It's Us Against The World

5. Run

My body froze in fear. The enemy was approaching, and I couldn't bring myself to move an inch. Something grabbed my hand, and my feet began moving. I seemed to snap out of the daze then to see Amethyst looking at me with wide eyes. What she said next forced me to realize we were doomed. 

"Run."

The zombies were left in the mud as we sprinted down the street towards my apartment. Even if they couldn't run that fast, they could still move fast enough. Their moans and growls followed us as we approached the building. There was a gunshot, and Amethyst's pace quickened if that was even possible at this point. I glanced over my shoulder to see Walter running behind us, a shotgun in hand.

"Go!" he yelled. "I'm right behind you two!"

As we got closer, I saw Amethyst whip around to run backward. She used her handgun to take down a couple of flesh-eating freaks that were gaining on Walter. They hit the ground with a thud, and a few zombies tripped over the corpses. 

Finally, we reached the apartment complex. Amethyst threw open the door and ushered Walter and me inside. Walter slammed the door shut and grabbed anything nearby to block the entrance. Amethyst and I started throwing chairs, small tables, and anything else we could find against the doors. 

The groans grew closer, and Walter tossed the last chair. "Up the stairs to your room, Kieth! Now!" he barked. 

With a growing stitch in my side, I ran up the stairs. The undead pounded against the doors and shrieked angrily. I could hear Amethyst using every swear word under the sun as we made it up the stairs. The three of us reached the third floor, and I sprinted to my room. 

Once inside my apartment, Walter pushed the nearby chair under the handle. Panting, Amethyst plopped onto the couch. "So," she huffed. "Grab what you need, and we can be in and out."

I nodded before rushing to my bedroom to grab clothes and anything else I'd need. I heard Walter and Amethyst whispering as I packed. I didn't bother to listen in since they were probably talking under their breath for a reason.  

After I had packed, we carefully made our way down the fire escape stairs to the back exit. Amethyst led the way while Walter trailed right behind her. You know, it never occurred to me just how scary this situation was until now. 

I mean, seriously. 

I'm walking behind two people who trained to be in these sorts of situations, and they seem perfectly fine. I, however, am not. I'm a waiter. Well, I was a waiter. Now I'm walking down a fire escape with a bat in my hands, and praying we make it out alive. There's something about this whole ordeal that's almost surreal. 

These are the situations you dream about or read in a book. Do you get what I'm saying here? 

Why would anyone want to live this kind of life? Crazy people, that's who. 

"Kieth, come on," Amethyst urgently whispered. We'd made it to the back door at last. The three of us made it outside, where the sun sat high in the sky with not a cloud in sight. Keeping our ears open, we crept down the street. Walter walked ahead of us, his shotgun at his side. 

Amethyst walked beside me with a severe face. Her jaw clenched and her lips in a small pout. It was hot but scary as !$##. I shook my head to face forward and followed Walter down the cracked asphalt. 

For the entire walk towards our new HQ, as Amethyst called it, nothing happened. It was quiet. Almost too quiet. But, I took the win as we entered The Langham. I was surprised that we didn't get attacked inside. After all, it is the best hotel in Chicago. Regardless, we used the elevator to get to the top floors. Zombies are snails when it comes to stairs, so we claimed the upper floors. 

"Woo-ee! Now this," Amethyst flopped onto one of the beds. "This is a luxury."

I chuckled as she sat back up to unpack. She looked at me and grinned. "If you want your own room, you can take it. If you wanna stay with me, there are two beds...obviously."

I thought for a moment before nodding. "I'll stay here."

"Works for me," she chimed as she placed her clothes into one of the dressers. I did the same with the second one, and we met up with Walter in the hallway. 

"I brought as much food as I could. Amethyst told me you two'd be going off to find a new HQ, so I figured I'd come along to help you," he gave us a warm smile.  

"I grabbed some as well," Amethyst added. 

"We could check the kitchen," I suggested. 

Walter and Amethyst agreed, and the three of us headed down.  We plodded into the kitchen with me operating the flashlight in the front. Wearily, I opened the door and stepped on something that squelched under my shoe. I looked at my shoe and screamed as I backed out and tripped over my feet. My butt hit the ground, and I scrambled behind Amethyst.

She turned around and knelt in front of me. "Kieth?" she said softly. I looked at her with wild eyes. "What did you see, honey?" 

Did she just call me honey? 

I shook my head to get rid of the thought and swallowed the lump rising in my throat. My body felt cold, and my heart was pounding in my ears. She nodded to Walter for him to check what it was I saw. 

Amethyst returned her gaze to me, and her face softened. "It's okay, Kieth. Whatever you saw can't hurt you." She looked me over. "Can it?"

I shook my head no again. "N-No...It can't."

"Okay," she continued to use a gentle tone as she rubbed in circles on my back. "Do you think you can get up?" She wrapped an arm over my shoulder. Being careful, Amethyst raised me to my feet. 

"If I let go, are you gonna be okay?" Amethyst had a firm but comforting grip on me. I nodded again, and she let go. 

"Amethyst! You need to see this!" Walter called from the kitchen. She gave me a final glance before pushing open the door. 

I heard a gasp and then a gag. What I had seen was honestly one of the grossest things I've ever laid eyes on—a pile. No, a small mountain of zombie corpses lay on the floor with various body parts scattered across the open floor. I had stepped on an eyeball when I opened the door. 

I felt my stomach begin to churn at the thought of the sight. Heaving, I stumbled to the nearest trashcan and upchucked. 

"That's just wrong," I could hear the grimace in Walter's words. 

Amethyst hmmed in agreement with disgust dripping from her voice. The two of them returned to me, where I was hugging the trashcan with a green face. Feeling weak, I stood up on shaky legs. Amethyst gave me a worried look. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, no, I'm fine. I'm good. Yeah, I'm great," my head spun faster than the speed of sound. 

"You repeating yourself isn't making me feel any better," she took a step closer.

"Yeah, you might wanna catch me." I felt something grab me as my world went black.

1250 Words