"Black Friday": A story from "The Walking Dead"

[HumanBean]

"Black Friday"

A story from "The Walking Dead"

(Closed for MarieDavisRPs)

Gateway Mall Home Page Link
Mall Map
Google Maps link to Gateway Mall

Link to Profiles/Info thread

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(OOC: Our shared photo sharing account failed. The links between posts #1 and #41 may not work. Go to Profiles/Info thread to see them. Hopefully, we have corrected them there.)

(Important Note: Even though the mall used for the story is in Canada, we are placing it in the United States to take advantage of two things: the first is Thanksgiving day, which we want to be in November not October, as it is in Canada; and second, both writers are from the US, so this is feels more appropriate.)

Gateway Mall, Springfield.
Thanksgiving Day, just after sunrise (aka Day 1):

Jared Taylor stomped around the Dollarama in a foul mood. It was his first year at the value retailer, as they called themselves. When he'd hired on in April, he hadn't realized that he'd be working Thanksgiving Day. The whole reason he'd looked for a job at Gateway Mall was that they were the only multi-business shopping center in the state that still closed for Thanksgiving. What he hadn't known was that the less senior employees had to decorate the store for Christmas today. With only three of them on staff, it was going to take them a full shift. Fuck!

He unloaded a box of string lights, climbed a ladder, and hung them from hooks that had been put up the first year of operation. Some of them were missing after all these years, and a dedicated employee would have replaced them. Jared didn't care that much. Instead, he just skipped over them and let the string droop a little extra.

While he was up the ladder, he glanced down at the two women working with him. The first was an Assistant Manager. The second was a noob with even less time on the job than Jared. The two women were very much different in many ways. The way in which they were the same was their beauty. Both were gorgeous. Both were out of Jared's league. That was his assessment, not theirs.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Abigail "Abby" Reed

The irony in Jared feeling that "Abby" was out of his league was that Abby had felt the same way about him and not just for the three months that she'd worked at Dollarama but for the three years that she'd gone to school with him at Springfield Unified High. Abby had been a year behind Jared which meant that they'd had some of the same classes together. And yet, in all that time, she'd spoken probably less than 50 words to him over the whole of their interactions together.

Abby had had two very different personalities during her high school years. To people with whom she was familiar, she was very open and glee and outgoing; to people with whom she wasn't familiar, she was very shy and standoffish. The combination of these two personalities tended to make those in the latter group think she was stuck up and -- like Jared was thinking -- out of their league. This wasn't Abby's intention, of course, but through all those years she'd never learned the social skills necessary to break through those barriers with new people.

Another irony between the two was that Abby was tickled to be working today. She loved Christmas with all of its decorating, and the thought of being part of decorating the store had had her flying high on Cloud Nine for weeks. But there was more than just decorating that had excited her about today. Abby had every intention of trying to crash through that barrier between Jared and herself; she was hoping that they'd even sit together at the Christmas buffet that the Mall Staff was throwing for all of those unfortunate employees who'd had to come in today.

They'd been working for a couple of hours by now, with the typical minimal number of words exchanged between them when Abby realized that the box next to her was one of those filled with the lights that Jared was hanging. She picked it up to deliver it to him, thinking that maybe she'd get the chance to break the ice.

But she paused, looking across the store at him atop the step ladder. He was such an attractive young man, a hunk in her book. Abby had been very sought after by the In-Crowd members through school, and she could have her choice of strapping, muscular Jocks and other good-looking and/or also sought after boys. There had been stories about her surrendering her virginity to half a dozen of these guys over the final two years of high school, but none of them had been true. Luckily for her, most of those whose opinions mattered to her didn't believe the stories either, so guys could talk all they wanted about her -- no one of substance believed them.

But she was almost 19 years old now, and Abby was ready to finally shed her innocence before she began community college in the Winter Term. (She'd missed Fall Term because her mother had been on her death bed from cancer complications, and Abby had spent that time until her mother's death on November 3rd at her bedside.) Most of Abby's friends were or -- at one time or another -- had been sexually active, and they all said it had been wonderful. She wanted to have that experience before she dove into the college scene, surrounded by mostly older men who would see her as fresh meat. Abby didn't want to be innocent and naive fresh meat.

Looking for Ronnie, the Assistant Manager, and seeing her beyond the open backroom door picking through decorations, Abby set the box down and stripped off the lightweight sweater she'd been wearing through the morning. Looking to a mirror on the wall near her, Abby studied her figure a moment, wondering whether Jared would find her attractive. Guys had been telling her for years that she was beautiful, even sexy. Because of the combination of this approval and her desire to not be considered a tease, Abby didn't typically wear skimpy clothes.

In this case, though, she wanted to be admired and complimented; she'd been working on her response to Jared's anticipated reaction, desperate not to make a fool of herself. She took up the box again, drew and held and then exhaled a deep breath, and forced herself to walk to the front of the store. Near the bottom of the ladder, she asked, "Are you ready for these yet, Jared?"

She set the box atop a display so that he could see her fully.

 

[HumanBean]

Jared

He heard steps coming up behind him and looked back and down just in time to find Abby asking, "Are you ready for these yet, Jared?"

His eyes widened at the sight of her in fewer clothes that he thought he'd ever seen her before. The cutoff denim shorts had revealed her legs and lower curvature of her butt cheeks earlier, of course. That alone had been enough to cause Jared to sneak several ogles when neither of the women were looking at him. But the spaghetti strap top revealed so much delicious flesh that he found himself just staring down at her with a hungry expression on his face.

She had to repeat her question before Jared snapped out of it. "Oh, yeah! Um, right there's good. I'm almost ready for them. Thanks."

As she set the box down, Jared looked to the rear of the store for their boss. Well, their assistant boss, anyway. Veronica, aka Ronnie, was only an Assistant Manager because Dollarama was too cheap to pay her what she was worth. Most of the discount, dollar stores, labeled a large number of their employees as Managers to use and abuse them. Managers could be worked over 40 hours a week and more than 8 hours a day without receiving overtime pay. They were also required to come running any time an employee slot needed to be filled, such as in the case of an illness. It was all about saving the company wage money, of course.

Finding Ronnie nowhere in sight, Jared took the opportunity to ogle Abby's backside as she set the box down. She had the most wonderful, full, pear-shaped ass, which the cutoffs highlighted. When she turned back, he quickly looked to her eyes, smiled, and said, "Thanks."

He asked, "What are you working on?"

Jared listened to her answer. Anytime she glanced away, even for a second, his gaze fell to her bosom. It might have been his imagination, but he was sure that her nipples were swollen. The lights above her seemed to be casting shadows indicating pert nubs.

He suddenly realized that he was getting stiff and turned back to the ladder. "I, um, should finish this. Thank you again."

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Abby

Jared might have thought he was being smooth taking peeks at Abby when she seemed not to be looking, but he wasn't; she was used to boys and men both ogling and peeking at her, and she knew the signs. She didn't mind, of course; actually, she would have minded if they didn't want to look at her. And, of course, she'd shed the sweatshirt to be seen and appreciated.

"Oh, yeah! Um, right there's good," he responded nervously. "I'm almost ready for them. Thanks."

She turned to set the box down and -- like Jared himself -- peeked toward the back of the store to ensure that Ronnie was still occupied with other things. One of the things that Abby and the other employees had been told before they'd ever been hired was that dating between coworkers was strictly forbidden. Abby could remember laughing hearing that, only to then apologize when she realized that the Hiring Manager had been serious. It's Dollarama, she could remember thinking to herself, not some upscale law firm or police department.

"Thanks," Jared told Abby, turning back to his work. He asked, "What are you working on?"

"The tree," she answered with a happy tone. "I love decorating Christmas trees." She stood there looking up at Jared -- specifically at his ass, which for a boy was beautiful -- and waited for him to engage her in more conversation.

Instead, Jared told her, "I, um, should finish this. Thank you again."

"Oh, sure," she said with a somewhat disappointed tone. Her brain was screaming Conversation! Engage him, you chicken! Say something, anything!! After a moment, she asked, "Are you going to the potluck in the food court? I've been getting notifications from the Mall Employee's social media account. I guess a lot of people brought stuff: turkey, ham, a bunch of desserts ... and the Security guy, I guess the Mall Management gave him a pre-paid debit card specifically for today, and he ordered in more than $300 from some of the better fast-food places that were open today."

The Mall's Food Court was closed today and was being decorated by a handful of franchise employees who'd either volunteered or been drafted as Abby and Jared had. With the two dozen or so food providers closed, the potluck had had to be farmed out.

