Chapter 9:

Chapter 9 - The Others

Infection


- I asked first - answered the stranger - but it doesn't matter... Look, see this - he held out the chest of his lab coat, a small picture stamped with his name.


Frank, it was written in thick letters.


- Now, you didn't think of bursting that jar over my head or hitting me with the axe - he brings his face towards us with his eyebrows cocked to one side .


I feel like he's invading my personal space.


<So we're not the only survivors, but why is he wearing a cap if it's nighttime .... who am I to criticize other people's styles? >


He stepped back a bit, right in front of us he adopted a relaxed pose.


We could see him better now as he was pointing the flashlight right at his body.


Lab coat, a plaid shirt inside, mustard jeans and white sneakers, looks like they are orthopedic.


Something I can't help but look at in the middle of his pose, are his hands, especially his knuckles, I observed them very precisely because I was curious about the gray marks he had on them besides having one of his lips broken.


- Well Frank - I frowned - you know.... I knew several people called like that and the truth is that most of them were not to be trusted.


He turned suddenly after hearing my sentence about his name, approaching Angela he said - mmm .... You don't look trustworthy either - he smiled coquettishly and then winked at Serene - come on, come with us.


Looking at Angela out of the corner of my eye, I notice her tense, her hands clench the axe handle with great intensity and her black eyes don't seem to understand the situation.


I hesitate a little before answering.


- I can follow you, but first she needs medical attention, just in case you don't have any medicine.


- Sure! - I exclaim cheerfully as he turns his attention to Serene.


He touches her forehead and her face lets out a slight grimace of concern.


No wonder she responded like that, I who carried her all the way I know the state she is in, I know she was giving in to the fever and in a few more minutes she would pass out.


Touch the cauterized arm - it's a miracle she's not dead.


- I'm not going to die in front of those bastards - Serene replied faintly in anger.


- You have medicine? - I asked again.


He nodded and stretched his arm out in front of him.


- This way follow me- he began to walk.


<I find it strange that he is not afraid of those things outside, or does he know how they really act? >


With the flashlight in his hand, he creates a small gap of light through which we can walk without stumbling.


< I don't know if it was lucky we found him or not but I hope he knows something more than what I already know, things related to those horrible creatures, I have an idea about what they might be but I'm not sure >.


Walking through the corridors with Serene leaning on me, Angela's attitude seems strange to me so I decide to ask her.


- Angela are you ok?- Yes - she nodded with a strange aura around her that didn't seem like the same Angela I came with on the way here.


With that vague answer I decided not to continue asking her about her current state since it would be more logical for her to answer me the same.


Frank, the boy we had just met, led us through the corridors of the medical school , we went up to the second floor , through the windows I noticed that the creatures were not moving at all .


This was strange because before leaving the laboratory where I was, the silver creatures did move a little because of the fire, but now not even the light stimulated them.


- It doesn't seem strange to you - spoke with difficulty Serene .


- Don't speak, Serene - replied Angela exalted.


- What seems strange to you? - I added


- seems strange to me ... tufu tufu ... that these things do not move tufu tufu tufu ... tell me Adam it seems strange to you too don't you... you feel that they are watching you... all the way you always felt that those things were watching you waiting to play with your body.


- You are delirious Serene - Angela approached him.


- You are right... I can't believe I was so stupid to think these things were sleeping when they can use their antennas as radars .


- Here we are - interjected Frank very animated, standing in front of the wooden door, above was the title of the infirmary.


- Now everyone introduce yourselves, you haven't told me your names yet, and don't make too much of a fuss - he smiled.


- I know you .... We went to the same ``pre`` , don`t you remember - she seemed nervous


(pre in my country means study academy for 6 months to take the entrance exam to the university).


- mm the truth is that I don't know many people. maybe you have seen me but I don't remember you - she answered with a slightly upset face.


-uncomfortable - I interjected while holding Serene - now we can go inside she needs attention.


- Your name first - he stressed.


- How the fuck... I'm Adam, they, Angela the girl with big breasts and Serene the one who needs medicine.


He ducks his head as he opens the door


The incandescent light blinded us for a moment , the led bulbs in the infirmary were so bright it was only natural that coming out of a dark environment would hurt our eyes .


I covered my eyes with my palm to reduce the blinding effect on my eyes.


