Survive
Arshan “Zian” Bucatcat
Dedicated to the people who put up with my obsession of zombies.

It was a scorching Saturday morning when I woke up to the sound of chirping birds. I stood up from my bed and changed into a pink crop-top with a flannel and pre-ripped blue jeans. I walked to my little window and saw my mother Casandra D’Arcy, in her big bright yellow shirt and red jogging pants, burning the weeds from our garden with a torch. She was surprisingly very strong for a person so small. I opened my window wincing as the bright morning light shone through.

She looked up from her chore and greeted me, “Good morning Isabel.”

“Morning,” I said back.

My dad, Jeremy, was sitting on his chair near his Ford Expedition that he got for his birthday last month, reading the newspaper. Dad has bright blue eyes and hair as bright as Mom’s sunflowers.

I went down stairs to the living room and saw my brother Frank sitting on the couch playing video games, which was not out of the ordinary. Ever since his friend, Bobby, showed him a game console, he became unsocial and irresponsible.

“Can’t you go help Mom or something,” I yelled over the noise of the video game.

“I’m busy right now, Isabel, and I have to defeat the rolling meatballs to beat Bobby,” he yelled, “So stop distracting me!”

“What was he talking about?” I thought.

Instead, I walked outside and just shook my head.

Dad looked up from the article he was reading and said in his deep voice, “Good morning. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes,” I replied.

I walked up to Mom and asked, “After you’re done burning off the weeds are you going to make breakfast?”

“Yes,” she said her voice sweet.

I went back inside the house and started to set the table. As I was putting the forks on the table Mom came in the house.

“What are you making for breakfast?” I asked.

“Well, what do you want for breakfast?” she said exhausted.

“Um, you’re cooking, so it’s your choice,” I replied. “Maybe you should ask Dad what he wants to eat.”

Just then, I heard knocking coming from the front door.  I looked through the peep hole and saw that it was my friend Morgan and behind her was, the most annoying blonde, paled-skin boy in seventh grade, Ben. Ben has been liking me ever since second grade.

Yesterday I saw him spying on me, on every single class period. He even tried to sit really close to me at the lunch table on Tuesday, until I confronted him. I never cared about Ben and I don’t mind that he likes me because no one actually notices him. He was just one of those kids.

“Hi Morgan,” I said, gesturing her and Ben to come in.

“Do you guys want to come on a road trip to California with us,” I asked.

“I’ll have to check with my parents to see if I can go but, I’m sure that they’ll say yes because we’ve gone to road trips before,” she said.

“What about you Ben,” I asked him.

“Um, I’ll have to check with my parents,” he said, blushing.

“Yo Isabel,” Morgan called sniffing the air. “Is your mom gonna care if we eat breakfast here?”

“Hold on, I’ll check with mom,” I said, going to the kitchen.

“Mom, can Morgan and Ben please stay and eat breakfast with us?” I begged because from the look on her face she was going to say no.

“Okay, but you guys will have to fight over the eggs because there won’t be enough for all of you,” she said hesitantly.

After I told them that it was okay, Ben and Morgan sat on the table and got ready to fight for the eggs. I went to the living room to get Jack. He was playing this ugly game where there are deceased humans, like zombies, are attacking him and you have to try to survive.

“Gross!” I exclaimed. “What are you playing?”

“Oh, Call of Duty Black Ops III Zombies,” he said, like it’s an everyday thing that people play.

Just then Ben came in and said, “I love that game! You’re trying to complete the rituals so you can save the world from the apocalypse, it’s like a survival game.”

“Okay, just pause it and eat breakfast before everyone eats all the eggs,” I said, seeming more interested.

After we ate breakfast we went to Ben’s house to ask his parents if he can go to the road trip with us. Four hours later, after long periods of begging, Mr. and Mrs. Holly finally agreed to let Ben go with us on a road trip to California.

Keith, the school bully, likes to pick on people that are smaller than him because he is taller, buffer, and he knows that they would not fight back. When he saw me, he started walking towards me, grinning. He took a step in front of me and blocked my path.

“Hey Isabel, still hanging out with your boyfriend I see,” he said teasing me, with eyes like little black beads.

