The sound of a television woke up Eden, stretching, she opened her eyes looking at the posters on the walls, it was daytime and the light was filtering through the blinds, With a last and felt yawn she jumped out of bed and half opened the door watching her partner play the console as she had done so many times before, a warm pinch ran through her from top to bottom. Leaning her hips against the door frame she stared at the screen with a silly smile on her lips, maybe that could work.
Everything was perfect until Alek turned to see her with a smile, where the day before a perfectly normal cheek had been, today she could see the teeth inside his mouth, the wound was not excessively large, but enough to impress her in a bad way. Realizing he covered the opening with his hand, he looked somewhat embarrassed.
- My dinner was more lively than I expected- he laughed getting up from the sofa- I brought you some food, most of it is canned, but it will feed you and you can at least eat a warm meal.
-What did you have for dinner? - She looked at him as he showed her everything he had brought
- Ed...
- What did you have for dinner, Alek?
Shaking his head, the young zombie took his girl by the hand, sitting her on the sofa next to him, she could notice the discomfort that her partner felt, that made her feel guilty since she had not thought about how he could feel with everything that, releasing one of his hands brushed gently around the wound
-Does it hurt? - He let his face rest against her hand allowing her to feel his teeth in the palm
- No, I still have sensations, but pain as such no- his voice barely a whisper- I guess I can't delay it any longer, huh?
-I'm afraid not- they both laughed at the absurdity of the situation
- You said that your mother had told you what happened, I suppose that I can tell you little else, people began to get infected, they were all taken to the hospital. At first it seemed like a very strong flu, but people began to become more and more violent and those who died definitely did not do it at all - she leaned against the endorsement - then the virus mutated, everything became a mix between Resident Evil and L4D, I guess that's where I come in- he rotated his head looking at her- I held on as long as possible, waiting for news from you, but on one of the trips to get food I was ambushed, I tried to defend myself but they threw me to the ground and started eating me... - he placed his hand on the girl's bare thigh, noticing its heat- At the last moment I managed to burst the head of the one who was busy eating me. I do not know if it was the smell of the zombie corpse or that I had already started my transformation but the rest was moving away from me leaving me there lying on the ground bleeding out
-God...
-The last thing I thought about before I fainted was you- he smiled sadly- I was afraid that you would come back and they would attack you, I was afraid I would never see you again, I thought I was going to die, but no, hours later I woke up still lying on the ground, It had rained over me. When I got up I could feel how all the water was coming out of me- he put a hand to her chest- and well, the rest I think you can imagine
-And the cheek?
- Very often policemen and professionals keep appearing to try to kill us and, or, take samples of the virus in its different types of mutation, in addition to people who come here thinking that it will be fun and they will be able to record cool videos on their networks, I am not proud, but we have to feed - he looked away- on the other hand, sometimes they decide to release prisoners around the cities to keep us calm and study our behavior, it could be said that yesterday my dinner shot me, luckily it only blew a little off my cheek
- Seriously, you make it sound so normal- he grabbed her hand
- You still fear me
- I wish not to, I really do try, but imagining you eating a person
- I would never try to eat you if that is what you fear- he put an arm behind her head, approaching her ear- at least not in that sense, love
- Aleksander!
Eden went to hit him on the chest but her hand went deeper than expected into his body. Of course she would not stop being surprised, lifting his shirt she discovered the wound he had spoken about, just below his chest just where the upper part of her ribs, a large open and torn wound showed his interior.
- Do you like what you see? - He hold her hand lowering the shirt- You know that heart belongs to you, right?
Of course her boyfriend could be romantic with the weirdest things. Leaving him on the sofa, she went to the kitchen to prepare something she could eat, making expert use of the microwave, heated water and prepared some very warm instant noodles and some bread that was a few days away from expiring.
The afternoon passed even calmer, he played while she talked about her adventures on Mother Russia. Soon evening came and after dinner a can of beans Eden went straight to bed.
The days passed in succession, with slight changes, Alek getting closer and closer to her, sleeping next to her, or at least pretending it, kissing her head and even hugging her from behind while she cooked. Things seemed to be getting better and better, but deep down inside she knew that she couldn't stay there forever and she dreaded the moment when she would have to talk to him about it, parting again would hurt like hell. Maybe she shouldn't have gone.
It had been almost two weeks since her arrival, the food was running out and having to be locked up was starting to take its toll, the whole house was clean, the books and games no longer managed to distract her, she wanted to go outside, but she knew that if she did doing so would she will put herself in danger. If she went out during the day the normal infected would attack her, if she went out at night she had to add the possibility of running into something worse.
