Chapter 2 - Warm Welcomes
Marlon opens the doors, and the sunlight pours in as he leads us out into the courtyard, visibly more active since we were brought in. Marlon looks to our left and our gazes follow to a group of five, sitting on couches and chatting, so he walks over to join them. On instinct, we follow.
The five of them there, one black guy, a little shorter but evidently a bit bigger than Benji and myself, stirs something in a big pot over a fire as another black guy, taller but more slender, talks nonchalantly. Sitting down, a tan guy with black hair writing in a book, a white guy, tall, brown hair, and a very strong build, who whittles a block of wood as a younger boy, with dirty blond hair, watches on in awe.
"Guys." Marlon announces to the group. "This is Brett and Benjamin. They're joining our group because I think they're strong people and can help us out a lot. I know things have happened recently and some of you guys are on edge, but please be cool with them. They're gonna help us out a lot."
"Fresh meat." The tall white guy remarks as he whittles and the kid snickers. "I give 'em two weeks."
"Hey, Mitch, come on now. I think they could do at least three." The tall black guy jokes. "These guys look like they've seen Hell and back, can you say the same?"
I look back at my brother with a confused look, and he shoots me one back. Is he supposed to complimenting us or insulting us or…?
"You'll have to excuse my friends. Apparently they don't know how to act when we have new people around." The writer says, not looking up from his work as he speaks until it appears he's finished. "I'm Aasim."
"Brett." I introduce myself.
"Benji." My brother says behind me.
"That's Mitch and Willy." Marlon points to the whittler and the kid.
"And I'm Louis." The slender black guy does a mock bow to me and my brother. "Funniest and most musically talented of the group. Also the handsomest, but we won't get into that right now." He grins to the both of us.
"And the biggest ego, evidently." My brother remarks sarcastically, and I snort trying not to laugh too hard.
"Ouch." Louis puts his hand over his heart, pretending to be in pain as the others start laughing too.
"Benji here might have you beat for funniest, Louis. And Minnie DEFINITELY had you beat for most musically talented. I'll leave the handsomest to be judged by Ruby and Brody." the chef quips as Louis flips him off, using the other hand to adjust his dreadlocks.
"Fuck you, Omar." He scowls back as Omar continues to stir the pot, sporting a cheeky grin as he does so.
"How'd the haul turn out today, guys?" Marlon asks Aasim, who got back to writing in his book.
Aasim simply groans. "Pretty shitty. We got maybe three, four rabbits. I could've had a deer but SOMEONE wouldn't shut the Hell up." He glares to Mitch, who in turn puts down his whittling equipment.
"Well I'm sorry Sophie isn't around so you can flirt and show off for her!" Mitch fires back, causing Aasim to slam his book shut.
"At least Sophie liked my flirting and showing off. How'd that go with Brody, huh?" My eyes shoot wide open as Mitch gets up, throwing his jacket to the ground, and grabbing Aasim by the collar. Loud commotion ensues as Mitch and Aasim start throwing fists at one another.
Out of pure instinct, I run up to the two, prying them apart before Mitch tears Aasim's head off, and I finally tear the two apart, getting in between them and creating as much separation as I can.
Aasim cools off, shaking his head and sitting back down, burying his hands in his face, and I turn back to Mitch, who doesn't look like he's ready to cool off, glaring at me now, rather than Aasim.
"You think you can just start getting in the middle of everything, just cause you're new here?" He cracks his knuckles and puts his fists up, like a boxer.
I smirk. "If I see a problem, I try to fix it. That's how I am."
"Well I see a problem right now, but I think I can handle it." Mitch's remark almost makes me grin. He's challenging me to a fight. This is getting off to a great start.
"Then try and fix it. See if you can land a shot on me." I encourage him as he runs at me. He brings his right arm back in a powerful punch and sends it right toward my jaw. I block it with my left arm rather easily as I respond with an uppercut of my own with my right fist. That's all it takes for Mitch to land flat on his ass, favoring his jaw while looking back up at me. I offer him my hand, which he accepts, somewhat to my surprise.
"Look, man. I'm not trying to fight everyone I see. I just want the same thing you do, to survive. I've been with this group for a couple hours, at most, and I don't want this to fall apart. I don't think you're a bad dude or anything. Just think for a second, alright?" I offer him a sincere smile as he sits down.
"Whatever." He snarls back at me and I shrug. The rest of them look awestruck at how effectively I had put down Mitch, the biggest one of them.
"Noted. Don't try to fight Brett because he will kick your ass." Louis remarks, and I send a small smile his way.
