Apocalypse: Thirst for Blood

Blurb

One bite and your fate is sealed; you will die and be reborn a monster.

When the streets get overrun by mindless vampires, the people must fight for their lives to survive. Friends turn into foes; innocents become the evil-doers; the hunted become the hunters. No one is safe.

But what happens when two friends discover they have supernatural abilities no ordinary humans possess? Will the people turn on them, or will they work together in the name of survival?

____________________________________________________

Paco's POV (they/them)

Wednesday, 17:14.

The early autumn sunshine illuminated the park as it bustled with life, the sounds of overexcited children and dogs filling the crisp air. In a small patch of grass hidden behind a cluster of trees and bushes, two friends lay side by side as they enjoyed an afternoon of quiet leisure.

"My turn to ask a question." Paco grinned, knowing their friend would thoroughly enjoy this one. "The world is ending; what's the first thing you do to survive?"

They were proven right when Dani gasped excitedly and turned to them, her African curls bouncing expressively with her sharp movement.

"Now that is a great question." She said brightly. "Tell me what kind of apocalypse scenario we're talking about here though. 'Cause if it's anything like global warming or nuclear war, I'll just tell you right now - there's no way I'm surviving that. I'm accepting my fate and letting death take me the fuck out."

Paco burst out laughing. "Good point, let's not talk about those two. How about zombies then? Safer bet."

"Ah, yes. A classic." Their friend nodded approvingly. "If I was in a zombie apocalypse, I would definitely try and find shelter first - like a mall or some other big building that has food and water inside. Then I could stay there until help arrives."

"Wouldn't you want to arm yourself first? What if you get surrounded by zombies before you can get to shelter?" They pointed out, making Dani purse her lips in thought.

"Okay. If that happened, I'd probably look for a bat or some other long range weapon." She responded. "But my top priority would still be to find shelter before the end of the day. I don't wanna have to fight those zombies off forever, especially not late at night because I will die."

Paco chuckled. "And what do you do when the food and water eventually runs out?"

She hummed. "Hopefully by then I'll have a group of people with me. That way some will be able to stay and defend the shelter while everyone else goes out to find food." Dani nodded acutely, happy with her choices.

"You'd let strangers in?" The teen asked in disbelief, their small eyes widening unnaturally. "You know they could stab you in the back and lock you out, right? People are assholes; the apocalypse isn't going to change that."

"I guess I'll deal with that when the time comes." She shrugged easily. "All I know is that these noodle arms of mine are going to be useless on their own against a herd of zombies. I'd feel much safer scavenging for food if other people had my back."

"Wow. I can never understand this side of you." Paco said, shaking their head with a face. "I only trust a select number of people with my life; it includes me, you and maybe my brother. Complete strangers though? That's a hard pass."

"But what if you're only choice is trusting strangers?" Dani asked with a raised brow. "Are you still going to fight the zombies all by yourself? I don't want to have to point out the obvious, Packs, but you're like 4 feet; they'll pretty much eat you alive." She teased, catching the bag Paco threw at her face with a laugh.

"I'm 5 feet 2 inches." Paco corrected, narrowing their eyes at her blatant disrespect.

Dani only shrugged. "Fine, 5 feet 2 inches but with virtually no muscles. You still don't stand a chance." This time the teen threw a punch at her arm and she yelped in pain. "Ow!"

Paco giggled and rolled away from her kick. "Don't underestimate me, Dani. I may look scrawny, but I can take care of myself just fine."

She glared at them. "You know, for someone so against physical touch, you're a really violent person." Dani complained, rubbing her arm painfully.

Paco shrugged at that and they were both interrupted by a yellow tennis ball landing in the grass between them. It came from behind the bushes, though its owner was unclear.

"Why would anyone be playing tennis here?" Dani wondered as she picked the ball up.

The teen shrugged. "Probably not actually used for tennis. Might be for a dog."

It didn't take long for said dog to make itself known as quick stomps raced towards their hide-out and a dark outline barged in through the bushes. The two friends screamed in unison and moved out of the way, a big dog landing in the spot they were in just seconds prior.

The two scrambled to stand and backed themselves against a tree while the Doberman sniffed at the air. Dani, who had the ball it was looking for still clutched tightly in her hand, threw it hesitantly back over the bushes and watched as the dog rushed to go after it with excited woofs.

Only after they were sure the Doberman was away did the two friends collapse on the grass together in laughter. "Oh, my god. That scared the shit out of me." Dani huffed out with a hand to her chest.

"I know." Paco exclaimed, their own heart beating loudly against their ribcage. "This is why I hate big dogs."

"Don't you hate all dogs?" She reminded them.

"All animals." They responded curtly. "I've already got my hands full dealing with human beings on a daily basis. That's more than enough, thanks."

"You're missing out." Dani shook her head disapprovingly. "I could totally see you with, like, a snake or something as a pet."

Paco laughed at the idea. "You're crazy if you think I'd willingly let a snake inside my house."

"Well, there must be some animal you like." She insisted.

"There isn't." Paco told her and paused. "Alright, maybe I could get behind horses, but that's it."

Dani snorted at that but stopped at the rustling of leaves. A dark skinned woman with a scar running down her right cheek let herself into their secluded spot, the Doberman from before following her in.

"Hey." She greeted, unsurely. "I heard screaming over here and came to check if Scout's caused you guys any trouble."

