2
The rain got lighter, and I stare at my reflection in the toilet, all alone.
How can I run? I don't have a phone. I can't call for help. There's only one exit.
As if heaven had mercy on me, tour buses turned into the gas station and parked beside our car. A crowd got off.
I don't let the chance go. I take off my cardigan and strip off my sleeves so that my shirt looks like a tank top. I pull out my hairpin and keep it in my skirt's pocket, then walk among the crowd.
As I exit, I glance at my own car but see nothing but a mass of bodies. I walk the opposite direction from where the car is parked.
Those two might be looking for me…
I walk to the tour bus parked furthest away. The driver is a gentle old man. I dash towards him.
"Uncle, can I get a ride on this bus?"
The old man looks at me in confusion and scratches his head, worried. "Uh…sorry, the law prohibits us from taking anyone along the way. You'll need a ticket."
Even if I'm rejected, I won't abandon my hope.
"Please…I have some urgent business. My car broke down and won't be fixed until morning. Just a little while. I'm willing to pay double."
My pretend anxiety deserves an Oscar, partially because I'm truly anxious. It seems the old man took pity on me.
"Well, then you can get on until the next stop and buy a ticket from there."
I feel a weight lifted and thanked him over and over. He smiles warmly and said that it's alright.
"Come sit in front with me, then. There's no space at the back."
I thank him again, so glad I'm on the verge of tears. I rush onto the bus, but my feet don't even get to touch it before someone calls me from behind.
That familiar voice made every nerve shook.
"So this is where you were."
Ariya approaches me with a smile. Glancing over his shoulder, the man is not far away. I feel the ground crumble beneath me, and all my strength being sucked away. The moment I am about to fall, Ariya catches me.
"I have good news. The car is fixed. Luckily, there are some spare parts."
Ariya plays along my lies. I'm not surprised he knew. Ariya can guess what I'd say to survive.
…Just a little bit, a little bit more…
I open my mouth to ask for help, but Ariya whispers into my ear.
"Give up whatever you are thinking. That man is pissed. If I did not stop him, he would have shot you on the spot. Do not do it. Others will also get into trouble."
His gentle words crushes my hope.
I have nowhere to run.
"Thank you for believing me. I do not think you are suited to dying from a gun. It is not my taste. A lady like you should die by other means."
His words make me weep in utter despair.
The man wants to kill me on the spot.
"Please, do not do it. There are many people here. You will have problems escaping."
Ariya stops him like a senior to his junior. The big man seems frustrated, but spares me. He dig his nails into my arm and drags me to the car.
As soon as we leave the gas station, I see the checkpoint far away.
The light from the checkpoint is a dim light of hope.
This is the last straw to save me from this hell. Please, anyone! Notice there's something wrong in this car!
"Be quiet. If you make a ruckus, I'll fucking kill you."
There is a click from the gun, no doubt aiming at me.
I slow down and lower the windows when a policeman approaches.
The police asks the usual questions: how many passengers, how are you related, where are you going… the one answering is Ariya. He said I'm his sister and the man is my husband. Every answer is so smooth I almost thought it was real.
"And where did you get that?"
I don't understand at first, but then I look where he is pointing and see a bruise from when the man dragged me back to the car.
"Quarrel over some nonsense, sir."
"What? There's no need for violence, is there?"
The policeman lectures as he stares at the man, who don't seem to like being reprimanded. He makes some grunting noises.
If there's a huge quarrel, he might be dragged off the car.
I pray, but…
"Thank you for your concern, but family matters are outside your scope of duty."
The voice from the back seat spoke.
The policeman hesitates. He agrees with those words…
And he let our car go. My hopes shattered, and I fall into a deep pit of hopelessness. The car moves forward but I feel empty.
And…what now will happen to me now…?
"Wait!"
Suddenly, the policeman stops us. My hopes light up only to be crushed once again.
"Your trunk is not closed properly."
The police points to the trunk that threatens to swing open.
"Your stuff will get spilled."
"I will deal with it."
Ariya gets off and walks to the back, then pushes the trunk back down. He smiles and thank the policeman naturally.
