The Monster In Me

Work Together

“Oh? Your sister is here too? Male or female? How old is he?” ask Zean in succession. Unknowingly he continued to step closer to Adnan, making the young man retreat to avoid him.

“For what do you know?”Adnan asked back with his eyebrows raised. “This all has nothing to do with you.”

Zean shook his head while exhaling heavily. “Life, only this time I met a person who behaved very ketus and fierce like you,” he said lethargic. However, not long after that a smile curled back on his lips. “You're lucky. I don't have any life goals right now, so I think I'd better help you find your sister. Maybe that way Eca would be so proud of me.”

“Eca?”

“My sister who I said died earlier.”

“Oh.” Adnan scratched the back of his head in confusion. He really did not want to bother dealing with others at this time, but after a long struggle alone, Adnan thought it would be quite helpful if he got help. Moreover, Zean looked like someone who was reliable. “But ... are you not afraid? If I were you, I wouldn't help anyone and would only try to save myself.”

Adnan squinted his eyes as Zean just slicked his shoulders. “I will not hesitate to finish you if until you turn into a zombie,” Adnan added firmly.

“Take it easy. That will never happen,” Zean replied casually. “I might call it ‘zombie’ virus because I don't know what else to call it. But I know very well that what actually happened is not at all like the shadow of all of us.”

“You mean?”

“We will not be a zombie just because it was bitten by a zombie in this place.”

Adnan's eyes widened. Suddenly he lunged at Zean and blocked his collar firmly. Zean had a little trouble breathing, but his face remained calm. Even he was still able to display a thin smile in front of Adnan.

However, this even made Adnan's anger more and more. Adira's brother pushed Zean up to the nearest wall. Absolutely no matter the head of the young man who hit hard.

“Don't mess with me just because I'm being friendly to you.” Little by little Adnan tightened his grip on Zean's collar, until Zean's neck choked on his own clothes. “If it's true that you have a sister who died here, shouldn't you know how I feel right now? So, careful! Choose your words wisely!”

Zean's smile disappeared. He stared flat at Adnan with his face that began to turn red. Both of his hands continued to hold Adnan's hand so as not to continue tormenting him further. He did not immediately respond to every speech of the young man in front of him and simply listened in silence.

It occurred to Zean that Adnan looked much younger than him, so it should be Adnan who kept his words and attitude. However, this is not the right time to remind you of that.

“Why shut up? Answer!” Adnan grew impatient and urged Zean.

Zean just patted Adnan's hand slowly. “I ... starting hard to breathe,” answered with great difficulty.

Both of Adnan's eyes blinked quickly. With hesitation, he finally removed his hand from Zean's collar. Although still, he was in a standby position with both hands clenched in front of his chest. “I've already taken off! Now, tell me! What's your reason for lying like that?”

Looks like Zean's question was enough to get Adnan cornered. The young man looked stunned for a few seconds, and was reluctant to look Zean in the eye. Silence enveloped the atmosphere, as no one returned to speak. There was only the meaningless shrieking of the zombies who were far from where they were today.

Then Adnan chuckled. Both of his hands were squeezing his head tightly, as if he was about to pull trying to crush his own skull. His body seemed to stagger until he finally fell down and leaned against one of the shelves there.

In silence, Zean approached Adnan and crouched down in front of him. Trying to hear what the young man was muttering at this moment.

“If it is not contagious through a bite, why do I bother to avoid?” adnan asked without even looking at Zean.

Again Zean pulled his shoulders. “Entahlah. Maybe because being bitten hurts?”

Adnan snorted loudly. “If it is not contagious, why is it so difficult for the police to come to this place? I think they're very careful for fear of this outbreak spreading. But if this isn't a plague, what else is holding them back?” The young man then screamed while banging his own head against the shelf behind his body. “Sial! They are just a bunch of slackers and cowards who are slow in action!”

“So, now you trust me?” Zean stood up and crossed his chest.

“For now,” replied Adnan with narrowed eyes. “If it turns out you lied, I just have to finish you off.”

“Good idea.”

Zean nodded his head while looking over and over. His unusual encounter with Adnan made him not have time to look around. Whereas since long ago, wherever he would go, Zean always took the time to understand the place he would go. In addition to his always cautious nature, his profession as an actor forced him to always be vigilant. Because even though he is not too famous, he still has many fans with various personalities. It is not impossible that there will be enough fans ‘bare’ to approach and disturb his calm.

Even one time, when Zean took Helsa for a walk to a nearby mall from their home, her sister was almost hurt by the treatment of the self-detected fans. The fan was too focused on his desire to approach Zean and take photos together, until he was unaware of Helsa's presence. Helsa's body was knocked hard enough that she fell to the floor of the mall. Zean whose vigilance had decreased because he was using a cellphone only realized what happened after the sister groaned quite hard.

Luckily, Helsa was neither injured nor seriously injured. However, since then Zean has been determined to be even more careful wherever he goes.

Maybe at this time Helsa was no longer by his side, but Zean would still take good care of himself so that his sister was calm in her long sleep.

“What are you looking at? You don't have to avoid me excessively like that,” Adnan said. It seems that he now feels more relaxed being near Zean. When Zean did not respond to his words, he immediately stood up and followed the direction of his new friend.

His body instantly pecked when he saw a strange blood patch on the floor.

***