Alex stared at his ceiling fan as it spun around and around and around. As he watched the long brown blades spin, his mind started reminding him of the last year and the tragedies that had occurred.
Exactly one year ago that day, a zombie was found walking the streets of New York City. Nobody knows where it came from or how it got there, but all that's known is that it instantly started attacking the civilians on the streets.
This zombie was a bit different from what society had pictured as zombies. Instead of just eating all the flesh on its victims, it simply reached into its prey's head, pulled out its brain, and ate it as if it was some sort of fruit! It then left the rest of the body to rot. It didn't become another zombie, it just sat there.
Over 100 people lost their lives in the first 30 minutes! Around that time, zombie sightings had been seen all over the country! One was seen in Chicago, a few were in St. Louis, and about 10 were in Washington, D.C.! Within 24 hours, over 100 zombies AT LEAST could be found in every major city in America! The government was trying to destroy them, but more and more seemed to be appearing by the minute! The strangest thing is that, to this day, nobody knows where the zombies were coming from; all that's known is that they were multiplying like mad!
After about a week, there were reported zombie sightings in London, Paris, Vatican City, Beijing, Tokyo, and Sydney! And after a month from the first sighting, zombies could be found all over the world! Every city in every country in every continent had an average human-to-zombie ratio of 1-to-20!!
Everyone in society was trying their best to defend themselves against the undead nightmares, but it was no use; they may be zombies, but they're not totally brainless. They found ways to bust through doors. They found ways to climb things. Heck, some even found ways to drive!! Somehow or another, they found ways into even the most protected fortresses!
Fortunately, though, they had the same weaknesses as human beings. A bullet to the head, a chainsaw to the neck, and even a knife to the stomach would be enough to kill one of the zombies. However, doing those things is easier said than done. Not everyone had enough gun ammo, supplies, or even opportunity to accomplish that.
After 6 months, places such as Los Angeles, Orlando, Dublin, and Argentina were completely wiped out. The remaining cities had a stunning human-to-zombie ratio of 1 to 1,000!!! It was terrible seeing all these innocent people lose their lives to brain-hungry corpses!
Finally, exactly one year later, the world had been emptied. Australia had become a dead zone (the technical term for an area containing only zombies), as well as Hawaii, England, Canada, Russia, and even the entire African continent!! It appeared the only people remaining are those in small towns.
Now, Alex Johnsen was staring at his ceiling fan in his modern suburban home in California. He was one of the very few survivors remaining in town. In fact, the only other people were his brother, Freddy, and his best friend, Josie.
Alex himself was a rather handsome-looking teenage man. Yet despite this, at school he was mostly considered a geek by everyone and was always made fun of. Fortunately, there was one person in the school kind enough to not torture him, and that was Jocelyn Deacon.
She had just moved at the beginning of junior year from a rural city near central Illinois. She's a very beautiful young girl and immediately got all the guys' attentions. Many asked her out, but she denied all of them, stating she wants a guy who wants her for more than her looks.
Pretty soon, she saw Alex getting picked on by a group of guys. After walking over and telling them to leave him alone, they left. After that, Alex and Josie became really close friends. The best part was nobody was bothering Alex anymore since Josie was always around! The two really are glad they always had each other's backs.
Alex also has a younger brother named Fredrick, but he just goes by Freddy. He's 2 years younger than Alex and Josie, and before the zombies, he was considered the most annoying and immature person ever met. Once the zombies hit, though, he changed. Perhaps it had something to do with losing everyone, but Freddy became more serious about situations and how to treat his brother, the only family he has left.
Neither of the three will ever forget the day every one of their lives changed forever. It was a week after Alex and Josie's junior year ended. The three were all in Freddy's friend Dalton's basement playing a tag-team game of Black Ops II. Then, out of nowhere, they all heard Dalton's mom shriek!! Without hesitation, Dalton jumped off the couch and ran upstairs to see what was wrong with his mother. The others sat in place with worried expressions. Dalton's mom wasn't one to be afraid of things, so for her to scream meant it was something serious.
Just then, the worst thing that ever happened to Freddy happened; a loud crunching sound, as well as Dalton's screams, could be heard echoing through the basement!! Then, quickly after, thumping sounds were heard from the stairs! By the time they all looked back, they had already seen what it was; Dalton with a blank look in his eye, a giant hole in his head, and no life in his body.
Instantly, Freddy started screaming bloody murder! Tears then started to roll down his cheek. Before Alex and Josie could react, they heard creaking from above them. The two stared at each other with worry. Just then, the ceiling above the couch next to them collapsed! They saw some sort of figure standing on the couch. It appeared to be human, but somehow it looked....not right. Then, it stepped forward into the light, and the guys saw what it was; a pale-skinned, toothless, suit-wearing zombie!!
Alex quickly told them all to run, which they gladly agreed to do! They ran up the stairs as fast as their legs would let them. At the top of the stairs was the kitchen, where, without stopping, they saw Dalton's mom sprawled across the floor in a pool of blood with half her head ripped off. Josie looked like she was about to vomit her entire internal organs!
The three proceeded to run out the back door and into Alex's white pickup truck. While he fumbled around for the key, Josie and Freddy saw a whole hoard of zombies running towards the truck!
