Survival

It had been weeks since Alexia has seen another sign of life. The last sign of life she saw was at a refugee camp. The elderly couple that ran the camp gladly took Alexia in for the night and fed her what little food they had to keep her alive just a little longer. Only a small boy and a middle aged man were the other refugees. The young boy reminded her so much of her younger brother when they were younger. It saddened her to see him in such bad shape. She prayed for the boy as well as the others, but knew deep down that none of them would last much longer in this world. She didn't want to witness their deaths, so she thanked them for sharing what little food they had to offer and continued on her journey.

Alexia often wondered if what she did was right. To just leave them all behind without even offering them some kind of help. It didn't really matter though. It wasn't like there was anything she could have done to save them. She could have offered to take to boy with her, but how would she have cared for him? She couldn't even find food for herself and usually ate some dirt a few times a day just to try and survive. Even if she had taken the young boy with her, he would have just slowed her down. She also didn't want to see him die because it would be like losing her brother once again.

Thick grey smoke lingered in the air as Alexia stood on a hill staring down at the town that was burning down in front of her. Flames of red could barely be seen through the thickness of the smoke. It was just another town that held no hope for Alexia. She was beginning to run out of hope for even surviving for much longer, but knew she couldn't give up just yet. She may not have a map or know exactly where she was going, but she knew she had to be getting close to the ocean. The ocean was the only hope she had and still held onto. It was as if the ocean itself was drawing her towards it.

Alexia took one last look at the burning town as she ran her hand through her tangled jet black hair. Her icy blue eyes began looking for the shortest way around the town since she couldn't go through it. She wished that for once she didn't have to take a longer way since all it did was make her journey much longer. It was either burning towns, zombies, or the rising water that always ruined everything. If only for once everything could go her way, she would actually regain all hope in surviving this world.

Alexia finally decided on a path and continued on her way. Her dirty, worn out boots stomped down the overgrown grass to make a trail for anyone who could possibly be heading this way as well. The thorns from bushes scraped against her torn clothing and filthy skin. She broke tree branches that were in her way or ducked under them. She sometimes even had to step over logs or climb over fallen trees just so she could continue on her long path that she wasn't going to make longer.

Before the end of the world happened, Alexia was far from being an outdoorsy person. She hated the bugs that would fly around her head, the constant chirping from the birds, the spider webs she walked into, and the mosquitoes that bit her. She much rather stay inside where it was bug free, comfortable furniture to lounge on, and she could get on the internet and watch television. When she was outside she was usually out in the city hanging with her friends and shopping. Sometimes she would even go to the river to cool off on a hot summer day.

Alexia had no survival instincts when the new world started. She was afraid and didn't know what to do after losing her family. She kept herself locked inside her home for awhile until she ran out of food. Leaving her house to go to the store she learned that nothing would ever be the same. People were killing each other right in front of her just like what happened to her family a couple weeks before. Women and children were being kidnapped right before her eyes, yet she couldn't do a thing to save any of them. Alexia quickly ran back home and locked the doors before shoving furniture in front of them. She needed more food, but first she had to learn to defend herself out there. She didn't want to be the next person dead or kidnapped.

Alexia quickly learned how to avoid the lunatics. She would sneak around the town hiding in places. She would climb to the roofs, if she could, where it was much safer. She would even sneak into houses to steal some food just so she didn't have to go into the town to the stores. It wasn't until she had to go out in the woods to hunt for food that she really learned how to survive. It bothered her at first to kill animals, but over time it got easier to do so.

Alexia has came a long way since then. She's no longer the scared girl she was. She's hiked miles across the countryside just to get to her destination. She's been barely getting by with little to no food. She's avoided being zombie chow as well as avoiding the crazy people. At least Alexia had some humanity left in her since she hasn't killed a person yet and hopes it stays that way.

Alexia leaned against the rough bark of a tree trunk as she glanced at what was before her. Maybe her luck was beginning to change. Maybe it was the hope she needed in order to survive this new world. For the first time in a long time Alexia's lips turned up into a smile as she stared at the still standing city before her, and in the horizon you could see the beautiful blues of the ocean.