The Last Girl Standing (#1)

Running on Fumes

Noami

The sun, a pale disc in the smoke-choked sky, cast long shadows across the deserted street. We'd been running for what felt like hours, adrenaline slowly melting away into bone-deep exhaustion. Every creak, every groan, sent shivers down my spine. Were they zombies, or just my imagination playing tricks?

"Think we lost them?" I panted, bending over and catching my breath. My heart hammered a frantic rhythm against my ribs, a relentless drumbeat in the quiet devastation surrounding us.

Leo, his face pale but determined, scanned the deserted street. "Hopefully. But we can't stay here. Sunrise attracts the hungry crowd."

Leo, his face pale but determined, scanned the deserted street. "Hopefully. But we can't stay here. Sunrise attracts the hungry crowd."

Hungry crowd. A horrifyingly accurate description.

"Where are we going anyway?" I asked, straightening up with a groan. My muscles screamed in protest, every step a small victory.

Leo hesitated for a moment, his brow furrowed. "There's a safe haven, a community of survivors, up north. But…"

He trailed off, his words hanging heavy in the air.

"But what?"  My voice rose in a squeak.

He met my gaze, a flicker of despair in his blue eyes. "It's… far. Alaska."

Alaska? My jaw dropped. We were in freaking New Jersey!  The distance seemed insurmountable, a sentence to months, maybe even years, on the road.

Despair threatened to engulf me, but a jolt of anger sparked within me. Giving in wasn't an option.

"So, we walk," I declared, my voice surprisingly firm. "We find a car, a bike, a freaking hot air balloon if we have to. But we get there. Together."

Leo's lips curved into a faint smile, a flicker of hope rekindled in his eyes. "Together."

The enormity of the journey stretched before us, a daunting expanse of ruined cities, treacherous landscapes, and the ever-present threat of the undead. But for the first time since the apocalypse began, I didn't feel completely alone. I had Leo, and the promise of a community, a beacon of hope in a world shrouded in darkness.

But before we embarked on this epic quest, there was a more pressing concern. My stomach growled, a traitorous reminder of my predicament.

"Alright," I said, pushing aside the daunting thoughts of Alaska. "Before we walk to the ends of the earth, maybe a little breakfast is in order. And by breakfast, I don't mean last week's office donuts."

Leo raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement flickering in his eyes. "So, you're telling me the Naomi Johnson, reluctant warrior princess, isn't averse to… scavenging?"

A wry smile spread across my face. "Hey, desperate times call for desperate measures. Besides, you wouldn't know a good protein bar if it bit you in the…" I trailed off, leaving the sentence unfinished with a wink.

Leo chuckled, a sound that warmed the desolate landscape around us. "Alright, alright. Lead the way, Princess. Let's see what this brave new world has to offer for breakfast – living or otherwise."

~

The sun climbed higher in the smoke-choked sky, casting long shadows across the treacherous landscape. We scrambled over a pile of jagged rocks, ducking behind a crumbling billboard, our breaths echoing in the oppressive silence.

"Think we lost them?" I hissed, adrenaline still buzzing in my veins. The moans of the undead had been gaining on us, a symphony of decay that sent chills down my spine.