Zombie Apocalypse 2.0
A Short Story 
By Jeremy & Margie Jimenez
Published by Margie Jimenez at Smashwords
Copyright 2012 Margie Jimenez
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
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My name is Fitzhugh…Fitzhugh Contreras. Weird name right? I know. My mom has a penchant for all things British and unfortunately for me my name was the ode to her obsession. Never mind that I have to live with the mockery of friends who think it funny to address me as “Old Chap” and or greet me with a “Cheerio” while attempting to say it with a decidedly English inflection. Never gets old for them. Man, how I wish sometimes that my name was Pedro or Esteban or even Joe… anything other than Fitzhugh. But alas, that is my name so feel free to call me by my nickname, Fitz.
I guess I should tell you a little bit about myself. I’m 17 years old and I live on the Upper West Side of New York City. I’m currently a senior at Edward I. Koch High in the West Village. I’m 5’9”, my hair is light brown and wavy and I tend to wear it a kind of long. I’m Hispanic but no one ever believes me at first glance because I’m so light skinned, unlike the rest of my tawny skinned Latino looking family. Oh and I weigh about 135 pounds soaking wet. Am I skinny? Yeah, true dat. You may be thinking I’m a weakling and it’s true that I may not be able to lift heavy weights but I’m strong in other ways, as in mentally and intellectually. I’ve even been told I have a high I.Q. Although I’ve never measured it myself, without boasting I’d say that’s about right. I’ve always been a straight A student and learning comes easy to me. Math is my favorite subject, video games are my obsession and photography is my passion. But that’s neither here nor there. This story is not about me.
It’s a bitter cold January morning and I’m bundled up from head to toe. I’ve got my North Face Parka on, my Gunderson hat, layers and layers of warm tees plus long johns under my fleece lined jeans. With my Timberlands on my feet I look like I’m ready to cut some lumber but I’m actually waiting for my best friend Leni. Once she arrives we’ll be heading to our friend, Brandon’s house to hopefully get some information that we’ll need for our investigation.
Leni and I are in, what you would call, “amateur sleuth mode”. Not that we set out to be detectives or anything like that say… six months ago. We’re not necessarily big CSI or Sherlock Holmes fans or anything but there are strange things happening in and around this city lately and nobody seems to be talking about it or offering any reasonable explanations. The news channels are reporting something about a superbug, mostly affecting populations outside the city and we’ve begun seeing people walking around with masks but we think it’s something bigger than that. Maybe it’s because I tend to be suspicious about things but I think the authorities are purposely being vague about the information they’re disseminating to the public. We just want to know why so we’re determined to figure this all out.
I glance at my watch and see it’s 9:10 am. Leni is running late…again. I’m not upset. Kinda used to it actually and when it comes to Leni, well…what can I say? She’s the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen so all is forgiven. We’ve both got green eyes but mine are supremely dull compared to hers. Hers are almost iridescent. Sometimes they seem blue-green, other times they seem hazel with flecks of gold. Suffice to say I could get lost in them. She wears her black hair short, in what’s called a “pixie cut” and she’s tall and thin, maybe just 1 or 2 inches shorter than me. There’s some Native American in Leni’s family so it probably explains her olive complexion even in the dead of winter, while I remain as pale as ever.
Leni and I met our sophomore year in Ms. Harrison’s English class. She was a new transfer to our school and fortunately for me, was assigned the seat next to mine. As luck would also have it we were paired up to write a paper later that term on William Shakespeare. Alas, the Bard and his works are not my forté but thankfully, Leni is passionate about all things Shakespeare and so we worked on it together and aced that project. In the interim a true friendship was formed. The more I got to know her, the more I realized what an amazing person she was. I’ve always been kind of shy and reserved and until now I’ve never really wanted a girlfriend. After watching my friends deal with all their girlfriend dramas, I’ve surmised that most girls my age are a tad too high maintenance. I just don’t have time for that, at least that what I'd been telling myself until I met Leni. Since middle school, I’ve been completely focused on my college quest and I still have high hopes for that but these days I’m just not feeling as gung-ho. I hate to admit it but I think I’ve been smitten by Cupid. Only problem now is I don’t really know how Leni feels about me. I know she loves me, I mean we’re best friends and all but does she love me? That’s the grand question I still don’t have an answer to and well, I’m a little scared to find out. In any event, that’s the least of our worries right now.
