by Jessica Ward
The sound of a camera shutter brought me back from my daydream. I looked towards the sound. Despite all the chaos and misery going on all around us, Duckface was sat on the end of our sofa, holding the phone up whilst tilting her head, her lips puckered. I couldn’t believe it, she was taking a selfie!
I couldn't bite my tongue anymore. "What the hell are you doing you vain, inconsiderate bitch!" I screamed at her. "People are dying all around us, and all you can do is take pictures of yourself. You don’t give a shit about anyone else. That’s it, either get your head of your arse or get the fuck out of my house.”
She just glared at me, without saying a word she got up and stormed into the guest room.
I wasn’t sorry. She was in dire need of a reality check. No one got up to follow her out, even Andy stayed with us. He looked at me apologetically.
“Right, we need to figure out what we’re going to do. We can’t stay here forever, eventually we’re going to run out of food. I’m already starting to go stir crazy trapped in here”
Nick and Andy nodded. We tossed ideas back and forth. “As long as we have electricity, I think we need to make the most of it. We don’t know how long it’s going to last.”
I agreed with Nick. We grabbed every single electronic device we could. Phones. Laptops, Tablets, everything that could be charged got plugged in. We decided to keep all devices charging at all times, just in case.
I spent the rest of that day cooking all the fresh and frozen food, freezing what I could, just in case we lost power.
We spent the next 3 days after that, making our way through our entire film collection, just to keep ourselves occupied. In this time Duckface and I never spoke a word to each other. Quite frankly, I preferred it that way.
The screams from the outside world that could be heard, were less constant. Nights became more peaceful as the noise died down. Still we kept the curtains closed. No one ever looked out, as far as we were all concerned we did not want to see, hear or smell the outside world. We stayed quiet and kept to ourselves, we only found out what was happening through the news, which was now broadcast on every channel.
On the fourth day, we finally lost power and water. It wasn’t a great surprise; we already had T light candles placed in various rooms of the apartment. We were as prepared as we could be, given the circumstances.
We unplugged all our phones and switched them off. No point in wasting the battery until we absolutely had to.
Things were starting to get difficult for us all. We no longer knew what was happening in the outside world. There was no sign of rescue. We spent our days waiting, for what? we didn’t quite know.
Duckface finally broke the silence between us. “There’s something I need to show you” she whispered “I’ve been checking up on Facebook, to find out what’s going on. People have been posting different theories about what’s happening. Don’t be mad, but I made a group”
“What do you mean you’ve made a group, what for?” I asked.
“Well, our family and friends are out there. I made the group so we could all keep in contact with each other. Don’t worry I haven’t told anyone we’re here.” She carried on “there might be a safe place somewhere, somewhere we can go nearby”
This was the first time I had ever heard her talk like that. Making a Facebook group seemed like an odd thing to do, but at least she was trying to help. I didn’t think she had it in her.
“Why are you telling me this now?” I asked
“When the electricity went off I knew I couldn’t carry it on, on my own. I know we need to save our battery power just in case. But there’s still people online.”
She handed me her phone. I opened the page. She had named it ‘E Virus Support Group’.
I couldn’t help but laugh. It sounded like some type of AA meeting for alcoholics, drug users and people with strange addictions.
I looked down the page. She already had 2,000 members. This was good, it meant other people were alive and safe.
People were posting all sorts to the group. Mostly were cries for help. A few were sharing their experiences; a few had mentioned being bitten or injured.
I had to hand it to her, it was a good idea. We needed to keep track of what was going on in some way. This seemed like our only option.
We decided to monitor it once a day. That way we weren’t constantly checking it and could reserve power. It was now our only link with the outside world.
Chapter 4 – The Search for Supplies
As time went on our food supplies were starting to deplete rapidly. After 2 weeks stuck in the apartment we were down to only canned goods.
The water was drying out and although we had hung a bucket from the kitchen window to collect rain water, the weather conditions were proving difficult.
We spent our days completely closed off from the outside world. We still hadn’t opened the curtains or checked outside.
We were doing what we could to keep ourselves occupied. We read books, played games, and told stories. Some days, none of us even bothered getting out of bed.
We were struggling for things to do, we had very few books in the apartment, without the luxury of TV, internet even radio, we were cut off from what we relied on most.
Tempers were rising between all of us; traits that we wouldn’t usually notice were becoming extremely irritating. The apartment felt like it was shrinking, with each passing hour.
Duckface was starting to get on my nerves. The sound of her voice began to grate on me. Every time she spoke I could feel the anger welling up inside of me, I found it harder and harder to keep the peace.
Nick and I were starting to get irritated with each other. It’s not healthy in any relationship to spend 24 hours a day with each other. I was even starting to miss work, just for the peace and quiet and change of scenery.
Each day felt the same, it was like Groundhog Day. It was the same routine day in and day out.
