Zombie Dream Chapter 8

Dream note: Alrighty, I don't know how I'm exactly going to explain this part. In my dream there was a lot of fast forwarding moments and this part moves kind of quickly. I don't know if I mentioned this in the introduction of chapter 1, but my dream started out by fast forwarding through the first 18 years of my life or so. I watched all the events that actually happened in my life in super fast forward. From the day I was born through elementary school, through Osseo and then to where my blogs picked up from. Then again sometimes in my dream things would fast forward or skip time. So like I remember riding in Dawson's car from the previous chapter and then things moved really fast and my dream would only show major events and then the next thing I know we are set up some place in Canada which chapter 8 explains. I don't know how I can explain the fast forwarding in the blogs, but I'll try doing something. Just warning that these next few parts might get a little confusing.

So imagine these next few parts moving really fast like you just pressed fast forward on your DVD player or if your old school, your tape player. You can even imagine the scratch streaks stretching across the screen if you are in visioning a VHS, because thats how I kind of saw it.

Dream: We leave the gas station parking lot and a lot of people have settled down. The ride is quiet at first but then I ask Dawson and Mitch if they are okay and they say yes in very dry tones. Then I remember that this is actually the first time they encountered one of these monsters and I try to bring their spirits up. After I loosen them up a little, I joke around and tell them that it wasn't that bad. I say to them, "at least no one got tore up like Tony did." A very evil joke, but it serves its purpose. Dawson comes out and tells us that he froze and he was scared beyond belief. He apologizes to us and I tell him that he doesn't need to be sorry because we were all afraid and if new Jim wasn't there we all might be dead. He agrees but then says, "Ya, but I thought I was ready," and I tell him, "I thought I was too, but at least now we have more experience and we will be more ready." Mitch jumps and says some macho crap. Dawson tells me I must have been really scared with all the blood and guts that flew on me. I tell him that I was so caught up in fear that I didn't even feel or hear anything. Mitch interjects and says, "Ya dude, I was just about to pull out my gun but it got caught on my belt." Dawson gives me this disgusted face and I flash a hidden smile. I tell them that next time I promise not to react like that and that I will be ready to defend myself and everyone else. I tell Dawson and Mitch to be ready for next time as well. Dawson says, "I will for sure try," and Mitch grunts, "of course!"

(Fast Forward)

Grocery store: We are running low on supplies and need to restock. It seems like the chaos is spreading faster than we can run and now cities are beginning to look thin. We just made it in this grocery store and we are making sure the area is clear. We have checked this first couple of aisles. The size of the grocery store makes the process very frightening and painful. We have split into two groups to speed up the process. I didn't want to split into two groups fearing that it might weaken our forces and I didn't want to leave the families waiting in the car defenseless either. I keep thinking about the gas station and I tell myself that I can not freeze like I did back there. New Jim is leading group two so I don't have the luxury of him backing me. We've only checked a few more aisles and it seems like we have been in here forever. The store still has some working lights so it isn't to bad light wise but the air is off and everyone is sweating heavily. We reach the end of another aisle and look down the main aisle both ways before we cut into the next aisle. Cereal is in the next aisle. I take a second to catch my breath and wipe some sweat off my face when I see flashes of bright light and huge bangs coming from where the other group should be. I hear lots of screaming and cussing also coming from that area and I looked back at my group and they all fall out of formation and I yell at them to try and keep them composed. We are all looking back at the other area and to try and figure out what is going on. The gun fire continues. I turn around and I see a silhouette down the aisle and it is approaching us quickly. I yell watch out and everyone turns and screams. I quickly squeeze my trigger as tight as I can a couple of times. Couple of shots to the head and body. My eyes are closed and I feel like falling to my knees to cry but I remember the promise I made in the car and I stay as calm as I can. My first kill. Dawson yells out, "Holy shit!" The other team has quieted down. Mitch yells a bunch of cuss words out way to quickly for me to understands and points down the aisle. Another creature moving way to fast to be human. This one has more a waddle compared to the other one. This time I steady my aim and I fire off a couple off shots. I can almost see each individual blood bullet floating in the air and it looks like art to me. I didn't even freak out over this kill. My second kill. I realized how much just shooting the gun once steadies your emotions. I tell Dawson and Mitch to shoot the dead body once and they do. Blood spurts out of its chest with each bullet. We move quickly through the rest of the aisles and we rendezvous with the other group. I quickly ask if everyone is okay and they say yes. New Jim is soaked in blood. I ask how many monsters they encountered and Jim says maybe 8 of them. I think about what might have happened if my group came across 8 creatures. I think to myself why the fuck did we have to pick this store.

