Jake sneered as he snatched Lucas' arm and knelt down to check his time.They still needed to clear the path and get on the road, even though it was midday.Dark storm clouds rose in the sky above them, covering them in a dull grey mist and dimming the light.This indicated that night would arrive earlier than usual.
“With a deeper scowl, Jake responded, "That's a little too far."Can you make that before it gets dark, are you positive?Muscles and Lucas exchanged uneasy glances.Lucas responded, "Well, we have to."Jake's eyes lit up with excitement, and he smiled.He had just had a thought that probably would not have been appreciated on any typical day.However, on this particular day, this crazy day, it was a thrilling thought.He pointed to a location on the map that was close to town.This location has a hotel.About two weeks ago, it had just shut down.He stopped and waved his hand in a circle, "I would venture a guess that they found themselves with more important matters to worry about." They were supposed to demolish it, but that hadn't happened as of yet.The big man replied, "All right, we'll try to get there."Show the others, Lucas.Lucas gave a quick nod and left.Jake was the big man's next target.We will already have reached our objective if we fail to reach it.Have fun.You will require it.Francis was close behind Jake as he nodded and dashed back toward Lucas's vehicle.He decided it would be best to let Francis drive the back this time, so he stopped just before getting in.She began to enter, but she stopped, turned toward Jake, and grabbed his arm.She responded, "Hey, don't make me regret saving you."His eyes narrowed in disbelief as he cracked a small smile.She replied emphatically, "No, really," adding, "I'm going to be really pissed if I wasted a bullet saving your ass just to have you immediately go and get yourself killed."She climbed into the truck and made her way to Andrew's seat without saying a word.Lucas was hurriedly giving another driver directions as Jake turned to look at the rest of the group.As if a great weight had fallen on his shoulders, he let out a sigh and felt his shoulders droop.What in the world did he just get himself into?The unwieldy, white SUV rounded the parking lot's corner and moved slowly but cautiously.On the inside, seven eyes were fixed on the windows, looking for any sign of danger.Since most of the creatures that had been there before had followed Jake and were probably still attempting to break through the gate that led to the pool area, this part of the lot was almost entirely clear, as Jake had anticipated.However, at the far end, the parking lot curved around a building to the front entrance, and several of the creatures were already stiffly progressing further into the complex from this point.Lucas said with nervousness, "I don't want to get too close," while keeping an eye on the creatures in front of him.Jake agreed, "Yeah, obviously."Simply drive up to that red vehicle.That will suffice.Jake quickly jumped out of the truck as it came to a stop.He quickly rounded the edge and made his way toward his car, the small red one he had mentioned earlier.Although the vehicle did not appear to have sustained enough damage to render it unusable for driving, the side and rear bumper dents were certainly not ideal.He quickly extracted the appropriate key from his pocket, slipped it into the driver's side slot, and unlocked the vehicle.He could hear the minute "click" echoing in his ears like a drum's pounding.He looked up to see if any of the creatures had noticed, but they seemed to be just going about their aimless stumbling in the same direction.He rJakeefed for a long time before realizing he had been holding his breath.He had hoped that they wouldn't notice him too soon.They may have surrounded Lucas's vehicle and attempted to enter, or he may have encountered some awaiting him when he returned to it at the end.If at all possible, it was best to avoid that circumstance.He ran as quietly and quickly as he could toward the entrance, bending over in the hope that doing so would help him remain stealthy.He gave up on it and straightened up about halfway there when he realized it was probably a stupid idea and he was just making himself look stupid.After taking a few steps, the closest animal seemed to notice him and turned to follow him.Taking a few steps back as he passed it, Jake ignored it.His destination was indicated by a dark green, boxy vehicle.It was close enough to the gate that all of the creatures would have to go through it to enter the complex, and it was also close enough to some of the apartments to give them a way out.Most importantly, many of the creatures were already getting close to it, and he hoped that if he could get enough of the ones in front of him to pay attention, the rest would just follow.In a stumbling, awkward manner, several of the things attempted to turn in his direction and appeared to already be paying attention to him.But because he was speeding by them, they had to keep turning, which was too hard for their sluggish movements, and some of the creatures even fell over from trying to turn.He got to the car and jumped a few times to get onto the trunk and then the bumper.He took stock of the creatures in the vicinity after glancing around and taking another step to get onto the car's roof.He took a few seconds to ensure his Daniel ce after it slightly buckled under his weight.He started to feel very stupid when he looked up.His primary concern was what he was going to eat for dinner less than an hour ago.Because of his foolishly hasty plan to put himself in the greatest threat he had ever encountered in his entire life, he might now be dinner.Who is doing this?He pondered