After what seemed like forever, Alex finally found the key and started the vehicle up. He instantly floored it and headed for the road, hitting many zombies on the way. Traveling over 80 miles per hour on the city streets, he managed to get them all back to his house in only a few minutes. After sprinting into the house and locking the doors and windows, the trio finally plopped down on the couch, horrified at what they had just seen.
Alex suggested they turn on the news and see if that could tell them what was going on. While reaching down to grab the remote, he felt something warm and soft and sticky. That's when Josie turned on the lights. Alex then saw what he was touching was his parents' corpses lying on the floor!! The three instantly shrieked in fear and stood up on the couch. For the first time since Josie had stood up for him at school, Alex started bawling, as well as Freddy. Josie was shedding some tears as well, as Mr. and Mrs. Johnsen were like second parents to her.
Just then, a clinking sound was heard in the bathroom. The teens became silent and stood very still. Then, without warning, the bathroom door burst open and a zombie started running out and after them!! Freddy and Josie started screaming, but Alex simply stared at the zombie with a furious look in his eye. He then ran towards the zombie with a full sprint! Josie and Freddy shouted at him to stop, but he wouldn't listen. Then, Alex did the unthinkable; he tackled the zombie and started punching its face repeatedly! Blood from the zombie's face started spewing everywhere all over Alex and the floor and walls.
Finally, after a good minute or so, he stopped. The zombie's face was now a gooey bloody pulp and it showed no signs of life. Alex then turned over to the couch, where his brother and friend were staring with shock. He then proceeded to pick the body up, walk to the door, and throw the zombie onto the lawn. Then he told the guys he was going to take a shower, as if he didn't just beat a living corpse to death!
Since then, Alex has been determined to protect himself and his companions from these undead creatures. Alex hasn't left the house at all since that day, and neither has Freddy. Josie, however, leaves once a week to get supplies like food and ammo. She also checks on how things are doing and if there's any news on a cure or safe house or something. Unfortunately, it's the same news every time: No cure yet and the government is still not letting civilians into Puerto Rico, where all the world leaders are supposedly hiding with full protection.
It's been the same ritual for a great time now. Now, as Alex lays on the floor thinking, he slowly shakes his head.
'Man...' he thought to himself. 'Time really flies; I can't believe it's been a whole year already! I also can't believe we're the last ones here.... It gets kinda lonely....'
Just then, he heard footsteps coming into the room. He didn't need to look who it was; only one person was in the house with him.
"Hey, Freddy," he said without taking his eyes off the fan.
"Hey, Alex," Freddy responded. He paused for a few seconds before asking, "Are you daydreaming again?" Alex paused and slowly nodded his head.
"Hey, it's ok, bro!" Freddy continued. "It's not THAT bad! Everything's practically free, there are no rules, and we can finally put our fighting skills to use!" Alex sat up and looked at his brother.
"I know," he responded, "but don't you ever find it all...boring? It's been like this for a year now!" Freddy simply shrugged.
"Maybe we'll get used to it eventually," he replied. Alex just sighed.
"Yeah, maybe..." he muttered.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the front door. The boys froze and turned towards it.
"Get the gun," Alex whispered, and Freddy quickly did and gave it to him. Since the zombies would do anything to get brains, you can't be too careful. Holding a 12 gauge shotgun, Alex slowly crept up to the front door.
"What's the password?" he called out. After a second, a familiar voice replied, "Zombies suck worse than cheap vacuums!" After hearing that, Alex slowly opened the door, revealing Josie standing on the front porch. Alex put down the gun and signaled her to come in.
Once Josie was inside the house, Alex quickly bolted the door back up.
"You're back early," Freddy pointed out. Josie then got an embarrassed look on her face.
"Yeah, about that..." she murmured.
"What happened?!" Alex asked with a worried expression.
Josie simply turned to him and responded, "While I was spying on a group of zombies near town hall, I accidently knocked over a trash can and they heard me! Then they started running after me and I panicked! So I ran back here, but I think they may have seen me head inside!"
"Josie!!!" Alex shouted. "The last thing we need is for them to find us!"
"I'm sorry!!" she shouted. "I'm only human!!"
"So now what are we gunna do?!" Freddy asked. "We can't take a whole hoard of zombies by ourselves!"
"And I refuse to let them catch us!" Alex continued. "We made it our goal for them to not get everyone in town, and if they get us, then they will have done just that! After all, we're all that's left..."
BOOOOM!!! A giant explosion was heard and the entire house shook! When it stopped, the teens stood very still and alert.
"What the heck was that?!" Josie asked. Alex turned towards the front window and saw a giant cloud of ash emerging behind the house across the street!
"Did a zombie do that?!" Freddy asked with a worried expression. Alex stared at the ash and slowly shook his head.
"They wouldn't attack THAT house if it was them," he pointed out.
"Then what did that?" asked Josie. Alex just shrugged his shoulders.
"Maybe we should check it out," he suggested.
"Are you kidding?!" Freddy gasped. "Josie said a whole hoard of zombies was out there!!"
"Then we'll bring guns," Alex responded. "Think about it. What if we're not the only ones left in town? What if there's someone else here?"
"That explosion probably killed whoever's left," Josie pointed out.
"We could still check it out," Alex told her. After some silence, Freddy finally nodded his head and grabbed a pistol.
"Let's go," he said. Josie then just groaned and grabbed a machete.
"If the zombies get us, I'm gunna kill you guys," she muttered to herself. The boys just chuckled and then headed out the door.