A Normal Day

I watched as the evening sun began to dip below the horizon. Maybe it wasn’t very safe, but I loved laying on the roof. It was the one place I felt I could escape from everything. Just breathe in the air and relax for once. I guess I was happy I wasn’t the only one who felt this way. I smiled a bit as I looked next door and saw Carl climbing onto his roof too. He saw me and gave a slight nod.

“Evening, Phil,” he said.

“Evening, Carl,” I said back.

We sat in silence for a while. Every day, like clockwork. I came up first, spent some time by myself, then Carl came up and did the same, after a while, we’d talk, then go back into our homes when it got too late. Just a normal day. Every day was so typical that we were pretty much just giving updates at this point, but that didn’t matter. I was just glad to have someone to talk to.

“Wendy inside?” He asked.

“Yeah, working on dinner. Looks like it’s gonna be beans and rice for the umpteenth time,” I sighed. “What about Sue?”

“Foods getting low, she went out for more,” he said.

“Will she be okay by herself this late?” I asked.

He just grunted in reply. I thought of Wendy, down in the kitchen. I made fun of her food, but I was really grateful to have her. She was a trooper. Never complained, always ready to do what needed to be done. She would be a great mother. 

I sighed. I missed the intimacy we used to have. Back when we were kids we couldn’t keep our hands off each other. I missed that, but I also knew why she was so cold in bed lately. She was right, now wasn’t the time for us to have a kid. Maybe in a few years, if we were lucky.

“By the way, you hear what happened to Frank?” He asked.

“No, what happened?” I said.

“He died.”

“What?!” I shouted, shocked. “When the hell did that happen?!”

“Couple days ago, apparently,” he said, shaking his head. “Poor Martha turned up at our door saying some guys broke in and killed him. She’s been staying with us since then.”

I laid there, stunned. Frank got killed a couple days ago? That was crazy. I just saw him last week when I went out. He mentioned he was thinking about moving, going to the coast. I’m sure Martha would have loved the sea. What a crazy world.

“How are your kids?” I asked.

“Oh, boy. There’s a story,” he sighed. “Angie is fine so far, staying at home a lot since she got sick, but we’re keeping an eye on her. So far it hasn’t gotten worse.”

“Good,” I said, nodding.

“Billy left though.”

“He left?!” I shouted, turning to him. “Jesus Carl, are you trying to shock me to death today? These are two big whammies from you so far!”

“I know, I know,” he said. “But yeah, Billy left. Said he couldn’t stand feeling like he was trapped here all the time. That he wanted to try making it on his own. I mean, of course, I told him he was nuts and it was better to stay home, but you know how that boy is. I just hope he knows what he’s doing. It’s a dangerous world out there, Phil.”

“You don’t have to tell me that, Carl,” I said, chuckling.

I laughed, but in the back of my mind I was worried. Poor Billy was only nineteen. I understood wanting to have some freedom, but to try to go out on your own like that. I just hoped he would be okay. God, he wasn’t even my kid and I was worried. Wendy was right, it definitely wasn’t a good idea to have those things.

The sun began to dip slowly. The sky turned from bright reds and oranges to softer shades of purple. I could hear crickets in the distance. Night was coming. 

“How about I give you some good news to end our day on, Carl," I said. 

“What’s that?”

“Found a new supply store,” I said, smiling.

“No kidding!” He shouted, hopping up. “Where is it?”

“Where the old gas station is, about a mile east. It’s a little out of the way, but that’s why there’s still so much good stuff there I think. You should check it out next time you’re in the area.”

“You bet I will! I’ve been looking for a new place to get supplies,” he said happily.

Good. At least our day would end on a high note. We went back to silence. The best part of our day. Watching as the last rays of light faded into blackness, peaceful.

“Carl!” A voice shrieked in the distance, breaking the silence.

We both scrambled up and looked out, but it was dark now. We heard a shriek again. I scrambled over to my searchlight and flipped it on. I pointed it toward where the sound came from.

“There! There!” Carl shouted, pointing to some movement in the distance.

I moved the light onto it. It was Sue. She had a walker chasing her. Carl grabbed his gun and took aim. 

“Duck baby!” He shouted.

Sue jumped out of the way and Carl fired. Direct hit! The walker’s head exploded and its body slumped to the ground. Sue stood up and brushed herself off before jogging back to her place. She hopped over the body pit before opening the door and going in. Carl sighed and shook his head.

“I need to stop sending her out to look for supplies. It seems like one of those things always finds her,” he mumbled. 

“At least it didn’t bite her,” I said, turning the light off. “Consider yourself lucky Angie only got grazed by that one, otherwise she might be in the pit right now.”

“Don’t jinx it Phil,” he muttered, shaking his head. “She’s getting better, but I’d rather not think about what might happen if she took a turn and became one of those things.”

“Yeah, I know,” I sighed. “Well, guess that means it's time to head in. Wendy and I need to reinforce our barriers after dinner, and I still gotta do a perimeter sweep for those things before bed.”

“Oh, is it Wendy’s turn to watch tonight?” He asked.

“Yeah.”

“Alright then, see you tomorrow Phil,” he said before heading in.

I went in myself. It would be good to reload the guns tomorrow. I hadn’t done it since the last swarm, and it was better to be safe than sorry. I glanced at the barrier by the front door. It still looked solid, but it wouldn’t hurt to add a few more boards to it. I walked into the kitchen, Wendy was setting the table.

“I heard a shot, everything okay?” She asked.

“A walker went after Sue, but Carl got it.”

“That woman’s luck,” she said, shaking her head. “What about Angie and Billy?”

“Angie’s doing better, Billy left home.”

“Really?!” She said, shocked. “Oh that poor thing, I hope he makes it. See, this is why kids are a bad idea.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know,” I said sitting down.

We ate quietly for a while. In the distance, I could hear the faint moaning and dry gasps of the walkers. Didn’t sound like too many, we’d be okay. Wendy had the night shift tonight, I knew she could handle a handful of them just fine. Eat dinner, fix up things around the house, then right to bed for me. Just another normal day.