And so, the strong female protagonist meets another strong female character, both with an eye for the dreamy blonde guy. The new one is bound to be voted off the island, right? I mean, she's threatening everything in my life and determined to ruin my relationship with Mikah. Spectators wouldn't let her stick around, would they?

I suck on my bottom lip, the blood finally ebbing away, and hug the towel to my chest.