Searching

After leaving the residential area, Ali along with Kiara walked for a while. They were both new in this place so they could just go around on guesses and try many routes.

"What are you looking for?" Kiara asked as she saw Ali looking at the roads, after climbing the first floor of some building.

"We can't walk around like this. It's too far away to go on foot." Ali said and smiled "found it."

He came down and started walking forward, over the cars and further behind them towards a corner.

He rode on a bicycle and saw if everything was fine or not. "You can take that one. If we come across any zombies or something, let's just avoid them instead of fighting or making any noise." Ali said to Kiara while pointing towards a nearby bicycle and started moving away.

Kiara who wanted to say she didn't know how to, stayed silent seeing him leave without waiting for her. So she could just bite the bullet and pick up the bicycle and follow behind him.

'So she's not so stupid after all.' Ali thought and ignored her.

Throughout their time they came across a few zombies on the road, but as Ali said they ignored it. The zombies were quite slow so they just gave up or were left behind whenever they changed directions. Ali also picked a few stones from the side to throw on some vehicles nearby to draw their attention away while they drove past them.. The roads were filled with empty vehicles, crashed, destroyed and abandoned so sometimes they had to move over them or turn around.

"We're here." Ali said, as he looked at the big building in front of them.

-Lux-

"You live here?" Kiara asked as she looked at one of the most renowned buildings in the city.

Ali ignored her and walked forward. Jumping over the gate, as it was closed and stuck in a locked position.

"Ahhhhh"

Ali turned around as he heard Kiara's scream. He saw a zombie woman holding Kiara's hand through the window of a nearby car. And trying to push her head out. But since the window was only half open she couldn't bring her mouth out and could only bite on glass.

He went forward and pulled her back. He looked at her hand to see if she had any scratches or wound marks, he didn't want to take a risk especially since he didn't know anything. About how this zombie virus worked.

Zombies were weaker, slower and dumber than normal humans. The only thing of tenacity which everyone always thought zombies had was also not true with these zombies - I mean he just kicked one's head and that zombie died, does that make sense? Is that how a Hollywood zombie should behave ?

A Hollywood zombie should move forward even if his body is riddled with bullets and shot with a bazooka.

"Don't walk near any doors, Windows or vehicles from now on." Ali said and let her be.

Moving towards his apartment on the topmost floor, for the first time in the past two years he felt like picking the penthouse here wasn't a good choice.

When he reached the top floor he could hear some sound coming from inside and the doors opened. He walked forward silently and looked around.

Going towards his room he saw a girl going through his cupboards looking for something.

"Going through my stuff, when I'm not home, are you stealing something, Em." Ali said as he stood near the door and looked at Emily.

Hearing the voice Emily turned back in surprise and seeing Ali standing there, she couldn't stop and ran forwards to hug him. "I've been waiting here for two days now. Where were you?" She said as she let go of him.

"Just woke up today. It's good that you were here or I would've had to look everywhere for you." Ali said as he saw that she was fine too. He breathed a sigh of relief, and his heart felt a little light now. He didn't have much hope to find someone so early but guess he was lucky.

"Did you find anyone else?" Ali asked as they both calmed down. "Aarvi, any news about her."

"Some of the guards came here too after they woke up nearby. As for Aarvi, I asked them to keep looking for her, but there's no news till now." Emily said, as she went into the kitchen and started preparing some food.

"She wasn't at her house?"

"No, not at sky ultima too. We checked both places yesterday. I thought you'll look for her eventually, so if I found her then maybe I'll find you too." Emily said honestly, as Ali kept nodding his head. And started thinking where else he should look for her.

Was she even in this city anymore? Who knows if she woke up somewhere entirely away.

"We'll look for her tomorrow again." Ali said to Emily. He wasn't about to give up, at least not before he searched for everything himself. "Also send someone to write notes and keep them at her home and office. If she returned, she would know that we're looking for her. So she can come here too. Forget that, just keep notes everywhere in search of Aarvi - roads, highways, some billboards etc. Ignore our address and write her name and my name. She should understand and come here herself."

Emily nodded her head and agreed. If they write their address everywhere, who knows what kind of people might also turn up at their doorsteps. It's not wise to broadcast it in the open, without any security first.

