The Long Way To Reno

by Mix, Michelle

  Once I reached Gold’s bottom level, I stopped to catch my breath. To hock up a disgusting logie and spit away from me. Only I looked really stupid doing it, because I normally don’t spit loogies. Spittle dribbled over my lips and chin, and snot hung from my nose. I was so disgusted, wiping frantically at myself.

  The light bounced everywhere, illuminating all sorts of books in the shelves around me. The silence only amplified my attempts to clear my sinuses and my throat. I coughed and spit onto the concrete. I then paused, cupped the light with one hand, and listened hard for any sort of movement or sound. Nothing. I was alone. It was so weird, so scary.

  The darkness was so thick and full that the flashlight didn’t seem to do much against it. Looking around, I spotted light far away from me, and realized it was the open door leading into the 1st section of the warehouse. Nearly a mile away – this fulfillment center was nearly two miles long, three wide – I wasn’t exaggerating the miles I walked per ten-hour shift. I sniffled and wiped my nose with the back of one sweaty hand, and found the staircase I’d used to come down. Taking every step carefully, I ventured upward. I kept pausing to listen and look. I only heard my heart thundering loudly, so I continued on.

  By the time I made it onto the third level, I was slightly out of breath and had to shake my legs out. They were stiffening up, and I was thirsty. I found the water station on that level, and took some time to sip at a fresh cup of water. I heard nothing but thick silence. It was so unnerving. There was never silence like this – it’s impossible to fully describe. I finished my water and flashed my light at the shelves open to me. They displayed sex toys, the occasional book, cartons of snack food. I took a break from key searching to rip open a carton of protein bars. Stuffed some in my vest and then continued searching. I didn’t find them on that level, but I found a backpack, a bigger first aid kit, a long sleeve athletic shirt that I immediately put on underneath my Halo tee, and some orange juice. I had a warm juicebox while I gathered some strength in heading down to the first level, to look for my keys down there. Made plans to retrace my path from the Exit door to the Green section.

  I fixed my hair back into its updo, wondering if I should just hack it off. As I was contemplating that, I heard a slip of sound that startled me into dropping the flashlight. It clattered loudly onto the floor, and I nearly screamed with surprise because it was really loud. The light rested on a set of shoes that came to a stop near me. A set of shoes that belonged to a moving body, to someone that shushed me. I nearly turned to run away like some startled animal when he picked up the flashlight to show himself to me. It was another shift worker, someone I’d seen occasionally as we switched picking sections.

  “Sorry, sorry,” he whispered, nearly blinding himself to show me he wasn’t a creature. His voice didn’t match the guys I’d heard earlier, and as my heart rate returned to normal, he gave a goofy sort of smile. He looked bloody and gross, and I wondered where he’d hid to survive. If there was more like him. “Hey, it’s okay. You scared me, too.”

  “I scared you?” I repeated, nearly hissing it. I snatched the flashlight away from him, kept it centered on his chest. Damn it, he was taller than me, but not exactly girl-protection material. He was scrawny, slight, with a cutesy face rather than a mannish one. I still would have to depend on myself to survive. Damn it.

  “Are you with…you with Jeff and them?” he then asked, looking cautious about it.

  I blinked because I didn’t know who Jeff was, and I shook my head. He looked immediately relieved. “Who’s that?” I asked, keeping my voice at a whisper.

  “Teal badge. Worked at the docks. He’s got people with him. He and these other guys were killing off the infected.”

  I stared at him, at the nervous dart of his eyes. He kept blinking hard, like the light hurt him. So I shifted it to his mid-section. “You were here…all this time?”

  He pointed off to the side, then crossed his arms loosely without saying anything. He looked me up and down while I tried to figure out what the gesture meant. The tense expression he’d been wearing slowly turned to something of amusement, relief. But also judgmental, like he was trying to figure out whether or not I knew how to do anything.

  As I started to relax, I remembered more about this guy. Me and another picker had realized weeks earlier that this one looked like that guy from ‘Inception’ – the one that had his hair slicked back and had the awesome spinning hall scene. I felt inwardly disappointed that he wasn’t the sort of man I was looking for – he lacked muscles. A sense of commanding presence. He looked like the sort that hid when men raised their voices in a bar, or shied away from bloody MMA matches. I almost groaned and hoped he wasn’t going to be an ally of sorts.

  I didn’t feel the need to make myself look pretty and wiped at my nose to make sure I wasn’t snotty, still. Then realized how utterly shallow I was at a time like this.

  “I hid over there,” I gestured at the 1st section, “then found this stuff in Red. Do you know about outside?”

  He shook his head immediately. “You can’t go outside. There’s more out there.”

  “Like what? Aliens?” I asked sardonically.

  He looked at me with a forceful nod and serious expression. When he looked like that, he really looked like that guy. What was his name? Argh, I never paid much attention to him when Tom Hardy’s more dashing Eames was around.

  “Really tall, really big. See, we made it outside when the infected came in, but when we saw them – some of us came back in,” he explained. His face told me how awful that event was. Sheesh, he made me want to protect him. “They didn’t make it far. It was like they were waiting for us to come out. They were in the sky, on the ground – they sent in those infected like – to flush us out, or something.”