Abby fought through her anxiety and said, "I thought that when we took a break, we could go down together." She hesitated for a response if one was coming, asking, "Whatcha think?"

 

[HumanBean]

Jared

"Are you going to the potluck in the food court?" Abby asked. "I've been getting notifications from the Mall Employee's social media account."

Jared looked down to Abby with surprise: Mall Employee's social media account. Really? He couldn't imagine even wanting to be on such a thing. But then, Jared didn't have Facebook, Instagram, X, or anything like that.

"I guess a lot of people brought stuff," she continued. The listing of food made Jared's stomach roll. He'd had nothing but a bowl of sugary cereal before work. That had been almost six hours ago. "Whatcha think?"

"Yeah, sure," Jared said. He was excited about this idea for two reasons: food and Abby. They had worked together for 3 months, and Abby hadn't once expressed an interest in socializing with him outside normal workplace conversations. This was a nice change. "I'd like that."

A soft tone sounded from the mall's speaker located on the wall opposite the Dollarama. Jared knew that an announcement was imminent. Since the mall was closed, he expected a general holiday pleasantry or perhaps something about the potluck.

What came instead was surprising and alarming, from the deep husky voice of Security Supervisor, Carl Henry. "Attention, please. Attention. I need all mall employees to proceed immediately to the food court. All mall employees, proceed immediately to the food court. This is a matter of safety and security. This is not about the potluck, and it is not optional."

Carl repeated the message again, almost word for word. This time, though, he added, "Also, I need all, I repeat all exterior doors to be closed and locked. So, if your shop has a back door that you have open for bringing in a Christmas tree or for any other reason, I need it closed and locked immediately. This goes for all exterior and back doors, whether they access the exterior of the building directly or access a back service passageway."

By the time Carl had finished his announcement, Jared had descended from the ladder and headed for the back of the store, telling Abby, "This doesn't sound good. Let's make sure Ronnie heard it."

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton

Ronnie, as everyone but her immediate Supervisor and her gramma called her, had had her ear buds in place and, thus, missed the announcement over the Mall's PA system; ear buds were forbidden during normal store operation hours, so she was taking advantage of abnormal operations of this day to listen to the local Public Broadcasting Station's live program on her smart phone's App.

About 20 minutes earlier, that program had been interrupted by the most unusual news announcement Ronnie had ever heard. A talking head out of PBS's Washington DC location was reporting that some sort of infectious virus had exploded across the nation beginning around sundown the night before; there were reports of it in more 100 cities across more than 30 states.

Ronnie had found herself so overwhelmed by what she was hearing that she'd dropped into her chair at her desk and gave up on sorting and untangling decorations that her two underlings were tasked with putting up. The description of what this virus was doing to people was ... incredible!

Suddenly, Jared and Abby were hurrying into the backroom, with the latter telling Ronnie with an anxious tone, "Carl Henry ... you know, that Security Supervisor who tries to hit on you at least twice a day ... he wants everyone in the Food Court, right now. Ronnie, I think maybe something bad happened, maybe an active shooter or--"

"Let's go," Ronnie cut in, hopping up. She looked beyond the open backroom door to ensure that the front gate was still down, then headed for back hall door, saying, "There's some sort of virus out there. Maybe another COVID thing. They say it's everywhere!"

After Ronnie locked the back door, the three of them hurried down the back passageway to the Food Court. A couple of dozen people were already there, and over the next few minutes -- as Carl was still repeating his announcement -- a couple of dozen more people showed up as well. One of the Administration people who'd come in to help organize the potluck told everyone, "Go ahead and fill a plate now, everyone. Carl says we might have to shut down the Food Court, so go ahead and get a plate now."

 

[HumanBean]

Jared Taylor and Carl Henry

As he listened to Abby explaining the PA announcement, Jared took a moment to ogle the other female. "Ronnie" was one of the sexiest women he'd ever known, let alone worked with. As a manager, she normally dressed very professionally, with a button up blouse, slacks, and moderately tall but still comfortable heels. Today, though, she was wearing a torso-hugging athletic shirt and similarly tight stretch jeans. The combination made Jared's cock swell yet again as he listened to her explaining what she knew about the situation.

"There's some sort of virus out there," she told them as they headed out the back, adding, "Maybe another COVID thing. They say it's everywhere!"

Jared had seen something about the virus on YouTube last night just before he went to bed. YouTube was the only app he had on his phone that could even be related to social media. He mostly had it for the NBC Nightly News and, of course, funny cat videos. Everyone loved funny cat videos.

He also watched old Big Bang Theory, Whose Line Is It Anyway, and a Canadian prank show called Just For Laughs Gags. It reminded Jared of Candid Camera, which he used to watch on TV Land when his gramma and grampa babysat him as a youngster.

They headed out the front of the store and ten seconds later they were in the food court. Jared was surprised at how many people were already there. Then, he did the math. There were almost 60 businesses in the mall. Some of them were very small, with just one employee on shift at a time. Others were very huge, with as many as 20 employees working at any one time. If just 2 people were here to decorate half of those businesses and 3 people for all the rest, that would mean that the food court was soon going to be overrun by 150 people.

As they waited, an administrator told them all to make a plate. Jared didn't hesitate to do just that. He was starving, and they had no idea when they might get out of here because there was still so much decorating to be done.

Eventually, Carl Henry arrived with a purposeful stride. He found a table at the south end of the food court that was easily seen from nearly everyone and stepped up onto it as if it were a stage. He called out, "I need everyone's attention! Everyone! Please, I need quiet! We have an emergency situation that requires your full attention!"

It took a while to get everyone to shut up, at which time a very concerned Carl explained. "Some of you may have been following the news on the radio or television or your Apple Watch or whatever. For many of you, this might be the first time you're hearing this."

"Get to the point!" someone hollered. Someone else called out, "What's wrong? What's happening?"

Carl began reading from a paper he'd printed off his computer. He explained that it was from the State's Emergency Response Team, SERT. It warned of a virus that had been spreading for weeks but which had only just now begun to show symptoms in the infected. He read a whole lot of gobbly gook medical terminology. When someone told him to speak English, he paused, then did his best to explain something no one would believe was true.

"This virus, it first kills you," he called out over the restless crowd. "Then, it brings you back to life. And when you are alive again, you're not really you."

"What the fuck does that mean?" someone popped off.

Suddenly, there was a loud crashing sound out beyond the doors to the north of the food court. It seemed obvious to Jared that the sound had been that of an automobile crash. He stood to look the direction of the doors as, behind him, Carl continued his failing attempt to explain the report in his hands.

As the seconds passed, people began appearing at the closed and locked mall doors. They were banging on them, seemingly desperate to get inside. He shook his head, thinking Fucking Black Friday! Jesus, haven't you heard of Amazon?

Someone closer to the doors stood and hollered, "Mall's closed, idiots! Come back tomorrow."

It didn't surprise Jared that there were customers wanting inside. After all, Gateway was the only mall in the state that wasn't open on Thanksgiving, delaying its seasonal opening to tomorrow, the actual Black Friday.

But as more seconds passed, the crowd at the door was becoming more violent. They pounded fists and feet against the glass. They screamed as if frightened or in pain. Jared stood to get a better look and realized that some people at the glass were attacking other people. Suddenly, a spray of something dark splashed upon the glass. Jared realized in an instant that it was blood.

His first thought was terrorism, of course. Someone was trying to interrupt the holiday shopping season by attacking shoppers. Someone screamed from a table near the door, followed by more screams from other locations within sights of the door. Mall employees began running from the food court toward the main promenade.

Still atop the table, Carl Reed was hollering for calm. "Return to your stores! Lock the doors! Protect yourselves!"

Some of the crowd cleared between Jared and the mall entrance, and he saw the madness taking place there. What he thought had been potential patrons and then had believed were frightened people fleeing a dangerous situation now looked more like madmen and madwomen trying to break into the mall.

"We gotta go!" he told Ronnie and Abby. "Now! Now, we gotta go!"

He grabbed at them and pulled at them for emphasis. He sprinted to the main promenade, turned right, and seconds later was standing at the Dollarama's entrance. He had to wait for Ronnie, who had the key to get them back inside.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton

Ronnie just about jumped out of her skin at the sound of the crash beyond the Mall entrance. Once she caught sight of the crowd outside pounding to be let inside the locked center, she couldn't take her eyes off it. She immediately understood it not to be shoppers looking to be the first to partake of Black Friday deals; Ronnie had been on vacation in Tokyo with her family as a young teen several years back and seen the mayhem that followed a 6.2 magnitude earthquake. This looked very much like the same.

