Writetober 2024, Horror Haven: Day 12: The Walking Dead Next Door

It was a Tuesday. Just a regular, mundane Tuesday. Until, of course, the dead started rising.

Clarice, a woman with a particular fondness for being alone and her morning coffee, was the first to notice. Earlier that day, she heard a strange thumping noise coming from next door, but figured it was just the kids playing. When she peered out her window, though, her jaw dropped. TG, the annoying guy who lived across the street, was staggering towards her fence, his eyes vacant and his skin a sickly shade of gray.

"Oh, for goodness sake, TG," Clarice muttered, shaking her head. "Can't you at least knock?"

Before she could finish her sentence, TG had stumbled over the fence and was shambling towards her front door. Clarice let out a shriek and slammed the window shut.

"Well, that's just peachy," she said, turning to her husband, Kur, who was still blissfully unaware of the impending zombie apocalypse. "I think we've got a problem."

Kur, a loyal mountain climber who preferred to avoid conflict whenever possible, sighed and put down his newspaper. "Can't we just ignore him? Maybe he'll go away."

"Kur, he's a zombie!" Clarice exclaimed. "He's dead!"

"Well, maybe he just had a bad night," Kur suggested. "Or maybe he's sleepwalking."

Clarice rolled her eyes. "You're hopeless. Come on, let's go see if we can get rid of him."

Together, Clarice and Kur ventured out into their neighborhood, armed with a broom and a can of bug spray. As they walked, they encountered more and more of their undead neighbors. There was Annie, the nosy woman who always wanted to know everyone's business. There was Mr. Jac, the grumpy old man who complained about the noise from the kids. And there was little Ben from down the street, who was now shambling around with a toy truck in his hand.

"This is ridiculous," Clarice said. "I just wanted to have a quiet morning."

"I know," Kur agreed. "It's really inconvenient."

As they tried to navigate their way through the horde of zombies, Clarice and Kur realized that they were not alone. Other people in their neighborhood were also dealing with the undead invasion. And while they were all terrified, they were also all trying to maintain a sense of normalcy.

"I think I'll just stay inside," Clarice said. "Maybe I'll make some tea."

"Good idea," Kur replied. "I could go for a sandwich."

And so, Clarice and Kur retreated to their home, determined to enjoy their lives as best they could, even in the face of a zombie apocalypse. After all, what's the point of being scared if you can't laugh about it?

written by Zoe