Wednesday, February 16, 2011

This is why no one likes Mondays


Charlie was nibbling my hand, beckoning me to wake up. I lifted my hand and turned over in my bed, giving my back to him. He took this as the signal to bark, loudly and repeatedly. "I’m up. I’m up. Are you happy, now?" I got two barks which I took as "No. I will not be happy 'til I’m walked and fed." I threw on some sweats, a hoodie, baseball cap to mask gnarly morning hair, and headed out of my bedroom. Charlie was already waiting by the front door, knowing that soon he’d be basking in the beautiful sun outside. I reached for the door, getting ready to release the beast, when something caught the corner of my eye through the front window. It looked like a grown man sprawled on my front lawn - fully dressed in a tuxedo, but no shoes. As I took a closer look, now from the safety of the door’s peep-hole, shoes were not the only things missing. I backed slowly toward my couch and scooped up the bag my friend Cray had gotten for me. I rummaged, looking for my cell. Why did she get me such a big bag?! I could never find anything in this damn thing. It was pretty though, and sparkled in the light. I smiled to myself as I held the bag up to the sun, and lost myself for a moment in fashion euphoria... only to be rudely brought back to the world by a thump at my door. I finally grabbed hold of my cell and cautiously went toward the door. I scanned the front window, hoping to find the thing still on my lawn. He was not there, leading me to believe it was at my door. Charlie was riled up, hopping maybe 2 or so inches off the ground as Multipoos tend to do when overly excited. I checked the peep hole - holy crap - I gasped aloud - Thump. It was out there, and had just looked me in the eye through the peep-hole. "What do I do?" - Thump, Thump - "Charlie, please shush, I must think!" O.k., it looked pretty beat up. There had to be some logical explanation to his being sprawled on my lawn and missing part of his jaw… right? "May, get it together! You are a renowned lawyer, breathe" - Thump - "I'm coming!!!" I gingerly opened the door, wide enough as not to be rude, narrow enough to slam in this things face in a nanosecond. Unfortunately, it proved to be just right for Charlie to slip out. I threw open the door and only thought about it afterwards. Thank God this thing's attention was on Charlie. "Charlie, get back here," I yelled. Charlie paid no heed, as he was now growling and maneuvering around this thing. I changed my approach and started calling to the man/thing. "Hey... hey dude. Peeper guy. Hello! Why don’t you leave my dog alone! He has every right to growl; this is his… Hey! Get your hands off of my Charlie!!!" Charlie was now barely escaping the things attempts to catch him. He ran under my hydrangeas for shelter, and cat-like began fending off the guy's hands with his paw-swats. This was enough! I knew I had pepper spray in my purse, at the very least! In the seconds it took to grab the bag, I heard a squeal...My heart raced, and I ran out with the bag in hand. I looked toward the hydrangeas. Charlie was holding his little paw up, and their seemed to be blood. "You sonofabitch, you scratched my dog!!! What the fuck is your problem?!" I began to whack the peeper - that was now on its knees trying to drag Charlie out - with the bag. This did little to nothing … For some reason, I began to bargain with the peeper. "Look, this bag is worth a lot of money. It has a lot of money in it. Just drop the need for my dog and leave!" He proceeded to get up, and I thought my plea bargaining had worked. I warily started heading back to my door. And then it happened... It turned to me and made direct eye contact as I stood in the doorway, and I saw that what used to be a man most certainly was not anymore. The eyes were so dark - literally a vacant glazed black pool. I slammed the door just in time, as it sprinted towards me. I was shaking. I dropped the bag and realized the phone was still clutched in my right hand. I called my best friend Cray. Maybe she could make sense of this nightmare. She recently moved up the block, and I needed her to get here ASAP! “Come on, pick up!” I kept glancing out my front window, hoping that this man… thing… would just disappear! “Hello?” Oh, thank God she picked up… "Seriously, you’re already talking to me about your outfit?"…I began to cry.. "There’s this thing outside, harassing Charlie. I bargained that piece-of-shit bag for Charlie and he, he scoffed at it and..." I was babbling and tried to calm myself. I looked out the window. I dropped my phone... That thing had Charlie in its grasp! I shut the phone, threw open my door, grabbed the first thing next to the bushes by my door, and proceeded to beat, smash, and I lost myself… When I came to, I just remember hearing Cray screaming and holding me... and the echo of my own anguished yells.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

So Young, So Beautiful... 4/4

... Ugh... Where am I? How did I get here? It's so dark here. Am I dead? Maybe I'm blind. I'm so damn hungry, I must have been out for a while. Why can't I remember where I am or how I got here? Why can't I remember who I am....


