‘Sometimes I lie in bed and wonder if a zombie apocalypse would really be that bad. Yes, I would have to live off food scraps, but that would finally help me lose those ten stubborn kilograms. I would have to fight human-eating zombies, yet walking through the streets already feels a lot like that. People refuse to move, bump into you, grunt, or ignore you completely after you hold the door open for them…
Apart from the zombies, there would also be humans I needed to fight, but that doesn’t feel all that different from modern life. Yesterday, a teenager got stabbed when he exited the underground. Why do you ask? He refused to hand over his phone to a robber, and it resulted in thirty stab wounds to his chest. Funny, isn’t it? People value things over human beings. The lesson is clear: give over everything. Walk around naked if the robber wants your clothes. Nothing is worth losing a life over.’

‘Hannah, I appreciate your... story. However, I asked you about your partner.’

‘I am getting to that… you would think when someone runs around the streets naked, someone would ask if everything was all right. Well, I don’t want to burst your bubble, Eleanor, but they wouldn’t. I read a story yesterday in the news: a woman in a small town in America was assaulted. She managed to get away and ran to a house for help. No! Please let me finish… what she found there wasn’t help, but another predator. He saw the fragile state she was in and, instead of doing the sane thing, he decided to take advantage of her too. Makes you think about whether people are trustworthy. If the chances are high enough that after being assaulted you knock on the door of another monster, then what’s the point of living?’

‘First of all, Hannah, I would like to ask why you have not taken my advice to avoid the news. This is our fifth session; you need to show me you are actively trying.’

‘Because it’s everywhere! There’s no escaping it. If it’s not my auntie talking about it during her Sunday visit, it’s my friends talking about it before bed!'
‘Yet, you said you read it on the news.’

‘Well, yes, I heard about it, so naturally I wanted to know more. I was intrigued by why someone would stab thirty times. Surely, once or twice is enough?'

‘That is what we practised last time; to find a way to fight that curiosity, because it is not good for you.’

‘Not knowing is impossible for me.’

‘Where does that come from, do you think?’

‘…’

‘Hannah?’

‘I also read in the news that they are raising taxes, which would be another perk of being in a zombie apocalypse. No more taxes, no more rent. Not having to work your arse off in a job that doesn’t care for you. How many people have been mistreated while working? Yet people can do nothing about it because they need money to survive. If it were a zombie apocalypse, we would go back to our core. Hunt to survive, stop mass production.’

‘Hannah, you are deflecting.’

‘Deflecting to more important things!’

‘Zombie apocalypses are more important than dealing with your trauma?’

‘Yes, because they would solve it. If a zombie walked through that door right now, I wouldn’t be worrying about trauma or the past. My focus would be on killing that zombie or fleeing. Then it wouldn’t matter anymore, because my entire life would be based around zombies, not the past!’

‘Please, sit back down… thank you. Now, I do not have to tell you what we call that.’

‘Escapism, yes, but is it really escapism if you actually have to run from the zombies?’

‘Hannah, there are no zombies. There is no apocalypse. There is only you and me, and a past that has caught up with you.’

‘…’

‘Look, I understand this is not easy. But it is a lot easier than surviving in a zombie apocalypse.’

‘I bought a… could you please stop tapping your pen? It’s ruining my train of thought. Where was I…? Oh, survival. I bought a book yesterday with all sorts of tricks to survive an apocalypse. I would craft weapons, build a camp, and there I would be safe.’

‘Safe from what?’

‘Everyone.’

‘Why would you want that?’

‘Because people only ever hurt other people.’

‘Is that what happened to your partner? Did she hurt you?’

‘Do you think a zombie enjoys human flesh? Or is it survival? Don’t sigh at me!’

‘I think both, and you know why I am sighing. Please try. I know it is hard.’

‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to shout.’

‘That is okay.’

‘I'm thirsty.’
‘There is water in the mini fridge.’

‘Thank you.’

‘You are welcome.’

‘The water’s warm.’

‘That is because the fridge is not on.’

‘Why wouldn’t you put it on? I don’t like warm water.’

‘You will not have any fridges in the zombie apocalypse.’

‘True, you finally get it. Good… 
my partner, Emma, hurt me, yes.’

‘What did she do?’

‘She was jealous. Grabbed my wrist.’

‘And what did you do?’

‘I scratched her face and pushed her.’

‘You were protecting yourself.’

‘Yes.’

‘But then she ran away. What did you do?’

‘I chased her.’

‘Why?’

‘Because she had turned. I couldn't let her lose in the world! Besides, the woman I fell in love with wouldn’t have done that to me.’

‘Had she ever grabbed you before?’
‘No, she knew I didn’t like that. My father… never mind, that’s not important. Anyway, she grabbed me. As I said, she had turned; she was no longer someone I knew.’

‘Turned, as in like a zombie?’

‘Yes. She looked at me like I was no longer someone she loved, but someone she had to own; to devour.’

‘What happened then?’

‘I… I did what any human would do in a zombie apocalypse. I stabbed her in the head. I made sure she wouldn’t come back. You see, a zombie doesn’t die when you stab it in the heart. It no longer has one; the only thing that works is killing its brain.’

‘How did you feel when you stabbed her?’

‘Good. Powerful. It confirmed that I would indeed survive the apocalypse.’

‘What did you do afterwards?’

‘Went back to my camp. Ate some canned beans and slept.’

‘Do you miss her?’

‘I miss her human form. But the moment she turned, she was no longer someone I could miss. Why are you looking at me like that? You know I’m right! Emma was a danger to us all!’

‘Hannah…’

‘No! Don’t tell me you have turned too. What’s that look on your face? You have changed!’

‘Hannah, I need you to sit down.’

‘No! You’re all the same!’

‘Officers!’

‘No, don’t call them in!’

‘Hannah, let go of my arm. You need a time-out.’

‘No! Don’t touch me! I won’t go back there!’

‘You are hurting me!’

‘Hannah, let go of Eleanor!'

'No!'

'Take her outside!'

'Miss, are you all right?’

‘Yes, thank you.’

‘That was the last session. Do you have enough information?’

‘Officer Macks… I have made my observations and will send them to the office as quickly as I can. I believe Hannah is a danger to herself and others. The person who signed her release form two years ago, despite the evidence linking her to her parents’ deaths, should rethink their career choices… because even if they did not swing the knife, they might as well have handed it to her.’