My name is Norman Decker, and I am a high school student. I have a perfectly normal life, average scores, and never did good in sports. A typical, normal 17-year-old boy. My one and only solace from my parents pressuring me to study, are video games, especially ones about zombies, and I'm pretty good at them too. I'm always known as the zombie fanatic in my group of friends.

You're probably wondering why I'm telling you all this. Well, it's because I'm in literature class, and I'm bored, so I'm talking to an imaginary audience.

–Teacher: Norman, can you repeat what I just said?

–um, no sir, I wasn’t paying attention.

–T: well, at least you're honest. Pay attention, this part is important.

–yes sir. I glance at the wall clock, and see that the class is almost over. Nice, I just have to hang on a bit more, and then it's lunchtime! *Bell rings*

-T: alright everyone, be sure to study for your upcoming exam, your midterm marks depend on it! Also… I get out without losing a single second, and rush to the dining hall. I grab my food, and sit behind a table.

-?: how can you get here so fast? It's literally been 2 minutes since the bell rang, and you're already sitting behind a table ready to eat.

– its food, I don’t mess around with food.

-?: I give up. You can't stop a hungry beast like yourself from feeding.

–you're right. Also, hello Marcus. This is one of my best friends Marcus. Although he sometimes acts like a major asshole, he's a pretty nice guy, and he's kind of black, though he has no African blood in him. But, he considers himself black, and he's allowed to say the N word, so why should I care.

-M: hello, it's not like I just saw you last break time.

–well, I say hello to anyone, anytime I meet them, so you just gotta say hi back.

-?: Hi!

–see? Ayden gets it! Hello! Ayden is also one of my best friends, but because we've been friends longer, and the fact that he doesn't hate zombie games, made us closer. Also, he refrains from being a dick, so I like him more.

–A: where the fuck is he?

-M: bitch, you've been hanging out with him for 3 years, and you still don't know he arrives late at lunch?

–A: I know, but he's never this late.

–remind me why we always wait for him to come before we start eating?

-M: because you get cranky when you're hungry.

-?: hey guys sorry I'm late.

–Hey Dex, that doesn't even make sense, why would you stay hungry to wait for this man?

–A: stop it, start eating or you'll never stop. This is Dexter, I call him Dex for some reason. He's kind of the playboy of our group, and the horniest too.

–I seriously hate my life. Wouldn’t it be better if a zombie apocalypse suddenly happened?

–D: dude, we've been through this, we all want it to happen. The only thing is, science is a bitch and it doesn't let them exist.

–I know, but…

-M: No butts! Can you even run a mile without dying of exhaustion? Oh yeah, I forgot to say, I'm fat.

–Who says the zombies have to be speed demons? They could be normal walkers.

–A: well, hate to break it to you, but you don't get to choose what type of zombie is after your brain. Besides, where the fuck would you find a weapon to fight back with? I smile.

–Well, I do have those combat knives for emergencies…

-A: let me rephrase, where would WE find a weapon to fight back with?

–we can always use screwdrivers and kitchen knives until we find better weapons.

-M: just let it go, we've been through this shit too many times for him to change.

–D: I mean, it's true that we don't have weapons laying around, but he's not all wrong.

–See? He gets me! I happily look over to him, and I see he's not even looking at me.

–Anyway, I'm done, so I'm gonna go out.

–A: we're coming too. I look over my shoulder to see Marcus and Ayden following me.

–Dex? Don’t stay there for a whole century, come out when you're done.

    He gives us a thumbs up and continues eating. We usually have a spot we gather in, it's not very much of a spot, it's more like a place we subconsciously gathered at. Anyway this spot, has a very good view of the main gate of the school. We talk about some bullshit while we wait for Dex to come out.

–D: so, did you guys watch any new pornos lately?

–yeah of course I have.

–A: oh my god I found a new video of… Yeah, believe me, you don’t want to hear Ayden talk about porn for 30 minutes. I stand silent as I listen to him blabbering, and notice a man walking funny coming through the main gate.

–Hey guys, does that guy look suspicious to you? The others turn their attention to said person.

–A: He's awfully slow.

-M: yeah, I've seen slower guys.

–okay what I meant was that does that guy look like a zombie to you?

–D: enough with the zombie bullshit. It is not possible for them to exist. I ignore him and slowly approach him, watching him carefully.

