There I said it. Yeah so I spent a shitload of cash because I forgot to bring my tie, uniform and on other stuff. Then the class fund still hasn't returned my money. The next set of notes is coming in, and I ain't gonna pay for it unless the class pays me cash.
I'm not the nicest rep around, but no one else wanted to do it, so screw it.
Then what, I realize I fucking forgot to flip the paper for the case study test. It went like this.
"Okay class listen up, we need to bring the case study test paper for today's lecture."
*Runs off to grab his own*
"Hmm what's this? Looks familiar. But wait, can't be it, I don't think I've seen this page before.
*Turns it over*
"What. The. Fuck."
Yup boys and girls, I failed the fucking test because I didn't know there was a source behind. Well at least I failed like everyone else, I haven't seen a score above 10. Fucking consolation? Fuck that shit.
Everything's gone to shit, seriously. The slightest things really piss me off, I try to tell myself it's not like what it seems, the more you think about it, the worse it gets.
Doesn't work. Just gets worse. I'm glad I've come to the end of it at least. Oh wait there're 2 more days. Don't tell me my weekend's gonna be shit as well, because I'm not buying it. Not now.
It wasn't the best of times, but a wizened old man with clothes that have seen better days, swaggered toward him with an unsteady gait, a bottle of cheap vodka in his hand. Somehow, he'd gotten the homeless man's attention. Maybe was legally trespassing the old timer's house.
"Ahh 'nother one of you young un's." He slurred. "Wha-what's your problem now eh?"
Not that he was in a right emotional state to answer any questions. But he was brought up to have restraint.
"Life and its nuances. If we do not live for happiness, what else do we live for?" He asked rhetorically in an icy tone.
The old man snorted, shook his head and replied "Ah kid.. kid.. finding happiness, it's easy. Keeping it, now that's hard."
He laughed bitterly.
"Some people, they been tryna find happiness all their life, think they never found it. They spend.. spend a lifetime and never realize, it been there all along, they just not keepin' it, boy, not keepin' it right." the homeless, wizened man continued with a melancholy tone.
Finding happiness is easy, it's keeping it that's the hard part.
He'd never forget those words.
Anyway it's been awhile since I made a proper post, so here goes.
Darren ditched me (again) and so I had to cab to school. Fine, shit happens. I walked to the classroom and whoop dee fuckin doo, I see people wearing ties and go FUCK I LEFT MINE HANGING ON THE WARDROBE HANDLE.
Awesome, so I blow 8 bucks to grab a new tie. I now have 2 ties hanging on my wardrobe. Well at least the new one's longer - I no longer have to squeeze my head into the loop.
Cab fare: $11
Tie: $8
Realizing your day's fucked, and so's the rest of your week.
Priceless.
How'd it manifest? Econs case study test. I knew completely fuck all, couldn't answer anything properly. I'd be damned if I get anything close to a passing mark. As a consolation, I (barely) passed my first Chem CA. A wonder. Oh wait, it's cuz it's not organic chem, only a lil.
And I copied Andrew. What a fucking relief!
/sarcasmoff
Yeah, this week doesn't seem like it's gonna like me, at all. Shaun's flying off tomorrow, and since he's fully booked and shit for the whole of tomorrow I bought him lunch and we just hung out. Still the same asshole he was. It's gonna be AIDs or lung cancer bro, either one. But in all seriousness, a really awesome guy. Gonna miss him when he ain't in Singapore.
Oh yeah, he gave some poker tips since my class has been crazy about that shit. Should I feel bad for winning their money? Nah, not according to Shaun, no.
I'm trying, Shaun! The girls are just different from they were back at your days. It's a real warzone now, and all you got is a shitty parang while they fire nuclear missles at you. Not fun.
Either way I'll miss the guy, since it's NS next and all. Keeping in contact's gonna be shit, because the way I hear it, it's going to be tough to even keep in touch with your family and friends, what more a friend you met through fucking WoW. (I already feel like crap saying that, lmao.) Honestly, a guy like him shouldn't be playing WoW.
He oughta be having more sex, but he's getting enough now, and that's after he quit. Good man!
