Chris stayed hunched under the desk for three and a half hours until the grunting and shuffling finally subsided and stopped. He decided to survey the area and find out what the dead heads were doing. He slowly stretched out his right arm from under the desk, wrapped his fingers around the edge of the tabletop and pulled himself out. Chris peeped over the desk and saw the people standing still again.
His stomach grumbled. “God, I’m getting freakin’ hungry. They probably fed me on liquefied pea soup and beef broth. No cheeseburgers or prime rib for our patient.”
Chris looked at the dead Security Officer on the floor next to him. Chris’ impulses for the sidearm started rising again. He reached toward the holster and jerked his arm back. “What if this dude wakes up? Well, gee, he hasn’t moved for three and half hours with a Happy Meal sitting right next to him. So, duh, stupid.”
Chris reached for the holster again and he started shaking; scared of what might happen. He quickly tapped the holster. The body didn’t move. Chris stared at the body, slowly unsnapped the thumb break, gripped the pistol, slid it out of the holster and scooted back under the desk pointing the shaking gun at the lifeless body.
It didn’t move.
He thought to himself, “Okay Chris, this dude looks officially dead.”
A gigantic sigh of relief and an inkling of proud accomplishment fell over him. He crept back out from under the desk and started surveying the lobby again. Chris started growing restless to escape this prison. He saw the double doors of the main entrance. The right door was completely covered by plywood. The left door had two-by-four boards screwed into the door frame horizontally about an inch apart from each other down the whole length of the door.
He decided to make it for the door. Holding the pistol in his only hand, he reached out to start traversing the debris-ridden floor on his knees and the silence was broken by the gun making a light clicking sound against the marble floor. He looked up in time to see a guy that was about 10 feet from the desk and saw his left hand quickly twitch. He froze. After several minutes of staring at the guy, he saw no more movement but, he was able to study the guy. There was a very, very slight movement to his body. He thought it was kind of like when you try your damndest to remain perfectly still, but your heartbeat still moves your stomach or your nerves still move your hands when try to show off with how still you can be. Maybe the guy was trying to balance himself.
Chris stood up, tucked the gun in his pants’ waistband and carefully placed each step; each one closer to his great escape and never lost his eye contact with these lifeless, catatonic people standing about the room. Chris got to the door and gently pushed.
The door was locked.
He screamed a few nasty expletives in his head and looked around the lobby. He spotted another dead Security Officer around the other side of the half-circled lobby.
Chris’ eyes started interpreting what he was seeing as they adjusted to the low light conditions. He saw a couch behind the body of the Security Officer and a door behind the couch with a sign to the left of the door that read, Cafeteria.
”Okay, food first, big escape later. Well, if I escape there might be a 24 hour McDonalds open somewhere, hehehe.”
Chris quietly walked approaching three people. He started to slowly weave between them when his stomach grumbled again. The two people closest to him grunted loudly and locked eyes with Chris. The third person twitched like that guy from earlier. He had to get out of there now!
Chris looked back at the “Cafeteria” sign and started running. The slapping of his shoes awoke the rest of the lobby crowd and they began converging on him. He jumped over the couch and hung the toes of his left foot on the back of the couch. “Oh daa..” His head slammed against the stainless steel kick plate at the bottom of the door.
He saw, what looked like looking through watery eyes-it was Sarah. She moved in slow-motion; walking toward him. Everything around her was white. She wore a light blue gown. Her blonde hair flowed with the slow-motion wind as she neared him. She looked into his eyes and gently cupped her palms around his jaws…
“Baby? Baby. You gotta wake up now. Chris, baby, you’re in deep shit. Wake up, okay? Baby, please wake up! They’re getting closer and I have to go!”
“Sarah, baby?”
“ OH SHIT!”
He came to and saw the dead-headed people getting closer to his feet that were still draped over the couch’s back. With the dim amber ambient light, he couldn’t make out any physical features, just the silhouettes getting closer. He scrambled to his feet and pulled the door handle. He jumped into the Cafeteria and pushed the door shut. The moaning got louder and all he could make out through the small door window was arms reaching for him and he heard a squeaking noise.
“Those dumbasses are pushing the couch toward the door!”
Chris started carefully exploring the cafeteria and he didn’t find anyone. But what he did find was FOOD.
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