Am I Too Late?

Some time has passed since I made my last grocery store run for supplies and food to take home. Since then I have not encountered a single living being in the area. The worry of seeing my family again always lingers on my mind and it seems to be taking its toll on Pippo as well. It's been four weeks since I have seen or heard from any of them and I am beginning to accept the concept of them not coming home anytime soon.

I haven't encountered any living people in the streets or seen any from my rooftop, but I have to hope that someone is out there because talking to my dog is starting to take its toll on my mental aspect in this current society. My car has been parked in the driveway for a while now and the idea of taking it for a distant drive is a potential thought. Finding people that would be company during these troubling times is of great value to me now.

Upon heading downstairs from the rooftop where I decide to spend my days because it allows me to get some color and fresh air, I hear a loud bang that sounds like it is coming from across the street. I head right back up the ladder to the rooftop and glance over where I notice a man dressed in a military outfit and he seems to be alive and out of breath. I look closer and it is my neighbor and although I don't really know him well enough I am relieved to know there is somebody alive out there. I can't figure out what is happening though so I whistle to him to draw his attention to the rooftop and he notices and waves back at me. I ask him what he is running from and tell him to come in, but he is reluctant. I hear him yell, "Get the fuck inside and lock up. There is way too many to hold back or evade". He says this while running back towards his house and at this moment I can't help, but wonder what he is referring to. I leaned over the rooftop and glanced down the street and saw what could have been at least a dozen or so zombies of different sorts moving in our direction each at different paces.

It's at this point that I noticed my neighbor running out his front door, illogically, with his rifle of sorts and starts firing down the street. He hits one, two, three, but now needs to reload. I wish I could lend him a hand, but all I have is a 9mm and a hockey stick and Lord knows my 9mm is more effective at close range and I'm in no position to waste bullets. The zombies are making their way closer to him and all I could do is throw some bricks that were loose on the roof to buy him time. I tossed a few rapidly and hit one zombie, but with no real damage as it got up and made its way closer to my neighbor...I wish I knew his name. A few zombies took notice of me on the rooftop and I am now worried that unless I take care of them they will draw way too much attention to my location. I yell towards my neighbor, "Hey, buy some time get inside I am coming down!". Don't be a hero is a big rule in the rule book during these moments, but I wasn't being a hero as much as I was trying to defend my safe-house. I get downstairs and Pippo is hiding in my room, the poor guy, while I grab hold of my "old faithful" hockey stick and open the front door. I look down the street and notice this is the number we'd be dealing with, nine.

They were moving slowly towards us. It was at this moment my neighbor reopened his front door and stepped back out. We were now firing in the same direction, but from two different angles as he lived across the street. I fired once and missed (what can I say I don't fire a gun everyday). My second shot clipped one in the leg and it dropped, but remained persistent to get its meal and I wasn't in the mood to satisfy its needs. He hit another three zombies with his rifle while I hit two more. It is at this point that I felt we had the situation under control with four zombies moving our way and I'm convinced I tip-toe faster backwards.

I made a severe rookie mistake, but I am learning as I go. I never thought to look in the reverse direction of the street. We finished clearing off the four standing zombies and I had my fun with my hockey stick as I approached the crawling zombie that I previously knee-capped. I stood right in front of it and gave it an old Al Iafrate slap-shot to the head taking it clean off. As this occurred I heard a scream and turned around to see my neighbor getting bit in the shoulder by a creepy old zombie woman. She bit right through his shirt and took a chunk of his arm out. I shot at this old zombie and missed, but she wouldn't relent on my neighbor. I don't even know this man's name is all I could think as I saw him fading out. I got close enough to put one right in the old bitch's head and then slapped it off with "old faithful". I finally could have had someone to chat with and instead I let my guard down and now he is fading into darkness. I apologized so much and he managed to grab me and tell me to keep on living because there will be a return for us all. The words that struck me the most were, "Hey guy, do us all justice and live." I then asked him what his name was and he replied, "Darnell. Now please shoot me so I don't come back". So I did as he asked.

I was too late.