Your browser lacks required capabilities. Please upgrade it or switch to another to continue.
Loading…
<span style="font-weight:bold;color:orange">Good morning!</span> It is a beautiful Saturday morning and you have nothing to do and nowhere to be! You've gotten to sleep in, so you are well rested. All you need now to make this a perfect day is a well-balanced breakfast.
You decide to go to your favorite diner this morning, but should you [[play around on your phone a little bit first|phone]] or [[just head straight to the diner]]?
Would you look at that, you've got a text from your mom! It says
<span style="font-weight:bold"> "Please be safe, I love you very much." </span>
How sweet. You could [[call her back now|call mom]], but you are getting pretty hungry. You could just save calling her until after breakfast and [[head to the diner now|just head straight to the diner]].The diner is not very far from where you live, but you are quite lazy. You could [[drive to the diner|car]], or you could [[walk|walk]] the short distance and enjoy the sunshine and cool Autumn temperatures outside.You feel a little guilty about driving such a short distance for breakfast, but the greasy plate of hashbrowns you're about to eat aren't the best decision for your health either. It's a very short drive, so you're not sure if you should bother [[turning on the radio|radio]] or just [[driving in silence|silence]]
<img src="http://www.joeyblsphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Traverse-City-Fall_700.jpg" class="center">
It really is a beautiful day outside today! You're glad you decided to walk. The leaves have started to change colors and fall, there is a slight breeze. It's quite surprising no one else is outside enjoying the morning like you are. You can't quite shake the feeling that this is a little "Twilight Zone"-like, but you keep walking and fall back into your day dreams of pancakes and hot coffee.
Those delicious dreams are quickly interrupted by a slow and rhythmic banging sound.
<span style="color:darkred;font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">Thump. Thump. Thump. </span>
It sounds like nothing more than the typical construction that is happening around town. You could turn the corner to [[check it out]] anyway, or [[just keep on walking to the diner]].<img src="http://www.memuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Traditional-Car-Radio-Stays-on-Top.jpg" class="center">
<span style="color:red;font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">THIS IS AN EMERGENCY ALERT. INFECTIOUS DISEASE OUTBREAK HAS REACHED THE UNITED STATES AND IS SPREADING RAPIDLY. STAY INDOORS. THIS IS AN EMERG-</span>
Well that wasn't the mediocre Top 40 hit you were expecting.
You reach down to check your phone, and sure enough it has exploded with notifications from your family and friends. They are all freaking out.
One message simply says <span style="font-weight:bold">"OMG THE WORLD IS LITERALLY ENDING"</span>
Seems a little dramatic, although something bad must be going on for every radio station to be in emergency mode and for every single person you know to have texted you...
Deep down you know you should [[try to get home to your family]], but you're starting to get pretty hungry... you could [[make a quick stop by the diner for some food]], and then head home. The world surely won't end in the next hour.You drive in peaceful silence to the diner, which takes you all of two minutes. It's not your finest moment, but you're not really going to want to walk back after breakfast full of carbs and bacon grease.
For some reason, there are no other cars in the parking lot, which makes no sense for a Saturday morning. You don't think to much of it, though. Your stomach grumbling quickly silences any other thoughts.
You park the car and walk toward the entrance.
[[You open the door]] Your mom picks up almost immediately. And she is SCREAMING.
<span style="font-weight:bold"> "THE WORLD IS ENDING!!" </span>
"Wait, what?"
<span style="font-weight:bold"> "I SAID THE WORLD IS ENDING! COME HOME! </span> And don't forget to wear a coat dear, it's getting colder outside".
She abruptly hangs up, leaving you with no other information. You look out your window. Everything seems perfectly normal to you. You could [[head home|car home]] like your mom wants you to...
<span style="font-weight:bold">OR</span> you could brush it off (your mom does have a tendency to overreact) [[get your breakfast|just head straight to the diner]], and worry about it later.You run out to your car as fast as you can. You turn the radio on to hear any updates about this alleged apocalypse. Every radio station has been taken over by a robotic voice saying
<span style="color:red;font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">THIS IS AN EMERGENCY ALERT. INFECTIOUS DISEASE OUTBREAK HAS REACHED THE UNITED STATES AND IS SPREADING RAPIDLY. STAY INDOORS.</span>
Suddenly, a man appears out of nowhere and runs out in front of the car.
You don't have time to stop.
<span style="color:darkred;font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">THUMP.</span>
Suddenly, you become even more nauseous than you were before, if that is even possible. You stop dead in the middle of the road unsure of what to do now.
