Keep Going (Book 1): The Beginning

Dedicated to my sister. Well here you go.

1

Once upon a time there lived two sisters. The eldest was short and very loud. She was the most social of the two, always wanting to be out and about. A smile always graced her face even when she didn’t feel it. Her name was Christian.

Then there was the youngest; she wasn’t tall but she was at least taller then her sister and took pride in that. She seemed to be frowning even in the happiest of occasions and wanting to hide away in her home. Her name was Alexandra or Alex for short. The two sisters were quite opposite but it never hindered their bond. Yet today, today was different. Today they stood in each other’s shoes not knowing what misfortunate events were yet to come.

Chris walked through the blue door one lovely autumn night after work. She stopped stared at the odd event that was occurring her living room. Her sister, who was very much opposed to dressing up, was wearing a black dress and blue sweater. Her dark eyes couldn’t help but widen in surprise.

“So what’s with the outfit?” She asked.

Alex shrugged disinterestedly as she tried again and again to put the silver bracelet on her wrist. She tossed it on the table in a huff. She didn’t need the stupid bracelet anyway.

“I have that stupid party for that stupid professor. I hate things and people.” She grumbled.

Moving to the full-length mirror that stood out of place in the living room. Alex wanted it there since having it in their bedrooms would cause problems. Chris rolled her eyes and plopped on the lumpy brown couch. Her eyes stayed on Alex as she attempted to flatten her natural frizzy black hair.

“You haven’t brushed your hair since you were five. I highly doubt it’ll go down today.” She laughed.

Alex would have argued but she really couldn’t; she had given up on doing something with her hair so many years ago. Just like then, she gave up now, placing it in a low ponytail. She turned towards her sister and held out her arms in silent question.

“You look nice.” Chris nodded looking her up and down.

“I hate wearing this stuff. Makes me feel fat.” She pulled at the dress trying to bring it further down. Chris shrugged; rolling on to her back she rested her head on her arms.

“Maybe if you worked out more you’d feel a little less fat.” She said.

Alex popped her jaw at the comment. Placing her hands on her hips she hoped to display her annoyance but seeing as her sister already shut her eyes, it most likely went unnoticed.

“Can’t you just once say something nice without an insult?” She said while putting her shoes on. Flats of course, she would never make the mistake of wearing heels again.

Chris didn’t bother to open her eyes merely made a soft humming noise and snuggled more into the couch; readying herself to drift off.

“Are you going out with Josh tonight?” She asked.

“Probably not. I’m too tired. Just going to have a beer, watch some TV; maybe play some skyrim and go to bed.” Chris yawned loudly. “How long do you think you’ll be?”

“Probably not long. I’ll most likely be in and out; be there long enough to be seen.” Alex answered.

Chris nodded knowing how her is; she’d probably be home before she even finished a quest. Alex dropped a kiss on top of Chris’ head; she hummed gently in acknowledgement.

Before leaving the house she looked back at her half-asleep sister and pointed a stiff finger at her.

“Be good.”

“Be safe.” Chris pointed back.

With their version of goodbye said, Alex headed off to the party. It was going to be a couple bus rides. She sighed loudly at the thought, stepping onto the first bus. She hated these things; she hated going out. She hated people. Well hate is a strong word, she’d much rather just be at home by herself.

She supposed that every once and a while one does need to interact with others. Everything would be fine; it was just an evening. A couple of hours in fact of just small talk and holding a smile, she could do that. Maybe not the smile but it will be fine.

Alex got off her second bus and walked down the dark street of the neighborhood. She could hear the music and chatter of people nearby; her heart began to race. She looked at the large house. It was stupid to have such a large home for such two people. She shut off her mind and just kept repeating ‘everything would be okay.’ With one last deep breath Alex thought ‘what’s the worst that could possible happen?’ and walked in.

2

Alex walked down the grand wooden staircase into the over done foyer. She was tired, people made her tired. She found herself hiding in a nice quiet little corner of some room; swirling her glass of red wine. Same glass she had been given at the beginning of the night; two hours ago. She never liked drinking, once in a while she had some vodka or tequila but even that was a far off thought. Her mind wandered aimlessly until she felt a warm breath on the side of her face. Only a few people ever got that close to her or were even allowed.

“I swear to God if I hear one more story about how smart Mr. Pusspuss is I will punch someone.” Alex laughed at her friend’s words, his voice high mocking the tone of the professor’s wife.

She looked her friend up and down. His black jacket complemented his slim frame; his freckles stood out against the bright red of his shirt however. His normally messy brownish-red hair was actually brushed back this time; Alex hummed and thought of how her hair lacked that ability.

“But Petey, he’s so smart and talented.” She smirked. “Besides you couldn’t hurt a fly even if it was eating you alive.”

He tightened his thin lips into a grimace but there no malice behind it. He fidgeted with his lucky lighter in his left hand, a nervous tick.

“I’m going to be a doctor soon. You can’t keep calling me Petey, it’s not dignified.” He huffed.

