Seizures: A Tale of the Zombie Apocalypse

by Sparrow Black

  “I see you’ve found us another friend, Maggie. Well done, girl, well done.”

  Chapter Five

  As the latest seizure finally lets me go my exhausted mind and body give one final push and I roll over to look up at the intruder in my home. It’s a little girl, maybe 8 years old, around 4 feet tall and slim. She looked like an angel with her little round face and dark hair, and that smile like she knew what I’d just gone through and commiserated with me. How weird is that, huh?

  It’s starting to go away now, the darkness around the edges is fading and the pain in my head has stopped. I’m sweating, overheated, exhausted, I’m certain I’ve slobbered all over myself, and on my way to falling asleep, but I reach out my hand for the girl and she takes it.

  “Do you have Ativan? Do you need some?” She asks. I’m shocked that she’s asked, that she even knows the name of the medicine, but somehow it makes sense. Maybe she isn’t really there and she is an angel? Maybe Maria is right and I do see things that aren’t there? No, she could never be right!

  “No, I don’t need it.” I murmur, just before I fall asleep. It’s not something I can stop. After a session like that I always sleep. It just takes over me and, like the seizures, there’s no stopping it. I don’t even care that I’m still on the floor, that there are strange people watching the house, I need to sleep. So I did.

  And that, boys and girls, is why I’ve not left the house in the last week. When that could happen to you at any moment, would you be tearing off outside to fight the horde back and save your town from certain death? It complicates things a little, that’s for sure. My medicine had been working so well, but I guess the stress of finally going outside got to me. I didn’t notice the warning signs because I was terrified of what I was about to do.

  Coming back to consciousness, I realized that I’d missed the signs. I always feel a little hyper before a seizure, like something isn’t right, but I’d been on my way out the door and put it off to my fear. The fear, stress, and adrenaline had combined, I suppose, to counteract my medicine. The medicine doesn’t always stop the seizures, but it helps to control them. The zombie apocalypse had also done its best to defeat the effects of the medicine. I was definitely going to have to be careful. I’d grown cocky and too sure of myself. And whoa, wait, where’s the girl?

  I looked around, but did not see her in the hallway. I didn’t see Maggie either. Maybe I dreamed them both? I was starting to get a strange feeling that maybe I had when I heard toenails tapping down the hall.

  “Hello?” I called out. Maybe I hadn’t dreamed them? “Is anyone there?”

  The hallway was dark but I felt Maggie’s head slide under my hand. I patted her and walked towards the kitchen. Did I dream the girl, I wondered, was she in there? If so, why didn’t she answer me?

  I turned into the doorway for the kitchen and the girl was sitting at the table, headphones on and fiddling with a device of some sort. I figured it was a smartphone and paused to study her for a moment. And suddenly, I was in adult caring for a child mode. Looking at the girl I felt a sense of protectiveness I’ve never felt before in my life. Wow.

  She was turned in such a way that I could see her face but she couldn’t see me unless she looked up. Her hair was shiny and black, she wasn’t very tall so I didn’t think she was much past 8 years old, she looked rather pale, but she had the darkest blue eyes I’d ever seen. She almost looked like a doll, but most dolls don’t wear blood smeared jeans, torn sweatshirts, or trainers with untied laces. There were dark circles under her eyes so I figured she hadn’t been sleeping much and thought she was probably hungry. I wondered at what she’d been through and started over to her. I didn’t want to frighten her so I walked in front of her, where she could see me more clearly, and waved at her.

  Pulling the tiny speakers out of her ears she smiled up at me and asked if I was feeling better.

  Sitting down in the chair across the round table from her I told her I was much better and asked if she was hungry.

  “Oh yes, I could eat a giant spinosaurus I’m so hungry!” she said.

  “A whole dinosaur? And one that big? You must be starving! When did you eat last?” I asked the girl. I was trying to think of what I could feed her; everything I’d brought home had to do with dinner tomorrow. There was plenty of salad, I could drain and dump that can of turkey into it and make a salad with that and some cheese. First, though, I had a question.

