second floor, almost gives us the illusion that nothing is wrong. For one thing, it’s quieter.
We can’t hear the scratching and banging on the windows.
We all pretty much found a wall to lean against, and try to stay calm. Except for Austin of course who is passed out on his own bed. The girl Lucy is laying across the bottom of it, no one wanted to see her lying on the floor. Even Austin agreed who woke up enough to grumble a reply about it. Her boyfriend Peter won’t leave her side and is perched at the end of the bed.
The room is pretty good sized, and I’m almost jealous about it. The bed is along the wall to the right of the door, and takes the whole space being a queen. Straight ahead is a bay window, with a padded seat. To the left of the window, is a built in entertainment center slash bookcase. It has a large plasma TV and a lot of video game equipment. There are drawers lining the bottom of it, making me believe that’s his dresser. To the right of the window, are the closet door and a small desk. It’s pretty bare except for an expensive looking computer.
It makes my laptop look chincy in comparison.
I’m sitting on the floor next to Matt, who is resting on the window seat, next to him is Alex. I suppose we’re trying to help out all of us that are hurt, even if we don’t really know how. The best we figure is they need rest, or try to keep up their strength. Beside me on the floor are Claire and Brian, and I notice that he’s been checking out the TV the last couple minutes. Sam is sitting near Brian with his knees drawn up to his chest, and he hasn’t lost the deer in headlights look. Near the door on the other side of the bookcase, is Gabe. He’s been pretty quiet since we came upstairs, and I can tell he’s trying not to look at me. Or maybe I’m being paranoid, and that’s what I’m doing. On the other side of Alex, near the closet are Dan and Maria. She’s asleep in his lap and beside her is Emily.
Now that we finished downstairs, we don’t really have another plan or ideas about what to do next. I do know that we all keep checking our cellphones, and none of us are able to reach anyone. It’s really unnerving that no one answers, but we do get the occasional busy signal. But that doesn’t make us feel any better.
I’m about to dose off, leaning against Matt, when Brian stands up and faces the TV.
“ What about the news?” He says as he turns back to face the room. “I mean just because no one is answering the phones, there might be something about it on TV, right?”
“ It can’t hurt to try. Reporters have a habit of getting in the thick of things.” Dan says.
We all kind of nod in agreement, and Brian turns back to the TV. It’s kind of an elaborate plasma brand, and it takes him a second to find the power button. After he does though, he still pauses with his hand raised. As if overcoming his hesitation, he pushes it. The TV clicks on with a whooshing sound, and we all lean forward in anticipation.
Or at least I do.
The screen is dark for a moment, and all I can hear is static. Then suddenly it’s alive with color, and it takes me a minute to see what’s on the screen. It’s one of those emergency broadcast messages you know the ones that come on when you are usually watching a movie, when there is never a real emergency. Except I know that this one is clearly not a test, given what is running around outside. There is no sound, just the occasional bleeping noise. Along the bottom of the screen, the same message keeps repeating across.
It says,
“ Androscoggin County residents are to seek immediate shelter. A rapidly spreading contagion is infecting the dead, whom are rising. Emergency evacuation is in progress, and troops are on their way. An emergency service shelter is being devised, and residents are advised to stay indoors until further notice. Beware of your surroundings. Be alert. The dead are fast and highly dangerous.”
It keeps repeating in an
We can’t hear the scratching and banging on the windows.
We all pretty much found a wall to lean against, and try to stay calm. Except for Austin of course who is passed out on his own bed. The girl Lucy is laying across the bottom of it, no one wanted to see her lying on the floor. Even Austin agreed who woke up enough to grumble a reply about it. Her boyfriend Peter won’t leave her side and is perched at the end of the bed.
The room is pretty good sized, and I’m almost jealous about it. The bed is along the wall to the right of the door, and takes the whole space being a queen. Straight ahead is a bay window, with a padded seat. To the left of the window, is a built in entertainment center slash bookcase. It has a large plasma TV and a lot of video game equipment. There are drawers lining the bottom of it, making me believe that’s his dresser. To the right of the window, are the closet door and a small desk. It’s pretty bare except for an expensive looking computer.
It makes my laptop look chincy in comparison.
I’m sitting on the floor next to Matt, who is resting on the window seat, next to him is Alex. I suppose we’re trying to help out all of us that are hurt, even if we don’t really know how. The best we figure is they need rest, or try to keep up their strength. Beside me on the floor are Claire and Brian, and I notice that he’s been checking out the TV the last couple minutes. Sam is sitting near Brian with his knees drawn up to his chest, and he hasn’t lost the deer in headlights look. Near the door on the other side of the bookcase, is Gabe. He’s been pretty quiet since we came upstairs, and I can tell he’s trying not to look at me. Or maybe I’m being paranoid, and that’s what I’m doing. On the other side of Alex, near the closet are Dan and Maria. She’s asleep in his lap and beside her is Emily.
Now that we finished downstairs, we don’t really have another plan or ideas about what to do next. I do know that we all keep checking our cellphones, and none of us are able to reach anyone. It’s really unnerving that no one answers, but we do get the occasional busy signal. But that doesn’t make us feel any better.
I’m about to dose off, leaning against Matt, when Brian stands up and faces the TV.
“ What about the news?” He says as he turns back to face the room. “I mean just because no one is answering the phones, there might be something about it on TV, right?”
“ It can’t hurt to try. Reporters have a habit of getting in the thick of things.” Dan says.
We all kind of nod in agreement, and Brian turns back to the TV. It’s kind of an elaborate plasma brand, and it takes him a second to find the power button. After he does though, he still pauses with his hand raised. As if overcoming his hesitation, he pushes it. The TV clicks on with a whooshing sound, and we all lean forward in anticipation.
Or at least I do.
The screen is dark for a moment, and all I can hear is static. Then suddenly it’s alive with color, and it takes me a minute to see what’s on the screen. It’s one of those emergency broadcast messages you know the ones that come on when you are usually watching a movie, when there is never a real emergency. Except I know that this one is clearly not a test, given what is running around outside. There is no sound, just the occasional bleeping noise. Along the bottom of the screen, the same message keeps repeating across.
It says,
“ Androscoggin County residents are to seek immediate shelter. A rapidly spreading contagion is infecting the dead, whom are rising. Emergency evacuation is in progress, and troops are on their way. An emergency service shelter is being devised, and residents are advised to stay indoors until further notice. Beware of your surroundings. Be alert. The dead are fast and highly dangerous.”
It keeps repeating in an
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