The Undead (Lauren/You)

Chapter 1

LAUREN'S POV

Walking through the empty streets of the city created an eerie cast in the sky as well as over everything that was still standing. It seemed as if it was the end of a nuclear war because of how much damage there was to the buildings surrounding the quiet city. Zombies lived in each crevice, just waiting for the right time to attack. It had started to rain lightly at first until it became heavier and heavier to the point where it was a full-on downpour. I pulled my hood over my head knowing in the end it wouldn't really do much. The weather perfectly represented my mood, something in which I didn't think would happen in this circumstance because I always used to think that just looking outside on a rainy day when everything was normal. When there weren't zombies parading the streets.

God how I wished for that time again. For the simpler times when kids only had to worry about hating school and messing around on social media. For when I had someone by my side through this all. One by one my friends were picked off one by one until my team had only consisted of a lone ranger, which was me. Each one of their deaths was engraved into my mind, each one happening because I wasn't there to help. It ate away at my conscience but I knew I couldn't let that cloud my judgement. I had to keep going, to find my family. I hadn't seen them since I became a special agent, almost three years before the outbreak. I had kept track of the days that had passed for my own sanity, and so far it has been almost another year since it started. I didn't know if they survived, I don't know if they were able to fend for themselves but the thought of them still being alive kept me going.

I thought about giving up so many times but I needed to know the truth. I needed to know if my family was still alive or not. There was also something I was craving at the back of my head but I just didn't know what it was. I felt like I needed to find something along with my family. I missed having someone by my side that I could just simply talk to. Once I had my family and I found whatever I'm supposed to find I knew that surviving in this new world wouldn't be this bad. I would have a purpose again to wake up every morning and continue to fight for my life, for my family.

The longer I walked along the street the more zombies came out of their hiding when they smelled live flesh. I quickly and easily took them out with my combat training so that it wasn't an inconvenience for me. I guess being a special agent paid off in this new world. I scavenged for any useful items in the abandoned stores I came across just in case it could become useful in the future. I stepped over the huge broken window bordering a storefront to see what I could find when I heard shuffling towards the back of the store. I placed my hands on both my gun and my knife that were tucked away in my belt out of view of others. I didn't know which one I would need but I knew I had to stay on alert. I looked around the small shop to make sure nothing would sneak up on me as I slowly shuffled towards the back.

The door was cracked open and in it I saw a herd of zombies huddled around what I expected to be humans. I couldn't see if the humans were alive or if the zombies were just trying to feed off a newly dead corpse. I realized the humans were actually alive when I heard a scream of terror. "Dinah! Behind you!" A feminine voice called out. When I heard that I instantly started to attack the zombies with my knife from the back, helping the people take down the undead. Eventually the room laid quiet with all the zombies taken out on the ground. I came face to face with two girls and one guy. I kept my knife in my hand just in case they decided to try anything. The man held his hands up but a smile formed on his face as he noticed me.

"Hello, none of us mean any harm so you don't have to worry. I couldn't but notice how well you handled those zombies." He explained. Even when he said he didn't mean any harm he still kept his hands up by his head. He motioned for the other two girls to do the same as they put away their weapons. "My name is Daniel, this is Dinah Jane." He pointed at the taller girl of the two. "And this is Normani." He pointed at the darker skinned girl.