The Long Way To Reno (5 page)

            I
didn’t feel the need to make myself look pretty and wiped at my nose to make
sure I wasn’t snotty, still. Then realized how utterly
shallow
I was at
a time like this.

            “I
hid over there,” I gestured at the 1
^st
section, “then found this
stuff in Red. Do you know about outside?”

            He
shook his head immediately. “You can’t go outside. There’s more out there.”

            “Like
what?
Aliens
?” I asked sardonically.

            He
looked at me with a forceful nod and serious expression. When he looked like
that, he really looked like that guy. What was his name? Argh, I never paid
much attention to him when Tom Hardy’s more dashing Eames was around.    

            “Really
tall, really big. See, we made it outside when the infected came in, but when
we saw them – some of us came back in,” he explained. His face told me
how awful that event was. Sheesh, he made
me
want to protect him. “They
didn’t make it far. It was like they were waiting for us to come out. They were
in the sky, on the ground – they sent in those infected like – to
flush us out, or something.”

            I
adjusted a loose strap on my vest, giving him a skeptic look. “If there are
aliens outside, why don’t they come in and finish the job?”

            He
shrugged. He was wearing a loose Henley with a big tear at the shoulder.
Revealing a t-shirt underneath. I bet if he wasn’t wearing that T-shirt, he’d
be thin. He looked like he’d get cold faster than I would if he went outside. I
noticed how bloody it was. Remembered how bad it stank when that woman went
psycho on the other one. I handed him the flashlight, then wiggled my arms
underneath my vest and Halo shirt. He kept talking, shining the light randomly
at the floor, not even paying attention to what I was doing.

            “I
don’t know if they could fit. They were really,
really
big. Thick.
Like…like the Maxx,” he said suddenly, and I was jolted at the 90’s reference.
I stilled with the shirt pulled mostly off my head, stunned that someone like
him could namedrop a character so classic. He gave a funny snort, waving the
flashlight around. “Like you’d know what that is, probably beyond your time,
but – “

“I
know who that is,” I said – well, snapped. I held out the shirt, and he
realized what I was doing.

            “Oh,
no, that’s okay, I mean - !”

“Just
take the shirt, I’m sure yours smells disgusting,” I added. “I have another one.”

            He
noticed this, and then took it with a muttered ‘thanks’. I took the flashlight
back, and he changed quickly. I saw freckled ribs and sunken stomach when his
dark green tee caught to his Henley, and wanted to mutter ‘ew’ aloud. But I
didn’t because I was too tired to be out loud judgmental.

            “So,
uh…this Jeff person?” I asked, once he pushed his boring brown hair back into
place. The more time we spent whispering harshly to each other, the more I
started to realize that he was definitely a comrade.

            He
shook his head. I noticed that his name badge, reading his name as Harley Troy.
Dashingly plain and boring, fitting for a scrawny guy with boring brown eyes
and wavy brown hair. I remembered the times he nearly collided his picking cart
with mine, and how rude he was with never saying ‘sorry’ or ‘excuse me’.

            I
noticed he was looking for my name badge – I must’ve lost mine. I didn’t
bother giving my name unless he asked.

            “Not
good news. Yeah, he and the trash guys helped knocked some of the infected
down, but then…he’s always been this, like, power hungry guy. He….” Harley
trailed off, squinting at me, like he didn’t believe me. “You didn’t run into
them?”

            “No.
I was hiding. I didn’t know what was going on.”

            He
was quiet for a few moments, then continued on with, “He separated people into
groups. Like…old people and young people. Fat, skinny – he, uh…he made
the...”

            I
stared at him for a few moments. Wondered about this Jeff guy getting all
‘power hungry’ in the midst of carnage and chaos.

            “Well,
basically, he took the guys that listened to him and the younger girls. Left
the others to die. When they did, he and the guys killed them. He had a gun in
his car that he got before – like, the aliens could catch him.”

            I
stared at him for a few moments, unsure of how to process that. It sounded so
ridiculous. Everyone knew, in moments of alien invasion and zombie hordes that
you stuck together. You don’t purposefully do stuff like that.

            “Huh,”
was all I said. I looked at him and wondered why he wasn’t part of any group.

            He
wiped his hands on his pants. I figured he hid, like me. Normal human reaction
for wimps. That part I understood, so I didn’t judge him on that. I wondered
where
he hid.

