Something from the past

Chapter 10

Marc Lee almost did a double-take when a strong odor assaulted his nose making his stomach almost turn upside-down.

The stench inside the emergency exit stairs was too disgusting that it made him winch as he covered his nose. He could feel his stomach churning from that smell along, but when his eyes landed on the gruesome scene inside it made him immediately lose his bowels.

Uwak! Blarrgh!!!

Marc Lee threw up immediately to the side as he quickly closes the door.

From the bloody scene inside, he knew that he could not enter through that door anymore.

He then looks around and since there are no zombies in the area, he decided to go around the corner and use the emergency ladder to go back up.

He carefully tip-toed through the corridor while looking everywhere around him. If there is a sign of anything moving he is already prepared to run with all his might.

He has picked up his sharpened metal rod and is cleaver and is very wary of his surroundings.

Soon, he reached the corner and slowly peeks from the side. When he saw and heard no movement, he quickly moved and rush towards the stairs.

Suddenly, he saw the mass of dead and headless zombies on the street and it made his heart skip a beat.

"This is where those guys have fallen…" he muttered.

As he turns to the side he saw the emergency ladder.

But there is a problem.

To prevent thieves from using the ladder, it is actually a floor high from the ground. This made the face of Marc Lee fall.

"How could this be? How could this be?" he thought as he began to panic.

Right now in front of him is the open road and he could see many ruined cars and debris all over the place. The silence around him is deafening as his rapidly beating heart seems to drown all of his senses.

"Do I have to go back to that place?" he thought.

But seeing that gruesome scene and that wretched smell… how could he come back there?

While in thought, in the corner of his eyes, he suddenly noticed some movements.

His eyes went wide when he noticed a few figures began to appear.

They are zombies but they are unable to walk.

Instead, they are using their hand to crawl.

Seeing their sluggish movement, Marc Lee patted his chest.

"Whew… I thought that those guys would be dangerous…" he muttered with a slight smile on his face.

He could kill a normal zombie, so how could he be afraid of the invalid ones?

But before he could celebrate something he did not expect happened.

Those zombies with broken legs suddenly moved their bodies in a weird way and he could hear some cracking sounds.

To his astonishment, he saw their backs begin to arc backward. Then their strong arms lifted their body up.

His eyes went wide in disbelief upon seeing this scene. Those zombies seemed to have turned into a two-legged scorpion.

The arms became the legs and the body became the stinger.

"What the hell is this?!" he could not help but curse.

But he has no time to dawdle as he saw those things suddenly moving.

"Holy Crap!" he quickly turns around and ran back as fast as he could.

When he tilted his head to the side, his heart skipped a beat when he saw those things chasing after him.

Although their speed is not that fast and he has already gained some distance. He noticed that as those things run, their speed also increases.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" he cursed in his heart as he ran as fast as he could through the corridor.

He is not worried about any zombies anymore as his concern is just to escape from those weird and ugly-looking things.

From the corner of his eyes, he suddenly noticed a door and then saw the sign at the top… emergency exit.

With a goal in mind, Marc Lee did not hesitate to suddenly turn to the side and then run in the direction of the basement area he had just come into.

The weird zombies followed without hesitation.

Then suddenly they saw their target entering a room.

They did not hesitate to also turn and enter.

As soon as they turn and enter the room, they began to fall down the few steps of stairs and collide with each other.

Marc Lee used the rod in his hand to hang at the top of the ceiling where the vents and some electrical wiring were.

When he sees the weird zombies falling down the stairs, he quickly swings his body down and then runs towards the other emergency exit.

He did not think twice to open the door and enter.

When he looks around, he saw that there are no zombies.

He quickly rushes up the stairs and began checking the floor he is in.

When he got to the 2nd floor, he carefully opened the door and peek inside.

The 2nd floor of the building connects to the other building where his flat is. So if he wanted to get back to the floor where his house is, he needed to go from the 2nd floor.

He carefully walks out and saw nothing. The light of the day is now getting dimmer and the eerie hall is a bit unnerving.

With every step he takes his ears would prop up while trying to listen to his surroundings.

Every now and then he would pick up some sounds from the room on the second floor, and he could even see some traces of dried blood on the walls and on the floor.

Marc Lee felt that time is standing still as he slowly walks to the emergency stairs.

As he turns the corner, he noticed a figure standing in the corridor. He knew that the figure is not human anymore judging from the sound of its breathing.

