Volume 1 - Chapter 21

Kanonji Again

As we descended the mountain drive, I watched Aiko navigate the van with ease.

She wasn't driving it like her red sports car, but she was still a skilled driver.

The empty van bounced over the paved road. I was in the back with no seat and I leaned against the side of the one-box to steady myself.

The guns and baseball bats we brought slid around on the floor with each curve of the road.

It was a good thing we didn’t load the weapons before hand. I had no idea if that made them safer but I felt better the guns weren’t loaded.

Along the way I snacked on my favorite vinegared kelp, having brought two of the little red boxes with me. Most people didn’t like the taste. That left more for me.

Mio was in the passenger seat, her eyes scanning the landscape. She had been quiet since we left the house, lost in thought.

I wondered what was going through her mind. She hadn't seen the city since she escaped to the house in the mountains on day one.

Aiko broke the silence, catching up on lost time. "So your family moved to Tokyo after you graduated, right?"

Mio nodded. "Yes, Chofu technically, but it’s in the Tokyo prefecture. The big city is too expensive so my father still has to commute."

Aiko understood. "Do they visit often?"

I saw Mio shake her head and look out the window.

From where I sat it looked like we were passing Iseki Pond. That was about the halfway point into Kanonji from the house in the mountains.

"It was about once a year," Mio said. "It was always nice to see my parents since I stayed behind here to work at the tea and coffee shop."

"It can be lonely sometimes without loved ones," Aiko said.

Mio agreed. "I do…I did have quite a few friends, but most of them are other workers, customers, or guys that just want to touch me and not anything more."

"Oh, that sounds about right," Aiko said, "jocks are gonna jock. I get so tired of those baseball guys thinking I'm into them just because we can both hit home runs."

Mio giggled. "Must be nice being famous. How do…did you handle the interviews and the cameras and the articles and stuff?"

"I'm not that famous," Aiko said, "I probably don't make as much money as you think I do and hardly anyone outside of Japan knows who I am."

"Oh," Mio answered, "but the red sports car! That's like fifteen million yen at least, and you still own your mother's beautiful home in the mountains."

"It's true," Aiko explained, "but the car was part of my signing bonus when I was picked for my team. I have been driving it for six years already. It’s getting older. My mother's property is expensive to maintain, but I haven't been able to let it go. It means too much to me."

Mio nodded, understanding. "And now it might have saved our lives. I'm so glad I thought of you and the house from our childhood when the outbreak happened."

Aiko nodded in return. "And I should have stayed in touch with you more. I'm sorry I didn't."

"It's okay," Mio said, “I know I did you wrong a few times. I’m different now, and I’m not interested in wrecking things like before.”

“It’s okay,” Aiko said. “It’s in the past.”

They were silent for a while, and I spent too much time thinking about how Mio could have done her wrong. In the end it wasn’t my business. If Aiko wanted to tell me, she could.

“You know,” Milo said. “My parents weren’t like yours though. My last conversation with my mom was a few months ago. She told me I am getting too old to find a husband. Can you believe that? She is so worried I will die old and lonely. We are barely out of university age!"

I thought about that.

It was crazy some parents placed their own expectations on their children like a burden.

It wasn't my place to say anything, but I would have argued with Mio’s parents. Why try to control her choices in life?

I thought it was sad we had all lost loved ones to the zombie apocalypse, but at least Mio didn't have to worry about getting married.

Aiko shrugged. "We all died anyway, remember?”

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Mio laughed. “Oh, right!”

“Marriage doesn't mean much anyway,” Aiko continued. “Not anymore. Even before this. As long as you can find someone to partner with that is faithful and romantic, what is a piece of paper?"

"Yeah," Mio sighed, "that will be difficult now, unless I can romance a zombie!"

Aiko and Mio both laughed like this was hilarious. I guessed it was funny but all I could picture was a zombie's rotten appendage falling off when Mio undressed it. I didn't think that situation would work.

Then Aiko pointed back at me and said, "what you need to do is find a plaything like I did. He's pretty much the whole package for me. Does what I want, looks cute, and has a good toy if you know what I mean."

"What?" I said.

Mio looked back at me. I was shook. We made eye contact and I knew I was red in the face with embarrassment.

I wondered if this was the way women talked when they were together.

Mio giggled and then looked back at the road. Together they laughed some more. I shook my head but remained silent.

At first I felt myself getting angry but then I realized what Aiko had done. She had just told another woman three positive things about me.

I always considered myself just average, and yet I had somehow managed to please a goddess of a woman like Aiko by doing… almost nothing.

This new world was a strange one for me. I smiled, thinking about the compliments Aiko just gave.

Mio said, "well, maybe I will find one on the shelf at the grocery store."

That made me smile. Mio had a good sense of humor even if I was critical of the banter between them.

After a few more minutes I could feel the van slow down. I got up to my knees and recognized the area.

