Protecting Norman (Book 1)

by Skylar, A. J.

  “You understand me when I talk to you, right, Norman? I’m pretty sure you have some idea of what I’m saying. If only you could speak, what would you say? I think you would ask me to marry you, and I know that sounds cheesy, but it has to be true. You love doing me, so you must love me, Norman. I know you do, you have feelings, and you may be a dead guy, but you’re not like the rest of the dead. You still have some feelings left. You know how to use your wiener, and that’s a bonus. You know what good food is, and you give me a reason to live. I wonder if there are other dead ones like you. You probably wouldn’t like that since that would be competition for you, Norman. You wouldn’t allow another dead guy to try to do me. I could just imagine what that would be like. We could always have a threesome if we ever find another dead guy like you. I wonder what you would do if I find a dead girl like you, Norman. Would you do her? I would love to see that. You’re fascinating for a dead guy.”

  The drive is long, but I manage to keep the conversation going. It helps the time pass. I love talking to Norman since he seems to understand me. I guess I’m trying too hard to convince myself. It must be all in my head. There are some things that I’m certain of. Norman must know that I love him, and he knows his role in his dead life. He knows that he has to be with me for the rest of my life. As I continue to drive along the long road ahead, I look at Norman and admire him. I take Norman’s hand, and I hold it tight as he glances over at me and gives me an evil smile. He growls at me. Norman may be dead, but he knows exactly what he wants. I’m madly in love with Norman, but I wonder if he senses my love for him. My heart beats faster as I hold his hand.

  The truth is out there in the new world. Someone must know something about what causes the dead to rise. It could be some new virus. The military might have something to do with it.

  Aliens could be taking over the world, and could be responsible for controlling the dead. If Norman is being controlled by an alien, then that’s just creepy. The devil could be at work and could be playing an evil game. It could also be the work of witches. It could be absolutely anything.

  I don’t want to be killed by a zombie since being eaten alive and getting my blood drained is not pretty. I might be having a bad dream that I can’t wake up from. I don’t believe there is a cure out there. I’m not sure if a cure even matters. The only cure we need is to prevent the dead from rising. I’m having different thoughts on whether or not Norman should be cured. Norman shouldn’t be cured since he is too far gone. He is perfect the way he is. I’m starting to think that it would be weird if Norman suddenly started to talk, though zombies do talk in the movies.

  I wonder what his personality would be like. I’m starting to have negative thoughts. What would happen if Norman could be cured? Would he reject me?

  What will happen if he says the wrong things to me? What if he turns out to be a total goof? For now, I prefer the silent Norman. It would be so weird if he suddenly started talking.

  “Sorry, Norman. You will never speak on my watch. That’s the way it’s going to be. I’m being honest with you, Norman. I guess you don’t understand me, but if you did, you would probably be very upset with me. I love you, Norman.”

  I’m still curious about what caused the world to plunge. I guess it doesn’t matter since it won’t change anything. It will still give me peace of mind if I know the truth. The majority of the world is gone, and I wonder what percentage of the world survived. I hope I don’t end up like Norman. If I die, I just want to be gone for good. I don’t want to walk around rotten and disgusting like a zombie. I have complete freedom to do what I want in the new world. There’s nobody to stop me from doing the things that I want.

  I have a lot of freedom in my life. I want to sleep in, dance around naked outside, drive as fast as I can and not get a ticket for speeding. I still have some responsibilities. My responsibilities are all about taking care of Norman, though it sure beats what I was used to. I never liked waking up in the morning to serve the dirty old men who didn’t have any respect for me, since they treated me like shit.

  Things are better in the new world. I wake up in the morning, and I take care of Norman. That’s my responsibility. Norman is everything to me, and I will kill for Norman. If only my father could see me now. I wonder what his reaction would be like. I guess I should be realistic because my father would seriously freak out! He would probably shit his pants. He would never accept Norman, and he would probably try to blast Norman with his rifle. I would have to stop him. He would just have to accept Norman. I would do everything in my power to convince my father to accept Norman because Norman is my family now.

