It all happened so fast. Disaster. Widespread panic.
A Pandemic.
It wasn't long before the Infected were everywhere.
When Hayley Brookes near-perfect life comes crashing down around her - due to a new, widespread, incurable strain of virus and she...
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The phone slipped through my fingers as I slumped onto the couch. I felt as if I was drowning, my breaths were short and shallow as I struggled to inhale the necessary oxygen. My fingertips began to tingle and I could feel my heart pounding against my chest.
"Crap, crap, crap," I muttered out shakily. Forcing my unwilling body off the sofa, I rushed to the bedroom I used whenever my family would stay here, and into the adjoining bathroom. Almost ripping the door off, I hurriedly searched the cabinet above the sink. "Please, please be in here!" I hoped as I searched through all the toiletry items, looking for a little orange bottle. Breathing was becoming more and more of a struggle as my anxiety attack took a hold of me.
Finally! I grabbed the little bottle, ripped the lid off and hurriedly swallowed the lonely, singular pill that remained. There had only been one left and I was prescribed to take two in the event of an attack. I hadn't had any use for them in a long time, never bothering to renew my subscription.
I used to have a rather extreme case of anxiety, resulting in panic attacks and nightmares on almost a regular basis. Slowly, I had gotten over my anxious fears, many pills and therapy sessions later. My nightmares, however, still haunted me, explaining the haunting one that I had experienced a few days ago.
My knees began to shake and I could no longer hold my body up as fear consumed me. The rational part of my brain had shut down and the anxiety bombarded me with worry. How could I do this on my own? How can I look after Lily and me? Is the world ever going to be the same? Will I ever see Jason again? My parents? Am I going to die...?
Silent sobs wracked my wrecked, lifeless body. I was there, crumpled on the cold bathroom floor, struggling with the simple task of breathing in and out, in and out. I tried to recall the breathing exercises that my therapist had given me years ago, to calm myself down. What was it? Two short breaths in and one long one out? Having no other options, I shakily drew in two short, sharp breaths, held them for a couple of seconds and the breathed out through my mouth. I repeated these steps until I was able to think and breathe more easily.
Once I was no longer fearing for my life due to suffocation, I could feel the exhaustion course through my bones. The stress from leaving my family, the state and having my first panic attack in years had taken its toll. I could also feel the effect of the pill working its way through my body, dulling my senses, and calming my nerves. It didn't help with my exhausted state however, as a side effect of the pill was tiredness. I stood no chance, I just about had enough strength to literally drag myself off the floor and into my bedroom, promptly collapsing on the bed and quickly falling unconscious, into a dreamless, or hopefully at the very least a nightmare-less sleep.
"Wake up, Hayley! WAKE UP!" was the first thing I heard, accompanied by two small hands pushing at my shoulder. I let out a loud groan at the disturbance and buried my face further into the soft pillow in an effort to shut it out.
"Not now Lily!" I let out, my voice muffled by the pillow.
"But I'm hungry!" she whined, "Starving!" This seemed to awaken my own stomach, as it let out a loud, ravenous growl. Unable to ignore the hunger, I slowly got up.
A quick glance of my surroundings reminded me that I wasn't at home, in my own bed but was instead almost completely alone, surrounded by wilderness. I moved quickly out of my room into the kitchen, busying myself to prevent myself from thinking about it too much. Thinking would lead to another break down, which could not happen again, especially not in front of Lily.
"I want pancakes!" Lily shouted excitedly, jumping up and down.
"I don't think we can make pancakes, I'm sorry Lil." I sighed at the pout that graced her features when she heard me. We didn't have a lot of food packed, mostly just ready made stuff - not the right ingredients to make pancakes with - much to her disappointment.
"I have your favourite cereal!" I say, pulling out a box of fruit loops and waggling it in front of her face to entice her. Finally earning a smile from her, I could feel a smile of my own creep onto my face, momentarily forgetting the dire circumstances.
It had been a month. We'd been here for one month, with no contact from anybody. I had tried calling Jason, but no luck; it seemed that all the phone lines were dead. The TV was the same; nothing played. We were beginning to get bored out of our minds, fed up of the same, old food and boring re-runs stored on the DVR. I found my hopes of my brother making it out here slowly dwindling, the isolation crushing any hope I had left.
We were beginning to run out of food so I had decided to try my luck at the closest store, around 15 miles away. I was hesitant on whether to go by myself or take Lily with me, neither option sounding particularly great. Eventually I decided that I would rather not risk bringing her with me, deciding it would be safer for her to stay here.
So now, here I was, alone in the truck which was loaded up with spare fuel, emergency cash and the pistol and hunting rifle Jason had packed for us: just in case. I had little intent to use them, hoping that I would never have to, but I didn't want to be potentially unarmed and helpless if a situation arose. I had to get back to Lily one way or another.
The woodland blurred together as I drove up the long track that led away from the lake house, my mind concentrating on the more important, upcoming task. My nerves heightened with the closer I got. I was extremely on edge as I pulled the truck into the small, deserted car park. I say car park, more like only enough space for 5 cars.
Before I leave the safety of the truck, I eye the handle of the pistol sticking out of the glove compartment. Before I can decide against it, and against my better judgement I quickly grabbed it and stuffed it into the waistband of my jeans. 'Just in case' I told myself.
I cautiously walked up to the store, using weight from my shoulder to heave open the heavy door. I heard the sound of the bell above the entrance jingling as I stepped in, the signal that a customer had arrived. It was the only thing I was able to register before a heavy weight tackled me to the floor...
