Zantanium

Captin

When I woke up I had a pounding headache. I rose up from the seat of the truck and stretched the crick in my neck.

Then it all flooded back, the shop. The bloody man.

Dad.

My eyes began to water and I felt a tear escape and run down my face. "Stephanie?" Murphy says in the dark, the lights from the dash lit up his face, making him look more frightening. "Yeah" I responded quietly, my throat was dry and I needed to use the bathroom but with everything that I had witnessed I felt like I could hold it longer.

Murphy pulls over and park the truck, running his hands over his face, bags from lack of sleep began to come over his eyes. He looks over at me with an expression that grew commonly on his face

"I'm sorry, I know you're mad at me. I just had to keep you safe, this isn't easy for me either but I've always felt like I had to protect you, younger or not you're my sister and I can't loose you"

I continued to stay silent, I didn't like fighting but I was tired, hurt, and scared. I stretched one final time before looking around

"Where are we?" I ask trying to make out some detail from the pitch black sky "Indiana" he states while yawning

"I need a break" he gives a slight chuckle and hops out of the truck. The light shines brightly, making the pounding in my head hurt more.

The light began to fade and I was left in the dark cab of the truck, almost instantly I felt myself growing afraid. I was afraid of my brother, something I didn't wanna be. He was all I had but he was the reason for it too. When Murphy got back into the truck he started the engine and continued to drive.

The silence began to be to much as I looked at my brother and made a small laugh. "What?" He says concerned "remember that time dad was teaching you how to drive and you hit that squirrel?" I say still laughing, Murphy let's out a laugh and then smile grew bigger on his face. The laughing subsided but the silence that came over it was a peaceful one.

"Stephanie, I'm not a psycho. I just seen the bite mark and it looked like that woman's at the store. I knew he was already gone I just didn't want him to suffer" I looked over at him and nodded "I know"

The thing I always seemed to admire about my brother was his ambition and means to make amends, he always wanted friends never enemies.

The road we was traveling on was dark, the street lights no longer shined, only the glare of headlights on a highway. Occasionally I would have to shield my eyes from lights of oncoming cars from the opposite side. I wondered if Murphy was right about the west coast being safe, or was the people on the other side of the highway hearing that so was the east?

The gas icon dinged signaling that gas was low, I began to grow paranoid, wondering what would happen if we didn't fill up. Once Murphy pulled into the surprisingly vacant gas station my mind started to ease.

Murphy hopped out of the truck and began to pump the gas. I began to be cross my legs as my bladder from holding it started to ache. "Murphy...I need to use the bathroom" I say almost childlike. He throws his head back and sighs "can you hold it?" I shake my head and watch as he abandoned the pump. He opens the passenger door and grabs his gun behind the seat.

"Murphy, I'm going to the bathroom not war" I state glaring at the gun. He laughs and begins to walk, "since I can't watch you and the truck I'm gonna stand outside" I nod and walk up to the ladies bathroom sign.

Apocalypse or not the bathroom was a disaster but I went into the first stall and sat down. I tried to hurry for the sake of leaving until I heard the door squeak. My breath hitched as I began to hear slow movements "Murphy?" I whispered but I got no reply, my heart started beating faster, what if the zombies had gotten Murphy and now it was my turn.

I squeezed my eyes shut when I heard the pounding on the door, then another. This time the pounding had caused the door to start to move. I began to whimper as the stall was starting to unfold. I felt hot tears stream down my face as the pounding continued. I began screaming as the door flew open, revealing a woman woman. She was foaming at the mouth and swaying her arms to me. The foam causing gurgling noises to escape her body. "SOMEBODY HELP ME" I screamed as she had began to get closer. I shut my eyes again as I felt the heat of her presence.

There was a prolonged wait in my death, the gurgle could still be heard but I no longer felt the heat followed by a gust of air.

"You just gonna sit there?" a deep voice asked, I opened my eyes to see a man in a swat team uniform look at me. "If you don't get up its most likely gonna get you" he says now turning away. "It's dead right?" I say pulling myself up from the toilet and near the man who had saved me. "No, I just stunned it. You gotta shoot it in the head to kill it" he says pointing at its skull.

"Who are you? and where's my brother?" I asked walking out of the bathroom "they call me captin America, or captin. Don't get me confused with the marvel character and your brother is over there" he says pointing to Murphy who was sitting in the truck. I heard screaming and he told me you were in the bathroom but I knew he couldn't do much with a double barrel"

I nodded at the strange man and walked over to my brother. "Stephanie you okay?" My brother asked checking me up and down. I nodded again and looked back at the man known as captain.

He stood broad and in all black like the night. His badge shined brightly in the lights of the gas station. He carried a shield in one hand and a riffle in the other. He looked dangerous but I guess with these zombies running around then dangerous was a good thing.

I felt a tug on my shoulder as Murphy pulls me to the side "I think we should take him with us" he says glancing over at captin "that's very nice Murphy but we don't know him" I say sarcastically, Murphy walks away and over to the strange man who was cleaning the dirt from his black boots

"Hey captain, would you like to come with us?"

The man stood up giving Murphy a reassuring glance that he wouldn't mind tagging along. He walked over to where a duffle bag and back pack laid.

I jumped into the seat of the truck while captain and murphy followed. I had a look of pure annoyance, as if telling my brother I really didn't like this decision. He gave me a look that replied with its only for a little while. I huffed and looked out the window

It was gonna be a long while