I had a dream about this (which might have been triggered while falling asleep to Icon for Hire because I distinctly remember the songs Only A Memory, Off With Her Head, and The Grey) and decided to put it aside to concentrate on Past Truths but it kept bugging so I typed it out. I didn't want to put more into it than the dream already did so it isn't too complex and I'm not looking to add to it (which includes sequels). Hope you like it as it is and I'm looking forward to anything you have to say. Enjoy!
It seemed like just another boring day at Hollywood Arts, one filled with projects and assignments on various subjects. We were all gathered together in Sikowitz's class. I was in the middle of watching Vega and Beck's perpetual half-ass act on stage with disinterest. I had no patience for it. I was seconds away from just getting up and walking out so I said, what the hell? I might as well just get out of here. I stood and scooped up my bag then walked straight out the door, hearing Vega question my actions. I could detect the concern in her voice and it made me cringe internally. Contrary to popular belief, we agreed to a friendship no one but us knew about. To everyone else we were still frenemies, but behind closed doors it was just us. We talked and spent time together. She wasn't so bad, I guess. Which was why I couldn't stand her anywhere near Beck. I wasn't sure if I was jealous or not but I didn't care to find out.
That was the reason I was currently wandering the hall now. I flipped out my scissors as I went, twirling them around my fingers as I tried to keep my mind away from my current predicament. I let out a sigh and looked up from the floor just as I crashed into some idiot who had the gall to stand in my way. I scowled and shot daggers at him, ready to tell him off and maybe scare him away as he pissed himself, but my hatred filled words fell short when I got a good look at him. I wasn't one to care what was wrong with people, but this dude looked like shit. I saw him around school once in a while and noticed he had caught something because his health seemed to be on the decline. That was nothing compared to what he looked like now. He appeared ten times worse. He actually resembled a dead body walking. He explained on that day he returned to class that he had been walking home when a dog bit him and he must have contracted something serious from it because his condition was only getting worse by the looks of it.
"Hey, um, dude, you ok?" I questioned him skeptically. Personally, I didn't think he should even be allowed in school. He let out a pained groan and then looked at me with dull eyes that were slightly glazed. He reached out and latched onto my leather jacket. I tried to pull away but his grip was strong despite his sickly appearance.
"It wasn't a dog. It wasn't a dog…" he mumbled, shaking his head.
"What?" I spat, still trying to pry him loose. His skin was ice cold and felt odd, lifeless. The vibes I was getting from him was sending me crazy warning signals. All I knew was, I had to get the fuck out of there.
"It wasn't a dog that bit me. I was afraid. So afraid. I didn't want to say…it looked human," he muttered disjointedly. My eyes widened at that and I opened my mouth to tell him to let me go but he suddenly began to laugh cruelly. It was borderline psychotic.
"I'm not crazy. It looked human, but with sharp teeth and glowing eyes. I swear! It attacked me!" he ranted, his eyes wild now as he shook me in his grasp. I didn't think twice and lashed at his arm with my scissors. Fight or flight struck and I sided with one effortlessly. I didn't hesitate. He howled in pain and jumped back so quick that I lost my balance. I scrambled to my feet to see his arm ooze dark red, almost black, blood and then seal back up.
"What the fuck?" I gasped in shock, backing away from him. My instincts went haywire, warning me of the very real danger baring down on me. A rumbling growl spilled from his mouth, making my body quake fearfully. His eyes snapped open and I watched as his green irises began to glow eerily. His lips lifted in a snarl to show sharp double canines with a pointed set on the bottom too, matching up like jagged puzzle pieces. He stalked toward me and I wasted no time bolting back to the classroom to warn the others. My heart was beating so fast I thought I was going to have a fucking heart attack. I couldn't help but panic, hoping no one was hurt. A terrified scream alerted me and urged my legs faster. I tossed my bag aside in frustration so that I could speed up. I skid into the hall with Sikowitz's classroom to see Cat fall out of the room. I ran over and hauled her off the floor then looked in to see the classroom in chaos. Two other kids that I knew to be in our class, but had stayed out sick, were now here. They looked just like the guy I ran into only minutes ago. The class was in a rush to get out both doors as the ill looking students tried to catch them. The details and bloodshed when they did had me clinging to Cat for support, which wasn't much because she was shaking so bad she might just collapse.
