Desire to Survive

“Another hot and sticky day in the lovely state of Georgia.” I mumbled half to myself as I slid into the comfortable booth across from Eddie. I fanned my face while I tried to hide the sweat spots under my arms.

“Ben, can’t you turn on the air conditioner?” Eddie called behind him, putting down the deck of cards he had been playing with. Ben didn’t take his eyes off the road.

“Nope! Wastes gas.” He called out with a light-hearted smile and took his hands off the steering wheel to fix his dark brown hair. I rolled my eyes.

“God forbid we waste a little gas to prevent heat stroke.” I grumbled, eyeing the deck of cards. Making a grab for them, I wondered just how hot it was inside this rolling sauna.

“I slept like crap,” Eddie yawned and stretched, his putrid odor making me want to gag. Couldn’t blame him though, we all smelled bad. Running water was a thing of the past, therefore frequent showers were unheard of. Sponge baths were pretty much the only thing we got.

“Why?” I grunted, shuffling the deck of cards. They smelled like parchment and cigarette smoke.

“Laying on the floor of this thing. Jesus, I miss my bed like you would not believe.” Eddie groaned.

“We all miss our beds, Ed.” I sighed.

“Not Sammy and Joshua!” Eddie retorted as I passed he and myself seven cards each. “Those two love birds get one of the beds, and I wouldn’t want to sleep in it after what they’ve done in it.”

“This is an RV, Ed. Not a mansion on wheels. This place isn’t meant for eleven people. I sleep on the floor too, I think it’s pretty comfy. Do you have any queens?” I said, trying to change the subject.

“Here,” He mumbled, tossing me his queen of hearts. “A bed isn’t all I miss. I miss my computer, my cell phone, video games. Have any eights?”

“Yeah, those were swell.” I said. I could predict what he was going to say next. Missing the past was all he ever moaned about. “Go fish.”

“Fresh food… Meat. Greasy hamburgers.” He told me. My stomach mumbled. I could agree with that. Eddie played with his cards with his chubby fingers.

“We shouldn’t talk about things we miss, Ed. It’ll drive us mad. Got a three?”

“Right. And go fish.” He sighed.

“Eddie! What the hell?” Cried Elizabeth, who suddenly walked into the room from the narrow hallway. “Could you please pick up your dirty underwear from the bathroom?” She walked up to the table and tossed the tighty whiteys at Ed. He caught them, his chubby cheeks turning a blotted pink color. I had to stifle my laugh.

“Screw you, Liz.” Eddie stammered after a moment of stunned silence.

“We have eleven people in this RV. Pick up your crap, and I won’t embarrass you in front of your special lady friend again.” She sneered and strutted off. Ed’s cheeks deepened a few shades and he glanced sideways at me.

Ew.

“Well, would you look at that, I guess I lose.” I said, putting down the rest of my cards. I wanted to get out of there quickly. I was relieved to hear no protest as I got up and went into Kaden’s bedroom. Him being the oldest in our group, we believed he deserved the right to one of the two tiny bedrooms.

“Hey, bad time?” I asked as I entered the room after a single knock. Kaden was reading an old magazine and Jive was curled up beside his legs. Kaden looked up from the magazine and smiled.

“Oh hey kid. No it’s not a bad time. What’s up?”

“I thought I’d thank you again for helping me back at my old house.” I said, leaning against the wall. He put down the magazine and sat up, scratching Jive behind the ears.

“Not a problem. You did great. You know I’m always there to protect you guys, Jive and I.”

I smiled, looking at the German Sheppard, whose big brown eyes found mine and then closed, enjoying his master’s scratching.

“Where’d you get him?” I asked, sliding down to sit on the floor.

“Fire station back at home. Jive was a police dog for a while, but it didn’t really suit him so he was taught search and rescue. He was my partner for a few years, and when the apocalypse began, I knew nobody would try to save him. Had to kill half my undead coworkers to get to him.” Kaden laughed as he petted his dog.

“He’s a good boy.” I smiled.

Just then, the RV began to slow its speed. At first, it didn’t bother me much; maybe we had to slow to drive around an abandoned car on the highway. But when the entire room began to sway and shake, I got worried. Jive sat up, ears cocked.

“What the -?” Kaden said and got up from his bed. I stood from my position, trying not to fall from the large bumps the RV went over.

“Are we running over walkers or something?” I asked, laughing nervously. The RV came to a full stop and Sammy came into the room, a huge smile on her face.

“Grab your stuff kids, were camping outside. Ben just pulled the RV off the road.” She smiled, clapping her hands. Kaden and I looked at each other, confused for only a second, and shrugged.

The site was absolutely beautiful. There was a small lake right next to where we set up the fire, with trees of all sizes scattered sparsely. The ground was flat, with some tall grass and shrubs here and there. Visibility was decent, and Ben said the nearest town was fifty miles away, so we all left our weapons and gear inside the car.