I’ve decided to wait for Leni this morning inside the Starbucks on Astor Place. I send her a text to remind her to meet me there and go order myself a White Chocolate Mocha. I feel extremely conflicted as I savor my drink. Even though I don’t want to think about this right now, I can’t help it. Even with all the craziness around us, Leni is forefront on my mind and she’s becoming my fixation. I desperately want to, make that need to tell Leni how I feel about her but I also don’t want to change the dynamic of our relationship. It’s so good right now and if she doesn’t feel the same way I’m afraid of the repercussions.
The sound of “Every Breath You Take” by The Police playing on my cell breaks me out of my reverie and tells me Leni is calling. “Hey…” I ask, “Where are you?” “Just up the street.” she answers. “I’ll see you in a minute.” “Okay.” I reply as I gather my things and head outside. I see her now as she walks toward me. “Awesome!” I think to myself. She took my advice and bundled up for this cold. Now I don’t have to worry she’ll get hypothermia. 
“Hey, Leni, I like your hat.” I remark as I watch the pom-poms swish from side to side on her brightly covered knit hat. I walk briskly towards her and proceed to take my place beside her. 
“Thanks…” she says with a faint smile as together we head down into the Astor Place station to take the 6 train uptown. “So what exactly are we doing today?” she asks. 
“I thought we could head up to Brandon’s house.” I reply. “His dad is a police captain up in the Bronx and Brandon said he might be able to get us some more information about the superbug. I called him this morning to remind him we’d be coming over. He’s expecting us.” 
“Great,” she says without much enthusiasm. 
“Hey, are you okay?” I ask her. “You seem kind of out of it.” 
“No, I’m really scared.” She replies as we swipe our Metrocards and head to the subway platform. “Last night I heard my mom on the phone talking to my aunt in Virginia. I couldn’t really make out what she was saying but I could tell she was really anxious and genuinely terrified when she got off the phone. I asked her about it afterwards but she wouldn’t tell me anything. She just kept telling me not to worry about it. Not all the convincingly I might add.” 
I ponder Leni’s words as we enter the subway platform and now I’m a little scared.
The Uptown #6 roars into the station and Leni and I board the train. Miraculously, it’s not as packed as it usually is because today’s a Federal holiday and most people are off from work. I attempt to make some small talk and get our minds off the task at hand, albeit briefly, as we find some seats and make ourselves comfortable. 
“So…any replies on your college applications yet?” 
“No, not yet” she answers, “I’m not too worried though. All of the colleges I’ve chosen have good writing programs so I’m sure I’ll be fine wherever I get accepted. How about you? Anything yet?” 
“No, I’m still waiting to hear. I’m really hopeful I’ll get into Mellon. I’ve wanted to go there since 7th grade.” I reply. 
“Yeah, I know…it’s all you talk about sometimes.” says Leni. 
“Oh, sorry about that. I forget I have a tendency to repeat myself.” I respond. 
“No, don’t apologize. That’s what I like about you. You’re so determined and you’ve worked really hard to make this happen so I really do hope you get in.” 
I see her smile as I reply, “From your lips to God’s ears. That would be a dream come true for me. Hey, I’m glad you cheered up a bit. Listen, remember I’m always here for you okay?” 
“Yes, I know, Fitz. You’ve been a great friend and I’m not just saying that. I’m glad we’re doing this together. After my mom’s conversation last night I’m more determined than ever to find out what’s going on around here.” Leni replies.
We finally arrive at our stop and as we head out of the subway station and begin our trek to Brandon’s house, I notice Leni looking at me and smiling. I return her smile and infuse it with joy and contentment. “If only she knew how much she means to me.” I say to myself as we begin our walk to Brandon’s. He told me he lives in a two story house just past the Botanical gardens. I check the map on my phone and see we're going in the right direction.  As we near the entrance of the gardens, I ask Leni to strike a quick pose just outside the entrance. “Just a quick photo,” I ask as I take her picture with my phone. “Nice,” I say to myself. “Come on, let’s keep walking. According to the map, Brandon's house should be just around the next corner.”
As we enter the grounds of Brandon’s house, I find myself highly impressed. Brandon's been a classmate of mine since elementary school and one of my best friends since like forever. He just moved into this new house three months ago and this is the first time, I’ve had a chance to come and visit. I ring the doorbell and comment to Leni, “Nice digs, huh?” as we both gaze in awe at the snow-covered grounds. Everything still looks pristine, white and bright as if the snow had just fallen. I’m startled back to reality by the sound of Brandon’s voice. 
