Chapter 6

Justine pulled over as soon as we crossed the border. Peter gave us each a sidelong glance before turning to face the outside realm. When Peter spoke, the three of us had been inside the vehicle for quite some time. "Fuck it. We need to get moving," he remarked as he grabbed something from the passenger seat behind me. To be honest, cowardice was eating me alive. I don't want to leave the security of being in the car. I was nervous, worrying about the possibility of being devoured or what would happen if I went outdoors. I cast a peek down the quiet neighborhood, looking for signals of danger or threats; I don't want to do this. But, at the same time, I know I have to get moving. That I need to take an action. The street was deafeningly quiet, and just gazing at it made you perceive the unsettling vibes and erythematous sensation of being outside, struggling against those flesh-eating creatures. I wasn't sure if the road being quiet and silent was a positive thing or a terrible one, but something in my gut told me that something was wrong. However, a part of me also hoped that it signified we had gotten through the worst of the problem. "Are there any weapons?" Justine inquired. "Once we're outside, we need to be ready and prepared. We never know. They're strewn all over the place." Daniel gave a shaky nod. Out of nervousness and worry, I bit my lower lip. "No, man. Although, I noticed something resembling a steel in the passenger seat. You should also check to see if we have anything we can use here," he replied solemnly. Justine nodded and began searching for weapons. When I realized I needed to obtain something I could use, I closed my eyes hard. Justine unlocked something in the glove compartment, and there was a pistol on the other side. It was a Pistol gun. What good would a pistol be? It would only make the situation worse. Oh, God. I hate this. When Peter eventually opened the front door, I used a variety of breathing techniques. 'Hey!" I shouted to Peter in hushed tones. His brows furrowed as he returned my gaze. 'What?" As I cleared my throat, I closed my eyes. "Be careful. There are a lot of creeps out there," I explained. He stood there for a minute, pondered, and then nodded to me and Justine. Justine, on the other hand, cast a glance at me as he motioned for me to accompany him outdoors. I searched around the car, and when I noticed a hammer, I grabbed it without hesitation. I breathed a long, deep sigh and said to myself, 'you can do it.' "You've got this, Clem. You can do it," I told myself numerous times before finally nodding to Justine. Justine and I got out of the car discreetly, scanning our surroundings each and every time. In an attempt to console me, he slammed the door shut and patted my shoulder. Unfortunately, I don't believe it would ever work, but I welcomed the gesture nonetheless. Peter was ahead of us, blazing the trail. On the other hand, I was standing behind Justine, and it appears like he is shielding me if ever anything happens. I noticed a newspaper on the floor as we moved over to the other side. I came to a halt in the middle of my walk, examined my surroundings, and then squatted on the ground. "Hey, what are you doing?" Justine asked me. As I picked up the newspaper, I ignored him. I attempted to read the headline, which stated that a virus had been leaked. My eyes widened, and before I could even finish reading what was written in the newspaper, Peter, who was only two meters away, yelled, alerting me and Justine. 'Run!" 'Fuck. They've arrived. We have to go and hide," Justine said to me, muttering many curses under his breath. My heart then began pounding louder and louder because of that. I turned to look at Peter and saw that a flesh-eating man was running after him. I gasped when I realized that not only one, but more other six rotters were running after him. Holy fuck. This is really ridiculous! Justine, who was standing behind me, was preparing his pistol gun, as did I. Even though my heart was hammering, I had no choice but to ignore all of my worries and instead confront all of my inner anxieties. Justine and I dash towards an abandoned and desolated barn house a meter away from us. There were no animals left when we arrived. The stinging stink, on the other hand, was permeating the entire barn. I was panting heavily when Justine went by the door, his grip adjusted to a comfortable swing hold. When I glanced at my weapon, I fully grasped I wanted something more. I didn't enjoy feeling defenseless, so I decided to act and urgently search for another weapon. I stroll past Justine as he guards the main door for us as I go ahead about my business. And, as I walked inside, I noticed something on the opposite side of the stables. I quickly grabbed the baseball and realized it had blood on it. When I realized something, my eyes widened in fraction. 'Justine!" I muffled in a soft voice. Justine threw me a glance. 'What?" I quickly run the space back to him as I showed him the baseball bat I just got. I put the hammer on the ground and pointed to him the bat where there was a history of blood. 'Someone was here before us," I told him. 'The blood was still fresh." I nodded at him. Our conversation was interrupted when we heard a loud groans and rumbles outside. I don't have any idea what happened to Peter, but I have the feeling that he's also out there, hiding somewhere. Over the past hours and minutes, I've been with them, I already had the idea of how they think and act. 