  “I can make us a really good salad, that’s about all I have for tonight; I’ll make it for you if you tell me your name.”

  “Oh, I’d eat anything at this point! And my mom would make us salads a lot, I eat them all the time, so don’t worry. And my name is Ginny. Ginny Puxmeyer.” It was cute watching her talk, but tiring because she talked as quickly as she could, as though she wanted to get it all out in one breath, wasting nothing in the process. Keeping up with her was going to prove to be tough.

  “I’m Madeline Kay, what kind of salad dressings do you like?”

  As I started pulling things out of the bags and putting them away I asked Ginny questions. I learned she’d been on her own for three days, that her parents had both turned and she ran away from them, and that she’d been hiding in a shop up the road from me for the last day. She’d come from some apartment buildings a few blocks over, and Maggie was her dog. As I shredded lettuce and cheese she told me about her parents.

  “Mom and Dad, they both worked at a factory on the other side of Lincolnton. They got the flu from there, I guess. Everyone was getting sick. At school the other kids and the teachers were just falling over they were so sick. They sent us home early because there weren’t any teachers left that weren’t sick. When I got home Momma and Daddy were lying on the couch together, but they weren’t moving. Daddy got up first, then my Momma. I thought they were better, but my Daddy tried to bite me. And Momma just fell in the floor, and kept trying to grab my leg. She wouldn’t let go and I tripped. That’s when Maggie came in and started pulling at Momma’s arm. Mom and Dad both tried to bite Maggie but she kept jumping away. I got up and ran to the door and Maggie followed me. I ran up the road, and then looked to see if they were following. I didn’t know what to do. There were people coming out of their apartments, they tried to chase me too, so I ran. I ran and ran until I couldn’t run anymore. I stopped at the police station, but the same kind of people were there too. So Maggie and I ran some more. We found a shelter at the ball park for the high school; we stayed there for a while. Then we went up to the library. The doors were open, there wasn’t anyone in there, but there wasn’t any food. So we went to that gas station just up from it. I couldn’t get in, but I could get into the bathroom on the outside so we stayed there until earlier today.

  There aren’t as many people out now so we came out, looking for food. We saw you come out of your house and Maggie took off after you for some reason. I figured she’d be ok, and I was hungry. I figured your house was empty so I’m sorry, but I came in to look for food. I was so hungry. Then you came back and I was afraid, so I hid. Then everything else happened and now we’re here. Do you want me to leave?” And oh man, the puppy dog eyes that girl gave me. Maggie even tried it out on me, but hers wasn’t nearly as good as Ginny’s. How could you be mad at that? I couldn’t that’s for sure.

  Finishing the salad I sat it down in front of Ginny with two bowls and some forks. Stop looking at me like I’m a bad hostess, there aren’t any napkins left, it’s the zombie apocalypse for crying out loud! I sat down and looked at Ginny.

  “I have an extra room, not a lot of food, and tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Would you and Maggie like to stay here with me Ginny? We’re safe, for now, and the power is still on. We could watch some movies for the rest of the night, get up in the morning, and make Thanksgiving dinner, would you like that?” Smiling, I filled my mouth with the salad I’d drizzled with Caesar dressing. Ok, so my lettuce was swimming in the stuff, sue me!

  I almost choked on my fork as Ginny launched he
rself at me, wrapping my neck in a tiny-child-bear-hug.

  “Yes, yes, yes!” She squealed and almost broke my neck jumping up and down.

  Getting back to the business of eating we decided that Bedknobs and Broomsticks was going to be the first movie we watched and then I put Maggie some food and water down. I’m still a bit wonky from the seizure but feeling alright. I don’t know if I can sit through an entire movie without falling asleep but I have prepared Ginny’s room for her and Maggie and have her settled on the wrap-around couch with a blanket, some popcorn, and a drink. Maggie starts to whine and I realize she hasn’t been outside since she had a drink and some dinner.

