The Monster In Me

Drinking Water

“Hah! Unbelievable!” Tiredlessly Trisha continued to express her complaints. “Today we keep trying hard to protect ourselves from zombie bites! But now what? Is there another cause we should avoid? Absolutely sickening!”

“You till when do you babble on like that? You think you're the only one who's scared here?” ask Evan cynically.

“Oh, I know that Abian, Ms. Danita, and Mr. Gunawan are as anxious as I am,” Trisha replied cynically as she pointed her index finger at every person she called before pointing Evan's nose. “But I know very well that you don't care at all about anything other than yourself! You didn't even shed a single tear the moment Karsa changed!”

“You and Abian don't either!”

“You just don't see us clearly!”

“Trisha, Evan. Calm down, Mother please,” pinta Danita with compassion. “Do you guys have no pity on Karsa?”

The two students then looked to where Karsa was tied up. Now not only was his mouth gagged, but both of his eyes were also closed using the seedy cloth they found. Trisha shuddered at the thought of how many germs might be stuck in the cloth, but they had no other choice. Ever since her eyes were closed, Karsa seemed to have become calmer. Although still he groaned and gurgled on the spot a few minutes at a time.

“Sama like other zombies, it looks like Arsa's hearing is still working fine. It might even be much better than an ordinary human,” explains Gunawan. “Every time you yell, Karsa rages in his place. So, we better talk in a slower voice.”

“What is the current situation allows for us to pay more attention to the condition of zombies than we are still human?” ask Evan ketus. He stared intently at Gunawan with his two narrowed eyes, before looking at Karsa with a look of disdain. “She's been very lucky we didn't kill her right away.”

“Evan! How could you say that!”

“Conscious, Tris! He is no longer the Karsa you like!”

“Kids, Mother please. Don't aggravate the atmosphere between us,” pinta Danita. “Mom understands you are all very tired and tormented, but we must keep each other safe. We won't survive if we break up.”

Evan snorted violently. “I will only be silent if we throw Karsa down right now.”

“Evan!”

“Don't be a hypocrite, Trisha! I know you're feeling really scared seeing Karsa right now.”

Abian just kept silent watching everything. Slowly, he shifted his position slightly away. Sit in one corner of the balcony with an empty view. ‘In the movie, if the fellows of the struggle start yelling at each other, then soon there will be dead.’ His mind began to drift everywhere. ‘Wait. Isn't Karsa technically dead right now? There should be no more casualties.’

“Of course I'm scared! Who wouldn't be hysterical to see his own friend begin to transform into a completely different figure?” Trisha started sobbing. Both of his eyes were glistened by the tears that welled up. “My fears for the zombies out there are no longer able to bear, what else now? Seeing the suffering of Karsa directly like this made me .. makes me even more aware of how weak we are as human beings. I'm afraid I'm gonna have to keep running my whole life. But ... I'm more afraid of dying miserably like that!”

The words Trisha spoke with stammering eyes and a hoarse voice made everyone instantly speechless. Only the rustling sound of Karsa still twitching in place filled the atmosphere. Evan seemed to throw his face in any direction, unable to see the people who continued to provoke his anger, while Gunawan and Danita continued to bow. Feeling guilty about not being able to do much to help students.

As for Abian, the young man openly cried with Trisha. It's easy to get carried away.

Rarely revealing the contents of the heart makes it difficult for Trisha to stop at this time. It felt like the dam in his heart could no longer hold back all the grunts he had been damming. The wall collapsed for a moment, letting the waves flow swiftly without any restraint in the way. “How is this? Why at a time like this do I remember all the regrets I never thought of? Before, I never cared if I was just a burden and an embarrassing child to my parents. I don't care if all I think about in my whole life is how to have fun.”

Trisha coughed as she gently smacked her own chest. Trying to get rid of the tightness that is choking him. “Ta-but now I regret everything. Ms. Danita, Mr. Gunawan. Please help me get back to my parents. I want to apologize.”

Right after finishing delivering the last sentence, Trisha's cry broke. Not just a slow sob with tears dripping occasionally, but a great cry that made him wail and cough. A cry that could possibly be heard even from tens of meters away. The cries that humans generally leave behind since the age of more than 10 years.

In a hurry Danita got up and sat down next to Trisha. Embracing the girl tightly while rubbing her shoulders gently. The young master took pains to hold his own panic to calm Trisha down. “It's okay, Trisha. We'll be out of here soon. Together.”

Empty promises. Danita knew that she was not at all sure that she would be able to embody her words. Especially after he realized that there was no sign of the authorities coming to help them. Most likely they were all already considered dead or had turned into zombies like the others. They were lucky enough that the Playground had not been blown up to date.

Because no matter how many times Danita tried to think of the best way out for the crowd, she could only think of the easiest way out. After all, most people would not want to bother just to save people they do not know. So, if there is not a single important person who is also trapped in this Playground, Danita thinks the government will also not take the trouble to evacuate the survivors.

“Already, stop crying. If it continues like this, you will only hurt your throat,” Danita said after letting Trisha cry for a while. “You must be thirsty, huh? How'this? We don't have water worth drinking.”

“Evan got,” said Abian suddenly. “I saw Evan give Karsa a drink before we got to this place. Before ... before Karsa changed.”

“Oh, is that right, Evan?” ask Danita with a radiant face.

However, Evan actually hugged his bag more tightly.

***