“Hey guys,” Brandon says as he opens the door. “Come in. Just hang up your coats here in the foyer then follow me.” Brandon leads us into the kitchen where I can see he was eating some KoKo Krunch. 
“Where’s your dad, Brandon?” I ask. 
“He’s in his study, working from home today.” he responds. “It’s kind of weird though because the phone has been ringing off the hook and he’s been hunched over his desk studying a bunch of charts and documents. I tried to take a peek last night but he had locked the door to his study. He hardly ever does that. I think he’s on a conference call right now. Don’t worry though. I can get around that. I’ll get you some information one way or another. Come on, let’s go to my room. I have something to show you guys.” As we begin to ascend the stairs, we run into Brandon’s older brother, Jonathan as he’s coming down and he’s grinning at us in a weird, sinister way. As soon as he sees me, he suddenly becomes very serious. As we pass him, I suddenly get this really eerie feeling. I don’t say anything. I don’t want to freak anybody out since it could just be my hyperactive imagination at work considering everything that’s going on. Entering Brandon’s room, we can hear the muffled sounds of conversation. 
“What’s that?” I ask him. 
“That is what I wanted to show you. I put a tiny microphone in my dad’s study late last night. I used a spare key I found and I’ve been recording his conversations. I haven’t listened to any of it yet. Been waiting for you guys.” 
“Very cool.” I remark as we sit down to review the information.
The morning passes quickly as Brandon, Leni and I sit and listen to his father’s fascinating and almost unbelievable conversations. It’s been mind blowing to say the least to discover that this superbug everyone is talking about is way, way more than we expected. Our city is under siege and on the verge of what sounds like a Zombie apocalypse due to a viral outbreak. Okay, so "zombie" is my word but that’s what it sounds like to me according to what we're hearing from Brandon’s dad. Whatever measures the authorities have taken until now are obviously not working because it sounds like the virus causing the outbreak is drawing ever closer to our city. I’m feeling really anxious and with a great sense of urgency, I tell Brandon we need to talk to his dad…now! “Yeah, you’re right. Let’s go talk to him.” Brandon replies.
As we hastily exit his room and begin to descend the staircase, we’re met by an eerie stillness and that weird feeling from before just stops me like a barricade. I can feel the goose bumps crawling up and down my skin as we confront absolute silence where moments before we could hear lots of activity in this big house. “Mom, where are you?” Brandon calls out. Suddenly, breaking the silence, a piercing scream erupts from the kitchen and I see Brandon’s mom stagger towards us bleeding from what looks like a massive bite wound. We run down the rest of the stairs and frantically towards her. “What the hell happened?!” I scream. Suddenly, a man in a hooded sweatshirt steps out into the foyer from the dining room and starts heading toward us. I can’t see who it is but he has a crazed look in his eye and he’s coming toward us menacingly so I pick up a heavy candlestick from a table near the staircase and throw it at him. It barely slows him down. Leni runs off towards the kitchen and comes back with a butcher knife. She throws the knife at the stranger and it hits him in the leg. He falls, his leg writhing in pain but it only stops him momentarily and immediately he starts getting back up. Brandon, Leni and I pick up his mom up and carry her up to Brandon’s room. Quickly I lock the door while I tell Leni to call 9-1-1. As I tend to his mom’s wound, I ask Brandon for a first aid kit. Looking at Brandon's mom, I ask her, “Please tell us what happened?” 
“It was Jonathan,” she responds with labored breath “He’s not himself. He’s like…like a monster. He came up behind me and just bit me. It was like he wanted to eat me.” 
“Oh my God, Brandon! It sounds like your brother’s been affected by the bug! He’s turned into a zombie!” I scream.
“Okay, Mom, you have to stay here. We’re going to get help.” Brandon tells his mother as he wraps a towel around her wound. 
“Where’s your dad, Brandon? We have to go and see if he’s okay.” I say. I ask Brandon if he has anything I can use as a weapon and he points to his closet door. Opening it, I notice a baseball bat in the corner and grab it. I slowly open the bedroom door and take a quick look around the second floor landing. Seeing no one, I tiptoe to the head of the stairs and look down. All I can see is a blood trail on the floor but I do not see Jonathan. I signal to Leni. “Did you call the cops?” I ask. 
“Lines are dead, I checked. And I can’t find my cell phone.” Leni answers. 