  “Okay, I’m going to take Maggie outside, will you be ok in here Ginny? I don’t want to leave her outside on her own”.

  “Can the monsters get in if you’re outside? I don’t want to have to run again.”

  “No, baby, they can’t there’s a fence all the way around the house, the gate is…” Oh dear, I thought, did I lock it, I’ll have to check “…locked, and the house is locked up. Plus we’ll be upstairs and we’ll barricade that if you like. Ginny and I won’t be long, play on my tablet until I get back in; I have some games on it.”

  I smiled and walked to the back door to let Maggie out.

  Stepping outside I looked around. No creepy crawlies in sight and I’d have seen them, the streetlights were still working. Walking around the house I crept up to the gate. It was locked, thankfully, and nothing could get in. Standing there as Maggie snuffled around, trying to find the perfect spot to do her business, I looked up towards the courthouse. I saw some kind of movement up there, but wasn’t sure what it was. It could have been a dog or a cat, but it could also be another human, or the same ones I’d seen earlier. Having a child with me, even for this short amount of time was already changing how I thought.

  Before Ginny came I rarely thought about turning all the lights on or making noise. I was safe in my home and everyone else was dead or so I’d assumed after I didn’t hear from anyone. Now I was thinking the lights on and noises made it apparent someone was home. Of course, I say that as I look at the other houses around the street. Because most of the deaths seemed to start around the time it got dark some of the houses did have lights on in them. The lights were on every night so I had to assume the houses were empty. Straining my eyes to see what was up there I caught a flash of metal on whatever it was that was moving. It seemed to be moving away so I figured we’d be ok, for now. Maggie came over, doing her head in the hand trick, and snuffled a little. I guess it’s time to go back in.

  Ginny had taken a bath earlier and I gave her a robe and some of my old pajamas my Mom had saved from when I was a little girl. Mom had sewn them out of lace and velvet and I’d loved them dearly. I wore them until I couldn’t get them up over my legs anymore and she put them away for when I had a little girl one day. The whole set matched and it was still one of my favorite gifts ever. I’d had tears in my eyes when I pulled them out of the box remembering my mother. They fit Ginny loosely but they’d work for now.

  The little girl was curled up under a fleecy blanket, snoring on my lap. With a full belly, days of little rest, a warm bath to soothe her, and feeling safe she’d fallen asleep near the end of the movie and I waited until it ended to move her to the extra bedroom upstairs. Her bedroom was directly across from mine so I wasn’t far away. I found a nightlight and plugged it in, just in case she woke up in the night confused. I left the door open and walked into the bathroom down the hall.

  I took a quick shower and headed for my own bed. Thinking over the day I couldn’t believe all that had happened. I’d been so bored at the beginning of the day and it had ended better than I could have ever expected. I was worried about having a child, caring for a child, but she had already brought her own joys. I’d been tickled watching her little face as the movie played and I’d promised we’d try to find a magic spell to turn her bed into a traveling bed so we could escape the monsters. I’d have to figure out how to explain we couldn’t do things like that at some point.

  I was exhausted, even after my nap, and I was looking forward to getting up in the morning and preparing a huge dinner for us both. Turning off my bedside lamp I cuddled under my own blankets and fell asleep to the light snores of Ginny down the hall.

  <><>

  Maggie, unsure of which of the humans would need the most protection if one of the bad-smellies, as she thought of the zombies, broke in, positioned herself halfway between them both. Her belly full, watered, and in a warm home Maggie was content and fell asleep too, feeling safe for the first time in days.

  Chapter Six

  I stirred in my bed. Unsure if I was awake or asleep, fighting wakefulness to fall back into the safe, fuzzy world of sleep. It wouldn’t let me go though, something was alarming my slumbering brain but I simply wasn’t sure what. This sensation frightened me and I woke up instantly, still, holding my breath, terrified to move. I heard Maggie growling low and steady in the hallway and knew something was wrong. If I was braver I might have jumped out of bed and ran in to see what was wrong but I wasn’t. I was a frightened little girl all over again, waiting for Mommy and Daddy to come chase the monsters away. Little girl. Little GIRL! Ginny! Finally coming fully awake I jumped out of bed and ran to the room across the hall.