from a distance.Who is this ignorant?He could see the front gate from a few dozen feet away.It turned out that it had been forced open, and the doors were only dangling from their bottom hinges.There was just enough room for all of the cars to pass in single file.Due to the addition of creatures, the space slowly got bigger, but their numbers were decreasing, which was both good and bad, and only a small number of them were still outside the gate.Jake felt himself wishing he had the common sense to bring a weapon with him as his hands moved open and closed.He probably could have done with just about anything to get through the next few minutes.He was becoming overcome by anxiety.He should have run and left as soon as he could while he still had the chance, according to his common sense.The attractive young woman who had saved his life just a few minutes earlier was waiting in a certain white SUV when he turned his head and glanced back to where the group was waiting.He sucked, berating both himself and the things he would do to get a girl's attention.He steJakeng himself for the task ahead by turning back toward the gate and taking a deep breath.He started frantically waving and bobbing up and down on the car's roof after raising his hands.Over here, hey!Even though he was completely unaware of the creatures and unsure if they could even hear him, he called out.Clean meat!He went on, "Come take it!”He seemed to be getting their attention, whether it was because of his ridiculous behavior, the monsters' inherent sense of humor, or something else entirely.The creatures were making a deliberate, slow turn in his direction before sprinting toward the vehicle and raising their arms to grab him.After giving a few more bounces and shouts for good measure while remaining there for a brief moment, he turned and jumped off the opposite side of the vehicle, away from the creatures.He quickly broke out in a dash and took several steps, trying to get out of their grasping range by a few feet before turning around to make sure he was being followed. Some were already coming around either side.When he did, the scene that greeted him was terrible and nearly overwhelming.It was like looking down a never-ending sea of monsters in the middle of a tsunami, one of which was heading straight for him.From the top of the vehicle, their numbers had not appeared to be very high.The mass appeared to now extend into infinity.He made a U-turn, climbed onto the nearest sidewalk, and then took a quick step down the path in the direction of one of the apartment buildings.The frightening thing was that his feet were unable to move. His heart was racing.He had to stop and look over his shoulder every few steps to make sure enough people were still following him.He would hop up and down and shout again whenever anyone left the main group, giving the impression that the wanderers had resumed their search.It took a few minutes to finally reach the closest building by moving in this manner.A long hallway ran down the building's center.Doors leading into apartments lined it on either side, and this one hallway connected all twelve apartments on the ground floor.He would get the most out of it if this worked.It wouldn't be possible for more than six or seven of the creatures to squeeze down the hallway at once.He might be able to use the hallway as a sort of bottleneck with a little luck to not only slow the creatures down but also prevent them from easily returning to the vehicles and parking lot.He was aware that he would need to ensure that the vast majority followed him in order for that to occur.He increased his stomping and shouting, jumping up and waving his hands as high as he could to get their full attention.He continued his display while beginning to take a step backwards as the creatures got very close.He was aware that his efforts would be pointless if he lost too many going down this hallway.However, he was also aware that he would die if he tripped and fell while walking backwards.He made an effort to ignore that aspect.Strangely dim was the hallway.The late-night feJakeng was brought on by the cloudy sky, and the hallway was dimly lit due to the lack of ambient light.Normally, a few small lights along the hallway walls dealt with this problem; however, when the power went out, those lights went out, leaving a portion of the path almost completely dark.Jake thought to himself that it was almost the perfect atmosphere for a horror movie.All that was required was
"It appears that we are free to leave,"Lucas looked out the window as he turned to the left.Richard Cotton, a massive man with a lot of muscle, had come up and parked his vehicle next to Lucas's.His eyes were still fixed on the faraway hallway and the creatures trying to force their way down it as he nodded in response to what he had just said.He smiled as he turned to face Lucas.What are your thoughts?Lucas concurred, "Well, I see no reason why we should wait around here."Which of us ought to wait for the child?Elaine inquired.She was sitting in Cotton's SUV's passenger seat, close enough to Lucas that he could touch her.He wanted to grab her by the neck when he heard the comment.Comments like that only served to increase the risk rather than reduce it.The kid had wanted to put his neck in danger.What ought to concern them?Richard agreed, "Elaine is correct."What if his vehicle isn't working?We shouldn't just abandon him here.Not after the way he assisted us.Lucas clenched his te