–sir? Are you okay? If this is a prank, stop it, because I will take it seriously and may hurt you. He doesn’t answer, and changes his path to me.

–I said I will take action; do you hear me? He suddenly raises his head and looks at me, his eyes red with blood, and veins sticking out of his neck. I approach him, kick under his feet to make him fall down, and put my foot on his forehead.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

–guys, I'm not kidding, this guy seriously looks like a zombie to me. The three approach me and inspect the person, and look at each other in shock.

–A: I'm positive this guy's a zombie.

–so can I kill it?

-M: how the hell do you plan on doing that? I raise my foot, and stomp with all my might on his skull crushing it.

–D: that's how.

–okay guys we gotta warn anyone we can okay? Dex, go to the broadcasting office and announce the problem. Marcus, call 911. And Ayden, try to find any sort of weapon. Offer help to anyone you can, and arm them if possible, don't feel guilty if anyone dies ok?

–A: stop for a fucking second and think! Zombies are fucking real! We're all in serious danger, how can you be so calm when this is happening? I grab Ayden by the collar, and close up to his face.

–This is not the time for us to panic. If we even hesitate for a second, we might die. So you lot go do what you're told, or this will get a lot worse than it is right now. He nods nervously, and rushes towards the school, alongside the other two.

–hey wait! They turn around.

-15 minutes, main gate, if anyone's late, leave them behind. Marcus turns around, clearly panicked.

-M: stop bossing us around like you know what to do.

-*shouting* Do you have a better plan? If you do I'm all ears. Last I checked I was the only one not pissing themselves. Go do your fucking job, and don't be late. He flips me off, and turns to run the other way.

–okay, now time to find a vehicle. I go outside the gate, and walk towards the parking lot. There aren’t many cars, but I see an SUV with broken window and an open door. I walk towards it to see a woman sitting on top of a man's corpse, eating.

–I'm sorry. I kick the woman in the head and close the SUV's door on her head, repeatedly, till she's dead, well, dead again. I search their corpses, and find the key to the car, and their wallets. Afterwards I look in the trunk and find a cloth with some wiping fluid. I wash off the blood from the car, get in, and drive to the nearest gas station. The outbreak hasn't yet spread to there, so there wasn't any panic going on. I fill up the car with gas, and go inside the store.

–Shopkeeper: hi! How can I help?

–I'll be right back. I gather a lot of canned food, water, batteries, a radio, a flashlight, some duct tape and a bottle of Vodka. I go up to the shopkeeper to pay up. She starts checking everything, and then gets to the Vodka and looks at me.

–S: show me your ID.

–I, I don’t have it with me.

–S: then I can't sell you this. I groan and get close to her face.

–There's a zombie outbreak going on out there, and we need all this to survive. I suggest you take the same stuff I got and get to your loved ones.

–S: sure, I think I'd know if there were zombies roaming around.

–If not then why the fuck would I have someone else's brains on my fucking clothes? Now you listen to me, this is happening whether you like it or not, so if you want to live, get the same stuff I did and go to your loved ones, understand?

   She looks into my eyes, not visibly scared, but I can see her hands shaking. She then nods, and rushes to pick up the items.

–S:*distant* I swear to god if you're lying I will find your ass.

–You're welcome for saving your life.

   I jump back in the car, and drive back to school, and see a horrifying sight. A whole bus of elementary students crashed into the gate and opened it, and the passengers, being children, were eating away at each other or at the driver. I struggle not to vomit, and then slowly back away into a side alley. I get out and check the trunk again, and find a tire iron. I slowly approach the bus, and see the children again. I gasp subconsciously, and then straighten up, and approach them. "I'm sorry". I kept saying as I caved in their skulls. After they were all down, I go in to see if anyone was left alive. I find a little boy, with tears in his eyes, silently crying. I approach him to pick him up, and see his intestines poured out of his stomach. This scene made me vomit uncontrollably, and when I turn around to think what to do, I see that the light in his eyes had disappeared, and he slowly starts to move.

–I'm really sorry.

   I hit him in the head, and avert my eyes and leave the bus. It takes a couple of minutes for me to calm down.

–okay, the others should be here now. I wait for 5 more minutes, but no one comes out.

–God damn it! I put some covers on the car, and rush inside the school, to see small bunches gathering around the speakers.

–D: this is Dexter speaking, we are stuck in the broadcasting room. There are 3 of us, if you're capable, please come help us.

