89.4 Zombie Radio

Tonight was the big night and I was beyond excited. My first shoot on my own. The band wasn't anyone who I really cared about. They were a little too screamo for my liking. Didn't matter, this was my chance to prove myself, and I couldn't wait. I softly sang a tune while I took a shower and put on my make up. I had to look great for tonight, it was important. In my opinion that's always important though. After all, the lead guitarist in this band was absolutely gorgeous, and he had that bad boy look that I absolutely loved. I could get over that his band sucked.

I was just about to leave and Nimel started giving me the look of "Please don't go Jesse." I was a sucker for that look, so I stayed a little later and played with him. Nimel was the only roommate a girl could ever need. A big, beautiful Siberian husky, with glowing blue eyes. Of course he shed like crazy, which was always a pain, especially when you wore black as much as I did. I finally got myself in gear and left, Nimel whined as I closed the door.

"I wish the bar let doggies in." I said in my dog voice. He whined louder as if to say "Me too." I'd try not to be out too late. Unless of course I met the man of my dreams, which I wasn't exactly getting my hopes up for.

I got to the bar just in time. They were halfway through the opening act. Who the heck names their band Giant Fish In A Bear Suit? I guess these guys do. They weren't actually too bad though, I was impressed. If only the photo shoot was for them. The headlining band's agent found me not too long after I walked in.

"Are you the photographer?" he asked.

"No I just carry a thousand dollar camera with me everywhere." I joked. He didn't laugh, maybe he didn't like me, not that I really cared or anything. Some people really need to get a sense of humor though.

A few more bands played. Local acts always kind of sound the same to me. There's maybe one or two of them that stand out, but for the most part its a bunch of guys trying their best to sound like their favorite band. I walked around and socialized a little bit. In the span of two hours I managed to get hit on by five guys, got three phone numbers that i didn't even ask for, and had a girl grab my ass, which was very awkward. So my night wasn't really going all that well. To top it all off some drunk guy managed to spill a beer on me. Great, now I smell like a brewery, that's always attractive.

Finally the band I was here for went on, and not a moment too soon, my ears were starting to ring a little bit. That will happen when someone just screams at you non stop for two hours. How did people get into this kind of stuff? I mean a scream here or there is one thing, but when I can't understand one thing they say, its another entirely. Needless to say I'm not a fan. I kind of wish that opening band was headlining. At least I could understand what they were saying. Getting good shots at a show like this isn't always easy. Usually in a small place like this, the whole thing turns into a mosh pit. Kind of makes it hard to take pictures when some jerk is trying to throw his body into you to prove how much he likes the band. I learned from some good people who taught me a few tricks. I got some pretty good shots at the end of the night. I showed the band and their manager and they all seemed satisfied. Hopefully my boss felt the same way back at the magazine. I seen the cute guitar player kissing a girl at the end of the night. Why are the hot ones always taken?

The next day I took the shots into my boss. He liked them and gave me another assignment next week for another band. He gave me their CD to listen to when I had time. Noticeably nobody cute in this band and judging by their attire they looked like they were a black metal band. I was not a very big black metal fan, but it was my job. On the way out, I passed by the new intern. He was from England and he was gorgeous. I think his name was Carter if I remembered right. I had a thing for guys with accents. Not sure what it was about them, but its something I always had. I hadn't had the chance to talk to him yet though, but I knew eventually I would. I just hoped I didn't go too much into shy mode when I did. I'm usually pretty outgoing, but when it comes to a guy I like, I get a little rattled sometimes. No time to talk to him today though, I was starving and Nimel needed a walk.

I stopped on the way home, at the same place I did every day. It was this nice little vegan restaurant that this nice couple ran. I usually ate there once a day, mainly because it was one of the only places in town that was vegan friendly. They knew me by name over there, guess it was because they didn't get too much business. Not many people have the will power to be a vegan, but I felt like it was something I had to do. I could never mistreat an animal in any way. There's so many other options for food, you just had to know where to look. Most people just don't take the time to. After I ate, I stopped at home to pick up Nimel and take him for his walk. I try my best to keep Nimel as happy as possible. When he's happy, I'm happy as I always say.

A week passed and it was the day of my next assignment. I was looking less forward to this one honestly. I know there are people with way worse jobs than mine, but I don't like getting screamed at for two hours straight. Even if it is with music behind it. Nimel didn't want me to leave again, and this time I really just wanted to sit around and cuddle with him. I finally got the motivation to leave however, and made my way to the little dive bar where the show was. I was there ten minutes and I already had a headache. The first band had a song that I swear was just them cussing. If there were any other lyrics I didn't hear them. I was never a fan of cussing, in fact, I really never cussed. I was pretty proud of that fact actually.