I saw a girl sitting at one of the tables , next to her were shelves full of capsules and syringes , she had her legs crossed as she checked a syringe very carefully .


Like everyone else, she was wearing a lab coat, jeans, a brown shirt on the inside, her short black hair with pink straightened ends gave her a sophisticated touch.


She looked up when she heard the door open, her wheat skin glistened in the light and her serious eyes looked at me suspiciously.


She stepped down from the desk, took one of the caps in her hand, put it on and walked towards us.


- franklin you have brought guests - she spoke in a cold tone.


- I'm sorry I didn't tell you but I ran into them on one of my rounds, I want to ask you a favor, can you take care of her, she's burning up with fever and she's starting to get the chills.


Frank spoke very warmly, looking at both of them reminded me of fire and ice.


She looked at each of us, head to toe, blinked slowly in approval and picked up Serene.


They both retreated to the back of the room where the stretchers were , before moving to the center of the room he pulled the curtains to cover the stretchers .


<I think I could finish my work here , they are both safe for the moment and this seems to be a good shelter for them .... I could leave but ... there is something inside me that makes me want to stay with them > .


A very strong pat on my back broke my concentration , frank leaned on me very cheerful , this made me ask .


- tell me frank how did you survive those things outside.


- Those things , you mean the greys ? I don't know - he put his hand on his chin - they didn't attack me like the others did , they left me aside and you -


-The grays?


- That's what we call them.


- Okay, well you know the usual don't let them catch me - I replied sarcastically.


- I see but them, how did they do it - he became a little more serious.


Before answering his question Angela pulls me by the sleeve of my lab coat, when I see her out of the corner of my eye she makes a hand signal for me to listen to what she has to tell me.


I look at her with a face of not wanting to hear her words now, she notices and inflates her cheeks like a squirrel, her eyes look angry but tender at the same time, with a very strong pull she forces me to bend down while she takes my forearm over her soft breasts.


My heart races.


She whispers something in my ear, her words are accompanied by her warm breaths that as they hit my ears produce a kind of electricity in my body.


- Listen to me Adam, he doesn't seem trustworthy, in the `pre` he was handicapped, he couldn't walk, that's why he was always in a wheelchair .... Now I don't know how he can walk .


My eyes widened at this news, leaving aside the slight emotion I was feeling at that moment.


- Is there a problem?- he asked.


I looked up at him, looking at him suspiciously, stood up and approached him.


- No problem Frank, but one doubt... you know she says that in the academy you were a handicapped person, that you couldn't walk and now you walk as if by magic .


I faced him, looking him straight in the eye.


He shook his head so as not to look directly at me, turning his attention for the moment to Angela.- So you know me well - he smiled.


The atmosphere was tense, and he seemed reluctant to explain the things I had discovered.Then the sound of the red curtains sliding down the tube caught our attention, out of it came the girl very calmly saying .


- Someone can help me with the girl - she took off the nitrile gloves she was wearing.When she saw the two of us, Frank and I, she said - Something's wrong - her look was very intimidating, if mine looked like a dead man, hers was like a fierce beast.


- Nothing, it's just a little chat with my good friend Adam - he hugged me from the side taking my shoulder with one arm.- Adam, you know what that means, dirty man, don't you?


- Yes I do, besides why have a clean life .... Angela you can help her.

- But - she exclaimed doubtfully.

- You know I'm not unarmed - I let out a small laugh.


- I see - exclaimed Frank - you can go with confidence, I won't do anything to them.


- You see, go on.


Angela walked straight to the cold girl and entered next to her where her friend was being attended to.


- Well where do we stay... if you were going to give your explanations of how you can walk and all that - my words had a sarcastic air tinged with a lot of interest.


- well how do i start... I don't really know - he leaned back against the wall - but I started feeling weird a couple of days after an outbreak of this new disease was announced.... you know about the D virus, on the news they were showing the characteristics of people who had been infected by it, my skin was burning and the muscle pains were increasing, as if I had been hit all over my body every day, this lasted about a month, When I realized I could walk very calm but there was something strange, I had trouble breathing every day, when I went to the doctor he told me that I was no longer suffering from anything, I suffered from muscular dystrophy since I was very young and now it was a miracle that I could walk, for my breathing problem he sent me to nebulize and prescribed me some inhalers.


