Chapter 15

        "Shit man! This hurts like hell. Just let me die. I can't take the pain anymore." Bobby cried out in discomfort as his friends amputated his right leg. 

       "I can't do this." 

       "Hold his mouth, dude! Be a man." Antonio snarled. He flung his socks over to Nelson. 

       Shivering and sweating endlessly, he thrust the socks into Bobby's mouth and held them. "Everything's going to be alright soon." 

       Michael scrunched close to Ken. He placed his right hand on the bite mark on his neck and sobbed. "Why don't you just cut off your arm? Everything would be alright if you just did." 

       "Everything won't be alright!" Bobby squeaked. I'm in so much pain. They should have just let me turn into those demons, that way I won't have to go through this. 

       Nelson studied the computer room. Half an hour had gone since they manage to get out of the bar they were partying at when everything started. He settled down on a long black wooden chair. Taking a closer look at the computer screen in front of him, he pitied his reflection. He balled his eyes in disdain at the paper, envelopes, and leftover food disassembled around the desk. Whoever owned this place is more horrendous than the living dead outside.

       He stacked the papers and envelopes together then grabbed the brush by the door and tidied up the table. He needed to get his mind off their reality. The guys didn't seem to care about what he was doing. Nelson stood by the window, counting the living dead waiting to welcome them if they dared to open the door, Bobby lamented softly, the blood gushing from his amputated leg didn't want to stop while Micheal rested his head on Ken's shoulder, recalling good times. 

       "Hey, come see this." Nelson snapped his finger. "Come quickly." 

       Antonio scurried to the window, behind him then looked outside. He inhaled and exhaled. "Finally. We are very close to Prestige. But there's no way to get in without being spotted by those living dead. I heard the number of living dead in there is almost an entire city." But we need food desperately. 

       We need a plan. Nelson ran his fingers through his hair, adding a smear of blood from one of the living dead he decapitated on it. Fear gripped him. Among all of them, he was the easiest to offend and the quickest to get alarmed by the littlest thing. He was ravenous like them. One of his unique qualities, when frightened was to lose appetite even when hungry. They had gone from house to house, looking for a place to find food for the past several days. Bobby had almost given up and committed suicide when Ken mentioned Prestige Restaurant to them. 

       At first, every last one of them was against it as everyone already knew Prestige Restaurant was the worst place to be after the spread of the virus. 'A beggar has no choice.' Ken had told them. They needed to loot to survive. 

       Just then, an idea struck his head. He grabbed Antonio's hand like an overly excited little child after opening a birthday present and said, "Remember how that kid said these things can't see in the dark?" 

       "Yeah." Antonio's eyebrows snapped. He stroked his beard slowly. 

       "Well, Prestige Restaurant. The last time I was there with my uncle to fix their light situation, I saw my uncle go to the back. Their fuse box is outside the building. If we can get past these living dead out here and turn off the lights in the restaurant, we'll be able to steal as much food as we can and then escape without being seen or bitten." 

       "Sounds like a great plan. How do we get past these living dead out here?" 

       "Create a distraction," Ken growled. Sweat rolled down his swollen face as he struggled to defeat the spread of the virus in his body. "That kid also said it. The living dead are attracted to noise. If you can find anything that will lure them away from here, you'll be able to run into Prestige and achieve your goal." 

       "No. We can't leave anyone of you behind." Antonio replied sympathetically. "I won't do that."

       "Are you nuts?" Ken choked. He forced his head up, pushing Micheal away from him. "Do you want me to die as a bad friend, huh? I may have backstabbed our team a few months back but I'll never try to hurt anyone of you. I won't be able to forgive myself if I attack y'all." 

       "But," 

       "Prestige Restaurant." He chimed in. He was running out of time. The veins in his body could be seen even from afar and his heartbeat slowed down. "When you get in, climb the stairs, the room directly after the elevator is where you'll see food, snacks, and water. Get it and come back fast. If I haven't changed yet, we'll drink till sunrise." 

       "This isn't fair." Nelson wept. He bit his lower lip, gazing around to hide his fear.

       "Life isn't. Life's never been fair to anyone." Ken put his hand in his pocket and pulled out an envelope. He gave it to Michael and urged him to open it only after he had gone. 