Taking a quick glance in the rearview mirror, you see the body of the man lying in the middle of the road. Do you [[get out of the car|check on man]] to help the man, or [[just keep driving]]? If this really is the apocalypse, after all, everyone will probaby be dead soon too.You cross the street and head toward the sound of the banging. You turn a corner and see a middle aged man hammering wooden planks over the windows of the local bookstore.
<img src="http://www.keywise.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/boarding-up.jpg" class="center">
It sure is a shame that the store is closing, you think, although you feel a little twinge of guilt for never actually going in. Now that you've found the noise's source, you can turn around and [[keep trekking to the diner]], your stomach is starting to rumble after all, but maybe should [[offer the man your condolences]] on the loss of his business, he has probably seen you staring at him...The banging sound still persists a few streets away, but that doesn't matter because finally the diner is in sight, just a block away. Your stomach is growling ever louder now, but in few moments, you will have a hot cup of coffee in one hand, and like seven plates of hashbrowns in front of you.
At long last, the diner is right in front of you in all of it's glory.
<img src="http://alloveralbany.com/assets_c/2013/08/grazin_hudson_exterior-thumb-525x376-14709.jpg" class="center">
[[You open the door]]Although the failure of local business certainly is upsetting, the pursuit of delicious breakfast foods is more important right now. You turn the corner and finally the diner is in sight, just a block away. Your stomach is growling ever louder now, but in few moments, you will have a hot cup of coffee in one hand, and like seven plates of hashbrowns in front of you.
At long last, the diner is right in front of you in all of it's glory.
<img src="http://alloveralbany.com/assets_c/2013/08/grazin_hudson_exterior-thumb-525x376-14709.jpg" class="center">
[[You open the door]]"Hey, man! Were you the owner of this place?" you call out to the man.
He jumps back, defensively holding the hammer over his shoulder like he's ready to swing it at you.
<span style="font-weight:bold">"What do you want?"</span>
Confused, you respond, "Sorry, I just wanted to ask what happened to the Book Barn..."
Suddenly, the man starts screaming and charges at you, hammer held high above his head. You only have half a second to act or you're gonna have a hammer in your head. Do you dodge him to the [[right]] or the [[left]]?You sit down at the counter and are greeted by the only other person in the whole diner, a little old lady who seems to be doubling as a cook and a waitress.
"Well hello there!" she smiles at you as she hobbles over to bring you a menu. "Can I get you some coffee this morning?"
"That would be wonderful".
Since you're the only person in the whole restaraunt, you get the best service you've ever had. You get free rein over the jukebox, turning up a Beatles song to full volume. Your mug of coffee never falls below half full. The little old lady brings you extra hashbrowns, and even gives you a free doughnut. After only 20 minutes, you're more full than you've ever been. It's the best breakfast of all time.
<img src="https://www.rd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/shutterstock_1032367162-760x506.jpg" class="center">
You leave a generous tip on the counter and turn around to leave, but [[something is blocking the door]].You quickly park the car and run back to the man. This doesn't look good. His arm is twisted up behind him unnaturally and he doesn't appear to be breathing. You're panicking even more now. The world might be ending, and if it is, maybe you'll be also dead soon enough and won't have to live with this guilt any longer. <span style="font-weight:bold">OR</span>, even worse, maybe the world isn't ending and you just killed somebody.
But then...
[[The man starts to move]]
<span style="font-weight:bold;color:red">And you realize the true mistake you just made.</span>You feel terrible, but you keep on driving toward the highway. You glance into your rearview mirror again as you pull away and see the man stirring on the ground. He stands, leaving one of his arms in the middle of the street. He starts slowly walking, as if he isn't missing a limb.
You really dodged a bullet there.
This isn't just some run of the mill pandemic like the radio was making it out to be. This is the <span style="font-weight:bold;color:red">ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE</span> and your empathy almost got you eaten.
Relieved, you keep driving toward the highway to head home. Your stomach grumbles a bit, you did have to bail on breakfast after all. But family is more important right now. Except... you're not entirely in the clear yet. Up ahead a cluster of people in hazmat suits are blocking off the entrance to the highway.
<img src="https://apfmag.mdmpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/12/APF60_Jan17_Hazmat_GW_2.jpg" class="center">
They are very intimidating, and now that you have been thinking about it, you are very hungry. [[A quick stop at the diner]] wouldn't be so bad... or you could [[talk to the hazmat suit guys]] and see if they'll let you through.The man you thought you had just killed rolls over and shows his face, which is pale. His eyes are completely white.
