Protecting Norman (Book 1)

by Skylar, A. J.

  I continue to search another room. It looks like a doctor’s office. I search the desk, open the drawers to find dirty magazines, and I wonder what kind of doctor worked here. This is creepy, and I hope he is dead. I walk into another office. I find a dead body. It looks like a nurse tried to kill herself. It looks like she overdosed on something. There is a needle stuck in her arm, and it looks like she was hit hard in the head. I search the room, and I find medication. I take all of it. It’s time for me to leave since I have enough to carry.

  I make my way out of the hospital. It’s really dark outside, and it looks like a storm is coming.

  The rain comes down hard as I journey back home. The journey back home seems peaceful. There is something about this moment that is relaxing. I usually hate walking in the rain. If there is anyone out there, I can spot them instantly. That’s how lifeless the world is now. I’m used to seeing movement all around me. I will enjoy this peaceful moment while it lasts. I can’t wait to get home and dry off. I hope I don’t get sick from walking in the rain. I continue to make my way home, and it seems like I’ve been walking for a long time. I think I see movement ahead of me. I can’t believe what I’m seeing.

  It looks like I’m not alone in the new world. I’m not hallucinating. I stop walking and stand still. The rain continues to come down hard and makes visibility difficult. I still notice movement ahead of me, even though the bad visibility makes it a little difficult to see ahead. I notice a strange man sitting on a park bench. I continue to walk closer to get a better look. I slowly approach him as the rain hits down hard, and it doesn’t seem to disturb him. I can only see the back of him.

   He wears a baseball cap. I don’t think he can hear me approaching. I don’t want to startle him, so I take my time to come around him.

  I can see the side of his face as I slowly approach him. I’m across from him. He wears sunglasses, jeans, and a leather jacket. He’s a built man, has a beard, and he looks like a wrestler. He slowly turns his head towards me, as I get closer to him. I should try to start a conversation with him.

  “You’re the first person I’ve seen since the chaos. What’s your name?"

  The man slowly stands up and slowly comes near me. He doesn’t want to answer me. I stand still as he approaches me. I should keep talking to him, and maybe he will listen.

  “Are you feeling ok? Do you live around here? Do you speak English?”

  The man is getting closer, and I’m nervous. He raises one of his arms at me as he slowly approaches, and he starts making loud choking sounds from his mouth. I start to back away from him. He sounds very sick, and I don’t want him to touch me.

  “Hey, I don’t want you too close to me. I don’t know you. What’s wrong with you?”

  The man gets closer to me, and I slowly back up. He tries to grab me, but I swing my right arm at him. He manages to grab my shoulders with his hands. He grips me really tight. He won’t back off me. He bends closer with his mouth open, and he looks like he’s going in for a kiss. I swing a hard punch and hit his face. He steps back, and he manages to have one hand grabbing onto me. I hit him again, his sunglasses fly off, and he lets go of me. His face is turned away from me.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you so hard! What is wrong with you?”

  He turns his head slowly towards me, and he starts to make growling sounds. I suddenly notice his blood-red eyes! My mouth drops. Holy shit! The guy looks just like a zombie!

  I try to calm down. I take deep breaths. It looks directly into my eyes. Its evil red eyes stare at me, and it starts to make a strange hissing noise from its mouth as it approaches me. I quickly back away, and I grab my assault rifle. I never dealt with a zombie before. A zombie is nothing like what I’ve read about or like the movies. I don’t know if I should negotiate with it, but it could work. I could be wrong about the whole thing. This guy might not even be a zombie. He could be just sky high on crack. Anything is possible. On second thought, if it looks like a zombie, acts like a zombie, and walks like a zombie, then it must be a zombie. Whatever it is, it’s not friendly. I will give it a chance. I should try to see if I can find out what it wants.

  “If you come any closer, I will shoot you in the leg! I swear I will do it!”

  I point my assault rifle at its legs as it raises its arms at me and approaches a lot faster with its mouth open. It’s foaming at the mouth.

  “I swear I will shoot you!”

  I fire a warning shot in the air as it continues to approach me. I fire a shot near its foot, but it continues to approach me. I finally aim at the zombie’s leg. I shoot several shots at its legs, and it falls to the ground. It slowly stands back up and continues its assault. I aim at its body, fire several rounds and it falls back onto the ground. The zombie is on its back, but it rises up again! It stands up and quickly pursues me! I back away as the zombie approaches me with aggression.

  I slip—on the wet ground, and fall on my ass! I drop my assault rifle as the zombie manages to gain some ground, and I try to reach for my assault rifle, but it’s too late because the zombie is on top of me!

  I struggle as it grabs my hair with its strong hands. Its mouth is wide open, and it starts to come closer for some contact. I can’t seem to reach my rifle, so I hold the zombie back with my left hand, and I’m almost face to face with the zombie as it presses its way closer to bite me! Its blood-red eyes are furious! It has a horrible stench, and I can’t hold the zombie any longer. The zombie is too overpowering, and my left arm starts to buckle as I take my right arm and search for my knife. I’m sitting on my knife, and it is almost impossible to reach.

