Keep you in the dark,

You know they all…

Pretend…

-Foo Fighters

The Pretender

"Mommy? Daddy? Why won't you wake up?" I was only a child of twelve, clutching the stuffed bear given to me by my grandmother. I sobbed into my older cousin's chest. The night my parents couldn't pay for a cab…

I gasped and nearly shot out of bed. What the hell…?

It's been the same since Mom and Dad died.

But now I was twenty. I'm an adult, dammit… I shouldn't be scared of sleeping!

That's right. I am an adult. I'm no longer living with Aunt Kathy and Uncle Cliff, so there was no need to act like a child.

But as much as I tried to tell myself this, the tears kept pouring down my cheeks.

I slung my legs out from under the thick black comforter and stumbled my way to the master bathroom. Every time I looked into the mirror, my mother looked back. But my eyes… They were my father's. Black hair hung to my shoulders in loose curls and deep grey eyes bored into my reflection. I was pale and fragile looking, which frequently pissed me off. My lack of breasts and hips had gotten me confused for a fourteen year old (depressingly enough, I've met twelve year olds who look more developed than I). I yanked my black tank top off and threw my sweatpants to the side. God, I wanted a shower.

I let the scalding water relax my muscles, wishing that I was no longer out of tea. I set my strawberry scented shampoo and listened closely. I turned the knob and heard sirens close by. Really close by.

I rinsed and dried myself off. I found my jeans and black button up on my floor and slid into my favorite converse boots.

Wet hair clung to my forehead as I walked into the cool April morning air. Three houses down, an ambulance and the rest of my neighborhood stood there. I quickened my pace to a run, to see my neighbor frantically scream to the paramedics that her husband of fifteen years had bitten her.

"I locked him in the bathroom!" she sobbed. "It's like it wasn't even him."

Behind me, I heard a male voice say "Oh my gosh, Elizabeth, what happened?" I turned to see Miles Turner standing there.

"I don't know, Miles. Something's wrong with Mr. Young. He bit his wife and she had to lock him in the bathroom…" I shrugged.

Miles Turner was your somewhat average gay man, meaning that every woman hated him because he was so good looking, but gay. He stood five inches taller than I (which isn't much of an accomplishment) with dusty blonde hair and grass green eyes. He dressed well, today; he was wearing dark jeans and a sandy yellow button up with dark brown shoes. He also happened to be my closest friend in this neighborhood. Being twenty three, he was only two years older than I (he accompanied me to a bar on my twenty first birthday). He was built and very strong, since he worked out five days a week for seven hours.

He frowned and rubbed his forehead, "Why would he do that?"

I shrugged, "Dunno- wait… what the hell?"Mrs. Young had collapsed on the ground, showing no signs of breathing.

By now, my roommate had woken up due to the sirens. She walked outside in her blood red knee-length nightgown with black designs, and a matching over coat. She must've been in a hurry like me, because she had only thrown on the nearest pair of boots, which happened to be her favorite combat boots.

"Elizabeth, what the hell?" she asked.

"We don't know, Minami." Miles replied and rose an eyebrow, "Rock it, Girlfriend." He said.

Minami rolled her eyes, "Hey Stud Muffin." Her layered hair danced in the morning breeze. Her indifferent facial expression changed to shock, "Oh my god!"

Miles and I turned to see Mrs. Young, latching on the man's neck. Jesus! She's biting him! His blood nearly shot out and stained the white stretcher she had been previously lying on. Screams suddenly filled the morning air as she pulled his jugular out. The man she had been biting collapsed, either from blood loss or shock. She jerked her body towards a nearby woman. The woman, who I recognized as the school teacher, Ms. Jameson, put her arms up as a defense. It didn't stop Mrs. Young. She fell on top of her and began biting ravenously. Mrs. Jameson's screams turned into choking, she was drowning in her own blood!

"Oh my Gods!" I cried out.

By now, the man she had previously bitten rolled over and bit into the ankle of another man who was trying to help him.

Miles took me and Minami's arms and dragged us away.

"What the hell was that?" Minami shouted.

"Whatever it was, it looks contagious!" Miles answered and pushed us two back into our house. He closed the door behind him.

"What the fuck?" Minami asked him. "They needed our help!"

I shook my head, "I'm no scientist, but by the looks of it, it only took one bite to contaminate them. I guess that… whatever it is… pushes them to the brink of insanity."

Minami sighed, "Well what do we do now?" she asked.

"I don't know. For now, I suppose we sit and wait for help." Miles suggested. "Until then, you may want to change into something a little more covering. You're making us all jealous." He said. Minami nodded and disappeared into the hallway.

That was one thing I loved about Miles. He always tried to make things better, no matter what the situation may be. I remembered the time that my mother passed away. He told me that I shouldn't be mourning the thought of her never being here, but I should be celebrating the happy times of her life.

I leaned against the wall, "Should I go ahead and dial 911?" I asked.

"Probably."

I dialed and waited, but… something scared me. "All lines are busy." I almost dropped my phone, "That's not possible…" I muttered.

Miles looked up from Minami's Vogue magazine, "What?"

