Currently, I'm walking down a hallway that's very similar to Pelican Soar Academy, it seems to stretch on for miles, I can't see the end.
"Hello? Andy? Sara? David? Are any of you here?"
I shouted as a traversed the hallway. Where is everyone?
Did I sleep through school again?
Last time I did this was because I stayed up too late playing video games online. Staying up to four and waking up at six really payed a toll on my mind. I fell asleep in math class and by the time I woke up it was half past three!
I was glad I had a substitute teacher that didn't care too much about what I nor my classmates did that day or I would have had detention.
While having this thought, a certain irregular feature caught my eye.
"Why's it so bright outside?"
On the outside, a blinding light was shining through the hallway window making almost impossible to peer through it.
Feeling curious, I walk up to the window and cuff my hands over my eyes so I could see a little better.
I still can't see...oh, I see someone.
Pressing a little harder on to the window, I managed to catch the silhouette of a girl standing with her back towards me.
"How am I going to get over there? I haven't came across any diverging hallways…"
Wondering this, I back off from the window and turn to start walking...
"...When did that door get there?"
But before I could even take a step, a freestanding grey steel security door with 'exit' sign hanging above it appeared before me.
"Is this the way out?"
Although the question was stupid, I asked myself this. It's a little sketchy going through a door that appeared out of nowhere.
After a few moments of consideration.
"As long as I can leave this hallway, I'll go through it. I'm tired of walking in one direction. Maybe this'll lead me to the forbidden library where I'll be able to meet a certain blonde haired Loli?"
KCHACK!
I pushed on the door, deciding to go through it.
"Of course a door with an 'exit' sign above would lead to the outside."
I said disappointed. I'm standing on a walkway leading to where the girl's at. Also, it's not that bright out here compared to how it was in the hallway. Was it a light trick?
"Anyway's let's go meet that girl. I hope she's pretty."
A little excited, I walk down the walkway with quickened pace.
After for about five minutes, I saw the girl. This time too, she had her back facing towards me.
"She looks familiar. Hey, you over there!"
I shouted at the familiar looking girl.
"..."
But I got no reply.
"Didn't you hear me? Hey!"
"..."
Feeling a little suspicious, I came up behind her and place my left hand on her shoulder.
"It's impolite to ignore someone when they're talking to you.Even more so when your back is towards..."
While saying this, I turned her around.
"...Them."
And what I saw made me freeze in my place.
"Aaah!"
The girl had a pale and lifeless face matched with two glazed eyes and a bloodied mouth from possibly eating raw flesh...She was an infected.
More specifically, it was the infected girl who's head I severed!
"Aaah!"
The infected girl stretches her arms out attempting to grab and bite me but I take a step back, wanting to dodge her.
"Huh? Why can't I move?"
However, when I tried to take another step back, I couldn't move, no matter how hard I tried. From trying to push her away with my arms to trying to kick her away, my body wouldn't budge.
"S-stay away!"
I said with a shaky voice. By now, the infected girl already had her hands on me and is leaning in towards my face with her jaws wide open! From it, I could smell the heavy scent of iron and flesh!
"Aaah!
"S-stop! Aaagh!"
I screamed in pain as the infected girl tore a huge chunk of meat from my neck, causing blood to squirt everywhere and dye my clothes red.
Then she bit my throat.
Then my ear.
The sensation of being eaten alive filled me with fear on a whole other level.
'I don't want to die!'
As my consciousness fades from excessive amount of blood loss and pain, I soundlessly mouthed out as tears streak my cheeks.
'Desmond, it's time to wake up.'
Huh? Who said that?
'Desmond, get up."
Hearing this voice, my consciousness violently shakes and I close my eyes….
====
"Hey Desmond, are you up? It's been an hour."
Feeling my body being shook and hearing a familiar voice, I snap open my eyes, raise my upper body and quickly look around while breathing heavily.
"Haa..haa...haa!"
"Are you okay Desmond?"
Seeing that everything was normal, I slowly look up towards the familiar voice and see a beautiful girl with shoulder length brown and cyan colored eyes standing next to me.
She was Sara, my childhood friend and the crush who was taken from me.
"Is everything alright? You're whole back is filled with sweat."
Snapping me from my thoughts, Sara asked me.
"Ah, sorry. I just had a nightmare so I'm still trying to calm down."
I replied back with a wry smile while also putting a hand on my neck.
Good, I'm not missing a piece of flesh there.
That dream was to damn real! Why do people want to have vivid dreams? Those things are dangerous!
"Oh can you tell me what it is?"
Sara asked curiously.
"No. It's too scary for me to think about."