With a deep growl in her throat, she demanded, "Help the Others," as if to warn him against manipulating her.I won't bother you.Jake desired to express himself.He wanted to inform her that he was only concerned about her.He wanted to say that all of his efforts would have been pointless if she didn't survive.He was aware of how ridiculous he was being and wanted to say a lot of things.Instead, he shifted his position so that he could peer through the window on the passenger side and fought back the growing fear by biting his lip.Ryan's head was dangling and turned away.It bobbed up and down in response to the vehicle's smallest movements.As Lucas made a series of frantic movements, he bumped Lucas as his arms hung similarly loosely across the car.In an effort to see more clearly what Ryan was doing, Jake squinted, but Ryan's motionless body and cracked glass made it nearly impossible to see.Jake lifted the door to the open position by pulling on the handle, realizing that time was r
Francis got into his seat and shut the car door.She gave Jake a sad smile and said, weakly, "Well, let's go."Jake did not challenge.Lucas remained stationary as the vehicle drove off.Rob would need a long time to grieve before he would be willing to go anywhere, so there was little chance that they would survive. He was aware that Ryan had passed away.Which, for some reason, Lucas found to be of no concern at all.He calmly knelt, picked up his aviators, and put them back on his forehead where they belonged.He ignored the thought that this was the end as he raised his shotgun and pointed it at the creature that was closest to him.Jake had already reached fifty miles per hour when he reached Main Street, which was only a few dozen or so feet from his apartment complex's exit.He barely slowed as he turned and moved into the farthest left lane because there was really no need to worry about traffic.Even when he would go out at two or three in the morning, he had never seen the world so e
Jake gave a jerky nod, clearly shaken and disoriented.He didn't like what reality was telling him, and it was clear that the world as it was now was settling on him.Not that he had ever found reality to be particularly appealing.He had initially been hiding in his room for that reason.He had been playing video games and listening to music throughout the end of the world.He asked, hoping his voice was not clearly shaken by his fear, "So, how are we going to do this?"Should we separate or...?He gave the colossal room another quick glance as his voice trailed off in uncertainty.“If you get more than ten feet from me, I’ll rip your nuts off,” Francis said with a wicked smile.Jake looked at her with a narrowed eye.Have you ever been told that you are a sweet, lovable person?”Her smile only got bigger.Everyone,” she replied plainly.After giving each aisle a quick glance, she motioned for him to follow her.“Come,” she commanded.They quickly left, first heading to the camping area.They cou
Jake put all of his focus back on the road.Buildings that were unoccupied and lifeless parking lots rushed by to their left and right.The view didn't seem right to me.This simply cannot be the world in which he grew up;not in the absence of bustling crowds everywhere;not without life, which is omnipresent and overwhelming, barging in from all directions, making him want to hide in his room."How did the world end up in the hellish pit?"He mostly spoke to himself, and he didn't really care who heard him.No one responded.He had no response from anyone.By the time they reached the abandoned hotel, Nancy was beginning to look much better, with new bandages covering her wound and painkillers in her system.She was able to speak coherently and her head had cleared enough that color had returned to her face.Not that there were a lot of words spoken among the group members.They were all exhausted, beaten, and possibly even scared or terrified.Just a few weeks ago, they would have only been in
He yelled, "Fine," removing Francis's hand from his shoulder.He struggled to shake the bubbling rage that had developed within him.He turned and stomped off to the opposite side of the lobby, grinning.He collapsed into a chair he found.He looked up and saw Francis comforting Marshall, which turned his stomach to Lucash.He got up, threw himself back on his chair, angled it in a new direction away from the couple.A young couple sat next to him in two identical armchairs, holding hands and staring at him with amused expressions.What?”When Jake saw them, he snapped.Leaning forward, the male chuckled.Poor day?He asked, his amusement reflected in his own voice.After clenching his jaw, Jake gave a sluggish head nod.He couldn't deny it:This was a truly awful day.There isn't a bad day like this one.He heard the growl of his StoLucash and realized he was starving.Despite the fact that on a typical day, he would have eaten at least three meals and perhaps a few snacks, he had eaten virtually
Oh, that's right, and anyone who talks to someone a lot must obviously be dating that person.I mean,” he said in a slur as he looked around for an illustration.Skyler and the elderly man she was eating next to caught his attention.I mean, it's obvious that they're also a couple, right?Jake shrugged and gave the two people a thoughtful look.Hey, the end of the world has arrived.Who should I judge?The comment caused Jay's eyes to widen, and despite himself, he laughed.Yeah, he said absently, as if he were still thinking about the comment.He said, "Fair point," then quickly turned and headed back in the same direction he had come from before they interrupted him.After a brief chuckle, Daniel shook his head.I guess you got him there, then.”He turned to look at Jake again to continue their conversation, but when he saw the young man, he abruptly stopped.Jake now looked distant, his eyes pointing down toward the ground but giving the impression of staring into space, in contrast to how he