I didn't understand how everyone was gone already.
As I began to step off the carpet of A-12 and onto the blue tiled floor, I thought about how many people would be already bitten, infected, isolated. Alone just like me, in a matter of three whole hours.
My backpack was slung over my shoulder, the scissors fiddled between my fingers, and my green eyes scanned the airport, searching for the newest deadly signs of what was to come in this world.
The small lump on my forehead became sore to the touch as I felt around on the sharp pain.
I limped uncomfortably in my Vans sneakers. My blonde hair was loosely put down; and my clothes desperately needed to be changed into something looser; something more flexible.
As soon as I reached the first restaurant where the first...thing...came out of, I began to be more cautious.
What if there were more, scattered about the entire airport? What if I were to turn the corner, and become swallowed in a heard of them?
My heart pounded. But my muscles and brain slowed it. I was ready for this; I always have been.
I took a few deep breaths, and slowly peered around the corner. There were very few of them flinching and standing around.
One of them-a male-must have heard something to my left. Each of them began growling and moaning. They chained together, walking, and then jogging out of their section, which was A-9.
Their clothes were loosely draped over them; with tears and blood stains and just random dirt spots. Although most of them looked like normal people, recently turned and barely beaten.
My reaction was to snake behind the wall that connected between A-12 and the nearest restaurant; Froyo-World.
As my body flourished into chills and sweats, I waited for all of the things to pass. I already hated calling them things. Naming the dead people Walkers (as in The Walking Dead) would be too odd; too convenient.
There were Romers, Geeks, Biters, Deadies, and plain old Zombies. But all of those seemed... Different. They moved so floppy, and yet their joints were so stiff.
I settled on calling them Stiffs. Or a Stiff. It fitted better.
The first couple of Stiffs entered A-10, and more of them became visible on the other side. They made their way out of the hallway, and almost all of them passed, except for two or three, who weren't bothered by the noise.
Twitches came through me. My fingers fumbled with the scissors. My eyes blurred with tears; and my whole body began to shake. I felt like I was having a seizure, except it hurt a whole lot more.
"Mother!" I croaked, but the cry only came out as a small gasp. "Mother!" My free hand held to the wall while I pointed the scissor blades toward the sight before me.
It was her.
She wore the same clothing; her gray short sleeve t-shirt, her black jeans and red Uggs. Her black headband still held up her bangs, just like how it did about five hours ago; leaving me from the plane.
But her jeans had spots of red on it, her t-shirt had a rip under her left breast, and she only wore one of those red Ugg boots. Her hair was ratted and messy, her headband also covered in red; which I suspected was someone else's blood.
And her face; it was sunken. Her eyes; they no longer glowed a beautiful sea green; but a neon yellow with blue spots.
It wasn't my mother anymore. But I couldn't stop calling for her. "Mother! Moth-"
A cold hand muffled my words away. It's a Stiff, I figured, but if it was I would have given up fighting it, and it would have bitten me already.
I closed and re-opened my eyes. The Stiffs came closer, including my mother. There was no way in hell I'd let this stranger let me get infected by my own mother.
The person had on hand on my mouth and the other trying to pry the scissors from my hand. The blade began digging into the side of my first finger. I gave up as soon as I felt the warm liquid spill onto the rest of my hand.
Once the stranger had the weapon, I could hear a clank sound. They had thrown the pair far away.
Now my right hand was useless, because of the stinging pain inside and out. I flung my left fist to their head, and I could feel a full and short set of hair. It was a boy; I could tell by the length and the shape.
"Quit fidgeting!" He had a familiar deep and raspy tone in his voice. "I'm just trying to help!" The boy loudly whispered, although there was no use. The Stiffs were already about twenty feet away.
I tugged on part of his hair, until he let go of my mouth. I let out a small gasp for breath. I didn't speak, I just ran. The Stiffs became closer, so my only option was to go behind the counter of Froyo-World.
I pushed the gate open, sprinting around cool white tables and chairs. The boy followed behind me, although I wish he wouldn't. Company would help, I'd thought. But not when they tried to touch me, let alone hurt me.
I twisted the knob on the back door, and immediately thought of my safety from the back room of the shop to the boy following behind me.
He had thrown the first pair of scissors away. But I remembered the extra pair in my belt. I whipped them out, ready to thrash at anything that came at me.
My eyes scanned the room, to see nothing but half-cut fruit and open cartons of frozen yogurt. No Stiffs, no people.
The door closed behind me, and I turned around to look at my savior/snitch.
I could not believe my eyes.
Here he was; my dream boy, my idol. Standing right in front of me, wide eyes and scared. He had a few bloody scratches on his cheeks, and his hair was messed up from me pulling on it.
He looked so much like his character. Mature but young; strong but weak; brave but terrified. I wondered if I looked the same.
"You, you're-" I raised my hand, pointing a finger at him.
"I know! Okay, I know. Just help me move this table." He began to pull the silver cutting table to the locked door. I pushed it with him, until it hit the wall.
I was with him. Chandler Riggs saved my life.
"Listen, it's not Goddamn Comic-Con or The Walking Dead anymore. So don't make such a big-"
"It's not like that, I know." I told him. My favorite person in the world was standing strong right with me. But we were standing in the wrong world, at the wrong time.
I knew there was no time for fan-girling or autographs. It hadn't even crossed my mind that a celebrity was with me and that I could go brag. I'm not that type of person to freak out.
I just loved Chandler differently, thats all. "What are you doing here, though? How did you find me?" I asked him. My voice cracked. I still remembered my Stiffed mother outside the shop.
"My flight just landed from Sacramento to Georgia. My parents, my brother, they..." He held one hand up to his head the other on the side of another table.
"I understand. My mom she's... She's right outside." My voice cracked again. Chandler looked at me with his bright blue eyes. I've always loved his eyes.
"It all happened so fast... The bombings and the fires and the infection..." He explained. "Never thought it could really be this bad."
Chandler played in a fricking Zombie Apocalypse TV show. How could he not have figured how bad it could he in real life?
I nodded in response. I kept nodding until they began banging on the door. "Do you have another weapon?" He asked me. I thought about rolling my eyes, but there was no time for sarcasm.
"Yeah, here." I passed him one of the extra pair of scissors from my bag. "Thanks. Sorry about your hand," he told me, meeting me at my side, still staring at the door.
I had forgot about the nasty cut in between my thumb and forefinger. The other pair of scissors that I held in my left hand felt sharper than the other. Thank God I was ambidextrous.
"It's fine." I yelled to him over the moans from the Stiffs.
"A door! Quick, c'mon." Said Chandler. I followed him all the way to the back and into a door that read 'Authorized Personnel Only.'
The room was dark, only lit by a red Exit sign and the light from the hallway.
"Janitors closet. It'll lead to the main hallway. I saw the door from outside." He exclaimed.
He gripped the handle on the next door, and pushed it open to reveal a cafeteria full of Stiffs.
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YAY guys Chandler is here:););)
Can you guys comment to tell me if i should include anything else in this?
thanks, I'd appreciate it. :)
LOVE YOU GUYS ❤
LOVE YOU CHANDLER ❤