Patient Zero

I awoke in a hospital bed, initially with no clue how I got there. There was an IV running into my arm, and various machines and gadgetry scattered about. I was strapped to the bed with metal restraints on my arms, legs, across my midsection, and there was even one over my mouth.

Something was definitely off here.

There was no one else in the room, but I could hear some activity going on outside. It sounded like fighting of some sort.

That was odd, I thought this was some sort of hospital.

There was a loud bump against my door, followed by a sliding sound. I stayed in bed, frozen and unsure of what I should do.

A mixture of what looked like blood and some sort of black goo oozed underneath my door, and something smelled dead.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to will myself awake from this nightmare. Hoping for the cold metal that bound me to go away, to not hear the terrifying sounds, not smell the vomit inducing smell.

I heard another sliding noise, then my door creaked open.

I kept my eyes closed, terrified that the nightmare was real and that this was the end of me, this was the end of Darren Statler.

And I heard the door close again.

I breathed out a sigh of relief, opening my eyes, and looking around, expecting to see the familiar surroundings of my room.

I was still in the hospital bed.

And I wasn't alone in the room anymore.

Oh God.

A man in an orderly outfit came up to me.

"Who are you? Where am I? What's going on?" I screamed, but the metal restraint over my mouth just made it sound muffled and panicked.

The orderly looked at me in surprise, but then got a scared look on his face.

He pulled out a knife, and I wet myself a little.

He pressed a button on the wall, and spoke into it, "I need security and Dr. Zippleman in Patient Zero's room immediately."

He stood a near the other end of the room, his  eyes never leaving me and his knife poised in a defensive position.

I looked at him, my eyes pleading for help since my mouth couldn't ask for it.

He looked at me, his entire body shaking, and sweat beginning to form on his face.

He looked at me like I was going to kill him.

The door opened again, this time a man in a labcoat and two men in with blue shirts and patches on their arms that had the word, 'Security' written on it followed him, keeping a close eye on the door. Once it was closed, they locked it and one of the guards stood next to it with a gun.

The doctor had been the first one this entire time to come within two feet of me. Upon closer inspection, I could see that his labcoat was splatted with blood and ooze, as were the security guards and the orderly.

Just what kind of hospital was this?

The doctor turned to the orderly, asking him questions in a hushed tone. The orderly, who seemed much more comfortable now that their were other people here, whispered answers, looking at me every few seconds, as if to make sure I hadn't broken the restraints. I couldn't hear what they were saying, and I was terrified of the two men in to room with guns. They just stared at me... It was as if they were waiting for something.

The doctor came over to me again. He looked down at me, somewhat relieved looking.

"Well, my boy, it seems we've found your cure," He had a smooth voice, like the perfect father on a TV christmas special. It was meant to be comforting, but it didn't ease my mood in the slightest. I still didn't know where I was, what these people were doing to me, and, most importantly, what was wrong with me that they had cured me of. I couldn't ask any of the questions I wanted, the restraints were still over my mouth.

The doctor looked at me, seeing my incredibly confused expression.

"Don't you remember son?"

I shook my head as much as I could with the restraint over my mouth.

"Why, Mr. Statler, you've just come back from the undead."