Henry kept a serious look ahead on the road and had been the same way since they left the laboratory, where he had left behind everyone he knew and they had helped him create what for him was the most important job of all. his life.

As Henry dodged the abandoned cars on the road, he had many things running through his mind, as far as he knew all his classmates and friends had been killed, and the only ones he could have saved also had to give their lives so that he and this thief could come out alive and have a second chance to deliver the cure. If only he had done something to slow the zombies down, or if he had refused to let them engage the zombies only for them to run away, he would have only done something so they wouldn't have to be the soldiers.

Now he just had to give them his best wishes so that they are resting in peace and in a better place than this hole of rats and zombies in which he and this thief were trapped.

Henry swears by all those who gave his life and were working hard day and night that he himself was going to give the cure in his hands to all the people who needed it.

But it wasn't going to be easy. The thief accompanying him was a stranger, who had only joined him out of convenience. I knew nothing about him, nor his motives, nor his past. He only knew that he was an expert at infiltrating and escaping from dangerous places, and the moment he heard him screaming for his life locked in that room he knew that he wasn't going to let him die in that place.

Felix, for his part, didn't trust Henry either. He saw him as a nerd obsessed with his invention, who had no idea how to survive the apocalypse. He didn't care about the cure, or humanity, or anything. He only cared about the money he could get when he delivered the samples to his boss.

So the two looked at each other warily as they drove down the empty roads, avoiding the lone zombies moving clumsily in their direction and the cars abandoned by other survivors. Henry and Felix continued in the same way for another hour or two. , until Felix began to notice that they didn't have much sunlight left and they had to start looking for supplies and a place to camp safely.

"Hey, nerd, I think we should stop soon," Felix said, looking at the orange sky.

- Because? Are you afraid of the dark? - Henry said, sarcastically.

- No, but it would be stupid not to take care of the zombies, and the bandits that could ambush us - Felix said, seriously.

- Well, let's find a place where we can stop. "I don't know this area," said Henry, seriously.

- Okay, let me see... - Felix said, observing the landscape.

Henry slowed down a little, and so Felix looked around for somewhere that would allow them to spend the night safely. They had passed a residential neighborhood, but several minutes had passed and there were surely zombies inside most of those houses and they had no weapons to face them. Now they were in the middle of a fairly long road, where they were only surrounded by forest on the left and on the right there was what seemed to be some farm land, which meant two things: darkness and most likely infested with zombies

"Damn, there's nothing around here," Felix said, frustrated.

"Maybe we should go back to the neighborhood," Henry suggested, as he looked in the rearview mirror.

- You're crazy? That would be suicide. I'm sure there are hundreds of zombies in there, waiting for us to enter - Felix said and watched as the sun sank further and further into the horizon.

- Well, then you tell me what we do. We can't keep driving all night. We need to rest, eat and maybe start looking for supplies - Henry said.

- I know, I know. But we can't risk going anywhere. It has to be something safe, something we can defend - said Felix, thoughtfully.

Finally, he saw something that caught his attention. It was a roadside motel, one of those that usually accommodated travelers and tourists. It was a little run down, but seemed to be in better shape than other buildings. It had an illuminated sign that said "Vacancy", although it was not lit. It had a large parking lot, with some abandoned cars. And it had a metal fence surrounding the perimeter, with a padlocked gate.

"There," Felix said, pointing to the motel.

- There? You're sure? - Henry said, hesitating.

- Yes, why not? It looks good. "We can find rooms, food, water, maybe we'll even get lucky and those cars will have some gas," Felix said, enthusiastically.

- Or we can find zombies, rats, cockroaches, maybe even traps - said Henry.

- Come on, don't be so negative. This place doesn't seem to have been looted, maybe it's our luck changing - said Felix, animated.

- OK that's fine. But be careful. We don't know what we might find in there - Henry said, resigned.

Henry and Felix arrived at the motel, and got out of the car. Felix approached the gate in the fence, and tried to open it. It was closed with a padlock, but it didn't seem very sturdy.

"Leave it to me," said Felix, taking a lockpick out of his pocket.

- What are you doing? Do you know how to use one of those? - Henry asked, surprised.

- Of course, I'm the one who entered your large and super protected laboratory. "This is a piece of cake," said Felix, proudly.

Felix went to work on the lock, while Henry looked at him with great indignation. Felix didn't seem to notice as they were focused on opening the door. The motel seemed quiet and desolate.

"That's it," Felix said, opening the door with a click.

"Well done," Henry said, recognizing his skill, but still annoyed at bringing up the subject of what situation they got together in the first time.

"Thank you," Felix said, smiling with some superiority.

They entered the motel, but they did not trust each other. Felix was able to grab a metal pipe from the floor, and remained alert as they made their way deeper into the motel. Henry took a knife out of his backpack, and held it in his hand. They both advanced cautiously, looking around.

- Be careful and try not to make noise, until we are sure we are alone - Henry said.

- I know, I know. It's not the first time I've done this. "I didn't spend the entire apocalypse in a laboratory," Felix said, impatiently.

- .... - Henry remained silent the rest of the search for possible dangers in the motel.

- Okay, This place is free of zombies and bandits. "Let's go see if there's any free room," said Felix, anxiously.

They went up to the second floor again, and looked for a room they liked. Most of the doors were open, and the rooms were empty or in disarray. On the first floor and in the kitchen of the place he had found suitcases, some clothes, some bottles of mineral water, a few cans, some magazines. But there was nothing to defend themselves with at long range, nor anything that killed the zombies more effectively than what they currently had.

Finally, they found a room that seemed suitable. It was number 12, at the end of the hallway. It had a closed door, but it wasn't something that couldn't be opened with the help of a lockpick. It had a window that overlooked the parking lot, and another that overlooked the field. It had a large bed, a small table, a lamp, a closet, a television, a bathroom. It had a clean and welcoming appearance.

After opening the door, Felix gave a signal to Henry to stay back, and began to check the closets and bathroom in the room. He wanted to see if there was something useful they could use, or something dangerous they should avoid. He opened the drawers, the shelves, the doors, and looked inside. He didn't find anything of interest, just some old clothes, some broken objects, some remains of trash.

Meanwhile, Henry stood next to the front door frame, following Felix with his gaze. He wanted to see what he did, or what he thought. He was intrigued by his attitude, his personality, his history. It was good to have someone who had spent more time abroad and knew what to expect in today's world.

Felix finished his search, and sat down on the bed. He looked at Henry, and motioned for him to come in. He felt uncomfortable, and began to speak.

"There is nothing useful on this floor, but at least there are no zombies either," Felix said dryly.

"I see," Henry said, nodding.

- And you? Did you find anything in the reception and dining room? - Felix asked, curious.

- Nothing, just dust and tables with nothing - said Henry, somewhat dissatisfied.

"Well, that's bad," Felix said, recognizing his current situation.

"Yes, our luck hasn't changed much," Henry said, matching the tone.

Henry and Felix stood in silence, not knowing what to say. They both knew they had to talk, but neither knew how to start. They both knew they weren't a team, but they weren't enemies either. They both knew they had nothing to survive alone, but they also had nothing to rely on together.

"I'm Henry, by the way," Henry said, breaking the silence.

"Felix," Felix said, nodding.

- I guess it's nice to meet you - Henry stopped for a few seconds and continued - What are we going to do now? - Henry asked, seriously.

- I don't know, Henry. "I don't know," said Felix, sincerely.