At the moment, standing up seems to be a hard enough task. My legs and arms aren't responding well. I can only imagine that I hit my head pretty hard and it damaged some of my brain's functions.

I get to my feet and feel around for an exit from the darkness. It's cold here, must be in a basement or cellar. I found a set of stairs but I'm having some dificulty climbing them. Oh good, a door. I can see light through the crack beneath the door and I feel comfort, knowing that im not blind. I open the door to see that it is daytime. I'm so hungry, I must not have eaten much recently. I find the refrigerator and reach for the milk. Sour, disgusting! Must be expired. I check the date but that's no help, especially because I have no idea what day it is.

How do I look right now? I search for a mirror and I finally can see who I am. Not bad. A little pale, but maybe thats just the way that I look normally. Althougjh, for someone who has just woken up, I look like I haven't slept in days. Whats that? Seems like my clothes are torn open near my shoulder. I must have been attacked by a dog. Funny, I don't see a dog.

I search the house for some kind of clue as to who I might be. Every picture frame includes people I don't recognize and the same two people appear in a large percentage of the pictures. Must not be my home. But, what was I doing in the basement when the owners are not here? Perhaps I'm a friend or maybe even a thief. I guess that my being a thief would explain my torn clothing. Well, if I am a thief, let me get out of the house before the owners find me.

I exit the house only to find that there is not a soul in sight. The streets are filled with garbage and broken vehicles. What happened here and why was I left behind in all of this mess? I can only hope that i'm not the cause off all this mess and destruction. I travel slowly to the end of the block. I see a man walking slowly, opposite my direction. I attempt to call out to him but the words don't come out. I really must have damaged something. Or, maybe i've always been mute. I continue towards him and close the gap between us. He clearly hears my footsteps and slowly turns around. My God!

The man's face is mangled and his chest has been torn wide open. How could he have possibly survived such wounds? Why isn't he at the hospital? For some reason, my first, natural instinct is not to be afraid and run in fear. I must be used to seeing something like this. Maybe i'm a doctor. He walks very slowly and drags one leg behind. He is coming towards me and reaches out, as though to get me in his grasp, but he can't seem to reach me. I notice in the distance that there are tons more like him, and it appears that they can move faster. As fast as I can (which at the moment is pretty slow), I head for the nearest hiding place.
I continue toward the back yard of the nearest home. I probably have a better chance of not being see if I enter through a back door somewhere. I find a large shed with thick, steel walls and a heavy-looking door. Something is drawing me to the door. I must somehow recognize it as my mouth begins to salivate. I must know that there is food inside. There is a peep hole. Why would a shed need a peep hole? Oh no, it's locked. There must be someone inside. Perhaps they can let me in to take shelter.

I slam on the door repeatedly. I hear a voice but I can't understand the words from behind the door. I hear the unlocking of the door. And, before me stands a little girl. Her hair is short, bouncy, and strawberry blonde. Her eyes are a bright blue. She smiles because she appears to recognize me. Her smile creates these amazing little dimples. Who is this angelic looking girl? all that can pass through my mind is that she looks so young, so beautiful, and so delicious.......

-The End-

Monday, February 14, 2011

Unthinkable 1/2

Seeing signs that somebody out there is still alive gave me great satisfaction.  I started to believe that things might get brighter for me in the days ahead.  It was dusk out when I pulled onto my street and parked my car in the driveway.  Upon stepping out of my car and closing the door I immediately felt as though my heart had stopped for a split-second.  All I could hear is loud barking coming from my backyard.  It was Pippo and I knew it!
     
     
     I took my 9mm off safety and ran to the backyard without even thinking what could be back there waiting for me.  All I knew at this point is that my last remaining buddy was distressed over something.  I ran down the long driveway and much to my dismay my backdoor was open.  Now at this point I started crying, but only because all I could think of was the worst case scenario.  How could I not think that?  Entering the house I knew that I had locked Pippo in my room and so maybe he was just nervous.  


Step by Step:
  1. I entered the kitchen through the backdoor and noticed nothing was touched.  
  2. Passing through the kitchen I heard a bang from upstairs.  It is at this point my hear rate is at its peak.
  3. Moving passed by bathroom door there was nothing in there.
  4. I get passed the study room where my chairs were knocked over which leads me to believe that my house has been raided by either a survivor or worse an undead.
  5. The boiler room door is closed and I didn't intend on opening it.
  6. I creep passed the laundry room where there was nothing, but dirty laundry.
  7. I went up the stairs quietly, but quickly.  Have to be nimble.  
  8. And Now...