PE tomorrow. The teacher's leg exercises are gonna fucking kill me.
It says home is where your heart is, but what a shame, because everyone's heart doesn't beat the same.
Not bad, she's learning.
Her eyes watered as she got to her feet, fists clenched as if she could redirect the pain to her palms.
Ian switched on the flashlight taped to the pistol and advanced cautiously into the corridor. They had came in from a side entrance, and were making their way to the reception area, hoping to find a map of sorts.
The hospital was dark and musty, and had a foreboding gloom to it. Its faded walls were permeated not with the smell of medicine, but of decay. Years of neglect has left the place in shambles, and every step they took amplified their sense of doom.
Ian spied familiar plastic chairs up ahead, and increased his pace. Front desk must be close. Arriving at the reception, Ian scanned his surroundings with his torch.
Kate quickened her steps and not only caught Ian, but her legs as well.
This time, she was more than prepared, and used her elbows to break her fall. It was not as Kate expected, however, as she landed not with a thud, but a soft thump. Puzzled, she narrowed her eyes and examined what she fell on.
PFC Martin A Brown
She screamed.
Ian spun around, eyes widened.
Kate was tangled with what looked like a corpse, a corpse with a helmet. He lunged forward and ignored the sharp pain flaring up his side in a desperate bid to silence the distraught girl.
Ian shook his head in violent disapproval as he cupped Kate's mouth, her eye still wide in a silent scream. He held her by the shoulders and shook her, and whispered hoarsely"Calm down! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
On hearing Kate's slowed breathing, he examined the corpse. It bore the characteristic tan uniform of the US marine corps.
"What in the world is the US Army doing here? Jesus, what the fuck is going on?" Ian wondered out aloud.
Before he could sort his thoughts, screams and shouts emanated from the distance.
It was not clear, but he could just barely make out words. Turning to Kate, he put his fingers on his lips and motioned for her to move forward slowly.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING, KILL HIM NOW!"
"I'm TRYING. GODDAMNIT."
The voices came more strongly as the pair advanced towards the stairs leading to the basement.
Survivors.
Ian grabbed Kate by the arm and immediately started towards the stairs. Kate stumbled along, still dazed by the grim encounter.
"Move, damn you! Come on!"
They arrived at the stairs and quickly made their way down. The pain in his right was becoming close to unbearable, but Ian did not care.
The sight that greeted him was almost as unbelievable as this whole mess itself. There was a hooded man pinning another onto the ground, clawing wildly at him while the other tried to push him off, but the combined effects of gravity and body mass proved too much.
Nearby, a man choking sounded off, but Ian had no time for that. He pulled the pistol and took aim.
Wait. Who was who?
He had to take a chance. Besides, who in the right mind would jump on another person and start clawing his face?
Lining up the iron sights, Ian squeezed the trigger. The recoil reverbrated strongly through his arm, but the figure on top would not budge. Instead, it let off a blood-curdling scream and largely ignored Ian and the hole in its back.
His target confirmed, Ian re-aligned his weapon and fired off his weapon a few more times, taking care not to hit the man pinned below.
The bullets ate into the monster's flesh like a hot knife through butter as it was thrown away by the stopping power of the gun. The undead creature rolled briefly across the floor and went limp, its head lolled to one side.
Ian exhaled and lowered the gun, the edges of his vision slowly darkening. He felt as if he was flying. The last thing he saw was Kate rushing forward, calling out to him.
------
The van sped through the night. It was hilarious, at least to Kate, that the speed cameras were clicking away every so often. She glanced quickly to her left, concern crossing her face. Still haven't wake up.. Sure, she didn't like the guy, but he was the one who was getting them through this mess.
There was an occasional speed bump, which Kate knew wasn't a speed bump, but she liked to keep thinking that way. Though somehow, deep in her heart, that speed bump was once a living breathing person with family, with feelings, a life.
Too bad a conscience now would only get her killed.
Fortunately, the concentration of zombies in the highways were low. It wasn't surprising that it was areas with more populous areas that had larger amounts of the living dead. A cold shiver ran down Kate's spine as she thought of her destination - Old Changi Hospital. Old, abandoned. No zombies there, but she knew the rumours alright. Maybe, just maybe, something worse than all the walking dead lurked about in the dilapidated hospital.
