The fence looked like a firing line
by the time I could look back after
seeing many dropping at a time.
We made our way around to the
back and the firing halted as we
started in on all the rotters. Some had
made it as far as getting up on the
cars.
I ran out of ammo again so I
jumped into the bucket and leaped out
pulling my knife from its holster and
burying it into a rotter’s head. I
jumped back up and looked around to
see about twenty five to thirty left
roaming. Bo threw his rifle over the
fence and I ran over to it and started
shooting until I was out of ammo once
again, but I wasn’t too concerned
seeing as how only three were still
standing. Gizmo plowed them into the
ground with the bucket of the backhoe
and I slowly started walking around
our base to get back to the front while
covered in blood and brain matter. I
stopped to shake some intestine off
my foot and continued walking.
Donald patted my back as I walked
by. Jason was jumping around trying
to get his adrenalin back down.
I cracked the fence back open and
walked through it. Kris was taking the
meat off the pit and Tiffany was
helping her slice it up and displaying
it on a tray.
I walked to the school and washed
off and changed clothes before
coming back out.
Tiffany walked over with a plate
that had a little bit of everything in it.
“One of those days, huh.” She held
out the plate to me.
I took it and started eating. They
made a plate for all of us guys that
had been cooking all day and handed
them out one by one as everyone
made it back.
WAKING UP the next morning, I
was moving a little slower from
soreness.
I raised up slowly. “Yeah, I’m not
as young as I used to be. Probably not
the best idea for me to be jumping off
backhoes and doing Achilles moves.”
She cracked a smile. “Achilles?”
“Yeah, you know like the movie
Troy when he stabs the one guys and
starts screaming, is there no one else.”
I responded.
She started rubbing my back.
“You’re more of the movie buff than I
am.”
I walked by and rubbed the top of
his head. “Go grab your football and
meet me outside.”
He smiled real big and ran over to
the few toy like items that he had and
started digging.
I turned just in time to catch the
ball. I twirled it around a few times to
see the ink from a golden marker
signed “Joe Montana”. I could only
imagine how much that ball would
have been worth before all the chaos
took over the world.
I didn’t see Kris walk out, but she
intercepted the ball when he tried to
throw it back to me.
Within a thirty-minute stretch, we
had about a dozen people outside
playing catch.
Gizmo was one of them. “Hell,
let’s start a game.” He threw the ball
to me.
I caught it, but covering it up
quickly as I seen Lisa making her way
behind me. “I’m down, but we need
more people than this.”
Kris caught the ball and walked it
to the middle. “How about my team
verses your team?”
She
started pointing. “Myself,
Bobbi, Lisa, Karen and Shianne.
We’ll play against you, Gizmo,
Howard, Bo and Daltin.”
I thought about it for a minute.
“How about we take Robin and
Howard can play ref?”
I took the football from Kris and
tossed it to her. “There ya go, Tiffany
can be full time quarterback.”
Kris started digging in her pockets.
“I don’t have anything to flip to see
who gets the ball first.”
I put my hand on Daltin’s shoulder.
“Well we can either flip Daltin or just
say ladies first.” I laughed.
I turned to my team and we
dropped back. “Who wants to kick
it?”
I shrugged my shoulders and lined
up with the ball and was about to kick
it.
I smirked and ran up to the ball and
booted it to the end zone and blasted
forward. Robin and Bo ran past me
with their long legs and tapped them
down at the five-yard line.
Tiffany lined up with the ball and
Lisa and Karen split off as receivers.
“Ready…Set……. Hut!”
Tiffany tossed the ball to Kris and I
tapped her down for a loss of two
yards.
She threw her hands up and smiled
because she knew I was telling the
truth.
Their team moved back to the
three-yard line and Tiffany took the
ball again. “Ready…Set……Hut,
hut!” She broke back and tossed a
bomb that I was even impressed by.
Bo leaped over Karen and snatched
in in midair and ran it back for a
touchdown. “Seven to ZERO!” He
spiked the ball down.
Karen put her arms up. “What the
fuck, how the hell am I supposed to
get the jump on a tower?”
Tiffany brought the ball out to the
twenty-yard line and waited for me to
kick it again.
I held my right arm up letting them
know that I was about to kick and ran
at it and kicked it to the twenty-fiveyard line, but I slipped on a bit of
snow and fell to the ground.
Lisa caught it and started running.
She started dodging everyone. Gizmo
got one hand on her and I was trying
me best to get up to tag her the second
time, but she blew passed me.
They walked the field and we stood
there waiting on them to figure out
who was going to kick the ball.
Finally, Bobbi lined up with the
ball and booted it to our thirty-yard
line. Bo caught it and started running.
Once the women got closer he tossed
the ball back to Daltin and he started
running down the boundary line and
into the end zone.
We walked the field. I started
running fast towards the ball and their
team started backing up and I kicked
the top of the ball to do an onside
kick.
Tiffany tossed the ball behind her
to me and I started running across the
side. Once everyone started coming
for me, I threw a bomb to Robin in
the end zone.
We started walking the field and
could see Bo staying behind and
talking to Lisa.
I looked over to everyone else.
“Y’all want to pause this game and
come back to it later?”
“Oh, someone’s getting scared of
this ass whooping that’s about to
happen.” Bobbi stated.
I started laughing. “No, Daltin is
shivering and I don’t want him to get
sick.”
I looked up and looked around to
see how much more snow lied on the
ground. “Yeah, I’m sure we’ll wake
up to a pretty good blanket. I don’t
suggest it’ll get too bad though, it
never does in Texas.”
We all walked over to the cafeteria
to see if we could get some soup and
crackers from Milissa. I could see
Bobbi standing out by the storage
building.
I stopped. “Bobbi!”
Bobbi came running over with her
jacket pulled tight around her. “Yes,
sir?”
I put my hand on the top of her
back and led her to the cafeteria.
“We’re not doing anything today hun,
no point in sitting out there freezing
your ass off.”
She shook her head. “I just didn’t
want to be missing in action on my
first day of the job.”
I shook my head as wel
l. “I like
your drive, but there’s no need to be
out today.”
We walked into the cafeteria and
grabbed some soup, crackers and
some coffee.
Milissa came sat at the table with
us. “My lord, how can you drink
coffee at this hour?”
She put her hand on her hip. “I
could have made some hot
chocolate.”
We talked amongst each other until
the dinner crowd started pouring in
and made our way to the school.
They looked at each other. “Well,
he’s keeping Lisa company right
now.”
They walked in and sat on one of
the cots. I had some more coffee
going. I took it off and poured a cup.
“Y’all want some?”
I poured a second cup. “You know,
we’re not in school, you don’t have to
raise your hand.”
I caught onto the joke. “Okay
, so
we are in school, but we don’t have a
teacher that’s going to walk by and
smack your hand with a ruler or
anything.”
Kris smiled. “I might.”
I looked at Tiffany. “You were
asking about a job the other day.
Well, I’d like to put you as a floater
between our teams as a medic.”
I looked over at him. “I’m going to
try you out on our team, but the first
time you freeze up, I’ll have to pull
you for your own safety.”
We talked for about an hour before
I walked them out so I could get some
sleep. “Surely Bo and Lisa are done
keeping each other company by now.”
AS SOON as I woke up the next
morning I walked out of the room to
see Bo walking out of his room too.
He started walking down the hall
towards me. “Not really…why do you
ask?”
I started walking with him to go
outside. “Is that what the kids are
calling it these days?”