He leaned on the wall and tried to calm himself down. After a while when he feel his breathing become stable, he carefully patted his chest as he heave a sigh of relief.

He then carefully listened to the ragged breathing of the zombie.

"Hmm… Wait a minute… When did my senses become this sharp?" he thought as a frown appears on his face.

"Ah, never mind, I still have time to think about that after I escape this place…" he then closes his eyes and carefully feels his environment.

Then his eyes opened and his expression turned sharp.

Without hesitation, he quickly walked out of the corner he is hiding and quickly walked toward the unmoving zombie.

As if sensing something coming behind it, the zombie began sniffing the air.

It suddenly picks up a strange smell that made it feel crazed. Its lifeless eyes suddenly turned dark red as it opened its bloody mouth.

It was about to shriek when suddenly a sharpened metal rod came out of its mouth.

With all of his strength, Marc Lee swings the body of the zombie which seems to be a woman to the side.

Then without hesitation, he took a deep breath and held his breath in.

He opened the door and enters.

…

Inside the flat of Marc Lee, Mint Wayne is pacing back and forth feeling a bit nervous. She knew of the plan and she wanted to object. But the guy seemed determined so she did not say anything.

The guy is not normal after all. She has been observing him in these few days that they are living together.

The way he exercises is a bit strange as he seems to not feel any fatigue or tiredness.

One could say that he looks normal, and acts normal, but he is not a normal person anymore.

She heard online that there are people that have gained superpowers because of this world-changing event.

She did not believe it at first but soon saw some video clipping. She has her doubts but now, she could not help but believe that those things might be true.

"I have to go back to my house to get some stuff…" she muttered.

She has been wearing the same clothes for 2 days now. But she is a bit shy to ask him to get her stuff. So she felt a bit upset for not asking.

She decided that if ever he returns today, she would ask him to help her get her things.

Soon, she feels a bit tired and sits on the sofa.

She then looks at the ring on her finger and showed a pained look on her face.

She could clearly remember his face as if it was just yesterday.

…

A night before the apocalypse started, she went home from work and was feeling a bit tired.

In the elevator, she was with a young man wearing a hooded jacket. The young man seems to be hiding his face and stopped on the floor below hers.

When he walked out, the young man looks sideways and their eyes met.

She suddenly remembers that the guy named Marc Lee seems to have the same eyes as that young scrawny looking guy back then.

At that time, she enters the house and noticed that she could not turn on the lights.

"That's weird… has the light bulb been busted?" she muttered as she takes out her phone.

But before she could get her phone she heard some movement from inside her house.

This made her feel startled. She frowned and then quickly roamed her eyes inside the dimly lit room. The light from the moon illuminates the surroundings but is not enough to make her clearly see everything.

Suddenly, she noticed a shadow moving from inside and it made her take a step back.

"This… did some thieves enter my house?" she thought as she felt panic in her head.

Then that shadow seems to move closer in a sluggish manner and she began taking a step back.

Horror can be clearly seen on her face.

Her breathing began to hasten as she gripped her handbag tightly.

If there is really a thief inside her house, she would use her bag to hit that bastard. She is not afraid to fight, but she also could not just run away as she knew that if her back is turned then it would be far more dangerous.

She slowly backs away and soon had her back on the door.

She now noticed that there is more than one person inside the house.

"Who… whoever you are… I'm not afraid of you…" she said in a low and trembling tone.

She suddenly grabbed the doorknob and then her bag.

But she was startled when the lights suddenly came on.

What appears before her eyes is a handsome man wearing a big smile on his face.

Meanwhile, behind him, the condo is filled with red balloons and flowers.

Then standing behind the guy are some of their friends who are taking a picture of the scene with their phones.

They all had big smiles on their faces.

"Minty!" he suddenly said while his hand is on his back.

"We've been together for such a long time now, and I know that I have delayed a lot of your plans in your life… I'm sorry for being a dunce and have neglected your feelings… From now on, I will be responsible for you…" he said.

The eyes of Mint Wayne began to cloud as she could not help but feel her heart beating faster.

She knew what is about to happen, and she knew what he is about to do. But she still could not help but feel nervous and excited at the same time.

For a long time now, the two of them are living together. There were ups and downs in their relationship, but she held on to that hope that one day, the two of them would be together.

And it seems that the day has come… finally.

He suddenly kneeled on one knee and then said the words she had so longed to hear.

"Will you marry me?"