You cautiously wandered through the dusty and empty aisles of the abandoned gas station, listening keenly to any unusual sounds.

The silence was almost eerie, your footsteps seeming to echo off the bare walls in the still air.

You quickly grabbed any canned food that you could find from the mostly empty shelves, stuffing it into your bag as quickly as possible.

You felt your heart pounding with every step, the only light coming from the few windows that still had their glass in tact.

The zombie apocalypse had left the once busy gas station in ruins, the shelves mostly barren and the few drinks left on the shelf long since expired.

You finished quickly, filling up your bag with the last remaining cans, knowing that you needed to get to a safer area before the sun went down.

Suddenly, the sound of a pained groan filled your ears, causing you to stop abruptly in your tracks.

The sound was guttural, like someone in extreme pain or distress, and you felt a shiver run down your spine.

You knew that the sound was coming from the back room, and your fight or flight response kicked in as you tried to decide whether to run or investigate.

Not long passed before you decided to grab your gun from its holster, cautiously stepping toward the noise.

You cautiously entered the back room, your gun raised and ready for any potential threats.

The room was small and dimly lit, and the smell of blood immediately hitting your nostrils.

As you quickly scanned the room, your eyes fell upon a middle-aged man slumped on the ground against the far wall, his body covered in blood.

He was shaking uncontrollably, and his breathing was labored and ragged.

The man suddenly noticed your presence, and immediately his eyes flickered to you, his hands shooting up in surrender.

His eyes were wide with fear, and he visibly jerked back against the wall as he tried to create distance between you two.

"Don't shoot.. please.."

He moaned softly, his hands weakly hanging in the air above him.

His accent was clear through his labored sentences, with shaggy brown hair and a scruffy beard.