On spying the right exit, Kate turned out of the highway and navigated towards the hospital. Reaching liao...
------
If he ever had a need for painkillers, now was that time.
Ian awoke to sledgehammers in his skull and fire at his side. He groaned loudly and caught Kate's attention.
"Wake up already? Going to reach liao, awhile more." Kate said slowly, all her focus diverted to getting them to hospital in one piece.
"Ugh." was all Ian could manage. He wiped the blood off his sleeve, if he could call it blood. It was dark red and had a sticky, jelly-like feel to it. Great, zombie juice on my shirt. It dripped onto his open wound, and Ian froze for a second as his mind calculated the outcomes of such a phenomenon.
He exhaled in relief.
If he was vulnerable to whatever mutated these people, he'd have been one of them already. Somehow, by some stroke of luck, he was immune.
Ian took it back. Luck? Somehow he wasn't too sure about that.
The characteristic bright green sign painted with white words came into view, and Kate made the turn to Old Changi Hospital. Before long, the Restricted Area sign greeted them.
"Ooo, lookie, restricted territory. I'm in your countryz, stealin your seekretz." Ian chuckled.
Silence. Ian swore he had better comedic timing. Or maybe nothing was funny anymore.
He reloaded his empty pistol, and felt a tinge of paranoia on seeing his remaining ammo, and comparing it to the hordes of zombies he saw in Marine Parade.
It was the first time he had the leisure to examine his pistol. The cold, machined grip was oddly comfortable in his hands. It was a Beretta 92F. Odd how a Singaporean policeman would carry this. Ah well, I'm not complaining. The gun clicked as the empty magazine fell out, before happily accepting a fresh clip with a healthy clacking sound.
------
They arrived at the hospital before long. Grunting with effort, Ian disembarked and cocked his gun, limping and beckoning Kate towards the entrance.
"I have no idea what's gonna be inside, so let's grab what we need and get out." Ian advised.
"I not the one that bai ka walk so slow." Kate replied scornfully.
"Whatever. Help me open the door." said Ian, obviously stung.
Pouting, Kate threw her weight behind the rusty, faded wall and it opened with a haunting creak echoing into the corridor.
A dark blue mountain trekking bag laid at the corner of the shop. It was Bill's. He used to carry it around whenever he made deliveries or collected stocks. "Always handy to have a knapsack around. Put yer stuff in it!"
Ian shook his head clear of Bill's voice. Pangs of guilt crept on him. In life, he took free shoes. In death, he raided his fridge. Kate took whatever they could carry in the knapsack - water, food, batteries and even a torchlight for herself. Thank god Gramps keeps these stuff around.
They packed light but sufficient - with proper rationing it should last two days, or three if they decided to starve. At least he wore a belt.
------
What the hell? Hey, isn't that my iPod? Damn, so it was in Gramp's shop! Crap. No wonder I couldn't find it. Hmm? What's this stuck onto it.
Ian's. Remember to return it to the young man - they need their music!
Forgetful as always, Bill. That's that, I think we better leave..
"Kate, come on. Van's just behind the backdoor." Damn she's taking her time.
"Okay okay, coming." Well at least there was urgency in her reply.
The van door proved difficult to open, or maybe it was just because my side was burning. I could feel the warm blood ooze and trickle to the ground every moment I exerted strength onto the door.
"Unngh.." Damnnit, I did not mean to do that.
"Eh you okay? I better help you in.." Her voice was panic-stricken as she came over and supported me into the van, getting her blouse stained in the process.
"S-sorry bout that blouse, heh heh." I smirked. She shook her head and skipped to the driver's seat, and started the engine.
------
The van rumbled to life as its engine hummed strongly. It was no Ferrari, but Ian suspected a van would be more efficient at bowling zombies. A frown momentarily flashed across his face as he gazed at Kate behind the wheel.
Women drivers.
His classmate was killed by one. It was ages ago, but somehow there are certain things you just can't and won't forget.