In the middle of that, the man whispers to me.
"After this, it's time for you to die."
When the execution sentence was delivered, tears stream down my face.
There's no time…there's no time…
The rain pours again. When Ariya gets back in, the car drives off slowly. The further I get from the checkpoint, the more I feel I'm driving to my death. Then, the checkpoint goes out of sight.
The roadside changes into dense forest, and no houses are in sight. Moreover, not a single car passed by.
"It is about time to kill this lady, right?"
Suddenly, Ariya speaks up amid the tension inside the car, his voice so naive it seems he could be asking if it's time for dinner, even when my heart is beating up a storm. Tears mess up my makeup. Just driving is more than I can do right now.
What to do? What should I do?
No…I don't want to die. I don't want to die. I don't want to get killed!
"Yes. So you should hurry up and get off."
"How considerate of you."
"Not considerate, but I don't like to kill men. Aside from that, you are also a murderer yourself. You won't call the police on me, true?"
I won't make it, no matter which one it is, I'm going to get killed.
"But I am curious about something. When I got off the car, I talked to the policeman about your case. He said the corpse was abandoned two or three days after it is dead. That means, you have to hide the corpse first to conceal the murder."
My hands grip the steering wheel. No matter what, I need to live.
"Yes. In the forest here is a house. I usually butcher and keep the body there."
Ariya nods as if the pieces of a puzzle had fallen into place.
"Then, I have understood everything…"
Dear father and mother, help me!
"The corpse in the trunk is not one of yours…"
In that second, I pull the wheel and turn the car into the roadside trees with all the strength I have.
The last thing I saw was the man's confused face.
Crash!!!
My car crashes into the trees, making a thundering noise. The police from that checkpoint will soon rush over and find this car.
The seat belt and the airbag cushioned me, but I still feel pain from every part of my body.
The man beside me is alive.
I hear his pathetic moaning. He bleeds all over, because he didn't wear the seat belt and slammed right into the console. His innards must be badly bruised.
Ariya has his head down and is completely still. I don't know if he's still alive, but I don't care. I curse that they should just die.
I pry the broken door open and drag my heavy body back to the checkpoint. The falling rain drenches my clothes.
Suddenly, a furious grunt sounds from behind. The passenger door flies open, and a lumbering body darts towards me like a bloody animal.
My head is yanked, overpowering strength pulls my hair, dragging me into the shrub and throws me on the ground. A punch flies into my face, and I can hear an ugly noise.
"Fucking bitch! I hate women like you! You act all innocent but you're just fucking liars all the same! You deserve to die! Die! Die!"
He sits atop me and strangles my neck. My whole body convulses, my feet kicking and my hands grabbing for a means to survive.
As I lose consciousness, my hand touches something.
"I…"
I hold it tight, and summon my last ounce of wit in the face of death.
"I also…hate…violent men like you!!!"
The hairpin pierces right into his eyeball.
The hell beast roars in pain, he's not subdued but at least he lost his tempo. I pluck the pin from that mushy socket and stabs his other eye. There is a pop, like a popped water balloon.
He wails like an injured animal. His screams echoes in the rain. The man crawls on the ground and gropes blindly for me.
I look around and found a large stone. I lift it up and smash it on his head countless times.
At last, the man is still. Not even a grunt. The light from the motorway shine upon a head that has no trace of its former shape, only a red skull with mushed jelly.
I pick up the gun at his belt and come back to the wreck.
"Welcome back."
My heart jumps when I hear that polite greeting. Ariya stands at the car's trunk. He seem quite injured too. Blood streams from his head and his body is full of scratches.
"I could hear a scream. You must have killed that man."
Ariya said, but his eyes don't look at me.
They are drawn to the open trunk.
More precisely, to the corpse dangling from the trunk.
"You…step away from my darling!"
I command furiously and raise the gun.
Ariya puts on a soft smile and steps back. He limps slightly, as I rush between him and darling.
"It really is yours."
"I didn't mean to! He's got a bad temper. When he's angry, he beats me. I hate it when he uses violence. My feelings hurt. My body hurts. And the last time, I can't take it anymore. Even if I killed him, it's all from the spur of the moment."
