Fighting for Home (an apocalypse story)

Chapter 3 - Survivalists

Not proofread...don't kill me please!

We're running through the the trees the wind whipping through my hair and across my face, stealing tears from my eyes with its icy fingers. I hear a familiar laugh, the best sound in the world, and look to my right at the figure flying next to me. It's Kyle. Where have you been? I yell at him through the trees. I miss you! But he doesn't seem to hear me. He just keeps running, going faster and faster and I can't keep up. All of a sudden, it's as if some dark shadow has swept him away out of my sight. Then, I hear the terrible groans and chatters of the UDs. They're all around me, choking me with their bloody fingers and smothering me with their dense, rotting scent. I scramble and thrash but I can't get free. I try to scream but no sound comes out and the rotting bodies crush closer, their broken teeth clicking together as they snap at my skin. I'm dying. I'm dying and so is he...

"Wake up, Ashley. Wake up, it's your shift"

My eyes fly open and I bolt upright, causing Lyndsey to scramble backwards off the air mattress. I sigh, relieved to see the dark interior of Adahs room. By the slivers of pale late evening light filtering through the gaps into the curtains and onto the bright pink walls, I can see Adah curled up in her bed, fast asleep. Good. I hadn't woken her.

"Sorry" I whisper as I stand and start to get dressed as quietly as I can. "Caught me in the middle of a nightmare there"

"You sure you're out of it?" She mutters, turning away from me and tucking her knees up to her chin. "I mean, it can't be much different in the real world, right?"

My brow furrows, this doesn't sound like Lyndsey at all. Something must be up.

"Hey," I say, sitting down next to her "you okay? Did something happen?"

At first I am afraid she won't want to talk about it, but then she sighs and turns to face me.

"I killed one. Today, with my knife" Tears begin to well in her eyes and I put an arm around her as she continues. "There was only one, and she was just walking towards us like they do. And Jessica said I should get it, to try....for practice. So I climbed down and was going to do it quickly, you know, get it over with. But then she just kept coming closer and closer and I...I just kept backing up until I couldn't anymore and then she was so close..." She pauses to sniff and swipe at her cheeks. I squeeze her shoulders and she keeps talking. "So then I just...just did it. Just whipped my knife up and stabbed....." Her voice trails off and her shoulders shake a little with silent sobs.

I shift so that I am in front of her and hug her, wracking my brain for something, anything to say to make it better, to make it okay. But all I can think is this isn't fair. This shouldn't be something an 11 year old should have to deal with, that anyone should have to deal with.  But this is the way the world is now. It won't get better, and it's not okay and it's not fair. That's just the way it is.

I pull back, holding my little sister by the shoulders.

"Listen to me" I say, "I know it's hard, and it's scary and you've never don't this before. But you can do this, Lynds. I know it, and I think you know it too. I was scared when I first killed one of them like that too. But then I remembered that you can either run from scary things or face them. I can face them, and so can you. It's always going to be hard, I think. But it's what we have to do to survive now, okay?" She nods and smiles at me.

"Thanks" she says, sniffing.

"Hey, what are big sisters for?" I give her one last squeeze before standing back up and grabbing my gun and knife. "Night" I whisper to her as I open the door and quietly slip out.

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Mom is waiting for me on the balcony, sitting in the only chair and staring at the stars overhead. I walk over and sink down to the ground next to her.