Paco's heart skipped a beat, their gaze zeroing in on the panting dog standing at its owner's side. They weren't joking when they said they hated dogs. Although 'hate' might be the wrong term for it; absolutely terrified was a little more fitting.

Dani was the first to answer, her tone cheerful. "Oh, don't worry about it! We just got a little scared when he suddenly jumped in here, but Scout didn't do anything. He left again after I threw the ball away."

"Oh, Scout's a girl." The woman kindly corrected, patting the Doberman's head. "And I'm glad nothing happened. Sorry for the trouble, I didn't know anyone would be here when I threw the ball over. It's quite the hidden spot."

Dani grinned in agreement. "That's exactly why we picked it. We come here often when we want to take a break from people."

"Oh, yeah?" The woman smiled in amusement, sticking her hand out. "Sorry for interrupting your break then. I'm Nadia."

"Daniela, but I go by Dani." She greeted back and shook her hand. "My friend over there is Paco. They're not comfortable with any kind of animal, so it's nothing personal."

Paco, who was standing a noticeable distance away, waved awkwardly at the woman, and she waved back. "Again, I do apologise. This experience probably did nothing to help with your fear of animals." Nadia sympathised.

"It's all good." They lied.

"I don't want to have your final interaction with Scout be a negative one though. Do you maybe want to pet her?" Nadia asked them. "She's a good girl, I promise."

Absolutely not, Paco thought.

Dani, however, gasped and clapped excitedly. "Yes! Are you kidding? I'd love to."

The woman smiled and gestured at her dog. "Scout, sit."

The Doberman obediently did as told, and Paco watched as their friend kneeled down and slowly began petting her. Her movements were careful but became more confident each time as the panting dog closed her eyes and leaned into her touch.

"So, what year are you two in?" The woman asked to make conversation.

"We both finished high school back in June and are gonna start university in a week." Dani answered happily, her hands scratching behind the dog's big, pointed ears. "I'm super excited."

Paco nodded. "Me too."

"Already going to uni, huh?" Nadia smiled. "I'm sure it's quite the big jump for you two. What will you be studying?"

"I was torn between Psychology and Philosophy, so I ended up picking both." Dani laughed.

She nodded along. "Both great picks. I can see how it would be difficult to choose a favourite." She then turned to Paco. "What about you?"

"I chose law. I've wanted to study it for the longest time." They answered, the corners of their mouth involuntarily turning up into a smile. "What's better is that my university is going to be a city away which means I'll have to move out."

"No need to show off." Dani said playfully, choosing to fully sit down on the grass next to Scout, her hand now running down the dog's back. She sighed. "I wish I could move out too, but I'm gonna have to stay at home during term. It's always so loud there; I don't know how I'll ever concentrate on my studies."

Nadia nodded and sat on the grass as well. "I get it. I lived with 8 other men in my house back when I started university. Once I saved up enough money to live in the dorms, I bolted right out of there."

"What did you study?" Dani asked curiously.

"Medicine." She answered. "I specialised in surgery and eventually enlisted in the army like my brothers did. Served there for almost 15 years."

The teens exclaimed in awe. "You're in the army?" Paco asked.

"Not anymore, no. Got caught in an explosion out on the field a couple of years back and was honourably discharged."

"Is that how you got that scar on your face?" Dani wondered, pointing at the pale line going down the right side of her face and down her neck. "You don't have to answer that if you don't want to." She quickly backpedalled; afraid she was being insensitive.

"No, don't worry about it." Nadia waved her away. "That's where I got the scar, yeah. It's also where I lost my right arm."

Before the two could ask, she had pulled up her sleeve, exposing the metal arm underneath; the socket reached all the way to her shoulder. "It's a prosthetic arm. A bit wonky sometimes, but usually does what I want it to. See?" She demonstrated by rotating the arm and having the individual fingers wiggle around.

"Wow. I didn't even notice." Paco gawked.

"Well, to be fair, people usually focus on my dog instead of me. And even when they do take the time to look at me, all they see is the scar on my face. They don't usually look much further than that." She shrugged, her tone bordering on sombre.

Paco suddenly felt the need to apologise, but Nadia had already stood up.

"I think I've blabbered on enough. We'll leave you two alone now." She motioned for Scout to stand too. "We just moved into this area. I hope to see you two again. Paco and Dani, right?"

They nodded.

"I don't live here though." Paco admitted. "I only came to visit Dani one last time before I move out this weekend."

"That's a shame. I had fun talking to you both." She turned to leave. "Good luck on your studies."

"Thank you!" Dani called after her and gave Scout one last scratch under her chin before the dog followed her owner out of their secluded area. "She's so interesting. I wish we could've talked more." Dani confessed once they were alone again.

Paco raised a brow at her. "Are you sure it's not just because you wanted to stay longer with her dog?"

"That's just the added bonus." Dani shrugged with a grin before her eyes widened unsurely. "Wait, was that the impression I was giving? I don't want her to think I was only talking to her 'cause she let me pet Scout."

"But isn't that exactly why we started talking to her?" They pointed out.

She opened and closed her mouth. "Well, yeah, but I would've talked to her regardless."

"Good thing she's going to be living here then. You can spend as much time with her as you want." Paco told her and grabbed their bag off the grass. "We should start heading out too though. There's only so long I can spend supposedly buying books."

Dani sighed but nodded. "Right, let's go then."

She hefted herself up and jumped over the bushes, Paco following right behind her.