"I wouldn't fight Benji either, if I were you. He might be better than me, if we're being honest. He actually knows what he's doing." My brother grins at my compliment. When we were younger, he took martial arts lessons, and was pretty damn good at it. When the apocalypse started, he and I started sparring together, so he could hone his skills and I could learn to defend myself. It was one of the last things our dad told us before he died, to learn how to defend ourselves if all we have it our fists, because we won't always have a gun or a knife.
"Ok, so now that we've established that you two are total badasses, and not to be fucked with, I guess we should finish up the introductions. Although I should warn you, these last two, they're probably not in much of a talking mood. Like I've said earlier, we recently lost a couple of really good people, and, well, they were his sisters and her best friends. So, like I said, don't take anything personally." Marlons informs us once again, nodding to a boy drawing on a table and a girl on guard duty, holding a bow. I guess she's the one that shot me.
Marlon walks over to the table and the three of us sit down opposite the boy, a small black kid with black hair, a nasty burn mark on his face, drawing away on a sheet of paper.
"Hey Tenn. How're you doing, buddy?" Marlon asks gently, the boy not looking up from his drawing.
"I'm fine." He mumbles quietly, resuming his drawing. I look, it's three stick figures, pretty well-done. One has short black hair, I assume him, while the other two have red hair, one straight and one curly. Are they… are they his sisters? I think so. Maybe art is how he's coping.
Despite my curiosity, I decide not to ask about it. The kid's maybe eleven years old, and just lost both his sisters. I couldn't imagine how I'd be in his position. To not upset him, I instead decide to introduce myself and my brother.
"Hey Tenn. I'm Brett. And this is my brother Benji."
"It's… It's nice to meet you. I saw you beat Mitch just then…" He looks up at me timidly, dropping his pencil on the table.
"Yeah about that…" I sheepishly grin and rub my head. "I didn't want to fight him. Tensions just got high and I think that settled things down for the time being. Hopefully I don't have to do that again, you know?"
"Yeah, I know. Mitch is sometimes a bully. So is Willy. They scare me sometimes, and I wish I could stand up like you did. But I don't like fighting, either. I don't like seeing people get hurt. Someday, I hope we're all safe, where we won't get hurt. Like Heaven. I'll get to see my sisters, and everything will be good again."
"I think that's a good way of looking at it." My brother speaks up, and I turn a bit to smile at him. Even though he hates groups, Benji'll always have a soft side for kids. This kid Tenn is no different. The two of them start to converse as I look off into the distance, at the girl doing watch, the one who shot me.
"That's Brody." Marlon informs me, noticing my gaze. "She's the one that… you know… You wanna go meet her?"
"Sure, I-" I'm interrupted by Louis's voice from behind us.
"Dinnertime guys! Come and get it!" The teen proudly announces, and my stomach rumbles. Maybe meeting Brody can wait. After all, to have a warm meal after years of hunting and and scavenging food, there's not much more you can ask for in today's day and age, especially one someone else has made, I'd say it's been at least three years since.
The three of us walk over to Omar, who hands each of us a warm bowl of soup with meat and vegetables floating in a steamy broth. My mouth waters at the sight and part of me wants to devour the soup right there. Despite this, I sit down with Marlon, across from Omar and Aasim, the three of them already digging in, so I decide to do the same.
Upon tasting the soup for the first time, I dig in like a death row inmate eating his last meal, savoring the tender meat and the perfect flavors. With one final slurp, I finish off the broth and sigh in satisfaction. Omar notices this and grins.
"I like to say, 'You can eat, or you can eat right'. Brett here is eating right."
"Omar, this is the first warm meal I didn't have to hunt and then prepare over a weak fire in the middle of the woods in maybe three years. This shit is like what a king would eat compared to what I was having out there." I explain to him, and he simply laughs.
"Well like I said, here at Ericson's, we eat right." I nod back to him. If this is what every meal is like here, then I could get used to this very quickly.
Over Omar's shoulder, I get a glimpse of Benji, chatting with Tenn as he draws, and next to him is Violet, talking with both the boys and seeming rather nice, despite our earlier encounter.
"Your brother's warming up to Violet and Tenn." Marlon notices. "That's good. She's usually not so… upbeat. Especially after recent events. Tenn's sister, Minnie, well, she and Violet were… how do I say this? They were close." He tells me, putting some extra emphasis on 'close'.
"Ah…" I nod back, not getting it at first, before it hits me square in the face. "Oh! So you mean-"
"Yep. Exactly."
"Ooooooh. That makes so much sense. God damn… That's really some shit."
"It's terrible. Sophie and Minnie were some of the nicest people here. And they were just taken from us, like that." Aasim says with the snap of his fingers, frowning heavily.
