Infection

Day 1 of Infection

Jenifer

“Have you picked out a movie yet?” I called from the kitchen before throwing another piece of popcorn into my mouth. When I didn’t get a response, I padded into the carpeted living room, my socked feet making no sound. Preston was sitting in front of the TV stand, gazing at out wonderful collection of movies.

“Have you?” He jumped and turned to see me standing there, a bowl full of buttered popcorn in my hand.

“You know I hate it when you do that.” I grinned as he stood to his full height - almost a head taller than me - and walked over to stand in front of me.

“Precisely why I do it.” He smiled as he leaned down to kiss me. I returned it, eagerly, huffing when he pulled away too soon. “I hate it when you do that.” He just grinned and winked at me.

“You can pick the movie tonight.” He took the bowl of popcorn from me and sat down on the couch. I rolled my eyes, dramatically so he could see, and pulled a movie from its spot in the small cupboard. He lifted his arm and tucked me underneath it when I sat down next to him. I felt him kiss the top of my head as the movie began. “I love you.” He whispered. I smiled.

“I know.” I heard him snort so I tilted my head to kiss his jaw. “I love you too.”

Popcorn went flying when Shawn burst through out front door, the doorknob hit the wall so hard it left a dent. Preston had already stood and pulled me with him, tucking me behind him in a protective manner.

“What the hell, man?” He yelled. Shawn ignored him completely.

“Turn on the news. Now.” He ordered. I glared at him for moment before reaching for the remote. We stared in shock at the story plastered across the screen.

“A deadly virus has been released from Glaimor Laboratories in New York City. It causes the skin to turn grey and its host to become mindless. If you come in contact with one of the infected, run. Do not let it bite you. This has become a national emergency. There is no known cure for the virus. Stay inside your homes. Do not leave.” The woman speaking was cut off when our screen was filled with static.

“What the hell?” I whispered. Glaimor had been working on a project that would eradicate all disease as we know it. What had gone wrong in that lab? “What do we do?” I asked them.

“You heard them. Stay inside our homes. Don’t leave.” I scoffed and crossed my arms.

“This isn’t even your home and we have to have a better plan than that, otherwise we’re going to be sitting ducks.” I argued.

“Like you know so much about surviving in an apocalypse. At least this way, we’re not on the streets. They would rip the three of us apart.” Shawn countered.

“As it so happens I was in the reserves throughout college. You were there, you know. We need a plan. We cannot just stay here.” I was on the verge of slapping him.

“Enough!” We both looked at Preston. “We can stay here and lay low for a few days just to see how bad it is out there. We really wouldn’t want to draw any attention to ourselves.” I glared at Shawn. He and I usually didn’t get along. He always thought I wasn’t good enough for Preston, which only mirrored my own thoughts.

“Fine.” I said stiffly, turning around to go into the kitchen. I pulled a plain mug down from the cupboard and set it on the counter, staring at the cupboard ahead of me. I heard the shuffle of feet in the doorway so I whipped the mug at the wall near the doorframe. It shattered, spraying shards of ceramic across the floor.

“It’s been a while since you smashed something.” That was all Preston said as he gingerly stepped over the mess to stand in front of me.

“It’s been too long, you mean.” I folded my arms across my chest and spoke softly, one of my methods of controlling the anger.

“And this time it was only a mug.” He rested his hands on my shoulders and let them trail down to my elbows. “Last time it was almost our entire stack of plates.” He pressed a kiss to my forehead, breathing in deeply the scent of my shampoo. “It’s going to be alright. We will survive this, together. Like we do everything.” He leaned back to look me in the eye. I sighed and nodded slightly, unfolding my arms to tuck my hands into his.

“This seems like a pretty big roadblock.” I glanced up at his face, which had a grin spread across it in the most irritating way.

“We were both in the reserves. We went through the training. If anyone has a shot at surviving this, it’s us.” He removed his hands from mine and moved them to my thighs while I looped mine around his neck. I squealed when he lifted me onto the counter behind me and lowered his face to meet mine.

“We’re going through a crisis and you guys somehow find time to make out like a couple of high schoolers.” I heard Shawn complain from the door. Preston pulled away from me with a smile.

“Don’t be grumpy because May left you. You’ll find someone someday who will make you feel just like this.” He walked away from me to clap Shawn on the shoulder. I rolled my eyes at them and hopped off the counter, mumbling something about checking on some of my friends.

My phone glowed in the dark of the bathroom as I hit the call button. I chewed on one of my fingernails as I heard the ringing tone. A single tear hit the tile floor when a robotic voice told me her number was no longer available. My best friend, gone, just like that. A soft knock on the door brought me back to the world. I wiped any trace of emotion from my face and hardened my voice.

“What?” I snapped. Whoever it was stayed quiet for a moment.

“Something’s happening. Come downstairs when you’re ready.” I heard footsteps as Preston walked away from the bathroom. I stood up, glancing at myself in the mirror. Shadows fell across my cheekbones and in the little crevices spread across my face. My grey eyes looked almost haunted and wary as I glanced around the room. I took a deep breath and opened the door. Preston tucked me under his arm as I joined him and Shawn in the living room.

“What’s going on?” I asked. I caught a glimpse of Preston’s red hair in his reflection in the window as Shawn pulled the curtain back slightly. The fading afternoon light cast a strange glow on the street as people with grey skin and missing limbs stumbled past the houses. Preston squeezed my shoulder as my mouth fell open. “Holy shit.” I breathed.

“That’s what the disease looks like?” Shawn mumbled. “One bite from those things can turn you into one of them.” I separated from my husband to get a closer look at them.

Their teeth stuck out from behind missing lips, snapping at anything that got close. They didn’t seem to be deterred by anything, walking through bushes and into trees as if it was normal to come out with missing body parts. They still bled; fat red drops fell from stumps where limbs used to be and patches of skin that had been rubbed away. We couldn’t hear them, but chills trembled down my spine anyway. My hands shook as they held the curtains to the side so I could still see.

“They’re awful.” Preston breathed from right behind me. I felt a hand on my shoulder as he pulled me to him, trying to get me away from the window. I shook him off of me when something caught my eyes.

“Wait, what is that?” I saw pink among grey as an uninfected person sprinted down the street. Her eyes were wild as she searched for a safe haven among so much danger. I locked eyes with her through the glass as she ran towards our house. She had broad shoulders and arms bigger than Shawn’s. I moved to the door to let her in as soon as she started running towards the house.

“Dude, that is the most jacked chick I have ever seen.” Shawn said in amazement before I opened the door and she launched herself inside, collapsing on the floor as soon as she entered.