The nostalgia came to a dead halt as the van jolted and moved out of its parking lot. This is going to be on helluva ride. Kate tensed guided the van slowly out of the parking area, her knuckles white from gripping the steering wheel.
"Do you know the way to Changi?" Ian asked. He didn't seem to have a reply in the event she said no.
"Ya. I go there last time with my boyfwend when we don wan people ka chiao us.." Kate replied almost wistfully.
"Huh. So where's he now?" Ian quizzed nonchalantly.
"Break liao la. Dat toopid guy, best is go die."
The sudden change in tone elicited a chuckle from Ian, which was quickly stifled into a hiss as his side reminded him that motion was not preferred.
Groans emerged from all directions. Shit. The sound of the van attracted the horde like ants to honey. Kate switched on the headlights in a panic and drove straight. Bad idea. The undead ahead of them screamed and started charging towards the accelerating van.
"Just drive through them! Get to the highway, we'll be safer there!" Ian yelled.
"I trying I trying!" Kate replied, the edges of her voice cracking under stress.
A gnarled hand smashed into the passenger seat, startling Kate as she swerved the van hard. Ian swore and pulled out his pistol. Taking aim was a luxury he did not have. To hell with you.
Click.
Shit! Forgot to reload it.
He inhaled deeply and hammered the butt of the pistol on to the hand over and over. Ian was sure every bone in the hand was smashed to bits, but clung on to the edge of the window. It wouldn't have made any sense if it his assailant were human. Not that anything made any sense now.
The sickening symphony of metal on flesh and bone cracking under impact sounded into the night, as blood-curdling screams served as accompaniment while the van sped away from Marine Parade.
Seeing the highway, Ian felt the allure of unconsciousness welcoming him with open arms. He embraced it.
------
Sad but true. Can't say I don't identify with it.
Blending in: Sometimes, you just can't do it.
Either way, time to advance the plot, previous chapter was a waste of writing space.
------
Inhaling deeply, Ian slowed his pace. Sure, the first ten minutes were not a problem. It wasn't that Kate was heavy, but the girl was very tense. He could feel the muscles on her arm becoming taut and strained. Any more of this and he was going to suffocate.
"Relax, you're not gonna fall, just lean more on me."
Almost immediately, she relaxed her hold, and Ian's knee joints protested ever so slightly at the increase in weight on his back. Just a little more.. He jerked her on more securely onto his back and hastened his steps. There wasn't much time.
------
The signboard of the shop was worn, and sparking at the corner. Well if it's live it means there's still power in this area. Can't complain. The shop was in a surprisingly pristine condition, at least as pristine as anything was allowed to be in this hell. Rows of shoes and sandals were still neatly displayed on the racks. The walls were still mostly white-washed, with perhaps the occasional blood stain.
In a different time, Ian might have been laughing in here, laughing at the lack of shoes his size. It wasn't easy to find size 13 shoes anywhere in this country, this shop was the only one that carried it. An old timer by the name of Bill ran this place, and Ian was the first to know if any shoes he could wear came in. Gramps was a kindly old man, if not a little weird, but genuinely caring. Ian couldn't remember how many pairs of shoes he got for the price of one.
"What's an old timer like me need all that money for? Just remember whose shoes you wore when you make a killing, young man!"
Reminiscing about the past was great, until a sharp pain shot up his right hip. Kate screamed and fell as Ian lost his balance. The pair fell to the ground as Ian reached for his gun.
The safety went off with a click, and Ian fired blindly to his right.
Guttural emanations erupted nearby as the sound of bullets penetrating flesh played a gruesome medley.
The gun clicked as the last of its ammunition was spent.
Blinded by the pain, Ian shook his head and inhaled sharply. The torchlight, the torchlight. A beam of line shone strongly from the empty pistol. With a quick sweep, Ian identified the assailant.
He laughed, as Gramps' lifeless orbs stared at him, his kind features a twisted, grotesque version of its past. A mockery. Ian blinked the tears from his eyes. From pain or sadness, he did not know. Oddly enough, his chest felt heavy, and far outweighed any sensation from his side.
A bitter smile crossed his face as he closed the eyes of Uncle Bill.
"I'm sorry gramps. Hey, at least I'm still wearing your shoes. I'll see you around soon, maybe."
