I sit (DOTD 2004 FF)

I Sit
A Dawn of the Dead 2004 Fan fiction story.

(This takes place in the same world as from the movie, but with different characters.)

I sit here writing this alone, near the breaking point, hoping that someday someone finds this when the world is peaceful,
and knows what the ones who survived this time went through. I pray that the one reading this no longer has to worry about the
monsters that have taken everything from me.

I will start at the beginning…..

My life was typical really. My husband worked at the local airport, and I had four healthy wonderful children. They weren’t angels,
but they weren’t exactly devils either. They were normal children, and they were my world.

School had been out for a little less then a week where we lived, and the kids and I were settling into a pretty good routine.

It was odd, the news started reporting these riots up north, and some out west. Since they grounded the flights from those areas,
I didn’t think anything at all about it. Things like that happened, people didn’t like a court verdict, some law passed by a
narrow majority, stuff like that. When they reported it in the state to the north of us, then was when I paid more attention.

I kept the kids inside that day, which wasn’t easy. I did a movie thing for them, so they didn’t complain too much. I just wish that
my husband hadn’t gone to work that morning. Things would have been so much different.

I went into my room to watch the news at noon, and there were reports of the riots spreading through downtown by then. The
airport was on the other side of town, so he had to go through downtown coming home.

I tried calling him, both the office line and his cell phone, but I couldn’t get through, the lines were so jammed. I hung up and walked
through the house, locking all of the doors, shutting all of the windows. It was hot, but I had to do it.

We had watched a few movies when I heard our car pulling into our drive. I had seen that the riots were getting worse, and had
been getting more and more nervous as the time had gone on. I walked into the kitchen, peeking through the window,
and waiting to open the door for my husband.

I didn’t have time to react, someone ran out of the shadows and grabbed him, sinking their teeth into his hands as my husband
tried to push them away. I really don’t know how, it happened so fast, but he made it to the door, where I could get it
open and get him inside. A split second before the attacker got up the stairs I slammed the door shut, locking all of the locks on it.

I could hear the banging as I pulled my husband into the bathroom, careful to keep myself between the wound and the
children’s rooms, hoping that they would not be awake to see their father so badly hurt.

“Damnit!” He swore as I dumped alcohol on the wound. It wouldn’t stop bleeding, but I did my best, and wrapped it in
gauze and an ace bandage.

“That was Carol…” He sat on our bed, pulling his shoes off, changing out of his bloody work clothes. “She bit me….”

“I can see that. Maybe we should take you to the hospital. They said that there was something wrong with the people who are
doing that, they’re going crazy or something.”

“No, the kids are asleep, I don’t want to wake them up. If it looks bad in the morning, then we’ll go.”

I wasn’t happy about it, but I let it be, letting him go to bed. I went out into the living room, laying on the couch to watch the news.
There were even more riots, and they were telling people to either stay in their homes, or to go to the sanctioned shelters.

I must have dozed off, the next thing I knew, I heard groaning from our bedroom. I rose, listening through the door
before I opened it slowly. My husband was laying on the bed, thrashing, face pale.

I pressed my hand to his forehead, and felt his skin. He was burning up. As I pulled back, he took a deep rattley
breath and stopped breathing.

“No…nononono…” was all I could sputter out, eyes wide, and backing out into the living room, closing the door behind me.
All I could think was what would I tell the kids.

It was then that the news got my attention again. “Anyone who is bitten is infected, quarantine them, remove them from the building.
They will die, and they will come back. It has been confirmed by numerous sources. I repeat, do not come into contact with
the infected, anyone who is bitten is infected. They can only be stopped by a blow to the head which
destroys or otherwise damages the brain.”

My jaw dropped. It was like something out of the books I read or movies. My eyes turned to the bedroom as a noise
caught my attention. Quickly I moved as much furniture as I could to block the door.

“God no.” I muttered, my eyes filling with tears as I woke the children and made them get dressed. Where could we go,
what would we do. I had them pack, clothes, a few toys and had the oldest grab cans of food from the kitchen to keep
busy. I didn’t have to go into the bedroom for my keys, but one of the kids asked where my clothes were, and where daddy was.

“Daddy is busy…we’re going to go and he’ll catch up later.”

With that I loaded them into the van in the garage, thankful we had had the locks put on the door when we moved in.
I could hear noises outside, but the door was sturdy enough they couldn’t get in. As I turned over the engine, I heard a loud thump
inside the house, and realized that the door had broken.

