Slowly, ever so slowly, I walked toward the front of the store. Nothing popped out at me, the lights provided enough, well, light, that I could see the parking lot was clear of ankle biting critters, and it appeared the store was empty. How was I going to get in? The answer came when I got close enough to the door.
It opened on its own! I’m guessing the store was open the night everyone first fell ill. It did stay open until midnight on normal days. Walking in, I picked up a basket. I’d get a cart, but I’m working on the principle that there may be some of those things inside that I can’t see. The noise will draw them out and I want to avoid that.
Walking back to the pharmacy first, I’d strategized my time in the shop and what I was going to get, I realized the only thing I could hear was the soft patter of my own feet. I really hoped there was nobody else in here or anything else in here. I don’t know if I could kill something that used to be human, even if it was trying to eat me.
I entered the pharmacy, something I’d always wanted to do simply because it wasn’t allowed. I stared at the rows of medicine, wondering what I should take. Should I get only the stuff I needed now or get things like antibiotics, pain pills, antinausea and flu medicine? I started wandering up and down the rows, picking up things I thought I might need. I figured I was probably not the only human left alive so I might need to take what I could now. Knowing I didn’t have tons of room, though I did bring the bag with a thousand outside pockets, I took only one bottle of each thing, except my seizure medicine. There were 5 bottles that I could see and each one went in my pack. It sounded like a lot, but who knew when I’d find more or if the medicine would stop working? I certainly didn’t so thought I’d eventually have to venture further out to other pharmacies around town.
I exited the pharmacy and started for the meat department. I stuffed a nice, but small, turkey into my bag. It promised lots of buttery goodness and I couldn’t wait to start cooking it. A can of cranberry sauce, a box of eggs, two bags of stuffing, a few potatoes for potato salad, some spring salad mix, canned pumpkin, two pie shells, yeast, and a few other things also were crammed into my bag. Actually, I kept the eggs out. No good getting them home only to find them all broken. It was weighty, I wasn’t going to be doing much running, but I had my Thanksgiving dinner and medicine issues solved. I WAS going to have my Turkey Day; no zombie apocalypse was going to disturb me!
By instinct I walked up to the checkout stands. A sense of sadness overwhelmed me. There used to be people here. Checkers and baggers, working together to get me out of the store quickly, sometimes offering a smile and a friendly word to smooth things along. Sometimes they were snotty and I wanted to slap them. But each one revealed a little about the workings of humanity. They were all gone now, either eaten or eating those that remained. I picked up an orphaned candy bar, one of those peanut, caramelly, nougaty confections covered in chocolate. I was about to leave when I heard a whimper behind me.
Fearing the worst, a zombie about to tear my neck out, I was afraid to turn around. I heard another whimper, only closer this time. Zombies don’t whimper, I thought, and started to turn around. I’d not heard anything coming up behind me so I wasn’t sure what it was.
Staring up at me with warm, mournful eyes was the biggest dog I’d ever seen. I don’t know what breed it was, but its shoulders came up to my waist. It had long black fur, and the waggiest tail imaginable. She, I peeked to see which gender she belonged to, was absolutely beautiful and looked to be in need of a friend.
With a big smile, I walked up to the dog. She sat on her haunches and grinned up at me. An Irish wolfhound maybe? Mixed breed? I wasn’t sure, but when I got up to her she offered her paw to shake. Giggling, I took the proffered paw and shook with her. She tried to lick my face, but I wasn’t close enough. She whined again then turned around, as if to go.
I noticed she had a collar on and checked it to see if her name was on it. “Maggie” was imprinted on one of the tags dangling from her collar. Apparently, Maggie had had all of her shots this year! Wow, I’m boring.
Not even thinking about what it was going to be like to take care of such a large dog, I needed a friend, she needed a friend, we’re now friends, I went in search of a bag of dog food I could carry home. She followed along behind me. I’m guessing she must have wandered into the store somehow and hid in here. The mad, flesh-eating creatures outside didn’t differentiate between human and animal. If it moved and breathed, it was edible. I couldn’t blame her for hiding in here. It seemed a good place to hide, if you had thumbs for opening packages and cans. Maggie didn’t have any of those.