"Where are the others?" I demanded of her, needing answers.
"T-the o-other door. We g-got separated," she cried, tears running freely now. I sucked up my own fear to comfort Cat and find our friends. They might have been a pain in the ass but I knew I couldn't handle it if I lost them. They were all I had and the only people I truly cared about. I gripped Cat's hand and ran back down the hall to take the stairs and the detour to the hall the other door let out at. I ran almost blindly, dodging the hectic hallways that were in the middle of evacuating. I held onto Cat for dear life as I turned the next corner and slammed into a slim form. We all tumbled to the ground and I panicked until I saw who it was.
"Vega! Where are the others?!" I shouted over the commotion going on around us. Her expression looked tortured and tears streamed down her face.
"I-I lost them! We had to s-split up when we were ambushed d-down the hall!" she exclaimed, pointing behind her.
"Shit! Vega! Vega, listen to me!" I yelled at her, yanking her off the floor after I got to my feet. I grabbed her by the chin so that her lost and fearful gaze would stay on mine.
"Take Cat and get the hell out of here. Do whatever you have to but just get out. I'll find the others," I told her, pulling Cat forward to place her hand in Vega's trembling fingers. I gripped both their hands in mine, hoping it wouldn't be the last I saw of them.
"Please, Tori," I pleaded. Her gaze suddenly hardened and she nodded, her grip on Cat tightening under my hand.
"Stay safe," I stated, turning away to run down the hall she mentioned. I was yanked back before I could even take a few steps.
"Wait," she called to me, voice wavering but still stronger than before. I stopped to look back at her, and that's when she pulled me forward by the front of my shirt and molded her lips to mine. I could feel the passion and sincere emotion running through her, giving me a jolt that felt similar. She held me there a few seconds more before pulling away, leaving us both panting.
"What…" I tried to say but she just shook her head, tears gathering in her eyes again.
"I've always felt this way for you, Jade. I was just making sure I could at least kiss you in case we don't…just be careful," she stammered fearfully. I handed her my scissors and squeezed her fingers around them. They were my favorite pair, purple ones I had taken from her room. She made a fuss about stealing them but she eventually let me keep them.
"Don't hesitate," I advised stoically. She only nodded and then she was gone, rushing Cat and herself to safety. I slipped out another pair of scissors from my boot and then darted down the hall, pushing through people and dodging the clawing hands trying to get a hold of me. I batted them away with the large scissors in my hand, the pair Cat gave me for Christmas from The Scissoring. The hallway led me out to the Asphalt Café where students and teachers were making a mad dash for their cars. I watched in horror as they were picked off one by one. Some I knew and some I didn't. I hadn't spotted the rest of the gang as I ran for the parking lot until I was pushed aside by the older Vega.
"Hey!" I screamed at her. She turned back to look at me and it was then I saw that Beck was with her, staying close by holding her hand.
"Where's Andre and Robbie?" I asked them hastily.
"Jade? Oh God, you're alive!" Beck shouted, dropping Trina's hand to grab me in a tight hug of relief. We broke up for the sole reason that he felt more like the brother I never had instead of a boyfriend. I pushed him off me and repeated my question.
"I don't know. We were split up-" he began to answer, but the angry sound I made cut him off.
"Fuck! What is up with you guys not staying together?!" I screamed at him.
"Jade, calm down. Maybe it's best if we just get out of here and call everyone up afterwards," he suggested, setting his hands on my shoulders. I was conflicted but decided to agree with him. After all, we shouldn't be here any longer than we had to. We continued to run towards the parking lot and I noticed that Vega's car was gone. Hopefully she made it. Trina ran for her own car and Beck followed her.