'Keep checking the fences and entrance. I'll look for something useful to use," I muttered to him. 'You better hurry up. We'll get out here after that." I did not respond to him anymore and instead continue looking for anything I could use. When I saw a scratched bag, I did not even hesitate to pick it up and put my hammer inside it. I put inside all the things I could use including some small pebbles, and a tiny cap I saw a little earlier while looking for a weapon. When I could not find anymore, I went back to Justine and stared at him. That's when an idea popped into my head. 'Are you done?" he asked. "Hey, Justine, do you have any spare keys?" His brows and forehead furrowed. "Any spare keys?" Why? For what purpose?" He paused, a calculating look etched on his face. I'm sick of being a slacker and doing nothing. If I'm going to survive in this world, I'm going to have to fight for myself. 'Please? Do you have any extra keys on you?" I pleaded, my eyes twinkling as I smiled at him. He exhaled a sigh. "I have an extra key to my apartment. It was for my younger sister." I hesitated for a while, taken aback by what he said, understanding that he has a sibling. I mistook him for an only child. But then again, he'd never said anything like that before. Well, he never talked about himself, to begin with. No one does that. He obviously thought that handing me his extra keys wouldn't jeopardize his safety, so he tossed them to me. I only just managed to snag them out of the air. "Thank you, Justine," I said. "Are you certain that this isn't your original slash main key?" "Of course not, buddy." I smirked. "Seems like it was the case to me. Too personalized, honey." 'Whatever you say. Don't lose them," he replied, smirking at me. 'My apartment key is with you. In case mine got lost while in the middle of the jeopardy, you know?" The keychain also held four more keys, which were all fastened to a metal ring at the end of a strip of leather. I threaded the keys through my left hand's knuckles and clasped the leather strip in my palm. On the other hand, I had my baseball bat with me. I was aware that these weren't the finest weapons, but they were better than nothing. I also believe I am now adequately equipped. "I won't," I answered, my gaze fixed on Justine's deep blue ocean eyes. He then winked at me, which startled me. "Good girl. I like intelligent women like you." When he said it, I smirked. I'm sure he was just babbling over things. Well, I certainly hope he was correct. That I am nothing more than a bright young woman. If we're indeed lucky, I won't even have to put it to the test. 'Ready?" he asked as we stepped outside the barn house. I smiled at him. 'Ready than an ever-ready battery." He returned my smile. With that, we decided to completely step ourselves out from the confines of that barn house's fences. The sounds of vehicle horns became more louder as we proceeded, but it was another block before we encountered anyone on here. Of course, at first, I assumed they were just normal ordinary individuals in their automobiles. Justine and I passed a family of three in a Chevrolet vehicle. The parents appeared to be shouting and gesticulating frantically outside the car, while their daughter, who I assume was approximately twelve or so, was doing something suspicious inside their car. My eyes widened as I understood what was going on when the father almost looked in our way. They aren't bickering with one another. The daughter was not acting suspiciously inside their car since, first and foremost, they are just like those crooks. The father began swerving through the cars, and the car's honking became louder. It wasn't until we passed that I noticed they were covered in blood. That entire family was freaking drenched in blood. I tried to remain cool, but something inside of me was weeping for that family. All of them grew rotten, and it's really unfortunate that none of them survived, not even their child. It made me think about my mother and sister all of a sudden. And because of that, I became even more eager and frantic to look for them. After this, I'll attempt to persuade Peter and Justine once more. I have to check up on my family. They're the only ones I've got. They're the only ones left for me. And I just cannot afford to lose them. No, not just now. But again, this place is quite near to the word 'isolated.' It was a remote place, and it would be very evident and anticipated if everyone here was no longer in their right mind. To begin with, Old Chatham was not a large town. If this was indeed a virus, it would not be difficult for the infection to spread from one person to another. Given the proximity, it would be quite rapid. The only good thing here though was that it wasn't congested with too human population. So, chances are, there were only limited zombies here. I tried to make myself more valorous after that by walking closer to the towering frames. 