Picking up a rather expensive bag of dog food that promised optimal health for my canine friend, but one that was small enough for me to carry and two of those environmentally friendly bags, I started back towards the front of the store. Maggie followed along, not even her doggy toenails making a sound. I wondered if she would follow me out the door, if she would hesitate to go back outside, but follow me she did.
Pausing outside the doors, I looked around. I might as well have been standing in the desert, there was nothing moving outside. I had already put the dog food in one of the bags, and the eggs in the other. I was loaded down, but I thought I could handle it, as long as I didn’t have to run. I started walking, Maggie followed along behind, and kept scanning the area around me. Sometimes those things could sneak up on you. I passed the gas station I had run to earlier, glancing sadly at the Mexican restaurant, passed the car lot, and looked both ways at the stoplight before crossing. Old habits die hard, ya know?
Just as I made it through the light, and started up the hill, I saw something move. Up a ways, by the courthouse, something was moving quickly, furtively. I ran up to the gate in front of my house, hoping Maggie would follow, and quickly let myself in, not caring how much sound I made. The pack on my back made running tough, but I did it and my new friend and I both were behind the locked gate before the thing even noticed us.
I watched through the bars, noticing that whatever, or whoever, it was they’d stopped to watch us now. I could tell it was the shape of a man, I just didn’t know if it was a zombie or not. It didn’t come forward so I figured it wasn’t a human being anymore. It didn’t act like a zombie either though. I stopped there, watching it, for a while, trying to figure out what was on its head. It went and hid behind a tree there, watching me. Perhaps it was human.
I was so lost in thought it took me a few minutes to realize what the jangling sound was that I was hearing. My cellphone was ringing! I’d not heard that in days! I didn’t even take the time to wonder who it was; I just ran in the house and hit the button, breathlessly exhaling a hello.
“MADELINE! Madeline, are you there? Answer me!”
Gahhh! It was Maria. Anybody. It could have been anybody in the world, it could have even been a robocaller, but no, it was Maria. Ok, I didn’t really want her to die a horrible death, but of all the people that could survive the zombie apocalypse it had to be Maria. Dangit.
“Madeline, answer me, I know you’re there, the phone picked up. God don’t like ugly Madeline Marie Anderson, answer me!!”
My family had a thing for the name Marie, what can I say? Anyway, I guess I have to answer her don’t I? Even though my cousin was a year younger than I was she still talked to me like I was a child. I’d overheard her telling people before that I wasn’t “all there” because of the seizures, and had to be treated like a child so that I could understand my place in the world. She’d whispered that I was retarded to others. Jesus loved me and had a special place for “my” kind of gifts. Still feeling sorry for her?
“Hi Maria, how are you?” Yes, I asked that begrudgingly. I didn’t want to talk to her! No, I didn’t just stomp my foot. Ok, maybe I did a little. Dangit. Maria! Ughh!
At this point Maggie started worrying at my leg and I looked down to see what she wanted. I realized I’d left the front door wide open and dropped my bag of loot in the hallway so I went back to close it.
Glancing out the door I saw the silhouette of a body behind the oak tree in the neighbor’s yard across the street. This one looked like a woman. They were watching me.
“Madeline!! MADELINE are you listening to me?” Vaguely I’d heard Maria yammering on about the wrath of God, the end times, and some other crap, but I hadn’t really been paying attention.
“Yes, I’m listening Maria, God’s going to get us all, what else is new?” Ok, I know I was being flippant, but A. it’s Maria and B. weirdness outside!
I quickly shut the door as Maria droned on about how she’d called everyone in her cellphone’s address book and finally came to me. I was the last one in the book and the first to really answer. Apparently she’d called Amanda, and the phone had been picked up, but then it had hung right back up and the line stayed busy. Hmmm. I bet she couldn’t face Maria either. Also, Amanda’s alive!! Hooray!
“Madeline, what are you doing? Why aren’t you listening to me? Madeline?”
