Rivet Town

Last Day Alive

The glowing orange sky lights faintly the old, almost decaying wood sign reading "Rivet Town - Population: 208". A single row of buildings, all empty-looking, stands up in this desert. Plains rolled as far as the eye can see and a lonely dry bush passed by, lazily carried by the wind.

Two horses appear, ridden by two nervous connected souls. The first one, a young woman with long black hair and tanned skin, had bags under her eyes. She had a pistol resting on her hip, ready to be fired if anything were to get in her way. The second one, a young man with blond hair and pale skin, had the left arm of his white button-up shirt torn off. He was also armed with a shotgun resting on his chest. Both were tired and praying they could get some rest."Finally! Some good 'ol rest! This ain't La Jolla, but we'll get there soon. I'd kill for a nice mattress..." said the boy. "Dash, dear. I would take it first and you know it," replied the girl, with evidence. "I got a crazy idea, Molly May... How 'bout we share it, huh?" The boy flashed a seductive smug towards his target, who sighed, used to this behavior.

Arriving near the entrance of a saloon with a dirty sign written "Ye Old Booze", they stopped their horses. Getting down smoothly from it, Dash grabbed his mount's reins and motioned Molly May to give him her horse's. Smiling, she jumped down and gave up the reins. The latina gave a small peck on the cheek of her partner and walked up the porch of the bar.

They have been stealing together for almost four whole years. Molly May has never been so happy. She never got fulfillment from any of her jobs, whether it was planning heists at first or selling her body after. Pulling heists herself had always seemed the better option and she couldn't ask for a better partner in crime. Dash asked for her bed services once, and just after getting it done, he asked her about her previous job and if she wanted to get back into stealing. She didn't hesitate a single second and with that both their strategies and their relationship evolved. Dash himself had a very bushy past. All that Molly May knew, is that his family got killed because his father didn't pay some debts, and that he, as an 11 year old kid, had to kill the loan sharks himself. A total of 15 bodies, from what information she was able to gather.

The black-haired woman opened the double swinging doors, revealing the inside of the crusted saloon. Tables and chairs were scattered everywhere, upside down, looking like they had been thrown there in panic. The second floor only had railings, and Molly May could see all the doors leading to what she used to call "work-rooms". As she took a step in, a floorboard theatrically creaked under her feet. She made a beeline for the bar, seeking to find trinkets and hopefully food . As she was rummaging through the shelves, Dash entered the saloon. With his white button-up shirt and his glazing brown eyes, Molly May couldn't help but stare at the handsome man she could call her partner. Noticing her gaze, Dash smirked. "I'm goin' to check the second floor, but after, don't worry, I'll be all yours, darlin' ."

He winked, and went up the stairs leading to the rooms. The cowgirl blushed. As far as she knew, he was the only man to ever be able to do it. She rummaged a bit more in the bar, pulling out bottes of whiskey, gin and bourbon.

Then a blood-curling scream came from one of the rooms upstairs. 

Dash.

Molly May shot her head up and saw one of the doors opened. She ran for the stairs, getting her pistol out and calling her partner's name out loud in panic.

Rushing inside, she could see the whole situation. Before her eyes, a zombie, dressed as a prostitute with a purple frilly dress and black knee socks, was trying to bite rabidly a helpless Dash, both thrown across the hardwood floor. Dash's shotgun was under him, the strap making it unreachable. Molly May didn't hesitate one second and shot the prostitute clear in the temple, blood splashing on the walls and on Dash. He pushed the zombie off him, and held his forearm. Her lover crouched beside him, holding his head between her hands. "Dash! Dash are you hurt? Are you okay?" "My fuckin' arm..." he responds, still grasping it tightly. With a concerned expression on her face, the black-haired woman gently pushed away his hands revealing the injury.

It was a bite. A bad one.

The teeth had pierced through the white fabric and the skin, leaving blood and dark saliva all over it. The skin had been pierced, and without a doubt, it was contaminated. Tears began forming in their eyes, one from realization and one from despair. Molly May held Dash, who threw his arms around her in a desperate embrace, knowing his destiny was sealed. They both knew how much time they had left. Until the sun got down. In an hour.

"I am so sorry..." Cried Molly May. Dash also began to sob, rather violently, against his lover's shoulder. "I don't wanna die... I'm gonna die... Molly..." "Shhhh... It's okay... You're gonna be okay..." Still in each other's arms, they cried and cried, slowly accepting the cowboy's fate. After a while, Dash raised his head. His eyes were red and his cheeks were still wet from the tears. Molly May stared at him like it was one of the last times, because it was. He pulled himself together quickly, even if he knew this act wouldn't convince his partner. "Let's do something. I don't have much time left and I don't want to spend it like a sad mess." "Are you sure? 'Cause we can..." "No. Let's do something fun. D'you find booze?" "Yeah... Still downstairs, though." "Go get it, please. We're gonna get wrecked, love."

It was almost sundown. They had tried to make the most of the little time they had left together: played cards, turned the bar upside down, drank (a lot), and it was almost the fateful time.

Not without difficulty, they were able to get on the flat roof. They had brought some pillows and blankets. Or at least Molly May did. Dash was in bad shape. His skin was flaky and pale, his teeth were slowly turning yellow and talking cost him energy that he clearly didn't have. He had even deeper bags under his eyes and his breath was rancid. On the roof, they could see the horizon, bloody red as the sun was about to set. In about a minute or two, there will only be one person on the building, and both of the lovers are fully aware of it.

Setting down on the spruce wood, surrounded by blankets, Dash and Molly May watched as the sun got lower and lower in the sky. The latina desperately looked down at the shivering mess that used to be her brave life partner. With what just might be his last breath, Dash whispered as loud as he could: "I love you, Molly May..." A single tear dramatically fell on his cheek as he said his words.

The biggest of stars had started to disappear and as suddenly, the blond started twitching. Molly May held him tighter than ever before, stopping him from getting up. As the sun got down, Dash moved more and more rabidly, and it was becoming obvious he was trying to bite his lover. Molly May started to sob, forced to keep his dehumanized life partner locked in her arms to stop him from biting her.

The dawn was almost over and the black-haired woman knew what to do. A feeling of betrayal stabbed her as she realized what she had to do. While looking at the last ray of sunshine, refusing to look at the thing that became Dash, Molly May took his sweaty forehead in her right hand and his chin in her left. He was no longer human.

She cracked his neck like a giant on a twig.

The body in her arms went limp instantly. She sobbed violently, knowing it was the only solution. The sky went as black as ink, stars revealing themselves over Molly May's shaking head.

With the corpse of her lover now cold resting on her, she reached for her hip and took out her pistol.

Putting the barrel in her mouth, she closed her eyes.

A loud bang exploded in Rivet Town as a body fell on its soul mate's corpse.