Survival
It was getting late and all throughout woods I heard nothing but silence. Not even a cricket chirping or a dog howling in the night. It was just pure silence. I haven’t felt this way in a very long time I was always in a constant state of panic and paranoia. For the first time in months I felt relaxed. I’ve been hiding out in the woods for the past few weeks, I haven’t really been keeping track of time. I was alone in a wooden cabin it was dark cold and lonely. At one point this cabin could have been filled with life, but that’s certainly not the case now. There was broken furniture everywhere which showed me strong signs of struggle between the people who once inhabited this place and them. It was a sad sight to behold. But I needed a place to stay. Survival was the only thing I ever had on my mind. The only thing I could ever think about was when my next would be. I usually only had the choice of squirrel or rabbit. Since entering the woods I have developed the skill to able to hunt for my food. The forest can be very cruel but for the time ive been here it has been very generous in providing me with food and water. And like most city people I have grown very tired of living this way. I missed the feeling of civilization. I had to get out I was going insane, my mind would often wonder off in chasm of self-conscience where it felt like there was no escape.
One morning I finally decided to get out of the woods and head to who knows where. I was just so sick of surviving off squirrel carcus and bird meat. I gathered up the necessary materials needed for survival. The usual stuff like make shift bow and arrows that I made out rocks and fallen tree branches. I took a backpack lying in the closet of a bedroom in the house. There was an abandoned shotgun in there to with only six other shells. If I was going to use the shotgun I could only use for emergencies. I took off into the woods following the gravel path hoping to get on the highway to the next town. The highway was very close by, a lot closer than I thought. There were cars piled up everywhere, I searched some of the cars in hopes of finding any food that hasn’t gone bad. I managed to find bottled water, some crackers, and some un opened jam. The joy I felt when I encountered these items was overwhelming.

Later I was walking down the highway. The sun was strong but the cool fall air took over with a beautiful breeze that countered the sun’s heat so perfectly that I didn’t feel hot or cold. The road looked like it stretched for miles and miles. There was no sign of civilization anywhere the land was deserted and everything was abandoned. The outbreak must have really taken its toll on the people. I walk for hours and hours hoping to reach a town by sunset. I eventually had to stop and then set up the camp for the night. It was cold but I couldn’t risk making a fire out of fear that I would get caught by them. There was dead silence again. This sound was different however this silence was absolute silence. It felt as if I went deaf for a moment. The wind started to pick up again.

The next morning I continued down this road. At this point I was starting to give up. You could see the road stretch on and on. Eventually I saw a car from the looks of it. It was broken down with steam coming out of the hood. There was no doubt in my mind that there is someone nearby that could help me get to the next town. I felt hopeful and happy to finally be able to have human interaction again. I got closer and closer to the car my heart started racing I was so excited. When I got to the car the steam was still going. There was no one in sight. My heart sank and my hope was gone. But the car looked as if it had been freshly deserted. I searched the car for any supplies that I could use for my trip. It was empty nothing was of use to me in the car. I got up and felt a really cold end of a gun press against my neck. I froze there wasn’t really anything I could do. There are no laws in this post-apocalyptic wasteland.

“What are you doing going through my car?” I heard. I’m trembling as I just sit here helpless unable to do anything. The only thing I could think about was screaming help but I was so frightened that I could not make any sort of sound. My body felt cold and the adrenaline coursing through my body didn’t really help my situation either. I couldn’t answer her question I was too frozen.” Well am I gonna have to shoot you or are you going to answer my question?” I finally got the nerve to turn around my knees were weak and my hands were shaking. I turned around then I put my hands behind my head.

“look man I don’t want any trouble just take what you want and go!” i said when I finally worked up the courage to speak.my life flashed before my eyes as I was starring into the barrels of the shotgun he was holding in his hands.

“then tell me why you searching my car!” he exclaimed as he stabbed me in the chest with the cold end of the gun.

“I thought it was abandoned!”