We all swam in the lake, happy to at least soak our bodies. We ate canned tuna and beans, which was heated in a pan over our fire.

At night, we got caught up in our pasts, telling stories of how our families died, how we survived, and what we did before this all happened. All of their stories were interesting.

Ben had worked room service for some hotel, which wasn’t too great, but when he told us the first thing he did when the disease was announced was steal the RV, I practically choked on my food.

“People were in a panic in my city. Most of the idiots stole TV’s and game consoles and what have you. I knew we wouldn’t be needing those. I stole canned food and an RV.” He announced proudly.

Hannah and Elizabeth were only sixteen, so the identical twins didn’t do much but go to high school before this. Despite that, they cried over their lost friends. TJ and Adam were father and son. They always stuck together and told us that Adam’s mother died of cancer a month before the apocalypse began.

Sammy worked on a farm, Joshua was a doctor, and Eddie was unemployed. We were all talking about the ugliest walkers we’d ever seen when Jive’s ears suddenly cocked. He had been quietly lying on the floor next to Kaden’s feet until now. Kaden immediately looked at the dog, who slowly stood, looking into the darkness. Jive’s hair stood on end. By now, everyone had fallen quiet and was looking out into the darkness.

“Walkers. Get to the RV.” Kaden whispered sharply. “Jive, sit.” He commanded his dog and he obeyed.

“I don’t know if you can see what’s going on guys,” Ben squeaked quietly, hiding behind his chair. “But they are between us and the RV.”

“How many are there?” I asked, kneeling behind my own chair.

“Looks like six. I don’t think they’ve seen us yet. But they see the fire.” Kaden whispered. “Let’s all hide and see if they pass.”

We all did so, quietly trotting behind bushes, rocks, and tree trunks. I hid behind a large boulder with Kaden, Jive, and Eddie. If the walkers did see us, they showed no sign of it. The man told his dog to stay quiet, and the animal didn’t growl once.

Eddie lay beside me, hyperventilating. His eyes were huge and he was beginning to sweat profusely. “Guys,” He whispered. “I – I think I’m gonna be sick.”

“Keep your voice down Eddie. If they get any closer they will be able to smell us.” I mumbled, peeking out from behind the rock. Ed whimpered. The walkers were shuffling around the fire pit, grunting and hissing. They could smell where we had been, but the smoke from the wood fire most likely masked our scents now.

“But – But I can’t die. They are going to kill me!” Eddie whispered, terrified. Tears streamed down his face.

“Keep calm buddy, we’ll be fine. I think I see Ben sneaking to the RV.” Kaden told us calmly. Jive was stone still, watching the walkers.

“We left our weapons. We can’t fight back! We will die!” Eddie cried, sobbing. I put my hand over his mouth; it was the only way to shut him up. He was shaking.

“Just wait a few more minutes kid, they’re losing interest.” Kaden whispered.

Eddie didn’t listen. He had lost his nerve. He started to scream, catching the walker’s attention. I held my breath and watched as they chubby kid stood and ran for his life, blubbering wildly. The six walkers that surrounded our camp hissed and began chasing him.

“Shit, we need to go now!” Kaden yelled and picked himself up. The other hiding groups watched in horror. “Jive, stay by me boy!” He commanded as he ran for the RV. Two of the walkers stopped chasing Ed and went after Kaden as he bolted to the RV window. “BEN! Give me something to hit them with! I know you’re in there!” Kaden screamed, hitting the window.

Ben slid open the thin glass and handed Kaden an axe just as the first walker reached him. “Jive, get at him!” Kaden bellowed as he hacked the first. Jive barked savagely and jumped at the second walker, knocking him to the floor. He ripped out its throat as the thing tried to bite.

The rest of the gang left their hiding spots and ran towards the RV to grab their weapons. Ben held open the door for them. Kaden had just finished killing the first two and headed towards Ed at a full sprint.

Poor Ed had lost momentum. He slowed and sobbed louder than ever as the four remaining walkers caught up with him.

“NO!” Kaden bellowed. There was an ear-piercing scream from Ed as he fell to the floor, one walker taking a chunk from his neck. Even in the dark, we could see dark blood spewing from the wound. I felt sick.

Kaden got to the body, viciously hacking at the undead. Jive followed suit, knocking two walkers off their feet and ripping at their rotted flesh. When the deed was done, Kaden walked slowly back to the RV, a sad look in his eyes.

“Walkers are dead. But Eddie is too.”

We spent the rest of the night silently cleaning up what was left of camp and burying and burning the bodies of the corpses. By morning, we were all exhausted and devastated at the loss of a group member. We swore, from then on, we would always have our weapons ready and with us.

We continued our journey in mourning, none of us talking. We drank the last of our supply of coffee, hoping it would brighten our moods. It didn’t. It was mid afternoon when Ben finally broke the heavy silence.

“Oh my god, what is that?” He gasped, screeching the RV to a stop.