This isn't just some epidemic like the radio was making it out to be.
<span style="font-weight:bold;color:white">This is the goddamn zombie apocalypse.</span>
You try to get up from the ground and run back to your car, but the man grabs ahold of your ankle and you are knocked back down to the ground. The zombie-man sinks his teeth into your leg.
As you become infected, the things you loved the most in your life flash through your fading mind. As you black out, the last thing you think about is a thick beligian waffle from the diner, covered in maple syrup and butter. You really should have just gone to get breakfast this morning. Maybe none of this would have happened. Maybe you'd be eating that waffle right now instead of dying in the middle of the road.
<div class="aliens"><img src="https://www.rd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/shutterstock_1032367162-760x506.jpg" class="center"></div>
<div class="aliens"><span style="font-weight:bold;font-size 30pt">THE END.</span></div>You escape into the middle of the street, not looking back, and sprint. You don't stop running until you turn the corner at the end of the block. You stop for a second to catch your breath.
Damn, you're out of shape.
You're still a little shaken up by that whole encounter, but finally, you see it, the diner. It's right there across the street. You walk up to the entrance, triumphant.
<img src="http://alloveralbany.com/assets_c/2013/08/grazin_hudson_exterior-thumb-525x376-14709.jpg" class="center">
[[You open the door]] You dodge left and press your back into the outside of the wall of the former Book Barn. You clench your eyes closed, bracing for impact. You hear the hammer colliding with what sounds like a skull, but it's not yours. You slowly open one eye to see the man violently swing the hammer into some guy's head.
<span style="font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"</span>
The man swings the hammer down a few more times, and then turns to look at you, his face splattered with blood. He lowers the hammer and grabs you by the arm, ducking under the wooden boards and pulling you into the store.
"Do you not know what's going on or something?" he asks.
"No..." you respond, cautiously. "Who was that guy?"
<span style="font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">[["Zombie"]]</span>That something is dozens of people pressed up against the windows and door. They barely look like people though, they are pale and their eyes are glazed over.
You look down at your phone, which has exploded with notifications from your family and friends asking if you are ok. You even have one of those presidential notifications warning everyone to stay indoors.
Somehow, you were so fixed on breakfast you missed the <span style="color:white;font-weight:bold">zombie apocalypse going on around you.</span>
You look back to the little old lady, who still hasn't managed to catch on. You are probably the only two people alive who managed to not notice the world was ending. She casually cleans off the griddle.
You go into the kitchen and grab the biggest frying pan you can find.
"Are you going to help me with the cooking? That's very nice of you" the lady smiles. "I don't know where everyone else is this morning".
You walk right past her toward the door, frying pan in hand. You're terrified, but put on your best action movie face and kick open the door.
<div class="aliens"><span style="color:black;font-weight:bold">THE END.</span></div>So you figure your stuck here with this guy. And maybe it won't be so bad. You've seen "Zombieland" and "The Walking Dead". Sometimes it's the crazy ones who know how to survive this kind of thing.
And that is exactly what happens.
The man's name is Harvey, and he's been preparing for a zombie outbreak for years now. He has 2 years worth of food stockpiled in the office of the store. You team up.
You squat in the store for about a year until the food runs out. Luckily it's not that boring. Turns out there are some pretty interesting books out there! Who knew? Sure, you and Harvey argue in the Winter about which books deserve to be burned for fuel, but too much is at stake for you two to be mad at each other for too long.
Eventually, the food runs out and you have to leave. The two of you live off the land for another year, hunting, foraging. Every few months you come across a home or gas station that hasn't been completely ravaged and stay there for a little bit.
You join up with other groups of survivors for short periods, but nothing ever sticks. You and Harvey start to head southwest, in hopes of one day reaching the Grand Canyon. You know that in the end, it'll be you and Harvey surviving together for as long as you can.
<div class="aliens"><span style="font-weight:bold;font-size 30pt">THE END</span></div>You feel kinda guilty about this one. Like you know you should really be finding any way possible to get home to your family, but who knows when you'll have another chance to eat a hot meal.
It takes you about half of the distance to the diner for you to consider that it may not actually be open. This is the apocalypse after all...
Might as well turn back around and [[see if those hazmat suit guys will let you through|talk to the hazmat suit guys]]... right?
Or you could [[double check on the diner]]. You are starving and at this point pancakes and your family are of about equal importance.You drive up to the barricade and roll down your window.
"Hey guys, I know this is super serious and whatnot, but do you think I could get through?"
"No. Strict government orders. Everyone must stay inside. Go home."
