Brain Dead

by Alice Carina

  I was honestly surprised at how quickly Matt aimed and shot. From the sounds coming from below, the shots were accurate, too. I'm pretty sure not a single bullet hit one of the many zombies that blocked the glass. This was a good reminder of exactly why I had decided to keep this guy around; honestly, he was really useful! Good thing I went and saved his life back when he was dumb enough to almost get himself killed. I really had done the world a favor. Well, not the zombies, but the survivors were already benefitting.

  Matt fired one last shot before jumping to his feet. I expected him to run straight for the next building, but instead he ran towards me. He grabbed my arm and yanked me away from the door - I'm not sure it could be called a door now, though - and dragged me to the edge of the building before practically throwing me to the next. He jumped after me, and just as he landed, we could hear the door buckling behind us.

  We turned to see a whole group of zombies push through the door at once and stagger onto the rooftop. As we watched, a few of them noticed us, and six of them actually tried to come after us. Unfortunately for them, zombies don't possess any jumping ability. They all ended up splattered on the pavement below. Just a few less zombies in the world.

  If we had waited, I had no doubt more would have followed. As tempting as that was, we had to get out of there; the horde had gathered around our old building and the shopping centre, and it wouldn't be long before some of them infested the other buildings, including the one we were standing on.

  Chapter twenty three

  Chapter twenty three: survival

  Traveling across rooftops was not nearly as safe as it normally would have been. The longer we moved across the buildings, the more of them seemed to appear. We were still too close to the shopping centre, and the zombies were flooding the buildings around it. There were less buildings being filled with zombies the further we got, but we still found quite a few just waiting for us on the rooftops.

  We were heading in the general direction of where the survivors should have come out, mostly just to check they survived, but partly because I was pretty sure that was where Milly had run off to. And knowing her, that was a dangerous situation for everyone. No way was I going to risk her deliberately messing up my plans just so she could get revenge.

  Matt ran beside me, even though he was taller and faster, he stayed close. I swear, this guy had no concept of self-preservation. He really was a perfect example of the type of strange, messed up heroes out of all the zombie movies. Anyone could see that this guy, when he died, it would be in the middle of sacrifing himself for someone else.

  I was out of breath when we came in sight of the edge of the horde. We stopped to rest on one of the many now-empty buildings, but it was mostly because of me; Matt looked like he could run ten times that distance, carrying me, and still be able to run if he ahd to. It was unfair that he was so fit when I knew that most survivors weren't. in fact, most survivors had survived by hiding, not running away. Runners got caught more often than anyone would have thought.

  Still, even if he would eventually get himself killed, it was good to have him around. And, if I was around, maybe he wouldn't do so many stupid stunts. Maybe he would live longer, even if it was only a little bit. I mean, he was pretty useful... So it wouldn't hurt just to keep him around. For extra protection.

  It didn't take long after we were moving again to spot the survivors. I mean, they were pretty hard to miss; there were dozens of them, all grouped together in a small crowd. On the street around them there were the bodies of zombies. The bodies looked fresh, with black blood still oozing out of the head wounds, so I assumed they were jsut some stragglers that had been there when the survivors escaped.

  I could see someone standing separate from the crowd, and I knew without looking too closely that it was Milly. She was gesturing to the crowd and yelling, but I couldn't hear what she was saying. I was tempted to just leave her where she was, but I could see zombies being drawn to the noise. They were too close to the horde to be having an argument, and she should have known that.

  "Let's go," I said to Matt. I didn't even bother to wait for a reply as I rushed down the stairs and through the building.

  Ordinarily, this would have been a very bad move. It was easy to get trapped by stray zombies in the building, and it was harder to use our only advantage of being able to run with all the obstacles in the way. One wrong move and a single zombie could trap you. And you would die. Unless you had someone following you, like I did. And even better; most of the zombies would have been gathered in the horde, not buildings this far away from potential food.