- Alek, we have to talk- the young man just left the room putting on a clean shirt
- Something happens? Have I done something? - He sat next to her on the sofa
- I... - She did not know how to say it, although she knew it would be equally painful however she said it- I, I can not stay here anymore
-What do you mean?
- You know perfectly, Alek, the food is running out ...
- I can bring more
- I'm suffocating in this house ...
- I could go out with you for a walk
- Aleksander, I'm not like you! - Her voice came out louder than she wanted but she needed him to hear it- I love you, with all my being, but I'm human, I can't lead the life of a domestic cat, I wish I didn't have but I need to be able to go out, breathe, I need food that is not canned or dehydrated, I need fruit and vegetables, by God I would kill for some fresh donuts- the young woman covered her face
- I'm sorry- he snorted- I knew that sooner or later this would happen, but I didn't want to see it, Ed I can't let you go, I don't want to- he clenched his teeth- What if ... what if you weren't human?
The young woman opened her eyes in her palms at the question, looking at him very slowly she moved away cautious
-We could be together, forever, we would share everything, we could touch each other again- he took her hands- to really kiss each other again
- Alek, I ... I don't want to be a zombie
- But...
- I'm sorry, but no... - she let go of his hands- I want to be with you but I don't want to stop being human- tears welled up in her eyes
- No, shit Ed, don't cry- hugging her he lay her down on him- I didn't mean this, forgive me
- I really want to be with you- the crying distorted her voice- I don't want to leave you, but I can't stay
- Take it easy, hey, breathe- he rubbed her back- look, today is already late, you will have dinner, sleep well and tomorrow I will wake you up and get you to the border, with me by your side none of them will attack you
- What about you? - Tears stained her shirt while she sucked the snot
- I'm not human, honey- he smiled, pulling the hair back from her face- but I'll try to get a new computer and find a way to have internet, then we can meet, okay? it will take a while, but don't worry, I'll get it
With a sad smile Eden hugged him tightly, if these were going to be their last moments together, it was more than clear that she was not going to move off. Just as he had said, the young woman ate her last can of meat and they both lay on the bed together, hugging each other. He was cold but that did not matter, she would enjoy him until the very end
To Eden's surprise, the night passed quickly and full of good dreams, only awakening when she felt his partner's caresses on his clavicle. Opening her eyes she looked at Alek's face, she wanted so much to kiss her, but she couldn't. Maintaining a light conversation they both got ready and left the house, the tension in the young woman's body increased to the limit when she saw how the hungry zombies tried to approach her, only repelled by the growls and the dominant pose of him
This was definitely not the place for her
What it had taken her two days to travel to get home, now it had been just a few hours. With him by her side, she had been able to skip all the barricades and places of difficult access, as they advanced she was telling him and pointing out every place where she had fought, get wounded and hidden.
Following the path, they managed to reach the area before the fence, from there they could see one of the guards on their side of the fence, he must have entered to control the perimeter or perhaps he had received some new order. Either way it was clear that they would have to say goodbye right there, she was not going to expose her boyfriend to any danger if she could avoid it.
Giving him a last and heartfelt hug, sheltered behind a car, Eden turned the young man's head to be able to kiss his good cheek, receiving a soft kiss on the forehead which took slightly longer than normal.
- I will miss you
- Easy, I'll get everything I need to contact you quickly, you just keep your computer operating, okay? - He kissed her forehead and nose again- I love you
- And I love you too
- Even if I'm brain-eating zombie? - He grimaced atrociously
- Ag, come on, silly- she hit him softly in the chest- see you then
Another hug and Eden slowly came out of their hideout. Once she was close enough, she slowly raised her arms to make herself visible to the guard. She could still feel Alek's eyes on her back which gave her the strength to move forward. The guard changed his position to look at her drawing a weapon quickly making her stop in her tracks
-Wait, I'm human- she tried to take a step forward
- Stop there, don't move- he readjusted his finger on the trigger pointing at her
- I'm the girl from two weeks ago, I'm healthy, see? - She started to lower her arms but the movement of the gun made her stop- please, I just wanted to get out
- Two weeks ago you decided to skip all containment measures and go into the city ignoring any request on our part and now you want us to let you out just one hour after receiving an attack- he settled her hand again
- Look, I needed to find my partner, but when I saw the zombies I was scared, I hid in an apartment in the city and until now I could not return, I do not know anything about any attack- she tried to get a little closer
- I told you to stop- the guard took a step threatening her
- I swear they haven't bitten me, I just want to get out, I'm alive!