The cloudy sky matched Umi's mood perfectly. Due to unfortunate circumstances regarding their supplies, Eli and her had been forced to go scavenging in the more dangerous parts of the city. Still recovering from a previous injury, Umi's movements were slow and painful. This made looting the mall they were in much more dangerous.
"Hey Eli, hold up a bit. I think this store might have some useful things."
Umi walked into the store carefully with Eli following behind her. They immediately set about going through the backpacks and camping supplies in the store while keeping an eye out for any zombies. Eli had a pistol if things went horribly wrong, but they were both aware using it would attract the attention of every zombie in the building. Thus, they were both keen to avoid as many zombies as possible and to make any kills as quickly and silently as possible.
"How's this backpack look Umi?" Eli whispered next to Umi.
"That one will do I think. Can you check for tents please? I'm going to see if they have any canned food here." Umi said whispered.
"Sure thing."
Umi nodded her head in acknowledgement and started searching for food. There wasn't as much as Umi had hoped, but it would last them several days at minimum with rationing. Satisfied that the food fit in her backpack, Umi stood up to find Eli when she heard a shriek from somewhere in the mall.
"Umi, what was that?" Eli hissed.
"I don't know, get back to the entrance."
Umi ran to the entrance of the store and waited for Eli, who showed up after a few seconds. Nodding once to Eli, Umi stepped out of the store and looked around.
"I don't see anyone, do you think it was another person?" Eli asked.
"I don't know. If it was though, there's nothing we can do to help. We're best off getting out while the zombies are distracted with that."
"I see," Eli grimaced. "I wish we could help them though, who knows what…" Eli trailed off as her face paled.
Umi looked behind her and saw a red-haired zombie in underwear sprinting towards them, who then started screaming unintelligibly upon noticing them. Two zombies were behind it, sprinting just as fast.
"Run!" Umi yelled while grabbing Eli's hand and sprinting in the opposite direction.
There was no way Umi was going to die here.
"Come back, save me!" Maki shrieked while running after the blue haired girl and her friend, Nico and Kotori right behind her. Nico had been working with Kotori to have Maki try on all kinds of things when she decided to pick out the frilliest and cutest dress the shop had. To the surprise of no one, Maki had refused to wear it, resulting in Nico and Kotori forcefully encouraging her by stripping her. That lead them to their present situation of chasing Maki as she ran through the mall.
"Get back here Maki, we're not done with you!" Nico yelled.
It seemed fate was on Nico's side, as Maki suddenly tripped and was sent sprawling. Not wasting her chance, Nico flung herself onto Maki, pinning her to the ground.
"Kotori, get the dress on her while I'm holding her!" Nico called while holding the struggling girl.
Not getting a response, Nico turned her head back. "Kotori?"
Kotori was staring past them, a look of longing in her eyes.
"Did you see her Nico?" Kotori asked dreamily.
Quirking her eyebrow, Nico turned to face the direction the two girls ran off.
"Which one? The blue haired girl or the blonde one?"
"The blue haired girl. Isn't she so dreamy?"
"I guess?" Nico said, unsure where Kotori was going. "You do realise those people aren't zombies though, right? We're lucky they didn't seem armed and ran away at the sight of us."
"I want to kill her and make her my wife," Kotori said, still staring where the two girls had run off.
Nico looked down to Maki and was greeted by a glare.
"Is Kotori normally like this?"
"Get off me and I'll tell you," Maki huffed.
"No thank you," Nico sung out. "Kotori, snap out of it, we still need to get Maki in that dress."
"Oh, right!" Kotori said, suddenly aware of her surroundings. Nico dragged Maki to her feet and held her while Kotori forced Maki into the dress.
"Oh, you look so good in that," Kotori said while clasping her hands together.
"I'm going to kill both of you," Maki snapped.
"Relax, you look good," Nico giggled. "If only I had a camera with me."
Maki glared at Nico.
"Anyways, were you going to answer my question about Kotori?" Nico asked.
"Oh, she gets like that sometimes. I'm pretty sure she's been stalking that girl for several months now."
Nico stared at Maki in shock.
"Nothing's ever come out of it," Maki added.
"If you say so."
"So, can I take this thing off now?"
"No," Nico and Kotori both replied.
"Hey Nico, do you mind if I head off for a bit? I have to grab some sewing supplies," Kotori said.
"Sure, no problem. You know where my house is?"
"No, sorry," Kotori replied.
Nico quickly told her the address, looking around suspiciously to make sure nobody was eavesdropping in case anyone wanted to break into her house again.
"I know where that street is, I'll be there by the time dinner is ready. Hopefully I can get some outfits started for both of you."
"Alright, see you then," Nico waved to Kotori.
"Now Maki, do you want to try on the other dresses first or go shopping for some skirts?" Nico asked.
"Neither."
"It's that or I force you to try whatever underwear I pick out," Nico sang.
"Skirts and blouses are fine," Maki quickly responded.
