Infected || PewdieCry

Epilogue.

With a deep sigh, I stood up and heaved my backpack on my shoulder again, dusting dirt and dry grass off my pants. I rubbed my eyes, suppressing a yawn. I was exhausted, barely having rested properly in days, but I had to keep going. Suddenly going back to scavenging food on my own was quite a change; one that would take some getting used to again.

My feet felt clumsy and heavy as I continued my walk. I would have to return to shelter soon, but I hadn't gathered enough supplies to make it through the night yet, so I had no choice but to keep going. One of these buildings had to have something.

I zipped open my winter coat, starting to feel hot underneath the thick material. With the sun shining so brightly all day long, it was getting more and more unbearable to wear a coat like this, but it was still too cold to take it off completely. Summer was right around the corner; any day now I would be able to put it aside. I would never get rid of it, though. After all, it was the coat that Scott had given me. Even if it would take up most of my backpack, I would never throw it away. It meant too much to me.

I was slowly wandering down the streets and jumped when an infected suddenly appeared from a building before me, growling and stumbling towards me. I took a few steps back and quickly grabbed my pistol, shooting it through its head. Dammit, there went my last bullet.. I should've payed more attention to where I was walking so I could've avoided it instead. Damn, I missed having Snake and Scott walk out in front.

I missed the group.

Fuck, I had to stop thinking like this. I couldn't bring back the past; it had happened months ago. All I could do was keep moving and try to survive. Right now, I had to focus on the task at hand – find food for tonight, hopefully find medication as well, and get back to shelter. I shouldn't be out here for much longer.

I walked inside the building that the infected had come out of, hoping that the zombie's presence meant that this place had mostly been left alone so far. It looked like it used to be a diner or restaurant. As I took a few careful steps forward, I heard a loud bang coming from somewhere in the kitchen, followed by a few hasty footsteps. There was definitely somewhere here already.

I slowly walked closer to the doors leading to the kitchen, on edge and fully expecting something to jump out. My pistol was raised in front of me, but I was fully aware that I had no bullets left; if someone was truly on the other side of this door, I was pretty much defenceless. It wasn't like I wanted to hurt whoever was already here, but maybe they weren't as friendly as I was.

Right when I started to hesitate, backing away from the kitchen door again, a voice rang out from behind me.

"Freeze. Drop the gun."

Shit. He must've gone around while I was busy hesitating. Quite a risky move, to be honest. Either way, the fact that I was still alive meant that maybe there was still hope for this situation.

I slowly put my pistol on the ground and kicked it backwards to where the man should be standing. I really wanted to turn around to face him, but I didn't want to make any unexpected moves, so I stood completely still. I heard the man pick up my pistol and, after a few seconds, he laughed.

"No bullets, huh?" he mumbled. "Turn around. Slowly."

I did as he told me to, carefully turning towards him. Honestly, I was a bit relieved when I saw him. He was holding my empty pistol in one hand, another aimed at my face, but even with the obvious danger, the man didn't look unfriendly. He even looked a little uncertain. He seemed quite a lot older than me, maybe in his fifties.

"I'm not looking for trouble," I spoke. "I'm just here to look for a few supplies and then I'm out."

The man nodded slowly, thinking for a few moments before asking, "What's your name, kid?"