At least, that was how it started for her. Then, like Jared witnessed, a stream of blood darkened the outside of the glass, and she knew that this was far more than anything she could even imagine. She wasn't thinking international terrorism, though; she was thinking psychopathic, sword-wielding slasher, like that guy in Oregon who'd attacked a neighbor with a samurai sword a few years back.

She didn't make the connection between what Carl Henry was describing and what was happening outside, and she wouldn't make it until later, when they got more information on the incidents happening out there in the world. For right now, Ronnie only got up and ran when Jared said, "We gotta go! Now! Now, we gotta go!"

She followed him, grasping Abby by the hand and pulling her with her. They reached the gate, where Ronnie pulled her key from the stretchy band around her wrist and activated the door. Suddenly, the slow gate seemed to crawl upwards, with Ronnie growling, "Hurry! Hurry! Jesus fucking Christ, get the fuck up!"

When it was still barely high enough for them to crawl under, they did, with Ronnie immediately activating the gate from the inside to take it back down again. She plopped down onto a low shelf of goods only once the door was secured and immediately began sobbing in fear. Abby grabbed Ronnie by the hand, pulling her to her feet, saying, "C'mon! Let's go to the back, away from the gate!"

The two women rushed through the main aisle to the back, slamming the backroom door closed once all three employees were safely inside. It took Ronnie a moment to realize what they needed: more information. She quickly booted up ABC news on her laptop, NBC News on the little television on the Manager's desk, and her NPR app on her phone, seeking any information about what the fuck had just happened.

 

[HumanBean]

Jared

The three Dollarama employees crawled under the slightly opened gate, then lowered it again. Jared looked out into the promenade at the panicked mall employees. "What the fuck was that? What the fuck was that? "

Ronnie and Abby continued onward through the store. The former said, "C'mon! Let's go to the back, away from the gate!"

As Jared joined them, Carl Henry was back on the PA speaker. He was begging everyone to stay in their respective stores. "For Christ's sake, keep the doors closed! Don't open any doors or gates, and don't go outside! Stay in your stores! Stay inside the mall!"

The Security Supervisor would occasionally get back on the PA to continue with his warnings. In the meantime, Jared was trying to get his parents on his cell phone. He continually got a message: "All circuits are busy. Please try your call later."

He tried them on the landline next. That didn't work either. The landline looked like a regular old touch tone phone from the time before Jared's birth. But it, too, was cellular. The store's parent company owned a rinky-dink, low rate, national cell service company. They had switched all of the corporation's landlines to its cell service a few years ago. Those circuits were overloaded, too.

All they could do was listen to the news and to Carl on the PA for now.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton and Abigail Reed

"What the fuck was that?" Jared asked anxiously. "What the fuck was that? "

"I dunno! I dunno, really!" Ronnie answered. "We just need to stay here in the back, where it's safe."

"Is it though?" Abby asked with panic in her voice. "Those people looked like they were about to break down those doors. I mean, they're just glass."

Ronnie took the younger woman's hands in her own, telling her with a reassuring tone, "We're safe behind the doors. They were made to stand up against a speeding car after 9-11. Trust me."

In truth, although the doors had been replaced with more solid ones a few years after the Twin Towers tragedy, they weren't actually built to withstand the force of a speeding car, particularly one filled with explosive as would likely be the case in a terrorist event. Despite this, they were still capable of standing up to a surging crowd.

Carl was back on the PA speaker again; he continued repeating the same instructions from earlier. Ronnie hoped he was right about them being safe so long as the doors remained closed. She tried to contact her parents, then her siblings, this finally her girlfriend, all to no avail. Despite having a different cell carrier than either Jared or Abby -- who also got the circuits busy message -- she couldn't get through either.

"All we can do is wait for the police or the fire department to get here," Ronnie told the pair. "They'll be here soon enough."

But would that happen?

 

[HumanBean]

Jared Taylor

"We just need to stay here in the back," Ronnie said, "where it's safe."

"Is it though?" Abby asked. She talked about the people outside possibly breaking in.

Ronnie reassured the teen that they were safe behind the fortified doors. Jared didn't believe the part about them stopping a speeding vehicle. But he believed that they'd stand up to a crowd of rabid Black Friday shoppers.

"We're safe, Abby, like Ronnie said," Jared reassured the younger female. He wasn't entirely sure that he believed that. They just didn't know what was going on. He rose and headed for the door to the front of the store. "I'm gonna check the gate and see what's going on out there."

Ronnie might try to talk him out of it, but Jared was determined. He opened, stepped through, and closed the door. The promenade was pretty much empty by now. Most of the mall's employees had done as Carl instructed. Jared went to the gate and looked left and right. The last people vanished behind gates that lowered as ordered.

Jared listened for a long moment. He could just barely hear the mayhem at the doors leading into the food court. (Mall Map; Dollarama is in purple, with the food court to the right/east.) What the hell is wrong with those people?

Then, Carl's voice came back to the PA, but with a different and more panicked message. "Attention, attention! Some of those crazies from outside the mall have gotten inside the mall. If you are not already safe behind a gate or in a secured room, get there now. Hurry. Your life is in danger. And if you know of an open door leading outside--"

The Security Supervisor paused, then continued, "If you know of an open door anywhere, close it now! Every door in the mall needs to be closed for your safety!"

Jared shook the gate. It wasn't necessary, of course. The gate was very secure and wasn't going anywhere. He hurried to the back of the store again, checking that door. It had two locks and a bar across it. He looked to the women, smiling. "Just checking."

Suddenly, there were screams out in the mall. Jared hurried up there again. Just as he reached the gate, he saw a couple of employees who worked at carts located in the promenade. He'd forgotten about the people who didn't have a gate to hide behind.

"Here! Come here!" he hollered to the pair as he turned the key for the gate. It began rising slowly, with Jared cursing, "Hurry up you slow assed mother fucker."

One of the pair, a man in his teens, saw and heard Jared. He grabbed at the female, also a teen, and pulled her toward the Dollarama. They both headed back toward the store, with the man behind the gate hollering, "Hurry! Hurry!"

Jared was rushing them because he'd spotted what they'd been running from: a trio of those crazed people from outside the mall who had somehow gotten inside. They were all three painted in blood. Jared stared at them in shock as they hurried after the pair of workers. Well, hurried might not have been the right word. They were walking at a quick pace. But each of them acted as if they were drunk or injured or half-dead. Jared couldn't know that they were actually full-dead.

The young man in the promenade stood over top of the woman as she slid under the barely opened gate. Jared urged, "C'mon! Get underneath! There's room!"

"No, I have to make sure they don't get her!" the man said. "Get her under!"

Jared grabbed the woman by the arm and leg and pulled her the rest of the way underneath the gate, then told the other employee, "Okay, she's in."

The guy dropped to his belly to slide underneath. But before he could get far enough inside for Jared to help him, the creatures reached the gate. They grabbed him by the arms and legs, pulling. At the same time, to Jared's horror, they dropped to bite him! They sunk their teeth into his arms, legs, back. Jared panicked and backed away, and the attackers pulled the man out from under the gate.

They continued biting at him. Blood sprayed in every direction, including onto Jared and the woman, who was now screaming her head off. One of the people beyond the gate looked at her. It charged, slamming against the metal barrier. One of the others down on his knees, also incited by the screams, dropped to its belly and started under the gate.

Jared turned the key, causing the gate to begin lowering. It had a safety feature to prevent it from harming a person underneath it, so it paused, rose two inches higher, and then stopped. The guy under the gate continued pawing at the floor, trying to get underneath.

Panicked, Jared started kicking at the man, landing the toe of his dress shoes on the man's skull several times. It didn't seem to even phase the guy. Jared was confused that the man didn't cry out in pain. The kicks were hard. All he did was growl, like a wild animal. Jared continued kicking, hitting the man on top of his skull, in his temple, in his face.

By now, Jared was beginning to become overwhelmed by his own actions. He wasn't typically a violent person. He'd only been in two fist fights in his entire life. He'd played soccer and basketball up until his sophomore year in high school. Both sports were more physical than Jared had thought he liked. He'd gave them both up and reserved his sporting activity to tennis and golf instead.

He found himself stomping on the man's head, rather than just kicking it. Blood was everywhere, and suddenly there was a horrific cracking sound. It had been the man's skull. Jared should have stopped, but he was out of control. He stomped down three or four more times before he stopped. The man under the gate went still and silent.

