Audrey
Blair: I might have
already mentioned this but Audrey is the perfect example of being in the right
place at the right time. She came to work for Reason’s a week before Zero Hour.
She was working the express register when Zero Hour hit. If the outbreak would
have happened a week earlier and she might be zom chow.
I knew of Audrey before she came to
work here. She was working as a checker across the street at Dollar General and
so I knew her in passing. She is not a total stranger to any of us but she was
definitely still in that “getting to know everyone” phase. Now, 40 days into
this whole thing, I know her a lot better.
I don’t say this in a bad way but
Audrey has the potential to disconnect more than anyone else here. She only
moved to Langley six months ago to get a purchase of a lake house squared away
for her parents who live down in Oklahoma City. She just transferred over to
Dollar General from one of the many stores OKC has. She was overseeing the
renovations, kind of acting as a foreman, to get the place ready for her
parents. Apparently her mom was in pretty bad shape health wise and they were
looking for a comfortable retirement location.
So when I say she can disconnect, she
doesn’t have immediate family right down the road that she wants to go check
on. She transferred to Reason’s because of a “conflict of interest,” which is a
politically correct way to say she was dating a superior over at Dollar
General. To preserve their relationship, Audrey took a job across the street
from her old work, which happened to be us because anyone with checking
experience is snatched up quick. I guess you can say that saved her life.
Needless to say, I catch Audrey
peeking through the tin foil on the windows to look across the way at Dollar
General. That place is pretty quiet. We have a theory that the ACE Hardware
group is stealthing over there to rummage but as far as original employees (or
Lucas), the place is a ghost town.
Lucas was the first person Audrey was
calling during Zero Hour. She knows he had the day off and was at his house but
his current status is unknown. I try to be reassuring with her but I think we
both know the odds. She needs to let him go if she wants to survive…
Nolan
Lang: I remember when
Nolan first came to work at Reason’s. I knew the dude was gay. He was seventeen
and I don’t think he knew it yet. I don’t say that as if that is his single
most defining characteristic. He is one heck of a healer in World of Warcraft.
He has a very soft and comforting voice. And he is tremendously talented, which
is why he bounced from the Produce Department to the Video Department and then
to work in the office as one of Janet’s main assistants. Like a lot of Reason
employees, Nolan saw this job as a way to pay the bills until he could get
through with his schooling and move on to his career. And his career – I kid
you not – is cosmetology. Make up, hair, nails, all of that… I know. It could
not be more cliché. It is like something out of a Melrose Place episode. But,
he keeps the girls looking fabulous. He keeps the men high and tight. And he
actually knows quite a bit about the science of massage. I am not saying that
he is rivaling a physical therapist but when Luke strained a muscle in his back
after working on the barricading, Nolan went to work.
He had Luke face down, drooling into
the pillow, and actually snoring because of his massage techniques. (Don’t
think I didn’t make a few off color comments afterwards about Nolan having Luke
face down.)
My experience in the gay community is
limited at best. Truth be told, I could care less about Nolan’s orientation (or
anyone’s for that matter). Like I said, back in the real world, we played World
of Warcraft together and he is damn fine healer. I don’t think the fact that he
is gay has anything to do with that. Maybe it does. Hell, I don’t know but I do
get the impression that in whatever relationship he is in… Nolan is the dude.
Yes, he does perpetuate the stereotype by going to cosmetology school but he
will be the first to laugh and he will make fun of himself about it.
Regardless, I could care less about a
person’s religious views or sexual orientation or political affiliations in
these kinds of times. All I care about is how well you fire a weapon and what
you bring to the group.
Nolan brings laughter, caring, warmth,
a much needed attention to details (which is why he works in the office
counting money), and a level of acceptance that everyone would be so lucky to
have…
