I gave Little Rock the name Sarah, since they never gave her one in the movie. If you don't like this sort of thing, don't read. Takes place before the zombie outbreak. Christa and Sarah are
step sisters, but they knew each other before that happened.
"Miss Glen, do try to pay attention!", said Mrs. Lenure calling from the blackboard.
"Sorry, Mrs. Lenure. It won't happen again", said Sarah taking her eyes off the window.
She had been doing this in class a lot lately, there was nothing much that interested her any more, nearly a year had passed and her mother still hadn't given her a very good reason for leaving her dad.
She had been seeing quite a few men, almost every nights; usually at 3 am Sarah heard the sound of the front door opening and the clicking of heels. Some times faint whispers were heard and laughing as her mother made her way up to her room thinking her only daughter couldn't hear any of the rompous going on in the room no more than three feet away.
"Miss Glen!", Mrs. Lenure shouted once more.
Sarah hadn't realized she was staring out the window again, Mrs. Lenure must have been really sucking the life out of the room today.
"I'm very sorry. Really, I am."
"You've had your head in the clouds a lot this week! I'm starting to get tired of it, you never listen", Mrs. Lenure went on as students around the room laughed at Sarah, who was trying her best not to turn bright red. "I want you to report to the principal's office!"
Sarah couldn't believe it, she had never been in that much trouble before, she was a well behaved teenager, especially for her age. Even with her pleas Sarah obliged, students watched her as she walked out the door, whispering to each other and the erupting into cruel laughter.
Sarah sat on a bench just outside the principal's office, she was the only one there, apparently there weren't many troublemakers today. While she was waiting, Sarah began to worry about the school making a call home, it was bad enough that her grades were slipping. But just as she was stuck on that thought, her mind drifted as the smell of wild flowers filled the air; she sniffed the air in a frenzy, taking it all in. She wanted to follow it but she knew she would only get into more trouble. But the smell was just so overwhelming, she just had to know what it was. She decided it wouldn't take that long and she would get back in time for when the principal was ready for her.
She scurried down the long hallway that lead to the main entrance of the school, there she saw one of the most stunning women she had ever seen. Red hair that was up in a short pony tail, turquoise eyes that were in the shape of an Anime character and a blue dress that complemented her small curves. Although this woman also had one of the things Sarah couldn't stand for, a cigarette; she thought it was disgusting and that there was no good reason for a person to do so. Her dad smoked nearly three packs a day, it was almost impossible to see how he could pull that off. He wasn't the most stressed out person in the world but for some reason he couldn't go a day without filling his lungs.
"Smoking's bad for you!", she called to the redhead.
The smoking vixen turned to the half pint, giving her a slight look of resentment. Sarah approached her
getting a whiff of the wild flower smell, though now it was drowned out by the smoke.
"Oh, yeah? Well I can't help it I've got an addictive personality."
"I've never seen you here before. Are you a transfer student?"
"I'm a sub."
"Really? You look awfully young to be a teacher."
"How old are you, kid? Shouldn't you be playing in a sandbox somewhere?"
"I'm fifteen, a lot of people think I'm younger", Sarah said with annoyance ringing in her voice.
"Puff?"
"Are you serious?", asked Sarah, floored by the woman's offer.
"Yes. Geez, I started probably when I was younger than you."
"No way, it's not attractive and it's not healthy."
"You're a broken record, kid. So why aren't you in class?"
Sarah felt she could trust her, she was an authority figure but she didn't seem like a stickler for the rules, she was smoking inside of a school after all.
"Well, to be honest I'm supposed to be going to the principal's office", she said while looking down at the floor, it was if she was telling her mom this news.
"Oh. What did you do?"
"I wasn't paying attention during class. It's been really hard for me lately because..."
Sarah couldn't bring herself to say it, as if she was still in denial like the day she found out.
"Because?", asked the Redhead, "Don't worry, you can tell me. Who am I going to shock with this information about a girl I just met?"
"Okay. My mom and dad split up. I never saw it coming, I mean, they never fought or anything."