Outside the gate, though, the other two creatures were still eating on the mall employee. Jared watched a moment, amazed at the horror of it all. Then, finally, he used his feet and hands both to push the dead attacker back past the gate. He turned the key again, sending the gate down to the floor.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton and Abigail Reed

The two women huddled close together, discussing what they'd seen in the food court. They were both scared, but surprisingly the youngest of the two was less emotional about the events. Ronnie's tears were glistening with tears yet to streak down her cheeks. Abby was frightened, but her eyes were clear.

A distant scream behind the door and, seemingly, even beyond the store, caught Abby's attention. She told Ronnie, "I'm going to check on Jared."

"We need to stay here in the back," Ronnie begged, "where it's safe."

"I'm just going to check on him," Abby promised. "I'll be right back."

Ronnie pled with Abby to stay, but she headed out anyway, desperate to know what was happening. She rushed forward, able to sew Jarred over the top of a display but not able to sew much.

Abby slowed to a stop as she heard the gate motor turn on. She called, "Jared ... Jerad! What are you doing?

He either didn't hear or chose to ignore her. A moment later, Jared got very active, seeming to be jumping or stomping. Abby hurried forward again, coming into full view of Jared just as he brought his foot down on the head of a man crawling under the gate; the force was so hard that the man's head crunched.

Abby froze in shock; she'd never seen something so violent with her own eyes. As she watched in horror, Jared pushed the apparently dead guy back into the promenade, then helped a woman under the gate before lowering it again to the floor.

As the new occupant rose to her feet, Abby hollered, "This way! Come this way, to the back!"

The new woman did as instructed, running through the displays, right into Abby's arms as she sobbed in fear and panic. Abby turned her for the back, looking over her shoulder to her male coworker.

"C'mon, Jared, let's go."

 

[HumanBean]

Carl Henry, Gateway Mall Security Supervisor

The Turkey Day potluck lunch had ended with mall employees scattering in every direction. Carl had continued standing atop the food court table staring at the people pounding at the glass doors. He'd initially thought the same thing about them as the others had: eager Black Friday patrons who'd been anxious because the doors had been locked to them.

Then, he'd seen the same thing the others had: blood. Someone had attacked someone, sending a spray of blood across the glass. Then a second person had attacked a second victim. Then more and more and more until there'd been bodies dropping all along the entrance.

And the victims were being eaten! Eaten!! By other patrons!

Carl had been the last person to leave the food court. Oh, it hadn't been an issue of the Captain going down with the ship. He'd simply been frozen by shock and disbelief. By the time he'd dropped to the floor to leave, the only people still alive at the doors were the undead. Of course, he didn't think of them as that at that time. But he'd come to understand that soon enough.

He'd rushed out of the food court, across the promenade to and down the hallway that ran between Suite's 210 and 220, and up the stairs to the Administration Offices. (mall map) The Security Office were located adjacent to Admin. It was a great location for two reasons.

The first, obviously, was its proximity to the offices of the people who ran the mall. It gave Carl opportunities to rub elbows with the bigwigs, in the hopes of taking over as Senior Security Chief once his boss retired next year.

The second was less obvious but as important. Narrow hallways dedicated to security access spider webbed from the Security Office all throughout the mall. They were located mostly on the second floor but in some locations rose to the third. Carl had hardly ever used them in the past. He would begin using them very often in the near future, something he didn't yet know.

From the Security Office, Carl began monitoring the mall with both cameras and sensors. All of the exterior doors were wired with both, cameras and sensors. When he'd descended to the food court, Carl had double checked that all of those doors were closed. Now, though, returning to the security station, he found that two of the doors were open.

He got on the Public Address system and practically begged people to close the doors. Carl didn't fully understand what was happening outside of the mall, but he was pretty sure that he wanted it to remain out there. When the doors continued to register as open, he called the stores in proximity to them.

He only got an answer near one of them. Again, he begged them to go close the door. They said they'd take care of it. When he continued to get no answer about the other door, he hopped up and ran that direction himself. He only got halfway there before he slid across the tiles to a stop at a sight that shocked him: one man lying on the floor being eaten by two others.

Again, Carl was in shock and simply stood there staring for a long moment. Then, one of the eaters spotted him, stood, and started walking awkwardly toward him. Carl turned and ran, not stopping until he'd reached the Security Office again. He went back to the cameras and found what would soon come to called Walkers in at least five locations about the mall.

He returned to warning employees, telling them with a desperate tone, "Stay inside your businesses! Don't open your doors or lift your gates! If you are a booth owner or employee, make your way to a location that can be secured: a lockable handicap or family-style restroom, a store that someone will let you inside, anywhere that you can find safety."

Carl would continue to watch the cameras for the next couple of hours. He gave warnings about the specific locations of Walkers, hoping to prevent another attack. Unfortunately, he failed, on two fronts. The first was that more than 2 dozen mall employees who weren't secure were attacked in the promenade or in branch passageways. The second was that another 3 exterior doors were opened by panicked employees hoping to escape the mall entirely.

By the time it was 3pm, the scheduled time of the now-abandoned potluck, there were at least 50 Walkers plodding around the mall. Carl recognized some of them as employees he had personally known. They were now Walkers, like the people who had attacked them. Carl didn't understand the way this happened. In addition, there were another 30 mutilated bodies all about the promenade and hallways.

He'd alerted the police early in the mayhem, of course. Like so many others, he could no longer get through to anyone with the cell service driven phones. All he could do now was continue begging people to remain locked up. He divided his attention between the security monitors and the television. The madness happening here was happening throughout the city. Checking other stations, Carl found out that it was going on all across the United States and dozens of other countries.

Whatever this was, it was happening seemingly everywhere.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton and Abigail Reed

Ronnie and Abby did what they could to comfort the new girl amongst them. Her name was Rose McDaniels, and she worked the Greeting Booth located in the center of the promenade just south -- or inward? -- of the Food Court. She'd volunteered to decorate the booth not because she'd really wanted to do so but because her boyfriend, Roger -- a member of the Mall's janitorial staff -- had had to come in to decorate common areas, and Rose had wanted to see him.

"That thing killed him," she said, lifting her head toward the closed backroom door and pointing toward the unseeable promenade where Roger's mutilated corpse now laid. "It was awful!"

Carl Henry, the Security Supervisor, came back on the PA, warning people about what he was seeing on the monitors in Security. It was all sounding even more frightening and deadly than either Ronnie or Abby had seen in the Food Court.

"I'm going to get us something to eat," the younger female said. Then, worried that the Assistant Manager would get all strict about such a thing being internal theft, Abby asked, "Ronnie, is that okay?"

"Yes, yes!" Ronnie answered, knowing what the concern was. She laughed, saying, "I think that whatever this is calls for a little leeway from Corporate, don't you think? Pick out a basket of stuff ... whatever sounds good."

She smiled, snatched up her keys to one of the cabinets that contained the food, candy, and other items that had been the most commonly shoplifted items before they went under lock and key, and tossed them to Abby. Winking, Ronnie said, "Bring me one of those King's Ransom chocolate bars--" Then looking to Jared to let him know this was open to him, too, continued, "-- and get whatever you guys want, too."

 

[HumanBean]

Jared Taylor

He followed Abby and Rose to the back of the store. Ronnie was following the latest news on the computer and television both. There was a lot of speculation and general facts. Details of value were few and far between, though.

"That thing killed him," Rose said about what happened to her boyfriend out in front of Dollarama. "It was awful!"

It was, Jared told himself. The scene had been simply horrific. He couldn't get two things out of his mind. The first was seeing those things eating on Rose's boyfriend. The second was he himself killing the guy trying to crawl under the gate.

Jared would never have thought himself capable of stomping in a man's head, not even to save his own life. And yet he had. He'd crushed that man's skull with his feet. How? How had he done that?

The Security Supervisor came back on the PA. Jared couldn't hear the man's words clearly and excused himself to go out closer to the gate.

Carl had begun making reports of what he was seeing on the Security Office monitors. Jared was sure that the information would be helpful and might keep people alive longer and hoped Carl would stick to it.

But Jared's mind was more on what he was seeing just beyond the gate. There was the man he'd killed, of course. That was bad enough. The man's head looked like the pumpkin he and some fellow students had dropped from the roof of gymnasium one Halloween.

Worse, though, was what was still happening to Rose's boyfriend. The other two Walkers were still eating from him. They were ripping huge pieces of flesh with their teeth like jackals tearing apart a gazelle on the Serengeti. Looking closer, Jared saw one of the creatures tear into the man's belly with both his hands and teeth. He came up with a mouthful of intestines, like they were a string of sausages.