“Why? Are you jealous,” I said angrily.

“Uh no.”

“Then leave us alone.”

We tried to walk past him but he grabbed my arm. His grip was so strong that it felt like metal bands squeezing my arm. Ben tried to free my hand away from him, but instead Keith just shoved him onto the ground. Ben stood up and swung at Keith. I looked deep into his eyes and I saw anger that I have never seen from Ben before. Ben was not a person that would fight anyone but, the anger that I saw was not the same. Keith wiped the blood from his cut lip, let go of my arm, and swung back at Ben. Morgan and I covered our eyes till they both gave up. I rushed to Ben, he was sprawled onto the ground, his eye was black, his lip was split and his face was all bloody.

“Are you okay?” I asked, worried.

“I think I’m fine. Are you okay,” he said concerned.

“What!” I screamed. “You’re the one that got into a fight!”

He sat in silence still in pain. Then I remembered that he did this for me.

“Thank you,” I said, sheepishly.

“You’re welcome,” he said wincing.

“Come on we’ve got to get you home,” I said softly.

We ran to my house as fast as we could. I stopped abruptly in front of the house.

Morgan asked with a puzzled expression, “Isabel, what’s wrong?”

“If my parents see that Ben got into a fight they wouldn’t let him go to the road trip,” I said with a plan.

I told them that I would distract my parents, while Morgan and Ben run upstairs. The plan went well, I got an ice pack and ran upstairs to my room.  Ben was laying on my bed and Morgan was sitting beside him tucking him in my blanket. I walked towards him and laid the ice pack gently on his face. He winced but, managed to smile.

“Help me get my stuff to the car,” I told Frank.

“Don’t yell at your brother,” Mom said.

He gathered my bags and struggled to get it into the car, but Ben, who was talking to my dad, ran up and helped him. I hurried into the car Morgan sat beside me then Ben and then Frank. We drove away from the house waving goodbye to my dad. After hours and hours of eating chips with barbeque sauce, we finally stopped 153 miles away from our house to stretch our legs. Mom stopped at a gasoline station, Cooper Station. I ran to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. I covered my mouth to muffle a scream. I looked horrendous my face was sweaty like I just swam in a pool, my hair was all bunch up like a bird’s nest, and I had some sort of a gummy worm behind my ear. I quickly tried to clean myself. I walked out of the bathroom and bought two cans of juice, a bag of cookies, a bag of pretzels, and chips when suddenly an alarm went off. A tall man in a black mask told us to lay on the ground pointing his gun to everyone.  I dropped beside Morgan. The man looked around, saw me, and told me to stand up and walk to him. I slowly stood up and walked, my heart pounding, and my legs shaking. As I was walking towards the man I saw Frank curled up into a ball beside Ben.

The man took my arm and whispered, “I’m taking you with me.”

I shivered.

Then these thoughts came rushing into my head, “Where is going to take me and what is he going to do to me?”

Then he motioned three other men to come in. The first man was short, had a raspy voice, and dark eyes. The second man was average height, had blonde hair, a limp on his left leg, and was so skinny that his elbows looked like sharp knives. The third man was a short, fat, and had a feminine voice. Each wore a leather jacket, a mask, bright blue gloves, and carried a tiny pistol.  The blonde-haired man grabbed my arm and took me outside leading me into a white van with black tinted windows. I looked around to see if his other friends were looking and saw that they were busy robbing the store.

When the coast was clear I kicked him on his limp leg. He let go of my arm hopping up and down screaming from the pain. His comrades were alarmed and noticed that the blonde man was doubled over. At first, I stood there not knowing what to do and then, my instinct kicked in so I ran. I ran about two miles when a sound of a car approached me. I ducked under a bush, out of breath, waiting to see who it was.

A man came out and said, “I swear I saw her right here.”

“Well if you weren’t such an idiot you wouldn’t have lost her,” the man who told everyone to lay on the ground said.

They drove away disappointed. I turned my phone on and called the police. They thought I was a kid who was playing pranks on them and hung up, so I opened to the GPS app. It said that I was about five miles from the nearest city. I walked the five miles and went to the nearest motel and checked in a room.  I jumped on the bed and dozed right off.

