Plague of the Dead

March 20th, 2020:

Today started as a normal day but did not end that way.

***

For the past three days, every news channel available had been talking about this strange disease that was slowly creeping into the United States. A disease called Mortis something-something. People were reporting symptoms that resembled a cold or flu. Conspiracy theories were flying all over.

I did not believe when some of the stories mentioned things of the dead coming back to life and having a taste for flesh. It sounds like some movie company trying to hype up their new zombie movie. Hell, it sounds like something I would write about.

Speaking of myself being a writer, I was taking a break after staring at my laptop from seven this morning until now. I had a new idea for a novel and wrote down all the notes. Yet, my brain freezes when I get in front of my laptop.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I looked to see who had messaged me. It was Jenny, one of my best friends.

Hey, chica! How's the writing going?

"Pfff, what writing?" I said with a laugh.

What writing? Lmao! I'm stuck on the opening chapter.

Writing is like fishing; you have set the hook to catch the readers' attention. You write a lame-ass opening and they will toss your book to the side and move on. Now, you write an opening that catches their attention, and you hit gold. You catch the reader and soon, your book is flying off the shelves.

My phone buzzed again to let me know she had messaged back.

What's the matter, Chelsea?

There was a lot that was the problem with me. My love life was at a standstill. Not that I need a man in my life but having someone beside you would be wonderful. The last man I talked to kept telling me he wasn't ready for a relationship. And then, I popped up on Facebook to see what was happening. That's when I saw he was in a relationship with someone. That's the story of my love life...I get used for sex and tossed to the side.

What ain't the matter with me? For some reason, I can't focus.

Salt-N-Pepa's song "Whatta Man" was playing from my Bluetooth speaker. I wish I had a man to dedicate this song to. Oh well, it is what it is, right?

From my front porch, I could the traffic rushing by on South Military Highway. After my husband passed away and a failed relationship, I left Colorado and came back home to Virginia. I bought this duplex intending to tear it down and make it into a log cabin home.

Before Jenny could message me back, I sent her another message.

Hey, are you and Leah still looking for a new place to live?

If shit was going to hit the fans, why not have my two best friends near me? Well, the city wouldn't be safe if this is the end of the world by zombies. I had some land up in Gloucester and had a log cabin built. It was in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees.

"Oh, why am I starting to think there's a zombie apocalypse going to happen? It's all bullshit."

Jenny messaged me back.

Yeah, we're still looking for a place. Did you find something?

Oh my gosh, has she ever paid attention to my place? I could shake her right now.

Oh my gosh, girl! I know you're a blonde but did it seep into your brain? What did I buy when I came home?

I pushed back my long, jet-black hair from my face. It was almost one o'clock and the temperatures were sitting at eighty degrees. I could feel a bead of sweat slowly trickle down my stomach.

Jenny messaged me back and I laughed as I read her message.

Damn, I had forgotten about the duplex. I thought you had the other side rented out.

I'm very particular about who I rent to but I knew my friends wouldn't bail out on the rent.

Hell no, I would rather have you and Leah as my neighbors. How about it?

Her response was a quick one.

Sure, I'll let Leah know and when we get off work, we'll go pack. How about a brainstorming party?

Normally, I don't let anyone close to me read what I have already written. This time, I needed their help.

I definitely need fresh eyes with this story. How about I order pizza for the party? We can have a couple of drinks, too.

At least I knew our favorite drinks, Jack and Coke. Before heading out, I waited for Jenny to let me know what was going on. I didn't have to wait too long.

Okay, we'll be over there after we get off work and pack up our stuff. So, around four or later.

My phone showed it was after one o'clock. I had around three hours to get everything ready. A stop at the liquor store was on the list. What about the grocery store for the Coca Cola?

I headed back inside to check them out. There were three cans left in the fridge. Okay, grocery store is on the list now. Anything else that was needed? I checked the cabinets. Nope, everything was good. I better ask Jenny if there was anything they needed.

Is there anything you can think of that is needed?

It was going to take her a bit to answer back since she was at work. Jenny and Leah were cashiers at Walmart. Walmart pays decently.

As I was getting ready to run my errands, my phone went off.

I can't think of anything at the moment. Maybe Leah can think of something that is needed.

As I was reading Jenny's message, I saw I had a message from Leah.