"Perfect, follow me then."
Nico led Maki through the mall to one of her favourite clothes shops. Once there, Nico continued to pile different clothes for Maki to try, forcing her into them if she refused. Once out of clothes she thought Maki would look good in, Nico started pillaging the nearby clothes stores to things to add to the pile.
"This is getting ridiculous. I've been doing nothing but trying on clothes for two hours now. Can't we take a break at least?" Maki asked.
"I guess if you really want one."
"Yes, I really want a break."
"Fine," Nico whined. "There's probably food somewhere in this mall."
It didn't take long for Nico to find some food in an abandoned café. The heavy zombie presence in the mall meant people couldn't loot the mall very well, leaving plenty for Nico.
"Are you really going to eat cookies for a snack?" Maki asked.
"I have a banana muffin, so that counts as something healthy," Nico replied smugly.
"Just because there's bananas in it doesn't make a muffin healthy."
"Whatever, it's just one muffin."
"And three cookies."
"You can have some," Nico replied sweetly.
Maki stared at Nico annoyed before grabbing a cookie out of Nico's hand and stuffing her face.
"So, even the great tomato can't say no to a cookie."
"Shut it," Maki huffed.
"Anyways, back to clothes shopping…" Nico trailed off, squinting past Maki.
"Is that Kotori again?"
Maki looked where Nico pointed. "Kotori, I thought you were getting sewing supplies?" Maki called out.
"Oh, hi again! I almost got everything. I just ran into her again so I had to chase her and her friend for a bit," Kotori called back.
"What happened to them?" Nico yelled.
"They barricaded themselves in a room. Don't worry, I moved some stuff to keep them trapped there overnight. I'll pick her up tomorrow," Kotori said gleefully.
"What do you mean, pick her up tomorrow?" Nico asked.
"Oh, I'll come back tomorrow and bring her to your house. I'll need to kill her and make her a zombie though."
"How do you know she won't end up being one of the dumb ones?" Maki asked incredulously.
"Oh, I'm not worried. The world's not cruel enough to keep her from me like that," Kotori replied cheerily.
"She's crazy," Nico and Maki whispered to each other.
"Have you two finished shopping for clothes?"
"Almost, just taking a small break because Maki's cranky," Nico said, earning a glare from Maki. "We can probably just grab the clothes I think she looks good in and go home if you want."
"Sure, that works," Kotori said. "I saw another shop with some cute clothes though, you should both try some stuff in there."
"Sure! I'll bring Maki there if you can grab the clothes that will work for Maki."
After exchanging information with Kotori, Nico dragged Maki off to the new shop. This time, Nico also tried different clothes on. After several minutes they were joined by Kotori, who helped pick stuff out for both of them. After an hour in the shop the three of them left the mall.
"I'm exhausted. Why did I have to try on all that stuff?" Maki complained.
"Because you're too cute not to try on cute clothes," Nico responded.
"She's right Maki, you looked really good in them. It's a shame you never went clothes shopping with me earlier," Kotori said.
Maki grumbled to herself while shifting some bags on her shoulder.
"Did we need to get this many though?"
"Yes," Nico and Kotori said simultaneously.
Maki shook her head at them and continued walking silently, leaving Nico and Kotori to chat about clothes and sewing.
"Alright, we're back. Take your shoes off please," Nico said while unlocking the door.
"Nice house," Kotori commented.
"I'll start making dinner, any requests?"
"I'm fine with whatever you make. Maki will probably want some tomatoes though," Kotori said.
"I already learned about the tomato's tomato addiction."
"I'm not a tomato," Maki complained weakly.
"It's fine," Kotori said while rubbing Maki's head. "She's going to make something delicious that you'll like, just imagine all the extra tomatoes she'll put on your plate."
Maki started drooling at the thought, earning a snicker from Nico.
"Right, extra tomatoes, noted."
Nico went to the kitchen and started making dinner. It was late and she didn't feel like cooking anything big, so she just took out a bunch of tomatoes and cucumbers and cut them up. Once she was done with them, Nico started slicing some bread.
"Dinner's ready!" Nico called once everything was set.
Maki and Kotori came to the table soon after they were called, and thanked Nico for the meal before eating. Nico quickly regretted not getting more tomatoes in her last shopping trip upon witnessing Maki massacre the tomatoes she prepared for everyone.
"Hey, leave some for me and Kotori," Nico scolded.
"It's fine, she can have my share," Kotori said, earning a thanks from Maki.
Nico mumbled about Kotori spoiling Maki under her breath and continued to eat, grabbing some tomato slices put on her plate before Maki took them. Once dinner was done, Kotori offered to clean up, to the appreciation of Nico.
"Hey Maki, want to play a card game?" Nico asked sweetly.
"Sure I guess?"
"We should make it interesting though. Loser owes the winner one favour?"
Maki narrowed her eyes and Nico. "Why do I get the feeling you're going to cheat?"
