DS Chapter 6

“Me too.”

What the heck? Just because the world’s ending, does that mean he can shamelessly lie like that? How can he mock someone who just confessed to liking him?

“What are you even saying?”

“I said, I liked you too.”

“You kick a ball in someone’s face when you like them? Thanks to you, I even broke my arm once.”

Memories of climbing a tree with him and breaking my arm surfaced. There was also that time he kicked a ball right at my face, making me spurt a nosebleed like a fountain. It’s still one of the most shocking moments of my life.

“That was an accident. You ignored me after that anyway. Every time you saw me, you scowled. If we ran into each other on the street, you wouldn’t even say hi, just ran away. When I came to your house… you were always ‘asleep.’”

He remembers those old days in quite a bit of detail.

I remembered his shocked expression when I had that nosebleed. His wide eyes and slack-jawed mouth. Everything around me seemed to move in slow motion as I fell backward. I could see the blue sky, then stars.

I’d avoided him afterward out of embarrassment, ashamed of showing such an ugly side. Every time Logan came over, I had my mom tell him I was sleeping.

I was a shy and timid kid back then, so I couldn’t help it.

“Well, it’s all in the past.”

I shrugged lightly. First loves aren’t meant to work out, anyway.

He didn’t say anything as he turned the steering wheel the other way. The road was filled with debris, making driving difficult.

I kept my mouth shut, letting him focus on navigating the obstacles.

* * *

We finally arrived in Camden.

Why did we come here? The moment we entered the city, I regretted it, my face turning pale.

Kiyaaak!

Kyaaaah!

Grrraaahhh!

Horrifying screams echoed throughout the city. Zombies were roaming the chaotic streets like outlaws.

Some of them still looked relatively intact, but many had half-eaten faces or twisted, broken limbs.

Those who were bitten by just one or two zombies looked okay, but the ones who had been devoured by multiple zombies were in terrible condition. They looked pitiful.

Seeing the state of the city made me realize there was no hope left. The fact that zombies still ruled the streets meant that nothing had been resolved.

The survivors were likely holed up in buildings, waiting for rescue.

We turned off the car engine and waited for the zombies to pass. Every time the car made a sound, the zombies, who had been aimlessly wandering, would all turn their attention toward it.

I whispered to Logan in a hushed voice.

“They seem to react to sound.”

“And their eyesight doesn’t seem to be too good.”

“That’s a small relief.”

But driving the car might still be too dangerous. On the other hand, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about the idea of walking into a zombie-infested city on foot either.

So, we decided to stay in the car for now. We crept toward the downtown area, only moving when there were no zombies in sight, like a turtle crawling at a snail’s pace.

“Oh? That’s my boss.”

One of the zombies wandering around near the ice cream shop looked familiar. It seemed like my boss had been attacked while working, as he was still wearing his store apron while shuffling around as a zombie.

It didn’t feel great seeing someone I knew turned into a zombie, even if I hadn’t liked him much in life.

“Well, at least he looks… somewhat intact.”

At least he hadn’t been completely devoured by zombies.

“Oh, wait… nope. His butt’s been chewed off.”

The moment my zombie boss turned around, the flesh on his back was torn and his butt was in tatters. I couldn’t help but grimace.

“Shh, be quiet.”

Logan pressed a finger to his lips. A zombie was walking right past our car.

Following his lead, I ducked down and stayed silent. If they spotted us, they’d scream and rush us, and soon we’d be surrounded by more zombies.

One of the zombies pressed its face up against the window, as if trying to peer inside. We held our breath, not daring to move. All we could do was hope the tinted windows kept us hidden.

Sweat trickled down my neck in the tense silence.

What felt like an hour passed in the span of a minute, and the zombie, with its poor eyesight, eventually turned away. When it had gone a safe distance, both Logan and I exhaled the breaths we’d been holding.

That was close. I was so tense that my fingers were tingling.

Logan gripped the steering wheel as if making a decision.

“We can’t keep moving at this pace. It’ll never end.”

“Then what’s your plan?”

He pointed to a nearby restaurant with a red sign. It had glass windows, which meant we could crash the car straight into it.

