I Think There Is A Zombie In My House!

• Naomi Sansness, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2022

Emily awoke in a sweat. She wore a singlet, her brown hair hung on her shoulders. Her throat was a drought.
Water… I need water. She scanned the room, confused. What about the infection? The zombies?
There was a toybox with colourful rainbows. The toys were left scattered across the floor. The peach walls reminded her of happy times, playing with her cousin Ben and showing her parents bugs they had trapped in a jar.
A photo of Ben and Emily hung on the door.
She lay under a pale blue sheet on a bed. The bedside table had a plant on it and next to it…Water! Emily’s mind lit up like a match. She snatched the water and gulped it down. The fog disappeared from her mind. The water quenched little of her thirst, but now she could think. It was then she heard shuffling feet, and the murmur of zombies. She stiffened and her skin froze. No way to get out. I am doomed! She watched the door open and a fearful face peered through the crack.
It was her mother, Georgie.
Georgie opened the door and stepped in. Emily’s eyes shut as relief flooded her body. The door creaked and Emily opened her eyes and smiled when her uninfected father entered.
“Good morning, Emily,” he said, in a deep voice. They were dressed for winter. Emily’s father had his hoodie up and Georgie had her chestnut hair in a messy ponytail. They wore boots and long jeans-.
Wait… What’s that noise? Emily thought in terror. She heard moaning and … A zombie? She looked at her parents. Did they hear it? She saw a green hand reach for her mother. The groaning increased.
Ben walked into the room. He was wearing green gloves and a black sweater. He had come from checking the defences outside. The groaning softened, but it was still there.
“Oh Ben, you don’t want to see this,” Georgie said, with a face twisted with dread.
“It’s ok Aunty Georgie. I can handle it,” Ben answered. The groaning increased.
What are they talking about? What happened? Are there zombies in the house? Why aren’t they telling me anything and when can I get water? Emily anxiously thought.
Ben sighed and looked at her.
“I’m so sorry you turned into a zombie Emily,” he said, in a grave voice.
Emily went rigid.
She looked in horror, as she stared at the tall mirror. Her green skin dropped from her face and blood trickled from her forehead. Her eyes were as white as snow and her teeth were as yellow as mustard. She opened her mouth to scream.
“Please! Mum! Dad?! I can talk! I’m fine, everything’s fine! I won’t hurt you!”
No words left her mouth. All she could hear was the persistent groan she had heard earlier, but now she knew it was her own voice. It was then she realised she did not have a thirst for water, but a hunger for BRAINS!