Who We Were | Book One

13. Everyone Is Dead

At the end of the aisle was a clearance shelf, filled with glassware and plates heavily labelled with peeling 50% off stickers. I turned back to the top of the aisle where Josh had been standing, except it was left as an empty space. I swallowed down the thick paste-like saliva which coated my mouth and picked up one of the plates with shaking hands.

It was satisfying to watch it smash. It felt good to break something.

The once perfect print crumbled into a thousand jigsaw pieces, never to be put back together. The crash echoed throughout the shop, answered by murmured groaning in the next aisle. I inhaled as I picked up another and dropped it to the floor beside the bakery counter at the back. What once probably held freshly baked cookies and bread, now encased unidentifiable lumps covered in a layer of fur.

Their teeth began to chatter, clicking against each other as if they were communicating in Morse code. Just as they began to appear in the aisle, a hand plunged a knife into the head of the Infected that trailed behind the others. Its eyes rolled as it dropped like a brick to the tiled floor. Josh's glance only hovered on the body for a second before the others began to turn towards him.

I picked up the last plate from the shelf and smashed it into the wall opposite trying to divert their attention. Two of them turned towards me as Josh grabbed the shoulder of a second and pushed his knife into its skull. I took a step backwards, stumbling over a box as the two Infected still staggered towards me. I looked to Josh who was struggling to prise free his knife from the Infected on the floor.

Their bones cracked as they moved and black liquid dripped from various wounds on their bodies, clearly failed attempts to kill them. I let out a gasp as my back hit a trolley, fearing for another Infected.

They showed no signs of stopping as they dragged their bodies towards me. I wrapped my fingers around the metal wire and swung the trolley forward. The two Infected had nowhere to go but backwards as I charged at them with it, pinning them against the glass counter of the bakery.

Josh had managed to free his knife and was pulling himself to his feet as I struggled to push against the flailing bodies. My eyes glanced to the one on the left where an overwhelming sense of familiarity washed over me.

The short blonde hair, the small lips, the black leather jacket, they were all still there. My gaze moved down where a large rip now penetrated the sleeve of the leather.

That was my jacket.

* * *

We were on a night out, just the two of us. She'd said we never spent enough time together alone, so she'd persuaded me to go with her.

Four Jägerbombs and six shots later we were waiting for a taxi to take us home.

She wouldn't stop moaning about the cold, huddling up to me with chattering teeth, jumping up and down in her heels.

She looked ridiculous but she knew how to guilt me; I was too motherly. She'd always sacrifice her health for the outfit.

After five minutes of whining, I'd handed over my black leather jacket, my favourite jacket. She'd politely refused at first but I knew the desperate look in her eyes, the pleading glint in her irises. I'd told her to give it back to me before she got out of the taxi, but we were both so drunk we forgot about it.

I didn't think anything of it at the time, I just thought I'd get it back the next time I saw her.

It wasn't supposed to be here.

* * *

"Jen," I whispered, my voice catching in my throat.

My gaze remained on her as Josh came up beside me. Even out the corner of my eye, I could see he was impressed at how I'd trapped them both.

He didn't hesitate as he leant over the trolley and plunged his knife into the male on the right. It slumped over the wire like a rag doll as he pulled it free.

"Don't," I rasped as he went to lift the knife again. "Please," I begged.

Confusion wrapped his face as he looked to me, lowering his arm.

"What is it?" He asked, concerned.

I inhaled as I took in her blonde hair which was now coated in a mixture of blood and dirt. Her eyes, once blue, were now devoid of all colour, a mere pinprick now sitting in the centre of her whites.

"Let me do it," I whispered.

He paused for a brief second before nodding. If he wanted to say anything, he held it in.

Instead, he stepped forward, taking the weight of Jennifer against the trolley. She struggled, thrashing at the cage and reaching her grip towards us.

Josh lowered his body, pushing his shoulder and holding all his weight against it.

"Any time now would be good," he muttered, his voice strained. Jen thrashed at the metal which contained her, her fingertips almost brushing Josh as he pushed harder.

Readjusting my knife, I blinked through the tears that clouded my eyes. I had no words to say to her, none that she'd be able to hear anymore.

It wasn't her. It was something else. Something that had kept me locked in my flat, driven my parents to suicide and ruined the future I had planned after university.

That something which was inside her took everything from me and it was all that I needed to lift the knife higher, bringing it down to meet her skull.

I saw her eyes roll, flickering a glint of blue as her body went limp and I dropped the knife.

My own body crumpled to the ground, everything suddenly felt numb; my body, my mind, everything. Josh leant down beside me, tugging at my arms as he tried to get me to my feet.

"No," I croaked, shaking my head and pulling down the fabric that covered my mouth.

"Come on," he continued. "We should get out of here."

"No!" I argued louder, pushing him off. "I'm not going anywhere! Not anymore."

"What about Cornwall?"

"Fuck Cornwall!" I yelled. "It doesn't matter anymore!"

"We've come this far-"

"It's over, Josh!" I screamed. "I've lost everyone now... I can't do this anymore."

The trolley rattled as I leant my head back against the wire.

"Everyone is dead because of this fucking Infection and I'm still alive." My breaths were heavy as I let the emotions flood my body. The two rings felt like a weight against my chest, pulling my neck down. "If I ever find the person that started this, I'll kill them."

He blinked slowly as he crouched down in front of me, keeping his distance as he lowered the black fabric which covered his mouth. His breaths were slow, calming almost. I could see he wanted to reach out, his fingers twitched as he rested them against his legs.

"Just because you've lost everyone, it doesn't mean you're alone."

The words caught me off guard and my breathing hitched as I looked back to him. His eyes whispered hope and at that moment, I believed him.

-----------------------------------------

This story, 'Who We Were', is exclusive to Watt pad. If you are reading on any other site such as NovelHD it has been stolen.