     Upon reaching the top stairs it was the worst sight I had ever seen.  Three zombies were standing right outside my bedroom door.  It was locked and I made a fatal error.  I didn't check my back while going up the stairs.  I heard steps behind me and turned around to see there were two adult male zombies making their way up the staircase.  In my mind I knew this could very well be the end of my journey if I didn't make every shot count.  My hockey stick was in the car and all I had was the 9mm and whatever else I can get my hands on in the house within reach.

     
     These two zombies were clearly athletic and would be more than capable of keeping up with my speed.  I knew I had to take them out first as the other three haven't noticed I arrived yet.  I fired down the stairs hitting one undead in the nose and it dropped to the floor in front of the other which bought me maybe five seconds to shoot ahead by creating a stumbling block.  Pippo's barks were getting louder and I knew I had to make it to my boy before this were to be our end.  I fired at the three ahead of me only hitting two and they dropped while the other now turned his attention to me and solely to me.  


     There was one zombie behind me and he is now running up the stairs.  At this point I am just in complete tears because let's face it this is the end of me with only 5 bullets left and little room to run which is my strong point.  I maneuvered into my parent's room knowing there was only one way in and out.  I slid in and pointed my gun to the door and fired directly ahead...
     

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Homecoming 1/3

I wasn’t always a zombie killing machine. It took a lot of time, and many, many horrible experiences to mold me into the man I am now. Fear was a piece of my skin that I had to shed a long time ago. In times like this, a man cannot afford the luxury of fear. Emotional ties also had to be severed. As I walk alone, I feel like I’m walking on a road to hell, or at least through hell. But like I said, it took a long time for me to get that first kill under my belt.

I had come home two days after the outbreak was announced. I had been away at a party out of state celebrating the New Year. The drive home was long and lonesome. I kept hearing emergency broadcasts on the radio, but there were not enough details to really understand what was going on. It seemed to me as if animals were going wild in the cities and spreading some type of infection. They kept talking about how bites and scratches spread the infection, and that we should stay away from any infected at all times. It took me about thirty miles of listening before I started to realize they were talking about people spreading this infection to other people, not animals spreading it. I really did not entirely understand what they were talking about. The details were sketchy, and the reporters seemed like they were in as much of a rush to get the hell out of the station as I was to get home. I knew I had to hurry, so I put my foot down and pushed my crumby Nissan as much as I could. I did about 110mph the entire way on the I95 until I reached my exit. Luckily there were no cops to pull me over. I honestly don’t know if that was a good or bad sign, but I didn’t have time to worry about that. My eyes and my brain were not ready for what I was about to experience.

From the highway exit to my house is only two blocks, but it was a virtual impossibility to make it the two blocks to my house. The road was absolutely littered with vehicles, trash, broken glass, cars set on fire, clothes and what looked like blood and…body parts? What in the hell happened to Crosby Avenue?! There was a fire truck overturned and blocking my way down the final block toward my house. How in the hell did this happen? My panic took over, and I did something stupid, but clearly necessary. I didn’t see any cops around, so I drove up on the sidewalk and got around the fire truck. I did about 60mph the last block toward my house, and I pulled into the driveway and screeched to a stop. My brother’s car is always parked in the driveway, but this time it was not there. Maybe he went out. After all it was mid afternoon. I saw my mom’s car parked across the street. OH NO! Is she home? Is she alone? Or worse… I can’t think about this now. I ran up the stairs and fumbled for my keys. My hands were shaking from my nervousness, and it was hard to get the key in the door. I got the front door open and slammed it shut behind me as soon as I got in. I locked the door and immediately began to call out for my mom. I was upset that I got no response. I’m screaming my lungs out and I’m getting nothing.

“Ok Ant, time to calm down and get rational. Losing your cool won’t help anything.” I grabbed my cell phone and try to call my brother. Too bad I was so focused on speeding the entire way home that I didn’t charge my cell phone in the car. What a stupid move that was. I run up to the second floor to see if maybe, just maybe, my mom decided to take a nap and was in her room. I get to her bed room, practically break the door off the hinges, and of course, nothing. I don’t know what I expected to find; my mother has never taken a nap a day in her life. This is honestly turning into the worst scenario possible. There is some type of crazy emergency being broadcasted on my car radio. I get back to the Bronx and find that it is completely ripped to shreds. I make it to my house and there is no one here, and to top it off my cell phone is dead. “MY HOUSE PHONE!” In this technological age I tend to forget we have a phone in my house also. I run over to the phone, and just before I grab it I hear a massive bang come from downstairs. “What the hell was that?!”