"Wait, what about your truck?" I asked him.
"Totaled. It looked like something really heavy fell on it," he responded. I was confused by his answer but threw it aside, unconcerned.
"Meet at my place and try to get a hold of the others to spread the word. I have the basement entertainment room we can use should things get crazier," I told him. He nodded and jumped in the driver's side. I noticed Trina crying her eyes out in the passenger seat, her broken words revolving around her sister. I didn't normally seek to comfort people, but the world just went up in flames. So, I placed a hand on her shoulder through the rolled down window.
"She's ok. I ran into her on the way out here and told her to get out. Make sure you call her and tell her to be at my house too. Stay safe you guys," I reassured her and then directed my last comment to both of them. Trina looked at me in a way I didn't understand but I had no more time to spare. I still had to get to my car.
"Roll up those windows!" I commanded them as I ran across the parking lot to my car. Beck complied and then started up the car. I dodged a wayward attacker and stabbed another in the side as I charged through him. The thick blood stained my hands and made me nauseous but I kept running. I unlocked the car with a click of the button and yanked open the door to jump in. I slammed the door shut just as a body crashed into the window to snarl and claw in a primal manner. Sharp teeth snapped at me and streaked my window with bloody hands. The cracked glasses and bloodstained curly locks of Sinjin had me stomping on the gas so hard I took off without anymore time wasted. I sped home, avoiding traffic and back-ups where many crashes piled up. It was like a zombie apocalypse, but I had never seen zombies look like the infected students. I reached my house to see that everyone had made it as their cars were parked outside. I practically fell out of the car as I rushed to get out and barricade myself inside. As soon as I stepped in the door I was violently tackled to the floor and held down.
"Oh, Jade. I'm sorry," Andre said as he let me go. I shoved him off me so that I could stand up and brush myself off, but soon, he had me locked in a hug.
"I'm glad you're ok," he told me. I nodded and patted his back.
"I'm glad you're ok too," I mumbled. He released me and I turned to see the gang in various forms of disarray spread out in the large living room. They all looked worn out and dirty, but as far as I could see I was the only one bloody. My eyes strayed to Tori who was curled up by her sister. I sighed and walked over to stand by her. She looked up and gasped at my appearance then shot to her feet.
"Jade! Are you hurt?" she asked me, taking in my appearance. I shook my head.
"I'm fine. I just had to force a few back to get out of there alive," I answered her. She held back a sob and then ran into my arms. I held her, rubbing her back. I eventually guided her to the floor where she curled up at my side.
"What are we going to do?" I asked the room at large.
"Well, we all tried getting a hold of our parents but it was no use. I think we're on our own now," Andre spoke up grimly.
"Shit," I mumbled to myself. My arms tightened on Tori. What the fuck were we going to do now? I had no clue. I was lost. For once I didn't have a well thought out brilliant plan. All I could come up with was to just simply survive.
Who knew that in just five years life would be wiped out and turned into a sordid collapse of all humanity? I didn't, that's for sure, and now we were all scrounging on scraps trying to survive. I always remembered that day clearly like it was yesterday. How could I not? It was so vividly imprinted in my mind, a memory I would never forget. It was the start of the end of the world as we knew it and I still couldn't cope with the outcome that humanity was done. There I was worried about my senior year, finding out which college I wanted to attend, getting a job, figuring out my feelings for a certain girl. I thought that was all I had to worry about until the world fucking blew up in all our faces. We shouldered on though. Our gang was a well-rounded group of individuals who each had something to attribute to our survival. We naturally worked well together and our close knit family dynamic never failed in any situation. It only made us stronger as a whole.
