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Mia G.
Ms. Peterson
Honors English 9
29 October 2015
The Infection

Just shoot him! Charlie screamed as we sprinted through the thick forest, You have a
license to kill for Gods sake!
He hit my arm and pointed to a gnarled tree to our left. Skidding to a halt, we took cover
on one side of the tree, temporarily losing our assailant. I could smell the damp wood; it had
only been a few hours since it had last rained and the bark was still wet. Droplets of rain were
still visible of the tips of leaves and on the petals of flowers.
Okay, first of all, its a learners permit, not a license, I stopped to catch my breath
before hissing, And second of all, just because I can doesnt mean I want to! We might be able
to help him.
Give me that, Charlie grabbed for my gun and ripped it out of my hands. Carefully, he
looked over his shoulder and peeked out from behind the tree, surveying the surrounding forest.
A flash of movement caught his eye and he steadied his arm before aiming and firing. He
whipped back around before his target could spot him and latched onto my hand with his own.
He waited a few seconds before looking back to where he had aimed his gun. I peeked over
Charlies shoulder and spotted a figure limping toward us before he pushed me back out of
sight. His arm brushed against mine and I could see a strip of blood smeared on his hand.
Despite my fear and exhaustion, the pain in my wrist was still sharp. Earlier, I had tripped and
scraped my arm in the exact place Charlie just so happened to be death-gripping.
Charlie gestured to a building visible through a clearing. I strained my ears and heard
the inviting sounds of city ambiance. Not only cars honking, but the sounds of a playground

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close by. The sounds of children hurt my heart. Apparently, their parents didnt know about the
citys current situation. With his hand still glued to mine, Charlie scrambled to his feet and took
off, with me still stumbling behind. As we ran I could feel my heart pounding in my head and
could taste blood in my mouth. I felt fatigue early on because of our extensive amount of
sprinting that day. The fall morning air was crisp enough that the sweat on my back turned cold
and gave me a chill.
Despite the fear I shouldve been feeling, the only thing on my mind was the guilt I felt for
dragging my brother into this mess. Charlie had done nothing but try to protect me. Ever since I
was born, Ive never experienced danger. I was never bullied or teased, and I never got
intimidated by upperclassmen. All Charlie has ever done was help, and how do I repay him? By
getting him into a full-on apocalypse situation that I had no business interfering with. Sister of
the year, right? My day began with my usual coffee and breakfast of something totally unhealthy
and now here I am, outrunning a crazy lunatic with a guy who studies dung beetles for a living.
My thoughts were interrupted by Charlie veering left suddenly and nearly dislocating my
shoulder while also tearing my half-healed cut open.
What was that for?! I gasped in shock. His only response was a nod towards the
building which was falling behind us and he plunged ahead. I could feel more blood dripping
down my arm and falling to the dried, yellow leaves below, splattering them with sudden color.
As we ventured deeper into the forest, it became thicker and I could barely take two
steps without having to dodge a tree branch or leap over a fallen log. I noticed a considerable
decrease in speed from myself but my brother continued to sprint tirelessly. I fell further behind
him and had to constantly keep my eyes on the back of his head to make sure I didnt lose him.
The only evidence of fatigue from Charlie was the dripping sweat on the back of his neck. I
surprised myself with this observation. With the sun flashing in and out from behind the foliage
and the cold air stinging my eyes, it was a wonder I could see anything.

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After about ten minutes of continuous running, we reached the edge of the forest and
found ourselves standing in the middle of a quiet street. We barely stopped long enough to
breathe before we heard sirens and honking coming toward us. Police cars and S.W.A.T.
vehicles surrounded us from all sides and their passengers leapt from doors and crouched
behind windows. I counted as many as twenty different guns pointed at us. I recognized a few of
the officers. Ive worked with various agencies in the past few years and have slowly grown
more visible on the government's radar.
I barely had time to think before I threw my hands up and stepped in front of Charlie,
shielding him. I got him into this mess and I refused to see him get hurt.
Not infected! I shouted in desperation. The group relaxed and lowered their weapons. A
friendly-looking police officer stepped toward us and escorted us toward his vehicle. He reached
in through the window and handed us each a bottle of water and some crackers. I could tell it
was what was left of his lunch. It appeared I was not the only one unprepared.
The tension lessened and I started to relax, but it wasnt long before our previous
assailant burst through the trees and everyones guns were once again at attention. Those
behind the weapons should have been confident and fearless. However, it just so happened that
none of us knew exactly what was standing before us.