"One more thing" Emily said as she remembered something. "There's a chance Olivia is here too. She messaged me a few hours before it all blacked out, that she had something left to do, so she's returning back. She'll go home once she finishes her work."

Ali frowned as he heard her words, Liv was supposed to be back at her home, in Mumbai, with her parents and his too. But God knows why she returned here too. That too on the same day when it all went to shit. Her apartment is the one exactly below his, and since Emily said this, it meant Liv isn't there too.

"We'll look for her too. Aarvi and Liv - we'll find them. And then let's all go back home and look for everyone else." Ali said and Emily smiled and nodded. "Let's find some paint, brushes and whatever we can use to write and make it more visible on big scales." Ali ordered Emily.

Kiara entered the apartment at this time too, with a flustered face and staggering steps. She was sweating buckets and looked like she just came from a morning jog where the trainer just forced her to go plus ultra.

"She is?" Emily asked, as she saw Kiara coming and laying down on the sofa, while breathing heavily. Climbing 18 floors via stairs was tough for her it seems.

"Someone I found after I woke up. She was looking for her family too, so I took her along." Ali said. Emily looked at him and didn't ask anything else. But she kept staring at Kiara with a fixed glance, thinking something.

"Don't worry too much, we'll go our separate ways once she finds someone, her family or friends. Or we find Liv and Aarvi. It's just for now." Ali said while taking the plate of omelets from Emily's hands. Emily ignored Kiara too. But still decided to keep watch on her. It's her job to protect Ali, she's always careful about and suspicious about everyone who approaches him. Especially even more so now, when it's the end of the world and they have no resources or people.

When they both turned silent, Kiara turned to look at them from the hall, seeing them happily chatting and talking among each other, she felt annoyed. And when she heard what Ali said, she was even more annoyed. Was she some burden they want to throw away? She was just following him. She didn't ask anything, take anything or do anything - so what's there to show her attitude. He didn't even ask her about water, while he himself is eating food sitting there. Can't they just wait downstairs.

"It's just until I find dad or uncle Liebe. After that, who wants to stay with you two."

15th may 2023

"Tell her, what you told me? Tell her that you saw Kevin push Shiva on the road which killed him that day." Ali said as he held Kiara's shoulders and asked her.

"Ali, stop it, please." Aarvi said as she came forward and grabbed his hands.

"I don't know what you want? But I told you I didn't see anything. Your friend was crossing the road when that truck hit him. It was the driver's fault, not Kevin's." Kiara spoke in a hushed tone as she hid behind Aarvi.

"You bitch." Ali said as he looked at Kiara "He saved your life. I saved your life. Is this what you repay us with? By siding with that bastard."Ali raised his hand to slap her. But Aarvi stopped him.

"Ali, enough is enough. Please stop doing these things." Aarvi said to him in a stern tone, and took Kiara away.

Kevin, who was standing near them with a hidden smirk on his lips, came forward and said "I don't know why you're so angry at me, when it should be me who should hate you for everything you did. Even now when I forgot everything and let it be, you're constantly trying to harm me. Why do you hate me so much?"

"Stop your drama, you bastard. We both know what you did. And I'll prove it sooner or later." Ali said, trying hard to control his anger.

Kevin shook his head hearing those words and moved a little closer to Ali "Prove it, how? Even if you do find someone like her and tell Aarvi everything, do you think she'll believe you over me? I'm her hero, and you're just her licking dog." Kevin said with a smirk and bent forward near Ali's ears and whispered "And guess what dog, the goddess you licked for decades, would be my bitch pretty soon."

Kevin bent back and smiled. "I would've recorded it to show you, but phones aren't working now. Beg me, and I'll let you watch from the windows. Hahaha."

"How dare you?" Ali said and swung his fist at him, but Kevin backed off, dodging it. While moving his leg forward to kick Ali and make him fall.

Ali, who lost his balance, fell face first on the ground. But before he could stand again, Kevin bent down and pressed his face on the ground with his hands.

"I've never seen a dog with a green head before. Guess that would suit you." Kevin said, as he slapped Ali's head twice and left him there and went inside while laughing to himself.