"To lose someone you love like that, shit… What happened?"
"Brody and I were out on a supply run with the twins, outside the safe zone. We knew it was risky, but Minnie wanted to risk it, just because she hoped there were supplies out there. We weren't finding much, but Minnie kept on going. She didn't want to go back empty-handed. But then, a group of walkers got the jump on us." Marlon says with a sniff, "The twins saved me and Brody, at the cost of their own lives. I would've never asked them to do such a thing, but they did it anyways."
"Howdy folks!" Louis quips as he sits down next to Omar. "What're we talkin' about?"
The silence that comes from the four of us tells him all he needs to know. As he comes to the realization, his joyful expression turns more somber, but he perks up once again, pulling out some decks of cards.
"Minnie loved playing cards. She loved getting to know us, so I think we should do that now, get to know Brett a bit better." Louis explains. "I think it'll be fun. What do you think?"
Omar shakes his head. "I've gotta clean up dinner. Maybe another night, Louis."
Louis simply responds by sticking his thumb down at Omar and sticking his tongue out. Aasim shows no indication of leaving, and neither does Marlon, so I guess we're doing this.
I shrug. "Sure. Guess it would help if you guys know me. How's it work?"
Louis grins. "I think tonight's game is war. A simple game, the oldest game. Played by man and beast alike. Are you familiar?"
I nod. "Yeah. We all draw a card, highest card wins. But how does this work with getting to know me?" I ask him, slightly confused.
"Well, if you win, you ask us a question. If one of us wins, we ask you a question. It's pretty simple really." He tells me as he hands decks of cards around to Marlon, Aasim, and then myself.
With that, we all draw a card. Eight of Spades for me, Ten of Hearts for Marlon, Jack of Clubs for Louis, and King of Spades for Aasim.
"Guess it's me. I'll start simple. Where are you and Benji from?" Aasim asks.
"We're from a small city in Wisconsin. Appleton. It's just South of Green Bay. I grew up a huge Packers fan. I went to a game or two every year."
"Wisconsin, eh? I guess that means you're pretty used to the cold then." Marlon remarks, getting a smile out of me.
"Yeah, I'd say I'm used to it. Can't say I'm a fan of the fluffy white bullshit known as snow, though. I'll take mid 90's in Miami over below-zero in Oshkosh any day of the week."
The next round starts, and I smile as I pull the Queen of Hearts. I look to the others, Louis has the Five of Clubs, Aasim the Five of Spades, and Marlon the Five of Hearts.
"Alright. Point Brett. So, 'Ericson's Boarding School for Troubled Youth', what's the whole deal here?"
Marlon shrugs, taking a moment to glance around the school. "It's as the name suggests. A boarding school for troubled youth. All of us were sent here for different reasons, some of us for things like anger issues, others for more… extreme reasons." Louis frowns again, and I look at him curiously, but I don't say anything. A solemn silence follows, and my stomach sinks a bit. But it's finally broken when Aasim draws his card, the rest of us following suit.
Marlon grins as he pulls the King of Diamonds. I look down at my Queen of Diamonds, Aasim's Two of Spades, and Louis's Seven of Clubs.
"Alright, Brett. What should I ask you? Oh, I got it! You and your brother have been by yourselves for, what, three years, you said? So who took care of you when you weren't alone? Family?"
I sigh, having to think back to some painful memories. "Well, yeah. Mom was bitten the first day, and she nearly got me just after turning. My Dad took care of us for the first couple of years. He taught us everything he knew about survival. Hunting, shooting, so much of what we know today, he was teaching us until his last breath. We came across another group some time later, some really great people named Sierra and Angie. They taught us some other important things, like how to care for younger kids, how to drive, things like that. We got ambushed by walkers one night, and Benji and I barely made it out. From there, we were all on our own until, you know, I took an arrow to the knee."
Louis laughs at that. "Oh, man! That was hilarious looking back. Brody got you pretty good, didn't she? Man she was embarrassed after that one. I don't think she's talked to anyone since, to be quite honest." His demeanor changes dramatically, to a more concerned one. "Holy shit, I don't think she has talked to anyone else, has she? Oh man…" I look toward the entrance, to see Brody walking inside, looking back at us for a moment before hurrying inside.
"Shit, I hope she doesn't feel too bad about shooting me." I frown. "Like yeah, it hurts like Hell and all, but there isn't any major damage and Ruby said I'll be fine. Shit, it was just an accident."
"Yeah, she feels bad." Marlon assures me, "But that's just Brody. She has anxiety, these things just happen sometimes. Plus, she's been really on edge, cause of the twins. She's a really good person to have around when her mind's right."
