SUBJECT 041(J.M), 043(P.H) ARRIVING

[Monday]

New Jersey, Bridgeton.

°°°

''And we survived another day in hell.'' I laugh while me and my best friend, Parker, are walking tiredly out of school.

It is Friday, so we decided already in the morning to hang out at mine after that hell hole called school. But before that, we have to fulfill our daily ritual.

''Don't forget about our ritual! I mean, you surely wanna get your slushie. Right Jaden?'' Parker asks and I look at him, pretending I completely forgot what our 'ritual' is.

''Oh my god, how did I forget that!'' I say dramatical and Pak, how I like to call him, rolls his eyes at me.

''I know you didn't.'' He grins and I show him a little smile, so that he would notice that his reply is certainty right, but won't get to hear it out of my mouth.

Friends since fourteen years. Long time, huh? Age of four, it was my first day in Kindergarten because I just moved here and knew no one so far. After I got shown around, I remember how I saw another little boy sitting on one of the large sofas completely alone and as social I was back there, I decided to talk to him and from that day on, we became friends.

Funny story.

''Seven-eleven! We are coming for you, woo hoo!'' I shout happily and my best friend facepalms, obviously embarrassed by my attitude.

But come on. We all know the crackhead-friend-energy is the best energy.

It doesn't take us longer than ten minutes until we arrive at the small shop placed on the corner of the street behind our school in nothing more than our dirty, ordinary, Bridegton in New Jersey.

''Do you take the same like usually?'' Parker asks and looks at me.

I bet Pak actually already knows my answer but we all also know, that he isn't the best with keeping conversations up.

''No. I'll take a coffee today.'' I have to stop myself from laughing when I see how Parker is completely speechless and obviously not recognizing that it was a joke.

I would never even dare to choose a coffee over a good slushie.

''I was kidding, dude!'' I burst out in laughing and lean forwards, holding my stomach from the laughing while Parker slowly but surely gets more and more red in his face.

''Oooooooh, I know, I just wanted to- uhm- let you enjoy your...joke?'' He says awkwardly after a few seconds and I look at him, smiling widely. Even though I know that he is lying.

''Sureeee.'' I continue grinning and finally enter the shop together with him.

''You go first.'' I say to Pak and he looks up at the list of the different drinks.

A few years ago, two for being exact. I forced Parker to go getting slushies with me because I was so shocked that he never ever drank even only one before in his entire life.

He still always chooses the same flavour.

At least it isn't the mountain dew slushie, because those are messing with your brain and stomach. Also your teeth.

''I take-''

[Coke!]

''Coke, please.''

Ha, knew it again.

The shop assistant nods and makes his slushie ready. Before the assistant tells him the final price which Parker, of course, has perfectly without that any change is needed there.

As soon as Pak is ready, I walk towards the counter and also say my favourite flavour, which I would like to buy.

''How can I help you?'' The shop assistant asks and I answer easily with a nod.

''One wild berry slushie, please.'' I smile a bit, while the guy finishes the slushie.

I give him the money and walk over to Parker who laughs a bit.

Wondering why he is laughing, I go outside with him and raise an eyebrow.

''What's so funny?''

''Nothing!'' Pak grins and we head to my house for playing 'The Last Of Us'. Which is the absolute favourite game from both of us.

A short explanation for this masterpiece!

God, I should stop talking about everything I like WAY too much in an almost unhealthy way.

It is basically played with two charactes, player one is either Joel, a smuggler which is tasked with escorting a teenage girl and player two is Ellie, the girl.

The entire thing counts in the genre 'adventure games' but it's so much more! It basically teaches you how to survive a post-apocalyptic in the United states!

Okay, okay. I will shut up already.

We arrive at my house and the moment I pull out my keys I already get a bad feeling deep inside of me.

Ignoring this feeling, I open the door and go inside with Parker but freeze right at the place I am standing as soon as I see the two completely in black dressed men in my livingroom.

An uncomfortable shiver is running down my spine and I tense up, probably also forgetting how to breathe for a long moment.

''Who are they?'' Parker whispers with a bit of a shaking in his voice but I am not able to answer him at all because the guys are already starting to talk with some kind of robotic voice.

''Jaden Mack, 041, and Parker Heegan, 043,'' He pauses for a short moment.

''We are here for getting you both to the only place where the last chosen humans can be safe and seprested instead of imploding by 'the end of the rest world'. As 041 and 043 you have both been chosen for surviving and both of you have to complete their destiny with coming with us and starting a new reunion.'' The man on the left talks without even blinking at all.

Am I dreaming? This can't be real.

I mean, seriously? End of the world? Where are we? In some kind of weird video game?

To be honest, he looks kind of scary with his tall, threatening figure and the cold look in his gray eyes.

''What is with my Parents?! I can't go anywhere without knowing if they are safe!'' I become awfully terrified the moment I think about my only family which is left and I immediately promise myself I won't let go of them at all.

''No questions. That is rule one.'' The other man starts while glaring at me.

I feel fastly a large amount of anger coming up inside of me while Parker next to me just goes silent.

He is probabaly thinking about what we just got to know.

''I won't go without you!'' I yell and the first emotion appears on their faces.

In the end I wish they would have stayed emotionless. Because now they just look annoyed and somehow really angry.

How can't they just understand that I want my family to be fucking safe?!

''You have no control about that. Injection needed for subject 041.'' The left man talks into some kind of microphone which is in his ear and I slowly start to panic.

Everyone knows that I hate injections and everything around that as much as anyone else.

I get the feeling of throwing up already just by seeing someone, or me, getting one.

''You can't do that!'' Parker speaks up for me insecure. Probabaly only because he recognizes how pale I just got.

The moment my view gets to the sharp- and metallic shining thing in the guy's hand, I start to feel scarily sick.

My stomach is doing flips inside of me and I am already wrapping my arms around myself fastly.

''You have no control about that.'' The man repeats and I gulp heavily when he suddenly makes one step forward.

How did that happen?! That's not even logically possible!

''Go a-away with that!'' I shout, trying to shirk backwards until I feel the wall in my back when he comes closer with the syringe.

''You have no control about that.'' He repeats once again and I feel how my chest gets tighter and I start to shake a little.

''Stop!'' Parker intervenes, but it is already too late.

One moment in which I don't pay all my attention to it, the man already puts the injection into my arm and a sudden feeling of tiredness and feeling spongy gets me to my knees.

What is in there?!

''Jaden!''

That is the last thing I am hearing, before the world becomes completely black around me.

°°°

''Jaden!'' I shout worriedly when I see how he stumbles and almost falls completely over on the floor but one of the man catches him within seconds.

This motherf--.

''Why did you do that?! He hates injections and you see what happened! Do something!'' I yell shakily, but they don't show any emotions anymore.

Which for the record just makes me want to scream.

''Subject 041 is prepared for the travel. 043 will be soon too.'' The left man speaks into his microphone again and I see how the other one lifts Jaden easily up like he is some light feather which you can throw up without even trying, because it has absolutely no weight.

''Hey! Let him go!'' I shout scared about what they might plan on doing, but immediately feel only two seconds later something sharp in my arm.

Then I am the one who's world goes black.

●●●

Congratulations.

SUBJECT 041 and 043 are successfully on their way into the survivor camp.

Don't worry, the injections were just a lot of soporific, also known as sleeping liquid.

They will wake up as soon as they (almost) arrive.

There are still 14 SUBJECTS left, we have to 'collect' them as fast as possible.

See you soon, 002.

Stay safe in those wild times.