            “So,
what were you planning on doing?” I asked curiously. I cupped the light with
one hand and wondered if Jeff and his group was going to be another obstacle in
my plans to get to Reno.

            “Wait
it out,” he replied, scrunching his eyebrows. “Then go out. I unlocked one of
the doors – “

            “They
have them
all
locked?” I asked. It made sense, now, for the things on
the outside. But I didn’t want to be in here for very long. I needed to get to
my parents.

            “Most.
But I unlocked one of the doors in Orange,” he said, and I looked in that
direction. It was spread along the far wall beyond this section, and was a
straight shot from us. It opened towards the Walmart Superstore across the
street. Perfect. I needed to find my keys.

            “Do
you think it’s safe to go, now?” I then asked.

            He
shrugged. Jammed his hands into his jeans pocket. I wondered about the fitting
amount of time to wait out the aliens patrolling the grounds outside. They had
to get tired of the place soon. They have bigger places to conquer. Like L.A.
New York. Not stupid, butt-friendly Fernley.

            “Where
are you from?” he then asked. I noticed he hesitated on adding something to
that, watching his face shift to an uncomfortable scowl at the floor. Maybe he
thought I wanted to stay with him, or something. I didn’t want to – he
didn’t look manly enough to protect me. So I hoped he didn’t try to suggest we
continue on together.

            “Reno,”
I replied cautiously. “I need to get to Reno. I’m trying to find my car keys. I
dropped them when all this started.”

            “I’ll
help. Cold Springs,” he then added, gesturing at himself. I scrunched my own
face. Before I could comment, he said with a light chuckle, “I know, I know. I
live with roommates. Gay ones. I mean,
I’m
not gay, but
they
are.
Serious couple. Domestic partnership, or something. I don’t know. It was a
Craig’s List find. So…you?”

            After
that unneeded explanation, I said, “I live with my parents.”

            He
looked relieved for some reason. “I thought so. You’re – you looked
pretty attached to them.”

            I
didn’t really think into that statement because I was distracted by the thought
that if we were going to stick into this building situation together, he needed
to be armed, too. Our survival while searching for my keys couldn’t depend
entirely on me – I mean, I’m pretty useless without an X-Box controller
in one manicured hand.

            I
unhooked my Fubar and handed it to him. An expression of disapproval made
itself known on my features when he rejected it with a shake of his boring
head. He instead reached out toward the safety rail and pulled to him a fire ax
– the blade was wet with blood and gore, and he gave a smile as he
handled the weapon with some confidence. The way he swished it around to
dislodge some of the thicker substance on the blade made me reconsider his
strength – for a guy with stringy arms, he did have some muscle to him.

            “I
got this. Worked good so far,” he said, examining the blade.

            I
thought I felt reassurance in his manly abilities rush through me, but it
might’ve been the orange juice I drank earlier, replenishing what nutrients I’d
lost.

Chapter Three

I
sat in the darkness while Harley used my flashlight to go look for his own
supplies on this level. I felt slightly better knowing I wasn’t alone, even if
it was just Harley Troy. I guess I shouldn’t knock on him too badly – he
might be my only ride back to Reno if I couldn’t find my damn keys.

I’d
asked him to keep a lookout for them – a car and house key with an anime
character keychain – but I guess he hadn’t found them yet. I couldn’t
help but give a start at the rustling sounds that happened every so often
throughout the warehouse. I didn’t see any lights anywhere, no other survivors
making themselves known. It wasn’t those things, either, because they hadn’t
gotten all snarly and rabid – I gave a start, feeling inspired. I found
my name for them – the Rabid. They were all frothy and dangerous, and
they sounded all like how I guess animals on rabies would, so the name made
sense.

Harley
dropped something, and it made my entire body jerk. I was seated against some
totes near the conveyor, where I faced an equipment elevator. If somebody
rushed at me, I could run comfortably in either direction without hitting
anything; I could take the stairs down, I could run down that aisle –
hoping that there were no abandoned carts in my path. Once I settled myself
back into my seat, exhaling heavily, I continued to think about my parents.

Harley
came back, holding an armful of things. He set his things down next to me,
handing me my flashlight. I illuminated his actions as he dumped it all into
the backpack, with no real organization. He was going to regret that later, if
he found himself in a situation where he needed something real quick and he
couldn’t find it because he was messy. Maybe his home looked the same way.