We were running low on candles. Each night we sat in the pitch black, with not even the faintest of streetlights to provide us with any light. Now, even in the dark we didn’t have to feel our way around the apartment. We had been there that long we knew where each door, wall and piece of furniture was. We could walk around effortlessly, dodging each obstruction as if we could see clear as day. We were far too familiar with our surroundings.
We needed to get out. We had spent far too much time in the same company. Claustrophobia, impatience and depression were starting to reveal themselves, and were becoming frequent emotions in our everyday lives.
“We need to start thinking about getting out of here. Our food isn’t going to last very long, and I think you’ll all agree it’s not healthy, cooped up in here.” I took charge of the situation.
“But where are we going to go? And what are we going to do?” Duckface asked.
“I don’t know. But we need to think of something guys. What do you all think? I’m open to suggestions” I said slightly irritated.
Andy chimed in “Ok, before we go out all guns blazing, let’s have a serious think about this. We don’t know what’s out there, we don’t know how many there are and more importantly we don’t know where they are.”
He was right. We didn’t know what we were in for, beyond that door was a mystery to us all.
“Why don’t we search the building for supplies. Food? Water? Anything we can use?” Nick added.
It was a good idea. But it had a major flaw. Just how exactly were we going to get into the other apartments? We could smash our way through the doors, but we didn’t want to attract any attention. Plus we didn’t know what would be waiting for us on the other side.
“And how exactly are we going to get in babe?” I asked
“I don’t know. We need to find something to wedge open the door, without making any noise.” he replied.
“Wait, I have a crowbar!” Andy exclaimed. “One problem though, it’s in the boot of my car.”
Great, to get anywhere inside,
we first had to go outside.
I stood up and made my way to the bay window. “Right I’ve had enough, I think it’s time we took a look outside”
They all agreed. We all stood at each side of the window. Duckface and Andy on one side, Me and Nick on the other. We didn’t want anyone or anything to know we were here.
Duckface and I crouched down; we crawled under the curtain and peered over the windowsill.
The sight before us was similar to my last glimpse of the new world. Everything was how I remember. Trolleys were still left abandoned, and rubbish was still building up covering parts of the street and roads.
All in all it was very quiet. Not a soul could be seen. We could see Andy’s car from the window. It was 6 spaces down from us, about 20 meters away. It wasn’t far at all. It looked safe enough. The complex was very open plan, we could see everything from where we were. We were on the second floor out of three.
We decided to ditch the covert operation and pull the curtains back to get a better view. We all peered out the window.
Now where we lived, there were three individual apartment blocks. Each split into two, with six apartments in each segment. Within each segment there were two exits, one at the front and another at the back.
Within in the whole complex there were around 36 apartments. All the buildings together formed an upside down U shape. They all faced towards a small open garden, in which a small oak tree grew in the centre. The lawn was always perfectly manicured, and all hedges and flower beds were always neat and tidy.
All in all it wasn’t a big complex; it was in a nice quiet neighbourhood, just off the A34. However, it was set far enough away that traffic noise did not reach us, it was in a perfect location.
The cars were parked just off the road, each space faced in towards the garden. We looked into the road, on the pavements surrounding the apartments, and still no one could be seen.
“Ok, what about this. Two of us make our way outside, whilst the other two take watch. Go over to the car, get the crowbar and come back. On the way back check as many windows as we can to see if there’s anyone inside?” I suggested.
They all looked at me, and looked back at one another. They all agreed to it. It seemed a pretty straight forward plan, as far as plans go.
Nick and Andy decided it was best if they go. Duckface and I stayed behind. We all started removing the make shift barricade we had put up that first night. Once there was a clear path to the door, we all got into position.
Duckface and I had agreed between ourselves that one of us would keep watch, the other would stay near the door to let the boys back in, and scout for any unwanted visitors.
The boys had decided to first find some make shift weapons, just in case they got into any trouble. Nick found a yellow metal spirit level next to his toolbox, whilst Andy decided to wait until he got his crowbar, and use that if needed.
It became evident we needed to find some more efficient weapons once we gained access to the other apartments. I wished as a country we were more like the Americans. Guns would have come in so useful at this point.
I had used guns before. In fact my aim was perfect; I could hit the same shot twice. Dad taught me how to shoot growing up. He had a big air rifle, a really heavy old fashioned thing. He used to take me to the derelict outbuildings we had. He would point at a pane of glass and I’d shoot it. After I’d shot the glass he would get me to target the exact same spot I had just hit. I got it dead on more often than not. After my first few goes it was apparent that my shot was far more accurate than his ever could be. He didn’t like that very much, but we both enjoyed it and it brought us closer together.
I decided it was best to let Duckface keep watch from the window. I didn’t trust her at the door. It was better for her to stand at the window, I was worried that at the first sign of trouble she would panic and lock the door, then Nick and Andy would be trapped outside. It wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest.
Before the boys left we all took turns checking the peephole and listening for movement. So far so good, nothing could be seen or heard. Carefully opening the door, making sure we didn’t make any noise the boys headed out. I held the door open and kept it open as I watched them walk downstairs and out the entrance.