I had quickly shut the door and was now staring out the window. A male and a female in one day? Were they normal? Were they zombies? Was I safe? I started going around the house, making sure there were no cracks in the curtain, half-listening as Maria went on over the cellphone, walking through to the backdoor. The backdoor was open. Why was the backdoor open? This was not so fun anymore!
I slammed the door shut, picked up my baseball bat, and tiptoed over to the bathroom.
“Maria, will you shut up for a minute? Someone is in my house and I have to figure out what to do.” Ok, so I was assuming whoever it was is still here. I just wanted a turkey dinner! Why had everything suddenly decided to happen? Days of nothing then the phone finally rings and strange “people” show up outside. Gahh!
Maria, who I had apparently shocked into silence, finally spoke up. “What do you mean there’s someone in your house? Are they live people or not? These aren’t just people you’re “seeing” are they Madeline?” I could almost see the air quotes as she spoke.
“No, Maria, I went out to get some food and I just came back in when you called. The back door was standing wide open.”
“Oh. Are you sure you didn’t go out that door and forgot you did? I know how your little spells affect your mind. Maybe you just forgot sweetie. I keep telling you, if you’d just go to church and get saved Jesus will take those things away. I know it’s hard to understand, being like you are you don’t have the ability that people like me do, but you need to get saved, then Jesus will take away the demon in you that’s causing your seizures…”
*CLICK*
Yes, I really did hang up on her. And turned the sound down. Seriously. Who would want to listen to that right now? I had to figure out if anyone was in my house or not. Maggie had been quietly padding along behind me, which is amazing for such a large dog. She hadn’t growled or anything just followed me into each room I went into. Dogs growled at strangers, right? Ok, I know she hadn’t growled at me, but that was special circumstances. What was I supposed to do?
My phone started vibrating, letting me know Maria was calling me back. Eventually she’d figure out I didn’t want to talk to her. I know it seems harsh, it’s the apocalypse, I should be glad to listen to anyone’s drivel right? You’d think so, but I’d listened to this woman my entire life. Having to do it now just seemed like the cosmos’ final joke on me and I wasn’t going to put up with it. More importantly, someone was in my house! I guess I should just be glad I don’t have a basement I have to search. Because I was going to have to search the house. I wasn’t going to just run away and leave my house because of an intruder without having my dinner! Yes, you’re right; I am sounding a little hysterical now, but who wouldn’t be? It’s the zombie apocalypse for crying out loud!
Chapter Four
Without removing any of my many layers of zombie protection, who does that during the zombie apocalypse when they don’t know who’s in their house anyway, I began my search. I started creeping down the hallway to the bathroom. It was the only door that was shut on the bottom floor so I thought it best to start there. I slid along the wall, looking in front and behind me as I did. That’s how they did it in movies; I thought it was probably a good strategy. And wouldn’t you know it; Maggie was quietly stepping along behind me. This dog is awesome!
I reached the door and reached down for the handle. Before I could think about it I turned the knob, pushed the door open, and jumped in front of the door, baseball bat raised to strike. I flicked the light on, but there was nobody there. The shower curtain was bunched up as usual and there was nowhere else for anyone to hide. This was strange.
I looked around, wondering which way to go next when I heard Maggie start to whine. Distracted by her whine, I turned to see what the problem was. Maggie started pawing at me, trying to get to my face. Alright, what’s up with the dog? Now’s a strange time to start needing some loving.
I bent over to pet her on the head and Maggie looked me right in the eye and let out a very loud whine, then licked me right up the middle of the face. Doggy tongue, yuck! And then I felt it. Something I hadn’t felt in over a month now, a weird feeling that’s hard to explain. It was as if the air pressure had started to change and as I looked around the hallway, everything turned into a surrealist painting of hyper-colored objects. Even the air felt like it was swelling around me.
“Shi…” was about all I managed to get out.
And then I dropped. Great. A seizure!
