Chapter 4 - Big F!

The early morning patrol pickups didn't even phase Andres anymore.

Roaming Zombie.

Andres plucked the exhorbitant bill from the mail box and resisted the urge to crumple it and chuck it in the street.  The crime lords demanded "protection" money.  It's not like they were on the street saving people and fighting zombies!

Highway robbery is what it was, plain and simple!

He headed to base to pick up some provisions and run the obstacle course.  He needed to stay sharp out there in the mean streets!

He was surprised to see Heather slightly ahead of him.

Passing by the obstacle course, he headed into the soup kitchen to greet his college lover.  "Hey doll, how've you been?" he asked pleasantly, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

Her eyes lit up with joy when she saw him.  "I've been pretty good. I should be mad at you. You never called!" she pouted prettily.

"I promise I'll call this time!" he said with a wink.  "Gotta go run the course," he told her.  "Just wanted to say hi!"

He jogged back out and stretched before tackling the course.

It wasn't long before he was leaping over the hurdles like a pro.  It's amazing how much he had changed in such a short time.

He was just pulling himself over the last ledge when he heard the tell-tale slide of a foot.  Zombie approaching.

Leaping into action, he hit the outside alarm that let everyone know to take cover.  He was pretty confident in his fighting skills now, she he headed over to confront it.

It passed him, headed towards the soup kitchen.  He had to get between it and the people inside!

Then, without warning, the Zombie turned and ambled away.  He didn't relax until he'd gone inside and made sure everyone was able to head somewhere safe.  (I tried to get him to greet her so that he could attack, but she just headed into the soup kitchen and then left. Lol. Silly Zombie!)

Back home, he grabbed a drink, or two, trying to settle his nerves.

To make matters worse, he found his trash can knocked over and scattered around the lawn.  Stray, angry girlfriend or Zombie, he wondered.  They were all dangerous in their own way!

"No, no, no Goopy.  If you set up patrol like that, you may get stuck between two wandering Zombie groups.  You need to make sure you leave a perimeter clear," Andres advised as he watched his new recruit attempt to set up the pretend patrol.

Goopy scratched his head and tried again, making the same rookie mistake.

"Maybe we should just take a break for today, friend," Andres told Goopy.  He really wasn't in the mood today.  "We can pick up again tomorrow."

Goopy was an eager pupil, wanting to help as much as he could.  "I'll see you tomorrow, Andres!" he said happily, before bounding down the steps.

Heather wasn't quite sure when she started losing Andres' attention, but she was determined to win it back!  She hurried up the steps and knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Andres called from the kitchen without looking around.  "What'd you forget Goopy?"

"Nothing!" she called as she stepped inside.

Andres spun around. "Heather! What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I was just in the neighborhood," she told him.  "It was nice seeing you the other day at the base.  It was so terribly brave of you to confront the Zombie.  I don't think I've ever been so scared in my life!"

Andres shrugged. "It's what I've trained for," he told her proudly.

Heather sat down on his couch and patted the spot next to her.  "Can we talk?" she asked him.

Hesitantly, Andres sat down.

"Do you still love me?" she asked him, getting straight to the heart of the matter.

Andres covered his hand with his as he scooted closer and hugged her.  "You know I'm always going to love you, doll," he said.  "We've been through so much together."

Hearing what she wanted, Heather slid onto his lap and buried her face in his neck.  She could still make him want her!

Andres hopped into the carpool and looked straight ahead while Christopher made a tsking noise and made a point of waving to Heather.  "Seems like a different girl coming out that door all the time these days," he observed.

"Just drive," Andres said.

"How about you follow me into my bedroom?" Andres said, wiggling his eyebrows comically.

Jessica scowled, prepared to snap at him.  She thought this harrasment had been resolved since the first time he tried to catcall her.

Before she could say anything, he pushed his bedroom door open and pointed to the chess table.

"I'm just messing with you!" he said sheepishly, worried she still might take offense.  "I moved it so we had more room to work on patrol plans together."

Jessica rolled her eyes, but followed him into the room.  It would be nice to play their pieces against each other to see what worked best.

After Jessica left, Andres wasted no time calling Heather over.  She came immediately, like he knew she would.

He was sleeping peacefully when an alarm sounded.

"What the hell?" he asked sleepily, jerking upright and looking around.

Heather was hurriedly looking for her clothes.  "Oh my gosh, your carpool is here already. We overslept again!"

"No! No! No!" Andres groaned, jumping out of bed and looking for his uniform.  "Crap, I haven't had time to eat or shower."  No way was he going to get a promotion today if he jumped in the car looking wrinkled and tired.

Andres sighed heavily.  3 days before he was an elder and he had no hope of reaching the top of his career before his mind turned doddering.  He was beyond frustrated at Christopher holding him back!

"You looked mad when I dropped you off, kid," Christopher said as he strolled into Andres' trailer.  "I wanted to come and check on you."

"What's with everyone just walking into my trailer these days? Haven't you heard of knocking?"

Christopher chuckled. "Tell me what's really bugging you," he told his friend, clapping him on the arm.

"I'm ready for more responsibilty. I've BEEN ready! I have the skills and I still haven't gotten a promotion.  Why are you holding me back?" Andres accused angrily.

"I'll tell you when you're ready son.  And right now," Christopher paused.  "You're not ready."

Andres huffed angrily, his lips tight with annoyance.  "Is that all?" he asked peevishly.

"That's all, kid. Get some rest, I'll see you after the weekend is over."

Andres sat, dejectedly in his livingroom, plans and thoughts running through his head on ways he could salvage this.  But, there was nothing.  He was at an impasse.

He would just have to take matters into his own hands.  Andres hoped off his couch, full of a fighting need to take out Zombies.  He didn't need backup, he could handle them on his own.  That would show Christopher that he was ready!

He wasn't ready.

*AN: Since Andres was only a Lvl 4 in military, with no hope of reaching the top of his career, I mentally stamped this challenge as an epic fail.  In my mind, he went off to fight Zombies and prove himself to Christopher, only to fail.  His punishment: turned into a Zombie for the next attempt! 

I had so much fun playing Andres! I've learned from a few of my mistakes and picked up a few helpful tips and am ready to try with a brand new founder!