Everything seemed normal so far. The corridor and staircase looked exactly the same as it did the last time I was out there. Everything was intact. So far it was going well. I made my way to the bedroom window to get a better view on where they were. I hated the idea of Nick being out there, if something was to happen to him, I don’t know what I would do. It was as if a part of me was out there as well.
Once the boys were outside I could see them looking around. They slowly made their way to the car, Nick always kept three paces behind Andy, he never let his guard down. They got to the car and swiftly into the boot. Whilst Andy rummaged around trying to find the crowbar, Nick stood in front checking over his shoulders, making sure they weren’t attracting any unwanted attention. It was like watching a covert military operation. I was proud of us all.
As soon as Andy had a handle on the Crowbar they made their way to the windows. We decided to first take a look around the flats in our own building, staying as close to home as possible. I had hoped we would be able to secure at least our block, so we had a bit more freedom, and could stay a bit longer. Maybe Duckface and Andy could claim one of the apartments as their own, giving me and Nick some much needed time to ourselves.
As they passed each window they gave us a nod, so we knew they were clear. We lost sight of them as they moved around the back. I darted to the next bedroom to get a clearer view. I didn’t want to let either of them out of my sight.
I checked all around the back. From the window I could see all the way to the end of the buildings. I waited for the boys to reappear; whilst I was waiting, I checked the area to make sure they were definitely alone.
As I glanced towards the opposite end of the building and into the rear car park I could see movement coming from behind a car. It looked too big to be an animal, from the shadows it looked almost hunched over.
As the boys reappeared, they were clearly feeling more confident. They carried on checking each window, taking longer to peer in than they had previous.
As the boys were absorbed in checking the contents of the apartments the huddled figure rose, obviously disturbed by the noise the boys were making. It was the old man from downstairs. His eyes were red and a big red bloodstain was covering his once blue shirt.
He was infected. Blood covered his mouth. He almost didn’t look real. He was as pale as a china doll, his skin had the texture of a wax figure. His face was expressionless. He followed the boys with his eyes but made no attempt to move.
I knew I had to warn them. They clearly hadn’t noticed him standing there. They were gradually making their way closer and closer to the infected man. I wanted to bang on the windows to grab their attention, but I knew any further noise would alert the man. Duckface had seen what I saw. Slowly she opened the window. The sound of the window opening made the boys look up. I ran into the kitchen where Duckface was standing and put my finger in front of my mouth. “Don’t say a word” I whispered as I pushed her out the way.
I moved towards the window. I mouthed for the boys to turn around. As they turned the infected man started making his way towards them. They took one look at him and ran. I’m sure one of them let out a shriek of some sort. I quickly made my way back to the door to let them back in. They came flying up the stairs and launched themselves into the apartment and fell into a heap on the floor in the entranceway.
“So much for being big and brave” I laughed at them.
“Shut up” they both mumbled helping each other off the floor.
The first part of our plan was a success. We partly barricaded the door back up and all went and sat in the living room to discuss Phase 2.
As the boys were outside they only managed to check the two ground floor apartments nearest to us,
we had no idea what was on the other side of the doors in the third floor apartments or next door.
We decided to start on with the ground floor. We knew it was relatively safe, and the boys were certain no one was there. We figured we would check the ground floor apartments, and make a start on the rest the next day. We needed as much strength as possible. More importantly, we needed to stay alert.
I decided to go with them this time. I was confident I could do it; I was starting to understand the way the infected acted. Although I hadn’t been in close contact with any of them, I had seen more than the rest had. I’d also seen more zombie films than anyone here put together. I thought I had a good idea of what I was in for.
“I’m coming with you” I told Nick matter of factly.
“No you’re fucking not” Nick replied.
“I am, I know what we need and I can look after myself. Lola’s fine here on her own anyway, aren’t you?” I asked pointing at her.
“Actually.. I” I cut her off before she could get another word out “See, its fine. I’m coming, there’s nothing you can stay to stop me” I told him firmly.
“Ok fine, but stay close to me, I don’t want you out my sight” Nick started to lecture me.
I rolled my eyes “Babe, we’re going downstairs, not across the country”
With that, I went to scour the flat for a suitable weapon. I needed something light but effective. I’m not very strong, so to carry something heavy would do more damage than it would good. My strength was my speed, so I needed to take advantage of that. I debated using a kitchen knife, but I would need strength to be able to cause any real damage, strength that I just didn’t have. Lucky for me, a knife was Andy’s weapon of choice. I eventually decided to borrow his crowbar.
Then, like all girls would in this situation. I went to find an appropriate outfit. I decided to go for my leather knee high boots; they had a small chunky heel and were one of my comfiest pairs to walk in. The leather was thick, so I figured that at least from the knee down I was unbitable. I teamed the boots with my black skinny jeans and a long sleeved tight top. I didn’t want any of my clothes getting caught on anything and I felt safer knowing all my skin was covered.