  I strain my right arm to pull the knife out. I scream—at the top of my lungs in order to pull the knife out. My right arm suddenly swings out with the knife in my hand, and I swing my arm, and I bury—the knife in the zombie’s head! The zombie falls on my exhausted body, and it weighs a ton. I cry out in relief as the rain continues to pour down. I’m so tired from the struggle that I will rest on the ground for several minutes.

  I push the zombie off me, and I’m on my back. I stay put, and I let the cool rain relieve my exhaustion. My right arm is strained. I’m done for the day. My right arm is killing me. I’m never going to negotiate with a zombie ever again. I can stay rested on my back for hours. The rain feels like a good massage. I would feel much better if the zombie wasn’t next to me. I will rest here for a little while. I close my eyes and enjoy the moment of relief.

  Enough time has passed by. I should get moving, so I gather my things, and I make my way back home. I just killed my first zombie. The world must be full of zombies, and I wonder where the rest of the zombies are hiding. It’s getting too cold, and it’s too rainy to walk all the way home. That zombie took a lot of energy out of me. I feel weak and tired, but I know there’s a mall in the area. I don’t want to get sick since there’s still a long way to go. I need to find some shelter to get dry and warm up.

  I walk as the heavy cold rain comes down hard on me. I feel like I’m being punished. After walking in the terrible dark weather,

  I reach the mall area. I approach a superstore, and it looks like the windows are broken. The superstore looks ransacked, and there aren’t survivors inside, yet I don’t feel like dealing with others right now. I need to gain my strength back.

  The superstore still has a lot left over from what I can see from the outside. I cautiously enter the superstore. It’s dark, so I take my flashlight out and make my way deeper into the store. I make my rounds to make sure the place is secure. I find sleeping gear, and the sleeping gear is exactly what I need since it’s chilly inside the superstore. I take all my clothes off, and I notice that my nipples are very hard.

  I dry up my naked body with some towels. There just happens to be a comfortable looking jogging outfit. I quickly put on the jogging outfit, some new socks, and runners. This is more like it. I walk down to the food section to take what I want and stuff my face. I take advantage of the sweet drinks and junk food to rep
lenish my energy. I find a lantern, and I use it to light up the area, but I don’t want it too bright because I don’t want to attract the crazies. This is the perfect place to rest, though I won’t live here since it’s not secure. I need my rest, so I start to get ready for some sleep. I’m so comfortable in this sleeping bag. I could use a nice massage right now.

  It’s too bad that there are no good men around here. They are probably all dead, and that’s a shame. It doesn’t matter how tired I get because I still have needs to fulfill. I have time to pleasure myself, so I’m going to pleasure myself with a passion, and I’m going to make this sleeping bag soaking wet. I close my eyes and imagine myself being caressed by a gorgeous man. I take my time, touch my body, and start to let myself go. I spend several minutes catching my breath. All this excitement gives me cravings for junk food, so I get up and gather up a lot of sweets. I wish I could find ice cream. That would make things perfect. This night is very satisfying. I feel much better; however, I should get some sleep. It is peaceful right now. My eyes are getting heavy, and I hope to have a beautiful dream.

  I wake up from having a sweet dream. I slept so well that I must have been asleep for at least seven hours. I leave the superstore. The superstore will be my resting place if there’s a next time. The sun is out; the sky is blue, and I’m shocked that it’s not raining. I should get settled in my new home since I have enough supplies to survive the winter. I’m on my way home. It’s a peaceful journey home. I’m surprised that I haven’t bumped into any trouble. I will have a lot to do when I get home. I will do my best to prepare for the next several months. I reach my house, walk inside, and I start to prepare for winter, since I don’t plan to take any trips outside until winter passes. I secure the house, ration out all the wood, food, and prepare everything else for the long winter months ahead. I will test out the fireplace and get the wood burning before it gets too cold.

  There is enough firewood to last several winters. I don’t even want to feel a snowflake. I look forward to cuddling by the fireplace for the next few months. I’m pretty sure the smoke from the chimney won’t attract attention, and I doubt that anyone will be roaming around in the winter.

  Survivors may try to seek shelter until winter passes. I assume the dead will have a hard time roaming around in the snow, and I hope that they freeze. I predict a long and vicious winter. I walk to the basement to collect firewood, prepare the fireplace for the first fire, and I pack the fireplace full of firewood. I take my lighter to burn some paper, place the burning paper under the firewood, and I can already feel the warmth of the fire. It feels great, and it’s a beautiful display. I sit by the fireplace, and I will relax for a while. It’s just a matter of time before winter finally arrives.

  Chapter 6

  The winter days have been long and silent. I spend most of my time lounging by the fireplace, though I’ve spent some of my days and nights reading the books that are in the house. I occasionally watch the outside to look outside for any signs of life, but I do not see anything. The winter is brutal, and I have a feeling that many people did not survive the winter. I wonder if the dead still walk the earth.