I remembered camping out for as long as we could at my place before we had to strike out and find new and better shelter. It was amazing, the change that occurred while we were holed up in our temporary shelter. There were a few trying to fight the unknown threat but it was clear we were losing. After two years of running, hiding, scavenging, rinse and repeat, we learned that the fucking scientists and their damn need to mess with nature screwed us over once again. Just as they had done in countless movies that they never seemed to learn from, they decided to try and make a medicine that would cure all diseases. Needless to say it didn't go well. It took on a different nature and mutated, turning into a disease itself. They tried to keep it contained but it was highly contagious. It flowed in the blood of the contaminated. Skin contact with the thick blood had a fifty percent chance of contracting the disease if it wasn't removed immediately.
If introduced through getting bitten by the infected or if their blood got in a cut or any other opening in the body, then it would begin to take over instantly. The victim had a week at most, three days at the least. I counted myself lucky that first day I was smeared with blood. I hope I was immune instead of just lucky, like Alice in the Resident Evil movies. I wanted to use it against the infestation that plagued us, but I doubted I was anything close to that. It hadn't affected me in any way and that was all that really mattered. As we traveled from place to place we became hardened fighters. We managed to get a hold of guns and weapons. We needed everything we could get our hands on to survive. Video games actually came in handy at that point. The few humans we met kept to themselves and were too afraid to band together since our bigger group would be an easy target and harder to defend. People could be such cowards.
Did they not want to fight for their very world? I guess not. Fucking idiots. I sighed tiredly and closed the journal I had taken to writing in since the ending of the first week of survival. Tori found it in my room. It was a journal I neglected but I started writing in it again to keep myself sane. Tori…I cared for her so much I willingly put my life on the line for her countless times without hesitation. In our rare moments of calm we joked and teased each other, just trying to keep ourselves from falling prey to crumbling mental facilities as well as physical illnesses that were still very much a threat on top of the main contagion. In times when we were granted a reprieve I never took for granted any of my friends turned family. Especially Tori. She seemed demure but was actually really rebellious and strong, something I admired. Our simple yet loving touches and careful kisses were exchanged sparingly. It hurt me greatly to think I could lose her, or any of them, but it was an inevitable danger we all faced.
It was too much of a possibility that it couldn't be ignored. I dropped the ragged and worn out leather bound journal to the dusty ground at my feet and placed my head in my hands. I pressed on my eyes to keep back the burning tears that would be obvious on my slightly dirt streaked features. I never cried much in the past, but I found myself tearing up at many things now. Every day was emotionally and physically draining. I let my hands slide off my face so that I could stare blankly at the ground. We were currently holed up in a little nook that had been created when the building it was housed in had collapsed. The more closed off the area, the better chance we had of keeping the stalking creatures that hunted us at bay. Less entrances and exits to watch. With the five years that passed there came to be two kinds of creatures. Those who were well fed and those who were starving skeletons of their former selves. They were crazed and more deadly despite their weakened state.
They stopped at nothing and were little more than mindless husks while the others were more intelligent and strategized to a certain degree. They could be outsmarted a little more easily than the husks. It was harder to outsmart the ones that didn't think past just getting something to feed on because they blindly attacked. Shifting gravel alerted me to someone behind me. I jumped from my seat, spun around, and raised the makeshift weapon I had made. Scissor blades on a pole turned out to be very useful. I lowered the weapon when I saw that it was just Tori. She raised her hands, a small smirk on her lips. She hadn't flinched at all like the first few times I was jumpy around her. She had toughened up and became so serious that often times I missed that bright Tori from so long ago, the goofy one who made me roll my eyes but love it all the same. She only revealed that side on rare occasions now. The gang as a whole lost that lively flare we all shared. There was just no desire for it anymore. Everything was in shreds. I wiped at my face to make sure tears hadn't fallen yet and then cleared my throat.
"Hey," I greeted her gruffly. She cocked a hip and looked at me thoughtfully, her eyes briefly settling on my journal, and then returning to me. She sighed and walked forward to embrace me. Her toned body pressed to my equally muscled frame, her warmth permeating me more than skin deep. We were all so scarred yet we retained that capacity to love and look out for one another.
"Hey, you. How are you?" she whispered, pulling back to brush her fingers over my cheek.
