Green Hope

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

When I woke up, I really wish I hadn't. My entire body was in pain. I couldn't stop shivering and I bit my tongue from chattering so much that it was a bloody mess. My stiff muscles screamed in pain when I sat up, and my vision went blurry.

I hadn't had water in two days and it was taking effect on my body twice as bad as I expected. Plus, to top off my wonderful day, I was starving. You know, I will never use that loosely ever again. I mean, yeah, I've been hungry before. Who hasn't? I've never really been starving. I hadn't had anything to eat in almost two weeks. I didn't know what was edible, and the food I did have fell off of a cliff into the icy Delaware River.

After packing up what I had, which wasn't much, I started walking. I had no sense of direction, so I was mildly shocked when I stumbled across the edge of the forest I was in.

Now, I've seen plenty of movies and read plenty of books. So, don't call me that one blonde chick who always dies. I'm not even blonde! Besides, I needed food and water, and there's got to be some.

Anyway, I actually found myself at the edge of a cornfield, most of the crops being gone. Across the cornfield was a neighborhood. Perfect, I thought to myself as I started walking through the field.

I looked around me, but I didn't see any movement. There wasn't even any wind. A shiver crawled up my spine, and I quickened my pace a little. It was so quite that I could hear my heartbeat. I stopped at the edge of the cornfield and looked behind me to make sure I was still alone before venturing into the neighborhood.

The gravel beneath my shoes made me feel like an alien. I haven't been on an actual road in months. The sound of my feet hitting pavement was deafening in the silence. I felt like the last human on earth.

I checked every house as I walked. The first three were locked, but the fourth was open. Well, the door had been busted open, if that counts. Though, it didn't really matter because it had been completely cleared out. Even the furniture was gone.

I tried the fifth one. The front door was locked, but there was a sledge hammer on the side of the house. So, I was able to smash a window in and get it that way. The room I came into was a bathroom.

There was blood everywhere. The sink, which I think had been white at one point, was stained a rusty red, and the mirror, or what was left of it, was crusted with dried blood. The toilet was gone. All that was left was the hole in the floor and the faded outline of it. The shower was the worst. There was dried blood splashed across the tile wall. The drain was rusted to nothing, and there were bones.

It wan't an entire skeleton. No, it was a leg and foot. There was also a bunch of smaller bones in a pile next to it. I think it was a hand or another foot. I didn't really have time to process any of this other than the fact that something completely and utterly horrible happened in that bathroom. I ended up making a b-line for the door as I tried not to puke. Though, now that I think about it, I wouldn't really be able to puke anything up because I hadn't eaten in two weeks.

Anyway, so I flung the door open and found myself in a bedroom. There was no furniture besides a bedframe and a chair missing a leg. I kicked the bathroom door shut and and took a much needed breath.

I looked around, but there wasn't anything to use. I mean, I guess I could use the chair, but I didn't want to lug that around. I didn't even have the strength to take that with me. The room I walked into after leaving the bedroom was what I assumed use to be the living room. It was empty. There were spots on the walls from where picture frames use to be, and indents from where the furniture was at some point.

The smell really caught me off guard. It smelled like a mix of rotting food and someone who hadn't washed in days. I scrunched up my nose and refrained from gagging. I plugged my nose and tried to ignore the taste in the back of my throat as I walked down the hallway to my left. A little ways down there was an archway that led to the kitchen. The smell was stronger there.

Well, I found were all the furniture went. In the corner, there were about three beds stacked together to create one giant bed, and the couch was against the counter. There was a coffee table, a dining room table, and three chairs in a pile against the wall across from the archway. There weren't any curtains and the sunlight streamed in so you could see all the little dust particles floating in the air.

A growl came from next to the couch. I froze, and I could feel all the blood drain from my face in a wave. I couldn't breath, or even blink as I stared at the space between the couch and the sink. It was covered in shadows, so I couldn't see anything.

I wanted to run, to scream for help. Of course, the shock didn't help any, nor did the fact that I was running on pretty much just adrenaline. Another sound came from the same place, only this time, it sounded closer to a moan than a growl. I could hear some shuffling, and then something-someone-came out from the shadows.

I stumbled back and fought the urge to scream. It was a man. He looked horrible. His eyes were red, and I mean it looked like he had red stones for eyes. His skin was a milky white and had big cracks running all the way up his chest, arms, and neck. They ended just past his jaw and there was a huge hole in his cheek. Pieces of his forehead were missing, leaving those gray patches underneath.

I stumbled back and hit the wall. He huffed at me and took a step forward into the sunlight streaming in from the window. With a screech, he jumped back and I could see steam off his arm. I swallowed, my tongue feeling like sand paper. I slowly backed away, out into the hallway, and before I second guessed myself, I ran like hell.

I ran the opposite way than I planned, which led me to the front door. I unlocked in as fast as I could and flung myself out into the safety of the sun. With a sigh of relief, I dropped down onto the sidewalk and closed my eyes for a moment, breathing in the fresh air. I couldn't smell the dirty, decaying smell anymore. So, I guess that was good, but I still had no food or water. In fact, I felt worse than before. My head was pounding and I felt like my legs would collapse if I tried to stand up again.

I tried to swallow, but my throat was so bone dry it felt more like I was swallowing cinamon, and yes, I have tried that before. And, yes, I failed. Though, I do amit the video was compeletly and udderly halarious.

The sound of a car startled me. I jumped up, and regretted it immediately. Dizziness engulfed me and I fell right back down onto the cold, hard pavement. My head smacked against the concrete and black roses bloomed in my vision. I wanted to fight it, but I didn't have much of a chance, and soon enough, all I saw was darkness.

Author's Note:

Alright, so I know it's short, but I really wanted to get this uploaded. Plus, if I didn't end it here, I wouldn't know where else to end it. Well, I hope you liked the second chapter, I know I liked writing it. Um... Well, just tell me what you think, and I'd really appreciate it if you voted and fanned! So, have a good night(or day)!

-M.B