------
"Take your pick, it's all been paid for!"
Damn, that would have sounded good, under different circumstances. Either way, guess I better grab a pair for her, doesn't seem like she's going to move for the next few minutes. I swear, if she keeps this up, she's going to get us all killed.
Hmm, from her feet size I think a size 6 would be good.
"Nike, Reebok, Adidas or what?"
"A.. anything. Eh you okay or not? Got blood leh."
Size 6.. size 6.. ah. There. Nike or Reebok? She's wearing a bit of pink, so I guess the pink Nike would do. Socks, socks, where'd ol' Bill keep his socks. Oh right, third drawer from the left. Bingo. All pink's pretty boring, I think white would be good.
"Here, try these." God, this really hurts.
"H..H-huh? Kay.." If she doesn't hurry, I'm going to die of pain.
------
Removing her heels, Kate slipped on the pair of socks and snugly fit into the pair of running shoes.
"Uhm, okay can wear."
"Great. Okay I really need something for this lovebite I got from gramps." Ian rolled up his bloodied shirt and spotted a large bruise and gash. How Bill managed to do that, he did not know. Looks like the old timer had it in him afterall.
"Uh, Kate, I think we can forget about the police post. The shops we passed by earlier were all deserted. I think this whole place is dead. I don't want to seem selfish and all, but we should head to a hospital and get this shit cleaned up."
Kate paused and let his words slowly sink onto her. Not that she understood everything, but a hospital sounded about right.
"But den I thought the nearest hospital got a lot of those monster? News say one, spread from there."
"Yeah, that's why we're gonna head to Old Changi Hospital. It should be safe."
Kate shuddered at the mention of the hospital. Aren't there other options? Besides, Changi was pretty far. "That one quite far you know. How you want to go?"
"Ole' Bill has a van he uses for deliveries. Can you drive?" Ian said a silent prayer. He couldn't drive or he'd kill them both if he faints from loss of blood.
"Got lisen but I veh long nevar drive le. You sure?" She was unsure and hesitant, but knew inside that her question was pretty much a rhetorical one.
"I wish we had a choice in this. Come on, the van's just behind. Help me up."
Kate nodded and grunted with effort to support Ian by her shoulder. Ian muttered a word of apology and thanks as he swiped Bill's keys from his breastpocket. I'll come back and sort this out for you, gramps.
Driving would probably be a bad idea, they either had to drive in the dark and risk turning the car to scrap metal and themselves into scrap flesh, or turn on the headlights and invite the horde to dinner. Unfortunately, life was always a choice of bad or worse. Personally, Ian would go with bad.
------
Okay I've never held any fancy for this day. For starters, it ain't a school holiday. Second, everywhere seems exceptionally crowded. Third, certain things are insanely, exorbitantly priced. Read: Roses, flowers. Mum's birthday was on the 8th, so I decided to buy her flowers! What a coincidence eh? If it was just 2 days earlier I wouldn't have had to pay a premium.
Great day to milk cash from the people I say. I'd say it's good this time, because well, people need to spend money.
I'm not going to bother to describe the day. It was underwhelming. On with the delayed chapter IV.
------
"Used to wad?" She asked dully as she leveled her large eyes to mine and met my gaze.
I couldn't believe it. Here I am scared shitless and here is this random girl crying on the street as if she owned the damn place. It's a zombie infestation, not a Hollywood movie, for Christ's sakes.
Christ's sakes? Yeah well, so much for God smiting evil eh? Oh hell, Jesus did rise from the dead, maybe this is all part of the divine plan. Judgment day. Great, and there was still so many things I had to do.
"Nevermind. Just look alive, we have to move, get to the police station. There could be someone, or at the very least, something useful there. Come on." I muttered as I stretched my hand out and extended my palms.
"Hah.. k lor. Your gun carefool abit ah."
She sounded almost resigned, it was cute. Not that she had a choice. I was the one with the gun.
Somehow, I couldn't shake off this feeling that we're running out of time, a ticking clock at the back of my head. It's as if something's watching us, and once the time's up, we're done. Whatever it is, we definitely have to move.
