2
"The Zara Virus, short for zaražen, is spreading fast. Now, not only is the United Kingdom infected; the whole of Europe is. Government officials aren't telling us anything other then avoid socializing as much as possible. The only symptoms we know of are extreme tiredness and nausea, migraines and hunger. There is now a rising death toll. We'll keep you posted."
The sullen, morbid voice of the almost grey news reported rambled on about the virus as Alex stood peacefully in the shower, washing her long, dark hair. It was safe to say she hasn't heard a word of it.
She wrapped a short towel around her curvy body, letting her hair dry naturally; dripping down onto the light carpet and soaking through her towel. Carefully, Alex studied her appearance in the long mirror occupying one wall of her bathroom. She had a naturally contoured face, making her appear only slightly older then she was, long eyelashes and thin eyebrows. Dark, like her naturally straight hair. Alexis Grey had never really thought of herself as beautiful, the humble girl would always call herself 'average', and 'plain'. But she was good-looking, although she would never admit it.
When her phone began to ring, she walked slowly back into her bedroom, through the now steaming en suite. She quickly checked the caller ID, smiling as she noticed the name of her best friend pop up on screen. Gianna Kinely, or Gia as she liked to call herself, had known Alex since they were thirteen. They had considered moving in together countless times, but then again with Gia's endless stream of boyfriends, Alex had sided against the idea.
"Alexis?" Gia's voice burst through the phone as soon as Alex pressed accept. She sounded worried.
"Gianna?" Alex retorted.
"You're at home right? Don't go to school. I'm coming over." For once, the usual flirtatiousness Gianna kept in her voice was gone and replaced with an almost distressed tone in it's place. Before Alex could even question why and what was happening, Gianna had hung up.
"Great." Alex sighed, drying the rest of her hair and dressing in her favorite outfit instead of usual school uniform. Finally, she plugged in her earphones as she waited for Gianna.
Alex heard it before she saw anything. At first, she froze; unsure of what it was. She heard her front door swing open and smack against the adjacent wall. She had one thought, and that thought was that someone was breaking into her home. But, when she heard someone fumbling with keys, she calmed down.
"Gianna," She sighed in relief, running down the tall flight of stairs and almost tripping in the process. She pulled her friend into a tight embrace, noticing how the girls usually done up hair, hung limp in messy blonde ringlets. The fact that she hadn't even tried told Alex that something was wrong. "Gia, what's happened?"
"The Zara Virus. Their telling us it's not serious, but there's a death toll now. And..." Gianna panted, out of breath. She'd driven here, obviously, as she was holding her car keys in her hands. But she'd ran at some point. From something... "There was a guy. On the street. He went insane and I watched him bite a little girls arm!"
"Okay. Start from the top. The Zara virus? is that what their calling it?" Alex asked, trying not to think about the fact that a guy went crazy and took a bite from a little girl. Gia nodded, confirming it. "What was the guy doing?" She shook her head, un-brushed blonde hair falling around her round face.
"I don't know..." She sighed, placing her face in her hands. "I just heard him growling, and the girl was with her mum... she walked over to him and he just bit her, Alex! She was like four!" Alex noticed the tears begin to well in the blue eyes of her best friend. Gianna had never been able to deal with hard situations. She would always freak out.
"That's messed up." Alex confirmed.
And just before Alex or Gianna could say anything else,
The door swung open.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: WatTruyen.Top