  It’s amazing what a long period of isolation can do to a person. I’ve gotten to know this house as if I’ve lived here all my life. My food supply is still at an acceptable level. However, I will still go out on a supply run when winter is over because I know that I will run out of food eventually. The liquor in the house kept me slightly sane. I’ve been spending a lot of time drinking the days and nights away, and I’ve spent the nights smoking the cigars that are in the house. So many lonely nights can drive a person to drink a lot. The long days can make anyone go crazy. I will continue to endure the long winter, and drink the days away.

  A lot of time has passed since the start of winter, and it seems like an eternity has gone by. Mother Nature has finally decided to bless the area with warmer weather. Spring finally arrives, so I go to the backyard for some fresh air. It feels unusual being outside. I feel reborn, and it feels like the zombie apocalypse is over, but I will wait for all the snow to melt before I leave for a supply run. I will spend my time preparing for my next supply run. The rain manages to melt all the snow away. Several days have passed, and it looks like winter is officially gone. The streets and grass are dry. The warm weather arrives.

  The day is here. I’m ready to get outside and search for supplies. I prepare my things, and I also want to see if anything has changed. The long winter must have changed things. The zombie apocalypse could be over, and I wonder if the zombies froze during the nasty winter. I gather my things to begin my long journey ahead. I decide to take a different route. I want to check out a forest. I look around the neighborhood, and everything looks exactly as it did before winter. I finally arrive at a forest, and I walk through it to see if there’s anyone camped outside.

  The forest is beautiful; the trees stand tall, and the air is very fresh. I would love to stay here forever, but I wouldn’t want to be here in the winter. The sun seems to disappear as I walk deeper inside the mysterious forest. The trees seem to block out a lot of the daylight. I wonder what the night is like in the forest. There is no trail in this forest. It seems like I can get lost and never find my way out. I’m not sure if I want to leave, and I wonder where the forest will lead me.

  The forest is peaceful, and I can hear the animals in the forest. The birds are flying around above me. The ground crackles as I take each step through the forest, and I discover strange noises ahead. As I make my way closer, I discover a camp with a small group of survivors. I hide behind a large tree. I’m far enough that they can’t notice me. I decide not to approach them right away. I want to observe what they are doing.

  It’s better to be cautious than sorry. I have a strange feeling about these people. They are distracting my peaceful journey through the lovely forest. They have a large fire built, and I see several men and women. They look like nice people. The men all have beards, and the women are very pretty. They must have evacuated the city and headed to the forest for safety. I wonder how they survived the freezing winter months. They look like they are enjoying themselves. It’s nice to see that people are happy. There probably isn’t a lot of happiness in the world.

  They are drinking beer, and they are having a great time. I wonder if I should approach their camp. They could be trouble, but I will take a chance. There is only one way to find out. I must be crazy.

  On second thought, I will not approach them right away. I think that maybe I should turn around and continue my journey because it might be a better choice. If I leave the forest, I will never set foot in the forest again. I think about what I would say to them. For all I know, they might not even know about the end of the world. I have no idea how long they have been in the forest. I have to question this situation because things could get very ugly.

  They might think I’m crazy if they don’t know about the new world. I start to have sickening thoughts. What will happen if they are not what they seem? Will they try to kill me? I don’t know what they are capable of. I might have to kill them. I would love to live in the forest since the air is so much better in the forest. I’m so paranoid about this whole situation. Being isolated for so long must have screwed with my mind.

  The new world brings out the worst thoughts in me. I continue to observe and learn as much as I can from the camp. I should ignore my negative thoughts and approach them.

  I need to loosen up. I’m dying to find out what they know, and I’m so eager to make my move. I decide it’s time to step out and introduce myself. I want to try to make new friends because I really want to know where they came from.

  These people have no reason to kill me. I stand up to take my next step to make myself seen by the strangers at the camp. I stand up from crouching, and I prepare to walk forward, but I’m grabbed—from behind! A large hand covers my mouth and forces me back down to remain hidden. The stranger is overpowering, smells horrible, and I can’t see his face.
/>   “Don’t you move, bitch. Stay down and don’t make a sound,” he whispers.

  His breath is unbearable with a tobacco stink. I can’t breathe as we observe the camp ahead of us. The people in the camp bring out a naked man. The other men carry axes and machetes. They hack—the naked man to pieces! The naked man screams in agony as the men continue to hack at his arms and legs.

  Blood bursts out everywhere. The man's blood splatters all over the crazy men, yet they seem to enjoy this sick event.

  The man is still alive as they continue to hack him to pieces. A woman approaches the naked man. She holds an ax as the men and the other women back away from her. The brutally injured man has his arms and legs severed, however; he is still alive, and I’m surprised. The people at the camp are obviously enjoying this grotesque moment. This sacrifice must be their fetish. The woman with the ax raises it in the air, and she swings down at the man’s face. The man screams at the top of his lungs as he watches the ax drop down on him! The blade is buried in the man’s face!

  To be completely honest, I think that she did the man a favor. The others start to laugh and cheer as they pick up their drinks and have a toast. They gather around and continue to hack away at the dead man. The woman takes the ax and beheads the dead man with one strike. Her technique is flawless.