Her fingers curled around my palms softly, but her grip was surprisingly firm, perhaps even more so than mine. I had to admit, I was still pretty shaken. I mean, god, fancy telling this story to the news. Yeah. It'd sound incredible alright, incredibly stupid.
"My name is Ka mei, wad your name?" She volunteered.
"Ian. Wait what was that? Ka-wha? Ah geez, nevermind. You have a new name now, it's Kate."
Wasn't that I had anything against her name. It was just a pain to remember any name that wasn't in English. Besides, Kate's good. Short, sweet. Her brows knitted and she frowned. Looks like Kate doesn't like her new name.
"Wad new name?! Can anyhow giv one meh! Is Ka mei!"
"Alrighty Kate. Sorry Kate. Won't happen again Kate. Can we go now, Kate?" I really didn't have time for this. Shifting my weight to another foot, I turned around and walked briskly towards the neighbourhood police post.
Hmm, odd, she wasn't keeping up.
It wasn't that I cared, but I couldn't leave her behind. I craned my neck and I saw Kate doubled over, apparently wincing in pain.
Shit, was she infected? No, I couldn't take any chances
------
It was as if time had stopped. The two figures paused, with one hunched over. Ever so slowly and hesitantly, Ian raised his pistol and lined up the sights.
"Kate? Hey girl you alright?"
No reply.
"C'mon girl, this is not funny."
The pounding in Ian's head grew heavier and louder as he inched towards the female figure. He could feel the adrenaline levels in his body spiking with each successive step. If she even so much as moved an inch...
"Who Kate sia? You call who! K la, my leg pain, cannot wa.." she looked up to a gun trained on her and paused in shock.
"Oh.. alrigh.. what?" Ian hesitated. The sight was something that any man would stop at.
------
Are those tears? Oh come on, seriously. Jesus. Why the hell is she crying? Oh shit, the gun.
"Uhh oh right umm, sorry bout that, got worried you know." Damn that was lame. Didn't look like she bought it either. I thumbed off the safety and holstered the gun before raising both hands up.
"No gun, see?" No go. Unfortunately for me, no tears didn't come with it.
"Can you please don point that thing at me anymore, please? I really don like it.." Kate said weakly. Her breathing was staccato and her chest heaved slightly. Okay, she's really spooked. My bad.
------
"I'm sorry, I should have trusted you." Ian moved close and whispered.
"Let's have a look at those feet, alright? Sit down."
Kate nodded slowly and sat gingerly on the concrete floor, smoothening her skirt and clasping her thighs. Ian appreciated the sense of proprietary, but thought it odd coming from a girl like her.
"Left or right?" He asked softly. He was really sorry about it, but truth be told, he was stretching his patience to its limits. Still, it was his fault. You break it, you fix it.
She pointed to her right feet and swayed it slightly.
Extreme care was an understatement to describe the way he removed the heels, but Kate winced and sniffed anyway, wiping the tears from her eyes. Her eyeliner on the right eye formed a short gash as it smeared towards her nose.
Ian frowned. She had been trying to run with these heels, and the skin around her ankles were badly scraped, glowering with angry red streaks.She needs to change out of these.
"You're going to need something more comfortable." He asserted and glanced back up.
"Ya.." Kate croaked.
"Hey, close your eyes for a second." And she did. Ian used his thumb and wiped the smudge off. Kate opened her eyes and looked at him quizzically.
Ian smiled. "Your eyeliner ran. No more crying alright? Give me a smile."
Her lips curled upwards as she gave an affirmative nod. Ian crouched and beckoned her onto his back.
"Let's get you some shoes. Come on, I know just the place."
Climbing onto his back, the two made their way under the cover of night.
The hell was he doing here anyway? Ian wish he knew. Oh that's right. The entire area of houses where his family home was situated was overrun with zombies. Actually no, it's not quite overrun. It just has new owners.
Solution? Take a nice, leisurely night stroll to Marine Parade, there's a police post there that might have some survivors. It was a wonder how he made it this far without a weapon of sorts, though the real question was why the hell wasn't he one of them?
