This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/nosleep by /u/Hobosam21 on 2024-10-08 20:55:26+00:00.

I came out of work to find this little leather book under my windshield wiper and my back window shattered. I’m both pissed and curious. Here’s what it said.

I’m not sure why I’m writing this down, perhaps it’s a way of coping? Maybe deep down I still have some hope and this will serve as a written record. No matter the reason, I find a bit of comfort in putting the events on paper and will continue to do so for as long as I am able.

My memory is not perfect and I didn’t begin writing things down immediately. It took awhile for Helen and I to accept our situation.

We were just your average American couple in their late twenties, we had just attended a football game with our little Bud and were attempting to return to our car when we entered The Lot.

9/8/23

Bud had grown cranky, neither of us were big fans of the teams playing so we elected to leave the game a little early. It would give us a chance to beat traffic we reasoned.

The sun was already low in the sky when we left the stadium behind. I don’t remember who noticed it first but the sheer desolation of the parking lot was eerie. Not empty of cars mind you, every spot was full. But rather empty of people.

The next thing we noticed was the hills, “I don’t remember the lot being this steep” Helen had said, “did we go out the wrong door?”

We had been to this place a dozen times over the years, never had the parking lot been made up of rolling hills like this. It made it feel as if we were on the ocean, surrounded by rising and falling waves of multicolored steel bugs.

When the sun finally dropped behind the horizon and darkness flooded the lot I found an irrational fear rising up. Bud whimpered and Helen comforted him. The air wasn’t overly cold, just chilly enough to be uncomfortable.

Something was wrong. There were no lights. Not only were there no lights in the lot there were none on the distant hills. No buildings rose up, I looked in every direction. All I could see was the ever darkening lines of cars.

It simply couldn’t be.

9/9/23

We had walked all night taking turns carrying Bud. The sun rose revealing the endless cars. Our phones didn’t work, there was no service. We fought, I blame the stress and sleep depravation.

I felt we had to keep moving, this couldn’t go on forever. Helen insisted that we stay put, that walking would just make us harder to find.

9/10/23

We didn’t want to but we broke into someone’s car. They had a pack of water in there back seat. We needed it.

I left a note just in case.

9/11/23

The infighting was replaced by silence. Our feet hurt. We must have walked a dozen miles by now.

9/12/23

It was worrying how accustomed we had become to breaking into strangers vehicles. We slept in a conversion van that night.

9/20/24

We left the van, the food had ran out and the batteries were dead. It had given us a chance to rest out legs. I worry Bud isn’t getting the nutrients he needs.

9/22/23

I had tried a few times before with no luck. This time I got it started. It was an older Ford pickup. But my joy was short lived once I realized I couldn’t steer it. We used the running engine to stay warm that night and to charge our phones. They didn’t have service but they felt like our last connection to the real world.

9/23/23

I saw a deer today. It’s the first living thing I’ve seen since this started.

9/24/23

Bud was sleeping, Helen and I got intimate. We’re going to have to be more careful, a pregnancy would be disastrous.

9/25/23

Call it naïve living but we have settled into a comfortable routine.

Bud rides in a wagon we found along with our extra food and water. While I have grown tired of hotdogs, granola bars and candy we won’t be starving anytime soon. Water bottles are the most common thing we find. Occasionally we will come across a vehicle filled with groceries.

10/8/23

It has been a month. Despite our less than ideal diet Helen and I are quite lean. I don’t know how many miles we have walked, I’m on my third pair of shoes at this point.

Luckily the weather is still mild. I don’t know what we’re going to do if it starts to freeze.

Bud has grown, the little rascal is always getting into things.

10/15/23

I haven’t told Helen. There’s been a shift. The food we’re finding is more stale than before. But it’s not just the food. The vehicles are older, I don’t know when the shift started as it was so gradual. The newest vehicle I’ve seen all day was a 2010 Toyota.

10/30/23

We’ve decided to turn back, not only have the vehicles grown older yet but food and water are more scarce. The tipping point was the discovery of a line of cars with the windows smashed.

It felt ominous. We will be returning to greener pastures.

