RudyGasparrini

People fear death for many reasons. For some, the fear of what comes after. The fear of being forgotten. A threat to the meaningfulness of life. Being forced to stop life projects.
This was what the world feared before. Now, what we fear is what we become 
After Death.

A suspenseful story told by different characters over the years of the zombie apocalypse. The group consists of high school kids and deals with troubling events in which not everyone survives. 

TW: This story contains graphic descriptive content, strong language, and disturbing descriptive images and is intended only for mature audiences.

AFtER DEAtH

Khai found her tree; it was small, but it made sense because she had only gone out on her own. She was strong, but she couldn't carry a huge tree on her own. Rudi, Olivia, Aaron, and Edin decorated it with the lights that Aiden had brought back.

"Do you think this is stupid, celebrating a holiday in the middle of the apocalypse?"

"No, of course not. We need this, Rudi; we've earned it. Why would you think it's stupid anyway?"

"Leah, she said it was a waste of time."

"Don't take it to heart; our family never celebrated Christmas," Amy interrupted with a smile on her face. Leah was really an ass. I thought she just hated me for what I did before, but I guess it was a bit more complicated than that. Rudi nodded, his expression softening. "I guess you're right. It's just hard to ignore her sometimes." Amy placed a comforting hand on Rudi's shoulder. "I understand, but let's not let Leah ruin our holiday spirit. We deserve this moment of joy amidst all the chaos."

We ate dinner that night, and the smell of the meat lingered with the fresh pine. There were laughs and the sound of people talking. The candles made their happy faces glow even brighter. Our stomachs were so full afterwards that we all slept well that night.

I heard someone outside my door at some point past midnight. I was almost asleep before I heard the wooden floorboards creak from outside. The steps got to my door before stopping. I waited for something—a sound—but it never came. My heart raced as I lay in bed, wondering who could be outside my door at such a late hour. The silence that followed only heightened my anxiety, leaving me wide awake and on edge.

I grabbed my knife from under my pillow. It could have just been Khai but it was unlikely. Why would she come into Dallen and my apartment in the middle of the night?

The doorknob turned slowly. I gripped the knife tighter and waited with anticipation to see whoever was on the other side of that door.

Through the darkness, I saw the tall figure, and my face changed immediately when I saw who it was. I was filled with anger.

It was Lucas; he held a gun in his hand. He pointed it at me as I still sat on my bed. Dallen slept in the bed across from me. I prayed he didn't wake up. If I needed to kill this man, I'd rather do it without an audience. My heart raced as I assessed the situation. I knew I had to remain calm and think quickly. With every ounce of strength, I suppressed my anger and fear, ready to protect myself and Dallen at any cost.

We didn't say a word to each other; we both had the exact same look on our faces.

"I'm going to talk, and you're going to listen," he whispered, slowly walking towards me. "There doesn't have to be blood." I didn't respond; I just kept my hand wrapped around the knife.

Chapter 17 (Christmas)