Remembering how it felt to be eaten alive gave me shivers.
"I-is that so?"
"Yeah."
"..."
"..."
Then an awkward silence settled between us.
If it was before that incident two weeks ago, we could've talked about anything and everything with each other.
But now things are different, she's the girlfriend of our childhood friend David and I'm the one who decided cut all ties with them (at least until I got my emotions under control).
In short, everything is awkward as fuck.
"So, where's David?"
I said to Sara to break the awkward silence.
"David?...Oh, he's in the supply room seeing if there's anything else in there. Want me to go get him?"
"Yeah."
"Alright."
Probably feeling relieved that she can get away from the awkwardness between us, Sara briskly went to fetch David.
While I wait for her to get David, I reach into the inner pocket of my blazer and take out my worn out journal and open it to a blank page.
What should I write today?
I reach into my pants pocket to grab my pen but noticed that it wasn't there.
"Where's my pen?...Oh, that's right. I threw it at an infected earlier."
I'm really regretting doing that. That pen that wrote very smooth and was very durable.
"I'll just have to get another one somewhere."
"Another what?"
As I put the journal into my pocket, David said as he and Sara came out from within the storage room. I guess he didn't find anything useful.
"I was talking about the pen I had. I threw it at an infected and lost it?"
"Who throws a pen at an infected?"
David said exasperated. Seeing this I could only shrug my shoulders and say with a smirk,
"What can I say? My life depended on it. The same happened with my phone."
"You threw your phone?"
"You can say that. However I did learn something from doing it."
"What is it?"
Making a solemn expression, I said this,
"Infected react to sound."
"...Are you sure?"
Hearing me say this, David and Sara also makes a serious expression.
"I'm deadass serious, I wouldn't have made it here by luring and weaving through groups of infected."
"It's great that you found that out. Now making it to the gym be easier than I thought it would be."
"Gym? What do you mean, is there something important at the gym?"
I asked with a puzzled expression.
"It's where all the survivors are staying at."
"Really? Then do you have a plan to get over there?"
"Not yet. I wanted to discuss it with you first since you like to read and play video games very similar to the situation we're in right now. I'm sure you have a few good ideas?"
"If that's the case, then I suggest we don't go."
I replied instantly to David's question as I shook my head side to side. Surprised at my quick refusal, David asks.
"Why's that?"
"Because going there would be pointless. What's there that'll help us? Nothing, absolutely nothing except people filled with anxiety and fear. Will that get us away from here? I think not."
"...That may be so but we can't just leave them here."
Before David had a chance to reply, it was Sara who answered. Her voice had a hint of helplessness in it.
Placing my attention on her, I asked who was the 'them' she was referring to. She said.
"Our friends from the track and football team. We were gonna have lunch together but wasn't able to since everything suddenly went into chaos. We want to check up on them to see if they're alright."
"David, is what she said true."
Feeling a headache coming on, I looked towards David.
"Mn."
He gave a small nod in agreement with Sara. Sigh, you got to be kidding me.
Pointing towards my blood splattered clothes, I say to them in all seriousness.
"You guy's see this blood? This is from where I was almost bitten by an infected. Do you think I want to risk getting bit by one again?"
"Please Desmond. I know it's illogical to do but wouldn't you do the same thing if it was one of us? Not to mention President Yang could possibly be in there. Aren't you worried about her? What about your friend Andy?"
David said trying to appeal to my kinder side. To which I replied.
"Whether I'd come for you two is up for debate at the moment and as for President Yang..."
Ignoring David and Sara's cramped faces after saying whether or not I'd save them, I start to go into a contemplative silence.
Hmm...knowing how she was back then and how she still is now I'm pretty sure that if we switched position, she would probably do the same David and Sara are wanting to do.
The same went for Andy as well, although, I know he'll survive this ordeal somehow, he would probably come he help us if given the chance.
Sigh, if I blatantly refuse them here it'll make me out to look like the bad guy, huh?
Sigh, f*ck!
It wasn't like I was going to completely desert President Yang and Andy in the first place! I'm not that heartless. I'd originally planned on sneaking back in here after getting David and Sara to a safe place to get President Yang and Andy out of here.
Welp, looks like I can't now.
Coming to terms with this, I release a deep sigh and said to the two who were looking at me expectantly.
"Sigh, I have a few ideas that can help us get over there. I haven't been playing those online games learning nothing."
"That's good to hear. Well, then let's start planning."
"Sure."
With that, we started to formulate a plan on how to get to the gym.
=========
Author's note
- Editted the chapter a little to make it more understandable and will probably revise a few chapters accordingly. Thanks for reading!