I started watching the news in voice captions on the TV at the bar. It was going on about some sort of new virus or something that was going around. I really didn't pay that much attention to be honest. It was just something to take my time off the noise. It wasn't music at this point, it was noise. My headache was getting worse, of course I left the ibuprofen at home. That's just how my luck goes. My head was throbbing by the end of the second band. I was so glad when the break came from the next band setting up. I think I was just going to sit at the bar with my head down for the remainder of the show. At least until the band I was here to shoot came on. The next band came on and I actually recognized the song. It was that Giant Fish In A Bearsuit band again. I couldn't help but laugh. What were they doing here of all places? I started wondering if they were following me.

They played their set and this time I took the time to talk to them afterwords. They were pretty cool guys. I wish I was here for their shows and not these other bands. They left early, the rest of the bar wasn't really into their type of music, and they were becoming kind of unpopular there pretty quickly. A few guys kept booing during their set, which I found totally rude. I hoped they played later, because I was gonna boo them, but jerks like that usually don't have the guts to get on stage. That's why they stay in the crowd and think they can do everything better, because in reality, they can't.

Finally the band I was here to shoot came on. I took some pretty good pictures and left. I didn't feel like sticking around and meeting them. My head still hurt and I was tired. The next day I took the shots into my boss. He wasn't as impressed with these. I apologized and told him I had a headache. He wasn't mad or anything, he just encouraged me to do better next time. I gave him the pictures of the band I met as well as their demo. He said he'd listen to it when he got some free time. Before I left he gave me another assignment for next week. I had actually heard of this band and I actually thought they were pretty decent. In the back of my mind I hoped Giant Fish In A Bearsuit would be there again. That would be pretty funny. On the way out I seen the British guy again. I looked over at him but he didn't notice me. He was busy from the looks of it. "Oh well, one of these days." I thought.

The day of the next show came. Nimel could tell I was going to leave. He always could tell. He just moped around with that sad look on his face. I did my best to try and make him feel better, but it wasn't working. I felt bad about leaving him, I'd try not to stay out too late again, but this time I couldn't guarantee it, I actually did want to meet this band. I left for the venue and got there an hour before anyone was there. "No problem" I thought to myself. Maybe I'd see some of the band members before they went in. Half an hour passed and there were still no signs of life. I was starting to get worried. I waited an hour and still nothing. I tried calling the number on the door and got no answer. Another girl showed up with her boyfriend. We all tried to figure out what was going on. The guy mentioned something about how there were a lot of people getting sick lately and how it was all over the news. Finally I noticed the smallest sign ever made that read, "Closed until further notice. All shows canceled." Great, I just stood out here for an hour for absolutely no reason. I was beyond mad. I called my friend on the way home and told him about it. He mentioned he wasn't feeling very well. I heard him spit something up over the phone, which was kind of nasty. He kept talking to me throughout the way home, probably because I wouldn't let him hang up. I got home and Nimel was excited to see me. I crawled into bed and went to sleep, wondering how I was going to break this to the boss in the morning.

I hadn't been by the magazine in a few days. So when I showed up and the doors were locked, I was surprised to say the least. I tried calling everyone who I knew worked there. Nobody was answering their phone. I decided to just go home. I'd stop and grab a bite to eat first though. Glad the vegan place was still open. I noticed a lot of places closing as of late, but they surprisingly stayed open. I ate and walked Nimel like I did everyday. I also noticed the park was slowly getting more and more vacant. I seen a guy with a weird rash on his arm. It looked like he had flesh eating virus or something. I did my best not to stare. I went home and watched TV the rest of the day. There wasn't much on, only reruns. I tried to call my friend and even he didn't answer. Wasn't the biggest surprise, he didn't always answer, but when I didn't get a text back or a call, I started to worry. I called him five more times, figuring he'd answer one of them. I left a voice mail that just said "Jerk" on the last one. I cuddled with Nimel and watched a few movies the rest of the night.

The next morning I awoke to rock music playing from my TV. Realizing I was still asleep on the couch, cuddled with Nimel. I must have forgot to turn the TV off last night before falling asleep. So I just grabbed the remote and turned up the volume on the TV. Currently the station whatever it was, was playing 30 Seconds To Mars.

I must have grabbed the blanket off of the back of my couch last night because I was currently trying to untangle myself from it. Once I got untangled I set on the couch and walked into the kitchen. I started my breakfast, some vegan bacon and breakfast burrito. I grabbed my cell phone, hoping for a response from my friend but sadly none. I grabbed a bowl and got Nimel his food then got mine.

