In a certain state in the US, in one of the neighborhoods, I woke up in the morning after the alarm rang from my phone. I head to the kitchen downstairs to make a simple breakfast, a couple of bacon with toasted bread. I looked at the fridge and saw a note stuck with a magnet on its door. It is written, 'Please take care of yourself, sweetie. We are enjoying the vacation like we've always wanted - Love, Mom & Dad'. Right, it has been three days since they went on a vacation overseas. They didn't tell me which countries they were going to, though. Nevertheless, I was happy for them because they have always wanted to travel to many countries since I was born. Now that I was 20 and able to take care of myself and the house, they went to make their dreams reality. They must be enjoying themselves right now.
After breakfast, I head back to my room to take a bath. It was refreshing like every morning. Put the shirt on and the pants, I was ready for the day when suddenly, a loud scream came from outside can be heard. It sounds like a woman. I looked through the windows in my room and saw something that only happened in the movies or fiction. A woman gets bitten by a group of people. It was unbelievable and terrifying. She screamed as loud as she could as she was in pain but no one helped her including me. I couldn't do anything. My whole body became stone. I couldn't move. My eyes were wide open. I was speechless.
I turned around, holding back from vomiting. I grabbed a bottle of water on my table and drank it in just one gulp. It calmed me down for a second before I looked back outside and saw that it was getting even worse. Not just that woman but every single person who was outside of their house getting bit by people. Mailmen, old people, kids, and more. I couldn't look at it anymore, so I turned around and closed the curtain. Still, I could hear how chaotic it got outside. A crash noise can be heard, people screaming in agony, gunshots, and crying of children. It was like a war even though I'd never been in a war before. I slap myself really hard and keep telling myself that this is just a dream and I should wake up.
Unfortunately, all I could feel was pain. It was real. This... is not a dream. Then, I noticed something like this surely will be on social media and news. So, I turned on my phone and opened Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Bereal, Thread, TikTok, etc. All of them were full of the same things that happened in my neighborhood. Canada, Russia, England, Singapore, South Africa, and other countries were also affected by the same incidents. I quickly headed to the living room to watch the news and true enough, they were reporting that people have been bitting other people. They were kind of mindless and not their true self. They only attacked people who were not bitten yet. Their behavior seems oddly resemble... zombies.
It struck me when I thought of those possibilities. If it was true, what happened to Mom and Dad!? Just the thought of it makes me shivering like crazy. I quickly dialed my dad's number and waited for him to answer. Tut tut... Tut tut... Tut tut... That was the only thing I heard. He didn't answer my call. Fuck! God, please. Please, don't let anything happen to them. I pray to God to keep them safe. I, then, dialed my mom's number, and nothing. She didn't pick it up either. This is just getting worse. What happened to them? Are they okay? Are they safe? All these thoughts were in my mind. What if... No, do not even think about it. I told myself that they were safe and sound and I should do the same things too.
...Keep myself safe...
How do I even do that? Outside were probably already full of zombies and they might come at me anytime. I didn't know any martial arts to defend myself. Fuck... I was fucked up already. First thing first, I decided to block the windows with anything I could use. At downstairs only, for now. Lock the front door and back door. Before I did that, I looked outside again one more time and as I thought, zombies had already roamed around the neighborhood. They walked so slowly and with no direction. I could see their appearances. They were full of bite marks all over their bodies, their clothes were stained with blood, their faces were broken and I could even see some bones exposed behind their skin.
It was disgusting. So, I quickly got to work and block all the windows downstairs. The reason is they probably couldn't climb so I left windows upstairs unblocked. Of course, this is just my theory with no solid evidence but I'm willing to take the chance. It took me almost half an hour to completely block the windows. It got a bit darker now that there was no sunlight to go through but it was a sacrifice I was willing to take.
I lay down on the couch and took a break to catch my breath. It was tiring as I was not that fit and strong. A shame, I know. Which smack at my face like being slapped with a wet hand. It hurt so much but it made me realize I should train myself to stay healthy and not to get sick, especially in today's situation. But how? I have no experience in exercising and never went to the gym. I was not fat but also not slim. If you look closely, you can notice fat around my belly. Thankfully, my arms were 'trained' enough to lift heavy things as my dad constantly asked me to help him with his work. Sidework, actually. Whenever he had free time, he would use it doing something inside the garage. I, as his only son and child, definitely have to help him lift things up. It was tiring but rewarding, so no complaints.
I make a note in my mind about all the things I should do. Blocked the windows and locked the doors: check. Go through the kitchen to look for food that could last long: not yet. Check the water, electricity... Wifi, medical kit... More... Fuck, that's a lot. Like literally a lot. And I have to do all of that by myself? For fuck sake, this is killing me. I've just realized that in preparation to survive the outside world, I have to make sure I have enough food supplies for God knows how long, and that's not even factoring in all the food that might expire soon. Make sure water is drinkable and not contaminated. Electricity keeps running.
Wait... What would happen if the electric tower got attacked by zombies? The whole country might get blacked out. Oh God, I need a backup in case something like that happens. Oh! I remember my dad bought a generator not too long ago after his friend's house lost power all of a sudden and they used a generator to keep it on until the power got back on. I quickly headed to the garage and I could straight away see it on the floor, just under the table. I took a look at it to make sure it was functioning and it was! Thanks, Dad. Now, I didn't have to worry about electricity anymore but I still had a lot to do and it was afternoon already.
Just a few more hours before nighttime. Night... A time when the sun is set and the moon appears to reflect sunlight to Earth. The only time when everything gets dark as there is no light from somewhere. I didn't know what would happen at night. The zombies might get aggressive or more active during the night. Or maybe nothing would happen. I didn't know and I had nothing to do about it. I didn't think I could sleep that night, knowing zombies might break into the house and turn me into one of them. I didn't want that... I still value my humanity.
Night...
I was in the kitchen, making dinner for myself. I kept it fairly simple as I had to use food supplies as little as possible. I put the food on the table and sat on the chair. I looked at it but I just couldn't bring myself to eat it. Every time I tried to bring it to my mouth, the memory of the woman earlier in the morning getting eaten by zombies was still haunting my mind. It was probably the most disgusting, terrifying, and horrifying thing I have ever seen in my life.
I slapped my face and told myself not to think of it. Just eat or you will die of starvation. I gathered all the courage I could and actually ate the food. ...It was good.