'Let's go over to Peter and move quickly to my apartment. He's on the third block," Justine said to me as he positioned himself. I nodded at him and continued walking. By the second block, there were more rotten on the farthest side of the streets. A mother sat on the pavement, holding a blood-soaked toddler in her arms. She was not aggressive or doing any gestures which surprised me, but instead, she was just there sitting. At first, I thought she's an ordinary human, but when I saw that she was covered in blood, her right leg was distorted in a way that I cannot explain, I knew it already. She was one of them. Although, she's not like those others who run back and forth like a crazy lunatic. I guess this has something to do with her child. And I had to force myself to look away. Obviously, it's not my business. Justine and I had to walk slowly and quietly, so we could avoid them. It's a good thing though that they're not facing us, so we grabbed that opportunity to move forward. There was also a naked woman walking straight out from her house and she's neither aggressive nor friendly. I glanced at her for a moment while Justine and I continued on running at a slow pace when the woman turned to her left and she walked straight towards the river on the side, making her drown. I gasped. Justine noticed it and only tapped me on my shoulders, reminding me to just focus on whatever our business was and to just keep on ignoring them. Well, if we really need to survive, we have to keep moving. It almost took us fifteen minutes before we finally saw the sign for block three. It was not really good as we had to keep an eye on everything. These rotten were not easy to deal with. There was also a time when we almost got caught because a priest who appear to be a rotten almost saw me. We passed through a tiny church town, and this priest was dressed in his normal cassock, which was stained with blood. His eyes were light white, and he had many veins on his face. I almost got caught after inadvertently stepping on some dried leaves that created a noise. Fortunately, Justine was able to shift his attention elsewhere. So, we managed to survive. Finally, we had made it to the third block and my racing heart was pounding in my ears. Over there, we saw Peter was hiding in a house small open garage. When Peter saw us, he felt relieved. Justine and I immediately went to where he was and started looking out for potential dangers outside. 'Man, where have you been?" in a low voice, Peter asked Justine glanced once more outside the garage before averting his gaze back to Peter. 'We got stuck in block two." The three of us were panting really hard when we decided to go out now. There's one more block to go before we can finally reach Justine's apartment. With that, Peter got to the outside first and began to position his crowbar and a rifle on his left arm. I smirked when I realized we're all now pretty equipped. Although it doesn't lessen the possibility of us being eaten by them, at least we still have something with us. "We're almost there," Justine mumbled to himself. The sound of a gunshot then followed his remarks. "Holy crap," he cursed, as the three of us ducked a little in surprise. I couldn't tell where it came from, but I could hear someone screaming and wailing a long way behind us. And then, without unexpectedly, Justine grabbed my wrist and began yanking me forward. We slowed to a trot as he and Peter began to fire their weapons. I have no idea where Peter obtained the rifle. But I'd say it was rather convenient. In contrast, I began practicing on my mind hitting my baseball bat and the keys on my knuckle in defense. But it's just a minute longer, when two more other rotten appear in front of us, making me shocked. 'Run!" Justine exclaimed in a trembling disposition out of anger. Of course, I had to follow him for my own safety. I tried to run to the other side, but unfortunately, I guess luck wasn't on my side. A woman covered in blood suddenly jumped in front of me! From the corner of my eyes, I could see that Peter was busy shooting fires at the other rotter, while Justine was shouting something at me while the two rotten were at his side. At this time, I barely even think if I could even survive in a dystopian. But then, something snapped in my mind. It was like a voice coming from nowhere that made me into my senses. I glanced over at the woman who was on top of me, her saliva was drooling in a disgusting manner, her eyes full of rage, and her arms were dislocated in a twisted way. She was attempting to bite me on my face, so I tried my best to fight with her when I realized that I could use my other hand. So, when I got the chance to do that, I immediately swung my knuckles with keys on them to her face, making her fall to the ground. 'Fuck you!" I yelled at her when I got up. I fixed myself and used my other hand as I swung my baseball bat back to her face. When I realized I had already knocked her out, I immediately run out for my life when I saw another rotten was running after me. When will they ever give me a break? This is so exhausting! I glanced back to Justine and Peter when I saw they're still there. Oh, Jesus! Should I go back to them? I have huge faith in them. I know they could surpass those creeps. So, instead of coming back, I decided to go to the next block. That's when I saw an abandoned car. I suddenly remembered my family. I continued running towards it when I realized the rotter wasn't running after me anymore. I heaved out a deep sigh when I saw he's walking back to the opposite side, where Justine and Peter were. I bit my lips as I try to weigh things and made my decisions. I know that Peter and Justine helped me, and I am very thankful to them for that. It's not that I don't appreciate their help or what, but it's just that I couldn't also abandon my family. I have to go on and check them. I know I might sound selfish, but I could not disregard both my mother and my sister. Also, Pittsfield, Massachusetts isn't that far to Old Chatham. It's just going to be a