Backing away from the alley, Ian taped the flashlight to the gun he pilfered and started towards the police post. It wasn't too far away - only as far as two traffic lights could realistically be.
Surprisingly, the streets were clear as well. Quite the oddity.
Maybe it was the street lamps? Afterall, the zombie flicks he saw in the past usually had light sensitive undead. To top it off, everything's been like the blasted movies. Ian began to wonder if this was just some big joke.
There was sobbing in the distance. Strange how he didn't pick it up before. The silence before was deafening. Leveling his weapon, Ian scanned his surroundings. His heart beat like a sledgehammer as he felt the all-too familiar feeling of adrenaline coursing through his veins.
------
What the hell? Is that a..? No it can't be. Shit, what's a girl like that doing there? Shouldn't she already have gotten torn apart? No way a sane person would stay put in this shithole.
Something's wrong, I just know it. Ah hell, she doesn't seem to have noticed me, guess I better get closer and see what the hell's going on.
------
The street lamp shone strongly on the female figure, casting an eerie glow on her pale skin.
From a distance, she might have been considered attractive. Slim, maybe even a bit skinny, as well as hair that went down her back. Thick knots of hair obscured her face, and her curled up position didn't betray anything else.
She showed no indication of realizing Ian closing in, or if she did, she didn't care and felt her sobbing to take presidence.
The pounding in his chest was almost deafening, and the bruise in his face felt warmer than ever.
"Hey, miss, are you alright? I'm not infected, it's fine."
More sobs.
"Look if we stick together we might have a better chance of getting through this. Hey?"
The figure twitched and turned her head slowly. Ian spotted a twinkle in her eye and she became a blur of movement. It happened too fast, he squeezed the trigger but the shot went wild.
The next thing he knew, he was floored.
------
"OH MY TIAN. I VELY SCARED YOU KNOW. WHY YOU SHOOT ME HUH. I AM NOT LIKE THOSE ARGLEE MONSTA. I AM NOT. DON SHOOT ME!"
What the fuck? What kind of a sick joke is this?
"Why the hell didn't you respond earlier when I called you out? Shit don't freak people out like that man, I could have shot you."
"Den next time see if people or monster den shoot luh!"
"Hah. If you wanna live... you better get used to this."
------
And that's that for chapter 3. SURPRISE, IT WASN'T WHAT YOU GUYS THOUGHT!
------
Come on Ian, buck up! You can't even hit a straight ball!
Swing, miss.
"Shi-woah WOAH!"
The heavy duty tool smashed into the faded brick wall and lodged itself firmly as Ian slipped on something not quite a banana peel, but he couldn't be assed to find out either way.
Momentum did the rest of the dirty work, as Ian crashed into the walking corpse ahead of him.
Murphy's law did come into effect - albeit for the unlucky zombie. It lost its balance and fell backwards, butt first. A sickening 'shlick' sound emitted from where it fell, and before Ian knew what in the blazes was going on, the infected policeman was screaming in an unholy falsetto and thrashing wildly.
A jagged piece of metal protruded from the infected's midsection, and the screaming soon subsided into guttural utterances, blood foaming at its mouth as its head went limp. A conveniently located, broken off metal pipe spelled its demise.
"OH YEAH! You ugly, UGLY motherfuck!
The sound of hard rubber and canvas against flesh resounded satisfactorily in the dead of the night, at least to Ian. Just to be sure... He paused the brutal kicking and looked at the misshapen body. Not a hint of movement.
Ian felt the sweat beads running down his face more acutely as his reached for the gun in its holster.
Shit those hollywood movies. It's always times like these that they get up and claw your eyes out.
The centimetres narrowed as he reached for that tool of salvation, counting in his head. Three, two..
One.
Nothing.
Fingers wrapping around the cool pistol grip, he let out a short cackle and even rummaged the corpse for ammo. One, two and three spare clips of ammunition. This was his lucky day. Leaning in further, he found a torchlight and a steel whistle. Like hell he'd need that. He'd seen what the wrong noises meant.
A car alarm set off by a greedy car thief set his limbs apart, courtesy of an army of the living dead.
Still, you never know when you might need it.
Hmm, odd. It ain't a very warm day today, and the sun's already out, so why am I sweating?
