Several minutes later, the bathroom door slowly opened.
A cloud of warm steam drifted into the motel room.
Mafuyu stepped out first, followed by Uruka.
Both women had changed into the motel's large white bathrobes, their damp hair hanging loosely over their shoulders.
Their cheeks were slightly red with embarrassment.
Mafuyu cleared her throat.
"We washed our clothes while we were showering."
Akira looked up from the portable stove and nodded.
"Good idea."
He pointed toward the air conditioner mounted high on the wall.
"Hang your wet clothes underneath the AC."
"It'll dry much faster."
The two women looked at each other before nodding.
"Right."
They returned to the bathroom, collected their freshly washed uniforms from the hangers, and carefully hung them on the backs of chairs directly beneath the cool airflow from the air conditioner.
Within minutes, the steady stream of cold air began drying the fabric.
Satisfied, they returned to the table.
The aroma of warm baked beans filled the room.
Akira had already divided everything into three equal portions.
Each place setting contained several slices of bread, a serving of baked beans, a bowl of canned peaches, a bottle of water and a Twinkie.
He slid two paper plates across the table.
"Here."
"Eat up."
Neither Mafuyu nor Uruka needed to be told twice.
"Thank you."
They quietly picked up their spoons and began eating.
For several moments, the room was filled with nothing but the soft clinking of plastic spoons against paper bowls.
Uruka took a bite of the warm beans.
Her eyes widened.
"They're warm"
It was such a simple thing.
Yet after three days of surviving on cold canned food and crackers, the warmth almost brought tears to her eyes.
Mafuyu smiled softly as she dipped a piece of bread into the beans.
"I didn't realize how much I missed a hot meal."
Akira chuckled while taking another bite.
"It's amazing how your standards change after the apocalypse."
"A month ago I'd have complained about eating canned beans."
He lifted his spoon.
"Now this feels like restaurant food."
That earned a small laugh from Uruka.
The tension that had followed them ever since arriving in this strange world slowly melted away.
After finishing the beans, Uruka curiously picked up the unfamiliar snack cake.
"Twinkie?"
She read the label aloud.
Akira grinned.
"Go on."
"Try it."
She carefully unwrapped it and took a small bite.
Her eyes immediately lit up.
"It's sweet!"
"It's really good!"
Mafuyu sampled hers as well, pleasantly surprised by the soft sponge cake and creamy filling.
"I can see why you like these."
Akira smiled proudly.
"Told you."
"They're worth searching for."
For the first time since they had awakened in this terrifying world, the three of them shared a peaceful meal together.
Outside, walkers still wandered the empty streets of Citrus City.
Inside Room 12.
There were warm beans, fresh bread, sweet peaches, bottled water, and enough laughter to momentarily drown out the apocalypse waiting beyond the motel walls.
After lunch, the paper plates and empty cans were stacked neatly on one side of the table.
The atmosphere inside Room 12 was calm.
For the first time in days, none of them felt hungry.
Akira leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.
"You two don't know much about this zombie apocalypse, do you?"
Mafuyu and Uruka exchanged glances before shaking their heads.
"Not really," Mafuyu admitted.
"We only know that those... things attack people."
Akira nodded.
"Then I'll explain everything."
He tapped his finger lightly against the table.
"About four months ago, a virus called the Wildfire virus spread across the globe through the air."
"It first appeared in Europe before rapidly spreading to every continent."
"There wasn't any stopping it."
He paused for a moment.
"The important part is this..."
"Everyone is infected."
Silence.
Uruka's eyes slowly widened.
"Everyone?"
Akira nodded grimly.
"Everyone."
"It doesn't matter if you were born here or, apparently, dropped into this world from somewhere else."
"If you die..."
"your brain will reactivate after a short time."
"You'll come back as one of the slow walkers."
Uruka's face instantly lost its color.
"S-So."
"We're infected too?"
"I'm afraid so."
Akira gave an apologetic nod.
"Unless your brain is destroyed or you die from catastrophic brain damage, you'll eventually reanimate."
Neither woman spoke.
The reality of those words settled heavily over the room.
To lighten the mood, Akira reached for another Twinkie.
He peeled open the wrapper.
Took a bite.
Closed his eyes for a brief second.
"Now that's good."
After swallowing, he wiped the cream from the corner of his mouth and continued.
"Three months ago, things somehow got even worse."
"A mutated strain of mad cow disease evolved and became capable of infecting humans."
"It creates the runners."
He raised two fingers.
"So now there are two kinds of zombies."
"The slow walkers come from the Wildfire virus."
"They're slow."
"They gather into massive hordes."
"A bite from one won't magically transform you."
"If they bite you, the wound can still become infected, and you can die from fever, blood loss, or organ failure."
"If you die..."
"the Wildfire virus brings you back as a walker."
He lowered one finger.
"The second type is the runner."
"They're much faster."
"They sprint."
"They climb."
"They crawl."
"They don't tire."
Uruka shivered.
"I've seen one..."
Akira nodded.
"So have I."
"And trust me."
"I'd rather deal with twenty walkers than one runner."
He leaned forward slightly.
"If a runner bites you and you somehow escape."
"You'll have about five minutes before the infection overwhelms you."
"Then you'll become one of them."
Mafuyu unconsciously tightened her grip around the bottle of water.
"Five minutes."
Akira nodded.
"Which is why checking every room before entering is important."
He gave a dry smile.
"Even using a public restroom became a pain."
"You never know if a runner is hiding in one of the stalls."
That earned a nervous laugh from Uruka despite herself.
Finally, Akira sighed.
"About two months ago."
"All government communications stopped."
"The final nationwide emergency broadcast advised survivors to identify themselves by the city they came from."
He looked toward the motel window.
"The idea was that using city names instead of real names would help people avoid becoming too emotionally attached."
"In a world where friends die every day."
"they thought it might make future losses easier to bear."
He shrugged.
"Personally, I don't think it worked."
"The majority of survivors I've met still introduce themselves by their real names."
"Only a minority actually use city names like 'Dallas' or 'Phoenix.'"
The room fell quiet once more.
Uruka stared at her hands.
"So..."
"This world..."
"Really has no cure?"
Akira slowly shook his head.
"Not that anyone's found."
Outside, the distant groans of walkers drifted faintly through the afternoon air, a grim reminder that the nightmare they were discussing was waiting just beyond the motel walls.