"That does not matter." Ariya said as if he cares not for my sins. "I just want to know, why did you hide the corpse in your trunk? You are not planning to throw it away, are you?"
I meet his eyes…those eyes that look like two black holes.
"No matter what, I still love him. No matter how cruel he is, I don't want to lose him. Luckily, I found a doctor. He said there's a way to revive darling."
"He is not a doctor, that man is just a mad researcher…"
Ariya speaks as if he knows the 'doctor' I'm referring to.
"You and your boyfriend are just his guinea pigs."
"Ridiculous. I won't believe you. That doctor said if I give him this drug, darling will soon wake up, and we will be happy together forever."
I take out a vial from my pocket. The vial is so pretty I cannot believe it contains a drug for revival. The liquid inside is almost emptied out. A small petal sticks to the bottom.
"The only thing that lasts forever is your boyfriend's death."
I ignore Ariya and his senseless talk, and move towards darling. I hold his hand tight. His wet body starts to stink, and the more I think of how long he has been asleep, the more anxious I get.
I start to snap at Ariya, tears streaming down my face.
"It's because of you! Because of you two! If you didn't happen to get on my car, darling would have woken up long ago!"
"Happen to…? There is no 'happen to' in this world."
"Huh…?"
"You picked both of us up because you know of the checkpoint. If the police searched and found the corpse, you would blame it on the two of us, since the police will suspect murderers more than a civilian. And that man did not choose you randomly, but because you are similar to his wife…the wife he killed on this road because he caught her cheating."
"Are you saying it's all because I'm unlucky?"
I counter with anger, but he shook his head.
"I am just saying there are no coincidences in this world. Everybody does things of their own logic, including you, that man, the doctor who gave you that vial, or even me…"
I am stunned to silence.
"I followed you because of the scent of death from the angel's trumpet, but I could not tell who had the vial, because both you and the man reek of death. I needed to ask questions."
"If you want this vial, I'll give it to you, but stop messing in our business."
I hand the bottle over to the young man, but he shakes his head.
"It is too late."
The young man glances at his watch.
"The news said I am a murderer, but I do not kill 'people' as you think."
As he finishes his sentence, something moves. I turn around, a smile splitting my lips from excitement.
"…Darling!"
With that said, darling opens his rotting mouth and bites down on my neck, before tearing a chunk of flesh off. I scream, hands clasping my neck which now has a large gaping hole, eyes cast on Ariya to ask for help.
The man shakes his head again to say that nothing can be done, because the spot my darling is munching and enjoying himself with has an artery in it.
Alive or dead…you're still always hurting me, darling.
I close my eyes, tired of it all.
The last thing I see is a pair of eyes looking at me with fascination.
"As I thought, you are more suited to this kind of death."
Epilogue
Ariya swung his arm one last time, before the blade made a final cut at the aorta, which would stop all movements and kill that zombie for good.
The young man in black wiped sweat off his face, and rested beside the corpse he just slain.
He was not tired from using his energy, but because of the injuries he sustained. This zombie-hunt he'd grown so used to had gone bad after someone saw him, and so the police thought he was a murderer.
In the end, he made the mistake of letting the zombie bite him on his right shoulder, because he was aching from the car crash a moment before. However, Ariya was not worried, because the angel's trumpet's poison cannot be contracted through saliva or blood like those zombie movies. It only affected those who consume the drug.
Ariya picked the vial up from the women's corpse. His eyes stared into the transparent container where a single petal floated.
…The angel's trumpet…
"Was it a coincidence…?"
He mumbled.
Three very different people met and spent some time together.
Was it fate?
Although he did not believe in coincidences or fate, he could not help but wonder if meeting someone like that…Vakin…
Was it because of fate?
And you too…Lilith…
…No, what bind us together is not fate…
But death.
Wait for me, Lilith. I will kill you…
And bring the light back to this dark rabbit hole…
I know a man…
A man with eyes that look down on the whole world,
He never hides his interests, no matter how people look at him.
But I know that he is another man with darkness inside his heart,
Just like "him".