The Redhead gave a sympathetic smile, she put a hand on the innocent girl's shoulder.
"I can relate, my parents split too. I'm living at my dad's, not sure where my mom ran off to. My dad is seeing some harlot, he's actually thinking about marriage even though they've been going out for like two months and I haven't even met her."
"That's awful!"
"My parents never really seemed all that close but when they told me they were getting a divorce it was like a punch in the gut."
"That's terrible. I'm Sarah by the way", she said while putting her hand out to shake.
The redhead hesitated at first but shook her hand gently.
"Miss Treblame."
Sarah was glad to get this off her chest, she had no one to talk to about it, no one to relate to.
"So, are you going to face the music?"
"Yeah."
"Wow, really? Cause I wouldn't. But then, I guess it's probably better you do the opposite of what I do."
All Sarah could do was smile and nod.
"Well, I should jet. Good luck, Sarah."
She got one last whiff of the woman's wild flowers, she kind of wished her mom would bother to buy her such strong perfume one day. Once Sarah went into the office, the principal seemed to have no clue who she was, almost mistaking her for a new student. He was a fat, older gentleman, though he was kind he seemed like he was not all there, not to say he was incompetent but just a little lost in the shuffle of the day. His secretary quickly brought his attention to a phone call from Mrs. Lenure about a student of hers, his bright and happy mood ended.
Sarah would face disciplinary action if she didn't get her grades up and start paying attention in her classes. Teachers were starting to make complaints about her attitude, Sarah didn't know what to make of this, from what she knew she had a positive attitude. For some reason this public school actually cared if their students did well instead of giving them the choice of throwing their lives away.
No matter how much Sarah begged, a phone call was made home. Luckily they got the answering machine, her Mom wasn't home yet so she might have a chance to erase the message off the machine if she wasn't kept after school. Since this was her second strike, Sarah was warned that if she had a third she would eventually have to Just as the fat principal was telling her to run along to class, a rather plainly dressed woman entered, knocking on the frame of the door. Another new person Sarah had never seen before, she looked to be at least 25 years old, her hair was up in a ponytail and she had very pale skin, the kind that you see on a sick or dying person.
"Yes, may I help you?", asked the principal, back to his cheery self.
"Yes, I'm substituting for Mr. Black's science lab. Its my first day at this school and I can`t seem to find the room."
"Oh, you must be Miss Treblame. Room 405. Just down the hall past the cafeteria. I'm sure Sarah would have no problem showing you where it is."
Sarah was sceptical. Who was this woman? The Miss Treblame she met was a beautiful redhead with wild flower perfume, this Miss Treblame was quite average with an unnoticeable lavender perfume. She had no choice but to escort her to the science lab, the entire time in wonder of who she talked to earlier. It could have been possible that another Treblame was substituting, though this couldn't be a very common name since this was the first time Sarah had heard of it. She thought about asking this Treblame if she knew of another Treblame teaching that day but decided not to bring it up; for all she knew they could be sisters or cousins. The pale sub remained silent as they walked up to the room, she had almost no personality that Sarah could read.
"Thank you very much, Sarah. Have a nice day."
"Yeah, you too", said Sarah, still puzzled.
Sarah was on her way back to class when she passed a large box with a lock on it, it was used to collect paid donations, checks, money, and whatever else from businesses and parents ; Sarah couldn't remember what the cause was for, not that she really cared.
The rest of the day went as it always did, Sarah went to class, talked to a few friends and then headed to her bus after the bell. She was nervous about the message being on the answering machine, she tried to remember a time when her mom was home early but that was back when her parents were together.
Once she entered her home, the first thing Sarah saw was the blinking red light form the answering machine. She raced over to the end table next to the couch, almost knocking it over as she pounced for it. She decided to listen to it first, get a laugh.
"Hello, Miss Glen, this is Sarah's principal, Mr. Walton. I'm calling in regards to your daughter's behaviour, I believe you have discussed this with her teachers before. She was being disruptive in class earlier today, this isn't the first time. She will face disciplinary action if this continues and as a result of her grades may need to be on academic probation. If you wish to discuss this further with me you can make a call into the school through my secretary at 555-9977. Good day."