thirty-two-minute driver. I'll just go back here after I brought mom and Georgia. I immediately hopped inside the car and check if there's still gas. Fortunately, it was full tanked. I nodded my head in approval when I saw the alarm keys were also inside the car, so I would be able to use them. I glanced at my surroundings side by side once more to check if there's any rotten there. And it was a good thing there wasn't. Okay, Clementia. It's clear. When I saw the road was clear, I immediately maneuvered the car as I made my way to Pittsfield. It wasn't that far and considering that there's no any traffic, I got there for less than thirty minutes. The road was clear and there's no sign of any violence. Although of course, I shouldn't feel relieved or what because they're just there, hiding somewhere. When I got in front of our house, I did not hesitate to get out of the car and made my way to our door. I was so excited and happy to see them, but when I got inside the car, it made me shocked. The smile on my face faded and my eyes widened by what I saw. All our furniture was in a complete mess as if a burglar barged in, I could hear the droplets of the water coming from the bathroom, and above all, blood was scattered all over the walls and the floors. I gasped and I put my palms on my mouth when I realized what had just happened here. Still, I tried to call for their names, hoping my mother and Georgia were still alive. 'Mom? G-Georgia?" I said in a low voice, almost stuttering from the forming pain in my throat. My eyes were started to swell, and my hands were trembling. I continued walking when I saw that our television in the living room was opened, and still running. The volume wasn't that high, and my tears stopped from trickling down when I realized there's still an internet and a signal. Unfortunately, I don't have my phone with me anymore, so I have no any glimpse of what's happening right now. I walked near to it and watched the news being aired on the television. A woman was speaking in front of me, announcing something and that's when my ears panted because of what I've heard. "Unfortunately, a virus was accidentally leaked from a microscopic biology facility, and the infection's propagation has become widespread. Anyone infected with this virus will lose their sanity and transform into something resembling a cannibal. This virus has been reported to spread in the human body for around thirty-six hours. Symptoms include coughing, sneezing hard as if you have rhinitis, excessive weariness, dehydration, and yellowing of the body's skin. This is to inform you that you should remain in your homes till further notice is given. Avoid interaction with anybody and try not to go out as much as possible. The rescuers will arrive at any time and take you one by one. Just wait, making sure you eat and remain hydrated until you're all rescued. This is KC from TCP News, once again-" Right after she finished the outro, a glitch appeared on the television, and that's when I realized. I was right. Georgia was completely right. They're zombies. Living corpses. We're in a zombie apocalypse. We're in a state of disarray. In this dystopic, chaotic, apocalyptic world, our lives are in jeopardy. I closed my eyes firmly and came to a halt when I heard thumping from the dining room. 'Mom? Georgia? Is that you?" I repeated. I prepared my knuckles and bat just in case and started walking my way to the dining room. The banging started to grow louder and when I got there, my eyes widened when I saw a woman who was wearing my mom's floral maxi dress. My forehead creased. 'Mom? I-Is that you?" The woman stopped from fidgeting over the cabinets in our kitchen when she suddenly turned her body in a very disturbing and unexplainable way, facing me. My eyes widened and it started to moist when I realized who it was. 'G-Georgia?" I said, my voice trembling. My sister Georgia was in a very bad condition. Her hair was super messy, and it looks like she hasn't bathed for a week. Her maxi dress was also covered in blood, her lips were dry as hell that it's starting to crack, her eyes weren't that white, but it's closed to it, and there were veins all over her arms. I couldn't almost even distinguish it was her that it made me cry instantly. 'G-Georgia, I-" I stopped from talking when Georgia looked at me with an angry look, her face was not in a good condition, and her expression wasn't that hard to tell that I know she wants to jump over at me and eat my flesh. My tears started trickling down, not failing to control all of it when she immediately walked at a very fast pace towards me. I was so shocked that I couldn't move, and as I was about to accept the moment of the truth, someone appeared coming from the bathroom, and what shocked me the most was when she jumped to Georgia and hit her directly on her face with a huge machete. And that's when I knew our family was fucked up. That woman who killed her was no other than my mom. I gasped. 'M-mom… Why did you," but when I saw her face, I lost it. I burst into crying. 'Oh my God," I whispered to myself. She was still not entirely affected by the virus, despite the fact that her complexion had turned yellow and pale. She was also completely coated in blood. Her eyes were becoming white, and her entire body was shaking. Mom looked down at the floor before I noticed tears trickling down her cheeks. 'I'm sorry, Clem. I wasn't able to protect both of you," she apologized, struggling to find her voice. She averted her gaze back to me as she tried to suppress crying, but she failed. Mom nodded at me before pointing to me the floor. 