  I adjusted a loose strap on my vest, giving him a skeptic look. “If there are aliens outside, why don’t they come in and finish the job?”

  He shrugged. He was wearing a loose Henley with a big tear at the shoulder. Revealing a t-shirt underneath. I bet if he wasn’t wearing that T-shirt, he’d be thin. He looked like he’d get cold faster than I would if he went outside. I noticed how bloody it was. Remembered how bad it stank when that woman went psycho on the other one. I handed him the flashlight, then wiggled my arms underneath my vest and Halo shirt. He kept talking, shining the light randomly at the floor, not even paying attention to what I was doing.

  “I don’t know if they could fit. They were really, really big. Thick. Like…like the Maxx,” he said suddenly, and I was jolted at the 90’s reference. I stilled with the shirt pulled mostly off my head, stunned that someone like him could namedrop a character so classic. He gave a funny snort, waving the flashlight around. “Like you’d know what that is, probably beyond your time, but – “

  “I know who that is,” I said – well, snapped. I held out the shirt, and he realized what I was doing.

  “Oh, no, that’s okay, I mean - !”

  “Just take the shirt, I’m sure yours smells disgusting,” I added. “I have another one.”

  He noticed this, and then took it with a muttered ‘thanks’. I took the flashlight back, and he changed quickly. I saw freckled ribs and sunken stomach when his dark green tee caught to his Henley, and wanted to mutter ‘ew’ aloud. But I didn’t because I was too tired to be out loud judgmental.

  “So, uh…this Jeff person?” I asked, once he pushed his boring brown hair back into place. The more time we spent whispering harshly to each other, the more I started to realize that he was definitely a comrade.

  He shook his head. I noticed that his name badge, reading his name as Harley Troy. Dashingly plain and boring, fitting for a scrawny guy with boring brown eyes and wavy brown hair. I remembered the times he nearly collided his picking cart with mine, and how rude he was with never saying ‘sorry’ or ‘excuse me’.

  I noticed he was looking for my name badge – I must’ve lost mine. I didn’t bother giving my name unless he asked.

 
“Not good news. Yeah, he and the trash guys helped knocked some of the infected down, but then…he’s always been this, like, power hungry guy. He….” Harley trailed off, squinting at me, like he didn’t believe me. “You didn’t run into them?”

  “No. I was hiding. I didn’t know what was going on.”

  He was quiet for a few moments, then continued on with, “He separated people into groups. Like…old people and young people. Fat, skinny – he, uh…he made the...”

  I stared at him for a few moments. Wondered about this Jeff guy getting all ‘power hungry’ in the midst of carnage and chaos.

  “Well, basically, he took the guys that listened to him and the younger girls. Left the others to die. When they did, he and the guys killed them. He had a gun in his car that he got before – like, the aliens could catch him.”

  I stared at him for a few moments, unsure of how to process that. It sounded so ridiculous. Everyone knew, in moments of alien invasion and zombie hordes that you stuck together. You don’t purposefully do stuff like that.

  “Huh,” was all I said. I looked at him and wondered why he wasn’t part of any group.

  He wiped his hands on his pants. I figured he hid, like me. Normal human reaction for wimps. That part I understood, so I didn’t judge him on that. I wondered where he hid.

  “So, what were you planning on doing?” I asked curiously. I cupped the light with one hand and wondered if Jeff and his group was going to be another obstacle in my plans to get to Reno.

  “Wait it out,” he replied, scrunching his eyebrows. “Then go out. I unlocked one of the doors – “

  “They have them all locked?” I asked. It made sense, now, for the things on the outside. But I didn’t want to be in here for very long. I needed to get to my parents.

  “Most. But I unlocked one of the doors in Orange,” he said, and I looked in that direction. It was spread along the far wall beyond this section, and was a straight shot from us. It opened towards the Walmart Superstore across the street. Perfect. I needed to find my keys.

  “Do you think it’s safe to go, now?” I then asked.

  He shrugged. Jammed his hands into his jeans pocket. I wondered about the fitting amount of time to wait out the aliens patrolling the grounds outside. They had to get tired of the place soon. They have bigger places to conquer. Like L.A. New York. Not stupid, butt-friendly Fernley.

  “Where are you from?” he then asked. I noticed he hesitated on adding something to that, watching his face shift to an uncomfortable scowl at the floor. Maybe he thought I wanted to stay with him, or something. I didn’t want to – he didn’t look manly enough to protect me. So I hoped he didn’t try to suggest we continue on together.

  “Reno,” I replied cautiously. “I need to get to Reno. I’m trying to find my car keys. I dropped them when all this started.”

  “I’ll help. Cold Springs,” he then added, gesturing at himself. I scrunched my own face. Before I could comment, he said with a light chuckle, “I know, I know. I live with roommates. Gay ones. I mean, I’m not gay, but they are. Serious couple. Domestic partnership, or something. I don’t know. It was a Craig’s List find. So…you?”

  After that unneeded explanation, I said, “I live with my parents.”