We stay at a new hotel tonight. Its really nice. During our drive to the hotel I told Jon and Dean that I want them to watch what they eat and that I want them to exercise when ever they get the chance. I tell them that this is going to be a very physically challenging journey and if we want to increase our chances of living, we are going to need every advantage. I even talk Jon into eating some veggies. We have a large group dinner tonight and its been a while since we've done this. There are a bunch of separate conversations going on. Dawson, Mitch, Dean, Jon, Dick and I talk about our latest monster encounters we have had. We are all keeping track of our kill count. Over these few weeks I've learned a bunch of new techniques. We have all grown comfortable using our weapons and we are defending ourselves much better now. It has almost become a sport to me. I can shoot a gun and kill things now without hesitation. My kill count proves this. I am currently at and have been stuck on 11 kills for a while. Jon is growing a liking for shotguns and has 6 kills. Dean: 6, Dawson: 3, Mitch: 1 and Dick: 0. I've been teaching Dick how he should shoot a gun but he is still pretty nervous. We don't bring Dick on any of the missions, but I want him to be ready anyways. Amanda walks over and has a seat. I haven't talked to her much lately and I feel really guilty about it. I think I actually kind of avoid her out of fear now ever since Mitch made that comment about her being a hottie. Now that I feel an attraction towards her I am kind of scared to be around her. She asks, "What are you guys talking about?" and Dawson and Mitch jump in with some macho comments about killing monsters. She makes this sarcastic yet kind "oh great" face. I've been feeling kind of sick lately. It's not like a illness sick, but I just feel ill like I've been stressing out. But at the same time I don't feel like I'm stressing out. Life has become so different.

This is our second day at the hotel. We've made plans to visit a store that might have more ammunition since we want to always have some in stock. We aren't low quite yet, but better safe than sorry. We have been firing weapons at a much more frequent rate and we are trying to train everyone so that takes some ammo too. My boys and I sit in a room and watch some t.v. I've kind of forgotten what t.v was. Last week we gave out selves the nickname "The Hood Killers." We all think its super lame but we call our selves it anyways for some odd reason. Amanda jumps into our room and calls us by our nickname and I blush a little because the name sounds so dumb. There aren't any shows on t.v anymore, only news. ESPN and MTV are still on the air but they basically don't have anything about sports or music. The news is telling us that this chaos is spreading fast. It makes me really sad that there might not be an end to this anytime soon. I look over and I see Mitch macking on Amanda. They are laughing a lot and it makes me happy. Dawson is dedicated to the news and Dean and Jon are kind of off on their own. I hear a voice outside. Someone is yelling for us to come down. When we get meet up with the rest of the group I see that there are a bunch of new people. Connie and Jim Franklin begin to introduce the new group and explains that these people just got here. 2 or 3 new families. I only see one person our age. He is this really tall and handsome guy. Blue eyes, blond hair, muscular, good fashion. I get these "high school star quarterback" vibes from him and just the way he walks shows his arrogance. For some reason I feel like punching him in the face, but I opt not to. I just can't stand people like that. I guess I've just become more and more violent. He walks over to us and shakes our hand and gives us all a "wuddup dudes!" He smells really good and it kind of looks like he is wearing makeup. He walks up to Amanda and gives her a hug and he is really smooth with her. I kind of want to punch him in the face again but I again choose not to.

We've made a couple of more trips out to the cities to pick up more food and supplies. It feels like we have been at this hotel forever but I think about it and we really don't have other place to go. One more family has joined us during our time here. I've been talking to "star quarter back boy" a lot more lately and I finally learned his name. Jamie, what a fucking girl name. He hasn't done anything bad to me, but he hasn't done anything good either and I just get these awful cocky vibes from him that just make me sick. During these trips out to the city I've killed a lot more monsters. I am beginning to lose count since these creatures come in waves now, but I think I am somewhere around 25. Jon is still in second place but has been stuck at 15 for a while. I can slowly feel that sickness I've been feeling so much slowly fading. It feels like with every kill, I feel better. The more violently I think and the more defensively I think, the better I feel. I am starting to feel like a professional monster killer. There used to be a lot more people walking around when we went into the cities but you don't see them much anymore. The skies always seem to look gray and the roads are becoming more and more empty with each sunset. Newspapers litter the streets with updates and headlines. One newspaper had a headline that read "Hell on Earth."