I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed but then I remembered my mom, Morgan, Ben, and Jack. I went to Arby’s for breakfast wondering what will happen to them. I ordered a beef and cheese sandwich.  As I was eating my breakfast something caught my eye. The news said that there had been kidnappings five miles away from the city. It showed pictures of the kidnappers and I recognized all of them. It also said that there was a chemical spill in a factory near the city and that everyone should be cautious. First, I thought that it was strange that there would be a chemical spill because of all the security that would be watching the factory but, a man reassured me that the workers would clean it up. So instead I decided to find the thieves and get Mom, Jack, Morgan, and Ben back. I rushed outside breathed in the icy air deeply, which stung my lungs. Just then I noticed something strange, really strange, there was nobody outside. It looked like everyone abandoned the city. I ran in my motel ready to bolt out of this creepy town. I asked the front desk what was going on but, he just nodded his head and groaned. So, I went in my room fixed the silk sheet covering the bed and got out leaving a ten dollar tip. I walked down the street and saw a woman walking slowly moaning and groaning. I walked up to her to ask for directions and that’s when I saw her appearance. She was decaying like a dead body, her eye was missing, and she had blood all over her. She kind of looked like one of the people in Frank’s game.

“Ma’am, are you okay?” I asked her, nervously.

“Groooaaaannn.”

“Um, I’m sorry I didn’t get that.”

Instead of answering she ran towards me and tried to bite me. I fell to the ground and she jumped on top of me her mouth full of saliva. Her breath smelled like death.

“If I’m not going to die from her biting me, I think her breath will do,” I thought.

I tried to push her off but, she was too strong. I tried to call for help and remembered that nobody was here. I saw a broken piece of wood near an abandoned building. I reached for the wood and I used it to pry her off of me. I shot up and ran. Everywhere I looked there were the same creatures. Just then I saw an open building. I hurried to the building dodging the monsters. I quickly locked the doors and plopped down panting for air. Then I thought about how I’m supposed to bring Mom and the gang back. A lump rose in my throat and this horrible thought came to my head. What if they looked like that girl and the other disfigured people on the street. I searched inside the building and found knives, flashlights, and canned food. I found a backpack, emptied it and stored it with the canned food and the flashlight. Just as I was about to head out I heard a whimpering. I got ready, the knife in my hand, and followed the noise. As I got closer, the sound of moaning and groaning became louder. I saw a girl trying desperately to close the back door. I ran to the door closed and locked it. I grabbed the girl pulling her into a safer room.

“Thanks.” she said, out of breath.

“How long have you been there?” I asked her.

“About five minutes. Why?”

“Because those things are strong. How did you survive?”

“I don’t know.”

I studied her and said,” Gee! You’re really strong.”

“Thanks!”

“My name is Isabel,” I said, holding out my hand.

“My name is Hazel,” she said, accepting the handshake.

“Nice to meet you! Let’s get out of here.”

We found another backpack and stored some more items like canned food and bottles of water. As soon as we finished, we prepared ourselves for what was about to come. On the count of three we barged out of the building. The streets were covered with the creatures.  We ran through, slashing and stabbing the biting and snarling zombies. Unfortunately, the swarms of zombies were too much for me and my companion. The zombies overpowered us and suddenly, as we were almost being consumed, we heard gunshots. The zombies around us collapsed.

“Come on! Get up!” screamed a tall middle-aged man. “Hurry, I don’t have enough ammo!”

I grabbed Hazel and hurled her up and we followed the man. We passed through an abandoned neighborhood and suddenly he stopped.

“Have you been bit?” he asked out of breath.

“Uh, I don’t know.” I said.

The man checked us and found that I was bit on the ankle by one of the creatures. He aimed his pistol at my forehead.

“Sorry, but I gotta do this,” he said, his voice shaking.

“Wait why?” I said, holding my arms up. “Here we go again,” I thought.

“Please mister! Let us go!” Hazel said.

Isabel soon had a bullet through her head. Hazel screamed and ran, but the man shot her leg, causing her to collapse. She fell down on the pavement and was soon met with a bullet through the heart.

The middle-aged man put the gun in his mouth and cried, “People shouldn’t live like this!”

The man pulled the trigger.