ZOMB-POCALYPSE

Chapter Two

My phone is buzzing when I wake up. It's been making all sorts of noises for the last 20 minutes, each ring pulling me further and further from the dream I am desperate to hold onto. I groggily reach for it with a groan of annoyance.

"911!!!"

The newest text message flashes before my eyes, and I touch the screen to reveal a series of messages and missed calls from my best friend Abby. The phone begins to ring in my hand as though she has a sixth sense.

"Someone better be dead!" I snap into the phone. "You know I was up late."

I'm not sure what kind of response I'm expecting, but I definitely don't expect to hear the ragged sob of relief that bursts through the phone. "Thank God you're alive!" Abby manages to get out before she starts bawling.

That cuts my tirade short. "What's wrong?" My annoyance instantly evaporates. All sorts of scenarios are playing through my head.

"You haven't looked outside yet, or watched the news?" she asks after a minute of snuffling as she struggles to get her crying under control.

"I just woke up." I defend myself, not wanting her to make a big deal about all the missed calls and texts.

I can hear her taking a deep breath on the other end of the phone. "Dead people are coming back to life, it's all over the news. They're everywhere outside," she pauses for a breath before expelling it in a rush, "Oh God, are your doors locked?"

I sit bolt upright in bed. "That isn't funny." She knows I hate zombie stuff, and she's obviously trying to scare me. My toe gets caught in a stray thread on the comforter, and I wiggle it free as I continue to listen to Abby's heavy breathing on the other end of the phone.

"I know how this sounds Jane, please though, you have to believe me. I swear on everything that is holy—the dead are walking the earth." She sounds close to tears again, and I begin to feel the first prickle of apprehension, though I quickly stomp it out. I'm being ridiculous.

"Alright," I say, climbing out of the bed. "I'll bite, just this once. I'm going to look outside, but if there aren't any zombies out there, I'm never talking to you again!" I rise from the bed with an exaggerated huff.

"No!" Her voice yelps through the phone before she hastily lowers it to a whisper. I don't know why she is saying these things to me, but I begin to freak out a bit. Something isn't right, it isn't like Abby to mess with me, and she's usually such a terrible actress.

"Turn the lights off first, and don't open the blinds, just look out quick and then, get away from the window." Adrenaline spikes through my body in response to her words, but I try to shake it off.

I tell myself she is just being a goof. My light is already off, so I creep out of bed and head for the window.

"Are you still there?" Her voice crackles in over the line, making me jump.

"Yeah, hold on," I mutter as I reach my finger out and push the blinds apart to take a quick look.

My breath escapes my body in a whoosh of shock. For a full minute I can't even comprehend what I'm seeing. Cars and garbage are littering the once pristinely manicured cul-de-sac. There's even a car on fire a few houses down. Everywhere, illuminated by the harsh, noon day sun, there are bloodied bodies staggering around with stilted, jerky steps.

My throat closes up with fear. I actually feel my bowels quiver, wanting to let loose their contents.

"Abby." It's the only word I can squeak out around my full blown panic.

I should look away from the window, but I don't. I see a man down on the ground, dragging the top half of his body around with his arms. His entire bottom half is a ragged, bloody stump trailing what looks to be stringy bits of his intestines. As if he can sense me, his head snaps around, and he stares right at my house. I drop to the floor and begin to hyperventilate.