[ WP ] Its been five years since the zombie outbreak was put down by the world military . A reporter for your national news comes to your house to ask for your story on how you and your family survived the outbreak .

He stood on the stoop with just a notepad. 
 
 `` How did you and your family survive the outbreak?'' he asked, ready to write. 
 
 It had become the question that everyone in our society was asked when they first introduced themselves. We no longer cared where you were from or where you worked. We cared about how you'd made it through alive when so many others had n't. But I hated that question. 
 
 *'' I was at work when it first started...'' * I answered. 
 
 Spring rain had been tapping on the windows as I worked. Just a short shower; it would pass soon. On the news, we heard about the infection spreading through the state. It seemed to drive people mad. The anchor on CNN was saying that Sacramento had been quarantined now and that nobody could get in touch with the Governor or anyone else in the Capitol. 
 
 It had seemed so far away until that moment. I took a break from my work; I'd been trying not to stare at the computer screen for such long periods of time. I grabbed a bottle of water and looked out the window. In the parking lot, a mob of disheveled people were clustered around a car. They pounded on the windows, but they were n't even trying to door handles. The windshield shattered, and three of them climbed onto the hood. They crawled through the broken glass, pulled out the driver, and tore out his throat as I watched. 
 
 *'' As soon as I realized what was happening, I raced home...'' * 
 
 I'd never been so thankful to own a motorcycle. The interstate was jam-packed with cars, so close together that I could n't go between them. I just drove through the grassy median; bumpy, but much faster. Some people were just standing on the shoulder, waiting for traffic to clear. Some of them were nursing bleeding wounds, wrapped in whatever towel or t-shirt they could find. Some of them were already turning. 
 
 `` *When I got there, I just grabbed some of my belongings... *'' 
 
 `` Maria!'' I shouted as I burst through the door. `` We need to go. There's something happening!'' In the living room, the TV was on, and I could hear some of the anchors chattering about the infection. `` Maria?'' I called out again. *Where was she? * 
 
 The back door was open, banging lightly against the frame as it blew in the breeze. I moved to close it, and caught a glimpse of long, black hair out the window in the backyard. I followed her out. 
 
 `` Maria!'' I shouted to her. She turned, and I saw the blood dribbling down her chin. If it were n't for that, she would have looked exactly the same as that first day we met, all those years ago. But she growled like a vicious dog and took off running in my direction. I scrambled back inside and closed the door behind me. She thumped against it like a bird running into a clear window. I raced to the living room closet and grabbed my gun from the highest shelf. Maria had n't wanted to have one in the home; she was afraid of them. She was worried that Thomas might find it. 
 
 I returned to the back door holding the weapon in front of me. `` Maria...'' I said slowly. There was a growl from outside. I opened a window and tried to talk to her through the screen. `` Maria, I need you to...'' 
 
 She launched herself through the window at me, hands grasping and clawing at the air. She caught hold of my shirt sleeve until I ripped it from her vice-like grasp. Her eyes were cold and dead, like a shark's. She managed to climb through the opening and advanced. Her front of her yellow dress was stained with gore. My hands shook as I raised the gun and pulled the trigger; her body crumpled to the linoleum. 
 
 I lowered the gun and took a deep breath. My hands were shaking so much that I thought I might drop the pistol. But the shot had attracted some unwelcome attention. I heard a series of groans from the neighbor's yard, and I saw that part of the fence had been torn down. That must be how they got to Maria. It would only be a matter of time before they found me too. 
 
 I slammed the door shut and ran up to Thomas's room. Hopefully Maria had already picked him up from kindergarten. 
 
 His door was closed. 
 
 I knocked first. I'd never done that before entering my son's room. I do n't know why I did it. 
 
 A groan answered from the other side. 
 
 `` Thomas?'' I called out. The groan was louder this time. My voice broke as I called his name again. The door rattled, and there was another groan. 
 
 I could n't look. Shooting my wife was enough for me. I left him there. And it was the hardest thing I'd ever done. I'd probably killed hundreds of zombies in my years on the mountain, but *not* killing one is the one thing that weighs on my soul. 
 
 `` *and as soon as I had the supplies I needed, I just left town. I headed up into the mountains and hid out in a hunting lodge until it was safe. `` * 
 
 He was scribbling it all into his notepad, then nodded. `` You and your family stayed up there the whole time?'' 
 
 I shook my head and pursed my lips. `` I did n't have a family. It was just me.'' 
 
 He looked back down at his clipboard and checked the form. They'd found all of the old census data from before. `` Says here:'Wife: Maria, Son: Thomas.'' 
 
 I shook my head. `` Must be some kind of mistake.'' 
 
 