Ian shifted his gaze upwards and before he knew it, a savage blow sent him spiralling across the concrete.
Looks like the movies were right afterall.
Grunting, he got to his feet and stared the flailing zombie down.
"That hurt, asshole. Honestly, next time, just stay dead."
Ejecting the magazine to check if there was ammo remaining, he cocked the gun and levelled it at the impaled monster's head and squeezed the trigger. Once, twice, and a third time. Just to be sure, just to be sure.
Low groans emanated from deeper into the alley, but Ian was already gone.
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I have never attempted to write a zombie apocalypse survival situation thingy, so this might suck. But it seems fun enough, so off we go!
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Chapter I: Welcoming
Sssssss
The sound of fingernails lightly scratching concrete echoed down the dark and musty alley.
It was hard to surprise Ian. It wasn't that he was old and seen all that life had to offer. It was that he never really expected anymore from human beings.
Maybe that's why for the first time in years, his eyes actually widened in shock, the only time his heart skipped a beat besides the time he had a bad sneezing spell.
Zombies.
Everywhere.
And he was at ground zero.
Honestly, he didn't know what to think of the situation. Ian never really griped at his luck. It was perpetually bad - he was a walking, breathing example of Murphy's Law. Whatever that could possibly go wrong, would go wrong.
But a zombie apocalypse?
"Fuck, for the first time, my luck's so bad it might actually seem good. Or maybe I'm going fucking crazy."
What the hell was he doing back home anyway?
His family was dead, he lost almost all of his inheritance to some fucking chinaman, they were probably the bastards who brought this smut here in the first place. and he was just officially declared bankrupt.
Only the repo man never got to his belongings. Unless you count a severed appendage gripping a car key repossessed. Yeah, he killed the bastard. But hey, it was only because the chap became one of them. If there's anything he learned from his dad, "it's either them or us." Wonderful way to describe the situation.
At least if this happened elsewhere, he could hang on to a firearm of sort. Home hasn't really changed much. Short of the military and police, procuring firearms was nigh upon impossible.
The hair raising sound of nails on concrete grew more offensive. Groans emancipated from the distance.
"Shit." Ian muttered under his breath. They found him. He regretted not completing his martial arts course back when he was a kid. He regretted not passing his phys ed lessons. He regretted coming back to this shithole.
Oh Ian was armed to the teeth alright - right down to the smooth, lacquered layer of the wooden shaft and heavy, blood-red shaped metal. Because a hammer is the perfect weapon to fend off hordes of the undead, right? Where were the fucking shotguns like in the movies?
The grotesque figure lumbered into view under the dimly lit alley, groaning softly. It was horribly misshapen - bubbly sores erupted in random fashion all over its greyed skin. Spiked protrusions of bone appeared where joints should have been. Ian instinctively spied a pistol holstered on the hip of this once-human monstrosity. Bingo.
Muscles tensing, he readied his hammer. This 6ft frame should be good for something. He thought, and charged.
I'll pray by the grace of god that there's somebody listening
I am
give me a chance to be
Un..broken.
a person I wanna be
I'm choking on this ecstasy.
Oh Lord I'll try so hard
Unbreak me, unchain me
but you gotta let go of me
I need another chance to live
Easily my favourite part from Afterlife. Never thought I'd like a song from A7X's self-titled album.
Oh crap, another few hours before I have to go. QQ. But I don't wanna sleep! When I wake up it's time to haul ass back there. WTF.
Yes I'm unhappy. No I don't really care if I leave behind a mess. It sucks in there, I want to get out."
Yeah I wrote that. Almost a year ago. Nothing's changed, nothing much anyway. No, not one step forward two steps backwards, it's no steps at all.
It's a Sunday night, and I should be sleeping. But guess what, the dread feeling of school is still welling up somewhere it inside me. I should stop fucking kidding myself. It still sucks.
Not a very happy person, am I? It's tough. I've never really felt happy at all in CJ. Maybe I did, but it never really came close to back in VS. Reading the older posts just made me want to go back in time. We all know that ain't possible. Fuck this.
On an unrelated note, Happy birthday Han shen.