–Perfect, just perfect.

   I go inside the main building, and head to the broadcasting room. On the way, as I was taking a corner, I suddenly face a zombie, but it just ignored me and started walking away.

–They're sensitive to sound, and probably blind. Good to know.

   As I get to the hallway where the broadcasting room is located, I see about 10 of them gathered at the door, knocking furiously, but they seem to have barricaded the door. Good thinking. I look around to see if there is anything I can use, but the only thing is an empty trashcan. I pick it up, and throw it to the opposite side of the hallway, and it makes a very loud noise. The zombies all follow the direction of the sound, and get away from the door. I grab the slowest one, and smash its skull in with the tire iron. The others seem to have heard the noise of me doing so, so they turn to me. I squeeze by them barely, and get to the trashcan again. This time, I kick it into their feet, so they fall down, and I finish them off be putting the longer end of the tire iron on their head, and then kicking it in. After they're finished, I knock on the door.

–Guys, it's me, you can come out. They open the door, still on guard.

-M: it took you long enough!

–yeah, sorry…

-A: what happened? You don't look as leader like anymore.

–yeah, I'll explain later. Follow me, I got a car.

–D: how did you kill all of these guys?

–not… not the time, just follow me, quietly, they seem to be blind, but super sensitive to sound.

   They all nod. We silently go through the school and reach the main gate. The three try to look into the bus. –don't, just don’t, you can't unsee it. We all quietly get in the car, and I get us out of there.

–Ok, who's house is closest?

–A: mine.

–okay, we'll go there, you go in and tell your parents, and us three will disperse to buy as much canned food and water we can buy. Any questions?

–D: yeah, shouldn't we get out of town?

–you're right, but we gotta gather our families at least. Then, we need a place to stay.

-M: I think our land in the outskirts will help.

–yes definitely.

   We arrive at Ayden's place, and he rushes inside, and we get out of the car and rush to gather supplies. After we come back, we wait in the car for Ayden, to see him and his family come out the garage with their own car. I nod at him, and tell him to follow us. We get to Marcus's house, and the same stuff happens, but he only comes out with his siblings.

–What about your parents?

-M: they prefer not to listen to the rebel. I ignore his response and turn to Dex.

–hey Dex, where…

-D: don’t bother. I look back to see him dead serious.

–no matter what…

-D: *angry* I said, don’t, bother.

I turn around and shake my head.

–I hope you don’t regret this.

   We race to my house, where I live alone with my brother, Connor. I stop the car in front of my house and get out as fast as I can, and go into the house.

–C: hey dude! You're home early!

–hey, no time to talk, grab canned food, flashlight, kitchen knives and screwdrivers.

   He first stops to question me, but then quickly rushes to do as I said. It takes a while for him to gather everything, and pack up some clothes, and then stands in front of me, waiting for an explanation.

–C: so? What's wrong dude?

–you know I always wished for zombies to be real?

–C: yeah?

–it's happening, but it's not what I imagined it to be.

He first scuffs, then looks into my dead serious eyes, and his expression changes.

–C: wait, you're serious? I nod gently, and he runs his hand through his hair.

–C: how do you know?

–I'm guessing my school was ground zero, or near it at least.

–C: did, you kill anything? I stay silent, and point to my clothes.

–C: oh my fucking god. He comes close and hugs me, and then grabs my shoulders and shakes me a bit.

–C: don't worry, we'll get through this. He grabs his car's keys, and we get out of the house.

–you get in the car; I'll be right there. I go to Marcus, and knock on the window.

-M: yeah?

–lead the way to your place. He gives me an aggressive look, and then sighs.

-M: fine, follow us.

I rush back to Connor, who's sitting in the car. I get inside, and let out a big sigh.

–follow that SUV. He does so without questioning where we were headed. We stay completely silent for about 30 minutes, and then he starts talking.

–C: how many?

–I lost count already.

–C: you have to remember, they are not people anymore, they're dead, if anything, you're doing them a favor.

–you think I don’t know? I'm the dude that was always talking about slaying zombies, but after actually doing it, I'm not so eager anymore.

The road ahead is oddly empty.

–hey, doesn't this…

Suddenly a bright light blinds me, and a loud sound deafens me, and a pain in my head starts growing, as if my head was gonna split in half, and although I couldn't see or hear anything, I felt as my consciousness was fading away.