“Kids, I need you to close your eyes for mommy. Don’t look until I say so.” With that I pushed the button on the garage door opener and
gunned it. I ran down two or three of the creatures, as I had already begun thinking of them, as I backed out, barely clearing the
driveway as I saw what used to be my husband breaking down the door between the kitchen and the garage.

Let me say here, I know it seems like I got over what happened with him fast, but I didn’t. I am still not sure that I am over it,
but all I could think about then was making sure my kids were safe. I was all they had, I had to do everything I could to
keep them from having that happen to them.

Anyway, I was glad that we lived in the suburbs, the roads weren’t as congested as I drove them, trying not to slow down unless
I absolutely had to. I had to figure out somewhere to go.

We got about an hour north of where we lived when I thought it was safe enough to stop, but only for a few moments to
gather my thoughts. I knew that this was happening all over, so I had to find somewhere safe. I also knew it would have to be far away
from a city, too many people in the cities, the infection would have spread too fast. Maybe the mountains would be okay.
Find somewhere, a farm or something, and hole up there, build a wall around it.

A loud banging on the passenger window startled me out of my thoughts and I looked. The man standing there looking at me
mouthed something, and I cracked the window, barely enough to get two fingers through, but enough to hear him.

“Lady, you okay?” He asked, that was a good sign. Whatever these things were, they couldn’t speak. He also appeared to be
wearing what looked like a police uniform, though the overshirt was unbuttoned. He held a badge up, shining a flashlight on it so
I could see it clearly. The picture with his ID matched, so I motioned him to come around to the other side of the van.
“I’m not bit, but I’m kinda stuck. I’m a police officer, state trooper. My car ran out of gas a little ways back.”

He shone the flashlight on himself as I looked him over. He had some blood on his boots, but his pants and boots were intact.
I made him pull his pant legs up, then take off his shirts. His skin was flawless, and I let him get in, on the passenger side.

“I’m all right…” I turned, seeing that all of the kids had fallen back to sleep as I had been driving, and started to
drive again. “They’re okay, for now. Their dad….my husband…he’s..”

He merely nodded, knowing what I was trying to say. “Name’s Rick. My partner was bit, took him to the hospital when all hell
broke loose there. I made it out, don’t think anyone else did though.”

He ran his hand over his shaven head as we drove on in silence, the radio the only noise, but it was turned off after there
weren’t any more channels coming in.

“Where were you going to go?” I asked him, letting him take a turn behind the wheel.

“Honestly don’t know. All I was thinking was that I had to get away from the city. Car stopped before I could figure a destination.”

I nodded. “I thought maybe the mountains. Find a place up there with a big fence, and stay there.”

“Not a bad idea, but we’re gonna need gas and a map soon.”

That was the problem, and when all hell broke loose for us.

We were on the outskirts of a small town when the gas tank got low enough that we had no choice but to stop to refuel.
The kids were still asleep, so Rick and I talked for a few moments about how to do it before he climbed out.

He was going to go into the store and turn on the pumps, and see of there were any weapons to be had. I would pump the
gas and keep an eye out for any trouble. The idea was a good one, it should have worked.

He went in, though he had to break the glass to get there, which didn’t matter, we were going to leave right after
getting gas. He shouted out that it was okay, and I got out, eyes darting around the lot, and walking to the back of the van.
I started pumping the gas, watching the woods just beyond the lot.

I had left my door open, in case I had to get back in fast. I never should have done that. My oldest daughter woke up, and I guess
she had seen I was gone and climbed out. I didn’t see her because the gas cap was on the other side. I had just finished putting
the cap on when I heard the scream.

Rick heard it too, I saw him come running out, carrying a shotgun and a couple bags in his hands. He set the bags down
on the concrete by the van, and headed to the back of the store where the scream had come from.

I walked around, preparing to shut my door when I saw she was gone. I slammed the door shut and ran after Rick, but as I got past
the pumps I heard two shots ring out.

“NOOOO!!” I shrieked, feet carrying me as fast as they could. As I rounded the building’s corner, Rick caught me, not
letting me go any further. I saw her over his shoulder, laying there on the black concrete, her hair around her on
the ground like a halo, a bullet hole in her head. Blood pooled from the wounds in her neck and chest.

