Home Alone on Halloween: That Isn't Face Paint

Halloween night. You're fifteen, it's your first time home alone, and your last trick-or-treater isn't wearing face paint. Dad's at the party across the street in the cardboard robot you built him. He said he'd be back by nine. Thirty days later, you'll know why the dead walk past every house on Linden Court that already has one of them inside. Including yours. This is a fictional survival story. The practical details in it are real: - On Halloween, a lit porch light tells trick-or-treaters to come on up. A dark one says skip this house. - A full freezer stays frozen for about 48 hours if you keep the door shut (FoodSafety.gov). - In an emergency, the water in your water heater tank is drinkable (FEMA, CDC), and so is the toilet tank, never the bowl, if it hasn't been treated with cleaner (CDC). - After disasters, search teams spray an X on each building they search: the date on top, and at the bottom, the number of people found inside (FEMA's search marking, seen across New Orleans after Katrina). Chapters 0:00 Back by Nine 1:34 Linden Court 3:15 Forty Gallons 4:40 The Chalk Line 6:06 Don't Open the Door 7:11 Porch Light #zombie #survival #animation