11/2/23

It didn’t work. I don’t think the lot will let us go back.

11/3/23

I did an experiment last night. I marked a car as we passed it. This morning I tried to return and the car wasn’t there. What if Helen and I had decided to look in different directions? The very thought of it makes me sick. I don’t even want to leave Bud in a separate vehicle while we make love. I couldn’t imagine the horror of not being able to find him again.

11/12/23

We can’t go back, we don’t want to go forward. The leaves one option. We will be staying put.

I erected a flag pole from what I could find. Even though it is visible from quite a distance we still travel as a trio everywhere.

11/15/23

It wasn’t easy but we managed to move multiple vehicles. We have a square of vans, in the center we carpeted the asphalt and set up bench seats as couches. I was never much of a hands on guy before this, necessity has forced me to learn. We even have a small solar panel feeding a battery bank.

In turn we use the batteries to power a TV I pulled from an Escalade as well as a string of dome lights around our home.

It is nice to finally be able to let Bud wander around without fear of him disappearing or getting hurt.

12/25/23

If I kept track of things properly today should be Christmas. I gifted Helen a necklace I had found awhile back.

We spent the day sitting around watching DVDs and getting tipsy.

12/30/23

It snowed this morning.

1/5/24

We aren’t alone.

I woke up and went outside to pee. When I did I saw footprints in the snow. Bare feet, a couple different sizes. The tracks led all around our home, they congregated near the windows. They had been watching Helen and I sleep.

I rushed inside and checked on Bud then Helen. They were both peacefully sleeping.

1/6/23

I told Helen about the footprints, she was visibly disturbed and wanted to leave right away.

“We should go, if we leave they won’t be able to follow us. This place doesn’t let you go back after all. They can have this, we’ll make another shelter”.

I had thought of this place as more than a shelter, it was our home and I wouldn’t let anyone take it from us.

“No we should stay, I would rather have a barrier around us then be caught out in the open”.

Helen reluctantly agreed to stay. She had always been the level headed one.

1/8/23

We did our best to prepare for a possible siege. The snow was gone so we had no way of knowing if there was still other’s out there.

I think I found the jackpot. Under the seat of car I found a revolver, it has six shots in it. I’ve never fired a gun before but it should be pretty simple.

1/9/23

They came back last night. I woke up to Bud crying, I jumped from our bed and saw an arm reaching through a window. It was blindly grasping about. In a protective rage I charged forward and grabbed the offenders wrist.

Bending the arm against the window frame I pushed until I felt the bone snap. The owner of the arm didn’t make a sound. I pulled on the arm again and again slamming the mans body into the outside wall.

He managed to wrench himself free of my grasp. Helen was right behind me, she crouched to sooth Bud. She didn’t need to say it but I knew she was pissed that I had decided to stay.

2/1/24

We’re on the move again. The weather is better but it’s still cold. The cars are from the 90’s now. Food is getting hard to find.

2/2/24

They’re behind us. I could hear them last night breaking windows in the distance. I held Helen close, Bud was between us, he seemed to instinctively know to keep quiet.

2/29?/24

I haven’t written in a while, nor have I been keeping track of the days.

Keeping Bud fed has been my biggest priority now that Helen is gone.

They found us the next night. We had taken shelter in a contractor van. There were no windows in the rear and the floor had plenty of room for us to stretch out. We thought it would be perfect, the doors weren’t even locked when we found it.

We later discovered the locks on the back were broken.

I woke to the slapping of bare feet outside. I nudged Helen, she woke instantly. The darkness really can’t be described, it was the complete absence of light. No moon, no stars, no distant cities. Just pure undefiled black.

I heard Helen shift as she pulled Bud in close. I held my breath, the feet continued past. A window near by shattered scaring Bud. He was still so young, he couldn’t have understood.

Screaming like banshees they assaulted the van. It rocked violently side to side as they crashed into it. The front windows were smashed in, a dim light shone around. They had flashlights and headlamps. There was a divider between the cab and the back of the van. It was made of sturdy steel.

I used the light spilling in to grab the re…

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