"..."
At the sight I saw, I couldn't help but be dumbfounded. In the bed, laying in an outstretched position, with a blanket covering her haphazardly, was a woman in her early twenties snoring away like not tomorrow. Seeing that familiar messy head of short, silver white hair peeking out from openings of the blanket, I instantly knew who she was.
It was my annoying neighbor, Eirka. Erika Pearson. She's a university student during the weekdays and a bartender/drunken mess on the weekends.
Don't tell me she's been asleep the whole time this was happening?
"I won't know unless she gets up...Hey, Erika, wake up."
Gently pulling on her foot that was hanging off the bed, I urged Erika to wake up.
"Ngh..zzz!"
Her response to this was to grunt slightly and turn over on her side. This caused some of the blankets to fall off her body and show me bits and pieces of her slim figure as she wore black lace underwear.
"..."
In this once in a lifetime moment, I did the only thing a young man like me could do...
*Snap*
Burn this image right into my head and store it into my brain vault. This unintentional erotic scene is something I couldn't pass up!
Giving her a silent 'thanks for the 1080p photo' in my head, I once again try to rouse Erika from her sleep, albeit a little more forcefully. And the response this time was.
"...B..ast..ard.."
A mumbled out curse. She was showing an angry expression as she said it too. Whoever it was she called a bastard, she hated them a lot.
"What in the world is this girl dreaming of?"
Wondering about the world inside her dreams, I walked to the other side of Erika's bed and vigorously nudged her shoulders. While doing so, I said a little loudly.
"Wake up. Wake up. Wake up."
After a few minutes of doing this...
"...ie.."
I finally got a reaction. She was slowly waking up.
"...Die…"
"Huh?"
With a face that shows that she's still half asleep, Erika looks my way with a fierce glare. Uh, what is happening here? Not knowing what was going on, I called out to Erika.
"H-hey Erik-"
"Die you cheating son of a b*tch!"
WHAM!
Before I could even finish my sentence, a fist propelled by untold anger connected with my nose, sending me to the ground.
"Ouch! What the f*ck wrong with you!"
Pinching my nose that was bleeding with tears in my eyes I yelled angrily. Even though I got involved in many fights before, resulting in me being able to take a punch or two, a fist to the nose still hurts.
F*ck!
"Eh? Desmond? What are you doing here?"
Finally broken out of her half sleep stupor, Erika, with an expression of shock, looked at me and asked. Feeling pissed off at her innocent-like behavior, I gave her a glare of deep anger.
"To see your ads of course!"
"H-huh? Why?"
"You don't realize what's going on outside?! What hell have you been doing this whole time?"
At my words, Erika pauses for a second as if remembering something. After remembering what it was, her pretty gold eyes suddenly surge with fury. Hoping out of bed in nothing but her sexy black underwear, she goes to her dresser and grabs a cigarette. While she does this, I scan her from head to toe.
She's not as toned as Sara but she has a curvaceous figure that's not too muscular nor too fat, a nice buxom, butt and a beautiful pair of long slender legs to go along with it. All in all, she's a beautiful and sexy young lady who'll turn the heads of many men.
Also…
*Snap!*
"You know Will, the guy I've been seeing lately?"
"Huh?...Ah, yeah."
Ever since you got together, you've been talking about him non stop.
"I found him cheating on me with some girl from the university! I caught them walking hand in hand on the street! When I confronted him about it, he said that we're not working out. As for why? He said that he didn't like my personality. What's wrong if I like drinking beer and sleeping until noon on my days off? What's wrong if I smoke? That no good bastard!"
Using the lighter on the dresser to light her cigarette, Erika takes a few puffs and continues.
"So, to heal my heart that's been broken, I decided to let myself loose and drink till I drop."
Well, that explains the strong smell of alcohol and the shattered glass. Sigh, and here I was worried about her. Getting up off the floor while wiping the blood off my nose, I said a little surprised.
"Are you gonna put on clothes?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that."
"How in the hell can you forget something like that? Well, anyways, thanks for the feast."
"Heh, too bad for you, you didn't see me on a regular night. I usually sleep in the nude."
"Tch, just my luck then."
"Hehe, give me a sec. I'm 'bout to change."
