The Night    

[Meryl]

The darkness of the night enveloped the deserted school, casting eerie shadows along the silent hallways. The air seeped through the cracks in the windows, causing a slight drop in temperature. Exhaustion weighed heavily upon Meryl and the others, their weary bodies seeking respite from the relentless demands of survival.

Exhaustion weighed heavily on their shoulders, their bodies weary from the constant vigilance and the desperate search for an escape route. The tension in the air was palpable as they found a temporary respite, leaning against lockers and sitting on the warm, tiled floor.

With her disheveled hair and dirt-streaked face, Meryl leaned against the wall, her eyes heavy with weariness. She glanced around at the others, their faces etched with fatigue and fear. Some dozed off, their breaths shallow and rhythmic, momentarily finding solace in sleep's temporary embrace.

Outside the classroom windows, the darkness shrouded the world, intensifying the silence within the school's confines. The stillness was broken only by the distant sounds of groaning and shuffling, a chilling reminder of the lurking danger beyond the walls.

Meryl's thoughts drifted to the uncertain future, their dwindling supplies, and the constant threat of the unknown. She worried for her father, knowing that each passing moment brought her closer to her limits. Yet, despite the weariness and fear that gnawed at her, she refused to surrender to despair.

As she watched over her slumbering classmates, a flicker of determination ignited within Meryl's weary eyes. She knew that they had to keep pushing forward to find a way out of this nightmare. With every fiber of her being, she held onto the flickering flame of hope, refusing to let it extinguish.

Meryl glanced at the clock hanging on the wall, its hands barely visible in the dim light. Time seemed to stretch endlessly, mocking their predicament. But within the depths of fatigue, she found a renewed resolve, a determination to rally her classmates and guide them towards a brighter tomorrow.

That's what her father would have done in this situation.

When sleep claimed her weary body, Meryl clung to a glimmer of hope, allowing it to permeate her dreams and sustain her through the darkest of nights. For as long as there was breath in her lungs, she would fight for her survival and never surrender to the encroaching shadows of despair.

Startled by the rustling sounds nearby, Meryl's groggy mind slowly awakened, momentarily disoriented by the darkness. Her eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the dimly lit surroundings. Despite her exhaustion, she possessed a light sleeper's instinct, attuned to even the slightest disturbance.

With a mix of curiosity and concern, Meryl peered through the darkness, straining her eyes to make out the source of the sound. As her vision sharpened, she recognized Mia crouched near her bag.

Mia moved with cautious precision, her movements deliberate as she rummaged through her bag, her fingertips searching for something specific.

Meryl watched silently, a combination of confusion and intrigue spreading across her face.

Blinking away the remnants of sleep, Meryl's mind raced to catch up with the reality before her. Was she still dreaming? Or was this an unexpected turn of events in their confined existence?

The dim light danced across Mia's features, highlighting the determination etched upon her face. Meryl sensed a certain urgency in her actions, a quiet determination to retrieve something vital from within her bag.

Meryl's grogginess quickly transformed into a surge of anger when she finally realized what was going on, and she snapped at Mia, her voice laced with accusation and disbelief. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded, her tone sharp and cutting.

The others woke up by the noise, and Ben was quick to pick on her.

"Shhh! Shut your trap."

Meryl ignored him. Realization hit her like a jolt of electricity. Her eyes widened, fixating on the water bottle held firmly in Mia's hands. It was her water, a precious resource. The anger within her intensified, fueled by the realization that her water was half from its volume before.

She drunk it!

Mia's eyes flashed with defiance as Meryl's anger surged forth. Unfazed by the weight of Meryl's accusations, she snapped back, her voice laced with frustration. "Lighten up, Meryl! It's just water! We're all struggling here."

Meryl's face contorted with rage, her voice echoing through the room as she shouted back, her words punctuated by the intensity of her emotions. "Just water? Are you kidding me? It's not just water, Mia! It's a lifeline, a precious resource that will keep me alive!"

Their heated exchange hung heavily in the air, magnified by the tension and fear that permeated their confinement. The room seemed to pulse with their conflicting emotions as if the walls themselves were being shaken by the intensity of their anger.

"You two, keep your voices down," hushed George.

"Gosh. For just a water," Lily rolled her eyes.