Hey, Jenny told me you asked if we needed anything. Or if there was something you were overlooking. I can't think of anything either...LMAO! If I think of something, I'll message you.

Leah sent me another message before I could answer her.

Jenny said that you're renting out the other side of the duplex to us. Thank you.

I clicked off the TV as the reporter was saying this is the weirdest thing he's ever heard. The dead were coming back and it was the end of days.

"Pfff, whatever," I muttered as I closed my front door. "End of days, my ass."

There was a liquor store down South Military Highway. I knew the store also sold cigarettes. Maybe they would carry Coca Cola too. A girl could only hope to make a one-stop shopping trip, right?

The liquor store sat in a little shopping center that had a cell phone shop and another shop. As I was getting out of my car, I saw that the other shop was a smoke shop. Okay, it's still a one-stop shopping trip.

Keith, the owner of the liquor store, looked up when the bells tinkled as I walked in. "Hi, Chelsea," he called out with a smile. "Things have gotten crazy just now."

"What do you mean?" I asked as I leaned against the wooden counter.

"My sister messaged me telling me not to go to the grocery stores. People are panic buying."

"Because of this disease?"

"Yup. So, what brings you in here?"

I laughed as I went down the aisle where the Jack Daniels was. "I need to get my normal whiskey."

"How's the writing going?" he asked me as I chose my normal bottle.

"Ugh, don't get me started on that," I said with a laugh as I set down my bottle on the counter.

"Got stuck on writing a scene?"

"Yeah, the opening of chapter one," I said as he rang me up. Behind him, I could see the cigarette cabinet. "Let me get a carton of Marlboro reds with the black label."

He turned around and grabbed a carton to add to my order. I looked around and saw the Coca-Cola display. One-stop shopping trip.

When he saw the Coca-Cola on the counter, he said, "Yeah, you can't have your Jack and Coke if you don't have the cola, right?"

"Exactly," I said as I took out my debit card.

Keith gave me my total and I paid for my order. He wasn't a bad-looking man for his age. I had found out a while back that he was twelve years older than me. He had carded me and I asked to see his driver's license. That's how we became friends.

"What do you think of the dead coming back?" he asked me.

"I don't know what to think of it. It could be a movie promo."

"But what if it is the real deal?" his dark brown eyes stared into mine. He raised a dark, bushy eyebrow and nodded. "Just saying, Chelsea. All hell could break loose."

"If it's the real deal, I guess the cities wouldn't be safe."

"Think about it," he said as the bells tinkled again.

I waved to him as I left the shop. The real deal? I think it's a promo for a new zombie movie coming out. If it is, it better be a damn good movie.

For a moment, I sat in my car, smoking a cigarette and thinking. My phone went off with notifications and text messages. There were a few cases of Mortis that had popped up in Chesapeake. The hospital was about seven or so miles from me. Jenny and Leah, both had messaged me.

Hey, work is letting us off early. Something is going on. We're heading to our places to pack up and then, we'll be over there.

It was after one o'clock and they don't get off work until three. Something serious was going down. If people are panic buying, why cut them loose early?

Traffic picked up on the highway. The short drive home took a little bit longer. As I passed by a gas station, I could see a line of cars starting to form. People were panicking for no reason. Just watch and see. By this evening, a report will come from Hollywood announcing a new zombie movie.

When I finally got home, I got everything inside and then, sat outside to have a cigarette. From listening to the different reports, this sounded like something I would write about.

"Shit, I need to message Jenny or Leah back."

I had almost forgotten to message back...LMAO! Do y'all know what's going on? I'll wait until y'all are to order the pizza for dinner.

I had planned on placing the order and set the delivery time to a later time. But since they got off work early, I'll wait.

A notification came through about a stay-at-home order that may be placed in the cities of Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Virginia Beach. Now, this was sounding serious and not a promo about a new zombie movie.

"They ain't gotta worry about me going anywhere," I said with a laugh. "I prefer to stay home than deal with people."

I pulled up YouTube music on my phone but remembered to connect my phone to the Bluetooth speaker. Afterwards, I heard AJ McLean's smooth voice come through singing about love on the brain. That man's voice is smooth as silk, damn!

Since I had my music playing, I went inside and up to my writing office. Maybe something broke free and I can write a damn good opening chapter. If I get into my writing, I'll forget about what's going. I still think this is a promo for a new zombie movie.