Anarchy

We arrived back at my fathers house as the sun began to rise in the east revealing what was once a quiet neighbored, that was now in chaos. There were remnants of the dead, and a few undead still wandering around. Most of the houses had caught fire during the night and now lay as a smoldering pile of brick and ashes. One house had the charred bodies of the family that had lived in it huddled together. Tears welled in my eyes when my eyes met the twisted face of the father who was holding the charred body of a baby. I wiped my eyes and turned my gaze to my father's driveway. There were two more vehicles besides my white car, and the transport vehicle that had carried the survivors from the armory. "News travels fast." This was the first word James had spoken since his confession earlier this morning. "I hope no one has been bitten." I took my gun off safety and undid my seatbelt, ready for anything the undead might have to offer. Sterling was sitting on the back porch enjoying the morning mist. Some of the wandering dead were attempting to get through the fence that was around the back yard. The fence was not that high, but the zombies were not all that smart either. Their arms outstretched towards us they leaned into the fence as if they just expected to go through it. Sterling nodded at us, and cleared his throat. "Glad you made it." I smiled a little bit, and pushed past him. James sat with Sterling and started taking aim at the zombies that were still pushing on the fence. I headed down the stairs, the door to the saferoom was open wide revealing a group of young adults, all huddles around a game of cards. They were not using money to place bets, but things like smokes, weapons, or candy. They looked up as I entered the room, I nodded at them but my eyes stopped on a curly haired kid wearing glasses. Our eyes met for a moment, I smiled and continued to the kitchen area where Nelda was cooking some eggs. "Are you hungry dear?" she asked as she cracked a small brown egg into the pan she was cooking in. I shook my head smiling, "No thanks, I just want a shower." She nodded and began to hum what I recognized as an old church song. Brother Todd and a few others were lounging on the couches and recliners my dad had equipped the room with, they were chatting quietly amongst themselves. I could only hear snatches of the conversation, they were talking about a refugee camp in Leeds. Leeds is a town just outside of St. George, there wasn't much there other than good hiking and quiet living. I headed for the massive bathroom my dad had built for his late wife. The shower had multiple shower heads, there was a hot tub in the corner as well. The three old timers from the armory were lounging in the hot tub telling stories.
"Aye, you were right, this is a better place." One of them tipped their pipe at me. I nodded smiling, I closed a curtain on them, so that I could shower without putting on a show for the old folks. I showered quickly, I had to get to Leeds today, and I was probably going to have to escort some of the survivors there. There was a large closet close to the bathroom, it was filled with clothes of various sizes and styles. I found a good pair of jeans and a black tank top. I also found some better boots. I left my sneakers behind for someone who might find better use with them than I did, and headed back out to see what James was up to.
On my way back through the safehouse, two more survivors walked through the door. I smiled and welcomed them shaking their hands, "Your father is a good man." The man stated as he gave me a big bear hug, and headed towards the kitchen area sniffing the aroma of fresh cooked eggs, and bacon. The group of young adults had dispersed. I headed up the stairs and heard what sounded like a game of football going on in the backyard. I was right, James was acting Ref, and Sterling was playing quarterback. The curly headed kid was laughing at them. He wasn't playing instead he had a PSP in his lap. I sat next to him glancing to see what game he was playing. I began to laugh as I realized he was killing zombies in his video game. He jumped and turned to me, and our eyes met again I felt a chill run down my spin. I held my hand out to him "I'm Amber" He smiled and said "I'm Cliff" Our hands met and I felt the chill again. It was like electricity when our hands met. He smiled and looked at me curiously. His eyes were so intense I had to look away. I set my gaze on the group, James was trying to convince Sterling that he had messed up some play. They argued playfully for a moment, then Sterling grabbed James's chin and pulled him into an intense kiss. Cliff was laughing at them next to me. When he laughed I could feel the emotion roll off him. His laugh was musical in my ears. I began to blush, so I got up and headed towards my fathers chicken coop. The chickens were scratching the ground and clucking aimlessly. I sprinkled chicken feed our for them and watched as they fought over it. James walked up beside me, he had given up trying to ref, he had a goofy smile on his face. I started to laugh at him, when I caught the eye of Cliff again. My breath got caught in my throat, so I looked towards the ground. James elbowed me, and nodded towards Cliff who had started playing his game again. "I see the way he looks at you, and you are as red as a lobster." I bite my lower lip and looked into James's eyes, "Am I that easy to read?" I smiled and started to blush again as James nodded laughing. "I can't do this right now, I have to get to Leeds, to find my dad and sister." I started but James shook his head, and said "Amber, look around you it's the end of the world as we know it. Live, Love, Laugh" He was watching Sterling now, "I am." What he said was the smartest thing I had ever heard, and it made more sense than anything else that had happened to me this far.
Before I had a chance to try talking to Cliff, Nelda poked her head out the back door "Hey I need to call a meeting." I nodded at her and headed back towards the saferoom. The others followed me laughing and goofing around in the morning sunlight. Down the stairs and in the lounging area everyone had gathered together. I took my seat at the computer desk, and turned toward the rest of the group. James and Sterling sat together on the floor holding hands. Brother Todd was staring at them, but they didn't notice. I envied James then, he didn't care what anyone thought. He was perfectly content to be with Sterling. I felt an electric touch as Cliff placed his hand on my shoulder standing above me. I glanced up at him, he winked and smiled at me. Nelda cleared her throat "This room is not meant to be lived in by this many people, I say we take a head count of all those who want to go to the refugee camp in Leeds." She was interrupted by Brother Todd who politely stated "What if they are not safe there? I can't take my children unless I know its safe." Others nodded throughout the room. I saw my chance, standing up I stated "That is completely understandable, those who want to stay here, until I can get there and confirm they are safe are welcome to stay, those who want to go with me, your guns are appreciated." James nodded and Sterling said "I'm with you." Most of the younger group jumped up and pumped their fists in the air. I turned and looked at Cliff, his eyes were glinting and he nodded at me. This nod made me feel reassured that I was making the right decision. "Nelda, I would like to ask if you would like to be in charge of this safe room?" I turned to the hunched woman, she nodded and stuck her chin out proudly. "Then it's settled, those who are going with me, pack up we will leave in an hour." The group whooped and began gathering up their possessions. I turned back towards the computer to check if we needed to rescue anyone else. Other videos had started popping up about other saferooms throughout the United States. There were people congratulating us for our ingenuity, and for helping our fellow humans. I searched for any news on the state of the States. I found a video that showed a zombie attack on the white house. The US government had fallen. "Anarchy!" Cliff whispered over my shoulder. I nodded smiling sadly.