The Living Dead

Kevin awoke with a start the next morning to sunshine flooding into her eyes and someone shaking her awake gently.

“Kevin, Kevin, it’s time for you to leave now, your friend’s here,” a woman’s voice said.

Kevin opened her eyes and saw a quaint little woman with graying hair and light brown eyes dressed in a nurse’s uniform. Kevin looked to left and saw she had washed and folded her clothes, but her white blouse still had a bloody stain on it.

“I gave you another shirt so you wouldn’t have to wear that one home,” she said, helping Kevin to her feet. “Put your clothes on and I’ll be right back with your release papers,” she said and left the room swiftly, closing the door behind her.

Kevin grabbed the clothes and went to the bathroom to change, stepping over the broken glass from the vase. Obviously, no one had noticed it. She looked over to the closet in the corner and found a broom and dust pan. Quickly, Kevin cleaned up the glass and changed into her jeans and the neon green t-shirt the nurse had given her. Not long after she changed, the nurse knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Kevin called.

The nurse came in with a clipboard and pen. Kevin noticed her name tag for the first time: Mrs. Blakely.

“Here you go, Miss. If you’ll sign here and here, you’ll be free to go,” she said, pointing to where she was to sign.

“Thank you Mrs. Blakely. You’ve been very kind. I’m very grateful,” Kevin replied politely, watching the smile grow on her thin lips.

“You’re very welcome, Miss Kevin.” With that she took the clipboard and pen and walked out the door to the office, inviting Pete in to help her.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Tom asked, giving her a warm hug.

“Fine. Thanks for the necklace. It’s lovely.”

“I thought you’d like it,” he stated grinning. “Let’s get you to the car.”

Kevin took Tom's offered arm and walked with him out the automatic doors of the hospital and to his mom’s white BMW. The tan leather seats squeaked as they sat down in them.

Soon, they were pulling into her parent’s driveway and their ritzy two story brick house. Chicago really isn’t that bad as far as the houses go.

Tom walked Kevin up to the door and kissed her cheek before turning to leave.

“Call me later. Maybe we can go do something if you feel up to it.”

“Sure,” Kevin said, opening the light colored wooden door and disappearing inside. “Kevin!” Rang the voice of Kevin’s annoying little twin brothers. She turned and saw two little blonde boys in red and black striped shirts and black jeans. As soon as “hi” was out of her mouth, they hurled her dog, Hemmingway’s ball at her head.

Kevin counted to three in her head, trying to calm herself down before she decapitated their heads, but, it didn’t work. She ran up the stairs and down the hallway after them, but was cut short when they slammed their door in her face. Kevin heard giggling form the other side of the door. That really made her blow her top.

“You just wait, when you come crawling out of there, I’ll beat your little hea--” Kevin was cut off by her father pushing her away from the door downstairs and to the den. He had a disappointed look on his face.

“I don’t want to hear you talk to your brothers like that, young lady!” he exclaimed, shaking a bony finger in her face.

“Ugh! That’s so not fair. They just hurled Hemmingway’s ball at my head,” Kevin explained, tears welling up in her eyes from fury.

“I don’t care. It’s not going to be solved with violence or vulgar language!” he bellowed back.

“Whatever.” The tears waltzed down her pale cheeks as she stalked back up the stairs to her room and shut the door.

Kevin’s room was nice and big. Her walls were crimson red and the sheets on her bed and curtains a midnight black with red hearts and stars on them. Kevin had her computer up against the wall near the window and right beside the computer, her huge Tokio Hotel poster. Kevin’s black and crimson couch was against the wall closest to her door and her television was just across from it.

With a yawn, Kevin plopped down on the couch and cut the television on. When the blackness faded and the image focused, Fuse was playing “A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More Touch Me” by Fall Out Boy. Wow, freaky at how many coincidences there’ve been involving vampires lately. And I mean really creepy. Kevin thought.

Before Kevin knew it, she was fast asleep, dreaming of the creature that bit her - the vampire. Again, her stomach twisted and turned. Then, her skin started burning so hot she cried out in pain. Kevin opened her eyes and found the curtains open and a stream of sunlight flooding her space on the couch. Could I possibly be a vampire? Could I possibly be immortal? Quickly, she ran to the window and jerked the silky curtains shut. The burning was gone. Kevin pressed her hand to her arm where the burning was the most painful. It was as cold as death. She turned around and gazed in her closet mirror. Kevin could see the whole room in the mirror, but she couldn’t see a human in the room. Instead, Kevin saw nothing.

Who am I? she thought. I’m a monster… my soul is tainted black. That creature that bit me was a vampire and I am one now. I’ve been banished to the shadows, forgotten by the sun. I seek revenge on the one who turned me. I dreamt about her. She said her name was Zelda. Just wait ‘til I get a hold of her. I’ll kill her and claim my soul again. But until then I must find something other than humans to feed off of. I must gain my strength before I go on my journey. No ocean is wide enough, no valley low enough, no desert dry enough I will seek my revenge. Zelda must pay. Kevin thought bitterly, grinding her teeth.