[i]Bang.[/i] The sound of the gunshot rang out in the forest, followed by a thump as the body hit the ground. Dark red blood pooled where bullet had rendered flesh. Heads turned with brows raised high. The shooter was unfazed. He lowered his rifle and lifted a hand to wipe the sweat that had beaded on his forehead. It was a bit of a warm morning, and he had been outside for quite a while, patiently stalking the prey that now lay dead in the grass. He relaxed his tense shoulders. The job was done. “Nice work, Jay,” one of the other young men in the forest said, clapping him on the back. “That’s one steady hand you’ve got there. He was a big guy, but you took him down in one shot.” Jay shrugged, “Just gotta know where to shoot, Ben.” “Don’t sell yourself short,” another man spoke up. “Knowing where to shoot and hitting your mark are two different things.” He turned to the unmoving body. “He went down so fast, I’ll bet he hardly felt a thing.” “That was the point,” Jay said. “I’m not in this to be cruel.” The other men chuckled, and Ben spoke up again, “You’ve got a big heart, huh? Now, help us get him out of here.” “Sure thing.” The group of hunters gutted the dead elk and hauled its body onto the bed of a pickup truck. They drove back to a nearby cabin, where they skinned, cut, and bagged the meat, which was then put into a meat locker to cool, so it wouldn’t spoil. Jay sat with the rest of the men when their work was done, politely denying when they offered him a beer. “Thanks, but I’ve got class today.” “Lightweight,” the hunter who offered him the drink rolled his eyes. Jay just shook his head in response. In all honesty, he didn’t feel like drinking at five in the morning on a Tuesday, but these guys obviously had no qualms with it, so he decided to let it go. They were all peers at the same university—they had met at the school’s hunting and fishing club—but they spent so much time in the woods that it was easy for Jay to forget they were students too. He looked over his companions as they drank Heinekens and talked loudly with each other. Ben was a beefy guy with short-cropped, brown hair and a lot of tattoos; third year forestry major involved in the army ROTC program. Wyatt was lean and scruffy looking with wild eyes, almost as if he could be one of the animals they were hunting; fourth year philosophy major who had no idea what he was going to do after he got his degree. Lee was a bit smaller than the others, being of Chinese ethnicity, but he was the oldest among them at age twenty-four; first year graduate student with a degree in nursing. They were an odd group of guys without much in common, but their mutual affinity for hunting bonded them in friendship. -- As the clock turned to six, they all piled into the truck to go back to the university. Jay, being the only one who didn’t have a beer, was naturally selected as their driver. The forest they were hunting in wasn’t too far from the college campus—as far as hunting grounds go, that is—so it only took them an hour to get back. They spent the time sharing stories of previous hunting trips: The time Lee killed a moose in Montana, but it got eaten by a bear before he could collect the meat; the time Wyatt forgot to wear his orange hunters’ vest and almost got shot by his friend; the time Jay and his brother, Jacob, stumbled upon a huge herd of bighorn sheep in Canada and brought back enough food to last their family for weeks… All in all, it was good fun, and the men were a bit disappointed to part ways when they arrived at the university. Jay dropped the other three off at their respective apartments on-or-near campus, and then returned the truck to a parking garage near Ben’s place. It was Ben’s vehicle, so he had to leave it behind and walk back to his own apartment half a mile away. He didn’t mind the stroll though. It was early in the morning, so there weren’t many people outside to gawk at his bloodstained sleeves. Although, in the past he had been questioned by the campus police a few times for ‘suspicious behavior’ and had to explain to them that no, this was not human blood, and no, he was not a murderer. He chuckled softly at the memory. Jay got home at about seven twenty. His roommate, Zack, was still asleep, so he was careful to move quietly as he stripped off his bloody clothes and got into the shower. He didn’t have class until half past eight, so he took advantage of the extra time and let the hot water wash over him for twenty minutes instead of his usual five. He would have stayed there even longer, but he heard a knock on the bathroom door, meaning Zack was awake. “One sec!” Jay called in response. He shut off the water and wrapped a towel around his waist, then opened the door to let his roommate in. “All yours.” “Thanks, man,” Zack said, bouncing from left foot to right. “I have to piss [i]so[/i] bad.” He pushed past Jay to get into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. “Dude, you’ve gotta stop chugging water right before you go to bed,” Jay laughed. “Shut up,” Zack said from the other side of the door. “I needed to pre-hydrate for football practice today. We’re doing suicides because coach Miller hates us.” “Fair enough,” Jay admitted. He left Zack alone and finished getting ready for the day. He tossed his hunting clothes into a hamper and put on a plain red t-shirt and blue jeans. Even after he styled his hair and got his books together, there was still plenty of time before his class would start. He didn’t feel like sitting around in his apartment though, so he decided to go to the food hub of the college campus for some breakfast. “I’m heading out,” Jay said to Zack on his way out. His roommate was cramming for a test he had forgotten to study for. Despite his glasses, he wasn’t a very studious guy. “Mhm,” Zack grunted without looking up. It was clear that he wasn’t paying attention. “The world is burning and the apocalypse has begun,” Jay said flatly. “Mhm.” “There are zombies climbing in through your window.” “Mhm.” Jay sighed in defeat, “Catch you later, Zack.” He shut the door and walked to the food hub, hoping the line for bagels wouldn’t be too long.