Decimation (Ianthony Apocalypse AU)

day two

zombies seen: about a hunderd
zombies killed: 0
near-death experiences: 1
human deaths witnessed: 0   

We took shelter in the biggest empty house we could find. I assumed a large family must have lived there, but unfortunately, they took just about everything. The cupboards were clean empty, along with the dressers and refrigerator. They did have four bedrooms, however, and each one had at least one bed.

Luckily, Anthony and I got our own room. Even though I did think I liked these people, I'd seen enough TV. They could turn on us any second. Anthony was all I had.

After we settled in, we all decided to "check shit out," as Jonah referred to it. He suggested we split up, some of us checking houses and some of us going into town. As much as I wanted to be alone with Anthony, judging by how we handled the last zombie hoard, I decided it'd be best to get some proper training before trying to take them on ourselves again.

I learned everyone's names right away. There was Jonah, who I think I liked the best so far. Ken, the driver; his wife Martha. The man of the Silent Couple finally spoke: his name was Michael and his wife was Suzanne. The mom of the family was Gwen, the dad was Joel, the older son was Dean and the younger was Tyler. The teenage girl was Elizabeth (I hate that, call me Lizzy) and her father was Henry.

Gwen stayed back with Dean and Tyler. Michael and Suzanne refused to go, also. Everyone else prepared for an afternoon of exploration. Even Lizzy, despite her father's many protests.

"We don't have many weapons," Ken was saying, leading the group. "I have a few guns and I know we have a few knives, too. I don't think we'll get into any trouble, though. Driving by, this town was dry as a bone."

I walked close to Anthony in the middle of the road. Ken was right: it looked like a wasteland. I had no idea where we were, but my guess was word got out and the whole city evacuated before things got bad. If only Sacramento had been so lucky.

"We'll go into town first, then hit some houses on the way back. There's gotta be something in some of these stores," Ken continued. He was holding his wife's hand. I wondered how long they'd been married. All these people had stories, had lives, and I was itching to learn all of them.

The part of town we explored was relatively small. There was one large Whole Foods, a few gas stations, and some restaurants. We could tell upon arrival that it was already pretty cleaned out, but decided to take a closer look, anyway. We needed to stock up on supplies as early as possible.

"I think we should split up," Henry suggested. "Go in groups. We can all meet back here in an hour."

"Alright, that works," Ken agreed; I wasn't so sure. We hadn't seen a zombie yet, but one thing I'd learned was that this new world was completely unpredictable. "I'd say half of us go for the grocery store, the other half can take everything else."

"I'll take the guys. We'll start off in the BP over there."

I realized by "the guys," Jonah was referring to Anthony and I. Which I was relieved about; I was still skeptical about the rest of the group, and I definitely didn't wanna be separated from Anthony.

"I'll go with them," Lizzy jumped in. She turned to her father, who was opening his mouth to protest. "I'll be fine, Dad. I promise."

He sighed, nodding. I couldn't imagine being in his shoes: his daughter was in the middle of her wanting-to-be-independent stage in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. All he wanted to do was protect her, and all she wanted was to get away from him.