Before Everything and After

Soon, we're idling outside of Tyler's empty-looking house. I grab up the shotgun and motion for Marissa to grab all of the bags. She makes a face of annoyance at this task. "Why do I have to take the bags?" she whines.

I give one humorless chuckle and peck her on the lips. "Because if I'm the one that's going to kill the zombies, I'm gonna need a pack mule."

She snorts but allows it, swinging all the bags onto her. "Okay, let's get in there."

I hitch the shotgun into position and stalk to the front door. I suddenly find a flaw in my plan. "Shit. I don't have a key."

Marissa gives me a 'you're-stupid-and-I-can't-believe-how-stupid-you-really-are' look and leans in, finger outstretched. Before I can stop her, she presses the doorbell.

"Fuck!" I snap as the bell chimes on the inside. After a time that seemed magnified tenfold, it slowed to a stop. No sounds come from the inside and Marissa sighs.

"What the fuck is your problem, Farley?" She reaches over and tries the knob this time. It swings open with no problem.

We look at each other for a moment and then start inside. "Can you get that light?" I whisper to Marissa, who is standing next to a lamp. She turns it on to a scene I really could've lived without.

Mr. and Mrs. Uxenburg, face down in a pool of their own blood. Their skulls are cracked open like eggs and their brains are gone. I gag and Marissa lets out a strangled cry. "Did Tyler do this to them?" She starts towards them, going beyond my arm's reach before I realize what she's doing.

"Marissa, get back here," I hiss.

She crouches down to them and stares for a little bit than stands up again. She turns towards me and glowers, arms wide open defiantly. "What is wrong with you, Farley?"

Suddenly, out of the darkness, a creature leaps at Marissa, dragging her down to the ground with it. We both scream, and on impulse I aim the gun straight at the thing and shoot it in the side. It looks up and lurches towards me. I gasp when I realize it's Tyler. His face is falling apart, and his eyes are a bloody gold. He grins as he staggers toward me at an alarming speed. One of his stiff arms knocks my gun out of my grasp, twisting my trigger finger painfully. He grabs onto my shoulders, surprisingly strong for being a zombie.

I know I'm gonna die in this moment. Tyler's mouth leers at me, and I already feel like my fate is sealed. I'm going to die, and it's going to be because my best friend, my loyal sidekick, my go-to man, has turned into a zombie. If it wasn't a real situation, I would've laughed. He slams my head into the wall and my vision darkens around the edges. The room spins when he pushes me to the ground, ready to eat my brains. I curl up, my final defense. I've given up, and Tyler knows it. I close my eyes and submit to what he's about to do to me.

Then, there's a round of bangs and Tyler falls right next to me, glowing eyes faltering and then dying completely. I jump up next to Marissa, careful not to touch her in case I've gotten the virus now. She's holding the gun improperly, eyes wide, shaking violently. "Oh God, I killed him," she whispers, looking up at me with confused, scared eyes. "I'm so sorry, Nick."

I look down at Tyler. It doesn't look like Tyler anymore, really. Our first zombie down, though. I shake my head. "It's okay. It wasn't really him." I don't know who I'm trying to convince, but I'm doing a shitty job at it all the same.

"Let's get downstairs, okay?" Marissa hands me the shotgun and picks up the bags she's left near the door. I lead her to the basement, and let her go past so I can lock the heavy door behind me. I hurry down the stairs so I can get down right behind her.

"There's a tornado room, do you think it'd be okay in there?" I ask, motioning to a heavy steel door on the floor. She shrugs and I go ahead and open it. It's quiet, damp, and considerably dark down there. I lower myself down the ladder and jump down to the concrete floor. It smells horrible down here. I reach around for the light and pull the string immediately. It's not as bad when the lights are on, because there is two futons and a cabinet full of water and first aid.

"Nice place," Marissa comments as she jumps down next to me. She drops the bags on the floor and falls down on one of the futons.

"I think we should sleep on separate futons," I say as soon as I've locked the door behind her. "Just in case one of us have caught it… I don't want to risk it."

She looks away, lips pursed. "Fine," she whispers, curling up on the futon.

"Goodnight," I whisper back. I don't receive an answer, but I didn't really expect to either.