Jared couldn't watch any more of it and returned to the backroom in time to hear Abby say, "I'm going to get us something to eat."

Ronnie gave her permission, even turning over the key to the case they called the Treasure Cest.

"Bring me one of those King's Ransom chocolate bars--" Ronnie instructed. To Jared she said, "--and get whatever you guys want, too."

"Careful what you offer, boss," he said. Joking, he said, "There's a couple of fidget spinners in there that I could resell on eBay for big bucks."

He and Abby returned to the front portion of the store. Jared stopped her short, saying, "You don't want to see what's going on up there. Why don't you let me go."

If Abby gave him the keys, Jared would point her to the children's book nook where there were little seats, then go get whatever she wanted. If she wanted to continue forward, he would only warn her of what was happening out there.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Abigail "Abby" Reed

Jared stopped Abby short of the front of the store by far, saying, "You don't want to see what's going on up there. Why don't you let me go."

"I already saw it," she said, reminding him, "I saw the man coming under the gate. I ... I saw what you did to keep him out." She said it in a way that was supposed to make him feel like a hero, despite that the shock of it had very nearly made Abby turn around and retch all over a generic battery display. She smiled and -- forcing herself to be brave -- reached out a hand to touch Jared on the forearm, saying, "It's okay. I'm a big girl."

She stepped past Jared in a way that just ever so gently caressed her body against his. As she moved forward through the store, Abby realized that her heart was pounding hard and fast. She wondered whether it was because of her infatuation with Jared and the leaps forward she was making in trying to be more intimate with him; or was it the horror that was just outside the gate of Dollarama.

One glance at the happenings beyond the gate, though, caused Abby to look away immediately. She kept her attention on her path and, at the end, the locked display for which she had the key for the first time since the start of her employment. She unlocked the case, lifting away the cover and looking for Ronnie's very expensive candy. She snatched out two of them, figuring that that was a good time to partake of one herself. It wasn't really the expense of the candy bar that was important; they were only $3.99. No, it was the fact that under normal circumstances she would never spend that kind of money on chocolate yet now, was being told to go wild.

"Whatcha want out of here, Jared?" Abby asked. She snatched another of the King's Ransoms for Rose, thinking maybe the three of them eating the same thing at the same time would be some sort of bonding experience. "I'm gonna get a bunch of drinks from the cooler. I don't think we have to lock this back up, do we?"

Abby left Jared standing at the case and walked down the wall to the glass fronted pop cooler. Dollarama didn't have a lot of refrigerated items and had no frozen goods. They weren't like the discount stores in strip malls with larger food sections at which people often bought a couple of bags of cheap groceries; if someone bought a cold drink in a can or bottle here, it was likely because they were going to drink it as they walked about the mall, going to sneak in into the theater located in the southeast corner of the mall, or were about to leave the mall and were going to drink it on the drive home. People didn't come to a mall-located discount store to buy the weeks' worth of frozen meals and a large box of frozen burritos.

Suddenly, beyond the gate, there was another scream, followed by a pair of women and a man running together past the store front. Abby moved toward the front of the store, calling to Jared, who still had the keys for the gate, "We have to let them inside!"

But by the time she got up to the front of the store, the trio had long passed and in their place now came four Walkers; they were moving at the pace of a fast walk, looking -- as Jared had already noticed -- like they were three sheets to the wind, as Abby's grandfather had once called being drunk. For the first time, Abby heard the growling groan of the creatures as they passed, like some sort of injured animal.

One of the Walkers on the ground still feeding on Rose's boyfriend caught sight of Abby's movement, stood, moved quickly to the gate. It slammed against it, reaching its fingers through the grill as if thinking it could grab her. Abby moved back in fear, then stood her ground and cursed, "Go to hell, you freak!"

That turned out to be a mistake; in the seconds that followed, the other feeder and the three Walkers who'd passed all came to the grill and started pushing and pulling at it, trying to get through it for the walking, talking meat meal for which they sought.

 

[HumanBean]

Jared Taylor

"It's okay," Abby said as she passed by Jared.

He felt her touch his arm in a way that felt very intentional and maybe intimate? Could it be? Was the young beauty whose image had filled his mind's eye so many nights when he was beating his meat really be flirting with him?

Then she added, "I'm a big girl."

Now that sounded like flirting. And that belief caused Jared's cock to instantly begin stiffening in his pants. He checked Abby and the backroom doorway for eyes looking at him. When he saw none of the three females looking directly at him, Jared rearranged his growing erection in a way that he hoped would conceal its threatening presence.

"Whatcha want out of here, Jared?" Abby asked after she'd begun taking the most expensive candy bar in the case. "I'm gonna get a bunch of drinks from the cooler. I don't think we have to lock this back up, do we?"

"No, I don't think Ronnie cares," he answered. He pulled out a big bag of Good & Plenty. It was the size the theater sold for double the price. That was probably the reason it was locked up here.

A scream and ruckus out front drew Abby toward the gate. Jared went with her, hearing her call out, "We have to let them inside!"

Jared had the keys, and he fished them out of his pocket. But he didn't head for the gate control. There were still two Walkers having dinner just outside the gate. When Abby looked to him, Jared shrugged, then said, "We can't!"

They might have argued about it except that within seconds, the eating Walkers were at the gate. "Go to hell, you freak!" Abby hollered at them.

A moment later, the other three were there, too.

Abby courageously hollered at them, too. Jared was quite surprised by her anger. He'd been surprised by his own earlier, too. The five Walkers continued to claw at the gate, growling like wild animals. He wanted them to go away and began searching for ideas.

One hit him. He ran back toward the now-open case, then came back. Lifting a can, he emptied a full load of pepper spray into the faces of the five Walkers. A little bit of the spray caught a breeze back Jared's way, partially blinding him in one eye. But he persisted until the entire can was empty.

And it made absolutely no difference. The Walkers continued to fight at the gate, trying to get inside. Jared said, "We have to go back! Now!"

He would grab Abby by the hand to lead her away from the mayhem there.

 

[HumanBean]

Carl Henry, Security Supervisor
Gateway Mall Security Office, 2nd Floor
5pm

5 hours had passed since the get-together at the food court and the arrival of the Walkers. Carl had been watching things unfold on the Security Office's monitors. And he'd been analyzing.

He'd discovered first that the Walkers were attracted to the sound of the PA system. Every time he spoke on it, they turned toward the nearest speaker.

He'd also noticed they were attracted to movement. Most of the movement had been people on the run, obviously. And most if them were now dead if they hadn't reached a secure location first.

All of this concluded in an idea. He got on the PA again and explained an idea. There PA system could be used in specific zones in the mall. All Carl had to do was attract the Walkers to one end of the mall to get the people in the other end to safety. The middle would be tougher, but Carl had confidence this would work.

"That's the good news," Carl said, adding, "Here's the bad news. To do this, we need people to open their security gates. Not much and not for long."

Carl explained how he wanted store occupants to identify whether or not they were safe to help the stragglers. Soon, a dozen green flags were hanging out of security gates.

There were also red flags, though. These indicated the near proximity of Walkers. And there were more of them then green ones.

Once Carl felt comfortable with the plan, he instituted it. He used the PA to draw as many Walkers as possible toward the west end of the mall. Then he directed individual survivors he'd noted to safe zones. Here, gates were lifted a few inches for stragglers to slide under.

Carl repeated this for the other end of the mall, then the middle. It seemed to take forever. The Walkers moved at such a slow pace to sound only.

It took more than 4 hours to finish. But they rescued more than a dozen stragglers.

Unfortunately, they lost a pair, too. Some Walkers in a blind spot got the pair before the safe gate could get up. Even worse, the gate continued upwards for unknown reasons. In the end, more than a dozen Walkers got inside the store. Presumably, the occupants were killed, too.

Carl decided not to report that. He feared that no one would lift their gates then.

In the end, Carl was very happy with the results. There were still stragglers out there, though. Carl had spotted them, a total of at least 6 people in 4 locations. He just didn't know how to get then to safety.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton, Abigail Reed, and Rose McDaniels
Dollarama (left/west of the Food Court near the upper center of Gateway Mall)

Introducing Kimberly "Kimmie" O'Connor


Sometime before 5pm:

Ronnie and Abby had finally calmed Rose down, enough so that when they made a bed in a corner of the backroom from a multitude of inexpensive kiddy nap blankets, the exhausted young woman fell soundly asleep. They talked quietly with Jared about what was happening and what should be done. None of them thought it was a good idea to try to escape the mall.

"Who's to know if its any better out there?" Abby asked.

