Three Idiots and a Ghost

Because you can let yourself be heard (Part 03)

"Hey, Ever?" Walt said, gently shaking the girl awake from the driver's seat.

"Huh...?" Ever groaned as she peeled her eyes open. She had no clue how long she had been out. It was pitch black outside the car. "Where are we?"

"At a gas station. Warrick's gone to the restroom."

"Uh, okay..."

Walt stared at her for a second. "You don't need to go, too?"

"Nah, I'm good."

"Right, you haven't had anything to eat or drink all day."

Ever just realized that fact, too. "Can I even eat or drink anything? I mean, being dead and all."

"Besides the fact that you need to receive a constant supply of spirit energy, nothing else about you has changed. Physically, anyway."

"I see..."

So, nothing about her body had changed. But what about the stuff outside of that? Was she still the same Ever Lee prior to dying? Perhaps it was due to the late hour, but Ever's mind was beginning to have itself a philosophical debate.

"Hey," Walt said, opening the door. "I'm going to the store over there. Want anything?"

"Um..." There was only one thing that came to mind. "Ramen."

"Ramen? I'm not sure if they'll have any, but I'll check. Anything else?"

Just when Ever was about to shake her head, she remembered one more thing. "A pack of CTN Red."

She thought Walt would be surprised to hear she smoked. Her friends certainly were when they first found out. However, Walt didn't show much reaction to that fact at all as he replied, "Alright, I'll be right back."

With the door slamming shut, Ever was left in total silence and darkness. And so, her mind wandered back to its earlier, late-night debate, only to eventually come to this realization. Maybe the fact that she was contemplating all this in the first place already meant she wasn't the same as before. After all, she'd never had to think this hard about her existence prior to dying once.

"So, I've changed," Ever whispered to herself, rising out of her fetal position in the back seat.

"Hey, I think we've got a live one here!"

"Yeah? You sure, Bradley? That last one you found was definitely dead, and we need fresh organs."

"I'm positive! Look, she's moving!"

It wasn't until Bradley knocked on the car window that Ever realized they were talking about her. While she would've liked to tell this Bradley guy that he technically found another dead person so he should go look elsewhere, the fact she could talk probably wouldn't make her case very convincing. Only then did the seriousness of the situation finally hit her.

Fresh organs?

Ever had heard so many unbelievable things in one day that the conversation between the two men outside totally flew over her head at first. But who were these people? And why did they want her organs?

"Knock, knock, missy," Bradley said as he tapped on the car window again. "I know you're alive."

Well, there was no use playing dead at this point.

"The fuck you want?" Ever said in the most threatening voice she could manage. 

The best she could do now was keep him distracted long enough for the twins to come back. Then, the men outside could go after their organs instead. She was sure the psychic pair would figure something out.

"We're not shady people, I swear. We just want your kidney, liver, and maybe an eyeball if Joe's coming."

"Joe said he's busy this week!" his buddy called out.

Bradley smiled kindly. "You'll get to keep both your eyeballs."

"That sounds shady as fuck!" Ever said.

"Your sacrifice will be for a good cause. Now, please come out quietly."

"Are you even hearing yourself right now?"

Bradley put his face right against the window, and contrary to his calm voice, his eyes were full of desperation. This man wanted his damn organs. Now. 

"Come out, missy."

"Ah, hell no!"

Bradley raised the hammer he had been holding in his other hand. "Then, you leave me with no choice but to—"

The door behind Ever opened.

"Bradley, the car's not even locked!" the other man said.

Bradley opened the door on his end. "Oh, you're right."

"Shit..."

"You're coming with us, missy," Bradley said, pulling Ever out of the car by her legs.

As much as she kicked and resisted, the burly man was too strong for her to free herself from with sheer force alone. Bradley hauled her over his shoulder, and the two men walked back to their truck with their hunt for the night.

"Let go! Fuck, I don't want to lose my organs!"

At that moment, Warrick stepped out of the gas station restroom, shaking the water off his hands. "Ugh, why do my hands feel dirtier after washing it in that sink—"

"Help! These psychos are trying to take my organs!"

"What the fuck?!" Warrick uttered, rushing to his brother who exited the convenience store with a foam cup full of ramen. Well, the cup wasn't full of ramen anymore after Warrick slapped it out of Walt's hand.

"What the fuck?" Walt snapped. "The store didn't sell ramen, so the owner actually went back and cooked—"

"That's not important right now!"

"But the ramen was for Ever."

"Ever's in the back of that truck!" Warrick pointed to the vehicle speeding off onto the deserted night road.

"What?"

Seeing his brother had yet to fully assess the situation and was still caught up in the spilled ramen, Warrick grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back to their car.

"Just step on it, Walt! We have a kidnapped zombie to rescue!"

• • •

I could not think of a fictional cigarette brand, so I literally went with CTN (Can't Think of Name) Cigarettes. Don't smoke, kids.