“Thanks
for this,” he then said, indicating the backpack.

He
had found some gummy bears, and opened the bag to dig out a handful and stuff
them into his mouth. Then offered some to me, but I didn’t feel like eating at
the moment. He then sat down in a similar position as mine, and I used the
flashlight to touch on some of the things that I knew was there. Overturned
carts and spilled totes lay nearby. Blood stains on the conveyer and ripped
clothing caught my attention next.

It
was silent between us for awhile. I didn’t know what to say, my mind overrun
with all thoughts and possibilities, trying to convince myself to do something
right. I didn’t know what he was thinking about, and I kind of didn’t care. In
invasions like these, it was hard to make friends – who knew who was
going to betray who, and leave who, and who gets killed in the next act? It was
an all for one situation.

I
thought about those girls Jeff had gathered and wondered if I knew them. That
situation didn’t make sense to me, because that sort of thing always happened
weeks later, when the survivors realize that there was no hope and colonies or
groups had to be established. I wondered if I should do something – tried
to put myself in their position. I’d want someone to rescue me. I knew I couldn’t
do it myself. I was incapable of such things. I did so many horrible things to
survive thus far – what if I was able to do something good to overcome
the bad, ensure my way into heaven? If my parents were already there, I needed
to be on the same route.

“Did
you know Jeff?” I whispered, wincing at the volume of my own voice within the
thick stillness.

Harley
ate some more gummies. Did a shrug and shake of his head thing. “Acquaintances.
I knew this guy that was friends with him, and – well, that’s how I know
him. I didn’t hang out with him or anything.”

I
examined my nails before saying slowly, “Should we do something? About it?”

He
had an awful habit of shrugging, because he did it again. “I wouldn’t, to be
honest.”

I’d
expected more of a cheesy answer, an enthusiastic jump to be hero or something.
Not the answer he gave, so I looked at him. “Why?” I asked, without thinking.

“I
just…in a situation like this? I mean, I wasn’t taught to – like, I don’t
know too many people here, I’m not attached to them. It’s like…I’m already
surviving a weird situation here. Why try to save others when you’re too busy
trying to survive yourself?” he stammered, looking really uncomfortable and not
making eye contact.

I
guess he made sense. I mean, yeah, no judgment here, but…I guess I was just too
used to the movies where people went back to help others. Not abandon them. I
didn’t know those women. Plus, Harley didn’t look the hero type. Definitely the
hide-and-survive type.

            “You
were ‘taught’?” I then questioned. “Like, someone taught you to survive zombie
apocalypses?”

            Harley
was sweating over my questions, shifting around uneasily. Made a face while he
answered. “My dad. I….he always said, ‘You over them’. To always choose –
well, it just makes sense. Neither of us are heroes. Why – why risk our
lives for people we don’t know?  I just…”

            “No,
I understand,” I said with a nod. He made sense to me.

It
was really dark, and something clanged loudly to the right of us. Turning off
the flashlight, I waited and listened for anything more. The silence and the
darkness was immense, and made my breath catch in my throat. Even when I felt
his shoe kick my knee as he shifted, the sound of his axe dragging on the floor
as he picked it up, I still felt alone and vulnerable. When nothing more
happened, and I felt my heart rate return to normal, I turned the flashlight
back on, keeping it focused on the floor between us. He relaxed, but resettled
with the axe settled over his lap. He kept eating the gummy bears.

To
relax somewhat, I unclipped my hair. It was waist length, my bangs cut bluntly
over my eyes – I’d also had it colored a brownish-blonde. But since I’d
started working here, my black roots were showing. It was skanky Nevada
stripper hair, my mom had said. I loved her compliments. Thinking about them
only made me miss her and hope that she and dad were okay. I examined the
length of my bangs, absently telling myself they had to be trimmed – my
eyelashes kept getting caught at the ends. Running my fingers through the length
to detangle it, I let my mind wander once more.

Harley
stopped eating and set the bag aside. He looked sick.

I
wasn’t familiar or comfortable with him, so I didn’t say anything – just
gave him a look that said ‘I Told You So’. Even though I didn’t say anything.
My dad hated that look. Called it the skank with attitude look. I missed him so
badly that tears sprang to my eyes, but crying wasn’t helpful right now. I
blinked rapidly and tried to focus on something else other than my dad’s gruff
voice.