"It's not," Ronnie responded. She'd been listening to and watching the news non-stop via the radio, laptop, and television. "They say this is happening everywhere."

4pm, give or take:

The Walkers outside Dollarama's gate still eating on Roger were getting on Ronnie's nerves. She could see them on the in-store security camera that watched over the store's entrance. Over the past hours, they'd been joined by other Walkers, only to then have some of the originals and/or newly arrived get distracted by the PA system and leave. Then, more would arrive and resume the feeding on Rose's boyfriend.

Eventually, the last of those eating on poor Roger left for good. Ronnie told the others to remain in the backroom -- not knowing whether they would or not, particular regarding Jared, who'd been the bravest of them thus far -- and headed up to the front entrance. It took her forever to get near the gate; even from 20 feet away, the scene was horrific, with Ronnie's stomach warning her of an impending emptying of its contents.

She managed to get close enough that she was standing over and smelling the blood and brain matter from the Walker Jared had heroically killed by stomping on its head. Outside, she found Roger's corpse eaten down to the bone in most places. There was little flesh left that wasn't affixed to skeletal remains: no guts, no muscle, no facial features other than the skull itself.

Ronnie finally couldn't take it, snatched up a 99-cent special deskside garbage pail and threw up into it. When there was nothing more left to be expelled, she set the pail next to the gate, opened a sample bottle of Listerine, washed out her mouth, spit it out through the grill of the gate, and returned to the backroom.

Just a moment after returning, Carl Henry from Security began explaining his plan. Ronnie was shocked to learn that he'd located what he was calling a Straggler hiding in the Milo Silver kiosk less than 50 feet from Dollarama. (OOC: 4060 kiosk on the map).

"Kimberly!" Abby said in shock. "She was decorating today. I talked to her. It's gotta be Kimmie!"

Ronnie again told everyone to sit tight -- again not knowing if they would -- and went out to the gate to look toward the kiosk; even though the gate itself was one, straight section of grating flush with the store, the entrance into Dollarama was angular and set back from the grating. Because of this, Ronnie could see Milo Silver down the promenade.

There was no movement, of course; Kim -- or whomever it might be -- was staying low and out of sight. How did Carl see her? Ronnie wondered. She looked about for cameras, knowing that there were hundreds of them. He must be able to see her. It's the only thing that makes sense.

As Carl laid out his plan, Ronnie told one of the others in a whispered but anxious volume and tone, "Find something green! We have to sign that we can help!"

They hung green cloth from the grating, then -- using permanent markers and story board -- they put a sign up in the window that read SAFE HERE! in caps. Ronnie wanted to make sure that Carl could see that they were ready to help and wanted to make sure that Kim and/or others would know as well.

Ronnie hurried to the backroom, grabbing up Abby and asking, "Can you be brave, girl? Can you man the gate key to open and close it while we help others?"

By we Ronnie was speaking of Jared and herself. To the former, she said, "We have to be ready to help anyone who comes to the gate inside, before one of those things grab her."

They worked out a plan that was simple but beautiful. Then, when Carl caught on, they were ready. All they had to do was wait for it to be Kim's turn to run.


6:45pm, almost two hours later:
"
Finally, it was their turn to act. Being near the west end of the mall, Dollarama had been the last refuge to be activated. It was a hairy situation for them because the Walkers had first been lured past them to the west end of the mall. Ronnie had hoped that they could save Kim then, but there were some slow-moving Walkers who simply took forever to get past them, and then they became attracted to Roger's corpse and stayed around for quite a while, picking clean more of the man's bones.

Only when Carl lured the Walkers to the eastward of the Mall were the Dollarama people able to act. Carl did his thing, and sure enough, Kimmie's head popped up from within Milo Silver. She looked around in all directions, then shot out of the kiosk heading straight for Dollarama.

"Open it!" Ronnie told Abby with an anxious tone. "Open it now!"

The gate started rising, reaching eight or so inches just as Kimmie athletically slid across the tile like she was coming into home plate on a close play. Ronnie told Jared, "Grab her! Grab her, pull her in!"

No sooner was Kimmie inside then Ronnie told Abby to lower the gate. But then, no sooner was it down then a male voice started calling out, "Wait! Wait for me!"

Ronnie looked up to find an unfamiliar man running their way from even farther beyond Milo Silver. Ronnie instructed Abby to raise the gate again and watched with fear as the man -- with three Walkers on his tail -- rushed for Dollarama ... and safety.

 

[HumanBean]

Carl Henry, Security Supervisor

6:45pm, about:

Carl had turned off all of the PA speakers other than those in the southeast end of the mall. Using Bluetooth and his phone's Spotify App, he'd filled the air with Michael Jackson's Thriller. It had somehow seemed appropriate, he thought.

It took a while, but soon all of the Walkers seemed to be heading for the southeast corner. Carl watched them on Camera 650, numbered for the suite below it, Craze Mania. Most of the cameras were numbered that way.

Another monitor was set to Camera 870. It looked southward at Milo Silver, the businesses on the far side of the promenade, and the access hallway to The Brick. Carl saw Kimmie's head rise from behind the counter of Milo Silver. A moment later, she was off, running for Dollarama.

Carl's attention moved to the monitor featuring the view of Camera 55. It looked northward upon Dollarama and the stores on either side of it from the wall directly over Craze Mania, Suite 55, of course. That camera's microphone picked up a female voice, Ronnie's it happened to be, saying, "Open it! Open it now!"

The gate in front of Dollarama rose a few inches in time for Kimmie to slide across the tile into the opening. Hands grasped at her from beyond the gate, pulling her inside to safety.

"Wait! Wait for me!" a male voice called out.

Carl searched the cameras for the source of the voice but saw no one. He tapped camera numbers in one after another, looking for the man. Carl only finally found him when he activated a camera at the intersection of the promenade and the food court hallway. The man was running for Dollarama with Walkers behind him.


Jefferson "Jay" Johnson

The last several hours had been hell for Jay. He'd been in the stock room of Urban Sole, Suite 280, when the shit hit the fan. Even though he didn't know it, Jay had been the first mall employee to run into a Walker. The exterior door to the delivery area and the back door to Urban Sole had both been open for a delivery. Three Walkers had just wandered in, following the sound of shoppers and bad mood music.

Jay looked up at the sound of a guttural growl in time to back away from biting teeth. He'd danced around the stacks of boxes, trying to get away and out a door. There was no way out, though. The Walkers had wandered in different directions, surrounding him. Jay had thought it was an intentional hunting technique. He didn't know that Walkers didn't really think.

Quickly, he began to realize that whoever or whatever these people or things were, they weren't geniuses. He couldn't get past them to either of the exits. But he could find cover. He ran quickly between two of them, pulled open the supply closet door, entered, and pulled it behind him.

After that, all he could do was stand in there and hold on. The door handle jiggled and twisted a bit. The Walkers didn't have the mentality to actually turn a handle. Jay didn't know that, though, so he just grasped it and held on. For minutes. Then for hours. The Walkers continued to paw and scratch and pound at the door for what seemed like forever.

Then, finally, they just gave up. The mayhem outside the door waned, feet shuffled off, and all Jay could hear was that lousy music again. He came out of the closet slowly, quietly. He checked the back hallway, finding no one there. He stepped out into the store, finding no one there, either. Everyone was gone. Coworkers, customers. There wasn't even anyone in the promenade beyond Urban Sole's entrance.

Finally, the voice of Carl Henry came over the PA. Jay listened long enough to realize that the mall was being overrun by someone, something. He didn't understand what was happening without more information. He didn't have others to speak with. He didn't have a radio or television. He didn't even have his cell phone. He'd forgotten it in his car on morning break and had planned on retrieving it during the potluck break. So much for that.

Listening to Carl over the PA, Jay came up with his own plan. And now he instituted it. Running for Dollarama, he called out, "Wait! Wait for me!"

At nearly full speed, he ran into the gate at the discount retailer. "Please! Please let me in! Hurry!"

There was a guy inside the store. He jumped over to the gate control and turned the key. The gate was rising but too slowly. Jay looked back and saw the Walkers getting closer. He ran away, out into the center of the promenade, around a kiosk that sold key chains and the like. He waved and screamed at the Walkers, "Over here you stupid fuckers! Here! Over here!"

Continuing his message but for the people in Dollarama, he hollered, "Okay, stop. Here I come."

Jay rushed past the Walkers, diving headfirst for the gap under the gate. He had enough momentum to clear the opening, but his coat caught the metal. He stopped to the sound of ripping cloth, hollering, "I'm stuck!"