  My father is probably one of the dead by now. If my father tries to eat me, I will take care of him. I will have to take him out like the rest of the dead. He technically wouldn’t be my father. I wouldn’t want to see my father become like Norman. That would also be so screwed up if that ever happened. There can only be one Norman. Norman can’t be replaced. That is impossible.

  If my father turned out like Norman, he would probably have the same tendencies. That would be insane if my father tried to have his way with me. That would be wrong in every way possible. I would destroy him right away, and I don’t think Norman would approve. I have many crazy thoughts going through my mind. I’m just a crazy girl in a crazy world, and there is no crazier girl in the world.

  These driving conditions are getting a little too dangerous, and I’m very uncomfortable driving in this storm. I’m driving on such a long stretch of road that doesn’t seem to end. I should take a break and stop the vehicle. I pull over and stop the vehicle.

  I hate this crappy weather so much. Norman doesn’t seem to be bothered with anything. He doesn’t have a care in the world. I envy Norman, and I wonder if he envies me. I’m thinking crazy thoughts again. Norman probably doesn’t think anything.

  He’s a dead guy with unbelievable desires. All I can hear is the rain hitting the vehicle hard. There is barely any driving visibility outside since the storm is so furious, though I hope it continues to rain hard because I love sitting with Norman.

  “You don’t mind if I take a little break, do you Norman? Unlike you, I get tired and need a break. If only you knew how to drive. I should teach you because I’m so sick of driving. It does get tiring, especially in this weather. I guess we can just sit here. You don’t mind if open a can of peaches, do you? Don’t answer that question, Norman. I’m sure you don’t want any. Let me know if you do, but I don’t think a can of peaches would satisfy your hunger. I know your appetite too well, Norman.

  I don’t have any beef jerky for you. You are a beast. I bet you can eat beef jerky all day.”

  I open the can of peaches, and I start to eat. I watch Norman, as he watches me. It’s arousing as he watches me. Norman groans as I eat, and I guess he likes watching me. I’m dying to know what’s on his mind. The rain looks like it’s slowing down, so I should start driving again after a few minutes. I want to finish this can of peaches, and I relish every bite since every bite is sweet and crunchy. I finish my break, prepare to start up the vehicle, and I continue to drive down the long road.

  It’s time to look for civilization, but I’m running low on gas, yet it is probably better than not having any gas at all. I’m very fortunate to have a vehicle with gas. I have a bad feeling about this trip. I hate being negative about almost everything, but it’s hard to think positive about things because I'm not exactly on vacation. I would love to be on a beach right now. Things could probably get worse. I still have enough gas to keep driving.

  I will take advantage of the fuel that I have left and try to cover as much ground as possible.

  I continue to drive for a short time. I finally run out of gas, but I still managed to cover enough ground considering that things could have been worse. I turn to look at Norman. I don’t know what to say to him since I feel as if I let him down. He shouldn’t care much since he’s a zombie. It looks like we have to abandon the vehicle for good. I didn’t thin
k this would happen this way. I thought I could find a place to stay before running out of gas. I should have known better. I took a chance, and this is what happens. I will have to deal with whatever happens next.

  “Norman, it looks like we hit the end of the road. We have to walk from here. Sorry, I tried to do my best to make things happen, but we live in this kind of world now. You don't need to worry about anything, Norman. You’re lucky that you don’t need to rest. Let’s get going now. We have a long way to go, Norman. Let’s go. Don’t just stand there and look at me.”

  Norman begins to follow my lead. He’s like a dog. I have to tell him twice or even three times for him to listen. Norman probably doesn’t even care that we have to walk. He just follows me wherever I go as we continue our journey to wherever the long road takes us. The rain starts up again, and it hits down hard on us. I predict many wet days ahead. There is something about a zombie apocalypse and stormy days.

