<|im_start|>user
Write a extract where someone wakes up and slowly discovers that a zombie outbreak has started.<|im_end|>
<|im_start|>assistant
Sunshine pierced the curtains, casting a warm, golden glow over the bedroom. Alex groaned, his hand instinctively reaching out to shut off the annoying buzz of an alarm that refused to be silenced. With a heavy heart, he opened his eyes and yawned, stretching his arms above his head. It was another beautiful morning, or so he thought.

The haze of sleep quickly evaporated as his gaze swept around the room. His bedside clock showed it was several hours later than he'd anticipated. His mind raced with confusion as he realized his neighbors were unusually silent. The gentle hum of morning routines and the distant murmur of traffic were missing. Instead, the air seemed to hang thick with an unsettling stillness.

Alex leaped out of bed and rushed to the window, pushing the curtains aside. The once vibrant neighborhood now resembled a ghost town. There were no cars in the streets, no people walking their dogs, no children playing. It was as if everyone had vanished into thin air.

Panic began to set in as he dashed to the bedroom door and flung it open. The hallway was empty, and the silence was deafening. He called out, "Hello? Anyone there?" His voice echoed through the empty house.

Footsteps thudded upstairs. Alex's heart raced as he moved to the staircase, each step creaking loudly in the void. He reached the landing and saw his sister, Lily, stumbling down, her eyes vacant and her skin a shade of gray. She moaned, her jaw hanging limply, as if the tendons had lost all tension.

"Lily?" Alex gasped, taking a step back in horror. Lily's head snapped towards him, her eyes now filled with an unholy glow. She let out a guttural growl and lunged at him. Alex stumbled backwards, his hands outstretched, his mind refusing to process what was happening.

He managed to turn and run, slamming the door behind him and making a mad dash for the front door. As he fumbled with the locks, he heard a loud crash from behind. Turning around, he saw Lily had thrown herself against the door, her face contorted into a snarling grimace.

Alex screamed in terror as he finally opened the door and burst outside, slamming it shut with a force that made Lily stumble back. He took off, his feet pounding the pavement as he sprinted away from his childhood home, leaving his sister behind, now part of the living dead.

The streets were alive with the undead, their shuffling footsteps and haunting moans filling the air. Alex realized with a jolt that he was no longer alone. Zombies wandered aimlessly, their bodies rotting, their hunger insatiable. A realization dawned on him that a zombie outbreak had not just started, but it had already consumed the world around him. His only thought now was to find a safe haven before he, too, fell victim to the apocalypse.<|im_end|>