Valli : Personal Journal of Valli Pillay, a Living Dead Pandemic Survivor

Entry 25

"You bet."

Nav came across as being a bit dumb.

Boum didn't say much, he just observed and watched me mostly. I hadn't been very conscious of my femininity until that day. All three men watched me. What sucked was there was nowhere I could hide. I gave them their tea. Nav drank it making slurping noises. When he saw me staring, Boum told him to be more polite and then he smiled at me, creeping me out.

"What happened at the hardware store, Dad?" I asked in Creole. I did not want to speak English around these guys. They were making me feel self-conscious.

"The hardware store was fine. I got what we need. After I finished, I went to the small grocery store in Deux Bras village, but it was padlocked. I was about to try to open it when I heard those things in there. I figured best go back to the supermarket in New Grove. When I got there, I checked the entrance and didn't see anything. I thought I was safe but suddenly about three living dead showed up," Dad answered in Creole too. "They had me cornered near the drinks section of the store. These guys came in the nick of time."

"Got them good," Som said. "Right fellas? Managed to get Mani out of that mess."

"You fellas sure did," Dad said.

"And good thing we had this handy." Som pulled a double-barrelled shotgun from his bag. He was wearing work gloves with the fingers cut off. It reminded me of the eighties action movies Mom and Dad liked to watch. "Got to get them in the head though. Otherwise it's useless."

"Thank you for saving Dad," I said. "I'm going to make dinner."

"I can help you if you like," Boum said.

"No, that's fine," I answered. "Thank you."

"Okay, little miss."

"We'll do the dishes after," Som said.

"Sure." Boum and Nav both stared at me.

As I made dinner, I could hear them helping Dad out. At one point, Boum poked his head inside the house. He didn't see me, but I saw him looking around, observing. He sniffed the air and smiled.

I set up dinner on the table outside, but we had to move inside because it had started to rain. Dad put one of the beds up against the wall and set up the foldable plastic table in the middle of the room. The three men sat on the camper chairs. Dad and I sat on one of the beds.

"Isn't this nice and cozy?" Som said. He was always smiling. But I wasn't smiling back. I didn't think it was impolite. I got the feeling he was the type of person who was used to people, especially girls and women, not smiling back at him. He knew he put them off and had accepted it. Boum and Nav didn't look all that different from Som. Nav looked as if he was lost, completely out of it. He was dependent on the other two to take instructions on what to do. Boum was the type of guy you saw around Mauritius who leered at school girls when they walked past. The type of guy that made you walk faster when you went past him. All three were a bit like that.

I ate in silence. The men talked. One of them, I forgot who, brought out a bottle of rum. They asked me if I wanted some. Dad said of course not. Even he didn't have the rum.

"Beer drinker myself," he said.

That didn't stop them from passing the bottle around. They took heavy thirsty swigs, as if it was water.

"I suppose we'll have to crash here tonight," Som said. "Wait until the rain passes."

"I guess you will have to," Dad said. "I'll give you guys this room and Valli and I will take the kitchen."