"'All lines are busy.'" I tossed my phone onto the couch.

"Wait, you mean… all of the lines?"

"Yes. This means that Willow's End isn't the only neighborhood going through this shit." I let my head fall into my hands, letting it process the things that would be forever burned into my skull. I couldn't erase the look on Ms. Jameson's face when Mrs. Young bit into her. I couldn't erase her eyes. Her whitened eyes. Was she even alive when she bit and chewed their flesh and when their blood dripped from her mouth?

Minami came back, wearing black cargo pants and a corset-like tank top. She was also wearing make-up, accenting her almond shaped eyes with black eyeliner and mascara. She was still wearing her combat boots and wore no jacket. On her right leg, was a garter that held a knife.

"Why do you have that?" I asked.

She shrugged, "I'm not gonna let myself get attacked by one of those things."

Miles sighed and pulled his cellphone out, "I'm gonna call someone."

"Who?" Minami and I both asked.

"This guy I knew and I still find it creepy how you two do that…" he said with a risen eyebrow as he scrolled through his address book. "Ah, here it is. Mr. Leon S. Kennedy." He pressed a button and held the phone to his ear.

Minami and I were silent. It was so quiet that we could hear it ring.

We heard a male voice answer, "Hello?"

"Leon, its Miles. So what are things where you're at?" Miles spoke.

It was slightly fuzzy, I couldn't hear it too much, but I caught phrases like 'Hell' and 'Undead fuckers'. Well, I guess it's safe to say that wherever he is, this is happening too. I bit my lip and messed with the hem of my shirt, wondering what could possibly be going on. I sat down and let my head fall into my hands. I had successfully avoided panic mode, and managed to not be one of those things that eat people. My curiosity sprung, what happened outside while we had been hiding in here? We'd only been inside for fifteen, maybe twenty minutes. Maybe more of the authorities had come to help? Wait… no… We'd have heard more sirens in that case… Maybe even gunshots. I stood and peeped out the window and almost threw up. Ms. Jameson was sprawled on the blood-stained concrete with three people crouching over her… eating her. I looked away when I saw another person walk out of their home, to be greeted by death.

When I turned back, Miles had hung up, "Leon is on his way here."

"So how did you meet this guy? He sounds hot." Minami spoke bluntly.

"Oh, I used to work at this coffee shop and I told this woman off who was trying to seduce him (A/N No, it wasn't Claire who was trying to seduce him). He's a pretty cool guy. And he is gorgeous. But, he doesn't play for my team."

Minami patted his back, "Don't worry, brother. You'll find a sexy beast of your own."

Miles nodded and looked to me, "What's going on outside?" he asked.

I shook my head, "Don't make me say it." I was still suffering to urge to vomit the meal from the night before.

He walked towards the window and shuddered, "Yeah, um. We may need to stay in for a little bit longer. In the meantime, Minami, can you please make that tea that calms my stomach?" he asked.

"Me too…" I raised my hand and sat down at the dining table.

As Minami prepared the tea, we heard a few sirens in the distance, but paid no attention. The probability of the authorities calming this shitstorm was unlikely. Not meaning to be cynical, because believe me, I wish the probability was higher. But keeping high hopes would do absolutely no good. It's best to just try and survive.

Minami served the tea in regular black mugs. Miles and I quickly drank it, and just like I had hoped, my stomach calmed.

"Where did you get this stuff anyway?" Miles asked.

"Mom made it when I was still pregnant." Minami spoke.

Minami used to be pregnant, and the morning sickness really got to her. Her mother made a special herb blending that had been in the family when her grandmother was pregnant. Unfortunately, Minami miscarried three months along. That was almost a year ago, and she'd changed much. She no longer sulked around or felt that everything was her fault.

We set our mugs in the sink after finishing the tea, when we heard an abrupt banging on the front door. Miles dashed to it and quickly opened the door. A tall man, with brown hair and deep eyes ran inside, followed by a smaller boy and even smaller girl. Miles quickly slammed the door closed before the infected man could get inside.

The little boy had shaggy brown hair and blue eyes, along with the little girl whose hand he was holding. She was carrying a small pink stuffed bunny. The boy wore dark jeans and a red t-shirt, the little girl was wearing a pale pink dress with little pale purple flowers at the bottom. Her hair was in braids, hanging to her shoulders.

"Thanks, Miles…" He said.

"No problem. Elizabeth, Minami, this is Leon S. Kennedy."

More Author's Notes…

So, sorry ClairexLeon fangirls, but he's just too much of a sexy beast to not have a LeonxOC. Yep… Zombies. Sexy beast. Cute little children who don't die at the end. Enjoy. In the meantime, hope that I won't be too busy to update. Also, I really dislike it when zombie movies apparently don't exist in the dimension of zombie movies (if that makes sense). Seriously, people may not want to admit it, but if there are rabid monsters on your doorstep, eating the flesh of those who are living, wouldn't you think of zombies? ANYWAY, with that little rant out of the way, I really hope to see some reviews. Constructive criticism is always welcome, and please don't flame my sorry ass!