"Well, if you're too scared I suppose we can just play for fun. I never took you for the type of person who would back down from a challenge though," Nico sang.
"Fine, and the favour I'm going to request is for you to never make me play dress up again."
"Deal, old maid?"
Maki nodded her head, causing Nico to run and grab a deck of cards. Once they were shuffled, Nico dealt the cards between them, smirking when Maki frowned.
She has the old maid, this is going to be too easy, Nico thought to herself, victory assured.
They took turns, taking one card from each other, and putting down any pairs they had. Unknown to Maki, Nico didn't choose the game randomly. The old maid was marked slightly on the back, letting Nico know which card not to pick.
After a while, Nico grabbed the last non-losing card out of Maki's hand, and placed down the last pair.
"I guess you owe me now," Nico said smugly.
"You cheated, there's no way you didn't pick that card throughout the entire game!" Maki said accusingly.
"Nico never cheats," Nico said while forming a heart with her hands. "For my favour, you have to kiss me on the cheek!"
"Bweh?"
Nico giggled at Maki's embarrassment. "Too late to back out now, might as well get it over with."
Maki mumbled under her breath as she went around the table to peck Nico on the cheek. At the last second, Nico turned her head so their lips touched, sending Maki reeling backwards.
"W-What was that for?"
"Felt like it," Nico sang happily.
"I-I'm going to bed!" Maki said while storming off.
Nico followed Maki to the bathroom, deciding to get ready for bed a well. It didn't take long before they were done and bid each other good night. Once Nico reached her bed, she felt sleep start to overcome her quickly.
Nico dreamed she was floating in a void. It felt serene, with nothing to worry about. There was a soft voice calling her name. Nico squinted her eyes in the direction the voice was coming from. It seemed to be getting louder, and it sounded strangely like Kotori.
"Nico wake up!"
Nico shot out of bed with wide eyes, being met with Kotori's face.
"What time is it?" Nico asked sleepily.
"Seven, get up, breakfast is ready," Kotori said frantically.
"What's the hurry?"
"We have to get to the mall before my wife wakes up! I have a plan, but we have to get there now!"
"Okay okay, I'm going," Nico said. "Let me get ready though."
Kotori nodded and ran off, leaving Nico get dressed and head down for breakfast. To Nico's relief, it seemed Kotori was infinitely better at cooking than Maki. After finishing, Kotori rushed Nico and Maki out the door.
"What are you planning exactly Kotori?" Maki asked.
"I'm planning on making her love me too. I had a dream where it worked out, so I'm going to try to recreate it."
Nico and Maki exchanged worried glances.
The walk to the mall was an interesting one for Nico. Both her and Maki were sleepy and in no mood to mess with live people, while Kotori skipped along without a care in the world, occasionally making them speed up. Once at the mall, Kotori shooed them to where the two girls were holed up, tasking them with unblocking the room.
"Why do I get the feeling this is all a giant set-up to see that girl in a compromising position?" Nico voiced.
"Knowing her, it probably is," Maki agreed.
"Well, that's the last box, now what?"
"I guess we wait here like Kotori said. I think she wants us to chase them that way," Maki said.
They stood around awkwardly, both unsure why they bothered listening to Kotori. After a few minutes, Nico perked her head towards the door.
"That sounds like them, shall we try being friendly when they leave the room?" Nico asked.
"They probably hear random gibberish from us like we do from them. I guess it wouldn't hurt to try though."
Nico nodded her head in acknowledgement. After several minutes, an unlocking sound could be heard, followed by the two girls carefully stepping out of the room.
"Hi, I'm Nico Yazawa, and this is my friend Maki Nishikino, nice to meet you," Nico sang.
The girls screamed and ran in the opposite direction.
"I suppose we should follow them and see what Kotori is planning," Maki commented while walking after the girls.
Nico followed Maki, interested to find out what Kotori was planning. After a minute, they found the girls backing away from a group of zombies, weapons drawn.
"I guess this is where they die?" Nico commented, earning a nod from Maki.
"I love you!" a voice called out.
"Was that Kotori?" Nico asked.
Kotori suddenly burst forth from the group of zombies and knocked them to the side, using a shopping cart as battering ram. Nico stared in shock as Kotori smashed into the blue haired girl, sending them both crashing through the window and out the mall.
"D-Did I just watch Kotori kill that girl?" Nico asked in shock, both her and Maki's eyes wide.
The blonde girl yelled something before charging past the disoriented zombies, leaving Nico and Maki alone to question Kotori's sanity.
Author's Note: Chapter 3 is finally published! Keeping to a weekly schedule seems to be working out fine, so I'm going to stick with that. Just to answer some questions, undead and zombies are the same, just synonyms. They smell bad because they don't take baths are are rotting, which always leads to bad smells. I'm probably not going say why they're dead already, as it's not really relevant (after all, this is a comedy story).
I hope you all enjoyed the story so far!