  I waited at the door for Matt, unwilling to go out and face that many humans without someone who could competently shoot them if need be. Although I doubted he would actually shoot them; he was too nice, but he could threaten them quite well, and that was all I really needed. Humans were very easily manipulated when you had a gun pointed at them.

  Outside, the street was eerily silent except for Milly yelling at the survivors. I didn't catch all of it as we walked towards her, but I picked up "... could have died... lucky to be alive... should be grateful..." I wasn't sure what she wanted from them, but they were looking suitably chastised by her words. It was pretty impressive how she managed to reprimand so many people older than her.

  Milly froze mid rant when she noticed our approach. "Guys," she said, her voice changing in an instant from enraged to companionable. "It's good to see you safe. I was just explaining to these guys the error of their ways, and the importance of being grateful to people that went out of their way to help them."

  "Now is not the time to be arguing," I said angrily. "If you keep standing here, drawing attention to yourselves, you are going to undo everything we just did and draw the whole horde right to us. I suggest we not do that and we leave it for later. You feel free to tear each other apart, just not around the zombies, okay?"

  Milly nodded quickly, but I could see that she was not going to let it go that easily. "Then go," I commanded. "NOW!" Why were any of us still here anyway?

  Before any of them moved, I spotted a group of zombies approaching us from an alley between the buildings. I couldn't say a word as they turned on the crowd. I could see most of them react in time, hefting whatever they had at hand, whether it was a piece of wood or a shiny aluminum bat, they turned to attack the zombies with reflexes trained from months of constant attacks.

  When the last zombie fell to the ground, I could only shake my head and gesture pointedly to the zombies. Milly took my meaning and nodded again. "Let's get out of here!" she yelled to the crowd.

  I was about to follow them, when I heard a footstep behind me. I would have figured it was Matt, but then I heard the dragging sound that was almost always accompanied by a zombies. I heard a grunt, and I knew. Normally I would have run, but I knew that matt was still behind me, and he hadn't reacted. He hadn't noticed them yet.

  I spun around, just in time to catch the zombie as it lunged towards me. I saw another one following it, and I could see Matt's shock and realization as he saw the zombie that had fallen on top of me, and the other two staggering towards him. He and I both knew that he had to deal with the other two before he could help me, but I was in a bad situation.

  The zombie had me pressed to the ground, it's broken and clumsy fingers gripping my arms as it's head moved down, it's mouth wide, it's teeth rotting, with chunks of dead flesh caught between them. I had my hands pressed against it's neck and chin, trying to hold it away while avoiding getting bitten. It was looking worse by the second as each attack brought it closer and closer. I couldnt' kill it without letting go of it's head, which meant death.

  I was trapped.

  My only hope was to wait until Matt killed the other two, otherwise I would die.

  Matt's POV

  I used the butt of my rifle to topple the first one in a moment, but the second one caused me a lot of trouble. I knew that Jake didn't have much time, so I tried to move as quickly as possible, b
ut the second zombie was not making that easy. It staggered slowly towards me, but it always seemed to stray out of range just as I was about to kill it.

  I could see the survivors and Milly running into the building, and I felt a brief moment of relief before I realized that the only one who could save Jake was me. And I was taking too long. Each time I glanced over at him, he was struggling with the zombie, trying to syop it from biting him. And it wasn't going too well last I saw. It wouldn't take long at all for the zombie to get close enough to bite. I was terrified by the thought of itsteeth ripping out his flesh.

  I was taking way too long.

  I took a step forward and took a swing. It was a lucky blow as it grazed the zombie's head making it fall. I quickly stepped forward before it could attack again and hit it again and again until its head was nothing but mush and blackish-grey goo on the end of my rifle. Now I could help Jake.

  BANG!

  A gunshot echoed through the air, and suddenly the street was silent.

