Our Undead

by Theo Vigo

  Billy: It is…

  Margaret: … What's so important in California?

  Billy: I don't know… I've just always wanted to go there. I mean, I've been there a few times with my foster parents on business, but it was always touch and go. They refused to stay there because they said it had nothing to offer me. It was just a place full of rats, sharks and a bunch of 'crazies', they'd say. I'm not an actor, and I never wanted to be one, but I've always been crazy… or at least… to others I'm crazy. What better place for me to be than Hollywood? I'm not going to be held back anymore.

  Margaret: I think I understand, and… I'm with you.

  Billy: You don't have to come, but I appreciate that.

  Margaret: No, I'm serious. There's no way I'm staying here by myself, anyway… But uhmm, … you think we could at least stay here for, I don't know, a few days or so? Just to rest a bit, you know? My ankle and stuff? It's crazy out there for a lady. (winks)

  Billy: Mmmm, I guess so. It would be good for your ankle. Plus,.. what's the rush, right?

  Margaret: Exactly! Let us take advantage of this gift that the universe chose to so generously bestow upon us. Let us not slap it in its face and say, "No!" We'll stay and eat like a king and queen, and sleep thusly!!… Uh, but just for the next few days.

  Billy: How can I decline when you make it sound so satisfying… but what about Abe? There's no flesh here.

  Margaret: Hmmm… maybe there is.

  In another part of the store, the trio stands in front of the frozen food section filled with packaged meat and fish.

  Margaret: It's a freekin' zombie buffet!!

  Billy: (holding his nose) You think this stuff is still fresh?

  Margaret: Okay, so it smells pretty rancid, but does it matter?

  Margaret puts on a pair of rubber dish gloves and rips an 8oz steak out of one of the packages.

  Margaret: This isn't much, but let's see what you think.

  She offers the small red piece of raw meat to Abe. It takes a few seconds of persuading, but Abe eventually takes it, puts it in his mouth and begins to chew.

  Margaret: Ah-ha, see? It's fine. See, Billy? He likes it.

  Billy: Mmm, I wouldn't go as far to say he likes it, but he definitely doesn't seem to have a problem with it. I guess it'll do.

  Margaret: Hey, you're free to sacrifice yourself to him, you know, if human flesh is really what he needs and all.

  Billy: Mm, I think I'll pass.

  Margaret: Yea, I thought so. Look, I'm sorry Abe, but this is the best we can do. The good thing is that you have all that you need, okay?v

  Abe stares at her and eats his uncooked piece of steak. It is hard for him to deny the feeling inside that tells him this is wrong. This raw meat is nothing compared to the sweet taste of a human flesh and brain. The smell haunts him still. How could it not, following these two young bodies around? To make it worse, because of their age, their scent is that much stronger and that much more appetizing, but there is another something in him that keeps him in check. Something in him keeps him from ripping these kids apart. He doesn't understand it, any of it, but he obeys it. He looks at Margaret's face smiling ear to ear, and has no intention of feasting upon it. For now, the rotting sirloins will do just fine.

  LEFT 4 DEAD

  So the crew of three settle down for the next few days in their cornucopia of produce, their sweet distraction from the world outside. There is no lack of things to do. They even set up a small entertainment section in their living area, equipped with a sixty-inch flat screen television, DVD player and Xbox 360. Searching through the video games, Billy introduces Margaret to two of his most favorite video games of all time.

  Billy: "Right 4 Death 2", and… Oh, my God… I haven't even played this yet!

  He holds a copy of "Inhabitant Devil 6" up to Margaret's face, and she smirks awkwardly. She plays with him and enjoys herself for almost half a minute but ends up wondering to herself how he can play this stuff when he is now living in the same world the games are depicting.

  Billy: I don't know. Why did people ever play GTA when they could just step outside and hijack cars for real?

  Margaret has no idea what GTA is, so she excuses herself and goes exploring. She has her own fun with the clothes and makeup and returns to Billy, who is still sat in front of the television, in whole new attire from head to toe. Even her hair is cut a little short.

  Margaret: What d'you think? Much better, no?

  She wears a bandana around her head just like Billy, but hers is pink and white and partly covered by golden bangs dangling from each side of her head. On her torso she wears a simple tight fitting white tank top and her legs are covered in loose fitting camouflage cargos, just like Billy's except in black, white and grey.

  Billy: I don't know how well the pink headband will do for keeping you out of sight, but you look… pretty much like me.

  Margaret: (walking over to him) Good. That's what I was going for. I'm keeping the bandana, though. Uhh, may I make a suggestion?

  Billy: Sure, I guess. What is it?

  Margaret: Change your clothes and take a bath… like, a sink bath. Now that I smell good, you smell like garbage… and I think there's a little fish in there too.

  Billy: Uhh, okay... Let me just get past this next part.

  Margaret: Ugh, fine…

  After forty-five minutes of playing, Billy finally leaves to go clean himself up. Margaret waits in her beanbag chair, skimming through the current issue of US Magazine.

  Margaret: Yeesh, Selena… Why would you even think of wearing something like that?