“So…”
Harley wiped his hands on his jeans. He had to belt them in place. I missed my
Halo shirt. “What are we going to do?”

“I
dunno.” I flicked aside the strands that had come with my fingers during the
combing. “Hang out for awhile? Avoid those guys?”

“The
infected?”

“The
Rabid,” I corrected, to which he gave me a look. “They act rabid. All snarly
and growling and frantic…the infected sounds too Left4Dead.”

“What’s
that?”

It
startled me when people didn’t know video games. So I went blank for a few
moments before I recovered. “Nothing. Seen ‘28 Weeks Later’?”

“Oh,
uh…no. No, actually. What’s that?”

Great.
A guy that don’t know stuff like that was someone who wasn’t going to get me at
all.

“I
was thinking,” he said, rushing through my silence, “maybe we’ll wait, like,
two hours. Until things blow over. There’s nothing in Fernley for those things
outside to be completely worried about – they should have moved onto Reno
by then.”

“Do
you think this happened everywhere?” I asked, imagining cities being destroyed
by zombies and aliens that looked like the Maxx.

“Yeah.”
Harley folded his hands atop of his lap. He had long, girlish fingers. His
nails were kind of long.
Ew
. “It’d be stupid to think it only happened
here. There’s nothing here in Fernley to have things from another planet
invading it. This happened all over…”

Just
to clarify, I then asked, “ You’ll just let me out? Go on by my own?”

Harley
blinked, then looked at me. Looked rather startled that this was even a
consideration, then proceeded to look really uncomfortable. “Er…well, ah, see
– “

“Because
I don’t need your help. I mean, don’t take it the wrong way, I’m not making it
on my own, but you don’t look the hero type,” I said, flicking hair from my
face. “I don’t think I could rely on you to protect me. I’m just making sure
there’s, like, so you know I won’t be needing your help after getting out of
here.”

Harley
looked at me again, still with that startled expression. I stared at him,
waiting for him to acknowledge this.

“Er…sure.
I mean…I mean, yeah, I wasn’t planning – “

“’You
over them’, remember? Okay, as long’s that’s clear,” I said, nodding. “I just
need your help finding my keys and letting me out. I’ll find somebody else who
can do the job so you can go home.”

Harley
looked as if he didn’t know what to say, blinking repeatedly, and I didn’t have
time for this. I looked away and wondered where my stupid keys were and how
long the aliens were going to take conquering Fernley.

This
weird silence fell, and it wasn’t because of the warehouse’s environment
– something was awkward between us. Like I’d insulted him or something.
He still looked like he didn’t know what to say to me. I was starting to feel
like I shouldn’t have said that aloud, so I changed the subject for him. Asked
him about his New Year’s plans.

It
took him a good minute to even answer. When he did, he cleared his throat and
heaved it out, as if he’d been having a hard time even talking.

“New
Year’s….uh, I was sort of expecting stuff to happen later on. I had plans for
this New Year’s Eve. Me and the guys were going downtown. Well,
they
were going downtown, and I was going to meet up with this girl – “

“You
have a girlfriend?” I interrupted, almost in relief.

“No.
I mean, I met her, we were talking …” he trailed off, and I could tell from the
look on his face that she just wasn’t into him. “Anyway, I was hoping to meet
up with her. Grace. That’s…that’s her name. Grace. Novowitz.”

“Huh.”
I could only imagine a matching, boring personality for this guy – a
chick that had all the right things to say to a guy.

He
sighed heavily. “She’s…well, I don’t think that’s going to happen. I tried to
call her when things started – I made it to the break room, on this
side?”

There
were two break rooms – one in the 1
^st
, one in the 2
^nd
half.

“And
I got to my phone to call people. She didn’t answer. So I was
just…y’know…wondering…None of our phones were working,” he added. “There were
people trying to call, and nothing. No one could get a signal. That’s when
those aliens started breaking in through the windows.”

“What’d
they look like?” I asked, straining to hear anything moving in the still
silence around us.

“Big.
Like the Maxx. Hump backs, these long, buff arms, and they were, like, dark
blue. Their mouths started from here, “ he indicated his own jawline, then
dropped to the center of his chest, “to here, with these – jillions of
tiny, jagged, crooked teeth. I remember those teeth. Big hands. Claws. Picked
up one of the guys, the little Pilipino guys? From the Safety Squad? Bit him
right in half. They kept huffing, like, words. Like….”