“We have to find a way to get help. And we have to find out what’s happened to Brandon’s dad!” I tell her. I grip the bat and slowly descend the stairs, looking each way as I go and follow the blood trail. It ends in the study. There on the floor of the study I see Brandon’s dad. He’s not only dead, he’s been mutilated. There is blood and gore everywhere. Suddenly, out of the shadows steps Jonathan and he grabs me by the back of my shirt, grabbing a hold of my left arm. Startled, I drop the bat and scream as I struggle to break free but his grip is tight and I hear and feel excruciating pain as the bones in my arm crack. I fear I’m done for. Just then, out of the corner of my eye, I see a letter opener on the desk just inches away and immediately make a grab for it. I take hold of it, just barely hanging on to it and begin to stab Jonathan. I can’t see him but I can hear him making these horrible, screeching sounds. Somehow I manage to stab him in the shins and he releases his grip allowing me to run. I’m feeling intense pain in my arm but I’m thankful he didn’t get to bite me. I manage to make it up the stairs in one fell swoop and burst into Brandon’s bedroom. As I attempt to slam the door shut, Jonathan rushes in, the force throwing me to the ground. Leni jumps on him in an attempt to help me but in return she’s smacked in the face and forcefully thrown to the ground, and I can see she’s unconscious.
Doubled over in pain, I look up and see a badly bleeding Brandon coming towards his brother with an ax. I hear a blood-curdling scream from Brandon’s mom as he swings the ax and with one quick stroke severs his brother’s head. Then I hear nothing. Silence. Jonathan is gone. Executed by his own brother. I see Brandon with the ax in hand as he stands there in a state of shock. I get up and with all the strength I can muster, I grab the ax from him with my good arm and set it down. “Brandon, please sit down. It’s okay. It’s over for now.” Brandon doesn’t say anything and I still don’t know where all this blood is coming from. I glance over at his mom and notice that she’s bleeding heavily again so I grab a towel to try and stop the flow of blood. Just then I notice her eyes. They’re set back in her head and she begins making the same screeching, blood curdling sounds I heard from Jonathan. “Oh my God! She’s turning!” I scream as I attempt to get away from her. Just then someone grabs me and pushes me to the ground. It’s Brandon and he has the ax in hand again. In one last desperate act, he swings the ax at his mom as she lies prone on the floor, screeching and arms flailing. Suddenly, she's stilled because her son has killed her. Just then Brandon collapses as I hear Leni moaning on the floor. I run to her thinking I have to get her out of there and get her some help. I search frantically for her cell phone and find it in under the bed. I dial 9-1-1. I make the call and begin lifting a semi-conscious Leni from the floor. “The cops are on their way, Leni. Just hold on. You’re gonna be okay.” I tell her hoping that I’m right.
There are pools of blood everywhere. I can’t believe what has happened. Brandon’s mom, dad and brother are dead and my friends are wounded and maybe dying. Our hopes of surviving this are dwindling as the seconds tick by. My arm is broken and the pain is extreme but I head downstairs to get a knife from the kitchen dragging Leni with me. I don’t know if Brandon has been bitten but if he has been, I need to have a weapon ready. I place Leni by the door to keep her safe while I head back upstairs to check on Brandon and as I do, it appears he’s gone. I can hear the sirens coming down the road so I head back downstairs and with my one good arm help Leni out the door. “The cops are here, Leni. Help has arrived.” I whisper to my friend. She replies in a weak voice, “Thank you Fitz for saving my life.” 
The cops run up, guns drawn as we’re descending the front steps. “He’s gone.” I shout, “Brandon, our friend, he’s gone but his dad, his mom and brother are in there, well, their bodies anyway. They’re all dead.” 
“What the hell happened here?” asks one of the cops. 
“I don’t know if I can explain it all right now.” I reply. Suddenly I see the cops draw their weapons and point it in our direction. “Get down!” they scream at us. We fall to the ground just as a volley of shots rings out. Three-four-five shots – all at once! As I turn around I see Brandon, knife in hand, eyes crazed, screeching as the shots hit him. Everything slows down for me and I feel like I’m watching everything in slow motion event as I see my friend begin to go down with each bullet that hits him. Suddenly it’s over and the last thing I remember is …. Fade to black.
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About the Authors
Jeremy Jimenez is a recent middle school graduate who enjoys reading and writing about zombies and similar "other-worldly" creatures. He's an avid video and pc gamer who hopes to become a game designer someday. His mom, Margie, an aspiring writer, doesn't usually write about monsters and such but felt this story was good enough to give it the overly detail treatment she's famous for. Hope you all enjoyed it!
Connect with Me Online:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wordtothewise78]
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/odesfromadaughter