"Do you wanna go to the park today?" I asked Nimel. Now obviously I wasn't expecting an answer but it did make him bark excitedly at me. It didn't take me long to finish eating. Once I did finish though I did all of my morning stuff that I needed to do. You know shower, brush my teeth all of that good stuff.

I ended up getting dressed in my usual attire. You know skin tight skinny jeans, random band tee, random band hoodie, VANS, and my fingerless 'A7X' gloves. I ran a brush through my long dark brown hair. I then did my make up. Dark as always. Black eye shadow, black eye liner, black mascara, and pale lips.

Once I was good i grabbed my messenger bag and a small back pack with Nimel's stuff. Treats, toys, doggy bags and a few bones. I walked into the hallway and saw Nimel waiting by the door. "You ready to go boy?" I asked him and in response he stood up with his tail waging. I smiled and walked into the kitchen and grabbed a few waters and then his leash. Once his leash was on I grabbed my skateboard and made sure I had my house key before locking up. I jumped on my skateboard as he trotted next to me happily.

The normally busy streets of new York were unusually dead today. I just brushed it off though and paid no mind to it. It didn't take us long to get to the park. We didn't live that far away. Once we got to the park I took his leash off and pulled out his frisby. He loved playing frisby, it was one of his favorite things to do at the park. Just as I was about to toss it I heard a scream and looked in the direction of it. I saw a guy with that rash and blood dripping from his mouth running in my direction. Nimel got to him before he could get to me though. Sinking his teeth into the man's arm. Who then let out another scream of pain. That's when I noticed another guy running at me.

I quickly grabbed my skateboard and waited just for the right time. once the guy was close enough I swung my skateboard hitting him across the face. He screamed at me and glared. Again I hit him across the face only this time with much more force knocking him to the ground. To make sure he didn't get up I straddled his waist. I smacked him in the head a few more times before giving him a swift, hard smack to the left temple. Then I knew he was dead. I pulled myself off of his bloody lifeless body and did a quick 180. I didn't see Nimel so I yelled his name. He didn't come like always. My eyes filled with tears as I figured he didn't make it out of his fight alive. I bent down and picked up my messenger bag, backpack and skateboard. I heard some screams and saw more of these things. I took off running.

I got to the entrance of the gate when I saw Nimel two more dead bodies around him. Along with the first one he killed. There were some of these things running at him and he growled at them. "Nimel!" I yelled. His ears perked up and he came running to me. As we were running I fished through my bag looking for my keys. Not paying attention I heard the squeal of tires and the blare of a horn. I looked up just in time to notice a cop car stop just inches away from me. We stared at each other for a moment before he motioned me into the car. I let Nimel in the back and I got in the front.

"Thanks" I said breathing hard from all the running I just did.

"Don't worry about it. I'm Officer Jack Miller. You are?" He said.

"I'm Jessie and my dogs name is Nimel. Do you have any idea what these things are?" I asked and he just shook his head 'no'.

He pulled his car to a stop in front of a nice looking house. "Let's go I need to get my wife out of here." I followed him into the house and watched as he frantically ran from room to room yelling "Kelly."

As he was running around I heard a noise from the kitchen. I slowly started in that direction catching Jack's attention. He caught on and rushed in. It broke my heart for him to have to see his wife like this. A rash on her face, blood dripping from her mouth. It was gross. "Baby are you okay? What's wrong? Talk to me, babe." He kept saying to her. She was breathing hard, not breaking eye contact. I knew she was about to attack. Just as she made a dash around the counter I made the short sprint to Jack. I grabbed his gun emptying the clip into her chest and head. Blood splattered the counters, the walls and my face. It honestly scared me and I stood shocked at what I just did.

"What the fuck?!" He yelled looking at me. "What did you do that for? That was my wife you just killed." He yelled angrily at me.

"Well it was me kill her or her kill you. take your pick." I said with no emotion. "You're a fucking bitch you know that?" He said. "Yeah I do, and unfortunately we need each other to survive." Just as I said that we heard screaming from outside. It didn't sound like it was that far away either.

"Let's get out of here before more of those things show up." I said, but he didn't move. He just stared at his wife's lifeless bloody body laying on his kitchen floor. I grabbed his arm and grave it a small tug. "Come on." He tore his gaze from his wife and looked at me. I could see the tears in his eyes.

"I'm really sorry, but we have to get out of here." I said giving him a sympathetic look.