"My Scientific Best" | The Trio

.10

• "I know where no one can reach you,
No, I don't mind."

*   *   *

 
   "It doesn't hurt."
"But can you feel anything, or is it just a bit numb?" Darryl repeated. Zak's neck and right arm were looking more colorless, and his veins were becoming bolder and more visible, but that's just what Darryl had noticed.
   "I can't feel anything, like at all. I can move it though, but it just feels... dea- oooooh."
   Darryl let out a long sigh. "What do you mean, oooooh?" Zak seemed to have just caught onto the gist of something, and this just made Darryl more anxious.
   "I mean, oooooh." Zak let out a quiet giggle. God, this really was not a time to be joking around. Darryl pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath in, and out, considering his options.
   "Look, see that fast food place down the street? Let's discuss this over lunch."
   "Bad, I'm wearing a hospital nightgown- and I'm covered in blood." Oh, right. Good thing they had prepared, so take that, Zak.
   "Vincent brought you clothes."
   "Oh my goood, fine. We can talk about this over lunch. Who even prepares this much in the first place...?" Darryl ignored him. Perfect.

*   *   *

 
   The three sat down at a booth, and Vincent took out his phone, presumably getting ready to take notes on what Zak was about to announce.
"You're really exaggerating this whole zombie situation I think, both of you guys. It's really not that bad." Sighed Zak. He really didn't understand the gravity of this, the effect it would have on the three of them, the effect it would have on him.
"Zak, you literally just threw up probably... a gallon of blood." Darryl muttered, clearing irritated. "Well, maybe not a gallon, but it was a lot. And— and your pulse. Check your pulse."
Zak rolled his eyes, but he put two fingers to his left wrist. His expression darkened, which was most certainly not good.
"Well?"
"I'm sorry, does it look like I have one?"
"You tell me."
Vincent huffed. "Just go on- go on Skep." Vince went on with typing on his phone. The two glanced up at him, and Zak squinted his eyes. "What? Go on."
"Ugggggh. Yeah, yeah, I'm going. So I woke up and they gave me a chocolate milkshake. And then you guys came. The end."
"Oh my goodness Zak, what happened when your pulse died? When you threw up and stuff."
"Oh, that."
"Yes, that."
The booth was silent for a moment, and it was incredibly awkward, why wasn't he continuing...? Vincent just glanced up, and Darryl noticed Zak getting a bit red—
"Hello, my name is Seoul, and I'll be taking your order this afternoon. What can I get you all to drink?" She seemed oddly nice, which was cool.
Darryl turned his head to the waitress who was speaking, he was so focused that he didn't even notice her. After ordering their drinks, The Trio resumed their conversation.
   "It doesn't matter." ...Pardon...? It doesn't matter?
   "What do you mean, 'it doesn't matter.' Are you insane? Of course this matters, you are hurt, you are ill. Tell us what happened Zak."
   Vincent tapped more quickly on the screen.
   "I said, it doesn't matter. They stuck some stuff stuff in me and then I breathed better and shit. The end."
   Darryl began raising his voice, and he was noticeably more angry. "The end? The end? Skeppy, do you even care about your health at this point? I was worried sick about you last night, and you don't seem to show an ounce of care about your wellbeing. Seriously?"
   Tap, taptap, tap.
   "I'm sorry, do you want me to repeat myself for the fourth or fifth time, I SAID, that's the END."
"SKEPPY-"
   "...Here are your drinks." The waitress awkwardly smiled at the three, and the scene was almost humorous. Darryl, his fists slammed on the booth's table, and Zak, whose arms were crossed, avoiding eye contact. Oh, and Vincent, who was apparently the only one of them with manners.
   "Thank you." He said sweetly.
"Uh- Mhm. Now have you three decided on what you would like to eat...?"
Zak and Darryl- for the first time since they had been seated, stared at each other. It was silent for a moment, and finally one of them decided to speak up. It was Vincent, taking responsibility for his friends.
"A few more minutes- please. Thank you."
The waitress nodded, before walking away.
Wow, everything seemed so quiet, were they that loud? Was Zak really that loud, was he... no, Darryl was being very cooperative, Zak was just acting stubborn. God, he was so mad.
"Listen, Zak..." Darryl growled, a bit more quiet. "You need to tell us was happened. So that we can help you, alrighty Zak?"
"When you stop talking to me like I'm stupid, and sure Bad. But first, lemme guess, I'm being a pain in the ass just because I feel like it, right? Because I'm trolling, because I'm just the worst." Zak squinted, his face giving off disgust. God, Darryl felt like... like screaming. Where was this even coming from? He just wanted to help Zak, but Zak was being so... so stupid. Could Zak for once in his life, take something seriously, and grow up? And why couldn't he just talk about it?
"Well MAYBE it's your fault that you're acting stupid."
Vincent glanced up, and Darryl didn't even want to know what kinda face he was being given by his friend. Oh. Shit- should he have said that...?
"Woah- ahoh... Wow, sure, no- no this is perfectly reasonable." Zak stood up, and Darryl noticed the waitress skip their booth again. "You know what, maybe I shouldn't have made an effort to meet you in the first place, if I knew you'd be such a dick in real life I would've just stayed home."
"Zak-"
"No- don't you 'Zak' me, BadBoyHalo. Let's see, since you're so into wanting to know what the hell they did to me, let's see... First, I went to the hospital, second, you guys left me all alone with those random strangers, third, they held me down, fourth, they hit me to get me to stay still and— and they made me stay still, fifth, those nurses started to use whatever stupid fucking excuse that it was, how I'm 'ill,' or some shit, and tested some stupid chemicals on me, and I woke up after having multiple nightmares. Then they held ne down again, and did it again. In case you're wondering, and you too Vincent, it hurt. And you both left me with them. So screw off. Glad to see that you and Vincent seemed to have some fun though, that's nice. How have you been though?"
   Darryl was filled with shock, but didn't they help him, the nurses and doctors...? He was hurt... they hurt him. Those people decided to... test on his friend? Shit, was this because he told them about bite? What the hell, was this his fault? No- he was just trying to help Zak.
   "I'm sorry—"
   Zak slammed his fists onto the table, tears streaming down his cheeks. That was unexpected. "But hey, wanna push me more, jackass? Because you obviously care so much about me- don't- don't you...? Mature BadBoyHalo, with his cool and chill personality, his cute nicknames, he never swears or anything- and- and-"
   Darryl was about to get up, when Zak began to giggle. "Zak, I'm sorry- I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-" He walked over to Zak, but jerked his hand away as soon as Zak jumped from... was that shock? Zak grabbed his wrist— "Zak...?"
   "Darryl~" He slurred.
   Well, this was weird. Vincent just watched, and looked a bit confused, and nervous. Vince was oddly quiet for the situation at hand, which was unnerving. "What are you-"
   "Why~ NO- GOD- STOP IT-" Zak drew his hand back, letting go. "Just- GO AWAY- LEAVE ME ALONE-" Zak clutched his head, as Darryl began to think this through. What was happening, why was Zak acting so weird... Heh, whatever. Zak can be a dick if he wants to.
   So he did just what his buddy Skeppy told him to, and BadBoyHalo got up to leave the restaurant, leaving a very traumatized Vincent with a mentally unstable Zak.
   Zak scoffed. "Heh, screw him, amiright Vincent?"