  We have been walking for a while. My feet are sore, and I can use a foot massage right now. It starts to get dark outside, I’m exhausted, and I wish that I could be back at home in my cozy apartment. That’s such a long way from here. We continue our mysterious journey. The rain decides to stop, so I guess Mother Nature wants to give me a break, and it’s about time. Mother Nature is still such a bitch. There’s a strange mist that starts to pick up, as we walk, and I can barely see what is ahead of us.

  It’s silent as we make our way out of the mist, and the only thing I hear is our footsteps down the long road. I think I see something ahead of us as we get closer, and I can make out what I see. I suddenly see movement ahead of us. It looks like there is a complex ahead. The area is open, and there are no gates surrounding the area. There are several people patrolling the area.

  They have assault rifles. I have a bad feeling about this place. I’m not sure how I’m going to get past this place. There are large machine gun nests with sandbag barricades all around the complex. There are watchtowers with guards who keep watch. I don’t like the looks of this place. This place is trouble just waiting to happen. I quickly take Norman off the road, and we walk around the complex. It’s a long walk, but we seem to be out of sight. I don’t want any trouble, so we continue around the complex. I can see about a dozen guards watching in our direction. We are spotted immediately. Flares illuminate the sky; alarms go off, several heavily armed trucks rush out of the complex, and there is no place to go as a guard points his weapon at me!

  “GET ON THE GROUND FACE DOWN! I WILL SHOOT YOU! I WILL SHOOT YOU IN THE FACE! GET DOWN, RIGHT NOW!”

  I don’t hesitate as I pull Norman down, and he falls on me!

  “KEEP YOUR FACE ON THE GROUND! DON’T MOVE! I WILL KILL YOU!”

  The guard hits me in the head! It hurts like a bitch! I need to close my eyes. As I slowly open my eyes; my vision is blurry, and the lights irritate my eyes. I feel drowsy, so I close my eyes. My eyes slowly open up, I must have passed out, and I have such a bad headache, but my vision starts to improve. I’m in a room that looks like an interrogation room. I’m tied up on a chair, and there’s a guard who stands above me. He wears military pants and a tank top. He looks like he is ready to kill someone. Another man stands beside him, and I don’t like his face because he looks like a serious dickhead. He has the kind of face you just want to punch. The man looks like a scientist. He is tall, thin, wears thick glasses, a white coat, and has thick eyebrows and a long white beard with a shaved head. He smiles at me.

  “Do you know where you are? How do you feel?”

  He seems to speak with a German accent.

  “Who in the world are you? I feel like crap, and I have a big headache. Have you got any painkillers? Whoever hit me in the head did an exceptional job, so you should give them a pay raise.”

  “It doesn’t matter who I am. I do experiments with the unknown. You can call me, Fritz. There are not many of us. The man next to me is Sergeant Locknight, and you will just have to endure the pain, little girl.”

  Sergeant Locknight is a big soldier. He looks at me like he wants to bring pain and suffering. He has a shaved head, facial hair, and a satanic tattoo that goes from his neck down to his right arm. I guess he’s Fritz’s bitch.

  “Sergeant Locknight is one of our finest soldiers. He specializes in administrating pain. We noticed you did not come alone, and you must be wondering where your pet monster is. Yes, we know what it is. It took our men some time to restrain it. Now your pet monster is in our laboratory. We are running tests on it. I have never seen such an unusual dead body. You must know something,” Fritz says.

  I have to buy some time for myself and Norman. Norman would not want me to tell them what I know. I have a feeling that if I tell them anything, my life will be over sooner than later. They will probably destroy Norman. They will have no use for me if I tell them what I know. I have a better chance not saying a word about it. I would never betray Norman. Fritz wants the truth.

  “I was walking in search for others. The dead thing came at me, and it came out of nowhere. When I realized what it was, I was being told to hit the ground.”

  “I’m having a hard time believing your story, little girl. Just tell me what that dead thing is right now, and everything will be fine. It did not manage to harm you,” Fritz says.

  “I’m telling you that I seriously don’t know what that dead thing is. I told you that it came at me, and everything happened so fast.”

