You're Hoping For A Taste

“Have you been bitten?”

I shake my head. I'm still trying to regulate my breathing but the adrenaline coursing in my veins is making that difficult. My lungs feel like they're about to burst.

“Are you sure?”

I nod. “I'm sure,” I manage to gasp out. “Thank you.” My saviour is a man. Short dark hair, muscular. That's all I can make out in the dim light. He stands a few feet away, his gun trained on me.

“Alexa?” Kellin is still calling for me. He's closer now. I can hear his feet pounding the floor.

“I'm alright, Kellin,” I call back, pulling myself into a sitting position. The Walker lies next to me and I want to move away, but I can't while the man has his gun aimed at me. The smell of rotting flesh is making me feel sick again.

“Kellin?” the man echoes. His voice is soft, confused.

I watch him carefully. I don't know what to say back.

That's when Kellin comes skidding round the corner of the aisle. He hurriedly crouches down beside me, his hands on my shoulders, forcing me to look at him. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? What happened?”

“I'm fine, Kellin,” I reply. Kellin hasn't noticed the man yet so I nod towards him. Kellin's head whips round. He's still panting from exertion and fear.

An expression of confusion takes hold of Kellin's face. In truth I should be the one who's most confused right now. But then his face lights up like the electricity coming back on after a power cut. “Gabe?”

“Kellin?” the man replies, lowering his gun. “Shit, Kellin, we thought you were dead!”

Suddenly Kellin is rushing at the man and they're embracing in that odd way men hug, slapping each other's backs. “So did I!” Kellin exclaims. “What are you doing here?”

Gabe looks at him in astonishment. The warmth radiating from this reunion has me smiling too. This must be one of the friends Kellin was on about. “What am I doing here? More like what are you doing here! We haven't heard from you for months, what the hell happened?”

“I was coming to find you,” Kellin says, then he gestures to me, “Alexa's been helping me.”

Gabe looks from Kellin, to me, and back again. His smile falters a little. “Just the two of you?”

Kellin nods. He's no longer smiling. “Yeah.”

“Oh god, man, I'm so sorry,” Gabe says. He stands there looking a bit helpless.

Kellin waves his apology away. “Don't. Seriously, don't.”

I feel my stomach drop a little, like a rope slacking. It's partly because of Kellin's loss, and partly because at least he has friends he can turn to. All my family and friends are somewhere else, and I can't help but feel sorry for myself.

“So why are you here?” Kellin continues.

Gabe's not smiling any more either, and he rubs the back of his neck with his free hand. “We were on a supply run...”

“We?” Kellin prompts.

“Me and Jesse.”

“So where is he?” I don't know if Kellin is just oblivious to the sense of foreboding in Gabe's voice, or if he's choosing to ignore it.

“I had to leave him.”

“You what?” Kellin sounds a little angry and I don't like it.

“He told me to!” Gabe defends himself, holding his hands out. “There were too many Walkers and Jesse hurt his leg. I managed to get him inside this building to keep him safe and he told me to go and get the supplies we came for then come back for him later, but I don't know how I'm gonna do it. Medford is infested. I was lucky to get away from that building, I'll never get back in. I've got some medical supplies in my bag for Jesse but- but I don't know how...”

“Fuck!” Kellin spits the word out in anger, gripping his hair in frustration.

“There's three of us now though so it should be easier to get to him,” I say, trying to sound hopeful, and the two boys look a little startled, as though they had forgotten I was there.

Gabe's face stretches into a grin. “I can see why Kellin has been kept alive for so long now.”

I laugh, but it's a little hoarse after all my screaming. “Actually we only met a few days ago, and he's saved me more times than I've saved him.”

Kellin butts in, “Well I wouldn't even be here right now if you hadn't offered me a ride in the first place.”

I shrug. “True,” I reply, and we share a smile. “So how are we doing this then?”

“Let me show you where the building is first.” Gabe goes off and returns with a notebook and a pen. He draws us a crude map, outlining how far the building is from here and the rough layout of the streets around it. “We can only drive so far,” he explains. “It starts getting too infested with Walkers around... here, so we'll have to go on foot.”

“Is there any way we can get between buildings without being on the street?” Kellin asks.

Gabe shakes his head. “You could try jumping roofs but I wouldn't advise it. If you fall and break your legs you'll have about twenty Walkers on you in a matter of seconds and you won't be able to do anything about it.”

I've been thinking this whole time, an idea forming in my head, inflating like a balloon. “If your friend Jesse is injured then we'll need two people to go and get him; we'll get him out faster that way. Then one person to distract the Walkers.”