  It doesn't take to long for Billy to return. When he does, Margaret tosses the outdated magazine aside and gives Billy her full attention.

  Billy: So? They had exactly what I needed.

  Billy stands before her, arms spread. He does a casual three-sixty spin so that she can take in the whole outfit, which is exactly the same as the one he had been wearing a half an hour before, only with fresh garments.

  Margaret: It's… perfect... And I can hardly smell you… You.. did use the soap I left by the sink, right?

  Billy: (taking a seat in his own bean chair) Yea, but the smell isn't just gonna disappear after the first wash.

  Margaret: Mine did.

  Billy: (picking up an Xbox360 controller) All of that scented lotion and perfume you're wearing helps, buuuut…

  Margaret: (gasps) Really? Are you serious?

  Billy nods and un-pauses his game so he can continue his ID6 adventure. Margaret takes a couple of mini whiffs of her underarm, and on closer inspection she understands what Billy means. She shrugs, leans back, and watches him play for the rest of the evening.

  They fill their days with play, finding those guns that shoot Styrofoam bullets and firing them on each other as if they are the things they are hiding from. They fire on Abe as well, flanking the oblivious rotting flesh bag who gets shot in the face multiple times. Yet remains his usual clueless self, chewing on a piece of raw meat while getting pelted in the head. They also test out the real guns from the hunting section. Margaret remembers the three 9mm bullets she has in her bag and she makes Billy load them up into their respective firearm.

  Margaret: (aiming into a wall of mattresses) So, I've never done this before. Any pointers?

  Billy: Mmm, I not fond of guns, myself. My foster dad took me to a range a couple of times. I just never really got into them. There's something about them that seems too easy. No skill required… sooo, yea… The only thing that might surprise you and that you should probably be aware of is the recoil. That, and breathe slowly. Fire on the exhale.

  They had both expected the noise, but what they didn't expect is the echoing effect the empty store would have on it. It is incredibly loud and scares the crap out of the both of them.

  Margret: Uhh, maybe you're right. Maybe we shouldn't use these after all.

  Billy: Fine by me. I hate these things anyway. Too easy. Too loud. Does this place have any swords? />
  Unfortunately for Billy, it doesn't. Next, they play floor hockey down one of the aisles, taking turns between attacker and goalie. Margaret attempts multiple times to perform the famous knuckle-puck, made famous by Steven Brill's D2: The Mighty Ducks movie; a unique slap-shot invented by a feature character named Russ Tyler. In the movie Russ would stand the puck up on it's side and whack the bejeezus out of it. The result would send the puck twirling at the goalie on it's horizontal axis while at the same time moving up and down, like a yo-yo on an invisible string. Margaret fails to get it right each time. She clumsily tries to set up another puck the way Russ does it in the movie, with his hockey stick but gets frustrated and gives up, using her hand as an alternative.

  Margaret: Dammit! I could never get this right!

  Billy: Try this. When you're winding up to take the shot, bring the stick more up and above your head, rather than bringing it behind you're back.

  Margaret: Like this?

  Billy: A little more vertical. Almost straight up and right behind your head… Good. Now, keep your eye on the puck. Hit it square, but give it a little lift. Clear your mind, and just relax.

  Margaret stares at the puck and begins clearing her mind. She isn't sure what that means exactly, but she gives all of her attention to the fluorescent orange puck standing on the floor in front of her. She remembers hearing something about how watching your breath is supposed to help you center yourself, so she tries this too, in an attempt to "just relax". It isn't long before she finds her thoughts wandering. The first thing that comes to mind, brings her back to the miserable alley where Roger the fat-man got her father infected.

  <><><>

  Everyone leaves the darkness of the alley and enters the building while Margaret holds the door open. Her face is cherry red and almost trembling in rage as she watches Roger slide his thick body past her, trying to get himself to safety, but it softens when her father enters holding his forearm. Gary is followed by the brave Australian man, who's name is Benjamin; Ben for short. She holds the door for them and closes it behind her, leaving the approaching zombies outside to bang hopelessly on its heavy metal.

  The door leads them to an emergency stairwell. Roger and the women are already sitting on the stairs, trying to catch their breath. The women make way for Margaret's father when they see that he is injured. Roger stays where he is until he realizes that there is no way both he and Gary can fit on the stairs. He begrudgingly moves up a few steps so that Gary can sit down.

  Mariam: Oh God, Gary! What happened!?

  Gary: I'm okay. I'm okay.

  Mariam: What happened?!

  Gary sits down on the stairs, and Mariam takes a spot on them beside her husband. The young girl named Lynn, who is around Margaret's age, stands with her mother, Karen. The two of them are locked in a hug, watching Mariam touch and caress her wounded husband's blond head. Margaret and Ben stand by the rumbling door, watching Gary in just as much shock as the others, excluding Roger. The handsome Aussie tries to explain.

  Ben: He was outside, and…

  Margaret: HE WAS OUTSIDE, AND THAT FAT FUCK PULLED HIM DOWN WHEN DAD WAS ONLY TRYING TO HELP HIM! HE DESERVES TO BE OUT THERE! HE DESERVES TO HAVE HIS ARM SCRATCHED BY ONE OF THOSE THINGS!