  Chapter twenty four

  Chapter twenty four: answer

  The gunshot rang through the air, making my ears ring. I spun towards the sound, and there, lying on the ground, was Jake and the zombie, completely still. My heart almost stopped as I stared at them, trying to comprehend what I was seeing. Even as I watched, there was no movement, no life at all.

  Why wasn't he moving?

  Had I been too late?

  But then, why wasn't the zombie moving? They should have both been moving, even if Jake had been bitten. If it was a major wound, the infection would have spread much faster than a smaller wound, so he would've turned by now. And it was unnatural for a zombie to be still; they never stopped moving, even when they were trapped or in a crowd.

  So why wasn't he moving?

  The gunshot was the only clue. A gunshot meant the zombie was dead, which made sense, but if Jake wasn't moving, did that mean he had been hit too? Or had he been bitten first? Was he alive, dead or undead? I didn't know, but the possibilities tormented me. And the longer I waited, the more likely it seemed that he was dead.

  I rushed towards him, not caring about the danger of approaching someone potentially infected and turning into a zombie. At that moment, I didn't care. I didn't care if I was bitten, or that I would turn into one of the zombies we all feared and fled from, the zombies that I had killed without hesitation. The only thing that mattered was knowing whether he was alive or dead.

  I pushed the limp zombie off him, barely glancing at it enough to notice the bullet wound through its head. Jake had his eyes closed, and he was completely drenched in zombie blood. I waited, but he didn't seem to be moving at all, not even breathing. I shook his shoulder frantically, hoping he would wake up. I couldn't deal with the pain of losing him again, but I could already feel my chest being wrenched apart.

  "What is it?" Jake mumbled, pushing me away with one hand while scrubbing his face with the other. "Can't a guy take a breather after killing a zombie? Sheesh!"

  I could only stare at him, relief spreading through me. He was covered in zombie blood, and he had almost been eaten because I had been too slow, but it looked like he was alright. I watched as he pulled out a water bottle to scrub off the blood - it was still infectious - around his eyes and mouth. He was safe.

  "You know, you were right; this did come in handy," he said, hefting the handgun I had given to him. I wasn't sure what impressed me more; that he had said I was right, or that he had managed to shoot a zombie that was on top of him without getting bitten, but it was probably him admitting I was right.

  "I'm glad you're alright." I didn't know what else to say, and I knew it was nothing compared to how I really felt.

  Jake's face scrunched up in his attempt to suppress his amusement. "Is that so?" he murmured. "Well, now it's all over and done with," he said suddenly. "We can go home."

  I paused for a moment to look him over again, just to make sure there were no injuries. As far as I could see, the only danger he faced was ingesting the blood that was splattered over him. Even then, infection through ingestion of the zombies flesh was far less likely than a bite or wound from a zombie. That didn't mean it couldn't happen, though.

  Jake stood up, giving one last glare to the dead zombie before he led us to a nearby building. The roof was clear, and from there we could jump to the next building over, and follow the path back to our hideout. I stopped on the first roof, glancing around for any sign of the other survivors. There were none; they had left us alone to deal with the zombies.

  Jake waited for me impatiently, tapping his foot, with his arms crossed. "What's the matter now?" he asked through gritted teeth.

  I didn't answer as I stepped forward and hugged him, squeezing him tight and making him squirm. I was glad I did, as I could feel his heart beating against his chest, his warm breath and the warmth of his body heat. All signs that he was still alive. It was reassuring to have proof that he was there, living and breathing... and warm.

  To my surprise, Jake stopped struggling and patted my back, very awkwardly I had to admit, but he was trying to comfort me. "What's wrong now?" he asked in a soothing voice. "We're safe; we're going home." I knew that he was uncomfortable, and he didn't know what to do, but I stretched out the moment as long as I could, just reveling in his concern. Sad, I know.

  That's when it occurred to me; he had promised to answer my question if we lived through it. We had, and I still hadn't heard his answer. "Jake, what's your answer? Can I stay with you?"

