Blind Eyes

Chapter Nineteen

My eyes open.

It is bright outside, the next day. And I am still here, on the street. Lying on my back. And then I remember, Will's story. I remember what I need to do.

I push myself up into a sitting position, my head spinning, my body trembling. I urgently reach for my pocket, and am relieved to find the knife still in my pocket. Thank goodness. I only have one thing on my mind, and that is killing Will. Leaving the town - that is not my priority anymore. My whole body - me, as a whole - has never wanted anything more than I want Will's death right now. I feel so consumed by hate that my body is literally shaking with anger, with hurt, still from his death that feels like it happened such a long time ago. I can barely focus on anything except how good I will feel when Will is finally gone.

I am so focused on my hate that I only notice my surrounding when I finally stand up. My leg throbs, the wound reopened from being stepped on, but I do not care. Around me, the town is burned, buildings burned to the ground or charred badly, as I expected. But that is not what shocks me.

What shocks me is the people, some dead, some still alive.

The fire that this town set, it did not work, did not have its intended purpose. It surely did burn the buildings, but yet again, the people were full of delusional thoughts. They were foolish enough to believe that they could destroy the sickness by lighting the town on fire. What a silly thought. The sickness is not just in the town, but in the people too. If they truly wanted to get rid of the sickness, they would have to do it from the inside out. But it is much too late for that, for them.

Strung alongside the streets, at the sides of buildings, are the people. And they are being eaten, consumed, by maggots. Maggots may not be a fair word to describe them now. The white, slimy creatures - they are half the size of a fully grown adult, the same size of a child. And they are thick, as thick as a tree trunk. They squirm through the empty streets, finding people to feast on, whether they are still alive or not. I walk unsteadily, watching as a maggot, its mouth wide open, devours a lady. Her legs are inside the maggot, being chewed up, and the top half of her body flails around. I do not know if she can sense what is happening or not. For her sake, I hope that she cannot.

I turn around in a slow circle, taking in my surroundings. I look far down the street, in both directions, into the remains of buildings, and I realize that everyone is dead, or soon to be dead. There are so many maggots; some of them pile on top of each other, competing to reach their food. Strangely, however, the maggots do not come for me. I am relieved by this, but I decide to still remain wary of them.

My mind turns back to Will. Where would he be? Perhaps - perhaps he would be in the forest. It seems like a good option, to go there. I begin to walk towards the edge of town, having to continuously steady myself against the blackened walls of buildings. I find it hard to walk, partly because of the pain in my leg and partly because of how dizzy I feel. I wish there was something to eat, something that could help me regain strength, but I doubt there is any food left in this disgusting town. I walk past familiar buildings, and it feels so strange, and stranger still as I walk past the garden shop.

Anne. I wonder what has happened to her. She must have gotten sick, must be dead by now. I haven't seen her in a long time, and I feel a wave of sadness. I wish I could have seen her, said goodbye. It would have been horrible, though, to see her deteriorate, just like my father.

It feel like it takes an eternity for me to reach the knocked down shop. When I do, I feel a flutter of nervousness in my stomach. I feel like I am close to Will. I walk past the shop, and finally I am into the woods. I walk into the clearing, and stop in my tracks.

I could leave right now, if I really wanted to. I'm right at the edge of town. I could just walk out, and if Will isn't here, he wouldn't be able to stop me. I'd been thinking about leaving for so long, but now, when I finally have my opportunity, I am not able to. The thought of leaving is not even a temptation, because I would never forgive myself if I left Will alive. I would rather die in this town, knowing I did everything in my power to end Will's life, than walk away in this instant.