  Margaret charges toward Roger who is sitting a few steps above her father. Ben stops her before she can even get up one step. Everyone shoots concerned looks in Roger's direction.

  Roger: He reached out to help me, so I took his hand. I accidentally slipped and pulled him a little too hard. It's not my fault. He slipped on his own.

  Margaret: YOU PULLED HIM DOWN YOU FUCKING LIAR!!

  Gary: Margaret, watch your language! It's too late to worry about what may or may not have happened outside. We have to keep moving.

  Ben: We should probably get that graze patched up, don't ya think?

  Mariam: Yes!

  Gary: … (breathing heavily) Okay… Yea...

  Ben: All right. Well, lets take a look around. See what this place has to offer.

  Margaret pulls herself roughly out of the strong mediating arms of the Australian man and helps her mother help her father up to his feet. Then, the group makes their way up to the next floor, where Benjamin pokes his head in through the second floor emergency exit.

  Ben: It looks clear.

  He enters the second floor and the rest follow. This building they have entered is some sort of office building. The lights have already been turned off, and it looks like the emergency backup lights are already losing power. Most of them are off except those that flicker, sucking as much juice from the system as possible. The only steady light Is the red exit sign that tints the halls in an ominous glow. They all walk down one of the badly lit hallways to find the floor's elevator area. Ben tries to activate the lift, but no light comes on when he presses the button.

  Ben: I guess the stairs are our only way out.

  Margaret makes a mental note as the group follows Ben into the area of the office where the employees would have been sitting in their cubicles. The cowardly Roger follows very closely behind Ben. Lynn and her mother are behind him and Margaret walks with her mother and father on the tail end. Benjamin stops everyone at the entrance, and has to sort of shrug Roger off of his back because of how closely pressed up the man is to him.

  Ben: All of you stay here. I'll check this area out really quickly.

  He sees that Gary, his second in command, nods in acknowledgement, so he raises his baseball bat and jogs into the office, cautiously peaking inside of the cubicles and checking under desks for anything useful or dangerous.

  Back with the rest of the group, Margaret and Mariam try there best to tend to the last man in their lives. Gary has been using his shirt to stop the blood flow, and it seems to be working. The front bottom half of his shirt is soaked through with blood, but they finally get a clear view of the scratch on Gary's arm when he wipes it partially clean. It actually doesn't look as devastating as the initial blood flow had led them to believe.

  Mariam: Oh, God.

  Gary: See, it's not that bad. I'll be fine.

  Margaret: You were already fine. This never needed to happen.

  Margaret casts a scolding glance toward Roger, who sees it but turns away quickly, half in assholishness and half in shame. Lynn and her mother are still holding hands, both saying nothing. Lynn can't seem to take her eyes of off the tragedy that is inextinguishably unfolding before her. She knows this scenario, for she had lived it not long before. Her and Margaret catch eyes for a telling moment. It is at this point that they hear a tapping.

  Roger: It's the guy. He's telling us to come over.

  Gary: Okay, move.

  Inside the office space Ben pokes his head out from about ten cubicles down, waving them in. Travelling down the aisle to meet him, the group takes in their surrounding environment. It looks like the office has been safely evacuated for the most part. The place is a mess with scattered documents and flipped chairs all about, but no lifeless bodies left over. They meet Ben where he waits for them, in a messy looking one-man workstation of some past employee. He has an office chair set up and a roll of paper towel in his hand.

  Ben: Take a seat. This might help, although, its not very strong.

  Margaret and Mariam walk Gary into the seat, while Ben begins unrolling a long strand of paper towel. Gary looks clearly annoyed.

  Gary: Look, this place seems safe enough for now, right?… Uh.. Ben, is it?

  Ben: That's right, and yes, it seems okay for now.

  Gary: Good. You girls go take a seat and rest yourselves while Gary patches me up.

  Mariam: I'm not leaving your side.

  Gary: Mari, please… Ben and I have some things to discuss, like what we should do next.

  Roger: I'll tell ya what we should do next. We should get the hell out of here, that's what. Hurry it up would you!?

  Margaret: Shut up!

  Gary: Margaret!… Mariam, please. Take Margaret and go sit down with Lynn and Karen.
>
  Mariam complies with what her husband asks of her, and her and her daughter go sit down on the floor in the office aisle beside Lynn and her mom, Karen. All four of the women sit in a row, leaning their backs up against the wall created by the aisle's cubicles. Both pairs sit clutching each other, the mothers on the outside, placing Lynn and Margaret sitting beside one another on the inside.

  Margaret can hear her father and Benjamin talking, but she can't make out what they are saying. She can even hear that bastard, Roger, trying to put in his two cents. The sound of his voice irks her in the worst way now that she knows what a weakling he is, and she turns her head away from their muffled conversation to meet Lynn's eyes staring into hers. Their facial features have many similarities. Margaret almost feels like she's looking into a mirror. The two of them stare at each other in silence until Lynn finally chooses to break it.

  Lynn: I'm… sorry…

  Margaret: Sorry for what?

  Lynn: Your father… His scratch.