  The question hung in the air, but there was no immediate response. Jake wouldn't meet my eyes when I looked at him, and I knew from his expression what he was going to tell me now. It was painful knowing that I wouldn't be able to stay with him, but it didn't make my chest ache the same as when I thought he might be dead. At least if he was alive, I had the hope of seeing him again.

  I realized that if he was dead, I would lose my reason for living. It was as simple as that. I let Jake out of the vice I had locked him in, but I couldn't stop myself from hugging him one last time, just to listen to the thumping of his heart. It was one of the most wonderful things I had ever heard, and I would miss it more than anything else, even though I had known it the shortest time.

  I pulled back, trying to hold back the wave of grief that threatened to overpower me at any moment just at the thought of having to leave. Jake grabbed my jacket, stopping me. I faced him again, prepared to hear whatever he had to say, whether it was an excuse for his decision, or an insult describing the exact reason he could stand me. I was prepared for anything, except what he DID say.

  "Don't go." It was no more than a whisper.

  "What?" I asked in shock, certain that it was just the delusions of my mind as it wished desperately to stay with my reason for living, my love.

  Jake glared at me in annoyance, before he blushed and bit his lip. He suddenly found his shoes fascinating as he knotted his fingers in the cloth at my side. "I said 'don't go'," he hissed.

  I couldn't believe it; I had expected him to abandon me at a moments notice, and instead he was showing actual emotion! Who was he and what had he done with MY Jake?! There was no way the Jake I knew would ask me to stay, and he definitely wouldn't blush!

  "Why not?" I asked, leaning closer in an attempt to work out whether he was lying or not.

  "Why does there have to be a reason?" he countered.

  "There doesn't, but there obviously is one," I remarked pointedly, enjoying the fact that for once I was winning an argument against him.

  He blushed even more, his cheeks flaming. "I like it better when you're around," he said softly. "You're safe, and you care."

  Did he really just compliment me? "So I can stay with you? Forever?"

  "As long as you want to, even if that is forever," he agreed. "I think I would like that," he said, a small smile tugging at his lips.

  "And if I said I loved you?" And there it was; the question I had really been asking.

  Jake's head snapped
up in surprise and our eyes met. I could see his surprise, and a whole flood of different emotions racing across his face. He bit his lip again, a habit I hoped he would always have (it was really cute!). For a moment, I wondered if I had just ruined any chance I had of staying with him, the next moment, I knew it didn't matter; I couldn't lie to him.

  "And if I said I didn't care?" he replied.

  I didn't even pause to think as I pulled him close and pressed my lips against his in our first - and hopefully not last - kiss.

  Epilogue

  Epilogue: contentment

  Jake's POV

  Matt was just like a puppy that had received praise, only all the time. I could practically see the tail wagging behind him. I mean, I knew he was glad that I hadn't kicked him out, and that I wasn't a homophobe that would try to shoot him, but this was a little much. He followed me everywhere, and each touch made him grin like an idiot. In terms of the affection he was showing, he was even beating Lucky.

  The poor dog had been left alone when we went out to help the ungrateful survivors, and even though I had left him enough food to survive for weeks, and the door leading to the roof open, just in case we didn't come back, it was a relief that he hasn't been abandoned by his owner again.

  I had never seen anyone so happy to see me - except Matt, but he didn't count because he was most likely insane - as Lucky was when I walked in the door, covered in zombie blood, and closely followed by an insanely happy Matt. Lucky didn't even care about the zombie blood as he jumped up, tackling me to the ground.

  With Matt so close behind me, we all ended up on the ground, covered in the black goo of zombie blood. Lucky and Matt both seemed to find this situation agreeable as Lucky panted in my face, smart enough not to lick the blood, and Matt hugged me. Being a human sandwich was not exactly comfortable - in fact, it was one of the most uncomfortable feelings in my life - but after all that had happened, I didn't really care.