I was aware of a weight pressing on me as I lay in the floor twitching like mad. I couldn’t identify it, didn’t really think about it, I was just aware of it. I couldn’t have told you that Maggie had sat down beside me and rested her head on my chest. I was trapped in a black hole in my mind as the seizure ravaged my body, drawing up muscles, shaking my limbs, and stretching my neck back until it almost felt like the bones were going to break and my head would fall off. I would have been afraid if I’d had the ability to be afraid because although I was aware of what was happening I could not think, form thoughts, form words to speak, or actually do anything. I was simply aware, like a camera is aware and only able to observe. That’s me, the incredible twitching human, able to pull small muscles with a single twitch.
These were partial complex seizures, not the grand mals everyone seems to know about. You see, there are different types of seizures. I have grand mals, only rarely, partial complex, and staring seizures, which are just a few of the types of seizures people get. Staring seizures involve complete lack of awareness, but you’re still awake. Obviously you sit staring at something, although you may not be aware that you’re doing this. A lot of people that have staring seizures don’t even realize they have them. Unlike someone lost in thought and staring off into space, the lucky recipient of staring seizures is completely unaware of what is happening around them or that they are even having the seizure. I also swallow a lot, for some reason, when I have this type of seizure.
The type of seizure I’m having now is the most common one I have. This type can last for a few seconds or over an hour. That’s when I have to go to the doctor. It’s been 15 minutes now and I’ve only had four actual seizures, although I’m not really aware that time has passed. Each second feels like an eternity, but at the same time minutes feel like seconds. It’s weird, I know.
Because I’ve been laying on the floor with my entire body twitching I’ve bruised my elbows, knocked over a lamp table that was too close to my foot, smacked my head into the wall, and yes, strained a muscle in my chest. I’m aware that all of this has happened, I felt it when the lamp fell off the table and onto my leg, but I couldn’t really process what has happened, I’m only aware of it. I also know I have the inevitable headache, a deep piercing pain that also aches and burns, a visitor with each seizure I have, that sometimes feels like a hot coal burning through my skull and into my brain.
That’s the really painful worrying one, the hot coal sensation. People have tried to talk to me during these seizures, telling me they are there or t
o snap out of it, or just talking me through it. I remember what they’ve said when it’s over sometimes; it just doesn’t mean a whole lot to me at the time. It’s like hearing music when you aren’t really paying attention, you hear it, you know you’ve heard it, you may even sing along with it, but you’ve not really processed the fact that you’ve done any of those things, they just happened and you may or may not realize you did all of that without noticing it, after you’ve done it. At some point, in a break from the seizures when all I can do is try to calm my racing heart and get my breath back, I figure out I’ve rolled over, my head is resting on my arm now, protected, and Maggie is laid beside me. Then it’s right back to it.
As the seizure continues my brain stops any sign of lucidity and I am truly trapped inside of it, that black, empty cave, aware of only the pain of overworked muscles, the overheating that comes from the same overworked muscles, a struggle to breathe, and not much else. I’m simply there for the ride in the dark. Totally disengaged and incapable of thought. I could probably still hear you if you spoke to me, but it means even less to me now, I’m lost in my own little world of pain, grunting strange noises as air is suddenly squeezed out of my chest, constriction, and I don’t even know anymore that I suspected there was an intruder in my home, I’m not even really aware of the dog softly panting beside me, as she scanned the area around me. I’ve forgotten the outside world exists, but Maggie knows.
A moment of reprieve as the seizure passes for a moment. I know it’s not finished yet though, I can feel a black cloud around me, almost as if I’m surrounded by very fine cotton that you know you should feel but can’t because it’s so light. It’s a strange sensation that is hard to explain but it lets me know when the seizures are truly done, that sensation and the killer headache goes away when it’s over.
I’m panting, trying to catch my breath, this is hard work you know, why are you looking at me like I’m a freak, terrified of how much longer this will go on, when I hear a step behind me. Just as I try to turn the seizures start again. Before I could even feel fear fully, I’m locked back in my cave, aware but unable to process that someone is touching me, putting a pillow under my head or that Maggie has stood up to stand beside the person. Maggie sticks her snout in the little hand and gets her ears scratched as she licks the palm of said hand, but I don’t know any of this as I slip back into the clutching black world of the seizure.
Seizures: A Tale of the Zombie Apocalypse Page 2