Jamie and I got into a fight today. Now that I look back at it, it is such a childish fight. We were all eating dinner and he usually sits by us when we eat and he kept joking off and he kept calling me a fag. I wasn't in the best mood and I kind of snapped some comments back at him. He snapped when I told him that I fucked his mother. He then slammed the table and challenged me to a fight. I walked right up to him and looked up since he is a lot taller than me and I dared him to do something and he pushed me so I punched him across the face. By this time everyone jumped in and broke us up. They pulled him out of the room and a couple of the guys let me cool down before they say anything. I see Amanda run out the room and go after Jamie.

This store it huge. On the way in I killed one more monster. Well, I thought I did but Dawson claims that he got it first. I told him that he could have the kill and he offers to split the kill. I say no and I just give it the count to him even though I am certain I shot it first. It was a good shot to, right in the head. There really isn't any fear left in my heart now and I think everyone else is getting used to our missions. We are also starting to develop teams. The same group of people usually work together each time. I like this because it builds chemistry. I'm almost to the point where missions are like second nature and I can almost roam around freely and feel the environment for dangers. Everyone has become better marksmen. The store is big, but it doesn't take us to long to gather supplies. We came to load up on ammo and anything else we thought would help us defend ourselves. Jon grabs a brand new shotgun and I tell him that he doesn't need another one but he claims this one is more sexy than the last. I hear a gun shot in the aisle next to mine and I jump because I really didn't think there were any monsters in here. I walk over and peek into the aisle and its Jamie. I ask him, "what the fuck are you shooting at?!" and he just says, "sorry! it was an accident."

We are planning on leaving the hotel tomorrow because I guess we found a better area on the map and there is better hotel in that area. Tonight we have a huge group dinner where we talk about what our next move is and then everyone goes off into their separate groups to goof off. I'm with the boys and we chill and trade stories and give each other tips. I start up a conversation where we talk what we are thinking and seeing when we are out there so we can increase our team chemistry. You know, so we can be inside each others minds when we are out in fights. After we let the food settle for a little, we head over the the weight room and we all get a little work out in. It seems like all we talk about now are battles and strategies. And girls too I guess. We've become these totally masculine and brainless military brutes. I am going to try and fight falling into that mold. I still want to be a human being. The guys and I have been sharing the same room for the past week. It begins to get late so we all go up to our room and check over everything for tomorrow and sit around. We're sitting around and chatting when I hear a knock at the door so I get up an get it. We don't argue about who gets the door anymore. Who ever is closest gets it. We are much more disciplined. I open it and its Amanda and I get kind of confused because she knows just to walk in. Her head is down and she sniffles and I ask her, "whats wrong?" She looks up and I see she has been crying and she asks, "Can we talk?" and I say yes and step outside and close the door behind me. Amanda says, "lets walk," in a really soft tone and I follow her. I ask her, "whats wrong?" and it takes her a second to respond, "Everything is wrong Min." I don't say anything and I just listen. She asks me, "Are you happy here?" and I just say, "I guess so." I tell her that I'm comfortable and that I feel safe here. She goes on to tell me that I'm probably right but that sometimes she feels so lonely and trapped. I tell her that if she ever feels lonely that she could come over and hang out with me and the guys. I ask her about Jamie, "What about Jamie? You guys have been spending a lot of time together, you guys like a couple yet?" She tells me that they are but that they got into a fight tonight. I try to cheer her up and I tell her that he seems like a really nice guy and that he will probably treat her right. Then I ask her why she feels so trapped. She tells me that she hasn't been outside of the hotel for a week or two and that she forgets what the world looks like. I never thought of the people who have been stuck inside the hotel. Since I get to go out on missions every once in a while I've never felt to cramped. I feel really bad for them. I tell her that being stuck must really suck and that I never thought about that since I get to see the outside once in a while. She asks me how everyone and everything looks outside and I tell her that it's okay. I ask her what her and Jamie fought about tonight and she says that its really stupid. She tells me he gets mad when she comes and hangs out with us. "That is stupid," I tell her. She starts to cry a little and I stop walking and I stand with my back against the wall. I slide down to sit and she copies. I tell her to cheer and that if she ever wants to go outside that she can ask me and I'll take her out for a little while. She thanks me and tells me Jamie wouldn't take her out. I open my mouth and I'm about to tell her that Jamie doesn't take her outside because he is a pretty little pussy, but I don't. I make a stupid joke about how the monsters don't really scare me anymore. I ask her if she remembers the night I told her I was afraid to use a gun and she tells me she does. I tell her that I'm not afraid anymore and that I look forward to my next kill. She looks up at me and with a tiny smile tells me that my words are creepy. I smile back and I tell her that I agree and I feel like I'm becoming a killing machine and that I don't like it. I stand up and she gets worried that I'm going to leave and she asks me where I'm going. I smile and I tell her I'm not going anywhere and that my leg is falling asleep. I ask her to stand up and she does. I bend over and I tell her to jump on my back so I can give her a piggyback ride. She gives me this "are you serious" face and I tell her to just do it. I tell her that I'll walk her around and that we can chat until she feels better. Later that night when I drop her off at her room, she tells me that she likes piggyback rides.

