CHAPTER 13
SAM
Evelyn took me up to her lab. Standing in the room, I see how beautiful it is. Everything is perfectly cleaned and rounded, with loads of equipment, and even miniature wind turbines for a much more convenient air conditioning system.
I see a glass testing chamber with a heavy door at the back of the laboratory. I run over to it, and turn around to see Evelyn laughing.
"You're so adorable, like a little kid in a candy shop." She smiles.
"Oh, no, I'm really not cute." I say, 100% sure of myself.
"Yes, you are. Don't say anything bad about yourself until you have seen yourself through someone else's eyes."
"Plenty of people have made it clear to me that I am an ugly and useless piece of crap, so."
"Inferiority complex based on bullying?" Evelyn asks, tapping her chin.
"I'm a realist, and I don't have an inferiority complex."
"A long time ago, the majority of the world thought that it was flat. Now, is that true?"
"No, but-"
"Hush and listen. Just because people tell you something doesn't make it true. Everyone is a beautiful little snowflake, but we all have flaws."
"What's your flaw?" I ask her.
"I get lonely rather easily. I spend loads of money just to have company."
"Sounds like a quarter-life crisis."
"Doesn't it just? But understanding your flaws is understanding yourself. Do you know what yours are?"
"Uhm," I say, thinking. "I'm too smart for my own good, I am selfish, cowardly, inconsiderate, and I lack common sense."
"No one can be too smart, Sam."
"Yeah, sure, tell me that when you're responsible for the zombie apocalypse."
"What?"
"Who do you think could have wiped out the Earth's population? Who lives close enough to city hall to have accidentally infected the mayor and international diplomats? Who let a bio-contaminated rat get out of her attic-bound laboratory? Who said that she has a cargo plane full of emotional baggage?"
"One piece of luggage for every person." Evelyn says, her almond eyes widening.
"Precisely. All of those people, they had lives. They had families and friends and I punished all of them for human existence." I say, looking down at my palms, the hands responsible. My fingers twitching, I fold them over my palms. I bite my lip and look at Evelyn.
"Why did you buy all of the weapons from the supermarket?" I ask her.
"To arm my soldiers."
"Why do you need soldiers?"
"Well, a couple days before the zombie outbreak, I decided that I was going to show my mother how control I was of my life, by taking over the country's government. But I knew I couldn't overthrow anyone singlehandedly, especially the leader of the free world. So I figured, 'hey, throw together an army, and get myself in.'"
"Couldn't you just run for president like everyone else?" I ask.
"Three problems. One, you have to be thirty-five to be elected. Two, you have to be born in America. And three, no man wants to vote for a woman."
"Misogynistic asswipes. Always ruining the fun." I say.
"It gets worse as you get older."
"Damn it. Wait, so you decided to rule a tyranny?"
"Pretty much."
Okay, seriously I am pretty peeved. Who just decides to assassinate the president and rule with an iron fist? Because of childhood issues? I promise myself to not let her meet her goal. I haven't given her my research yet, and I just might not at all.
+ + +
BILLY
Hunter and I sat in the Rustbucket until noon before we got hungry.
"Want a sandwich?" I ask her.
"Not really. I'm hungry though."
"Same."
"Wanna get fried chicken?"
"I highly doubt anyone is selling fried chicken."
"Check the grocery store."
I give an exasperated sigh. "Fine."
+ + +
We pull into the parking lot, this one as full as the supermarket's. Billy grabs his shovel from the back row and wields it as we walk through the desolated parking lot. Cars sit in spaces like empty houses. It feels like a ghost town.
Walking into the grocery store, everything is deserted. I grab a shopping cart and look at her.
"No one in here, right?"
"Except us, no."
"We can do whatever we want." I smile.
"Grab the electronic carts."
"Do you mean?"
"Yeah, man,"
We each grabbed a cart and started racing around the aisles. We separated to pick out things to grab. I drove down to the premade food area, and found fried chicken, still under the heat lamp. I grabbed five packages when I heard a scream from the opposite site of the building. Hunter.
I grab the cart handles and floor the gas pedal. Unfortunately, electronic carts can't go to fast, so I coasted until I gave up and took off on foot.
"Hunter! Where are you?" I scream.
"Cleanup on aisle 16!" she yells.
I run down the aisle to find Hunter standing over a dead zombie. She looks at me kinda funny.
"I thought you were in trouble." I gasp, out of breath.
"I'm not a weakling, Billy." She says, narrowing her eyes. "Have some respect for women. We're not all damsels in distress."
"Sorry," I say. "I just wanted to make sure you were safe."
"It's fine." She says as she hugs me.
"Wanna go zombie hunting?" I ask her.
"Are there even enough left? I don't even have a weapon."
"We'll figure something out."
+ + +
HUNTER
Billy handed me the shovel.
"See the thing. Hit the thing. Thing moves? Hit it again."
"Thank you for your in-depth explanation. Really. I don't know what I could possibly do without you."
"Don't patronize me."
I look forward to see a zombie. I swing the shovel over my shoulder and run towards the zombie. As I got closer, I saw that it was a little boy, no older than five. The zombie clutched a ratty baby blanket in his hand. I take a step back.
"Great! What do you do after you see the thing?" Billy yells from afar.
"I can't hit him! He's just a little kid!" I scream.
"He's dangerous. If you don't kill him, he'll kill you!"
I look the child in the eyes, staying ten feet away from him. His eyes are cloudy, as if this isn't what he is seeing. The child's eyes suddenly clear up, and lock on me. He lets out a snarl and runs towards me. I snap quickly and whack it with the flat side of shovel. The small zombie flies back and charges at me again. I turn the shovel so I hit him with the side. It leaves a deep gash in his stomach. He explodes with a screech, and his blood gets everywhere.
"No more zombie hunting." I tell Billy as I hand him back the shovel.
"No more zombie hunting." He reassures me.
