"We're not in Louisiana anymore, Toto..."
On the corner of a four-way intersection in downtown, Danni canvassed the concrete jungle with her hazel eyes. The skinny girl had dark hair with a hint of purple, short New Orleans Saints jersey which showed off her belly button, and frayed jean shorts. She wore white knee-high socks with gold and black stripes and black cotton canvas tennis shoes.
Her bestie's boyfriend, Romero, stood at her side on the curb. A backward fleur-de-lis hat set over his shaved head, and a large jersey swallowed his thin frame whole. He peered out into the streets with the same slack-jawed expression as Danni.
Downtown was congested as usual but the daily bustling bodies, horns, and unified buzz of cell phone conversations were replaced with naked bodies, moans, and heavy breathing. People, man and woman alike, shred themselves of their suits and dresses. Unashamed, the young and old copulated in cars at the red light, on the corners atop newspaper vending machines, and in alleys sprawled across the top of trash bins. Everyone had the same vacant gaze in their eyes.
"I guess no game today?" Romero joked half-heartedly.
Danni shot him an eye but then looked back over the mess of bare bodies. "What the hell is—"
Before she could part with the words, the unclothed strangers simultaneously stopped. Their attention turned to Danni and Romero. They peeked out of their car windows, sat up on the newspaper machines, and crept out of the alleys. They lumbered closer to the friends with a chorus of groans.
"Hey! What's going on here?" Romero asked a middle aged lady. The blonde, with a hint of grey, rushed Romero against the brick wall of Danni's apartment complex. The lady puckered for a kiss, her hand groped his crotch and her bell-shaped breasts pressed against Romero's chest. Romero scooted out from between her and the wall and took Danni's side again. "Ummm... I think we should run."
On cue, the pair darted back inside the apartment complex and into the empty lobby.
Danni hurried to the check-in counter and rang the service bell. "Hello?"
Romero withdrew his iPhone and shuffled to his girlfriend's phone number. After pressing the call button, he placed it to his ear. "Come on, come on..." It rang and rang and rang before finally going to voicemail:
("Hola! This is Maggie. Leave a message after the beep and I'll think about calling you back. He-he.")
"Hey, uh, Maggie—"
Danni screamed.
The cry for help startled Romero. He jumped, dropped his phone, and wheeled around.
Danni ran in circles around the lobby, chased by a slow-moving concierge. The man had his work slacks around his ankles. His button shirt hung to about mid-thigh with a small protrusion underneath, which could only be one thing. With a glazed-over look in his eyes, he moaned and shuffled after her.
Romero rushed over to help. He shoved the man away while Danni made a break for it. She leapt the check-in counter and dipped low enough that only her eyes peeked over.
With a dopey smile, the concierge swung his attention, and his tiny erection, toward Romero. He reached for Romero's belt buckle.
"Whoa, whoa!" Romero dodged back. "Homey don't play dat."
The concierge didn't seem to register anything Romero said. He continued toward Romero with a wide grin and spaced-out look in his eyes.
Romero dashed and hopped over the check-in counter next to Danni. Both escaped into the office behind them. They slammed the door shut, locked it. They then paced side by side, eyes to the floor in an attempt to gather some understanding.
A TV in the corner caught Romero's attention. A newswoman perched behind her desk. Her lips moved but the volume was muted.
"Yo!" Romero turned the volume dial on the television.
("...we ask that you stay inside and refrain from drinking the water. If you're on the road, we suggest you go to Mick's Grocery on Annunciation. It's a safe haven being guarded by the military. If you or anyone you're with start getting dizzy, sweating profusely... if you have a sudden urge to remove clothes, an insatiable thirst for sex, we ask that you lock yourself away. Any kind of fluid transfer, kiss or otherwise, from the infected will result in you transforming as well. We'll give you more as this story develops.")
"Oh shit, what if Maggie..." Romero massaged his temples.
"And Shaun?" Danni bit on her nails. She peeked out the blinds. "We need to get to that grocery store."
"They just said to stay in."
"While it's infested with... whatever they are? No!" Danni's eyes searched the crowded street. "It's only a few blocks away."
"How the hell are we gonna get there?" Romero asked. "We'll get atta—"
The sudden silence got Danni's attention. She released the blinds and looked back to Romero. "What? You got an idea?"
"Well..." Romero hurried to her side and peeked out of the blinds. "In the Walking Dead—"
"Zombies?" Danni heightened her brow. "Zombies don't fuck each other. They eat each other."
"My boy is eating something out there..." Romero's eyes distended upon seeing a man lick a woman's pussy on the hood of a parked Jeep.
"Any who!" Danni yanked him back to the conversation. "What were you gonna say?"
"Well, in the TV show, the survivors maneuver around the zombies by dressing like them, covering themselves in bloo—"
"I got it." Danni cut him off. "Don't gross me out with all the gory details."
"Fine. But you get the idea, right? It's like camouflage."
"Mm-hm..." Danni folded her arms, knowing exactly where he was going. "So, you think getting naked will help us blend in?"
"There's only one way to find out." Romero unbuttoned the top of his jeans. "I'll try. You wait here by the door just in case it doesn't work. Got it?"
Danni's eyes drifted to the ceiling, not wanting to catch a glimpse. "Sure."
Romero kicked off his sneakers, socks, and jerked down his jeans along with his boxers. His cock was long, thick, and limp down his thigh. He removed the jersey from his skinny, athletic torso.
Although Danni tried not to look the curiosity was too much. She sent a fleeting glance and blushed upon sight. Maggie said he was big, but Danni thought it to be an exaggeration. Not the case...
Romero cupped his cock and balls in both hands and eased out of the office door.
The concierge was still in the lobby on the opposite side of the counter. Upon hearing the creak of the door, he turned to Romero with a confused expression. Still, he didn't move.
"I think it's working..." Romero whispered back over his shoulder. He walked around the counter and out into the lobby. He glanced back at Danni.
Danni motioned for him to walk past the concierge, just to make sure.
Romero's face hardened at the risky move. He eyeballed the concierge and exhaled a nervous breath. He eased past, almost bumping shoulders.
The concierge never budged. He just stared with that puzzled look.