Giving a playful smirk, Erika went into her walk-in closet to find herself some clothes. From within, I saw a hand throw the bra and panties she was wearing out. Finding it inappropriate to stand here as she changed, I walked out the room and into the living room.
"I can't believe your able to drink and sleep when sh*t's hitting the fan outside. How drunk were you?"
I said to Erika upon seeing her come out of her room sporting a pair of brown calf high boots, a pair of black pants and a white shirt. It fit her quite well.
"I don't know. I took a bottle from work and just went crazy. I wanted you to join me but you didn't answer your door. Why? What happened? Also..."
Glancing at the pistol in my hand, Erika shows a concerned expression and continues.
"Why do you have a gun? And why does your coat have specks of blood on it?...Did you get into some trouble? Did you kill someone?"
...
Are you kidding me?
"You didn't hear all the commotion that was going on outside? You didn't hear no screams or anything?"
"No. No, I did not. Quit beating around the bush and tell me what's going on?"
"Fine. take a look for yourself."
Walking towards the living room window, I pulled back the curtains and showed her all the mayhem that was going on outside. Right across from us, we could see infected as they prowl through the streets. Some were crouched down eating people, some were walking around aimlessly and some were mashing their faces against the glass of vehicles they were trapped in. Far off into the distance, I saw police helicopters flying through the city with their spotlights on, buildings going up in smoke, and if I listened a bit more carefully, I could hear an occasional gunshot followed by screams of agony.
"...What the f*ck is going on?"
At such a sight, this was the only thing Erika could say. On her face, I saw emotions of panic, fear, and nervousness. I wholeheartedly understood how she felt. Just like her, this was the scene I woke up too.
Pure hell.
"I came over here to check up on you and see if you were alright. And thankfully you were. It seemed like drinking till your drop coincidently saved your life."
Closing the curtains, I looked at the now pale faced Erika and continued.
"So, what are you gonna do now?"
"What do you mean?"
"Do you have any relatives staying nearby? Do you have any place to go to? I'm pretty sure by now everyone is worried for their loved ones."
I know I am. However, I'm pretty sure she's in safe hands. With those guys around her, I don't think any infected can get near her.
"...I don't have any relatives around here. Because of certain issues, I decided to move here all by myself."
Putting on a bitter smile, Erika dejectedly said. Oop, it looks like I made her remember something sad. I never really seen her like this, she's usually a laid back and easy going individual who's always in a good mood.
"..."
"..."
An awkward silence hangs in between us two. I need to change the topic. So I told her this.
"Then how about you come over to my house?"
"Hm? Really?"
With a look of surprise, Erika asked. Nodding my head, I walked away from the curtains and replied.
"Absolutely. I originally came over here to check up on you and see if you had someplace to go too. After all, during a time like this, everyone's got something they consider precious. So I wasn't going to stop if you had someplace to be or somebody to meet. But seeing that you came to New Haven by yourself and that you're one of my many few friends, why not?"
I'm not that heartless just to leave her here and fend for herself.
"Thanks, you're a kind boy after all."
With a rare and gentle smile, Erika gives me her thanks. But hearing her call me 'boy', I couldn't help but retort.
"Tch, who you calling a boy? Just because you're four years older than me doesn't make you a woman. Hell, from what your ex was saying, you're barely…"
WHOOSH!
Before I could finish my sentence, a fist suddenly brushed against my cheek, causing me to stop and break out into a cold sweat.
Sooo, damn close! Just imagining the power behind that fist already got my nose throbbing again.
"What was that? Try repeating it again? I promise I won't hurt you, I swear."
Giving me a glare that was on the contrary to what she was saying, my instincts told me not to repeat what I said. Because if I did, a story of untold pain would lay ahead. So with a back full of sweat, I took one step back and said with the utmost sincerity.
"I'm sorry for saying that. Will has the eyes of a bat for not being able to see how splendid of a woman that you are."
"Mn, It's good that you understand. Now come on, let's head to your house."
Giving me a pat on the shoulder, Erika walked past me and said. However, in the next moment…
"Ah! It's broken! My favorite glencairn glass is broken! $200 gone!"
She looked at the broken glass on the floor in shock. There were even tears forming in her eyes.
"..."
Why was I even scared in the first place?