Because Zombies! That's why!

Chapter Five

Peeking around the corner, Nick tried to see if there was a path in which he could use to escape the store. Ducking back in, quickly, as the door was knocked into by a zom, Nick backed against the wall, hoping it didn't notice the scent of the living on him.

There was no way out of the store today. The streets were filled with Gollum, dogs, and a rather large passing Horde. Making his way back to the display bed, Nick set his things down and sat for a moment.

After a long silence, Nick decided that today would be a good day for a video diary entry. Digging through his bag, he tried to feel his way around for it. When he couldn't feel it, he began to empty his bag... It was gone. Looking up at the skylight at Debra's hunger-torn face, Nick glared at her. Attached to her wrist, hanging by its strap, was his camera. She'd stolen it! But why?

He knew that she'd gone through his bag, but why would she steal his camera? Nick just didn't understand. Did she watch it? He had said a thing or two about her on it... In the earlier tapes. Did she plan to watch it, but was stopped when he got there? Or did she know it was his camera, but thought that some stranger had it... didn't know that he was the Nick that she'd ditched in New York once...? It was a little too late to ask her about it... He just wanted it back...

Exhaling heavily, Nick grabbed his machete once again. Looking up at the skylight, the walkers wandered about the rooftop. Some have fallen off the roof and fell to their deaths, others just walked. Moving his brown hair from his face, he made a mental note to cut it later on, assuming he could find a pair of scissors. Placing his hand on the rope, he placed his machete between his teeth again and hoisted himself up the rope. Twice in one day, his gym teacher would have been proud had he not been the third zombie he'd had to silence since the world fell apart.

Climbing higher and higher, Nick placed his hand against the glass of the skylight and pushed lightly, nudging it open. Grabbing the rope, he swung it lightly as a zombie reached out for him and fell, landing on his head on the shelf before sliding off and hitting the floor with a hard thud. Nick chuckled to himself for a moment before getting to the roof.

Decapitating the first few who lunged for him, he made his way to Deb, who sat on her knees, staring out at the horizon. She seemed memorized by it. After clearing the roof, Nick walked to her, cautiously. After a moment of silence, she turned, slowly, looking at him with sorrow in her eyes. He, almost, felt bad for letting her become that way... But that guilt was short lived when she lunged at him.

Swinging hard at her throat, he missed as she backed up a little, evading his attack. Lunging for him again, Nick kicked her back, causing her to stumble to the edge. His eyes grew wide as she began to lose her balance... Deb was going to fall off the roof! With his camera! Swinging hard as she reached for him, panic in her eyes. As she began to fall, Nick managed to cut the strap of his camera and free it from her and caught it, just in time to watch her hit the ground and splatter her brains on the concrete.

Sliding back down the rope after closing the skylight, Nick smiled. He had his camera back. Switching it on, he went through its contents, making sure nothing was deleted. He was happy to find nothing was deleted. Just something new. A new video. Pressing play, Nick sat and watched.

The camera work was shaky and shoddy before the camera was set on a ledge and turned to face Debra. Shaking his hair from his face he sighed as she began to speak, the sadness in her face matched the sadness in her voice.

"Hey there, anybody... I just... took this camera from some guy... He was sleeping... But he had this camera that, apparently, belonged to a guy I used to date." she looked down and pushed her hair behind her ear. "I don't know if... He's dead and the guy I stole this from just stumbled upon it... Or this guy looted him... Either way, I just... It was just nice to see a familiar face. I hope to see Nick again some day. Nick is the guy I dated once. He was the sweetest, most perfect, man in the world... And I fucked up by cheating on him with some moron I met over the Internet." She sniffled and wiped a tear from her eye before looking into the camera. "If I ever saw him again... I'd apologize... For everything I put him through... For the stupid thing I did... If I could go back... And do it over again... I would have stayed... We could have gotten married... Had a few kids... Lived happily before the world became so messed up..." She covered her mouth as she cried to herself. "Nick, I'm so sorry... You deserved so much better... I love you.. And all it took was me to see your face again... To hear your voice... To watch the horrors you dealt with in this hell to realize it... If you died... I hope that it was quick... And that you didn't become one of them." She cried harder before reaching for the power button to stop the recording.

Nick's jaw fell open and tears fell from his eyes as the screen went black and the video closed out; Nick had to set the camera down on the bed. Dragging his hands down his face, he felt the weight of guilt weighing down on him. He wished he would have seen this before he let her die... Before he let her turn... He could have saved her... But what then? Nick knew her... She would have used him as a pogo stick again and probably get them both killed... But, then again, he would've felt less guilty and would have died knowing that he got in a few good lays in before he died in a horrific zombie frenzy.

Laying back on the bed, Nick stared at the ceiling as tears fell from his eyes. He knew that she didn't really deserve his forgiveness, but given the circumstances, he would have given it to her... Her death was on his hands... And, all of a sudden, the song "The Reason" by Hoobastank started playing in his head. Softly, he began to sing as he thought about his life... What he was going to do... His guilt made him want to just walk outside and piss off a Gollum, but that part of him that wants to survive kept him weighed down to the bed.

'What the fuck am I gonna do?' He thought to himself. 'It could take days for a horde this big to, actually, pass... Gollums tend to linger... Dogs could still smell me if I were to step foot out the fucking door... Am I stuck here? Forced to stare up at the skylight... Relive my guilt...? Get lost in my own head until it drives me batshit crazy and causes me to become suicidal?' Nick continued to think before turning his head to one of the painted windows. The zoms didn't see him, which was good. 'No... I can't live like that... I've come too fucking far to give up now... I could... I could just pretend I didn't see the video... Pretend I didn't get her killed... Pretend to still hate her more than anything in this world... Can't I?' Looking back up, he sighed before sitting up and wiping his face with his green hoodie sleeve. His hands on the edge of the bed, he stared, unseeingly, forward. He couldn't forget. But he couldn't give up on life... He had, really, come too far... But he still didn't know where he was going to go... Maybe West.