Laying there beside her the body of an old man, his face torn into shreds, what was left of it. His hands were
covered in blood, fresh red blood.

“Come on…before more of those things come.” Rick pulled me back to the van, I was screaming and fighting him the whole
way, but finally he got me into the van, climbing in himself and pulling away, after he checked the other children and grabbed
his bags again. They sat there, groggily staring at him, but they were still there. I sat there sobbing, body and
mind numb with the pain.

***

The drive was silent, occasionally broken by the twins asking where their big sister was. Thankfully the youngest couldn’t speak
that well, it was bad enough I broke down every time the twins asked.

Rick was a good guy. “She is staying somewhere else for now.”

For some reason, they accepted what he said, maybe somehow they knew they didn’t want to know more. The sun came up
over the land as we were still on the road.

“We need to get some rest soon. Have to find somewhere that we can be safe and keep the car safe too.”

I was beyond the sorrow I felt at what had happened, and focused my thoughts on protecting the rest of my children.
I failed her, but I wouldn’t do it again.

We slowed down in the next town, eyes searching the buildings, and the shadows. Watching for the creatures and for a
safe place to sleep. We found a garage, a brick building with small windows. The door was intact, and there was
a second one for people there too.

“This should work. I’ll make sure the inside is clear. Give me ten minutes, if I don’t come out by then, get the hell out of here.”

I nodded and slipped over into the driver’s seat. Rick walked to the smaller door, pulling his sidearm, having left the
shotgun with me. I sat with the motor running, the shotgun laying across my lap. I hadn’t shot one before, but Rick had
talked me through the basics, and I would do what I had to.

It took five minutes, but I saw the garage door open, and so far there was no sign of the things that had been killing everyone.
Slowly and carefully I pulled into the garage, where Rick was standing with a hand on the controls.

“There’s a locked room down in the basement, but the rest of the place is clear.”

He closed the garage door again, as I got out. “Stay put.” I told the kids.

We worked together to block off the smaller door, and locked the garage door as tightly as we could. There didn’t appear
to be any other way into the rest of the building, so we got the kids out, Rick carrying my youngest, and headed
up into the apartment above the garage.

The apartment was sparsely furnished, though clean. There was a sofa, and a TV, and in the bedroom a king sized bed.
I made the twins and the baby lay down in there, and walked back out into the living room.

“Nothing on the TV.” Rick tossed the remote onto the floor. “That’s not good. We’re about two hours out from the mountains,
and then we have to find a place. I have an idea of where we could look, but still will take time.”

“I know. My uncle had a place, maybe somewhere around there if we can’t find one where you want to look.”

“You should go lay down with the kids. I’ll keep watch out here.”

“You’ve been driving.”

“It’s okay, I’m used to pulling long shifts. I’ll get some sleep after you.”

I looked at him for a long moment, then got up. “Thank you.” I don’t know why I did, but I leaned in and gave him a
hug before I went in to lay down with my children.

I don’t know how long I slept, but I woke to two of my children jumping and bouncing on the bed. I had to smile a little,
their energy was infective. That was when I saw my baby laying listlessly watching the twins. I checked him over as I
changed his diaper, making sure that it wasn’t what I feared worst, and was at least rewarded in knowing he wasn’t bitten or hurt.

“Rick?” I got up, carrying the child in my arms. “Rick?”

I smiled slightly, he had fallen asleep on the couch, facing the only door in and out of the apartment. I called him again, and
his eyes flew open. He almost fell out of the chair, but regained himself.

“What’s wrong?”

“He’s sick, not bitten, but I think he’s got the flu. We can’t travel with him this sick. He’s got a bad fever.”

By the next morning the twins had caught it as well, and the baby was so much worse. He could hardly breathe. I was giving
them children’s fever medicine, doing what I could, but it was clear they weren’t ill with the flu, or whatever it was that
turned the people into monsters. I was sure they had pneumonia or something worse.

That evening Rick packed his side arm, and left to try to find medicine for my children. He never came back. The baby went
first, taking a last breath and never breathing again. None of them got back up, thank whatever higher powers are left for that
small favor. If they had, I don’t think I could have shot them, even to protect myself.

That was almost a month ago. I am almost out of food and water. I will have to go out there, to find some way to survive,
or die. I won’t let them change me, I have a bullet left if it comes to that.

I think the Earth is now theirs…..