  I couldn’t see anything, but it was dark of course. Heart pounding I flipped the light on, prepared to fight with my bare hands for the child slumbering in the bed. Oh what the heck is going on? There was nothing there, no person, no monster, just a sleeping Ginny, fist tucked under her chin, and snoring away. She was safe and all was well. Oh dear, but what about the rest of the house? Maybe I’d better check first before I make that assumption.

  Feeling slightly more at ease I padded slowly through the house. I checked all of the rooms, all of the windows, all was well. Putting the feeling off to the stress that I’d had that day I went back to bed. I laid awake for a while, listening to the sounds of the house, drifting off to dreams of turkey and mashed potatoes.

  <><>

  Outside, in the dark shadows of a tree in the backyard a figure stepped out of the darkness it was hiding in, walked to the gate that had been locked, but now wasn’t, opened it, and started walking up the road. Though the figure was exceptionally quiet Maggie heard it and growled again, going to the door and standing guard as the females in the house slept. They were alone, thought they were safe, but Maggie could sense that what was outside was evil and she would not rest until the big human female woke up again. Maggie knew it was her job to keep both of the females safe, and she would perform her duties if it took her very life.

  The danger was gone now, Maggie knew this but she still stood guard. Something nasty was coming and not the good kind of nasty that she liked to roll around in. Oh no, not that kind at all. Something nasty that even dogs didn’t like? It must be bad.

  <><>

  Yea, though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we shall have turkey dinner. And it was so! And it was good. Sitting at the table I looked at all the food spread before us. Ginny was across from me, eyes wide and fork in hand. Neither of us had an idea of where to start. Though it was only us two there was a golden, juicy turkey, and steaming bowls of gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes. Ginny and I had also prepared potato salad, devilled eggs, sweet potato casserole, pies, cranberry sauce, corn, salad, hot yeast rolls drowning in real butter, and green beans. Maggie was sitting under the table, between us, waiting on morsels from the sky.

  I looked at Ginny, grinned, and started cutting into the turkey. Ginny threw her head back and laughed in delight at my grin, holding her plate out for whatever I handed her. I handed her a slice of turkey and put some on my plate as well. We were too excited to speak, but still squeaking, giggling, and moaning as we spooned food onto our plates. I’d thought I’d never see this much food again, or this kind of dinner again for that matter, and I might not in the future, but for today Ginny and I were going to be w
asteful and thankful for the food we ate. There really wasn’t much else to be thankful for was there, except that we’d found each other?

  The world had ended. Everyone in my neighborhood appeared to be zombies. Death and destruction had laid waste to the country. The news I found this morning was disheartening. More websites were down, not responding at all as the people that had manned the servers failed to show up to maintain them. But maybe they were preparing and eating their own turkey dinners? They could be!

  The power kept flickering too, I’d been worried that dinner would not be cooked it was so bad. I was trying to be cheerful today, I did not want bad thoughts to intrude, but it was kind of hard to fight them off when so many friends and family were missing from the table and only an orphaned girl was there with me to keep me company. How very strange it all was. I was grateful for Ginny and Maggie though, and this wonderful dinner we’d prepared. Oh man, stuffing is awesome, isn’t it?

  I shut my eyes and savored the taste, letting my thoughts slip away as I enjoyed the dinner I’d so longed for. The dinner I’d finally made myself go outside for. It was totally worth the drama, I know that much. Have you ever had homemade chocolate pie? It wasn’t as good as my Dad’s, I’ll admit that much, but ohhhh man, it was good stuff! So very delicious. If the recipe wasn’t a closely guarded secret I’d post it to you. But it is so you aren’t getting it!