Chapter 7 OUTCAST 3.1

Day 3

Nathan can't sleep dreaming about his family and Sophia; he stared at the wall and punched it many times until his knuckles bleed, blaming him for all that happened to him.

He goes out to find something to eat. Scavenging the gas station in the city while looking at the local shop, he heard a kick of a soda can. Quickly he exited the store and ready's his small magnum and walked cautiously, he hears a faint snarl at his back, he turns around and felt heartbroken a child infected wearing a dirty blouse, her eyes are pale, yet there were veins at the side her teeth are rotten.

But his gloomy face glowers, as the child takes a step, Nathan pulls the trigger without hesitation, his eyes turn heartless and bold.

While Nathan is walking the street, a rope wraps around his neck, he gets dragged through a post. He grabs the rope trying to untie it to his neck, the rope tightens as it get's thrown at the other side of the post and pulls him up, while he struggles a man with a dirty jacket walks in front of him that holding a machete," Look at this," said the man his face is menacing and dirty he reeks of blood. Nathan tip-toe the rope so he can breathes he darted his eyes at the man with a glare.

Another man walks in front of him bald with his shirt is tattered and dirty, his hands are tainted in dry blood he smiles menacingly," I guess we hit the Jackpot," the man checked Nathan pockets while he is struggling, the man steals his small magnum," A fucking magnum, where the fuck did he get this,"

The man holding a machete grabs Nathan shotgun and pistol and checks the magazine," Fucking empty,"

Nathan restlessly moves," Sto-stop," he said with a struggling voice. The man punches him on the belly, his eyes widen as he feels the pain stopping him from breathing.

" This guy is empty, come on we don't need his shotgun," the man with a machete throws the shotgun and pistol on the ground," Let's bring him the heat," said the man with a smirk, he stood beside on one of the abandoned cars and breaks the window door, and uses the vehicle horn. The two of them run while Nathan is struggling as he hears a growl from afar and a stampede of feet coming right after him.

Nathan looks nervous and anxious, he looks up the post and notices that the rope has a thin line, he pulls the rope until it breaks, he grabs the shotgun and pistol, he heard something running through the car and lunges at him, he got tackled on the ground but he uses the shotgun to block the teeth of the deranged person and pushes him away he runs through the alleyway and jumps on the ladder of the fire exit. As he climbs up the stairs another deranged person lunges at him breaking the window.

The deranged person falls to the ground while Nathan grabs at the metal bar and pulls himself up, he climbs to the rooftop of the building and rests there his face is tense and exhausted.

Day 4

Nathan finds a pharmacy that has a horde of deranged people guarding it, his wounds on the crash and yesterday is getting worse. The horde walks around in front of the pharmacy fighting and screeching each other.

Nathan grabs a brick and smashes it to one of the abandoned cars that were left in the city and horns the car three times before running and hiding away. The horde follows the noise as he enters the pharmacy grabbing anti-biotics bandages and alcohol, and exits the pharmacy at the backdoor. He slipped on a wire that has horn activation.

Nathan's eyes widen, and timid as he stands up and grabs the medical kits he needed the horn starts playing as the horde begins to run at the pharmacy again.

Nathan enters the old apartment where he first rested and treats himself. While aiding himself, he hears a noise and people shouting," This is a wonderful stronghold to start," shouted the man. Nathan began to climb upstairs and uses the fire exit to leave.

Day 5

Nathan arrives in his old neighborhood it was empty and peaceful, and dirty plastic is freely soaring through the wind newspapers are on the ground, the burnt car is still there. He entered his home, and the blood is now dry on the wall, the body that his father Edward killed is now getting feasted by maggots and flies

He climbs upstairs looks at their family portrait and their vacations. He smirks, and teardrop on his face as the memory plays back at him before the outbreak. He opens his room and sees the room is still untidy. He felt a small relief while looking at it.

He removes his dirty clothes and wears a new one, a brown jacket, white shirt, black pants, and boots he straps the shotgun in his back. He goes inside his parent's room and grabs a spare belt holster that lies on a belt rack.

He puts the Glock pistol on the holster and exits the house after leaving his own house, he visits Sophia's house. The flowers that bloom six days ago is now dead, he climbs the stair while sliding his hand at the handrail. He tries to open it but it was locked, so he breaks the door by hitting it with the shotgun stock.

The house is neat and quiet, each door he checked, and no one is there he goes to Sophia's bedroom, and he smiles after he notices that there's a picture of him and Sophia on his desk. He breaks the frame then grabs the photo inside of it and he looks at the photo full of despair and cynicalness of life, he rips the picture in half and he puts Sophia's side of the picture in his pocket while the other half on the table. The other half of the picture is joyful and bright, which represents his old life he closes the door and goes downstairs and notices a blood trail in the kitchen.

He follows the trail and saw four dead bodies their face is beaten badly and it was unrecognizable to see who it is, flies and maggots are eating the corpse. He was shocked and clouded by sorrow, his eyes started to tear up as he find and take a knife from the kitchen shelves.

He sits next to the body, and the smell of the dead is worst than garbage. He points the knife in his throat as he looks anxious yet angry and closes his eyes and remembers what her mother said," Survive... survive, don't give up, and don't lose hope." Helen whispers at Nathan's head. He throws the kitchen knife away and leaves Sophia's house.

Day 8

After three days of trying to get out of the city, He finally leaves with an emotionless face. The days that he stayed in Minneapolis, the moment he almost killed himself, hiding away from other scavengers like him, and avoiding and killing the deranged people on the way.

Nathan walks back again in the crash of his parents at the center of the grave he puts Sophia's picture and smiles and says goodbye to them completely." Hey, mom, I did what you said. I survived a couple of days and ended up here again... Dad, I'm sorry I know you did your best to protect me at any given time, and I will always remember you I wished we have the time to spend more... Sophia, you are my life I wished it was different I wished this never happened, so we could continue our best lives together," said Nathan while tears are dropping from his eyes.

Nathan cries out as a baseball bat hits him at the back of his head, and falls unconscious right after.