We were only a few blocks away from the intersection with the stores and the florist shop.

As Aiko drove the van underneath a toll road, I looked out the window again. Mio was studying all the random zombies we drove by with a worried expression on her face.

We were almost in the thick of things again, and I readied myself for the unexpected. Anything could happen.

I saw a noodle shop on the right and we passed a few more fields of crops that would one day die. There was no one to tend them.

I knew the stores were at the intersection directly ahead of us on the right.

Aiko, Mio, and I saw the giant crowd of zombies at the same time. They were massed together around the flower shop in a squirming mountain of bodies.

Even from inside the van we could hear the collective roar of their moans and groans.

There were thousands of zombies all piled in together in a huge mess. Mio's eyes widened in fear and she gripped the seat tightly, her knuckles turning white.

"Is that?…" Mio asked.

Aiko said, "yeah, my god. It looks like the noise has attracted all the zombies from this area."

I shook my head. "There's too many. I don't like this."

"Me either," Aiko said.

Thousands of zombies absolutely distracted by their own noise, gathered into a giant pool of bodies, was a frightening sight.

The music from the car probably didn't even matter anymore.

I thought we might have been okay, but what if they all suddenly heard us at the same time?

They were not very far away and there was no possible chance of escape if they swarmed towards us.

Aiko slowed the vehicle before getting too close and turned right into the Komeri home improvement store lot. It seemed as though we would go about everything as planned.

I briefly saw a lone zombie in the parking lot. Aiko drove directly into him with a thunk and ran over the creature. The van bounced over his body.

I was worried about the crowd having heard that. She stopped the van in front of Halows and I saw Chiemi drive by us in the silver van, headed over to the Zag Zag.

Looking across the parking lot, I was relieved to see no other zombie reactions to our presence.

Mio's voice trembled. "I didn't expect to see so many of them in one place. What are we going to do?"

"We'll figure it out," I told her. "For now it looks like all the zombies are distracted by their own mountain of other zombies. Aiko has a plan, and we'll stick to it."

Mio nodded, but she still looked scared. I couldn't blame her. The sight, sound, and smell of so many zombies was terrifying.

I figured half of them probably shit and pissed their pants at some point and they had no idea or care regarding it.

I knew we couldn't let fear control us. We had to stay focused. As long as we sat tight for a minute and the zombies had no interest in us, we would execute the plan as we discussed.

Aiko picked up her radio walkie. "We are going to wait five more minutes to make sure it's quiet."

I saw through the windshield that Chiemi had the silver van backed up to the front door at Zag Zag. She picked up her walkie.

"Sounds good," the woman said, "do we secure the place first and then find a second van?"

Aiko looked at me before answering. It sounded like an excellent plan to me. We didn't know if Zag Zag was safe, and it had been a full day since we had been inside the supermarket.

I nodded, "yes."

She repeated the answer into the radio. "Yes. As soon as we know both are clear, Ryotaro and Hachiro each find more vans. We load up as quickly as possible and then we get out of here."

I looked across the way and I saw Chiemi and Yuki nodding through the windshield.

"Copy that," Chiemi said.

I smiled at Aiko and Mio. The plan was working exactly as we discussed, but things were only getting started.

After a few minutes we would get out of the vehicles and go into the stores. Once we knew they were safe, Ryotaro and I would each find another vehicle and start loading the stuff up.

We all nodded in agreement and started watching for movement from across the parking lot. It was all quiet and calm near us.

It was a different story on the other side of the road. I couldn't believe how many zombies were crowded together around the florist shop.

The radio came to life with a static crackle. It clicked a few times and then we heard an unfamiliar voice.

"Hello?" a man asked, "I hear voices talking about loading up supplies. Can you hear me this time? Is this the right frequency?"

My jaw dropped open. Aiko and Mio turned to each other and then to me. I froze, not knowing what to say. Then I gulped, trying to collect my frenzied thoughts.

It was another survivor. They had a radio.

Aiko whispered for some reason. "Do we answer?"

Mio shook her head and I shrugged, not knowing a good response. We had no idea who this person was.

They might actually need help, or it could be a dangerous group of thugs. All those thoughts and more raced through my mind.

"What if they're not nice people?" Mio asked.

I agreed with her. It could be anyone. We had no idea. I looked over at the silver van and I saw Chiemi, Yuki, and Ryotaro looking back at us with the same confusion.

"Shake our heads no at them," I said quickly.

We started shaking our heads no towards the other group, but it was too late. They didn't see us in time.

Chiemi answered back. "Hello stranger," she asked on the walkie, "what is your name?"

There was silence for a moment. I shared glances between Aiko and Mio, unsure about speaking with the stranger on the walkie. I didn’t like it.

"Oh thank goodness you are real!" The man answered, "I was beginning to think I am insane. I am Genta. I am with another survivor, a young boy named Haru. We are running out of food and water, and we are surrounded by zombies. We need help or we will die."