"Could we just share?" Emma pleaded.

"Shout more, and we'll be surrounded by zombies in no time," Noah lamented.

"Girls are such a pain," Ethan scoffed with disdain.

"Guys keep your voices down," Leon said, eyes darting to the doors.

Jin and Lina flung their attention on the entrance as well when they heard footsteps rustling in the hallway.

Outside, the chaos of their argument had attracted unwanted attention. The thudding sounds of undead hands pounding against the doors grew louder, reverberating through the hallways. The groans of the approaching zombies created a discordant symphony of danger.

"Great." Ben sneered and jumped away from the doors when the pounding grew.

All noises inside ceased to exist, and everyone's lips were sealed tight.

Fear flashed across Meryl's face as the realization of their predicament dawned upon her. She instinctively knew that their bickering had compromised their safety, drawing the attention of the relentless undead.

Meryl's anger faltered, replaced by a surge of panic and regret. She turned towards the banging doors; like any moment now, the hinges would give in.

"T-they can't enter, right?" uttered Emma weakly.

"They shouldn't," Leon answered, stepping away from the door. "It's sealed by a bookshelf."

"B-but . . . what if they break the door?" Noah questioned, shaking and heaving face drained of any color.

No one answered.

The door wasn't metal. It was just a piece of wood. It could definitely be broken if the loud pounding wouldn't stop.

At that moment, Meryl's anger became a mere backdrop to the imminent danger they faced. Her emotions shifted from anger to survival instinct. "We should get out of here."

"Are you nuts?" hissed Mia. "It's the middle of the night."

"Unless you want to wait until the door is broken and we're all surrounded here?" Meryl countered.

"And whose fault is that?" spat Charlotte.

Meryl glared at her. "Not mine, of course." She then ran her eyes at Mia. "I was not the one who stole someone else's water."

Mia squinted her eyes.

"Enough of that," said Lina. "What happened already happened. Let's keep our voice down, and maybe they'll go away."

"Let's reinforce the door," chimed Jin, and the boys agreed with him.

They quickly set to work and barricaded the doors with tables and chairs as well as all the heavy furniture they could get their hands on.

The loud banging continued a relentless reminder of the encroaching threat that lurked just beyond their fragile barricades.

In the midst of the chaos, a brief moment of silence descended upon the room, an eerie calm before the storm.

The door trembled under the weight of the undead onslaught, threatening to give way at any moment. With hearts racing and adrenaline coursing through their veins, they watched with unabated attention, holding their breath as the door continued to vibrate harder until a crack was heard.

As the crack echoed through the air, Meryl's eyes widened in disbelief, her heart pounding in her chest. The sound of imminent doom echoed in her ears, but she refused to accept it until she witnessed it with her own eyes. Time seemed to slow as her gaze fixated on the growing fracture, her mind racing to find a solution.

With a resounding crash, the cracks grew wider, succumbing to the relentless force of the undead outside. Meryl's breath caught in her throat as she watched in horror, her eyes widening with each passing second.

One by one, a legion of decaying arms burst through the splintered wood, their bony fingers clawing at the air in a desperate attempt to reach their prey. The only thing keeping the onslaught at bay was the hastily piled chairs and tables, forming a flimsy barrier that strained against the ceaseless onslaught.

The room was consumed by chaos as the undead surged from the holes, their guttural moans blending with the rattling of the barricade. The once-safe haven had been breached, and Meryl's heart sank as she realized the dire situation they were now in. She almost pass out again if not for her father's constant words that rang in her ears.

'Bravery is not the absence of fear, but the triumoh over it.'

She often said it to herself wherever she felt cold feet during recitals and imprompto speeches.

And now it was keeping her from fainting.

"We need to get out of here, now!" Meryl's voice rang out, commanding their attention. "Get those curtains. Form a rope. We'll exit via the window."

No one uttered anything except Jin, who was already checking the window, and Lina, who was scrambling to get the curtains. The others simply froze in fear.

"Move!" Meryl shouted, jolting her classmates.

In a frenzied scramble, the boys move in haste to make a rope out of the curtain while the women cry and help the others. The sound of shuffling feet and frantic breathing filled the air, intermingling with the menacing growls of the encroaching undead.

