Chapter 2: Work Day

July 22, 2033

I walk down the road with my rifle in my hands, pivoting my dead to look out for... Anything really. By my side is my best friend, Raymond. On my left is Christina's best childhood friend, Stella. Some British girl that Christina was friends with back in Texas. And behind us is a man named Richard. Some in the camp have been calling him a Neo-Nazi, due to his dislike of other races, and Confederate flag hanging in his room. I've never really had a problem with him.

"No nasties so far." Raymond says aloud as we continue heading down the road.

"The hell you mean, 'nasties'?" Richard asks. "Is nasties referring to the infected or asshole Hunters?" He ponders aloud. The one thing me and Richard agree on is that we both hate Hunters.

Raymond shrugs. "Well both, obviously. The difference between the infected and Hunters is that infected will apologize for eating you." He says with a smirk. It gets a laugh out of all of us.

We continue walking in silence, jumping at the sound of a bird chirping and continuing on our way. Raymond lets out a yawn before he asks a question.

"So... How's Christina, Steve?" He asks, looking around the road.

"She's pretty good." I respond, smiling a bit to myself. They'd always tell me I smile whenever I was near her, but that's not entirely true. Now I just smiled at the thought. "Went on a hunt with her yesterday. Didn't find anything though." I say, go;ing back on topic.

"Wait." Oh great, here comes a 'funny' quip by Richard. "She told me she's twenty-one." He says with a hint of humor in his voice. "Aren't you like... Eighteen or something?" He says, practically laughing.

"Twenty." I correct him as I roll my eyes.

"Shit dude! Sounds like you married a cougar!" He proclaims with a laugh as Raymond and Stella join in. I crack a smile.

"Whatever. Lets get this done." I say, still smiling. Cougar, huh? She'll have to hear about this. I hear Stella scoff next to me. I look over to her, seeing her smirking.

"Yeah, whatever you say, cougar boy." Stella says, finishing it with a laugh, getting one out of all of us.

Kids.


Me and Raymond sat on the balcony of the second floor, our duty done. Now we were just relaxing for the moment. Raymond looks over to me.

"Hey, Steve." He says to get my attention. I look over to acknowledge him. "What's your and Christina's plan?" He asks, looking sincere. The hell? What kind of question was that? I never gave it any thought.

"Our... Plan? Clarify, dude." I say, turning my head a bit. I don't understand what he means by 'plan'. If he means plan as in, don't get eaten or mugged, then I say we're set.

"You know... Starting a family, where you'll be. Things like that." He responds, almost sounding offended. As if I were to know what he means.

"Well, I think we'll stay here. Hell of a lot better than staying outside." I respond. He nods. "Family? Shit, I don't know. If I have kids, I'd rather they can play outside without having to worry about getting eaten alive or shot down by some guy who wants their food, y'know?" I say, receiving another nod in response.

It's true though. At least when my mother told me stories about bogeymen, it was just stories to make me behave. My children's bogeymen stories are non-fiction, and it would basically just be me saying 'hey kids, make sure to go to bed early, otherwise you'll be eaten alive by the infected'.

Raymond bumps my shoulder with a closed fist. "Come on, man. I'm sure you'd keep them safe." He says with a smile. I return the smile as I look back over the front of the motel. "Anyways, seems Richard's getting more-" Before he finishes, Stella walks up, smoking a cigarette. She nods to us.

"Gentlemen." She says, taking another inhale from her cigarette. We nod back as she leans against the railing, looking to us. Her red hair was often kept in a mohawk with black tips"Was just talking to Chris. Listening to music. Usual stuff." She said shrugging.

"More of that punk stuff?" I ask. Stella loves punk music. Her jacket was full of patches and paintings of band logos, her hair is usually spiky, and she talks everyone's ears off about punk music.

"Bet your ass." She says with a smile.

I yawn after a few seconds. This day has left me kind of more tired than usual. I pat Raymond on the shoulder and walk to my room, patting Stella's shoulder when I walk by.

"Heading in to get some rest. Tell Christina I'll be in our room." I say, waving to them behind my back.

"Sure thing, cougar boy." Stella says, laughing after, being joined by Raymond. I smile.

Kids.

Thank you to everyone still tuned in! Still developing the character before stuff goes down. Let me know if I can improve or work on anything!