Influencers

I woke up realizing two things – I was no longer cold, and the others had gone.

I wasn’t sure where I was at first – hazy recollections of running through the dark mall, ivy covered pillars and broken escalators. Looking around I realized I was in was some kind of a storeroom. No windows, shelves stacked floor to ceiling with boxes containing who knows what. A department store, perhaps, judging on the thick duvet and pillows I was wrapped in. I hadn’t been this comfortable in months.

I thought about rolling over, having a lie in. Hunger gnawed at my guts though, and I crawled out of the cozy nest to see if they’d left any food. A scrappy note was shoved into the top of my backpack – David’s familiar scrawl.

“The food court’s downstairs to the left. Watch out for the Infected.” Typical David, he must have been out already scouting for food. He’s kind of our unspoken leader, always fretting over our safety. I grabbed the flashlight and bag, tiptoeing over to the door and opening it a crack. So far so good – nobody around to see me. I ducked low, weaving between the display racks of dusty clothes, the smell of mildew, damp and decay all around. As I hurried by the eerie mannequins I noticed an unopened package of men’s black socks – thick ones, with reinforced heels and toes. This was a real stroke of luck – socks were a luxury I hadn’t had in a long time. Maybe this mall was the place for us to finally settle.

Escalators always gave me chills. I’d sooner have taken the stairs, but that would mean heading out into the open, leaving myself vulnerable to attack. The Infected weren’t much of a risk in small numbers, but the wide marble steps at the center of the mall would put me at greater risk. I tentatively stepped onto the first rusty metal step, grabbing the two side rails tightly in case it gave way beneath me. So far so good. I edged gingerly down to the ground level, watching for any movement below.

The lower floor had been a perfume department, shards of glass littered the floor and the sickly-sweet scent of a thousand spilled bottles assaulted my nostrils. It was hard to walk quietly over the shattered fragments, and I winced as glass crunched beneath my work boots.

I clambered over a counter, hoping to find a quieter path through to the main mall. As I headed past the make-up displays, torn posters of film stars with pouty lips, I saw one. An Influencer, by herself, primping and preening in front of a mirror as she smeared blood-red lipstick all over her face. I froze, but she looked up, heading towards me at speed.

“Hey! Hey you, do you know who I am?” She demanded, as I looked for a good escape route.

“Yes, you’re famous, aren’t you?” I placated, backing away slowly as she advanced.

“Too right I am! Over 6 million followers, you know. Do you want my autograph?”

“Um, sure…”

She smiled, her teeth smeared red, her skin blotchy from all the layers of caked on make-up. She drew a smiley face with hearts for eyes on a photo of herself, and handed it to me with a flick of her matted hair.

“Thanks,” I gushed, giving her my best attempt at a smile. “I can’t wait to show all my friends.”

“No problem, I remember what it was like before I became famous, you know. We’re not so different. I can come meet your little friends if you like – surprise them?”

“No!” I said hurriedly, then realized my mistake as her eyes narrowed. “I mean – let me bring them to you! You’re far too busy, preparing for a photo shoot I bet!”

She grinned, her eyes wild with the insane glint I had come to know so well. “That’s true, I’m waiting for my agent now. Bring your friends over and I might let them take a selfie with me.”

Phew, that was a close one. She went back to the mirror, rubbing the now empty lipstick tube against her skin hard enough to draw blood. I made my getaway, dashing through the kitchenware department. I saw something silver gleaming on the floor beneath a fallen display of floral tea towels. A can opener! Those were like gold dust these days, Serena would be thrilled. I shoved it in my backpack and hurried towards the till area…

Then my heart dropped. I should have seen it coming – when the plague struck it had been early Summer, of course there would be a massive swimwear department. I just hadn’t figured it would be between me and the exit.

There, shambling between the fallen dummies and bumping off the clothing racks were a dozen Infected. Some wore bikinis, mismatched tops and bottoms they had somehow grabbed in their confused states. Others crawled along the floor, too weak to stand, nevertheless trying to film themselves on their cell phones. They were the lucky ones.

When the plague hit it took the elderly first. They found themselves stuck in a repetitive cycle of refreshing their social media pages, their tv shows and bingo nights forgotten as they became trapped, endlessly cycling through their grandkids photos, and liking funny cat videos. They forgot to eat, stopped sleeping. Even when the batteries ran out on their phones they still stared down, entranced by the dark screen, locked in a world of their own. Thousands passed away within the first week - heart attacks, strokes and embolisms picking them off rapidly.