       Bobby moaned. He lifted his head and then shook it at Antonio's question. There was no way he could come with them on one leg. His pain was agonizing and he didn't want to be an additional burden on them. "I'll wait with Ken until you guys return." He smiled reminiscently. A drop of tear fell down his cheek as he stared at his leg on the chair. Antonio's gaze caught on instantly. He carried the amputated leg, walked into the bathroom and dumped it on the floor then shut the door. "Don't even think about having all the meatballs." He threatened, pointing at Nelson. "And, if I don't make it, tell Anne I love her. I know she cheated on me," He shot Ken a judgemental look then went on with what he was saying, "But I still love her. She shouldn't feel guilty at all. I promise, if there's anything like the next world, I won't be chubby. I'll be muscular like Ken and Antonio." 

       "Shut up, meatball." Ken taunted. "You'll make it. It's just a minor pain, you'll get through it." 

       Minor? he scoffed in disbelief. I'm the one with no leg and he's calling it minor? Does he even know how it feels? "I see, you still have a big mouth. You want me to strangle you first." 

       "Yes, please. If you don't, I might come at you first. Wow, with that excess flesh, I'm sure you have fifteen gallons of blood enough for me." 

       "Do you hear that!" Bobby complained. He raised his leg and then fell back on the long table. For a second he forgot he had lost a leg. Crying silently and panting to avoid drawing attention from the monsters outside, he said, "He...even in that condition he's still picking on me. Just wait, I'll kill you with my hands. You are mean. I'm chubby so what? Is it wrong for a guy to be chubby?" He's so mean to me. I almost felt sorry for him and this is how he behaves toward me. 

       "He's kidding, Meatball." Antonio passed Ken's cricket bat to Bobby. He turned away, trying to control his feelings. "If," 

       "If I try to attack you, use the cricket bat to smash my skull." Ken completed his sentence. He could read the compassion in the eyes of his friends. His soul ached. The same people he betrayed a few months ago were the same people looking out for him. Never did he think he would get forgiven after everything he did. "You need to go now." I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I just can't tell them even if I want to. "Go. I'm fine." 

       "Ken, you were a great friend," Michael said. He embraced him not giving any thought to their warnings. "I'm glad I met you." 

       "Hey, you know I wasn't." 

       "You'll always be my favorite human and role model." Nelson hugged him warmly. "I enrolled in a gym in Texas because I wanted to be like you. It's unfair that you won't get to see me after I become muscular." 

       "Make sure to send a picture to my hometown. I'll be waiting for it." 

       "You were a jerk. A real pain in my ass. I was very upset when I heard what you did but after a while, I started to understand everything. You needed space and we...we should have understood that." Antonio cleared his throat. He drew his lip between his teeth and then continued, "We should have been there for you. I'm sorry I wasn't a good friend and leader." 

       They are apologizing for my mistake. Why? Why didn't I get to enjoy this side of them before parting ways? This is my fault. "The past is the past. I have just three minutes left. You need to go right now!" 

       "Bros forever." 

       "Bros forever." They harmonized. 

       "What? Am I a mouse or what? Why isn't anyone saying anything to me?" Bobby grimaced. They are giving all their attention to the one who double-crossed us. How incredible. "Just go." Why did they cut off my leg? I should have been in his place with him. 

       "Meatball, no one's forgotten you. We're coming back to get you." Michael assured. He rubbed his palm on his head. "Once we get out of Prestige Restaurant, we'll have to find a way out of here. No one's coming to save us. We'll need to fight to survive on our own." 

       Saying their last goodbyes to Ken, Antonio pressed the light button on the car key he was holding, the living dead outside ran towards the car, snarling and shrieking. He took one more glance at Ken and a reassuring look at Bobby then pulled the door open. 

      Nelson didn't want to leave. He held onto the door firmly but was kicked out forcefully by Ken. "Meatball," Ken called out softly after they had gone. 

       "4514," he muttered the tattoo on Ken's middle finger. "Is that your game password? All these while the password was written on your finger and I didn't notice?" 

       "Not many people take notice of someone's fingers. By the way, keep these numbers in your head. You might need it for later. You could be a hero. Oh, 32. You'll be needing that as well. It's my lucky number."  

       Definitely. If I can access his gaming account, I could be the strongest player ever. "Thanks, bro."

       "Bobby."

