No one was expecting it, and what were we going to do if we did know? Hide in the corners of our bedrooms, praying to the God that hasn’t answered our prayers? Try to prevent the disease in less than a week? It would have came, just like it did, and tons of people would have been infected or eaten alive, just like they did.

The day it hit my small town, Saint Helens Oregon, was May 15th, 2035. I was a senior at Saint Helens High school, sitting in my regular Honors English class at the end of the day, when screams began to echo through the hallways. People were running, some of them with blood smeared on their clothes, shoes, faces, in their hair. Horrified, the students in my class just sat and watched.

I was the first one to react, standing up and looking out the doorway, a couple students, like Judy Foster and Kevin Ford, following behind me. My teacher was suddenly yelling at us, particularly me, since I was out furthest,

“Nora! Nora! Get back into the classroom! Mr. Ford, Ms. Foster! Please, we need—“
I was no longer listening, terror constricting my body. My best friend, Macy, was limping down the hallway, tears falling from her eyes, choking and screaming for help. I ran to her, Ms. Kelp’s voice screeching behind me,

“Nora Landon! Get back into this classroom! We need to stick with the drill!”

After I escaped with Macy, I figured out later that my class was one of the ones most badly attacked. First we went to my house, which was closer to the high school, and searched for my family. Normally the house was filled before I got there, but no one was home. Only the red Toyota was up front, and my Mom and Dad’s work cars were both gone. I had a mental break down, dropping to my knees and crying, wondering what the h*** I was going to do, but Macy was there, saying,
“Nora, it’ll be okay. I’m sure your family is fine, and probably right after your parents heard what was going on, they left to go get Kylee and you. But right now, I need to get home to my Dad, because this is hurting bad.”

She bent over, pointing to where a guy she hadn’t recognized came and bit her as she was getting through the crowd in the hallway.

“Alright,” I whispered, “but let’s load up first. You go into my room and start packing things that we’ll need. I’ll go get the guns… and tools from my garage. I know what we’ll need… Trust me, I’ve seen movies from back in like 2009. Things were crazy about the apocalypse. But yeah… Everything we’ll need… and I have to write a note to—“
I broke off, thinking about Mom, Dad, and Kylee, who was only seven…

I got up, a signal to Macy to get going. She looked at me, drowning in my pain, and turned away, going up the stairs to do what I had told her. I grabbed the three guns in my parents safe, when into the garage, got some tools, helped Macy load up the truck, and got going to her Dad’s house that was more towards the country part of Saint Helens. I left the note to my family on the kitchen counter. It read:

To Mom, Dad, and Kylee. I love you dearly, and hope that I will see you shortly. I went to Macy’s Dad’s; she was bitten in the attack at our school. Macy’s number is 503-369-1174… Please call her or my cell… As soon as you possibly can. Kylee, baby doll, I love you so much. Everything will be okay. I will see you soon, all of you. I love you… So, so much. How many times can I say that?(:
Love, Nora






***

On our way down to Macy’s Dad’s house, we sat in silence, driving on the long tortured highway. Occasionally, we sometimes drive over bodies, see zombies, but they don’t bother us in our big truck, mostly because they’re finishing off a body. I don’t look at the face, all I see is the gruesome images. It’s sick, and I have to look away and think about something in my previous life that will distract me.

That’s when I realized, I am now a new person. My life is changed, and I can no longer be the Nora Landon I planned on being. I can’t go to college; I can’t finish my senior year. I won’t be able to see all my friends’ faces again. I’ll never be able to marry and grow old with Alex, my boyfriend that moved to New Mexico. Everything that I had in reach had just slipped away, and I had to watch it slowly run through my fingers like sand.
After going up the steep gravel hill, we stopped in front of Macy’s large brown house that was surrounded by trees. She didn’t have neighbors for another 3 miles or so. Getting out of the truck, I grabbed the keys and put them securely in my pocket, and she took hers out so she could unlock the door. At the twist of the door knob, we heard someone load up a shot gun behind the door.
“Who’s there?!”
“Dad! It’s me, Macy!” she yelled.
There was a pause for a couple seconds.
“Who is with you, Mace?” he asked, suspicious.
“It’s Nora, Dad. My best friend. My best friend since 5th grade.”
“She can’t come in. Not her, only you. Family.” he said, sounding a little crazed.
“Dad. Come on. It’s Nora! You love Nora! She’s been over a million times!”
“I don’t care. She could have it!”
“I could have it.”
Another pause, except this time it was longer.
Much longer.
“So I’m just going to come in, with Nora, and we’re going to chill and stay here with you.” she said softly, twisting the golden door knob and pushing the door slowly open.
He slammed it shut.
“Don’t come in here Macy… Not you or anyone else.”
“Dad, it’ll be okay, nothing will happen.” She tried once more with the door, but he slammed it shut again.
“I mean it Mace. Don’t come in here.” His voice was harsh; changed.
Once more she tried pushing the door open, “Dad, I swear we’re both fine and nothing will happ—“
She was cut off by the loud, booming noise of a shotgun.
I screamed.
Macy fell to the floor onto the deck, causing a huge thump. I got on my knees next to her, screaming, crying. Macy’s Dad came out with a medical mask on, looking totally shocked. We both looked out across the yard, and there stood a man I had never seen before, holding a shot gun, looking frightened.
“What the h*** did you do?!” Macy’s Dad screamed, choking on his tears as he fell to the floor next to Macy.
“I’m sorry, Kurt! I thought—I thought she was trying to break in. I didn’t see her face! Macy—“he said, breaking off into tears. “I’m so sorry.”
I left before it could get any worse. Actually, come to think of it, I was forced to leave. Macy’s Dad screamed me away after he shot his friend, Jerry, I think. I managed to take all the weapons I needed and the truck, but I still couldn’t get over the fact that my best friend was dead.
That’ how I started out living in the messed up world; alone.