I simply nod in response as I draw my next card. Nine of Hearts. Aasim, the Ace of Clubs. Louis, the Three of Clubs. And Marlon, the Seven of Diamonds. Marlon nods to me, Aces are low, I guess.
"Ok, my question. Favorite thing to do in your free time?"
Louis's face lights up. "Well, I like to serenade this school with the works of Beethoven, Bach, myself, Mozart, et cetera, et cetera…"
Aasim stops him before he goes any further. "Woah, woah! I know you're not putting yourself up there with those guys, Louis. Come on, man."
"What? I'm talented."
"Sure, but you're not up there, yet."
Louis simply grins, and Aasim shakes his head.
"Anyways, I like to record what life's like when this mess started. I've got a book in my room where I write down everything that's going on, kinda like a history book. I figured if someone were to come across it after this thing's done, they'd want to know what it was like living during the apocalypse." I nod, impressed. I wonder if he's written about me and Benji yet. I wonder what kind of impact we'll have on this story.
Finally, I turn to Marlon, and he just shrugs. "I don't really do much for fun anymore. I'm stuck with a lot of responsibilities leading, so that's really all I do. Although, I will say that I like hunting, or just going for walks with Rosie. It's a nice way to clear my mind, especially when there's high tensions around here. Usually if I'm out hunting, I can get us some rabbits, sometimes something bigger, if I'm lucky. And then, Omar uses that to make the best meals you'll find around here."
"I can agree with that!" I grin enthusiastically.
Louis looks up at the sky, noticing it darkening. 'It's almost time to call it a night, guys. How about one more round?"
We all flip, and I reveal the Four of Clubs. I look around, and Marlon has the Six of Diamonds, Aasim has the Nine of Spades, and Louis has the Ten of Clubs. His eager expression turns a bit uneasy, so he gives me a warning. "Um, this isn't gonna be an easy question, or a fun one, but I think it needs to be asked. You already said your mom was bitten on the first day, and your dad watched you for some time, but not anymore. So, what happened?"
I feel a knot in my chest, and I frown, looking down at the table. "The same thing that happens to everyone you love nowadays." I say quietly, reshuffling my cards and putting them back in their carton, placing the carton gently in front of Louis. "I think I'm done for tonight. I'll see you guys in the morning."
Without another word, I walk back to the room Marlon set us up in. I drop my bag to the floor, right next to the bed opposite Benji's, and lay down, closing my eyes, praying for a good night's sleep.
"You alright?" my brother asks me as he flips the page in his book.
"Not really, but I'll be fine." I groan, still laying down. "The card game we were playing just got me thinking about Mom and Dad."
"Oh…" I hear him put down the book. "I know Mom was bit before we knew about all this, but could we have saved Dad?"
I blankly stare at the ceiling, trying not to relive flashbacks of that afternoon. "I...I don't know. That walker got the jump on us. But, like, could we have acted faster? I just don't know."
"You know it's not your fault, right?"
I sniff as some tears well up in my eyes. "Yeah, I know. It was a freak accident. But I can't stop thinking about it all. I miss both of them. Really badly."
"I do, too. It's hard to believe it's been four years since Dad. Six since Mom. Can you believe that? Mom died six years ago. This mess has been going on for six years."
"We've been surviving for six years." I smile towards my brother. "We make a good team. We watch our backs, we know how to survive out there, and if these guys let us stay, we can contribute a lot here. We got 12 years of experience between the two of us, that counts for a lot."
"We do, and we will. If we're gonna be here. We're gonna make the most out of this place."
Still smiling, I sit up a bit, "Yeah, I'm kinda surprised you're so eager to be in a group, especially after Sierra and Angie and everything that happened. All things considered, you really wanted to avoid groups."
He shrugs, laying doing in his bed. "I don't really know. It's just something about this place, the people here, everything. Maybe I was just sick of always being on the road, so having a place like this that's got strong walls and good people, it's just something nice." He says with a yawn.
I chuckle, "Sounds like it's time to call it a night". He nods and puts his book away. It's been a Hell of a day, but to sleep in a bed for once, for the first time in a while, it beats camping out in the fucking woods.
Benji blows out his candle, and I close my eyes, in hopes of a peaceful slumber.
"Alright, boys. You know what to do. Eyes up, guns up, watch the dark spots. Keep quiet. We don't know who or what's in here." Dad tells us as I pull my M9 out of its holster, Benji does the same with his crossbow. The two of us nod back, and with that, he slowly opens the door to the shop.