Today is the day we leave and go to our new hotel. Jon, Dean and I woke up early to get a work out in before we left. Well, Jon and I did because Dean was to sleepy to lift. It makes me a little grumpy that he doesn't lift. We pack all of our stuff and carefully bring them to the car. It takes a few trips. After everyone has packed everything into their cars we meet in the lobby to plan everything out. I watch everyone walk out the lobby. Jamie at the end of the line with his arm around Amanda looks at me and gives me a cocky smile and wink.

This hotel is a lot farther that I had thought. I am riding with my family on this trip and we are in the back of the line of cars. The car kind of turns funny and makes a noise and I ask my Dad what happened and he says it feels like we popped a tire. The other cars continue to drive off and my Dad turns to shoulder and stops the car. I tell my Dad to call one of the other cars and to let them know that we just need to change a tire and for them not to stop since we are so close to the hotel. I jump out of the car to check the back tire and I see that it is flat as a mother fucker. I kick the flat tire and I yell "FUCK" really loud. As I yell my frustrations I hear a crash behind me and I turn around to see what it was. I don't see anything but then this object jumps out from behind the tall fence and starts running at me. I calmly and quickly reach for my gun but there isn't anything there. I left it in the car. I don't panic and I yell for some help and I brace myself so I can fight the creature when it gets close. Keep its mouth away from you at all costs I tell myself. The monster is in leaping distance but when it leaves its feet and flies to wrong way. I hear a couple more bangs and blood jumps strait up into the air. The monster is on the ground and it jiggles a couple more times and I hear a few more bangs. I side step to see who shot the pistol and its Dick leaning out of the window with a smoking pistol in his hand.

When we get to the hotel we unpack quickly and we check the huge place out. This place is much nicer. I find a weight room so I run up to my room and I change so I can work out a little. Dean joins me. We got back to our room to clean up and I see Amanda and Jamie walking into the room next to ours. Amanda says hi and that she picked this room. Amanda walks into her room and Jamie follows her and gives me a wink before he does. We sit around a little and I get bored so I go lift some more weights. It seems like all I think about now is getting stronger and killing monsters and it bothers me that I've become so one dimensional. As I'm working out old Jim walks in. I haven't talked to him for a while and it is good to see him. I ask him how he has been and he replies, "well." We chat about a bunch of things other then whats going on outside but all conversations now a days are about the chaos. Jim tells me that I've turned into quite the leader and that a lot of people look to me for support. It surprises me because I thought a lot of people didn't like me bossing them around. I felt like I was the leader of my little group and that was it. I ask him how his family is doing and we get around to talking about Jamie. Jim doesn't like him either so we spend some time ripping on Jamie. Jim makes fun of his name. I tell him as long as Amanda is happy thats all that matters and he agrees.

We need to go get some more food. The cities are about two hours away so we usually bring a small group but I suggest to everyone that we have a big group this time. Some people argue that its unsafe and I totally agree but I let them know that its probably not healthy if we keep people trapped within the hotel walls. Everyone agrees to let some people come this one time. This store has its lights on there are other families walking around getting food. We talk to a few of the other families. From what I've gathered it seems like a lot of people haven't formed groups like we have and that they are rolling as single families. I talk to this one family and my intuition tells me that they would be perfect to bring along. Smart, clean, respectful, physically fit. I ask them if they would like to join us and they agree to it. Connie Franklin starts inviting all the families and in the store and I tell her not to do that. She gets upset at me and calls me a hypocrite. She asks why I can invite people and she can't. I tell her that I don't know why. Thats because I really don't know why, but for some reason I can feel what groups are good and what groups are not. I can just tell what groups would help our group and which ones would hurt our group. I tell her that we can bring the families she has invited so far but not to bring ask anymore. She agrees to it and leaves upset.