The guy inside Dollarama grabbed Jay by the shoulders and pulled. He called to his coworkers, "Help! I can't get him inside."

Jay felt something grab his feet and cried out in panic. Then, suddenly, his body was dragged inside. He rolled over, looking toward the gate and found it lowering again. He fell to his back, laughing hysterically. Once he'd regained some composure, Jay asked, "What ... the ... fuck ... is going on?"

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

Veronica "Ronnie" Templeton and Abigail Reed
Dollarama

"I'm stuck!" Jay hollered when his jacket snagged on the gate.

Jared grabbed one side of the man, calling out, "Help! I can't get him inside."

Ronnie hurried around Jared to help. They tugged at him, but he wasn't moving. Ronnie looked up and panicked at the sight of the Walkers reaching for the man's legs. She had been trying to be quiet before this but now hollered, "Hurry! Pull him! They're gonna get him!"

They tugged again, but they weren't getting anyway; the jacket was snagged on one of the little pegs on the bottom of the door that helped align it when it was lowered at closing. Instead of trying to pull him in by his shoulders, Ronnie grabbed the sleeve of Jay's jacket and pulling on it, ordering, "Take it off! Take off your jacket!"

As Jay's arm slipped out, Ronnie told Jared, "Okay, now! Pull." And just like that, Jay slid the rest of the way to safety. Ronnie hollered to Abby, "Close the gate! Now!"
Abby did as instructed, sending the gate down to the floor. She and Ronnie stepped back as the Walkers assaulted the gate, growling hungrily at them. On the floor, Jay laughed, then asked, "What ... the ... fuck ... is going on?"

"That's a damn fucking good question," Ronnie answered. After she and Abby both offered him a hand and helped him to his feet, Ronnie said, "Welcome, Jefferson." She smiled to him, saying, "Yeah, I know. You prefer Jay." She offered her hand. "Welcome anyway. C'mon, let's get you away from here."

She would offer to take him to the back where they'd accumulated some sugary or salty snacks, some better foods, and some drinks, all of them from Dollarama's inventory. That was something that Ronnie was coming to realize about the store: they might not eat by the current USDA dietary guidelines, but at least they wouldn't starve. Ironically, Ronnie and her girlfriend had had a conversation about survival after watching yet another post-apocalypse movie, their favorite genre. Ronnie had said, "If it happens, I want it to happen while I'm at work. Dollarama may be a shit place to work, but there's food, drink, toilet paper, and tampons ... everything a girl needs to survive the end of the world."

And here they were at what might very well be the end of the world. Ronnie had been paying more attention to the mayhem outside than any of the others; she'd been glued to the television, radio, and computer all morning while the others were decorating.

 

[HumanBean]

Jefferson "Jay" Johnson and Jared Taylor

"What ... the ... fuck ... is going on?" Jay asked, unable not to laugh at the absurdity of what was happening.

Ronnie answered, "That's a damn fucking good question."

Still on his back, Jay set his eyes on the beauty. From the floor, he was looking at her face through her generous bosom. He knew of her, of course. Every man working the mall knew Veronica Templeton. Every man working the mall wanted Veronica Templeton.

Unfortunately for them all, they'd never have her. It was well known that she had a girlfriend. Of course, with men, that only led to further fantasies. But hey, that's what men did, right?

Ronnie and another beauty whose name Jay didn't know offered him a hand to his feet. As he rose, Ronnie welcomed him by his full given name, something that he couldn't even imagine that she knew. Then, "Yeah, I know. You prefer Jay."

They shook hands. Jay offered his hand Abby. He couldn't help but glance down her body for just an instance. She was the sweetest little piece of sexy. He introduced himself, "Jay, like she said. Nice to meet you both."

The guy with them reached a hand around Abby to Jay. His face was filled with a wide smile. "Jared. Taylor. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mister Johnson."

Jared laughed, even blushing. "Sorry. Jay. It's just, well, I used to watch you play. My father paid an extra nineteen ninety-nine a month during the regular season just so he could watch Oklahoma State. It was his alma mater. Getting to watch you was like the cherry on top."

Jay smiled, taking Jared's hand. "Thanks. I didn't think anyone here knew who I was."

Jared laughed with excitement. "Are you kidding?" He looked between the two women for support but didn't get it. "Don't you know who this is? Jefferson "Lightning" Johnson!"

Another pause without a reaction. "Oklahoma State running back. Graduated 2019. Broke every record at OSU. Broke just about every national record, including the ones Barry Sanders had set at OSU when he was there in the '80s."

Jared realized he was still holding Jay's hand. He released it, saying, "Sorry. I'm just a bit fan." His expression soured a bit. "The knee was heartbreaking for us as fans. I can just imagine what it was like for you."

Jay shrugged as if to say life's a bitch. He looked between the two women. "First game of the playoffs, I got hit bad. Blew it out. Two years of rehab and I was finally able to jog the field again. It's been a long road back."

Ronnie was obviously uncomfortable with the Walkers pounding and growling at the gate right behind them. She told Jay, "Welcome anyway. C'mon, let's get you away from here."

She and Abby headed back, with Jay and Jared staying a moment longer. The latter asked the former with obvious surprise, "Are you working here in the mall?"

Another shaking of the gate caused Jay to flinch. He took Jared's elbow and turned him for the back. "Yeah. A couple of months now. Urban Sole, down the promenade next to the Family Resource Center. My uncle is the head coach at Springfield U. He landed me the Offensive Coordinator's spot. I'm just waiting for the University to approve the paperwork."

As he was talking, Jay slowed Jared down with a hand grasping his elbow. He asked in barely above a whisper, "Is it true about Veronica? You know?"

"Ronnie," Jared corrected. He feigned a disappointed expression. "Sorry to tell you yes, Jay. Just another heartbreaker for the men of Springfield."

"And the young thing there?" Jay inquired.

Jared didn't answer immediately. He'd yearned for a chance at Abby since she hired on at Dollarama. He hadn't done anything about it, of course. He'd always thought she was out of his league. And it was against company policy to date coworkers, too.

Now, with whatever the fuck that was happening out there beyond the gate, Jared had concluded that it was time to break through those barriers. And now, suddenly, Jefferson Lightning Johnson was here? Jared didn't need that kind of competition.

Before he realized what he was doing, Jared whispered, "She's my girlfriend."

Jay's face lit up with unexpected delight. He elbowed Jared, saying with joy, "Nice! You hit the jackpot there, killer." He laughed a bit louder than he should have. Then, softer, promised with a softer voice, "I'll be sure to keep my sex appeal in my pocket 'round her then."

Before they reached the door to the backroom, Jared stopped. "I'm going to stay up here. There might be more stragglers, and I want to be able to open the gate for them."

"Okay, I'll come back up to be with you in a second," Jay said. He was desperately hoping he could find a bottle of water and maybe something to eat. It had been hours since his last meal, and he'd obviously missed out on the potluck.

In the backroom, Jay's face lit up at the sight of yet a third beautiful young woman. He offered out his big hand to Kimmie, saying, "Jay Johnson. Nice to see you here with us, safe."

With introductions seemingly concluded, Ronnie showed Jay to the assortment of foods and drinks they'd gather for sustenance. He eagerly broke into some carbs in both solid and liquid form. "I'm starving."

Jay stepped into the doorway, wanting to be able to see Jared. He asked Ronnie for a news update, seeing and hearing the television, radio, and internet all up and running. It wasn't as much as he would have liked to know. Still, it was far more than he'd known until now.

He explained how a couple of Walkers had trapped him in a utility closet for hours. "Yeah, the only thing I knew about what was happening was what I heard from that guy on the speakers."

Only now did Jay see the fourth female in the group. Rose was still passed out on a layer of blankets in the corner. He asked about her, not knowing whether the others would share much.

"I'm going out front again," Jay said. "Jared should have someone to help him if someone needs under the gate."

He looked around for a moment until he found what he was looking for. He snatched up a pair of aluminum baseball bats, asking, "Can we used these?"

They weren't regulation bats. They were more for little kid baseball, like elementary school. But Jay thought they'd be just fine for beating the fuck out of a Walker if it tried to come under the gate.

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

The Girls inside Dollarama

Ronnie hadn't missed Jay's ogling of her bosom when he'd still been on his back on the floor near the gate. She'd just smiled knowingly down at him; leering glances were nothing new to her. Measuring at 34C-24-36 with firm tits typically lifted by a wireless pushup bra, as well as her regularly dressing in clothing that emphasized her dramatic hourglass figure and long legs, Ronnie was always finding men and women checking her out with hungry looks. She liked it, to be honest, particularly -- as a gay female -- when the oglers were other beautiful women. If she hadn't like it, she would have dressed differently, wouldn't she?

