NEET vs Zombies

Chapter 02

    ⁃    this story is a work of fiction -

Bright computer lights illuminated the room dipped in darkness, the only sounds being the quiet buzzing from the AC running, the MMO fighting game being played, the rhythmic clicking of the left hand blazing through the expensive gaming keyboard and the aggressive clicking of the computer mouse in the other. The room was like a bomb made out of paper exploded in between the four walls, numerous notes being strewn across the room, the floor a sea of parcel reminders and returned exams, all passed with flying colors. Instead of ashes, there were numerous wrappers of nutrition bars peeking out between the sea of unopened letters , carelessly thrown away, the trash can on the right side of the room already overflowing. The only place where it was tidy was the gaming desk , and the expensive leather chair where the main inhabitant of this room sat, her eyes glued onto the screen, her eyes closely following her character as even the loud noises of gun shooting and announcements from the fictional moderator not being able to shake her from the intense focus. Her eyes only buzzed between her character and the kill count; 17. that was the new high score in a match on the server.

But despite the great feat, she couldn't find herself to be proud, or happy. Nothing mattered anyway. It was merely the fact that games like these made the most sense to her. It was simple, really; get the most kills, the most points, do everything right and follow the instructions, and you were on the right path towards victory.

It was simple, not like real life.

-

Two heads towered over the limp body, both with an incredulous expression on their faces.

„...What should we do with her?"
„How should I know? She stuttered around a bit before she fell over."
„Maybe she was having a seizure. We don't have many medical supplies though."
„Should we just leave her, then?"
„T-That's not what I meant!"

The two argued, the one with blazing red hair looking down on the one whose blond hair was peeking out of the hood of his grey hoodie. The blonde directed his gaze downwards to the girl, his lips tightly pressed together, his eyes narrowed. The other looked at him, before sighing. He tried to put on a tough face again. He cleared his throat, before speaking again.

„Something I found weird was the lack of wounds on her body."

This seemed to catch the blonde's interest, causing his maroon eyes to widen,his gaze snapping towards her form, inspecting it. He could momentarily see him shuddering at the fact, before giving a small nod.

„...you are right. How come? Did she just now leave her house or what? This blood on her apron though...it's already dried. There is no way she didn't come across some Zombies on the way."

The other nodded, looking at the blonde.

„That's what I am saying, it is weird. Eugene.."

he addressed the blonde, making him look up.

„I think it would be good if we take her to the school with us."

Eugene's eyes widened, before he snapped his gaze back to the body. It was softly breathing, so he could be assured that she was at least alive. He seemed to think, silently contemplating the prospect of pros and cons of taking this unconscious body back with them to their hideout, given the situation there are in right now. He then sighed, reluctantly nodding.

„I..okay. But the moment this one makes makes any difficulties on the way home, we are leaving her in some alleyway, okay? I..our survival is the priority here, Zion."

He said, and the other agreed with a cocky grin, hoisting the body up with one arm, snickering on the way out while the other follows. His dyed red hair flowed softly in the wind as they stepped out, making him breathe in the fresh air of the apocalyptic world.They begin to walk back to their hideout, as Zion couldn't help but look between the unconscious girl and Eugene, grinning as he came to a sudden revelation after looking between the two.

„...Haha, I think she is even taller than you."
„Will you shut up?!"

-

The way back was long and exhausting, mainly because they needed to transport a living body alongside their loot in their backpacks. They could be lucky that there weren't many zombies on the way, the few being able to be taken down easily by Eugene and his bat he borrowed from a friend. The blonde grimaced, thinking about the reaction of the group when they show them the living human they brought back. This will be difficult to explain, and for a while, there will surely be tension between the survivors and the new recruit. His breath began to grow shaky, a nagging feeling invading his head.

As much as he hated thinking about „what if"'s, he couldn't help it. What disgusted him the most about it was the fact that it stemmed from the desperately, human urge to live. He couldn't help but cling onto the hope that maybe the world wasn't doomed, even though the rational part of him had already accepted the fact that there was no way out of this nightmare. For humanity, the final curtain calls. They were just attention hungry extras clinging for some more screen time, desperately trying to make one, final lasting impact on the world, a difference, while being unable to accept their place. They were just some extras.

He could feel his muscles growing more and more tired, the few chocolate bars and canned goods giving him only enough energy to fight, eat and breathe. And he was him, a scrawny short seventeen year old, desperately clinging onto something that has long since escaped his grasp. He could only imagine how tired and exhausted Ethan must be. Maybe that is why he sleeps so much. To still his hunger.

He could see everyone's eyes dulling more and more, sinking deeper and deeper into hopelessness, their dreams slowly forgotten. What did he even want to do..? That thought alone did terrify him, his breathing picking up. He averted his gaze from Zion, not wanting to inconvenience him further, since he had enough on his plate already, but he couldn't help but grow paranoid. He was blinded by exhaustion, of hunger, his entire essence eating away at him to keep breathing, his body functioning towards a goal that didn't exist. Is that what he was? A lifeless, consuming animal, clinging onto scraps just to survive? Someone who had already crossed the finish line, not wanting to believe that it was over, still aiming for the first place that was long elected? What-

He stopped. He should stop. He couldn't afford to waste his energy on mental turmoil. Bury the thought deep inside, between his hunger. Maybe he should eat it. He thinks about how maybe he wouldn't think about these things with a full stomach. Yeah. He was just hungry, and when he was hungry, everything was miserable anyway. Yeah.

Just then, they crossed a bloodied billboard of an idol group, the bloodstains on the members faces pointing to their potential death. Now, even the shining idols were just one of many monsters terrorising the city.

Ah. That's right. He wanted to become an Idol after high school.

A twisted calmness filled his heart as he remembered his lost dream. A simple reminder that he was still human, once possessing dreams and ambitions.

Submerged in their individual thoughts, they eventually arrived at the school, and he pushed the gate open to let his red haired friend through. He shot Zion an appreciative smile for his hard work, before entering the school ground himself, looking behind him to look out for zombies that might've followed them to the school. He only saw a zombie stuck between a half closed door from an apartment near the building. It had a microphone cord around its neck, probably from some karaoke device, or from one of their victims. Maybe their dream was to become an idol as well. He almost smiles as he thought about it, walking inside the school building, reminiscing. How nice it was to be able to dream this big.

Now his only dream was to die as a human.

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