“Sure, I can. You could become president and I will still call you Petey.” She patted the side of his face gently. Despite the childish name, he smiled. It was a rare occasion to see Alex actually smile. The two continued their conversation, laughing and enjoying their time in the corners of the foyer. That is until the air in the house became thick and heavy.

Guests moved past them in quick haste taking any easiness with them and leaving tension in their trail. Alex lightly gripped his arm and followed the crowd into another overly decorated room. This room however contained a very large T.V. that was currently blaring the local news with many flashing banners and warnings.

“
We believe this to be a terrorist attack. We are asking everyone to stay inside or get to a secure location. We do not know at this time the events that are taking place but the government is telling everyone to stay inside. If not inside find a secure location.”

The blonde anchorwoman, who was far too calm, continued her report but it faded away as Alex moved out. She tried to call her sister but no signal was found. She cursed at the phone continuously as she passed through the door. Petey ran close behind trying to get her attention but her mind was clouded by the thought of her sister. He finally got a hold of her arm and spun her around making her drop her phone on the grass. His green eyes shined bright with panic.

“Where the fuck are you going? We were supposed to stay inside.” He spoke too harshly.

“I have to get to my sister.” She growled.

“We don’t have a car how are we going to get there. It’s over 15 miles away.” He pointed out.

“I have a car!” They turned to the voice. It was a man with broad shoulders trapped under an ugly sports coat; with the wave of his arm it looked like it would rip. She ran to the car pulling Petey with her. Even though he didn’t know this man or trust him, he wouldn’t leave Alex to face this alone. So he willingly slipped into the backseat of the purple sedan with her.

They felt the car start with a rumble but neither noticed that there was a fourth party sitting in the front seat. A blond woman until the driver cut through the grass. She shouted out directions the man; Alex remembered his name being Charlie. He nodded driving erratically to get as far away from downtown as possible.

She noticed something odd, well odder about his behavior. He kept glancing in the review mirror and gripping the wheel; she turned her head to look out the back window. The bright lights of possible hundreds of cars made her stomach drop and they were just on the tip of their tail. Leaning forward she couldn’t stop herself from yelling into Charlie’s ear.

“Gun it!”

He nodded at the command pressing down the pedal as much it would allow. It only gave the slightest protest clunking and banging as it sped down the road much faster then what was probably safe.

Petey looked out the window and saw smoke and panic. Charlie swerved to avoid cars that had crashed into each other, avoid the strangers running down the expressway. Yet Alex paid no mind.

Her mind allowed focus when they pulled in front of her home. She leapt from the car before it had come to a complete stop. Rushing inside, she threw the door open; embedding the door handle into the wall.

“Chris! Chris!” She screamed. Her throat already hurting as she continued screaming no answer in return. She wasn’t here; her sister wasn’t here. She gripped her chest the panic rising was becoming painful. Suddenly breathing felt like a more difficult task.

“Alex.” Petey’s voice broke through.

She moved outside hiding her panicked state before returning to the three; they had never come inside. Instead they stood staring at the night sky filled with large planes. They zoomed past and circled around their destination seeming to be just over downtown.

“We need to get out of here. Now.” Charlie said as the blond woman grabbed his hand.

“Follow me.” Alex sped off figuring they would follow her eventually. She raced down the street a few houses from her own. She pushed up the metal gate and went into the backyard of the two-story gray home. Stepping to the far end of the yard Alex fell to the ground. Her hands grasping at the grass, patting it down as if she had lost something. Petey was about to kneel down concerned that his friend had just snapped but was stopped by the sound of clicking.

With a sound of achievement Alex turned a handle and lifted up a round part of the grass. It was a lid and inside was a long dark tunnel downward with a ladder.

“Get in.” She motioned.

The other woman went in first, her blond hair a blur quickly followed by the men. Alex rushed them down before going in herself and locking the door from inside.

End of the tunnel revealed a small bunker; cement walls and cement floors. It had a bunk, desk and other items. But that one thing that Alex noticed most of all was that it was vacant. Her heart sank if their neighbor wasn’t here, where was he? There was no time however to think about it as the earth shook with a mighty roar.

“You two under the bunk bed. Petey get under the desk.” No one questioned as they moved to their appointed spots.

Yet there were not enough hiding spots for all. Alex was left in the opening as everything shook, the ceiling dusting her hair. She moved towards the ladder and sat down against it. Kneeling forward to protect her neck she prayed silently.

3

Only a few minutes pass when the earth finally decided to settle. It had gone from roaring to quiet; the only noise was their heaving breathing.

“What the fuck was that?” Charlie asked still huddled in his spot.

Alex got up, cautious of any further shake. She scanned the bunker and sighed sadly. Thanks to Mr. Donoghue’s constant talking about the bunker she knew exactly how much food and water was in this place. There were plenty of blankets, pillows and clean clothes as well. He had been well prepared but he also wasn’t here.

“Alex?” Petey called out.

She hadn’t realized he moved in front of her. His eyes scanning for any injury, as she was the only one that didn’t have any cover for protection. He worried that something may have hit her but at a glance she looked physically fine but the glaze in her eyes raised concern.