Music was constantly playing inside of Liam's head. Ever since his iPod had died just three months into electricity becoming a thing of the past, he felt like he might go insane. Music was what kept him sane. Now, he was missing it during a time he needed it the most. Liam was a boy scout until he was too old to go back, so he had the basics of wilderness survival drilled into his memory. He didn't expect to last as long as he and his brother had, though. They weren't exactly unhealthy men, but surviving pretty much on your own during an apocalypse was harder than it looked in the movies. Liam was a marathon runner in the past, but sometimes they ran from zombies so long that the next day his legs would be on fire. He couldn't imagine what Isaac's body was going through, since the poor kid was a stoner who worked in retail before shit hit the fan. They knew they weren't the only survivors because they'd both gotten glimpses of their neighbors going in and out of houses and stores. Everyone around the neighborhood seemed to be thinking of each other, always only taking what they needed and nothing more. Isaac told Liam about an encounter with one of their Asian neighbors, who informed him that he was planning to take his family north to find refuge states.
It was then that the idea sparked that the brothers should make their way toward Tennessee to try to reunite with their parents and other brothers. Liam bitterly thought what use they could have made of a GPS or phone for directions in a time like this. However, the route wasn't completely unfamiliar because they'd had to travel to their current apartment somehow. Blind as to how long it would take them to reach Nashville, Liam and Isaac readied four backpacks full of two-liter sodas, plastic cups, canned foods, a tinderbox, some matches and lighters, bottled waters, stale breads and bags of chips, and prepared to leave for their "road trip," as they called it. The only weapons they had were Liam's revolver and pocket knife, and Isaac's shotgun. Their survival had mostly been ensured through evading the un-dead.
Upon their arrival in Nashville, the two came upon a weapons shop which was, as expected, already broken into and looted. Still, they entered with the intent to take whatever they could find. All of the guns and most of the knives had already been taken, leaving a few small pocket knives behind. Isaac scanned through the ammunition and managed to acquire a bit more for his shotgun and Liam's revolver. They settled with the thought that they were lucky to receive that, and left it alone. They pursued further, making their way to their childhood home. Devastation seeped in once they found it abandoned, not a single soul in sight. From across the street, the blinds in the window of one house were pulled down, and a pair of eyes peered at them suspiciously. Within the second, the same set of eyes disappeared. Liam looked at Isaac, who shrugged and shook his head.
Sighing, Liam sat the two backpacks, now almost empty, on the floor in front of their father's favorite reclining chair, which had a camouflage design underneath a folded, black blanket. He recalled how the door had been unlocked when they got there, and came to the conclusion that their parents and brothers must have fled. That was all he wanted to conclude. Dropping down onto the couch with another heavy sigh, Liam looked at Isaac and said, "What do we do now?"
"Awh, man...I dunno," his brother said dejectedly, kicking an invisible rock in front of his foot. "What can we do?"
Liam stared at the floor in front of him and shook his head, obviously exhausted both physically and mentally. "This whole thing's just unreal," he muttered. "We should have never moved. We shouldn't have."
He shook his head again and placed his hands in his lap, longing to be able to turn the T.V. on and drown himself in cartoons. His hands itched to tap away at his phone, blabbering to his friends on social media. Living without technology was honestly killing him, and there were many moments when he wished it had never existed in the first place.
It was then that the idea sparked that the brothers should make their way toward Tennessee to try to reunite with their parents and other brothers. Liam bitterly thought what use they could have made of a GPS or phone for directions in a time like this. However, the route wasn't completely unfamiliar because they'd had to travel to their current apartment somehow. Blind as to how long it would take them to reach Nashville, Liam and Isaac readied four backpacks full of two-liter sodas, plastic cups, canned foods, a tinderbox, some matches and lighters, bottled waters, stale breads and bags of chips, and prepared to leave for their "road trip," as they called it. The only weapons they had were Liam's revolver and pocket knife, and Isaac's shotgun. Their survival had mostly been ensured through evading the un-dead.
Upon their arrival in Nashville, the two came upon a weapons shop which was, as expected, already broken into and looted. Still, they entered with the intent to take whatever they could find. All of the guns and most of the knives had already been taken, leaving a few small pocket knives behind. Isaac scanned through the ammunition and managed to acquire a bit more for his shotgun and Liam's revolver. They settled with the thought that they were lucky to receive that, and left it alone. They pursued further, making their way to their childhood home. Devastation seeped in once they found it abandoned, not a single soul in sight. From across the street, the blinds in the window of one house were pulled down, and a pair of eyes peered at them suspiciously. Within the second, the same set of eyes disappeared. Liam looked at Isaac, who shrugged and shook his head.
Sighing, Liam sat the two backpacks, now almost empty, on the floor in front of their father's favorite reclining chair, which had a camouflage design underneath a folded, black blanket. He recalled how the door had been unlocked when they got there, and came to the conclusion that their parents and brothers must have fled. That was all he wanted to conclude. Dropping down onto the couch with another heavy sigh, Liam looked at Isaac and said, "What do we do now?"
"Awh, man...I dunno," his brother said dejectedly, kicking an invisible rock in front of his foot. "What can we do?"
Liam stared at the floor in front of him and shook his head, obviously exhausted both physically and mentally. "This whole thing's just unreal," he muttered. "We should have never moved. We shouldn't have."
He shook his head again and placed his hands in his lap, longing to be able to turn the T.V. on and drown himself in cartoons. His hands itched to tap away at his phone, blabbering to his friends on social media. Living without technology was honestly killing him, and there were many moments when he wished it had never existed in the first place.