"The window is no good." Jin's voice rang in the room.

Meryl rash towards the windows and saw that the field was littered with undead. Her heart sank, but her hope remained steadfast.

"They're only scattered in the field. There aren't any zombies where we are going to land," Meryl found herself saying. "We can do it if we don't make any noise while climbing down."

"We're on the third floor," said Ben.

"Do you have any better ideas?" Meryl asked sharply.

Ben clamped his mouth shut.

"G-guys . . ."

"Hurry! We don't have any more time!" Ethan shouted, almost ripping the fabric from how tight he was knotting them.

"Guys . . ."

"What are you doing? Tie it like this, or we all fall!" Lily berated Charlotte.

"I'm trying!"

"Try harder!"

"Give me a break! I'm shaking so hard I can't even muster my strength!"

"GUYS!"

Emma's voice, thick with fear, made them shift their attention to her.

"What is it?" Meryl asked irritably.

In the dim illumination cast by the feeble glow of their phones, Emma's trembling hand pointed towards a shadowy corner of the room. The group's eyes followed her gesture, and horror washed over them as their gazes settled upon the prone figure of Olivia sprawled on the floor.

Olivia's body convulsed with uncontrollable jerks and spasms, her movements grotesque and unsettling. The air thickened with a sense of impending doom as her gurgling noises filled the room, cutting through the heavy silence that had settled upon them.

Time appeared to slow as the group stood frozen in fear, their breaths hitched in their throats. The sight before them was a nightmarish tableau, a grotesque transformation unfolding before their very eyes.

Suddenly, as if driven by an otherworldly force, Olivia's head snapped upward, her disfigured face now fully exposed to the feeble light. Her skin appeared to melt and bubble, pockmarked with blisters that oozed a sickly mixture of saliva and blood. Her eyes, once vibrant and full of life, were now bloodshot and consumed by a malevolent red glow.

A choked croak escaped Olivia's distorted mouth, her voice filled with agony and desperation. "Help me . . ." she rasped, her words laden with a horrifying plea for salvation.

The group recoiled in terror. Meryl's mind grappled with the grim reality of what they were witnessing. The realization washed over her like a wave, a realization that Olivia was turning into one of the undead.

But how? She wasn't bitten. Meryl made sure to check everyone carefully.

So it really must be an airborne virus, and they would soon turn into mindless undead whether they like it or not.

Meryl's legs quaked, and hope went off her in a rash.

Emma's voice trembled as she spoke, her words a desperate whisper laced with fear. "We . . . we can't help her. She's turning. We have to . . . we have to protect ourselves."

"Kill her! Kill her!" Lily shouted frantically when Olivia tried to crawl to her, asking for help.

Meryl looked at them in disbelief. Olivia was one of their best friends. How could they just discard her like that?

Olivia's agonized gaze lingered upon each of them, a silent plea for help from the torment that consumed her.

"Jin. You're the one with the gun. Shoot her!" Charlotte ordered.

Jin shook his head. "The sound would attract the undead down there, and our only chance to escape will be jeopardized."

Jin was right. A gunshot was simply too loud and different from the usual sounds. The undead would surely pick that up first.

"What are we going to do, then? I don't want to stay here with a zombie," Lily shrieked and ran away from Olivia as far away as possible.

"Let's tie her up," Leon suggested.

But no one wanted to volunteer to do it. No one wanted to come close to Olivia.

"The rope is ready. Maybe we can climb down before she completely turns?" stuttered Noah.

No one paid him any mind.

"Let's decide with rock, paper, and scissors, then," Leon suggested. No one know if he was joking or not.

"Oh, for crying it out loud!" Charlotte grabbed a chair and raised it over her head, attempting to smash Olivia's skull with it.

The air crackled with tension as Charlotte's grip tightened on the chair, her arm poised high above her head. The desperate resolve etched on her face was evident, driven by a combination of fear.

For a brief moment, it seemed as though Charlotte was prepared to bring the chair crashing down upon Olivia's disfigured face. But then, an unexpected hesitation gripped her, freezing her in mid-motion.

As if sensing the vulnerability in Charlotte's hesitation, Olivia's twisted form lunged forward with unholy strength. Her movements were swift and erratic, fueled by the primal hunger that consumed her being.