I don't remember my life as a Zombie.

That's probably a good thing, I suppose. I can't imagine it was too pleasant. Yet part of me is curious - what did I do as a Zombie? Where did my friends and family go?

Did I kill anyone?

So many unanswered questions, and no way to answer them. In theory I should be grateful for having this second chance at life, and truly, I am. But these unanswered questions weigh on my mind and I long for clarification.

My life before I became a Zombie is also a blur. I don't remember much of the leadup to Zombification - either my brain had become too fevered to store the information, or I'd blocked it out. A lot of my childhood memories are also missing. I do remember pain, though. A lot of pain.

They tell me it's due to the Zombie virus. They say it spreads gradually, barely noticeable at first as it works its way across the brain. It roots itself while it's inactive, until it has enough footholds.

Then it activates itself.

They tell me I'm lucky I have any memories at all, even vague ones, such as the knowledge that I once had friends and family. I'm not sure - I think I'd rather have no memories, and a proper chance to start life anew.

There's no known vaccine for the virus. That's why they had to give me a new brain.

The idea that my brain isn't actually mine is weird enough. What's weirder is that the brain is lab grown. That was the first question I asked when they explained the situation to me. "No humans were harmed in the making of your brain," they said. It gave me the most inappropriate urge to giggle.

Not all of my brain is lab grown, of course. They left the few parts which were untainted by the Zombie virus alone. However, the majority of my brain had been unsalvageable.

So, new brain.

The brain comes equipped with inbuilt functions, like the knowledge of basic human needs, and the addition of natural human instincts.

It's a pretty good brain.

Although I guess the brain would say that.

It's only been a couple of hours since I woke up from the operation, a human once more. Those first moments of opening my eyes were the worst. First, confusion. Then panic at the lack of clear memories. And to top it all off, a splitting headache.

The headache is still a thing, but at least the confusion has somewhat abated.

I say 'somewhat' because this is still a very strange post Zombification world. Referring to the substance which is just being pushed through the hatch of my temporary holding cell.

The big glob of green gloop on the plate in front of me which wobbles in a very unappetising manner. Sniffing it cautiously, I recoil back, shoving it as far away as possible.

This is not food.

The green gloop continues to wobble and I eye it distrustfully, my new brain screaming at me to never trust green food. It tells me that this could be a green vegetable, which is unhealthy and potentially life-threatening. That's not the same thing the pre-Zombie part of my brain is telling me, but who am I to argue?

Crawling away from the gloop, I plonk myself down on the opposite side of the room, arms folded in defiance.

I sit there with my head lowered for what I estimate to be ten minutes, refusing to move, until a scraping noise catches my attention. Peeking upwards from beneath my lashes, I notice the cell's door beginning to open.

I will not give in, I tell myself. If they want to use me as a lab experiment to test out their concoctions, they're going to have to think twice before doing so.

A petite lady enters the room and her wide eyed expression and kind smile immediately put me on edge. From my awakening after the operation, I discovered that my emotions are easily influenced by the way I perceive others.

I'm not going to let that happen this time.

As she crosses the room and heads towards me I tense up, drawing my legs up to my chest and staring at her mistrustfully. Slowly, she begins to crouch down and I scuttle backwards further against the wall.

"Ssshhh, ssshhh," she says, reaching out a hand. "It's okay."

As her hand touches my shoulder I jerk, and she quickly removes it. Glaring at her, I ask "Who are you?," my voice cracking from disuse. "What do you want from me?"

Sighing, she sits down beside me, ignoring the uncomfortable twitch I give at having her so close. "I'm part of the team who found you," she responds.

"Found me?" I question, curiousity piqued. I was expecting an answer along the lines of 'eat your meal', not this.

"Yes," she confirms. "When you were in the grasp of the virus. Do you want to know more about where you came from?"

Silently, I relax a little and nod.

"When we came across you, it was a surprise.

"For the past few years, we've been seeking to eradicate the Zombie virus in this continent, to varying degrees of success in each country. This country was known as England before the virus hit, claiming over half of the human population.

"Some areas - such as the city formerly known as London - are still overrun by the virus. But we believed the suburban area we found you in had already been cleansed of the virus.

"It seems we were wrong, and for that, I apologise."

I stare at her in shock, her words lingering in my head. My home had been freed of the Zombie virus? But they'd forgotten me. Or, not found me at the time.

Despite my best efforts to remain annoyed, I feel the anger seeping away, a burning curiousity to find out about my past taking its place. "Do you know if I had any friends and family? What about my name?" I ask, my words coming out in a jumbled mess in my eagerness to find out more.

Her face sympathetic, she tells me she doesn't know about my family, and explains that they may not remember me, or in a worst case scenario, have perished to the Zombie virus. My eyes fill up with tears, and she reaches out her hand again to comfort me. This time, I let her.

After a couple of minutes have passed, she takes in a deep breath and speaks again. "Your original name, we do not know, I'm afraid. It's up to you to choose a new one."

It doesn't take me long to come to a decision. "Eve" I reply. "Meaning 'life'".

She smiles."Welcome home, Eve. Do you have any more questions for me?"

"Yes," I say, staring at the green gloop still happily wobbling away on the other side of the room.

"Can I have some proper food?"

A/N:

Hi everyone!

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of 'Buy a New Brain Now!'. If you have any feedback or suggestions, I'd love to hear them <3

I'm currently making a reading list of people's ONC entries. If you'd like me to add your 2020 ONC entry to my reading list, shoot me a DM with the link to the story, explaining it's your ONC entry ^-^

Thank you for reading!

- Hollie