This is my own sequel to Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion.
As I'm driving, I let my hand fall, and Julie squeezes it. She smiles when I look over at her. I look ahead and see the ruins of the freshly broken down wall. There are construction workers outside, complete with reflective vests and machinery, cleaning up the wreckage.
Julie tells me to stop at a man in similar construction clothing. Julie seems to know him, and she says hi. We pull into the city, slow.
We park the car in the dirt at the entrance of the building.
When were inside, it's quiet. Julie sits on the couch in the living room, and I'm still at the door. The morning light is shining through the windows and a silence hangs over us. I decided not to say anything, because I didn't know what to say. I figured her feelings were still raw over what happen to her dad. You can only forget for so long.
The elephant in the room is finally killed when she says: "It feels so different." She shakes her head slowly, staring at her lap. I still don't know what to say. It's starting to get a little awkward.
"I'm not happy about this… I loved my dad…" she gets her hair out of her face with her fingers, and pauses for a moment. "… But at the same time I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. God, that's horrible to say isn't it?"
I think I should be doing something. I'm not good at comforting people.
Out of instinct (at least I'm pretty sure it was instinct), I stride from my still spot in front of the door, and over to her. I sit on the couch beside her. She looks so beautiful. "Julie, I…" I started to say, but she buries her face in-between my arm and side. I play with her hair, and I can tell she's fighting off the urge to cry.
"I'm glad you're here, R," she utters.
I think I finally know what to say.
"I love you." It came out shaky, but I think I got the point across. I do love Julie.
Julie looks up at me, eyes wet and pink in color. She kisses me. It's not like she hasn't kissed me before, but this felt different. She grabs my face and kisses me harder. I feel my jeans shift. Oh, right. I have circulation. This is relatively new to me, so Julie took the lead.
I didn't have control of myself anymore. She gets on top of me and places my hands on her lower back. We felt each other, and only stopped to catch our breath. While we were making out on the couch, oblivious to everything around us, we both fell asleep. Hours later, the doorbell rang. Then it rang again. Then it rang multiple times after that. It was starting to get annoying.
Julie sighs heavily and yawns. "I guess I need to answer that."
She gives me a kiss on the cheek and shows me her smile one last time. She rolls off of me and saunters to the door.
"Julie!" Nora runs in and hugs Julie. "Man, whats up with your hair?"
Julie hurriedly tries to fix her hair, still a little knotted from our night in the plane, but Nora already knows whats been happening. "Sorry for walking in," she giggles and Julie's face turns red with embarrassment. It's cute.
Just as I start to stand up, Nora pushes me down back on the couch. Playfully, of course. "Don't tell me you guys were banging!" Julie lightly punches her arm. "Shut up, Nora!" she says, in a fit of giggles. I can't help but giggle with them.
"I'm gonna go make some coffee," Julie says. "Want some, R?"
I've never had coffee before. Or, at least since I've become human again. "Sure."
As she goes into the kitchen, Nora's smile fades into pursed lips and her arms are crossed. She comes and sits down next me, twiddling her thumbs. "Is she okay, R?"
I wasn't sure how to answer that question. "I don't know," I say, shrugging. I really need to stop that.
"Her dad was the only family she had left. I can't imagine how she's feeling."
"You're wrong, Nora. We're her family."
I was a little offended by what she said. I know she'd meant blood family, but we are closer to her than her father ever really was. "I guess you're right, zombie," she half-smiles and ruffles my hair. "She'll need all the support she can get." We sit in silence for a few minutes.
"Three caffeinated beverages, brewed by yours truly!" Julie takes a bow with one hand, balancing the tray of coffees in her other hand. We each get a coffee, Nora gets black coffee, Julie has herself some french vanilla, and I'm staring into my cup wondering what I'm about to drink. "Yours is hazelnut," Julie says. "Not too bitter, not too sweet."
I take a drink, and surprisingly, I like it. It dances on my tongue, and for the first time I could taste the flavors and enjoy what I was consuming. Obviously, zombies don't take much thought into what they devour. The drink reminds me of Julie. Can a drink be like a person?
Julie and Nora are chatting away when I get up. They didn't seem to notice my leaving, but I found myself wandering into Julie's room.
I looked at her ceiling. The letters were still a blur to me. She'd said they were lyrics from a John Lennon song. I think I had one of his records, but I'm not sure. I'll have to get it for Julie. She'd get a kick out of it.
I laid on the bed. I didn't realize how tired I was, but the coffee and the noon nap is keeping me awake. Right now, I really wish I could read. I close my eyes and imagine Julie and I reading to the kids at the nearby park. Maybe in my past life I could have been an avid reader. Maybe a musician, since I love music so much.
I heard the door creak open, and I look over. Julie's head is peeking out. She whispers, "Nora left."
She opens the door and closes it behind her, and then flicks the light switch off. Soft moonlight crept from the balcony. She walks over softly, so to be very quiet. I'm not sure what she's being so quiet for.
She gets into bed with me, her hand over my chest, my arm supporting her head, our legs intertwined. "Goodnight, R," she says. "By the way..." she starts, "...I love you too."
I am SUPER sorry for not posting in months! I wasn't sure how to start this chapter, and I didn't think it would really go anywhere. 4 reviews aren't a lot, but it's enough to inspire me. I'll be sure to update more frequently. Thank you for reading and please review :)