A/N: I can only imagine this has been done before, but I wanted to write something fun. Maybe someone will find it amusing :)
Disclaimer: Don't own the characters etcetc. Please don't sue me.
Most Sunday nights were the same: Claire, her roommate Jill and whichever of their friends that could make it gathered together in their little living room watching movies.
This evening was Jill's choice, and she'd picked up some ancient zombie film, and the more recent remake of it.
'We're going to watch the same movie twice?' Claire had been a bit doubtful.
'They're not the same movie, that's the whole point.'
'All zombie films are the same: People get sick, everybody dies. Don't stay dead. Hero steps in but the day is never really saved.' The blonde who spoke was a recent addition to their circle of friends; her name was Alice. Claire had met her whilst on a trip to Vegas and the pair had become close friends since discovering they lived in the same town. And while Jill had some ideas about how close the two were, she kept it to herself; she still wasnt sure she liked Alice. Well, she was sort of growing on her, she supposed. And if Claire liked her, and she made Claire happy, then who was Jill to complain?
'You'll be there tonight?' Jill asked her and the blonde nodded, looking at Claire.
'Sure. I have to drop some stuff off at home first but then I'm all yours.'
Jill noticed the shy smile Alice gave Claire, but pretended she hadn't.
Claire's brother Chris was staying on one of his surprise visits, and they found him reading a news site on his laptop in the kitchen when they got home.
'Check it out. Some nutjob cowboy climbed the Eiffel Tower with a rifle yesterday.'
'Wow, seriously? I'd have thought security would have been better.' Jill looked over his shoulder at the page.
'The one in Vegas, I mean, not the real one.' Chris said. 'Weren't you in Vegas a few weeks ago, Claire?'
'She was.' Jill answered for her. 'You'll meet the new friend she made there tonight.' She shot Claire an altogether too-innocent grin.
Chris raised an eyebrow in query at Claire, but she was looking at Jill with a thoughtful expression.
'Dammit, I forgot popcorn.' Jill went to put her coat on again but Claire was already at the door.
'It's cool, I'll go.' She was glad to get out again. Apparently she hadn't been keeping her secret well enough, Jill was definitely onto her and Alice.
'I think you have the wrong badge on, sweetie.' She said to the blonde girl who was putting her popcorn and beer in a carrier bag.
'Huh?' The girl looked at the K-Mart employee, how can I help you today? badge pinned to her blouse and went bright red. 'Oh no. I picked up the wrong one.' She looked mortified, and struggled with the pin. 'The manager will kill me. And I've only been here a day.'
'Here, give it to me.' Claire said, and the girl handed the badge over while Claire dug in her pockets for a pen.
'What are you doing?' The teenager asked.
'Fixing it.' Claire crossed everything out except the large letters that spelled out 'K-Mart', and handed it back. 'All done. Thank you for your help today, K-Mart.'
The girl stared at the badge for a minute with an amused expression.
'K-Mart?'
'Sure, why not?' Claire grinned at her and picked up her bag. 'Take care, K.'
Her cell rang as she left the store. She smiled when she saw Alice's number come up on the display.
'Hey, can you pick me up? My car won't start.'
'Your car? Right.' Alice didn't own a car, but she did like riding on Claire's motorbike. 'Whatever, sure; I'm halfway to you already anyway.'
Ten minutes later found Alice closing the door to her apartment building and looking along the crowded street to find Claire. She saw her standing by her bike a few buildings down, and hurried towards her.
'Oh, I'm sorry.' She hadn't been watching where she was going and had walked into a tall man carrying a sports bag, tripping over him.
'Oh no, my fault entirely.' The man said smoothly, and helped her up. 'Luther West.' He introduced himself as if she should know him.
Alice stared at him blankly and shook the offered hand.
'The basketball star?' He prompted.
'What? Oh, I'm sorry, I don't watch sports. And I really have to go.' Alice waved to Claire, waiting and laughing quietly at Alice's mishap. 'Sorry again,' she said to the basketball player over her shoulder.
'Nice. Laugh at me, why not.' She said as she got to Claire. 'I might have hurt myself.'
'I'll kiss it better later.' Claire promised with a grin.
'The thing that gets me about these movies is that none of the characters ever seem to have actually seen a zombie movie in their lives.' Jill said as the end credits began.
'I know, right? Look at them all running around shooting them in the legs, wondering what's going on and why the undead monsters aren't dying. Everyone knows you have to sever the spinal column or destroy the brain.' Apparently Alice had also thought about how one best kills a zombie.
'Exactly.' Jill said. 'You stick with her, Claire, she'll get you through the apocalypse.'
Claire blinked at Jill's choice of words but no-one else seemed to have noticed.
'Zombocalypse.' Alice corrected.
'What?' Claire turned to Alice, bemused.
'A zombie apocalypse is a zombocalypse.'
'You guys are freaky.' Chris said. 'I'd just get the hell out of there. No looking back.'
'But where would you go? It's an apocalypse.' Jill, slightly drunk, was taking this rather seriously, much to Chris' amusement. 'The end of the whole damn world.'
Rain agreed though. 'I'm with Chris on this. Of course, knowing my luck I'd probably get bitten and have to be shot by some dumb insignificant character so I didn't kill the rest of you. And I bet I wouldn't even get laid.'
'Is that all you think about?' Claire laughed, and Alice grinned with her.
'Sure, when I'm not getting any.' Rain was looking suspiciously at Claire and Alice.
'What about you?' Alice said to Claire, who thought about it for a moment before answering.
'I reckon I'd just want to stay alive as long as possible. Save as many people as I can and try and find a way to start civilization again.'
'Claire: my noble sister.'
Claire threw a cushion at Chris. 'Of course I'd have to spend half my time looking for my brother, who'll have vanished somewhere with no phone call, just like before the apocalypse.'
Ducking the cushion Chris said, 'Well, I guess it's a good job zombies aren't real. I think the real horror would be seeing Claire attempting to look after people.'
'Hey now, that's not fair.'
The others were laughing at the siblings now and Claire turned to Alice, 'Oh great, and my girlfriend is joining in too.'
The room went silent and Alice raised an eyebrow. 'Girlfriend?'
'I- uuh, well. Sure, if, I mean-' Claire's face was growing pinker by the second and she almost wished for an actual zombie outbreak at that moment to save her from this embarassing blunder.
But Alice leaned over and whispered against Claire's ear, 'I like how that sounds,' before kissing her on her blushing cheek.
'I knew it!' Jill laughed.
Rain nodded, looking at them - well, mostly at Alice - with slight disappointment.
'They were going to realise eventually.' Alice said, taking hold of Claire's hand with a distinctly relieved expression on her face.
Claire looked at Chris, who was staring at Alice. 'Your girlfriend?' He said, apparently still in shock.
The phone rang, and Jill frowned. 'Bit late for phone calls.' She said as she went into the kitchen to answer it.
Alice's cell also rang, and she looked at the number. 'It's work.' Claire protested as she answered it but Alice hushed her. 'It must be important for them to call this late.'
Jill came back in. 'Well, damn. I've been called to the station. Carlos is on his way to pick me up.'
'You're drunk.' Rain pointed out.
'Yeah I mentioned that, but he said to come in anyway.'
Alice clicked off her cell, her face apologetic. 'I have to head off too. Something's up at work; they're even sending a car for me.'
'You too?' Jill said, then laughed. 'Hey, perhaps it's the apocalypse!'
'Zombocalypse, you mean.' Rain said with a drunk slur.
Claire noticed that Alice didn't join in with the laughter quite as heartily as the rest of them.