"What a douche!", thought Sarah. "Ha! Mr. Walton, seriously?"
She pressed the delete button.
Her mom didn't attend the last PTA meetings so she didn't know how deep her daughter was.
"I'll make it up to you mom", saying to herself as she walked up to her room.
She rarely buckled down to study but she decided that maybe it was time to at least give it a try, she was getting behind in homeroom assignments.
As she was looking through pages of her math textbook there was a knock at the door. Her mom poked her head in, not even asking if it was okay to enter.
"How's it going?", she asked. "Wait, are you doing your homework?"
"Yup."
"What did you do?"
"Nothing, I just wanted to catch up that's all."
Sarah scribbled away at her desk, her mom sat on her bed for a moment. Sarah could sense her watching her.
"Kind of hard to get anything done when you're looking at me like that."
"Sorry. I wanted to tell you something but it can wait until after dinner."
Sarah put her pencil down and faced her.
"That's okay, what is it?"
"It's about dinner tomorrow. Do you mind if I have someone over?"
Sarah had lost track of her boyfriends, her mom went through one every few months.
"Who?"
"You remember Brad?"
Sarah had to think for a second, she recalled a blond haired gentleman with a goatee but she remembered him being a total dick and her mom not returning his calls. There was a younger man she had only seen once by accident when she was trying to get into the bathroom one night, who was kind of chubby. But no, he said his name was Johnathan. Maybe she had not met this Brad.
"You know, he took us out to the movies two weeks ago."
Then it hit her. Brad! He was tall with dark brown hair, he was constantly trying to impress her with those really lame jokes and kept whispering to her mom throughout the movie. He was an alright guy and everything but he just seemed like he was trying way too hard.
"Oh, right! No, I don't care."
"You mean you don't mind. He's going to bring his daughter along too."
"Oh", she said with little enthusiasm.
Brad had an older daughter he kept talking about, she couldn't meet them at the movies that night because she had to work; apparently she dropped out of high school and was doing quite well for herself. Sarah wished she could do the same but she knew she would upset her mother if she ever did. She constantly told her the horrors of working behind a counter and at a grill like so many of their relatives that were drop outs, but Sarah knew that work was work and wouldn't matter what she went on to do with her life, at least she might get some decently paid job with a degree. Besides, how well off could Brad's daughter be? Minimum wage most likely and not a penny more.
"Please be good, I'm sure you two will get along."
"What makes you so sure? Didn't Brad say she dropped out after her first semester of grade eleven? What if she's some kind of drug addict? Or a dealer?"
"Sarah!"
"You don't know!"
"Please, promise me you won't make a scene tomorrow."
Sarah thought it over for a moment, she had never made a scene before, or at least nothing too severe to embarrass her mother.
"Okay, I promise."
"Good. I know that all of this must be hard on you, Sarah. When you're a little older I'm sure you'll understand. You're father and I love you and..."
"Mom, I know, you told this a hundred times already. Brad's a cool guy and if he makes you happy then he makes me happy."
Her mom wrapped her arms around her and gave her a kiss on the forehead.
"I'm glad. So how was school?"
Sarah's eyes widened.
"Ah, it was okay."
The next day at school, all Sarah could think about was dinner and more specifically the people attending. What if her mom fell in love with Brad and got married? Would she have to share a room with his daughter? What if she was a total bitch? She wasn't sure if she was ready for a stepsister, let alone a stepfather.
She was so focused on the subject that she became oblivious to to commotion going on throughout the day. Apparently someone had stolen the money from the donation box and a few purses in the staff lounge. Principal Walton was having surveillance footage looked at and was interviewing students, calling upon them throughout the day. Sarah nearly jumped when her name was called, she had to see the principal a second day in a row.
Once in the office, sitting down, Sarah felt more nervous than the previous day and she wasn't even guilty of the crime.
"So, here we are again Miss Glen."
"I didn't do anything, honest!", said the panicked girl.