"I'm as good as I can be," I answered dully.
"How's the journal coming along? Do we need to get more papers to shove in there?" she asked me teasingly, trying to lighten the mood. I had gotten to the end a number of times but I constantly stuffed it with new entries regardless. I chuckled quietly and raised a hand to guide her mouth to mine. I pressed a soft kiss to her lips and then rested my forehead on hers.
"It's fine. Nothing but pointless musings on surviving this hell hole," I responded solemnly.
"Don't talk like that," she scolded, punching my arm.
"Hey," I grumbled, rubbing the offended appendage.
"We'll find a bigger group who wants to fight. Then we'll work together to make a more supportive and permanent shelter where we can live while we take back our world," she told me, confident as ever. I only sighed and pulled away to cross my arms.
"I find that hard to believe as each day passes," I confessed. She stepped closer to wrap her arms around my waist and rest her head on my shoulder.
"I know, but we have to believe in something. We can't give up hope," she reminded me. I nodded and pulled away again to clip my journal were it belonged on my belt then slide my makeshift weapon in the strap on my back.
"Come on. I know you went looking for me to bring me back from brooding," I told her, holding out my hand for her to take. She smiled wearily and took it.
"You know me too well," she commented, slightly playful.
"Yeah, it's definitely not because you've been dragging my sorry ass back to camp so that I'm not alone like I usually am every time I wander off," I pointed out, a wry smile gracing my features. Tori laughed and stopped to face me, poised to lean against a dusty steel pillar jutting from the ground and holding up the rubble above us. She remained holding my hand but took hold of the other too.
"It's definitely not that," she agreed, playing along. She always responded positively to my attempts at sarcastic humor which reminded her of my old self. I knew she missed how I used to be too even though I had a proclivity to be a grade A gank. She still liked me for who I was. I regret that it took the end of the world for us to get together. My troubled thoughts returned to the present when she silently coaxed me closer to her. Her hands splayed across my stomach and then ran around to grip my waist and tug me even closer. Our noses were touching, my body almost wrapped around her with the way I stepped closer, her left leg between my legs and mine between hers. I dipped down to capture her lips in a heated kiss. I poured my heart out to her, my hands gripping at her hips while hers drifted up to bury in my now short hair. She pressed her lower half into me and I moaned appreciatively into her mouth, her tongue sweeping in to caress mine. I rocked back into her, feeling the molten need burn to life within me. We were never able to take anything farther than once when our confession of love while camping out in an abandoned apartment building found us wrapped in a carnal embrace.
We found a suitable enough bed to continue, and soon, our current situation was irrelevant for the time being. We gave each other our hearts that night. That was three years ago, and now was the closest we had gotten to that night since then. I wasn't going to waste it. Not when death was always waiting around the corner. I pressed her back into the pillar, my tongue taking over to explore her mouth and then my lips traveled down her neck. I nipped at her skin softly while my hips rolled into her steadily. She held back a whimper as her body arched into me and her head tilted back to give me more room. I began to move at a faster pace and groaned my love for her in her ear. Her tight grip on my hair tugged only slightly when she hit her release. She whispered my name and pressed her thigh into me, making me buck into her and follow her over the edge after hearing her husky voice call my name and watch exultantly as she unraveled. I gathered her in my arms and kissed her once more before pulling back to look into her eyes. They were full of love, desire, and need sparking in the dilated depths. I smiled genuinely and held her to me for a little while then let her go so we could untangle our bodies. We headed back to camp hand in hand. When we got there only Cat and Trina sat at the fire.
"Hey, where are the others?" I asked as we approached to sit by them.
"Andre and Beck went to see how far Robbie went to pee. We told him to stay close if he was going alone but he didn't return so they went to look for him," Cat answered, concern clear in her tone. I had a bad feeling nagging at me, but it didn't bother me until both Beck and Andre ran over with wide eyes and panicked expressions.
