Longest chapter so far. I hope you guys like it! And please, try and post some comments. I'd like to know what you guys think!

I am awake. My eyes burst open and a loud bang interrupts the silent air, my whole body snapping backwards. "Dad! You can't just go around shooting people!" Glancing up, I identify the first speaker as the blonde girl.

"He's not part of the 'people' anymore, Julie." A deep, husky man's voice growls.

"Yeah, but he sort of saved the world…" A third voice mumbles.

"I don't care what he saved. He's dead." The supposed father grumbles in reply.

I sit up, looking down at my checkered blue shirt. Black goo is leaking from a bullet hole in my chest. It slips down the front of my body, leaking onto my black jeans. I am mesmerized by the thickness of the slime. The color resembles one of dried blood. I wonder if it truly is blood, or something new my body conjured up in relation to this curse.

"Hey," the first speaker says, possibly named Julie, shushing the disobedient father and sarcastic friend. "Does that hurt?" She asks, pointing to the wound.

I shake my head.

"Can you talk?"

I shake my head.

"Are you… Hungry?"

I pause. I don't want to answer. I don't think I can answer. Am I hungry? My stomach doesn't feel empty. I shut my eyes, concentrating on the soft breaths this girl takes.

I nod.

One sharp intake of warm air. She moves away from me.

"So… What? Do we give him brains? I mean, I'm not up for killing, but that goat outside is really-"

"Nora." This- no, Julie snaps, staring hard at the dark haired girl.

"Sheesh. I was only going to say 'annoying'." Nora mumbles under her breath, then slowly leans towards the doorway. "Let's just see what M has to say. He's gotta have some answers." The dark haired girl turns away, shifting uneasily as my eyes follow her actions. She doesn't like me. I can tell from the gleam in her eyes. I wince and look down.

Julie is at my side immediately, a hand against my arm like it was in my dream. "Jesus, Nora. Just get M." She snaps, motioning with her left hand at her friend. I suck in Julie's scent, hardly aware of the gun aimed cautiously at me. On the other side of the rifle, I see a grey haired man. His eyes look black in the light. I grimace and lower my head once again. Noticing my actions, Julie sighs. "Dad, can you leave us?"

"Julie… he's infected." The father argues, staring cold and emotionless at his daughter. I can't see her, but I can picture her frown. Her hand tightens around my arm, my blue shirt crinkling slightly under the pressure.

"Dad. Leave the gun. I'll be fine." She whispers, her eyes trained on the side of my face. I risk a glance towards her, regretting it instantly. My eyes go back to my stained jeans.

I hear the door click shut. The father is gone, leaving Julie alone with me. Like in the dream. She drops my arm and I don't feel her hand again until it's on my chin, guiding my head up. "Hey, there." She mumbles, bending down beside my outstretched legs. "Can you… Can you try talking for me?"

I don't answer, unwilling to move my head until I can form a sentence. I need words. I need to capture my thoughts and push them into sentences. I can't form the words, I can't grasp the ideas. They spiral, they flip, they spin. They move away from my grasp. I can't string the verbs and nouns and adjectives together to let her into my mind. My mind, the never-ending black hole. It kidnaps my dialogue and forces groans out of my mouth.

Julie sighs. "Okay, no need to talk." She looks at me, her majestic eyes lingering on mine. "You know, a few days ago… You were so excited for the world to be… Exhumed. Dug out from the pits of hell. You said, 'the anguish we feel for this old globe, orbiting around a sun that'll keep burning for a world that doesn't need it. That's what I used to think. It's so different now. We can change everything.' I don't know why I remember…" She smiles softly and brushes hair behind her ear. I want to touch the soft mass pouring down to her shoulders. I try to lift my hand, preparing to risk popping her protective bubble. To shatter her glass.

I can't move my arms.

She notices my struggle and bites her lip. "Nora's idea. After you… Attacked me, she suggested tying you up." Wiping her cheeks, Julie manages to get half the dirt off, the tear stains permanent until a real scrub was completed.

I look down again, at my knotted together hands. I feel imprisoned, by the rope and my own mind. My face twists into a frown. I've lost another life to this undead state. One step out the door, one step closer to a truthful death. I remember being like this before. I remember wanting to give in, but not exactly wanting the skinless body. Was I destined to be this undead creature? Is this why I cannot live a life where I breathe in the sweet air? Feel a breeze on my cheeks? Notice things?

"You're different still, aren't you?" Julie's voice breaks into my thoughts. But I welcome it happily. "I mean… You're seeing things, you know? You look at me and understand. You're not completely dead in there, are you?"

No, I want to answer, no. I am not full-dead. I am not undead. I am not human. I don't know what I am.