"I didn't say that you did. I just want to ask you a few questions about yesterday", said Mr. Walton, a little suspicious. "Did you see anybody near the donation box? Anybody waiting around?"
"No. I didn't see anybody."
Of course this wasn't true and Sarah knew it; some how that so called Miss Treblame must have been behind it all.
"Are you sure? You can tell me. If you are covering for a friend I mind you that you would only be hurting yourself."
"No, Mr. Walton. I didn't see anyone."
She tried to speak as honest as she could without stumbling over her words. Mr. Walton looked her in the eyes for a moment as if to know if she were lying or not.
"Okay, then, I'll let you get back to your class. I know that you were here around the time this occurred."
As Sarah was about to get up and leave, Mr. Walton halted her with a final word.
"Did your mother talk to you?"
"Uh, yeah, we talked about that...", Sarah replied, a little unsure.
"Uh-huh, so you think you can focus in class and show respect to your teachers?", Mr. Walton stated, a little suspicious. "Alright then, have a nice day Miss Glen."
He was really on the ball today, he was actually quite intimidating. Sarah had a feeling that he might make another call home, she felt knots in her stomach.
She later found out that over five thousand dollars had been stolen and the surveillance footage didn't show anyone at the donation box or in the teacher's lounge, rooting through unattended purses; one camera showed the box locked up and closed, but then a jump in time showed the lock broken and the lid wide open, like someone erased the footage that would have showed the thief.
"They're like a ninja or something!", said Sarah's friend, Kim, walking to the bus.
"That was really mean! Why would somebody do that?", asked Sarah's best friend, Jill, a tall girl with a terrible complextion.
"It was a very good cause and then they had to come along and ruin it", said Kim completely disgusted.
Sarah was quiet walking to the bus, she had more important things to worry about, like tonight's dinner guests.
"What's up, Sarah?", asked Jill. "Oh, right! You're mom is having over that guy and his crackhead daughter!"
Sarah shushed her.
"I didn't say she was a crackhead! But I am a little worried what she's like."
"Yeah! You might have to move in with them!", said Kim, growing concern. "Doesn't he live outside the city?"
"Yeah...but I don't know. Do you think that would really happen?", asked Sarah, now growing some concern.
"That's what happened to my old best friend", said Jill.
"What old best friend?", Sarah scoffed.
"I'm just messing with you Sarah, geez! I'm sure this girl isn't a total bitch, maybe you two have a lot in common. Just think positive!"
Sarah waved goodbye to her friends as she boarded her bus. She was on edge for the entire bus ride, not only because of company, but also because she might have to erase another message. Before the bus even came to a complete stop, Sarah bolted from her seat and flew to the front of the bus.
Running up her street, Sarah caught sight of her Mom's red minivan in the driveway.
"What the hell is she doing home so early?"
She ran up the steps and opened the front door quickly, she ran into the living room to find the answering machine blinking again. But before she could get to it, her mom called from the kitchen.
"Sarah? Is that you? I might need your help in here!"
"Maybe it's not him, probably not. I hope!"
Her mom was slaving away in the kitchen, she had baked biscuits among other things, a roast was in the oven.
"I had to get off work a little early, had to have some time to get ready. They should be here within the hour."
"Is there more people coming? It looks like you made enough for ten people!"
"It will be fine, they can take leftovers."
Sarah assisted her with the vegetables, peeling was certainly not her strong suit. Once they were boiling, She helped set the table. Her mom corrected her with the set up of utensils, even though it didn't seem like that big a deal since she had already impressed this guy. Once it looked like everything was ready, there was a knock at the door.
"Would you get that? I have to check on the roast", her Mom said, scooting to the kitchen.
As much as she would have like to protest, she walked to the front door and opened it.
"Hello, Sarah!", said Brad, "I'd like you to meet Christa, my daughter."
A girl with long, wavy red hair walked up beside him, Sarah's eyes widened, the girl's widened also.
"Miss Treblame?", Sarah thought.
There it is so far, I'll try to update every few days or so, can't promise that I'll keep it clean from here on out. Leave a review please!
