When Ryan turned a corner, he almost jumped back due to the sight and smell of the place. Dried blood and drool covered the yellow walls and white tiled floors. Kitchen tools were scattered and disorganized on top of the counters.

  Right by the refrigerator, a lumpy figure hunched over, scavenging and snacking on any meals they could find. After a couple of bites, it sloppily tossed food of all calibers to the side. The smell of rat poison and mold lingered in the room; Ryan plugged his nose and rubbed his watery eyes. He couldn’t tell if that smell came from the expired food lying around or the person nearby the fridge.

  When was the last time they took a bath? Wait, what am I doing?

  “H–Hey you.” He said sternly. No response.

  Ryan adjusted his vision and took a step closer. He tiptoed around the drool so he wouldn’t slip on it and fall. Now that Ryan had gotten a better look at the backside, the figure appeared to be an adult woman. Her brown hair was long and unkempt, her outfit tattered and stained, barefoot along the cold tiles, but they had no effect on her.

  “Hey, I’m talking to you!” Ryan called out to her, louder this time.

  The woman stopped eating. She turned around to face him, her hair covering her eyes. She let out a groan, showing off her yellow, rotten teeth. The stench had an aura surrounding her. Ryan had to take another step back to get away from the smell.

  “L–Look, I don’t know why or how you got in here. But who are you to do something like break into someone’s house, let alone Daisy’s? Do you have any idea how much of a mess you’re making? I’m not talking about just the kitchen, either.” He narrowed his eyes and stared down at the figure. “Where is Daisy? What have you done with her? Answer me!”

  The lady said nothing. She groaned softly as she shuffled forward, approaching him with each step. Ryan turned pale as he kept walking backward.

  “H–Hey, what do you think you’re doing? Stay back, don’t come near me!” Ryan tripped on the back of his heel and fell to the ground. As she continued to limp over without showing any sign of stopping, he kept crawling back, not paying attention to his surroundings anymore. “Are you even listening to me? What is your deal? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

  He bumped into the cabinets, having backed up too much. He looked up at the shining kitchen knife perched on the counter. Ryan slowly reached up to grab the object, but her shadow loomed over him, causing him to freeze. She hunched over, her heavy breath close to breathing down on his neck. Soon, they were nearly face to face. She had pale and lifeless skin, no bones or muscles in her body, either. Her bloodshot eyes stared down at him as she leaned closer.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  Ryan’s eyes widened as his heart got caught in his throat. He didn’t know what her problem was, but he also couldn’t take it anymore.

  “Get away from me!” Ryan cried out.

  Without thinking, he delivered a swift kick to the gut, sending the woman flying across the kitchen. Her back slammed against the front of the refrigerator. A basket containing knives and sharp objects shook and toppled over with enough force. The knives fell and stabbed through the woman’s limbs and her chest. An unnatural color of blood splayed from her wrists and legs as it flowed around her body. She creaked her head down and didn’t move, not even letting out a scream.

  Ryan curled up into a ball and covered his mouth, trying to hold back the urge to scream. His face grew pale as water formed in his eyes. He couldn’t believe what had just happened. Ryan shut his eyes tight and silently prayed to himself, hoping the nightmare would finally end.

  A groan entered the room.

  Huh?

  Ryan slowly opened his eyes and surveyed the area around him. That sounded familiar somehow. No, it couldn’t be. There didn’t look to be anyone else in here. His eyes immediately fixated on the stabbed body, and his heart dropped. Her fingers twitched as another moan escaped her lips. She lingered her arms over to the knives, pulling them out one by one, before picking herself back up off the ground. Her body twisted in such an uncanny way as she cracked her head until her gaze focused on Ryan.

  If not for the lack of hunger, Ryan would’ve soiled his pants right then and there. His body shivered as he held his breath, trying to hold back retching on the floor right then and there. Worse than anything he could’ve, no, would’ve imagined.

  After taking a good look at her, he noticed that her face was ripped off on one side and there was exposed flesh on the front of her legs. There was no way a regular person could’ve survived that deadly accident, or live while looking like that. She didn’t die; she was already dead.

  Ryan slowly got up. His legs continued to shake as his nerves got the better of him. Right across from the room, he stood face to face with a...

  “Z-Z-ZOMBIE!”

  She let out another growl, this time, louder. Said growl quickly turned into a full-blown roar. The zombie didn’t let up as she picked up the pace of her walking speed. Ryan snapped out of shock long enough to spin on his heel and ran for the exit.

  Scraping by on the slippery floors and bumping into the walls, Ryan’s breath kept cutting short with every couple of steps, but he kept running. Too afraid to look forward with glassy eyes, too scared to turn back to see if the looming figure was closing in or was just around the corner. Ryan hit his knee on the table, his body and mind jolting from the sudden shock of the impact. He gritted his teeth and climbed over the table, hoping to save time. He landed on the floor, scrambling to get up before hightailing it out of the room.