“I'll distract them.” Kellin immediately volunteers himself as I half expected him to. It's like he has some kind of death wish, putting everyone else before him.

“No,” I reply, and as soon as I say it Kellin frowns at me. I can tell he's about to protest so I continue, “You two will go and get Jesse because you're both stronger than me. Honestly, I'd be no help in that situation. I'll distract the Walkers.”

“I'm not letting you do that,” Kellin retorts forcefully. He's glaring at me as though he hopes his expression alone can change my mind. But for once I'm not going to let him take charge.

“It's fine, Kellin. I've outrun a horde before, I can do it again.”

There's silence. I can see the conflicting emotions on Kellin's face. His eyes are moving rapidly from side to side as he stares at the floor and he's biting his lip as always, trying to think things over.

“She's right, Kellin,” Gabe says, his voice quiet, reasoning. “Let her do it. We don't have a choice. This is our best chance of saving Jesse.”

It's silent for a little while longer until Kellin sighs irritably. “Fine, okay, whatever. Let's just do this.”

It's still eerily quiet outside, no Walkers around. They must all be concentrated in the centre of Medford, and that thought alone makes me nervous. We get in the car, Kellin and I in the front, Gabe in the back marvelling over all the guns.

“Shit, guys, how did you get all this stuff?” he exclaims, holding up a big firearm that if I tried to use would probably result in me blowing my own head off.

“We stole this car,” Kellin replies matter-of-factly as if it's nothing, but there's a small smile on his face.

“It's like you're in Grand Theft Auto or something,” Gabe says, picking up another gun.

“Put it down, Gabe,” Kellin orders as if he's Gabe's father.

I flinch as Gabe swings the gun around, pretending to shoot at something outside the car. “Yeah, put it down, you're making me nervous.”

Kellin pulls out of the car park, following the road deeper into Medford. The car goes along at a crawl. Gabe starts directing Kellin while I keep a look out for Walkers. I spot a few in the distance, ambling along a few streets away. Buildings get in the way, so I can't tell if they've noticed us and are following, but so far there isn't a trail of them behind us.

I spoke too soon.

Gabe cries out as a Walker collides with my window, pressing her face up against it as though she can bite her way through to me. She scrabbles at the car, raking blood and dirt down my window. Part of her jaw is missing, her tongue lolling out the side.

“Swerve to the left,” I tell Kellin.

He does as I say and the Walker stumbles as the car moves away from her. She rushes towards us, but before she can throw herself at my window again I swing the door open, knocking her back. She goes down, something crunching. As we drive off I watch her in my wing mirror, lying in the road, trying to get up but her newly twisted leg hindering her. She stays there, floundering like a turtle on its back, snarling desperately.

“Alright, we'll need to walk from here,” Gabe says. Kellin stops the car. We're just two streets away from the building. I don't know how we're going to do this.

We get out the car, shutting the doors quietly. There are figures wandering on the road up ahead, so far oblivious to us. I feel light-headed I'm so frightened already. But there's no way out of this.

“So does everyone know what they're doing?” Kellin murmurs as we huddle together. Everyone's clutching a gun, another one in the waistband of their jeans, and I have my knife as well.

“You two stick close to the buildings, go round the edges while I run like a lunatic down the street, attracting all the Walkers,” I reply. “I circle round and meet you back at the car.”

Gabe chuckles a little, but the smile he offers me is fearful on my behalf. “Pretty much,” he replies.

Kellin looks at me, his eyes slightly too wide. “Are you sure you're okay with this?” he asks. “I'll swap with you if you want, it's fine, I don't mind. You don't have to do this.”

“Honestly, I'll be fine,” I say. I really do hope so.

“Group hug then,” Gabe says, drawing Kellin and I in. I really don't want to let go of them, but it's time. “Okay, let's go.”

Gabe scurries across the street, pressing himself against the building. Kellin moves to follow, but suddenly he turns on his heel and reaches for me, pulling me to him. He hugs me fiercely, his grip tight. “Be careful,” he says, his voice strong but shaking a little.

“I will,” I say, and I can't stop the tears welling up involuntarily in my eyes. I hurriedly blink them away as Kellin releases me. “You be careful too.”

He smiles, but it's a little melancholy. “Don't worry about me.” Then he's going after Gabe, the two of them creeping along the edge of the street, leaving me all alone in the middle of the road. Gabe nods at me. Here we go.

I start running, and so do the Walkers.