< A miracle ... I am not surprised that you express yourself like that, if I had not investigated that sample in the laboratory and I had not seen those creatures I would have swallowed that story but that is not true, the only thing I know is that the blood of the creatures is silver, the grays as you call them for some reason show a combination of human cells and a type of parasite that modifies their genetic code> .


- a miracle, because god makes miracles in the middle of the apocalypse that funny .... tell me do you mind if I check you a little - I asked approaching him.


- The truth is that I don't mind, but .


- Help! - The desperate cry came from the back of the room, behind the red curtains, accompanied by the sound of several pieces of equipment crashing to the floor.


I recognized the voice, it was Serene's hoarse, delicate voice calling for help.


I looked to the side, the axe Angela was carrying was there.


- then we continue with this talk- I felt my voice getting desperate, my heart was beating fast and a thousand explanations why I was screaming came to my head.


I rushed through the curtains.


The first thing I saw was something that squeezed my heart, that made me want to tear it all apart.


Angela was writhing against the medicine cabinet, she was being choked, she was losing consciousness.


The hand that was choking her had gray veins that stood out on her skin. And it belonged to the girl who a few moments ago had offered to help us.


Serene was tied to the stretcher but was struggling to free herself, although it was impossible. Angela had the piece of metallic sodium in her hands but the water bottle had fallen to the floor along with the other acid bottles.


Two antennae began to emerge from between her straight hair , she made the same movements as the other monstrosities or grays .


- Adam -  she exclaimed with serene force - is going to kill her - tears of helplessness escaped her helpless eyes.


- What the hell are you doing - I exclaimed angrily.


The girl slowly turned to me, at that moment two feelings flooded my being, rage and pity.She had one eye like the gray ones, black all over, her mouth was starting to split in two and she had sores all over her face.


But on the rest of his face , he had the look of pain , the human eye was begging for help , he was saying someone stop this while letting out tears .


- Please help me , I don't want to hurt him .


These words left me in shock , Serene's pressure disappeared from my ears , I could only concentrate on Angela and that girl .


- If you are not going to help me please run away if I'm not going to hurt you .... I beg you, run away - she ducked her head and her tears turned silver , as they fell to the ground they solidified .


- I told you to run away -  she cried.


<Damn it>


- I'm sorry - I said


I look with my eyes for some object to attack her , I notice that there are many operating instruments on a small tray on the table next to Serene's stretcher .


I take the scalpel and quickly approach her, I cut the tip of the tentacle with the scalpel causing her some damage.


She delivers a blow with her fist which sends me against the wall.


My head spins and I can't get up.


- What's going on here?


Frank walked in very calmly, approached her - Calm down, honey.


She tried to hit him as her face showed agony.


He dodged the blow, took a syringe out of his pocket and injected a substance into her neck. She was in shock, the tentacle in her mouth began to solidify and then turned to dust, just as her antennae turned to dust, her veins normalized, her face full of wounds dropped the dead skin and her lips returned to normal.


She dropped Angela to the ground.Frank took her friend in his arms.


- I want a fucking explanation, she's one of those bastards - I struggled to my feet, limping towards them.


- Yes - Frank said apologetically.


- Damn it Frank, I don't want a stupid ``yes`` -I pushed him against the wall-, I want a stronger answer.


I'm very upset and I don't know how much more I can hold back.


- Adam - whispered Angela on the floor with a little conscience, she constricted her thin arms trying to push herself up but they trembled and let her fall.


I turned quickly to her, I was glad she didn't die but it hurt me to see her in that state.


- Leave it Adam, don't make a fuss, I'll explain later - she sat down.


I gave a deep sigh and turned to him - It's okay but we haven't settled anything yet.


I walked over to her , with my bad leg it was difficult but I carried her in my arms .


She wrapped her thin arms around my neck and rested her head against my chest as she let out small tears .


- Are you ok?


There was no answer, I laid her down next to Serene, who hugged her tightly as she glared at the girl who almost killed her best friend.


- Take care of her, yes -


with those words I turned to them - now I want explanations, but you can give them to me somewhere else, let's go to the desk.


They both looked at each other and nodded. -Adam, you'll be fine- said Serene.


- You take it easy - I closed the curtains and we walked away from them. 
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