  He looked relieved for some reason. “I thought so. You’re – you looked pretty attached to them.”

  I didn’t really think into that statement because I was distracted by the thought that if we were going to stick into this building situation together, he needed to be armed, too. Our survival while searching for my keys couldn’t depend entirely on me – I mean, I’m pretty useless without an X-Box controller in one manicured hand.

  I unhooked my Fubar and handed it to him. An expression of disapproval made itself known on my features when he rejected it with a shake of his boring head. He instead reached out toward the safety rail and pulled to him a fire ax – the blade was wet with blood and gore, and he gave a smile as he handled the weapon with some confidence. The way he swished it around to dislodge some of the thicker substance on the blade made me reconsider his strength – for a guy with stringy arms, he did have some muscle to him.

  “I got this. Worked good so far,” he said, examining the blade.

  I thought I felt reassurance in his manly abilities rush through me, but it might’ve been the orange juice I drank earlier, replenishing what nutrients I’d lost.

  Chapter Three

  I sat in the darkness while Harley used my flashlight to go look for his own supplies on this level. I felt slightly better knowing I wasn’t alone, even if it was just Harley Troy. I guess I shouldn’t knock on him too badly – he might be my only ride back to Reno if I couldn’t find my damn keys.

  I’d asked him to keep a lookout for them – a car and house key with an anime character keychain – but I guess he hadn’t found them yet. I couldn’t help but give a start at the rustling sounds that happened every so often throughout the warehouse. I didn’t see any lights anywhere, no other survivors making themselves known. It wasn’t those things, either, because they hadn’t gotten all snarly and rabid – I gave a start, feeling inspired. I found my name for them – the Rabid. They were all frothy and dangerous, and they sounded all like how I guess animals on rabies would, so the name made sense.

  Harley dropped something, and it made my entire body jerk. I was seated against some totes near the conveyor, where I faced an equipment elevator. If somebody rushed at me, I could run comfortably in either direction without hitting anything; I could take the stairs down, I could run down that aisle – hoping that there were no abandoned carts in my path. Once I settled myself back into my seat, exhaling heavily, I continued to think about my parents.

  Harley came back, holding an armful of things. He set his things down next to me, handing me my flashlight. I illuminated his actions as he dumped it all into the backpack, with no real organization. He was going to regret that later, if he found himself in a situation where he needed something real quick and he couldn’t find it because he was messy. Maybe his home looked the same way.

  “Thanks for this,” he then said, indicating the backpack.

  He had found some gummy bears, and opened the bag to dig out a handful and stuff them into his mouth. Then offered some to me, but I didn’t feel like eating at the moment. He then sat down in a similar position as mine, and I used the flashlight to touch on some of the things that I knew was there. Overturned carts and spilled totes lay nearby. Blood stains on the conveyer and ripped clothing caught my attention next.

  It was silent between us for awhile. I didn’t know what to say, my mind overrun with all thoughts and possibilities, trying to convince myself to do something right. I didn’t know what he was thinking about, and I kind of didn’t care. In invasions like these, it was hard to make friends – who knew who was going to betray who, and leave who, and who gets killed in the next act? It was an all for one situation.

  I thought about those girls Jeff had gathered and wondered if I knew them. That situation didn’t make sense to me, because that sort of thing always happened weeks later, when the survivors realize that there was no hope and colonies or groups had to be established. I wondered if I should do something – tried to put myself in their position. I’d want someone to rescue me. I knew I couldn’t do it myself. I was incapable of such things. I did so many horrible things to survive thus far – what if I was able to do something good to overcome the bad, ensure my way into heaven? If my parents were already there, I needed to be on the same route.

  “Did you know Jeff?” I whispered, wincing at the volume of my own voice within the thick stillness.

  Harley ate some more gummies. Did a shrug and shake of his head thing. “Acquaintances. I knew this guy that was friends with him, and – well, that’s how I know him. I didn’t hang out with him or anything.”

  I examined my nails before saying slowly, “Should we do something? About it?”

  He had an awful habit of shrugging, because he
did it again. “I wouldn’t, to be honest.”

  I’d expected more of a cheesy answer, an enthusiastic jump to be hero or something. Not the answer he gave, so I looked at him. “Why?” I asked, without thinking.

  “I just…in a situation like this? I mean, I wasn’t taught to – like, I don’t know too many people here, I’m not attached to them. It’s like…I’m already surviving a weird situation here. Why try to save others when you’re too busy trying to survive yourself?” he stammered, looking really uncomfortable and not making eye contact.

  I guess he made sense. I mean, yeah, no judgment here, but…I guess I was just too used to the movies where people went back to help others. Not abandon them. I didn’t know those women. Plus, Harley didn’t look the hero type. Definitely the hide-and-survive type.

  “You were ‘taught’?” I then questioned. “Like, someone taught you to survive zombie apocalypses?”

  Harley was sweating over my questions, shifting around uneasily. Made a face while he answered. “My dad. I….he always said, ‘You over them’. To always choose – well, it just makes sense. Neither of us are heroes. Why – why risk our lives for people we don’t know? I just…”