"I'm trying to go to my family. My parents are really worried about me!"
"Oh, well when you put it like that... No! It's the end of the world, kid. I don't think you're the only one with worried parents. Now run along and get inside"
His patronizing tone infuriates you, and you aggressively swerve your car around the line of people into the grass and onto the highway. But then you see why they were keeping you out.
<img src="http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/wwfeatures/wm/live/1280_640/images/live/p0/30/zw/p030zwtv.jpg" class="center">
Thousands of zombies...
Your car is engulfed by the horde, you are powerless. You are bitten and within minutes, you are one of them too.
<div class="aliens"><span style="font-weight:bold;font-size 30pt">THE END.</span></div>Just as you were about to give up, you turn the corner and there it is. The diner, with neon lights aglow in the window.
<img src="http://alloveralbany.com/assets_c/2013/08/grazin_hudson_exterior-thumb-525x376-14709.jpg" class="center">
No one is inside except for the little old lady, Debbie, who sometimes works the register.
You head inside.
"Hey Debbie! You're still keeping this place going even with everything going on?"
She doesn't hear you. Honestly, she probably hasn't noticed anything strange is going on.
"Good morning dear, what can I get for you this morning?"
You order the most food anyone has probably ordered ever. Mountains of hashbrowns, pancakes, scrambled eggs, waffles, french toast, biscuits and gravy. It's a little bit disgusting honestly, but it's fine, the world is ending!
Sure enough, you get up to leave [[and...]]As excited as you were about setting the Guiness World Record for most breakfast food eaten in a single sitting, getting home to be with your family is more important if this is all really as bad as everyone is making it out to be.
You quickly u-turn in the middle of the street and start heading toward the highway.
Suddenly, a man appears out of nowhere and runs out in front of the car.
You don't have time to stop.
<span style="color:darkred;font-size:30px;font-weight:bold">THUMP.</span>
Suddenly, you become even more nauseous than you were before, if that is even possible. You stop dead in the middle of the road unsure of what to do now.
Taking a quick glance in the rearview mirror, you see the body of the man lying in the middle of the road. Do you [[get out of the car|check on man]] to help the man, or [[just keep driving]], if this really is the apocalypse, everyone will probaby be dead soon too.With a twinge of guilt, you keep driving to the diner. Within just two minutes, you're there. No one else is parked in the parking lot, which makes sense since everyone has been advised to stay inside...
But fortunately the place is open. Probably because the little old lady Debbie who runs the place has no idea about anything that's going on.
You park the car and [[head inside]].The entire front door is blocked off by a horde of zombies. Apparently they don't know how pull doors work.
You regret choosing food over trying to get home a little bit, but at least you had an incredible last meal.
You head over to the kitchen, past Debbie and grab the biggest frying pan in there is. She still hasn't noticed the living dead scratching at the door of her establishment.
"Are you going to help me with the cooking this morning? That's very nice of you", Debbie smiles. "You know, I don't know where everyone else went..."
You charge right past her, frying pan in hand. You're terrified, but put on your best action movie face and kick down the door, ready to fight.
<div class="aliens"><span style="font-weight:bold;font-size 30pt">THE END.</span></div>"Hey Debbie! You're still keeping this place going even with everything going on?"
She doesn't hear you. Honestly, she probably hasn't noticed anything strange is going on.
"Good morning dear, what can I get for you this morning?"
You order the most food anyone has probably ordered ever. Mountains of hashbrowns, pancakes, scrambled eggs, waffles, french toast, biscuits and gravy. It's a little bit disgusting honestly, but it's fine, the world is ending!
Sure enough, you get up to leave [[and...]]You gulp, unsure whether or not to believe this guy. He definitely has a crazy look about him... crazy enough to straight up murder a random guy on the sidewalk with a hammer.
You panic and start to reach for the door, ready to duck out of the shop and run for your life, but through the slit in between boards you can see that the dead guy isn't really dead. He stirs on the ground and gets up, walking past the doorway, dragging his left leg behind him.
<span style="color:black;font-weight:bold">The man is right.</span>
You check your phone and it has blown up with messages from your parents and friends, notifications from Twitter and Facebook, even one of those presidential alerts that everyone was making memes about just a few weeks ago, warning you to stay inside.
<span style="color:black;font-weight:bold">This is the apocalypse.</span> And just two minutes ago your biggest concern was how fast your food was gonna come out at the diner.
You start to panic, unsure of what to do next. The man, however, seems to have already made the decision for you and gets back to [[boarding up the doorway]].