"We have to get out of here. They found us," Beck gasped, skidding in the dirt when he came to an abrupt stop. Cat jumped to her feet.
"Where's Robbie?" she demanded. Andre's face fell and he held out a pair of cracked glasses stained with blood on the right lens. Cat gasped and held her hands over her mouth, tears falling down her face. Tori's brows creased in that way I knew signaled she wasn't far behind Cat. She may have toughened up considerably but she was still soft and caring Tori Vega under it all. Trina stood to place a hand on Cat's shoulder.
"I'm sorry we couldn't reach him in time," Andre mumbled, tone somber. Beck stomped his foot and then kicked at the dirt.
"Fuck!" he cried out. Dammit. I always thought Robbie was a pragmatic and insufferable know-it-all, but he was still a part of our family. It hurt to even think that he was gone. We allowed ourselves to mourn the loss for a moment before we had to get moving. The snarls of the approaching pack were too close for comfort. We buddied up. Tori was with me, Cat with Andre, and Beck with Trina. We headed out cautiously yet silently efficient. After a couple buildings separated us from our attackers we began scoping out a new shelter to hide in.
"We need to stock up on food. We're running low, remember?" Trina spoke up. She was shifting through our supplies that Cat carried as she wasn't much of a fighter both mentally as well as physically. We all sighed and kept that in mind as we kept our eyes peeled for anything useful. We spied a rundown store and entered on light feet. After scavenging what we could of the products we began to head back through the aisles to the entrance. We had passed a shelf that had collapsed almost completely. Despite its almost solid looking appearance I could still clearly see through a gap in passing. The pasty features of the very demons we faced stared back, baleful glowing eyes intent. My heart skipped a beat before I was jumping into action.
"Move!" I screamed, startling the others into motion. We all started running and cleared the area just as the hidden infected burst through the shelf in an attempt to catch us. I viewed them as a type of vampire, but sun only irritated them at most. I had seen them feed on blood when it all started, but as time passed, they began to feed on flesh. They were just plain demons of death and destruction now. They had no weakness, but beheading worked well enough and fire scared them away. Despite that, they always regrouped and came back with more so that was nothing more than a distraction. The main goal of killing them was to cause so much damage that they couldn't heal in time before their body ran dry of blood and then died.
It was the disease pumping through their veins that kept them going, and if that ran out, they died. Which was why the ones that starved were so desperate. They only had so long to find food. Another one joined the first as they sprinted at us. The disease kept mutating as years passed, and in turn they grew stronger, faster. Their senses outstripped ours. It dampened my hope for victory, but I wouldn't go down without a fight. I hoped others besides us shared that mentality. I armed myself with my pistol and aimed for the head. My shot rang true and it fell, tumbling a little from momentum. The other sped up but Tori shot it down with precise accuracy. Three more quickly replaced them and I cursed.
"Hell, I think a whole pack knows we're here now," Andre commented dryly.
"Look, if we just keep our distance and knock them down before they catch up we can find somewhere to hide," Beck suggested. That option was getting harder to rely on with the ever increasing senses of our enemies. They were just too advanced to give them the slip, which was why we spent so much time trying not to gain any attention whatsoever.
"At this rate we'll keep attracting more if we're followed outside," Trina gasped. Andre unloaded his shotgun, splattering the head of a pursuer. I dodged a flying piece and glared at Andre who smiled apologetically.
"Watch how you shoot, you idiot. That shit is toxic!" I shouted at him in agitation. Tori suddenly grasped my arm and pointed ahead.
"There!" she exclaimed, showing us our escape over the side of the road. It led down into the small canal area below that had been created when a flood had taken place. It was our only hope at this point so we picked up the pace.
This will be a three part thing seeing as I didn't want to make people have to read a long One Shot again (You're Welcome). Now that I think about it, I think the game Last of Us played a role in this along with my love of vampires and maybe even the movie Warm Bodies since I had watched that the night I had the dream. My dreams get pretty weird, I know. Stay tuned for more.