       He twisted his finger, counting the time with his lips. "What? Is this a goodbye or what? You've never addressed me by my name ever. You're the reason everyone calls me meatball." 

      "One day you'll thank me for that name. It's a great name for a special occasion."

       Special occasion my foot. I go to a party and someone yells 'Meatball.' What's special about that? "You're a terrible friend." He scowled. 

      "I'm sorry, Bobby. I never understood the true meaning of friendship. I never valued anyone aside from myself. I was so engrossed in my greed for success that I forgot everything we went through together." Ken broke down in tears. His ears twitched. "I...I didn't mean any harm. I've always felt envious of you. You were nothing but you had everything. I was so agitated that I never got any attention that's why I left our cricket team and joined the opposing team. I'm sorry." 

       Envious? "Ken, what was there to be envious of? I had nothing. Everyone knew me as the oversized guy, The guy who couldn't stop eating meatballs. To be honest, I was jealous of you. That's exactly why I wanted to be your friend. You had everything I wanted and admired. Ken, you were never satisfied that's why you didn't see the many people cheering and chanting your name in the crowd. And Anne. She's always loved you. No matter what I did, she analogized me to you. I still loved you despite knowing about her feelings. Leaving our cricket team was one thing, calling me obnoxious names was bearable; I just didn't expect you to steal my girl." 

       "You can hate me for as long as you live, I won't blame you." his head moved back and forth, flesh turning pale, bones restructuring. "I deserve it. Please, don't blame Anne for anything. She loves you still." 

       "Don't die. I still have...I still have to show her I'm better than you." Please don't die, Ken. I care about you a lot. 

       "Thanks, bro. I feel so elated to hear you say that. I thought I had lost a good friend. Meatball, it's time. Kill me." 

       "No. I can't. I won't do it even if you pull my hair out." He threw the bat away, folding his arms in protest. "I'm sorry. I know I said I'll kill you with my hands. It was only an expression. I didn't mean anything. Please don't go. We still have a lot we haven't done on our to-do list." 

       I should have let Nelson stay behind. He's going to die if he doesn't kill me first. Fuck! Why isn't there a way out of this? I don't want to die either. "Meatball, you will die if you don't kill me." his voice became colder than before. Struggling to fight it, he held his hand from twisting. "Please, don't make me become a murderer. I don't want to hurt you." 

       "Good. Then why are you trying to make me a murderer? I don't want to hurt you either. Let's just go together. I'm in a lot of pain already and I don't think I'll make it out alive. I'll only be a huge burden to the guys. Please take me with you." 

       "And your mum? You are so selfish. Once she returns from South Africa, she'll hear her only child is dead. Did you even think about her for a second?" He picked up the bat, opened Bobby's folded arms, he placed it in his hands. "Do it now!" his eyeballs disappeared slowly as tears rolled down his eyes. "You're a loser. A big fat loser, Meatball!" 

       "Enough!" 

       "Coward. This is why Anne left you for me. Oversized fool. You can never be like me in a million years. Your mum probably forgot her appointment to get you aborted." 

       "Please stop! Don't say anything about my mum." 

       "I hope she doesn't find true love after what she did to your dad." 

       Before Ken's hands could reach for his throat, he swung the cricket bat around. The table broke, making him fall heavily on his broken leg. Ken moved swiftly like a whistle had been blown. Bobby pushed and kicked, crying for help. The living dead outside ran to the door, pulling the door knob and growling. 

       He jerked away, leaping towards the bathroom door. He didn't make it there when Ken attacked him again. "Ken, it's me. It's your Meatball. Don't do this." He pushed Ken away but didn't get into the bathroom when another living dead flew in through the window and pounced on him. "Coach? Please let me be. Why is everyone I know trying to murder me?" He flung the rotten flesh demon across the room and Ken to the other end. Ken crawled up to him on the wall, pulling the toilet door aggressively.  This is the end. It's over for me. I should have gone with Antonio instead. His firm grip was overpowered by Ken's resilience. Falling on his cut-off leg, he moved back swiftly and jumped up. Never did he imagine he could be the 2022 version of Flash. Bobby shut his eyes, breathing heavily. "Do it. I won't resent you. It's not your fault." Hardly did he take his hand off Ken's neck, a knife popped out in his face, dividing Ken into two halves.