And then it hit the young. Too cool for Facebook, they were struck down while scrolling TikTok videos and posting life hacks. Young men found themselves dancing beside their moving cars, oblivious to the dangers around them. They fell in front of trains, were hit by busses, jumped off cliffs – all for the buzz of being internet-famous. It spread from snapchat to Instagram, from Discord to Twitter. People found more and more crazy ways to kill themselves to keep their followers watching.

I’d been lucky. My phone got stolen the week before the plague, and Mom had refused to replace it till I could earn a new one myself. Serena was grounded, all electronic devices removed. That’s how she survived. And David… he won’t tell his story, but given his survival skills we assume he didn’t hold much truck with technology in the first place. Just three of us, trying to make it in the chaos of the post-viral world.

And now here I was surrounded by the Infected. I had to keep calm – if I tried to run they would cut me down, I’d seen others ripped to shreds by angry mobs in the early days of the plague.

“Hey! Everyone, can I have your attention!” I shouted, stepping up onto a pedestal where they could all see me. Heads turned, wild, crazy eyes fixated on me. The crawlers wriggled nearer.

“I can see a lot of famous people among us here today,” I began. “I am so privileged to be here with so many celebrities!”

A young female in sequined hot pants, her spine jutting sharply through her skin, reached up to grab my leg. The others were pressing closer, crowding around me.

“I want to announce a beauty contest!” I declared.

The crowd oohed and aahed appreciatively. “If you want to enter, simply head to the changing rooms to my right and put on your best outfits, and I’ll meet you here in 20 minutes with the camera crew!”

The crowd dispersed, those who could still run pushing their way through the others to get to the fitting rooms. The crawlers turned around, slithering across the floor. A space opened out ahead of me and I took my chance, leaping off the platform and heading for the main doors.

As I ventured out into the mall I passed two more Infected. “Beauty Contest, in the swimwear department! You’d better hurry if you want to win!” They kept going, leaving me alone.

I raced past the shattered windows of Foot Lockers and Old Navy stores. Outside the jewelers a large banner was hanging loose, a photo of a heart locket and “Mother’s Day Gifts to Make her smile!” emblazoned across the top. I thought of my own mom, but shoved the image away from me. Too painful.

The food court was empty, thank goodness. The Infected had little desire for food. I found Serena crouched down in the children’s play zone, trying to open a large tin of fruit cocktail inside a giant foam hot dog. David was sitting on a massive dill pickle, munching on a packet of mini cheddars with gusto. I tossed Serena the can opener.

“Hey, thanks!” She said, a brief smile lighting up her face.

“Did they give you any trouble?” David asked, throwing me a can of Coke, grinning as the foam sprayed everywhere when I opened it.

“Nah, they’re okay if you know how to handle them,” I said, hoping they wouldn’t hear the shake in my voice.

“Well, we can’t stay here anyway. Too many of them. They’re fairly calm for now, but by nightfall who knows how many there might be… better to head out of the city.”

Serena scowled. “Why? Why do we have to constantly be on the move? It’s been months now, the Infected are weaker, they can’t fight like they did in the beginning. We have food here, and a comfy place to sleep. I want to stay!”

David shook his head. “I get it, really I do. But think about it – if there are any other survivors, if we have a hope of restarting civilization, our best chance is in the mountains. Cell coverage is patchy up there. There’s a chance they won’t have been exposed.”

“I guess.” She looked crestfallen, and I wanted to put my arm around her, but I chickened out at the last minute.

“Come on then, if we’re going we better get a move on. There are 50 odd Infected in the department store who are expecting me back with a camera crew at any moment!”

We headed through a broken side door and onto the empty city streets. The sky was blue, the sun shone and the trees along the high street were dressed in crisp orange and yellows. We sat on a low wall and put on the thick socks I had found, wincing as we touched our blistered feet.

A lone woman walked towards us, her phone held high above her, pointed at the sky. “It’s a beautiful day here in the city…” she told her long-dead followers, making a duck-lip face at the broken camera. She tripped over a body, giving a high pitched giggle that made my hair stand on end. “Silly me! If you think you’re as clumsy as I am, why not let me know in the comments below? Don’t forget to like and subscribe…”

As we walked by, I thought for a moment I recognized her. Someone I went to school with, perhaps? Not that it mattered. Whoever she was, she was gone.

We turned towards the highway ramp, the three banditos, the musketeers, the lonely wanderers. In search of no Internet Hot Spot.