Rosemarie slammed on the brakes. The man froze in the middle of the road. His tall, thin body shuddered at the sound of her tires screeching. He waited for a few breaths his eyes darting around before approaching the car. Brushing his hair out of his face, he inched closer and leaned down to her window.
“Hey!” he said. “You guys going to Tuscaloosa?”
She heard Georgi’s car stop before she answered. “Kind of,” she said through the window. “We’re headed to a place several miles outside of there.”
She heard a car door slam.
“Tuscaloosa is in bad shape. Steer clear of there,” He warned.
Randy cocked his gun and walked toward the man. “Have you been bitten?” he said, aiming the gun at his head.
The man threw up his arms and backed away. “Woah! Take it easy!”
“What the fuck, Randy!” she yelled, jumping out.
“Get back in the car!” he yelled.
Not being one to argue with a man or his gun, she hurried back into the car.
“Have you been bitten?” Randy asked again in a scary calm voice.
“No!” the man half yelled as he pushed up his sleeves and showed his hands.
“Randy, stop!” yelled Rosemarie. Her eyes were wide with fear.
“Legs,” Randy said, ignoring her.
The man pulled up his pant legs exposing his calves.
Georgi leaned out her car window. “Stop being a lunatic and get back here!” she yelled.
“Look man,” The guy straightened and adjust his backpack. “if you think I’m a zombie, shoot me in the chest. If I get back up, I’m a zombie. If I die, you’re a murderer.”
Randy gave the man a hard look then slowly lowered the gun. “Let's keep moving,” he said, turning and heading back.
Rosemarie got out and carefully walked toward the man. “Sorry, he’s gone into survival mode. Are you okay?”
“Get in the car! We’re leaving!” Randy yelled before shutting the door.
Rosemarie looked at the guy. He had a backpack that looked full to capacity and he was drenched with sweat. Something in his face made her heart break. She didn’t want to leave him behind and she had less than a minute or two to convince him to go with them.
I can guess what you’re thinking, Has she lost it? She doesn’t know this guy, he could be a psycho. That’s a valid point, but at that moment her brain wasn’t one hundred percent functional. Her heart, however, was running in overdrive.
She took one look at this dude and her heart started a mutiny against her. It was his hazel eyes. That and his slightly hawk-like nose. She was a sucker for a man with sharp features.
She thought it could have also been that she felt scared. What if Randy was right? What if they were in the middle of the apocalypse and they were all going to die? Wouldn’t this be the best time for the lightning bolt to hit her?
“Hey look,” she said, stepping closer. “I don’t know you, you don’t know me, and we don’t have the time to fix that right this second.” She took a breath. “This is going to sound crazy, but I think you should come with us.”
“What?” he said, with surprise as he took a step back. “That guy has a big ass gun and he pointed it at my head!”
“I know. I’m sorry,” she said as calmly as she could. “His wife and kid are in the car and he’s trying to keep them safe. It doesn’t make it right. Look...we’re headed to my friend’s family property to wait whatever this is out. There’s shelter, running water nearby, it’s secluded, and we have at least one gun.”
“That’s what I’m worried about,” he cast a glance at the other car.
“He can be intense, but he was in the Army. He’s trained for this crap and he’s good in a pinch.”
The man stared at her for a moment with a raised eyebrow.
“Come on, you’ll have better luck with us.” she said.
Georgi’s car began to move and Rosemarie started to back up. “I’ve got to go. Are you coming?”
He stared at her as she got in and buckled up. She could see him weighing the odds. Murphy barked, as if to say, come on.
“Thanks, but no,” he said looking over at Georgi’s car, “Maybe I’ll see you around.”
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