Chapter 3
Zero Day DiariesDay 23
"Where are we headed to now?" I asked as we sped through thick forests and lush flora. "There's a military installation a few miles east from here where a friend of mine works as an aircraft mechanic. We could maybe even get airlifted out and -".
"It's gone", Jae said quietly. "I passed through there a few days ago and there was nothing left but a den full of the undead that I had to clean up."
"Clean up?!", I stammered angrily through welled up tears. "Those were people you're talking about! My friends and neighbors that I've known for years! How could you refer to them as if they were trash to simply clean out?"
Jae didn't say anything further and we rode on in silence as I bit back tears.
"I'm sorry", he said softly after a while. "I am unaccustomed to being around other people. Do you have any family I can bring you to?"
"I was orphaned when I was a sophomore in high school. I had two hard-working middle class parents who didn't have much in the way of material possessions but we were happy.
They died in a car accident. My mom and dad were headed to a wedding that night and they insisted on not wearing their seat belts so they wouldn't crumple their formal attire. Another driver on the road lost control and collided with my parents' car. They didn't even make it to the hospital.
My mom called me that day before they left the house and left me a message on my voicemail. 'Dinner is on the table. We'll be back by 10. Love you.' Just a simple short voice clip my mom thought to leave me as part of common everyday banter and it's the most precious possession I have. I've lost count of how many times I've re-played that message over and over again."
I paused to collect my thoughts. I've never confided any of this to anyone else before but telling my story made me feel more at ease by having something else to focus on other than survival for a change. Jae, for his part, remained silent before I continued.
"I didn't really have other family to turn to so I bounced from one foster home to another while trying to figure out what to do with my life. My parents were very insistent that I go to college so I worked a few part time jobs with the aim of saving for tuition. Luck intervened and I was randomly scouted by a producer for an acting gig he needed to fill as I was shopping for clothes in the city one day. The rest is history."
We rode in silence after I finished my story and I've come to expect these long bouts of wordless monotony from my overly reticent benefactor.
"I'm sorry. About your parents." Jae said softly after an interminably long time.
It was completely unexpected and so uncharacteristic of him that I almost thought I imagined it.
"Thanks", I replied. "You've apologized to me twice today. The world really must be coming to an end", I chided thinking to add a bit of humor to our one-sided conversation.
Jae gave no response and we rode on in silence once again.
Hey guys, I'll update sometime after I'm done working on the site. It'll be a while!
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