Dale walked up and grabbed the remote. “Mind if I check the news?” He asked his dad, as he turned the tv on.
The sounds of a game show re-run filled the room as the tv flickered to life.
“Still into the game shows, I see.” Dale mumbled. Claire and Tom watched those religiously. Dale changed the channel and quickly found what he was looking for.
“Did you guys see that piece last night, about the pentagon, and the dead rising?” He asked his dad. Tom merely replied with a grunt. Dale wasn’t fazed though.
The newscast was short – only about five minutes long – and set in a loop. The sentence ‘We have first-hand confirmation that the dead are rising.’ was so utterly shocking to Dale that it took him several minutes to collect his thoughts. When the newscast started for a second time, again with that horrifying message, Tom calmly reached for the remote and turned it off.
“Leave it.” He said to his son. “This stuff upsets your mother.”
Dale looked at his dad in shock, his mouth agape. “Upsets your mo– Dad, are you seeing this?”
Tom’s mouth was a thin line. “Tom.” He corrected. “And yes. Yes, I am.” He sighed, preparing himself to explain something “Dale, I feel that the media is making all this out to be bigger than it really is. I don’t believe in this nonsense. And for that matter, I think the government will handle it. And before you bring it up – No. We are not interested in going to this ‘safe zone’. Your mom and I believe that we just need to stay put.”
“Dad!” Dale struggled to find the words. “Are you fucking nuts?”
“Dale!” Claire called out from the kitchen. “Watch your language!” Dale briefly glanced at his mom, before turning back to his dad.
“This isn’t going away, dad. I had to use the back roads to get here. The army won’t let anybody get on the highways.”
“I’m sure they are just trying to keep things under control.”
“They’re shooting at people, dad. I saw a bulldozer push a car off the 45 interchange. That car was totally shot up – full of bullet holes. Dad. ... I’m sure I saw bodies in there!”
“People shouldn’t break the law. The army is out there to protect us.”
Shaking his head, Dale tried another tactic. “Dad, I’m sure that I saw a couple of these ‘undead’ on my way over here. This is for real.”
Tom did not respond immediately. After a moment, he turned to his son; the familiar disapproving frown was etched onto his face. “I’m not stupid, Dale. I personally believe that this will pass quickly, and that the government will take appropriate steps to keep its people safe. Let me finish!” Tom added as Dale was about to interrupt. “Your mom and I were talking, and if things get really bad, we might get Darren and Sheila to join us at the cabin. I strongly believe that we can ride this thing out over there if we need to.”
This surprised Dale. “And Darren agrees to this?” Dale’s older brother took after his dad a lot more than he did. Which meant that Darren probably had no intention of coming out to the cabin.
“Well, now that you’re here we can give him a call.” Tom stood up and walked to the kitchen. He reached across the counter and picked up the phone. Looking down for a second, he pushed a button and brought the phone to his ear.
Great. Dale walked over to stand beside his dad. Darren’s on speed dial. Dale almost asked if he, too, was on speed dial. But he figured that he knew the answer to that question, so didn’t bother.
Dale watches as a smile appears on Tom’s face. Ah, it’s the prodigy. He thought bitterly.
“Hello Darren, it’s Tom.”
Another idiosyncrasy. As soon as Darren and Dale turned 18, dad had insisted that they call him ‘Tom’ rather than ‘dad’. It was something Dale did not adhere to, albeit most of the time out of habit rather than malicious intent.
Darren didn’t seem to have a problem with it though.
“Listen Darren, about all these things happening on the news.”
Dale shook his head. These things aren’t happening on the news, dad. They’re happening outside. You know, in the real world? He kept the comments to himself though.
“Yeah? ... Uh–huh. Good. So, you’re keeping safe. Your mother and I were thinking, and if things get bad, we’d like you and Sheila to come down to the cabin.”
Dale thought that this actually wasn’t a bad idea. Let’s get the fuck out of town!
“... Yes, of course. Only if things get out of control. ... Uh–huh. ... Ok, how about we talk again in the morning? I will give you a call around ten. ... Oh, you want to call me? ... Ok. Talk to you in the morning.” He hung up the phone and pulled the notepad towards him, likely to write himself a reminder to wait for a call from his son.
It all sounded so mundane to Dale. Like his dad was making an appointment or something. ‘Oh, hi Darren. How about that nuclear war? Yeah, we’ll have to take an umbrella out. Did you hear about the zombie apocalypse? I just hope it doesn’t make me miss my tee-time at the golf course. That would be such a bother.’ Dale played out the conversation in his mind.
Ah, damn it. Dale’s thoughts turned inwards. Why am I so fucking bitter? My parents never beat me. I had a good, safe childhood. If anything, they should be the ones that are bitter. Face it, Dale; you’re a disappointment. A loser.
Dale’s inner dialogue was cut short though when he felt a hand on his shoulder. His mom had come to stand beside him. She offered him a smile and put a cup of tea