'Yes, stay right there on where you are and promise me that you'd do whatever you can to survive and live." I never responded to her. I was in complete awe. I was crying and my whole body was shaking that I couldn't even afford to speak, but mom continued speaking. 'Promise me, Clem. Will you?" she asked, almost begging me. But I shook my head. 'No, mom. What are you saying? We'll both live! We'll both survive, okay? I-" 'Stopped moving! Stay where you are!" she cut me off when I attempted to come near her. 'Please, Clem? Promise me," she added. My voice was starting to fade away. 'Why are you doing this? Mom… why are you…" I couldn't continue what I have to say because I was breaking down really hard. "I just wanted to let you know that I have no regrets about having you both as my daughters. Clem and Georgia, you made my life so much better. I was overjoyed, and it was the finest moment of my life. And... I-I'm sorry, Clem. If there were times when I was unable to carry out my responsibilities properly. If I w-wasn't such a nice mother to you," she murmured, her voice cracking up. I shook my head, indicating that I disagreed with what she was saying. "I don't mean those. But always remember that I love you. I love both of you. And I will continue to do so. So, please make a promise to me. You will live and survive. Please, C-Clem?" I shook my head and bit my lips, but in the end, I nodded when I realized she's waiting for my answer. 'Y-yes. I… I will, mom." She nodded and smiled at me. 'I love you, Clem." But before I could even tell her how much I love her, she pulls something from her back, and my eyes widened as I realized what it was. My entire world came to a halt and everything seemed to slow down when I heard a loud bang from a gun that filled the entire room. No. No. This ain't true. I fell from the floor and my whole world shattered as I watched her fell also to the ground. My heart was broken into million pieces as I watched her look at me with those sad and forlorn eyes. I don't know, but I suddenly cannot hear anything except from my own inner screams. I couldn't even move or do anything. The two people who matter to me the most just died in front of me, while here I am, cannot do anything. I wasn't able to protect them. I bit my lips so hard that I felt my own blood coming from my lips. I felt something rusty like iron from my lips, and the whole place started to look like sepia to me. My mom and sister were both covered in crimson color and here I was, sitting in front of them like a pathetic retard person. If I knew that was a farewell message, I should've said anything too. I didn't even get the chance to apologize to both of them, thanks to them, or say my deepest gratitude on how thankful I was for them, how happy I've been because of them. But life is short. And maybe, that's just how life works for me. Though, it's so unfair. It is one of the most difficult things you will ever have to do in your life. You've known those people as family and watched them go from lively and healthy to not healthy, unable to think, work, move, or think. To no longer be able to appreciate or have pleasure with you. You feel love and sympathy for that parent, and your emotions are erratic at times. You're wondering what your life would be like. How am I going to live once they're gone? What if this or that happens? You make a lot of wild guesses.                       Then the day comes when you are tragically full of sadness, you get numb, then you become furious at them, then at God, then at yourself, then you reject that they are truly gone, saying, 'Oh, they are just on vacation.' Then reality sets in, and you come to accept that they are gone. They are not returning. That's exactly how I'm feeling right now. I'm experiencing all of these terrible emotions. Grief is similar to sadness. That this awful misery and pain is killing me. But I have to make certain that I satisfy my mother's demand. She desires for my survival, for my life. And that's what I'll do. Of course, it hurts, but what else can I do aside from moving forward, and getting ready for another battle of my life? I stood with all my might as I tried to turn my back on them, my eyes shut tightly. I swallowed hard as I left their cold bodies out there and I came back to the cold reality of life. I picked all my courage, my strength, and thought of what mom has told me earlier. To live and survive. I nodded and got out of the house as fast as I could. When I was already outside in front of the door, I looked back and remembered the pain and fear I saw from my family there. They're all I have, but now they're gone. I wiped the tears from my eyes and looked above as I watched the light blue sky filled with clouds moving quickly like a driftwood catching fire. I heaved out a deep sigh, and as I was about to fight my inner demons and move forward to the next chapter of my life, I heard a familiar voice from someone. 'Clementia." And that's when I knew, I was still not alone. I averted my gaze to my opposite side and over there, I saw Justine and Peter looking at me with those expressive eyes. 'Let's go," Justine muttered, while Peter gave me a thumbs up with a smile plastered on his face. I nodded at them and walked in their direction. My mother and Georgia might have left me, and the world might have turned its back on me. But at least, I have them.