Not Dead..Yet.

Chapter 1- The Runners.

"Hailey! Hailey, run! Faster!"  I screamed, taking my little sisters small hand into mine. She let out a cry as her little legs pumped harder to keep up. 

"Faith, I can't go any faster!" She cried as Maya took her other hand, lifting her up off the floor. She bounced as she dangled in the air between us. This normally was a fun thing to do a month or so ago...each of us take one of Hailey's small hands and swing her back and forth between us. But sense  this... sickness broke out, nothing has been the same. Nor will it ever be. 

Maya's labored breathing grew harder as we heard the familiar scream of the Hunter chasing us. A Hunter is someone with a mutated string of the out-brake, they mentioned them in the pamphlet to be called Specials. You can identify them by the way they crouch low to the ground and crawl, or the scream they let out as they pounce. 

"Uh!" Maya let out as she tumbled to the asphalt of the street we ran along. "Up! Get up!" I yelled, pulling her to her feet, pulling Hailey along once more. "I'm worn out, Faith! We need to find shelter!" She yelled, holding her new bloody elbow. We turned into a small side alley, away from the infected swarming after us along the main avenue. My black hair flew behind me as I ran, pulling the 9 year old with me. She had a hard time keeping up with me because of my long stride but she never gave up. "Look! There's a safe house!" I shrilled with joy as I seen the orange painting of a house with a cross in the middle. Hailey let out a whimper as her small arm hits the side of the damaged wall, scraping it. I pulled her into my long arms and held her like a baby as we dashed a few more meters to the large red cast iron door. 

Maya balled her fist and began to bang on the door, each hit splattering the blood that ran from her elbow down her arm. "Let us in!" She screamed, pulling on the handle which didn't budge at all. 

"Go away!" A gruff voice from the other side floated to us through the bars. I peered inside to see a old man sitting on the ground, wrapping a bleeding arm. 

"Please! We have a small child here! We will leave as soon as the infected leave the area!" I begged, slamming my own fist in the door. "Stop that!" He screamed, standing to his feet and running to the door. "You'll call them over here! You know how sensitive they are to noise!" 

I pulled the sobbing Hailey into the crook of my neck as I retorted with "Then let us in! Or we'll bring you down with us!" 

His clouded grey eyes shifted between the three of us as he scowled "Only until morning. Then you leave. Or i'll shoot you dead, you hear?!" He said removing the metal bar from the door as the Hunter screamed once again. 

The door opened slightly and I shoved Hailey in immediately followed by Maya. I moved in the room as the man sticks his head out, looking left to right. "I don't see no infected, you little lie-" He began, but was cut off quickly as the Hunter pounced on his chest, clawing widely. 

Maya let a shriek of fear out as I began to kick the two out of the safe room. "He's been bitten!" Hailey screamed as I watched the gruesome scene unfold in front of me. The mans chest cavity was opened quickly from the sharp claws the Hunter possessed, and those very claws were still digging into his prey, even though he was clearly dead already. 

I gave a final kick to the head of the beast in front of me and he flew back, off the man and out the door. I shoved the dead man out fast, not wanting him to waken in this room. I clamped the door shut, securing it fast with the Iron bar. Hailey and Maya were cowering in the far corner, next to the other exit as I fell back on my rear end. "My god." I cried as hot tears fell from my eyes. 

Don't do this! Don't cry in front of Hailey! You're suppose to be the strong older sister! 

I blinked away the on coming tears and smeared the ones on my cheeks into the cloth of the pink tang top I wore. "You guys okay? Not hurt?" I croaked, standing on shaky knees. Maya checked over my little sister and nodded her head.

No ones been bitten. Good.

I picked up one of the 6 first aid kits from the wooden shelf and clicked open the hatch that held it together. Bandages, ointments, pills and other medical tools were scattered in the box making me smile.  "Maya, here." I warned, throwing her a spray and bandage for her arm. 

 She caught it with ease and began to work on her self and Hailey's minor wounds.

 I rubbed my eyes with the heels of my hands, deep in thought. 

 Three months of this. Day after day of running in fear for our lives. Where the hell is CDC? The Center of Disease Control should be controlling this! They can control this..right?

I sighed as I took a can of food from the shelf and pulled the lid off with the small cap. Fruit scents filled the room as my stomach growled, wanting to eat all of it now. I reached my dirt caked hands in the can and pulled out a chunk of pine apple, and shoving it in my mouth. I chewed slow, savoring the burst of taste in my mouth. Little pleasures like this sent shivers up and down my spine, god. I miss this. I closed my eyes and chewed another slice of pine apple, imagining im at home, in my bed. And Mom and Dad were still alive. 

I crooked my neck and let my eyes brush over my little sister, who looked rough. "Hungry?" I stretched my mouth into a foreign thing call a smile. Hailey eagerly smiled back, crawling to my side. "Starving!" She gave a half hearted laugh, taking the food in my hands. Poor Girl. 

 Maya suddenly stiffened as she placed her ear to a small metal box emitting a high pitched whine. "This thing can give a signal!" She cried, joy seeping in her voice. He swept the box from the crudly build table and dropped it in her lap.

Her fingers began to pull apart the box, connecting colorful wires to each other, and slowly the whine turned into static. She put the box together again and began to turn the dainty dials protruding from the grey metal. She listened as a mans voice can through mid sentence. 

"-With duck tape securely. Hold your position until the CDC Agents can retrieve and disinfect you, unless you are close to a evacuation center. Please keep hydrated and stay away from infected individuals..."

A moment of silence until the recording restarted. 

"This is a official CDC announcement. Due to the recent out brake of the Green Flu we are required to quarantine the citizens of Lincon, Nebraska. We are here to instruct you on the do's and do not's on how to keep safe. Please avoid all contact with the infected.If bitten by a walker please treat wound immediately. Do not put limbs near the infected, nor any type of meat. Seal all windows and doors with duck tape securely. Hol-"  Maya clicked off the voice and put it down. 

 "Quarantined." I repeated to myself as the situation sunk in. "They blocked off Lincon. Trapped us." Maya shook her head "They didn't just quarantine us.. its probably a few states. Remember? The first man to be infected was in New York." 

I sighed and buried my face in my hands, rubbing my temples. I'm only 16, I don't need this. 

Hailey curled her fragile body around my built leg and softly cried as I stroked her hair. I wanted to join my sister in self pity but I wasn't allowed. I need to be the strong one here, cause Maya sure as hell wont be. I loved my best friend, but she doesn't have the mental capacity to be the leader of our small pack. Mayas brown slightly curled hair bounced as she began to tinker with mechanical objects around the room, freeing herself from reality. My mind wondered to Danny, my boyfriend, for the thousandth time. Is he okay? Are his little brothers okay? His parents? Is he close? 

I pulled Hailey closer as she nibbled on the fruit, sniffing. Her brown-red hair smelled of blood and trash, and her brown eyes that use to hold so much life became dull and sullen.  She reminded me so much of dad.. she inherited all the looks of the family.. while I got shimmer-less black hair and dull blue eyes. 

Freckles lightly dotted my cheeks making me look dirty when contrasted to my white skin.

At least it wasn't green skin. 

I let myself sigh. 

"Lets catch come sleep..we'll head out once the sun comes up again. Its to late to be wondering these streets."

Maya nodded her head in agreement and I curled up to Hailey tighter and closed my worn eyes. 

Good Night, Lincon. Our new personal hell.