May 27th, 2013. It's been 5 months since the world was supposed to end. That day was filled with nothing out of the ordinary, except a strange blackout that lasted unusually long. It was around 7:00pm that day, and I was at work. Safeway wasn't as busy as most Fridays were, probably due to the fact that everyone was out partying for the supposed last day on Earth. I personally had always thought that maybe it was just the beginning of the end, rather than obliteration in an instance, but since then nothing strange or spectacular has taken place… especially since Derek getting his car stuck in a ditch seems to be more of a frequent event. It was just after midnight when we arrived at the scene of the "crime"- the crime causing the CAR to be the poor victim once more- officially making it the 28th of May: the day that everything crumbled and fell, into the pit of Hell (no rhyme intended). Driving up Rita Road, everything was normal; it was quiet, not too many people were out and about, and it was dark. Turning right onto Nexus, we once again passed Safeway on our way from home after gathering tools to hopefully save his sorrowful car. Turning onto Valencia, everything became eerily still. Laughing out of awkwardness, I blasted the music up in the car, Adam Lambert calming down all of my fears (and also projecting his VERY recognizable voice across the cactus-filled deserts of Tucson, Arizona). Making one of two more turns, we headed left onto Old Vail Road, looking for the dirt trails opening up on the right. Finding our adventurous pass, it comes to no surprise how my incredibly action-driven friend got stuck in sand. Looking through my highlighted bangs, I stare into Derek's hazel eyes. From the expression on his face I could tell that he understood what I was mentally saying. Really? Really?
Quietly laughing to myself, I slowed the car once we reached the point of bad decision making. Reversing into a side road, I shined my car lights down the hill to where his 1994 Nissan Pathfinder sat. Grabbing the shovel and jack from my trunk, this was a time where having something bigger and better than a 2008 Ford Focus might have come in handy. Wiping my glasses clean with my t-shirt, I flip my hair to the side before quickly catching up to the already-by-his-car Derek. Shovel in hand; I prepare myself for the upcoming battle of freeing his back right tire from a pit of dreaded sand. With a closer look I notice that the sides of the car are facing outward, meaning that a larger truck probably would just hurt more than it would help. Sighing with slight frustration, I climb through the back-seat to the other side. Holding the flashlights- seeing as how I am very NOT useful with fixing and tweaking things- he gets to work with his tire grip-needing plan. Every so often, a chill crept down my spine, sending my gaze across the random wilderness before me (random because c'mon, it's freaking Arizona.). Looking back at Derek no concern crossed his face, turning back around I heard the noise again, coming from the car's engine. Between standing there and doing practically nothing and freaking myself out, I was ready for this little trip to just end. I soon formed a habit of scanning the area with my flashlight, my paranoia simply taking control of my slight OCD and forcing me to keep cautious. Turning back to the car, it was time to test out the sewer gate and 2x4 now under his raised wheel. Getting into the car, we close the doors and get ready for our hopeful success. The car lurches, then stops. Slamming on the gas once more, Derek sends the wheels into frenzy. A horrible screeching sound echoes across the silence.
"Stop it!" I scream over the continuing roar of noise. Opening the car door, smoke bellows in and threatens to suffocate me. Jumping out into the clean air, embers lie on the ground, shredded tire in a fine pile directly next to it. Standing next to me, Derek seemed utterly annoyed at the lack of significant movement. The love-hate relationship between owner and car really needed to be resolved… Leaning against the car in defeat, I hung my head over the open door- flashlight still in hand. In an exasperated breath I asked if we could go home yet.
"Can we just try again tomorrow in the daylight?"
"Doesn't matter; we have more than enough light so that's not the problem." He replied.
Dropping into the seat behind me, my grip loosened just enough for the flashlight to fall to the ground. Now getting agitated at the situation I seemed to be stuck in, I bent down to pick up my beacon for survival before I got the chance to somehow forget about it. I saw Derek's figure walk in front of the door, presumably to pick it up for me. Seeing as how I was already in the middle of that task, I continued my reach.
