3 - Intruder

Brie felt her hands begin to shake with fright as wet blood was painted wherever Mr Anderson touched. His fingers slid along the glass, clawing, trying to get to her. He was infected. He was gone.

"Adam!" She cried, not being able to wait any longer. He came rushing up the stairs, his face red from standing up too quickly. His hair stuck up in different directions and he had marks from his pillow.

The banging stopped for a moment, followed by a dry heave. Brie watched as Mr Anderson's silhouette hovered by the window, bending over and vomiting violently on their porch.

After a long second of watching him, she realized he was just like the others. He was insane, thirsty for blood. He may be a feeble man, but if this virus got anywhere near them it would be game over.

He stood, staggering towards the window that led to their living room. He stepped back, and then Brie gasped as she saw him lunge forward.

"Get back in the basement!" She yelled, pushing Melissa forward and watching as Mr Anderson dived into the window with all his might.

He tumbled messily. A loud smash pierced their eyes and they instinctively flinched as glass flew in all directions. Brie winced harder as she heard a door slam. The basement?

Adam seemed frozen, staring at the limp body on the floor. They watched as it twitched and Mr Anderson rose back to life, lifting his floppy head up to inspect his prey once more.

"Come to the basement," Brie begged, "this is getting too dangerous." She grabbed onto Adam's arm, tugging, hoping he'd listen. He whipped his hair out of his eyes and took a look back at the mess created.

"Why is my neighbour flying through the window?" He yelled, moving to storm forward and confront Mr Anderson.

"Are you stupid? He has the virus. Get away from him!" Brie turned and pushed onto the door handle to the basement. The door didn't budge.

"Melissa, honey? Why is the door locked?" Adam's voice slightly raised in panic and he spotted what was going on.

"I'm scared!" Her muffled voice wobbled from the other side of the door. "I don't want the man to get me."

"Melissa, the scary man is going to get me too. We can hide together." Adam tried the door handle again, looking at Brie with wide eyes.

As Brie glanced back, she realized Mr Anderson had stood up and was hobbling towards them, leaving puddles of blood behind him.

"How is he alive and standing after losing so much blood?!" She felt herself choking out a terrified sob, glancing around the floor for an object of any sort. She picked up a huge shard of glass and passed it to Adam.

Adam lunged forward as the old man reached out to grab her. The glass punctured him in the chest once again and he seemed to lose his balance.

"Melissa, I thought we were going to stick together?" Brie thought sounding confident would be helpful, but her sobs began to hiccup with urgency.

She turned around and watched as Mr Anderson pulled himself to his feet and growled impatiently. His eyes weren't moving, nor were his facial features. It was like any aspect of the man before was gone. This wasn't Mr Anderson. It was a monster.

As he closed in, Brie felt her body almost fall weak with relief as she heard the lock sliding and the door swung open. They rushed in and slammed the door behind them, locking it once again.

Adam pushed his back against the door. They could hear Mr Anderson clawing his nails into the weak wood, scraping the surface yet no noises of pain were made. He was so dehumanized Brie doubted he had a single thought left.

She glanced at Melissa, feeling a rage build up. "Melissa, that wa dangerous."

Melissa's head dropped in shame. "I didn't know what to do." She sniffed.

Brie sighed and gave her a quick pat on the head. "It's fine, but don't do that again. We could've gotten very hurt."

Another bang came from the door. They sat stiller than statues. Nobody dared to move while the monster stood there, listening for a sign of life. Silence lingered for a minute or so before his heavy footsteps began to fade away.

"He's gone..." Adam muttered, sweat dripping from his face. He took off his shirt and fanned himself with his hands.

"Good riddance." Brie let out a big breath of exhaustion and sighed as her stomach growled in response.

"We forgot the food." Brie suddenly realized, glancing back at the basement door, debating the friendliness of the silence.

"No, Brie. Don't even think about it." Adam warned, seeing the look in her eyes. A want for validation. A need to be useful.

"I want to help. All I've done so far is cause a mess."

Adam glared at her in disbelief. "At least give it a few hours. That thing is still up there." He squinted and turned around, distracted.

Brie noticed the basement was getting heated. She glanced around to find some sort of vent, but to no avail. The air was thick with moisture and the heat was beginning to burn her nostrils. She felt at the walls. They were damp and the wallpaper would most likely start to peel soon. Usually, the door to the basement was always open, with people going in and out all day. Adam worked as a photographer. He used the basement to take portraits. It was clever, but not once had they thought it would get this hot.

"We need fresh air soon too. I think we have to leave and find somewhere else to stay. We'll run out of supplies." Brie pondered out loud.

"We can do that." Adam checked his phone. "It's 9 AM at the moment. Let's leave at noon on the dot.