A darkness, akin to sin, but it shines bright until all turns white,
Unlike the other man's darkness, like parallels
Even with that, the three of us were together…
I dreamed that we would be together forever.
But no…that could never be.
So please let me go…
"Vakin."
Zombie Kiss Volume 3
-End-
Zombie Kiss Chronology
(Chapters that have only been published in BlaCX magazine and have not been compiled into a whole volume will be marked with a *. Chapters that are comics will be marked with a ^. If I do decide to change a chapter's title, I will come back and change it here too XD)
White Sin
After a heart transplant, Vakin started seeing what he called the 'White Devil'.
(Volume 1, BlaCX Volume 2)
Twins
Vakin and Lilith before graduating from junior high.
Lilith learned of a friend's sinister secret through a friendship notebook. The bond between a set of twins is stronger than death itself…
(Volume 2, BlaCX Volume 6)
Worthless-Lifeless
Ariya before graduating senior high and his involvement in the 'Eyeless Murder'.
(Volume 1, BlaCX Volume 1)
Worms
Ariya, Vakin, and Lilith in their freshman year, how Ariya and Vakin met.
(Volume 1, BlaCX Volume 4)
Twisted Beauty
Lilith unwittingly enters a bloodstained battle to be the most beautiful woman. A story of jealousy and betrayal.
(Volume 3, BlaCX Volume 5)
Verdict
The 'Shadow Vigilante' is on rampage. Is it actually Ariya and Vakin's doing?
(Volume 3)
Best Friends*
'Ren' and 'Spring' are best friends, with their similarities and differences. One day, Spring wants to be just like Ren, to the point of turning into 'Ren' herself…
(BlaCX Volume 10)
(The three's breaking point)
(Volume 4)
Bluebird*
After receiving the Bluebird of Happiness, 'Nanchaporn', a hopelessly unlucky woman, has her lucked turned upside down. One day, though, she lost the bird…
(BlaCX Volume 8)
Number One*
A school has been rumored to harbor a curse where top students will always be fatally wounded. I'm one person who cares more about being number one than a stupid curse.
(BlaCX Volume 7)
Angel's Corpse
'Shin', a photographer, found a woman's corpse that does not rot. He believed this 'Angel's Corpse' will bring in good fortune, and so kept it despite objections from his fiancee. Strange things started happening around him, and it seemed as if the corpse came back to life…
(Volume 2)
Angel's Trumpet^
'Bee' is in love with 'Att', her sister's boyfriend. However, Att's love for her dead sister is unwavering, until one day he met a strange man who gave him a drug which would bring her back.
(Volume 1, BlaCX Volume 5)
The Hitchhiker
Fate played a trick on a woman who picked up to killers onto her car.
(Volume 3, BlaCX Volume 12)
Curtain of Mist*
A doctor tries to cure a terminally ill girl, but her father thought the illness was from being possessed, and so got her an 'angel's trumpet' drug from a shaman.
(BlaCX Volume 9)
A Corpse's Memories
'I' woke up in an abandoned building filled with corpses before meeting Ariya, but as we searched for the exit, I became certain that Ariya is the one who killed everybody.
(Volume 1)
Midnight Tale^
'Chanakan' must always get home before midnight, but her friends thought it was a joke by her brother, not knowing some rules are never meant to be broken.
(Volume 2)
Boxed^
Li makes and sells handmade boxes. One day, she received a job to redecorate a large box from a mysterious man, who ordered her to 'never open the lid'.
(Volume 3, BlaCX Volume 12)
O' Dear Moon*
Every full moon, the sister gathers pieces of those who killed her brother to bring him back. The only part she can't find is the head.
(BlaCX Volume 11)
The Princess in the Tower*
The girl can only live on the highest floor of the tower, and so she believed herself to be a princess. One day, a prince came along and told her what dwells on top of the tower is not a princess, but a 'monster'.
(BlaCX Volume 13)
Death on Parallel (Don't Fear the Reaper)*
After coming back from his brother's funeral, he learned that before the untimely death, his brother entered a website, where all those who visited will die.
(BlaCX Volume 14)
To be continued…