“But if we do that, the noise will draw zombies.”

It was obvious we’d be surrounded by zombies before we even got a chance to grab any food.

“We’ll climb up to the roof and jump to the next building. The zombies will swarm this area, so the other parts of town should clear out.”

“…”

“Just a little further and we’ll reach our garage. There’s a dump truck there being repaired. That thing can push through the blocked roads and any zombies in our way.”

He said it like it was nothing, but my face was growing paler by the second. The gap between the buildings wasn’t exactly small.

Part of me wanted to suggest going straight to the garage, but the abandoned cars blocking the road made that impossible. We’d have to walk from here anyway.

“I’m not a parkour expert, you know…”

Wasn’t this a plan only someone as athletic as Logan could pull off? I was certain I’d fall to my death trying to jump to the next building.

“Can’t do it? You can’t make that jump?”

He gave me a puzzled look. I glanced up at him with a deadpan expression.

“Please, recall my athletic abilities.”

“Hmm…”

He made a thoughtful noise, rubbing his chin. From the way his brows furrowed, it seemed like he remembered just how terrible I was at sports.

“Alright, you stay on the roof here. I’ll go get the truck.”

He wouldn’t just leave me behind, right? Gripping my uneasy feelings, I nodded reluctantly.

“And how am I supposed to get down?”

“Jump onto the dump truck. I’ll lay a mattress down for you.”

My vision blurred just thinking about it. But if we wanted to get food and escape safely, I had no choice.

With a dump truck, we’d be able to break through crowds of zombies and the blocked roads, and maybe, just maybe, we could find my parents hiding somewhere.

“I’ll give it a try.”

‘I can do this. No, I ‘have’ to do this, even if I can’t.’

After resolving myself, I nodded.

“We’re going.”

“Mhm.”

Before I could even fully prepare, Logan floored the accelerator. We crashed straight through the restaurant’s glass window, shattering it and skidding into the building.

Unfortunately, there were zombies wandering inside the restaurant as well.

Beyond the partition, I could see the kitchen.

“Run!”

At his shout, I bolted out of the car and dashed toward the kitchen. Behind me, I could hear the eerie howls of the zombies.

It sounded like every zombie in the area was rushing toward the restaurant, their footsteps and wails growing louder.

Logan, wielding a metal pipe, slammed it down on the head of a zombie blocking the kitchen door. The zombie’s skull caved in, and it dropped instantly.

Taking advantage of the moment, I grabbed the kitchen door’s handle and pulled it open. Logan, meanwhile, hurled a table into a zombie charging at him from the side, sending it flying back.

That move was exactly what you’d expect from a football forward. The weak zombies crumbled like straw under Logan’s attacks.

I quickly twisted my body as I opened the kitchen door. Who knew if something might jump out from inside? Fortunately, the kitchen pantry was zombie-free.

“Get in! It’s clear!” I called.

Logan followed me into the kitchen. Zombies were already clawing at the door, trying to break in before Logan could slam it shut.

Bam!

Logan shoved the table against the door, forcing the zombies back and securing the entrance.

“Whew…”

If it had been anyone else, we would’ve been zombie food by now. Only someone like Logan could have managed that feat.

“So, how do we get out?”

“Maybe we could break through the vent and climb up?”

“With your size? Good luck.”

Logan would definitely get stuck trying to squeeze his broad shoulders through the vent.

The groaning and snarling of zombies at the door told us they were still there, and likely gathering in numbers. There was no other choice.

“…Let’s go for the stairs.”

A brief thought crossed my mind—’we might die here’—but I didn’t voice it aloud.

Still, all our effort had been worth it.

The kitchen fridge was stocked with food. Despite the power being out for who knew how long, the food hadn’t spoiled.

Steaks, potatoes, cheese, rye bread, beer, wine, sodas, pasta, oil, tomato sauce, pepperoncini, and more. We took everything we could carry, like we were raiding the whole pantry.

Well, we left the fish. It smelled bad and would likely spoil quickly. Plus, I wasn’t a fan of seafood.

We needed to haul all the food up to the rooftop.