She did have to wonder whether or not Jay knew she was gay. Ronnie's sexual preferences weren't something that she flaunted; she and her girlfriend, Beth Anne, didn't partake of public displays of affection with the exception of nights out at dance clubs -- some gay, some not -- where such PDAs were commonplace. At the same time, Ronnie was anything but in the closet. She was happy with and comfortable in her sexuality; she simply didn't throw it in the faces of other people, particularly those she didn't know.

Abby had had no idea who Jay was. She had never been much of a sports fan, probably because all through high school, the jocks had been trying incessantly to get into her pants. Ironically, some of them had thought she, too, must have been a lesbian; why else would they turn down the manliest and most popular guys in school for everything from coffee dates to school dances.

She found Jay attractive, with his still fit, muscular stature and ruggedly handsome face. But she had no interest in him, romantically; she'd been becoming increasingly infatuated with Jared, and she wasn't about to switch horses midstream, as her gramma would have said.

She'd taken Jay's hand, saying, "Abby. Abby Reed. Nice to meet you." Like Ronnie before her, Abby had caught Jay ogling her form as he'd taken her hand, saying as Abby had blushed, "Jay, like she said. Nice to meet you both."

As she and Ronnie headed to the backroom, Abby eavesdropped on the quiet conversation taking place behind her. She couldn't hear everything, but she surmised that the two men were taking about her and Ronnie.

Then, to her surprise, Abby clearly heard Jared say, "She's my girlfriend."

Her eyes widened as she peeked back over her shoulder for just an instance. Was he talking about me? Why would he say that ... about me? She definitely wanted to be Jared's girlfriend, but hell, they hadn't gone out, hadn't kissed, hadn't nothing!

She heard Jay say, "Nice!" That was followed by more that Abby didn't hear. She and Ronnie reached the backroom, but only Jay followed them inside. He explained that Jared was going to man the gate. Abby didn't hesitate to say, "I'm going to go help Jared. He shouldn't be alone." She grabbed some snacks and drinks, dropped them in an empty box, and headed for the front.

Kimmie had a similar reaction to seeing Jay as Abby had: what a hunk. In her case, though, she could see herself getting naked with the man and practicing at making a baby. Practicing, is all, she thought to herself as she looked him up and down. She had no interest in becoming a mother. She'd grown up in a dysfunctional home that had had its share of sexual abuse, some of it incestuous. She couldn't even imagine having a child of her own, even though she loved to ... practice at making one.

"Jay Johnson," the new man said as he offered his hand. "Nice to see you here with us, safe."

Kimmie smiled wide and took his hand. With a happy smile and a bit of flirtation in her tone, she responded, "Nice to see you here with us, too."

Ronnie, Kimmie, and Jay sat down around the folding table covered in food and drinks. Jay told them about having been trapped in the closet without food, then dove into the assortment. They talked about the news they were hearing. Ronnie told him, "They say it's a virus that's been spreading across the world. They think that maybe it spread through airports around the globe really quick like. That's why it broke out almost everywhere at the same time.

"It's in the US, obviously ... Mexico and Canada, too," she continued, opening a bag of chips. "All over Europe ... China ... even islands ... Japan, Australia. Is that an island? Continent, I know. They say it's on ships all over the oceans, too. There was an aircraft carrier that was coming into port ... Norfolk, Virgina, I think. There was a video on NBC News of it coming in at full speed ... hitting the beach and just going on ... right up onto the shore. It didn't tip over or anything. Just ... stopped there."

She looked toward the television which was muted and currently showing aerial video of neighborhoods of Los Angeles burning. "The police and Coast Guard and other Navy people responded ... but then, the -- I guess they're calling them Walkers? -- the Walkers started just walking right off the deck, falling to the beach ... and standing up and attacking people. It was ... God, it was ... just awful."

They watched Jay stand and step into the doorway, looking out toward Jared and Abby. He talked more about having been trapped by the Walkers. "Yeah, the only thing I knew about what was happening was what I heard from that guy on the speakers."

"That's Carl, Carl Henry," Ronnie said, adding, "He's a Security supervisor. He's probably the most senior Mall employee here right now. I guess that means he's in charge. Not that means much right now. I mean, I don't think we're worried much about who's in charge or anything like that. But Carl really took control of the situation when we needed someone. He saved Kimmie ... you, too."

Ronnie noticed Rose asleep in the corner. Ronnie told him, "She wasn't even supposed to be here today." She nodded her head toward the door leading to the other room as if to indicate a location even beyond that, saying, "That's her boyfriend lying out front..." And then much quieter added, "...or what's left of him. I saw it firsthand. It was sick."

"I'm going out front again," Jay said. "Jared should have someone to help him if someone needs under the gate."

Ronnie just about said Abby's enough help but kept quiet; she'd already noticed the flirtation taking place between the two, and she thought they needed some time alone together. But Jay was right in saying that Jared could use the help. The last thing they wanted was to help someone under the gate, only to have a Walker get in, too.

"Can we use these?" Jay asked about the kids bats.

"Sure, I guess," Ronnie said. She pulled one out of its box, handing it over before getting one for herself. "Not exactly regulation, but I think they're heavy enough to knock a guy out."

Ironically, no one had figured out yet that to stop a Walker, you had to do serious damage to their brain. They'd catch on soon enough, though, after they'd taken down a few more of them ... and failed to take down others.

Ronnie headed up to the front with Jay, checking in with Jared and Abby. Carl was still directing rescues, though not out in front of Dollarama. The Walkers were on their way back to the west end, following the music now playing out here. Ronnie knew that that meant Stragglers were being rescued at the other end of the mall.

"We need to inventory," Ronnie said after a while. When the others looked to her, she explained, "Dollarama sells food, water, soft drinks, batteries, candy and chips ... all kinds of stuff that'll keep us happy and healthy for a while. We're gonna need that if this is gonna last a while."

"How long?" Abby asked in surprise. "Aren't the police or the National Guard or the Army going to come rescue us? That's what they said on the news."

"That's not gonna happen, Abby," Ronnie told her. "I'm sorry. No one's coming to save us, Abby. We're on our own. I've been watching the news. There's no one."

Abby's eyes were beginning to glisten over. Ronnie moved to her, taking her into her arms just as the younger thing began sobbing. "It's alright, honey. It's gonna be alright. All we have to do is just stay in here until things change. Things are always changing, and this will change, too. Those things -- Carl is calling them Walkers -- they'll leave soon. All we have to do is stay inside."

 

[HumanBean]

The Guys inside Dollarama

Jay was shocked to hear that this thing happening to them was everywhere. Literally everywhere, it seemed, even at sea.

Jared added, "There were airplanes that crashed, too. It was on the news, too."

He looked to Ronnie, who nodded confirmation. He continued, "They don't know for certain that it's this, the same thing. But it makes sense. One plane falling out of the sky is an accident. Two is the start of another 9-11. But there's been a lot more than that, all over."

"We need to inventory," Ronnie said after a while. She talked about all that Dollarama had to offer.

Abby showed her surprise at Ronnie saying that they were on their own. Jared spoke up, saying, "I tend to agree. I mean, I haven't been watching as much news as Ronnie, but what I did see tells me we're in trouble."

"Let's do it," Jay agreed, clarifying, "The inventory. Just give me a pen and a clipboard."

(OOC: I don't have time to jump us ahead. Dinner.)

 

[MarieDavisRPs]

The Girls inside Dollarama

Ronnie printed the latest inventory of the computer, telling the others, "I think we should learn to do this without the computers. If this ... whatever it is ... continues to get worse, I'm expecting on the power going out. It always does, whether it's a snow storm or tornado or even the heat, like last summer when the temp'was over 100 for two weeks straight."

She divided the pages between Jay, Abby, Jared,
and Kimmie. Giving them highlighters, Ronnie instructed, "Count and record the item. Then, judge its perishable nature and--"

"Perishable nature?" Kimmie asked.

"Yeah, how soon it's going to go bad, if it'll go bad," Ronnie told her. She waggled a highlighters of different colors as she instructed, "If it's something that'll go bad a couple of days, you mark it red. A couple of weeks, yellow. If it's not edible but still expires, like batteries, blue. Green is for things that don't expire but could be important."

"Like...?" Abby asked.

"Flashlights, warm clothes," Ronnie listed. She explained about the last one, "If the power goes out, we're gonna need to stay warm. Clothes, blankets, gloves. Understand?"

They got to work.