Dead Walkers

The Outbreak

I can hardly remember the last time I was home on my couch, watching TV with my little sister and my parents. It feels like a dream when I think about it now. The outbreak happened in 2019, almost 4 winters ago by now. Things are absolute hell, and not a day goes by that I don't think about life before. I even miss high school, which is saying a lot. If only I could go back to history class with Mrs. Williams.

"Students and staff! Students and staff!" It was Principal Stanton on the intercom. "The Burneti labs have just released a toxic liquid which makes­-!" The intercom shuts off mid sentence and then we hear a loud scream down the hall. Mrs. Williams drops everything and goes to lock the door.

"Stay calm kids. We will all be fine. We just have to.." She was cut off by another scream. Mike, my study partner in bio, jumped up and unlocked the door. Mrs. Williams tried to grab him, but those 4 years in track and field were just enough to get away. The class followed him and it felt like almost at the same time, the whole class gasped. Andy Turnbald, my best friend since 6th grade, grabbed me and ran me out of the classroom. He didn't stop until we got to my rusted blue locker.

"Andy, what happened? What did you see?"

"I can't explain that right now, Cass. Grab anything you want from you locker. Leave the rest behind. We are going to your house after you are done. I'll be right over there at my locker. Ignore screams and don't leave my sight. Got it?" I nod and get right to it, pulling out textbooks and notes desperately trying to find my photos and my only beanie. I put them in my beaten up bag and go right to Andy at his locker, hearing another scream behind me, possibly a female.

"Was that Mrs. Williams?" I asked Andy.

"I don't know. Are you done?"

"Yeah." I responded.

"Alright, let's go." Andy leads me down the hall and we head to the back of the school, running away from everyone and all the screams. I turn my head over my shoulder to see behind me for a moment when I run straight into what seems like a wall. Startled, I look up to see that it was Colten Tucker, everyone's favorite running back on our star football team. Behind him were Brandy Smith the computer whiz and straight A student, and Kelly Zachmann the girl that drew the big mural in the back of school by the locker rooms.

"Watch where you're going, lady." Colten said to me. He helps me up before pushing me behind him.

"What do you want, Tucker? Can't you see our world on fire?" Andy asks him, raising his voice.

Colten looks between us. "I want to stick together, the five of us. I highly doubt there are many of our classmates left and if there are, they'll be dead in minutes. We need to contain these dead walkers."

Kelly chimes in, "If we lock the doors to the parking lot as well as the front ones, the other doors should be locked since it is around noon and they won't unlock until school would get out."

Andy pauses for a second and then says "Okay, but we have to hurry." The five of us rush out the door. Colten and Andy hold the doors just in case and us girls try to find something to hold the doors. The parking lot is full of cars and behind that you can see walkers slowly coming to us and smoke coming from our town theatre. I'm overwhelmed with fear and sickness all at the same time. I think I'm going to throw up when Kelly pulls out some keys to an old busted up army jeep.

"I have an idea." Kelly says as she goes to her jeep.

I yell For Colten and Andy, "Watch out!!!" They move really quickly and Kelly runs her car up against the back doors. The sound echoed for at least a mile or two.

"That should keep them." She says as she hops out of the car.

"Okay, how are we going to block the front doors?" Andy asks.