Short Stories

It was quiet.

Too quiet.

There was no sound of vehicles, people, or any animal.

Just silence.

Shawna gulped and clutched her old, childhood teddy bear close to her chest, wiping sweat that dripped off her forehead, and crouched down the best as she could, as she knees wobbled and felt like Jell-O. She could feel her heartbeat in her chest, banging against her ribcage. Shawna bit the inside of her cheeks to keep herself from making any noise as she clutched the bear tighter.

The air was cold and smelled bitter and sour, giving a distaste to the girls nostrils. Buildings and structures all around the city were destroyed and abandoned, and all vehicles seemed to be broke. It was an eerie sight, and was a bit frightening to not hear anything but the whistling wind and the sound of her own breathing. But Shawna wasn't going to give up.

Though she was young, only being seventeen, and she was scared, she was going to try and escape. There were survivors somewhere in the world, right? She was sure of it. Even if they were all in Antarctica or in some sort of bunker, she was going to find them, one way or another.

Slowly standing up, Shawna took a deep breath in, and a deep breath out, stroking the head of the bear. She looked around at her surroundings and studied them, not seeing any sight of those creatures. She nodded, and with a shaking leg, took a small step forward, making sure the heel of her boot didn't make a noise.

It didn't, and Shawna was thankful for that. She never thought of the sound of silence to be all that scary, but ever since the incident happened, the hope for another person's voice was something she yearned for. She was tired of being stuk with her thoughts all the time.

Maybe I could leave the city in a car, or something? She thought, looking at all the different kinds of cars around. They were all left behind by their owners when the city had the evacuation.

Shawna knew that it was a stretch, but she hoped that one of the vehicles had a key and gas. Even if the smallest amount of gas was there, it was still something, and something is better then nothing. But there was the a chance that none of the cars had gas. She took her shot.

Shawna took another step forward.

Then another.

And another.

Then she stopped and stood in place, placing herself against a wall.

The sound of, what it seemed like, a trash can toppled over and the growls of the creatures sounded out. The noises they were making were disgusting and absolutely grotesque, making Shawna start to have tears prickle at her eyes. The beings sounded like they were eating something, so she had to be careful; one wrong move and she was done for.

Shawna let herself silently cry as she navigated around vehicles, looking through the windows to check if they had any keys. Some did, but she was too scared to open the doors.The creatures sounds began to get more gross unbarring, but Shawna continued on. She was careful not to step on anything that would make a crunch! or any other loud sound, and she did it pretty well.

But then, just as luck was on her side, she stepped on a metal can that was covered by a cloth. She immediately stopped walking, keeping her leg raised up to not step on anything else, and kept quiet. Her heartbeat was getting faster by the second, and the creatures sounds stopped.

Shawna heard the noise of growling, hissing, and something else that sounded a bit human, and she heard them begin to walk to where she was. Sweat was now dripping down her face, back, and neck. Time seemed to stop she felt stiff as a rock.

She rapidly looked around with her eyes, and felt some sort of relief when she saw a dark colored car with its door open. But of course, it was rather far away, and there was a good chance that she would be attacked if she tried to run over. The vehicle she was around now looked to be locked, and she didn't want to die trying to open the door or break the glass. Shawna heard the monsters get closer, and her adrenaline kicked in.

Keeping the teddy bear in her arms, she bolted from her spot and sprinted to the car with the open door. The monsters ran after her and she ran around the vehicles and other obstacles in her way.

The creatures were fast and nimble with great hearing, and she didn't think that she was going to make it until she got closer and closer. But it seemed to get further away each time she thought it was close, and she felt helpless.

Until she reached her hand out, and touched the door, and jumped in the car, almost not fast enough to shut the door.

End