"Mom, can you change this music? I don't think Loni likes it," I muttered, glancing at the backseat.
"WAHHHHHH! Mommy, the music is too loud!" my little sister screamed in my ear, sharp enough to make my head spin.
"Hold on, it's almost my favorite part…just a few more seconds!" Mom pleaded, gripping the wheel, eyes fixed on the highway as if nothing else mattered.
"Tell that to her, not me, Mom," I said, but my words barely had time to land. Then I noticed it—a wall of stopped cars looming ahead. The car shuddered under sudden braking.
CRASH.
Darkness swallowed me.
"You alright, Louis? You woke up breathing hard again," said a slim man in a jacket and camo pants.
I rubbed my eyes, trying to shake the memory clawing at my mind. "Just…some stuff from before the…great change. Nothing to worry about, Frank," I muttered, voice low. A nightmare flashed before me: Mom's car spinning out of control, her body flung across the pavement, a zombie clamping onto her head before she could scream.
I grabbed my backpack, pulled my sister close, and ran. Sixteen and nine. Too young to know the world, but somehow we survived. A week at most. Then my so-called friends—traitors—stole her from me. And now? I'm stuck in a candy shop with a man I met two weeks ago.
"Hey, Louis. Once you're done waking up, we gotta move. There's a city up north, maybe twenty minutes if we hurry—the sun's almost up," Frank said.
I swung my backpack over my shoulder and glanced at the colorful promise bracelet on my wrist. A reminder of promises I wasn't sure I could keep.
We began walking. Jets tore through the sky above. "They're headed the same way. We've gotta hurry," I warned.
Frank shrugged. "Reminds me of the time my uncle Tim hijacked a plane and crashed it into some buildings."
I scowled. "I hate you, Frank. Seriously. Hey, look at that car—can you hotwire it?"
"Of course. Feels like middle school all over again."
VROOM VROOM.
YES. That roar of the engine—like pure freedom.
RAHHHHHHHH.
"GO! GO! GO!" I yelled, leaping into the passenger seat. Behind us, a grotesque monster screamed its rage at the world.
"Just our luck. A banshee—it'll call them here. We need to take it out!" I shouted.
"We don't have that many bullets left! We have to move now!" Frank replied.
"But if they follow, we're dead. Surrounded," I said.
BOOM.
A massive, fortified vehicle barreled toward us.
"Frank…go."
"Bu—"
"GO! IF WE DON'T, THEY'LL RUN US OVER!" I yelled. Frank slammed the gas.
"This reminds me of that one time my friend's cousin ran from the police—all day and they still got away," Frank babbled.
"Yeah, Frank, I wonder how they did it," I said, dripping sarcasm.
Hours later, the skyline of the city loomed, tall and silent.
"We're out of gas, Louis. Guess this is our stop," Frank said.
"Alright, let's check some houses first. Maybe there's something good in this place," I said. The city was big—tall buildings everywhere, shadows hiding threats.
DESERT EAGLE BABY.
"LOUIS!" Frank shouted.
"Sorry," I whispered back, trying to keep my grin contained.
The town offered little—handguns, barely enough to keep us alive. Then, a scream cut the air.
"FRANK! PLEASE HELP ME!" a woman shouted.
"SARAH? WAIT, I'M COMING!" Frank yelled, sprinting. I grabbed his arm, but he shoved me back—stubborn. Dangerous. I followed, careful.
Rounding the corner, I froze. Frank—or what used to be Frank—was being eaten alive by a monster. Its jaws sank into him as he screamed. My stomach lurched.
"Why…why does this have to happen to me?" I whispered, heart pounding. I ran the opposite way, desperate to escape, until a voice called out.
"LOUIS, WAIT UP!"
And there it was—not Frank exactly, but a creature shaped like him.
"Frank?" My voice cracked. My heart raced.
"Dude, it's me, Louis. What's wrong? You look like you saw a ghost," the impostor said, stepping closer.
"I SAW YOU DIE!" I yelled, gun raised.
"Louis, put the gun down. How can I prove it's me?"
I demanded details. Hotwiring a car. The alley. Sarah's scream. The creature answered them all—but the memories weren't supposed to be possible. Zombies can't think…can they?
"Sarah? I never met a Sarah in my life. Maybe you're mistaken," the impostor said, moving closer.
"You lied. For that, monster, I'll avenge Frank!" I yelled. The creature lunged.
BANG. I missed. Its teeth sank into my shoulder.
'Loni…sorry. I couldn't keep my promise…' Pain ripped through me.
"AHHHHHHH!"
Then…Frank. Sitting beside me, alive, calm.
"You alright, Louis? You woke up breathing hard again," he asked, same as before.
"What…what just happened?" I asked, my voice trembling.
Silence. No answers. The city felt colder. Nothing would ever be normal again.
I tried to speak. "Frank…who's Sarah?"
Dead silence. Then a voice, cold, from nowhere. "How the hell do you know Sarah, Louis? And if I don't like your answer…" Click.
"Frank…calm down. I don't know who th—"
Before I could finish, a gun pressed to my head.
"One last chance. How do you know that name?"
"She called for you—it was actually a zombie. Then you died, and now I'm here," I explained, desperation lacing my voice.
"What the hell are you talking about? Are you trying to act crazy?"
"SHES AN OLD FRIEND OF MINE!" I yelled, hoping to buy time.
"…What's her last name?"
"How do you know we're not talking about two different Sarahs?" I asked, grasping for any escape.
"Because why would you ask me if you knew someone named Sarah, yet refuse to explain how? You've used your last chance," the voice said.
"WAIT, IT'S NO—"
BANG.
My vision went black.
And then…Frank again. Same words. Same calm, same impossible world.
"You alright, Louis? You woke up breathing hard again."
"Frank…I have something to tell you…"