"I got it- thanks though." I said, as I grabbed hold of his shoe on accident.
"Haha, sorry about that- I'm just tired."
Laughing, I hear a noise from behind the car. Shutting up very quickly, I jump away from the car, peering around the corner with shovel in hand. Ready to swing, I see Derek standing up in front of me.
"What were you saying?" he asks, confused. My silence was the only reply he got, which made him stop what he was doing and look up at me.
"I can see your clockwork going at it- should I watch out for smoke coming out of your ears?"
Still silent, a horrendous chill spreads across my back. A cold fear rested within the pit of my stomach and my neck started to tighten. Shivers fell from my neck, down to the middle of my back and I felt every individual hair quiver. Jumping towards Derek and tripping, I look back by the open door. A man stood there, staring at us. Derek straightens up and grabs the axe from his trunk.
"Stay back please- I'm feeling slightly irrational right now." I plead, hoping to calm down my own nerves through speech. He takes a step closer anyway, and Derek points the axe at him. I grab the flashlight with both hands. Fiddling until I finally flip the switch to the 'on' position, I raise the beam of light to the strange man's face. A more ordinary guy had never seemed scarier. Dirty hair and a torn shirt, it looked as if maybe he had gotten into an accident of some kind.
"Are you okay?" asks Derek. Looking into his eyes, I noticed that he was in some sort of daze.
"He's in shock, I think!" I say loudly to my counterpart, hoping he knew what to do.
Dropping our makeshift weapons we rushed over to the stranger's side. Reaching up towards his face, Derek was checking for any signs of fever. I watched with great intensity, adrenaline still pumping through all my veins. I saw a quiver run through his face. His mouth started to move and a moan escaped his bleeding lips. Derek was examining his chapped lips when his mouth opened as if to tell us something.
"What is it? Wha-"before I could finish the man started screaming in agony, falling to the ground and writhing around like a dying animal. Rolling onto his stomach, he finally fell silent- as well as stopped all movement. Reaching down for him, I noticed bleeding from the back of his shoulder. I quickly put two fingers right near his throat, but felt no pulse.
"Damn! Oh crap, what do we do?" I start to panic.
"We need to report this immediately- where's your cellphone?" Derek asks me. Looking back up towards the car, I shine my light across the path only to find another person standing in from of my car. Shining the light in their face, I knew something not normal was happening.
"Derek!" I shout, but I hear no reply. "Derek!" I shout again, but still no reply. Starting to seriously panic, I turn around to confront my partner-in-crime. On the hill behind us stood a woman, bleeding profusely from a strange wound on the shoulder. Frozen with fear, I'm not sure whether to run, fight, help someone injured, or just pass out. She takes a step towards us and falls face-first down the slope. Taking a step toward her, I stop at Derek's touch. Looking at his face, I search for some sort of comfort of knowledge. Looking back at the woman, I see her face more clearly. Her eyes were a strange, light color, unusually for most humans, and especially on her olive-skinned self. Moving closer to us, I see her wound more clearly. A large gap sat where her shoulder was supposed to be, and there was no possible way for her to be moving right now. My legs finally buckled and I sat there staring into the eyes of death. Right when I thought it couldn't get worse, the woman turned her gaze towards the corpse right by us. Crawling up to him, she began tearing into his flesh, devouring everything she managed to get into her hands. A putrid smell filled the area and that was when it finally hit me. My senses were shocked into action, and I swear I heard some sort of snapping noise inside my head. Standing up, I grabbed Derek's hand and we jumped on top of his car only to find more "people" standing between us and my car. Reaching for the shovel and axe leaning on the car, I hand the axe to Derek while firmly gripping the other.
"Derek… I think we need to get the hell out of here. And then… I think we need to seriously think about what to do after that."
It was no longer about living out our lives. Now, it was about surviving in order to keep on living.