  “You choose not to tell me anything, but telling me could help save the world, if I knew more about the dead thing that you have been with. Witnesses say that they saw you walking with it, and it looks like you have managed to control the dead. Care to share this information?”

  “I’m telling you the truth. I saw the dead thing for a second, and then I was on the ground. I can’t help you, Fritz. I’m sorry, can I please go? You are taking up my time here.”

  “I will leave you with Sergeant Locknight. You and the Sergeant can get acquainted while we conduct more tests on your pet monster. When I return, you will tell me everything, I know you will. You should save yourself from being humiliated and tell me right now. Tell me what I want to know, and you can save yourself from the pain that is to come. We are in this together, so there is no need to hide anything. Just show me how it’s done. I think you know how to control the dead, and this is powerful knowledge. We will not harm you or your monster. I would really like to know what your secret is.”

  I think Fritz plans to kill us whether I talk or not. It’s not his business what Norman is. I will never tell him what I know, and I think that staying quiet is my best option. He will probably do more harm to Norman if I tell him that I can control Norman. Fritz will have to figure out Norman for himself, but Norman won’t be controlled by anyone but me. My body is ready to be tortured; my mind is ready, and my heart is prepared. I’m ready for the pain, and I’m ready to die, and suffer in order to buy as much time as I can. Every second is vital so that Norman can live just a little bit longer. This is how much I love Norman. Fritz will do anything in order to know more about Norman. I won’t let that happen. I’ve made my decision.

  “I don’t know anything, Fritz. Bring on the pain. You will just have to kill me.”

  “I shall leave the two of you alone since you have chosen your destiny,” Fritz says.

  Fritz walks out of the room and closes the door. The big Sergeant Locknight is stretching himself, and cracking his knuckles and neck.

  “You do realize this is going to hurt, right? Are you sure you want me to hurt you, bitch?”

  “You would hit a girl?”

  “Why are you protecting that monster? It is us against them! You picked the wrong side you cunt!”

  I don’t say a word. I’m waiting for the pain as he pulls my hair back and looks down at me. He slaps me with the back of his hand and laughs.

  “Is that it? Are you afraid to hit a girl? Is that all you can do with those huge muscles of yours? You must be jacked on steroids!”

>   He slaps me hard back and forth several times. Blood gushes from my nose as he puts his face in front of mine. I spit blood on his face, and he yells! He wipes the blood from his face and licks it. He seems to enjoy the taste of my blood like a pervert. He puts his arm around me and starts to choke me. He lets go of me, and I struggle to gasp for air. He punches me in the face, and he unties me from the chair.

  “STAND UP!”

  I slowly stand up, and he has his fists ready. I pick up the chair as he watches me with a smile.

  “GO AHEAD! DO IT! HIT ME BITCH!”

  I throw the chair hard, and it shatters on him. He comes at me and throws body shots at me. I try to kick him, but he punches my leg down. He kicks me in the back, and I hit the wall. He hits me in the face again, and I fall down. He isn’t hitting me with all his might since he seems to toy with me. He can easily kill me with one punch, but he obviously wants to torture me with his light punches. Any punch from him is painful enough for me. I don’t know how much more of this I can take. He kicks me in the body, again, and again. I slowly get up, but he punches me in the face again, and I fall to the ground.

  “You have a two-inch pecker! Women must love how tiny it is!”

  He punches me a few more times in the face, and my face is bloody. He grabs me up with his hands, headbutts me, and I crash to the floor. I open my eyes, and I find myself in a hospital bed. I’m chained to the bed so that I can’t escape. I’m being treated from the severe beating, and they must have pumped me with all kinds of drugs, so I guess they want me alive since they need me so badly. Fritz walks in the room.

  “How are you feeling? You have been here for a couple of days, and it looks like your wounds are healing faster than expected. You are probably wondering why you are still alive. I want you alive so you can tell us what you know about that monster or else we will continue to punish you until you give us all the information. We are still examining your pet monster. I will return in a couple of days, and you will feel much better. We have given you the best medication for your speedy recovery. I’m going to show you something when I return.”