Warm Corpses

For this assignment I was told to write and Ekphrastic piece with comments on another work of art. Mine is about a movie. Can you guess which one? Comment below what you think.

Warm Corpses

I'm so white. I should go out more. I should exercise more. My personal health is awful. I should do something with my hair. People would respect me more if I cared about my appearance. What's wrong with me? I just want to connect. Why can't I connect with people?
      Oh, right. It's because I'm dead.
      I shouldn't be so hard on myself. I mean, we're all dead. This girl is dead. That guy's dead. That guy in the corner is definitely dead. Jeez we look awful.
      I think they called me “Rai.” I don’t remember what my name really was. And I don’t remember who “they” are. I guess that’s better than most zombies. They don’t have any semblance of what their name was before. The might have a letter or a sound but that’s it. Also I’m a sort of collector. I collect all kinds of human things. I guess I have such a strong desire to be alive again and all these trinkets makes me feel more alive

One day, while my comrades and I were in the city looking for “food” I saw a delicious-looking specimen. I mean, he was muscle-y and I could tell there was a large brain in that head to consume. However, I wasn’t really hungry looking at him. Some other feeling had washed over me. I didn’t know what it was but I knew that I had to have him to figure it out. However, some other chick was looking at him meaningfully and I just knew she had to go. I ran over and jumped on her back making her fall to the floor.

Fwack! Huh, that was easy. Usually takes two or three cracks to break the sculls. Must be getting better. Ah, yes! The brains are leaking out now. Let’s keep these in my pocket for later. Now for that man candy. I still didn’t want to eat him. What was wrong with me? He looked tasty enough… Maybe I’d take him back with me and figure out what was wrong with him. He used up all his bullets on my buddies and all he had left was a jack knife which he threw into my chest. Ha, like that would stop me. Come on dude, I’m not even going to eat you right now.

He was turning away and looking for some other kind of weapon but I’d tackled him to the ground before he could find anything. He was struggling but I tried to tell him I wasn’t going to eat him. Fine, don’t understand. Alright. I’ve got him. Now I just needed to get him home. Aww man. I forgot about my comrades. How am I going to get him out of here without them noticing that I am bringing a human back with me?

Ugh, why do I have to be so weird? Why can’t I just do what I’m supposed to and go with the flow? Well, I got this far. I wiped some of the old blood off my mouth and wiped it on his cheek. Then I ripped of a strip of the scarf I was wearing and tied it around his arm. He smelled like a corpse a little bit and I figured it would fool the rest of the clan. Oh stop gagging, it’s not that bad. I held a finger to my mouth in the universal signal for “shut up or they’ll catch you” and started to pull him with me to the center of the group. I guess he was terrified that someone would chomp on him if he started to move away, screamed, or remove the stuff I put on him so he stayed beside me.

Well this is working out. I’ve had him for a few days and no one’s been the wiser. However, he’s tried to run a few times. He needs human food so I’ve been trying to find whatever I can for him but he doesn’t trust me. I can’t understand why. I’m a likable, loyal chick. Oh yeah, maybe it’s because my kind eats his kind.

I’ve got to figure out why I want to keep him. It’s not so that I don’t have to leave to find food anymore… it’s not because I want to be the odd one who breaks the norm…What is it? I know he’s bored out of his mind. He keeps demanding to go but I can’t let him go. Why? Because I want to keep him. I don’t want to eat him and I don’t want anyone else to. I want him to live. Live. Live. Live. Love. Live.

Wait what was that other one? Love? I’ve seen that word. I know that word. Is that what I’ve been feeling? What am I supposed to do with that feeling? As I wandered around the mall we call home I saw a poster that says “A life without love is no life at all.” But I’m a corpse. I’m not alive. My life is over. Near the poster I see written “What if he’s you’re Prince Charming but you’re not his Cinderella?” Oh. So love is a two way thing. So if he doesn’t love me it’s not love? I wonder how he actually feels.

I hurry back to the shop I’ve determined is my place and see that he’s not there anymore. He’s gone. I guess I’ll never know now.