Blood Trail: Turn

Chapter 2: Open Fire

The sun had been down for about five hours when Colin strolled into the parlor from his bedroom in the back of the house. He had just rolled a fat blunt and was eager to smoke it with his best friend. The weed wasn't that great, but it was a blunt nonetheless. Colin and Derek appreciated anything they could get their dirty hands on. As Colin entered the parlor, he realized that Derek was passed out on the couch with the television on, though the screen was only blue; Derek's favorite channel. Derek had a half-empty beer in his hand, so Colin carefully reached over from behind the couch, retrieved the beer, and poured it all over Derek, who woke up in a shocked confusion.

"Ah, what the fuck, man?!" Derek muttered as he wiped the excess liquid from his grimy white T-shirt. 

"Wakey wakey, asshole. I got a fat blunt to smoke and then we're goin' out for a little bit." Colin laughed as he sat down on the couch next to his buddy.

Derek slouched up to make room for Colin, and questioned what he saw on the TV. "What the hell is this shit?"

"I don't know, man. You're the one watchin' it." Colin smirked as he lit the blunt.

Derek picked up the remote and changed the channel to a News program, just for background noise while the two smoked. Once the blunt was lit, Colin passed it to Derek.

Derek hit the blunt and coughed in disgust. "Aw, man. Is this reggie?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Derek," Colin replied sarcastically, "Where's the blunt you rolled?"

"Whatever, man." Derek passed the blunt back to Colin and turned his attention to the news. The blonde female anchor expressed a slight tone of concern in her voice while reading the teleprompter.

"A bizarre story tonight," the anchor began, "An unusual strain of influenza has been taking its toll on millions, not only from the United States, but from around the world."

"Oh yeah, I heard about this. Fuckin' weird shit, dude," Colin mentioned as he handed the blunt to Derek.

The television showed shots of hospitals and sick people being treated. "Unlike previously recognized forms of influenza, symptoms of this flu virus are ranging from common sneezing and coughing, to vomiting, dementia, and...unconfirmed reports of cannibalistic rage."

Derek's demeanor went from groggy and uninterested to alarmed and curious as his eyes widened and he leaned forward on the couch. "What the fuck?"

"The governments of China, France, and The United States have begun handing out germ-resistant face masks to prevent the spread of infection in major citiies." The anchorwoman continued. "Authorities are encouraging people to stay indoors unless otherwise truly necessary. We will have more on this story as it develops."

The news turned its attention to the weather forecast as Colin extinguished the blunt. He turned off the TV and got up to put on his hooded sweatshirt. "You comin'?"

"Yeah. Let me get my shirt on." Derek replied as he slithered into his green flannel. He joined his Colin at the door. The two headed out, leaving the place a mess, as always.

Tonight was trash night in Derek and Colin's neighborhood, which meant that every family had their garbage placed out by the street, making it free game. Most of it was just garbage, but every now and then Derek and Colin would find something useful, like chairs, appliances, records, or simply wooden furniture to burn in the fireplace. Winter would be arriving within two months, so anything they could find to stock up on would be useful.

The two men strolled down Thomas Avenue smoking cigarettes and keeping their eyes peeled for anything they might be able to put to good use. The only light glowed from streetlights and the windows of a few neighbors who were still up, watching TV. The silence was enough for Colin to recognize that something wasn't right with Derek. This was around the same time that Jess had left him two years prior, and Derek had been drinking more than usual. They walked for five minutes before one of them finally spoke.