Chapter 5

"Today is the day we leave. Are you ready Andrew" asks Spencer? How can I or should I say anyone ever be ready in an apocalypse? Spencer breathes in and out. Spencer looks at me and then to the door.

Spencer opens the library door. He checks left and right and beckons me to follow. I am filled with mixed emotions. I don't want to leave this library which has sort of becoming my sanctuary. I know it's a foolish thing to think but I can't help myself. Spencer turns and faces me. " I am going to the security wing. I was friends with the security guard. He had two guns there. Let's hope he left one." I am extremely nervous. We walk down corridors that I have walked down many times. A memory flashes in my mind. I was walking to a lecture when Spencer tripped me. I decide to remind him. " Remember that time you tripped me in front of everyone?" Spencer stops walking. He turns and sighs. " Look Andrew, now is not the time for this. Talk about this later." I roll my eyes. Every step feels like an eternity. We stop at the security room. " Let's hope this door is unlocked." Spencer turns the doorknob. Luckily it is unlocked. Spencer walks into the room first. I enter cautiously. The room is dirty, papers lying on the floor, even the computers are smashed up. Someone was angry. Spencer eyes a cupboard at the far left of the room. It is locked. " Stand back Andrew." Spencer knocks on the metal cupboard. I cringe at the noise. I check behind me to see if any mutants are behind us. Spencer does a victory dance as he grabs the shotgun. " What did I say? Now we have a chance to defend ourselves." How is having one shotgun going to save us from a bunch of mutants but I suppose every little bit helps. I hope. " where are we going now," I ask. He looks at me and I see a bit of fear on his face. " We are heading to the Parkview Santa Cruz park. It should be the safest place to be in right now. I know how to hunt and have a few survival skills." I look a bit relieved to hear that but I don't want to stay and follow him but I know that I don't have much of a choice. I have no survival hunting skills and soon resources are going to become an issue. I nod and surprise myself when I smile. Spencer looks taken back and smiles cautiously. " That's the first time I have seen you smile." I shrug, not wanting to start a conversation. My stomach growls reminding me of my hunger. A splendid thought enters my head. I can't believe we almost forgot about it. " Spencer, let's go back to the kitchen storeroom. We don't want any delays for the journey." Spencer nods. We make our way to the lunchroom to gather more supplies for the journey. We enter the lunchroom and head straight to the storage room. I grab tin cans filled with meat, water bottles, and a few chocolates. It may be an apocalypse but you can still spoil yourselves. Spencer is too busy packing his food to notice what I am doing. As I am packing the last chocolate, Spencer grabs my shoulder. I get a fright. I feel like a child who has been caught doing something bad. Spencer puts his finger on his lips to tell me to be quiet. I pick up on what he is trying to tell me. I hear a moaning noise and then a bang. This zombie must be throwing itself onto the lockers. Spencer arms himself. I shake his shoulder. " Don't go there. Don't waste ammo. That zombie is attracting the others to come. Let's go the other way." Spencer walks in front of me and leads the way. Why must we always be in front? Then again, he has the weapon. Maybe it's not a bad thing to be the one at the back... I hope. I imagine a zombie mutant running at Spencer and me and infecting us. We jog past our drama theater and also the janitor's storage room. I see the exit up ahead. I feel like running back to the library but knowing now that there is a zombie on the campus, that thought is gone. Spencer stops me. " This is going to be very risky." " I know that" I reply. Outside is like an arena, a wasteland. Spencer shakes his head. " This is going to be the most dangerous thing we will ever do in our lives. We must stick together." I nod. Spencer turns around and says " Then let's go." Here we go. The outside world looks disgusting. There is litter scattered across the ground. Some cars have been flipped upside down. Street lights are now leaning on its sides. Windows of buildings have been smashed. People looting I think or that zombies crave destruction. The concrete ground has cracks in them. There are bodies on the floor. I look away. There is a fire in a fireproof barrel in an alleyway. I notice a woman sitting around the fire. The woman notices me and Spencer and calls us. For some reason, I decided to walk to her. I want to know how long has she been able to survive. One of the things I packed was two notebooks and two pens. I can write things down. My bag is slightly heavy but I will still be able to run if need be. I call Spencer quietly and point to the alleyway. His eyes go wide. " Andrew, this is risky. We don't even know her." I refuse to hear his paranoia. "Keep your shotgun aimed at her. She might have some info." Spencer is angry about this I am sure but my gut tells me to do it." We approach the woman with Spencer in the front, shotgun pointed at her.