The rays of sunshine bounce off the floating specks of dust in the room, creating a pretty scenery, if it weren't for the rotted corpses that littered the floor. Thankfully, none of them appear to be alive, or undead, rather.
"What're we looking for in here?" I quietly ask my Dad as he opens up a cabinet, picking up a couple small cartons and putting them in his bag.
"Anything useful, really. Food, medicine, anything we can scrounge up. Just don't get yourself killed over it."
I nod to my father as I walk deeper into the shop, the shelves littered with moldy food, empty boxes, and not much of use. I pick up a box of cough syrup and shrug, putting it in my bag. At the back end of the store, I find a door, a light coating of dust covering it, and I turn the handle. With a slight budge, I put some more effort into it, and I eventually open the door.
I'm met with the face of a walker, face rotted and arms outstretched. He grabs me before I can raise my gun and shoot him, crying out as I trip and he tackles me to the floor. My arms barely holding him back from sinking his teeth into me.
"Brett!" My Dad and brother both call out as they hear the commotion. But, I don't answer. I simply can't. As I feel my arms weakening, the walker's mouth getting closer as it overpowers me, the milky white of its eyes meeting mine.
My arms nearly give away, and I can feel the walker's hot breath on my skin, just as my Dad tackles it, rolling around with it until it winds up with it on top of him. But my Dad, a lot stronger than me, holds it back.
The sound of an arrow flying past me and piercing the walker's skull is the only thing I can hear for a split second, and with a final gasp, it falls to the ground, dead. The entire room is dead silent.
Dad gets up, dusting himself off before looking at the walker that had just attacked us, before turning back around at us, but still silence.
Benji's quavering voice breaks this silence. "D-Dad?"
Dad doesn't answer. Instead, he looks down at his chest, a small trail of blood coming from his pec, staining his white undershirt.
"Shit…" He curses quietly.
"Dad… What's that?" I ask him, my own voice choking up.
He doesn't answer me, instead tearing off his jacket, throwing it to the ground, the blood more pronounced in a concentrated area, and my stomach drops.
Finally, he pulls off his undershirt, revealing his bare chest, and my suspicions are confirmed and tears start to drop.
He's bitten.
"No… Dad No!" Benji cries out to my right. Without a word, he steps over to us and hugs the both of us, trying to comfort us, even though we know what's coming.
"It's gonna be alright, guys. Let's find a quiet place for the time being and then we can decide what to do, ok? Don't panic." He assures us, even though we know he's got a few more hours, at most.
We walk out of the shop, and the three of us walk down the street, passing by more empty stores as the sky gets darker, before Dad leads us into an old apartment building, opening one of the units, conveniently left unlocked. After a quick check for any walkers in the apartment, Dad puts down his things and slumps down onto the couch.
"So… What now?" Benji asks as he does the same.
"Boys, I don't have long." Dad coughs, his voice already sounding weaker. "We all know what's going to happen. Now, I wouldn't ask this of you guys, but when this thing takes over my body, I'm… I'm going to need one of you to put me down…" He hoarsely tells us, and Benji and I both look at each other, neither of us wanting to do it, even though we know it needs to be done.
I sniff, but I stand up, wiping the tears from my eyes. "I'll do it…" I quietly assure my Dad.
He weakly smiles, closing his eyes. "Thank you, Brett. I'm sorry you have to do this, but it needs to be done." He coughs up some blood, splattering on the old carpet. "Fuck…"
"How are you feeling?" Benji asks, and Dad simply smiles.
"I'm at peace, Benji. I'm at peace. I know you boys will be alright. After all, I taught you everything I know. At least now, I'll be able to see your mother again." He softly smiles as he closes his eyes. "I'm proud of you boys. I always have been, and I always will be. Your mother would be proud to see the young men you've become, too."
"Dad?" I quietly ask, as the smile fades from his face. He doesn't answer. "Dad? Dad! DAD!"
I tap his shoulder, but no response. I put two fingers to his neck, and I feel myself shatter inside.
No pulse.
He's gone.
I shake my head to Benji, and he starts to break down in tears, my body about to do the same. I remember my Dad's final request, to make sure he doesn't come back. I reach into my holster, pulling out my M9. My arms tremble and my vision blurs, but I still manage to line the sights up to Dad's head. Tears streaming down my face, I do the one thing I never wanted to do.
I pull the trigger.
Thank you so much for the support on Chapter 1! Glad to see some of you guys like this. As always, I greatly appreciate any constructive criticism, whether you leave a review or tell me through a DM. I accept all constructive criticism and I would appreciate it so I can know what to do better, and what you like. Hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next Friday.