And I'm Dead.

Amir went in, examining the hole punctured in my gut. "Fetch me a stretcher! Fast!"

A dry, monochrome motion picture replaced the sight of the cavern's ceiling, replaying the past scenes and lost memories of my life right before my weary eyes.

I entered a dreamlike state in first person, in which I saw a middle-aged man cradling me in his rough yet gentle arms. His tender face and genuine smile being so familiar, yet at the same time unable to grasp that strange feeling of familiarity.

Then the image phased out like fog clearing in a cold forest, and another scene played in. I was inside a closed off blue room with nine other kids. I noticed sleeping bags lying cluttered around the floor, dolls and stuffed toys being played around with by the other children, and a see through glass wall, a woman on the other side observing us --specifically me, writing down something on her notebook after she looked me in the eyes as fiercely as she could, the one with the "Stand down, lowly lab rat or I'll feed you vitamins till you choke on it!" kind of stare.

Then the room drifted away along with the other kids, sending me to yet another setting. This time I was facing a worn out ceiling of bluish-white hue, my arms, legs, and neck were completely tied with leathery straps on a platform I was lying on.

Adrenaline bursted inside of me as a man in a messy lab coat came inside the closed-off room, coming in closer to my tied-up body's presence, holding a green vial --a drug of some sort in his pale hands.

I struggled rampantly as the madman injected the greenish fluids into my forearm; my skin actively reacting to the substance, the area around the contact unveiling a sickly green shade with the veins and blood vessels dull purple. I caught the skin altering into some sort of an insect's hide; violet and green lumps covered in jet-black short hairs materialized all over, spreading to the rest of the limb until the entirety of it was enveloped by the insect-like exterior.

Just as I was about to scream at the highest pitch I could possibly can as to what monstrosity I had become, the setting quickly faded into a mist, and the familiar shout of Amir trudged me back to reality.

"Hold on bro! You ain't dyin' on me!"

I was carried on a stretcher hauled by Amir and Jason. They lumbered past the tents and stopped to a halt at a corner of the cavern. A third person vaulted past them and quickly opened a hidden passage, a staircase leading towards the underground camp.

"I-I... don't want to die." I muttered as I slowly lost consciousness, my head slipping from reality as I faded into a never-ending pit of abyss void of any light. I knew it. I was done for.

...

You know, hell isn't that bad of a place as some others had described it was. Sure, swirls of flames would envelope me day and night to no extent, but with the VIP-only luxury lava pit filled with sexy skeletons with their alluring bikinis, and with these cute worms wriggling under the surface of my boiling skin, I could get used to this.

Sadly, that wasn't exactly the case.

Instead, I was greeted by a gorgeous blonde resting her head on top of my lap while I laid myself on a comfy bed, with an addition of a really cute drool dripping by her cheek. Oh great, NOW I'm also a lewd maniac that forces innocent, beautiful girls to sleep on my lap while I recover from a bullet wound in a white room. AND I thought the drool was cute. What creature am I?

"She's been here for five days straight Zero."

"Holy!" I toppled upon myself as another voice boomed from a corner of the room. I almost went to cardiac arrest to top it off with the bullet wound.

"Aggh!" I winced.

"Don't strain yourself." The doctor said. "The wound may have closed off now but--"

"How many days has it been?"

He moved and paced across the small room, walking back and forth, seemingly trying to find the right words to convey. "Weeks. You mean."

"Wha-"

"Nggh..." The woman resting on my lap opened her deep, ocean-green eyes, meeting the sky blue tint in mine, keeping me in a trance.

The doctor was already closing the door when I took a quick glance back at him, giving me the I'll give you two some privacy look and went away, leaving the both of us alone.

"A-Alex I-"

Slap.

"You...! D-dare die on me?!"

"Look Alex, I-" And then I noticed something was wrong. She was pale. Like, really pale. Her once olive skin was replaced with a gray, hollow-like shade. Her long, wavy hair was all tangled up and messy, like she hadn't taken a bath for a week, which was unlike her. Almost as if she...

"Alex... you've been here all along?"

"Of course you dummy!"

She clenched her fist and tried to hook a jab at my face, but she was already too weak to do any real damage. She was too frail.

"You need to go eat, I'll be fine by myself so-"

"Don't give me that!" She raised her right hand, shaking.

"Alex I'm sorry about what happened but you need to get some rest and eat-"

"I'm not eating anything!" She said. "I won't until... until you're strong enough to eat alongside me, you thickheaded idiot!" All the while smacking my face with her raised palm.

"Okay, let's go get something to eat and-"

"No! I mean... I'll go get it myself. Just... stay put. Please."

Her legs trembled and quavered, taking her all the willpower she could muster just to stand up on her own two feet. If it were some other person seeing her like this, they would most likely do all the work they can for her since she's in such a frail condition, but, knowing her, I'm sure she's doing fine on her own.

Allright. I get it. I won't stop her.

"Bring me a pair of tuna sandwich won't you?" I said, getting a glimpse of a smile unfolding on her face as she exited the room.

...

When she got back, she was leaning against the door, her face weary and tired; she looked even worse than before. Carrying three liters of water and a bag of around twenty sandwiches all the way from the canteen must've been hard in that state, but I'm proud of her for pulling through.

As we dug in to the food she brought in, it was funny seeing her eat, like she was a beast in the manger; her face filled with bread crumbs like she didn't even give a damn.

Without noticing it, the food was gone like poof and we fought for the last piece. In the end though, we split it in half, although her definition of half is questionable in itself.

"You know..." I said. "It would be more fun with the others joining in, right?"

I shouldn't have said that.

"..."

"I've got a question Zero." She got up to the bed and knelt, crawling her way closer and closer to my flustered face like a wild predator, ready to take it's victim's life in any time the prey attempts to escape.

Just inches between our two blood-red faces, she stopped. My senses tingling from her warm breathe as it's warmth settled unto my rough lips like small voltages of electricity; a spark.

"Can I take a bite?" She said seductively, and went in for the bomb. Her soft, tender lips pressed unto mine, sending a chemical reaction to my brain that goes by something like Why are you always so unpredictable? and Why am I liking this?

She shifted her heated body bewitchingly, pulling me in closer to her beating chest as she passionately caressed my lips with hers, our hands intertwined as the moment lasted like an eternity.

Then she pulled away, breaking the link between us. Her face redder than ever, as flushed as it could ever get.

She took her two soft hands, cupping them against my face, and said "Hey. I missed you, you know?" Planting a quick kiss on my bloodshot cheeks.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I fell in love with this literally hot and awesome girl.