“well it isn’t!” there was silence for a moment. “What’s stopping me from shooting you?” he asked his finger was on the trigger and he was unafraid to use it.

“I see that youre having car troubles maybe I can fix for you.” Before this whole mess went down, I worked in the garage with my dad. He should me how to work my way through the hood of a car. He told me the skills I learned the garage may one day come in handy. I took the opportunity and fixed the engine it just needed time to cool down. We rode the car along the abandoned highway I was driving with a gun pointed at me. The ride was silent until we reached an abandoned town, Tipton. We stopped at a gas station even though everything was abandoned the gas pumps still worked.

“wait out here and ill go inside and get some supplies” he said in an alert tone. It was as if he was prepared for something to happen. As soon as the door closed behind him I searched his car for a weapon I found a little pistol with 5 rounds in it. This is my chance! I thought. But before I had a chance to turn around he was already back outside with his bag full of non-perishable foods. “What are you doing?” he asked suspiciously. I shook my head to indicate that I didn’t know what he was talking about.

He let his guard down. It was now or never but before I could pull my gun out I heard footsteps that were accompanied by moaning and groaning. It was my first encounter with one of them. It was a very grotesque sight to see. It was missing an arm. Its teeth were rotted and its skin has been ripped apart in some places.

“Watch out!” I exclaimed. But it had already got a hold of him. I had a choice leave him there or save him. I pulled out the pistol and in one swift motion I pulled the trigger I only had one shot and I had to be accurate. Bullseye! Right in the skull of the creature I managed to save him before he got bit by it. My adrenaline was pumping, my heart was racing, and the thrill of it all really hit and I shouted in excitement. “Yeah! That’s what’s up!! “I saw the look in his eyes after my victory shout. He was petrified and he just stood there in disbelief at what I just did.

“Thanks for the save…” is all he was able to say. He was trembling and I can tell he didn’t want to mess with me. I didn’t respond to his thanks. “Get in the car we gotta get outta here! There could be more on their way.” He had a point the gunshot was loud now that I thought about it my ears were ringing. We got into the car and I started driving we were going west. The ride was silent again we didn’t really say anything to each other.

We got to another car pileup. There was no real way around it we had to get out of the car and go through on foot hopefully there would be a good working car at the end of the pileup. The feel was silence and abandonment, we had our weapons drawn and ready in case we had another encounter. We got over a large hill made of cars. What we saw on the other side of that hill was terrifying, it was a horde of them, there at least twenty of them. We both knew we didn’t have enough ammo to get passed it. We had to be smart about this, the only way we could get passed it was to sneak our way through. We were quiet ducking behind cars and making sure we were extremely quiet. My heart was racing the pressure to not blow our cover was horrific. This was a real life or death situation. We saw the end of the pileup we were so close. As we were walking towards the end I heard this crackle at the end of my foot on the ground I stepped on a piece of glass. As soon as I lifted my foot up they all started chasing us. I ran faster than I knew I could the thought of being eaten alive was more terrifying than anything I can ever imagine. We ran until we got cornered, there was no way out and we were surrounded. The closer they got the closer I came to death. Survival was key the only thing on my mind and now death is all I can think about.

“Get outta here just run through them ill hold them off! I’m just so tired of constantly trying to survive go! Just run and don’t look back” he said I was confused at first; it sounded like he was talking to himself. But took his advice and left I managed to get through them I looked back and all I heard was screams of pain and agony. I held back tears in eyes but I just kept running.

I’m back on the road now still trying to find my way towards any sort of civilization it’s been years since that day. And all this time I have kept my gratitude towards that guy who saved me. The years have passed and I have grown tired of survival myself. But I can’t give up for all I know the next town can be full of normal people like me.until that day however I have to keep surviving . But there is one thing that still bothers me to this very day. The one who saved me from the unknown afterlife something about him seemed to be off as if there was something missing. And at that moment it hit me, the very piece I was missing of the puzzle! He saved me from death and I have never bothered to know his name…