Coward: The things I need to protect

As the world around you twisted into a brutal nightmare, you stumbled into the men's restroom and shut the door behind you.

Your chest rose and fell in ragged breaths, your heart pounding like a war drum. Your entire body trembled, still reeling from the encounter.

"What… what was that thing?" you muttered, your voice barely above a whisper.

That grotesque creature—it had almost looked human. Almost.

"Huh... huh..." you heard a noise, and soon it turned into multiple noises. "What are those noises?"

"Aaarrroooohhh…" The sounds reverberate through the hallway, followed by the haunting voices of death, the desperate cries of your classmates, and the occasional gunfire as they fought to survive. Amidst the chaos, a nervous laugh escaped your lips as you muttered to yourself, "Well, this is... this..." Your voice rose in panic, blending with the cacophony outside as you shouted, "What the hell is happening?!"

"AM I GOING TO DIE?" your voice barely audible over the cacophony of screams and gunshots echoing through the hallway.

As the eerie groans keep on increasing and the screams of people slowly fade away, from time to time you hear knocks on the door begging for it to open but you can't move. Your legs started shaking out of fear and you pissed in your pants out of fear.

You muttered, "No... This is it. I'm going to die. I'll definitely die the moment I step out of this washroom," the echoes of cries and zombie howls still reverberating in your ears. "Haha... Do I die like this, with the constant fear of that thing breaking down this door?"

Time passed as you lost yourself in fear.

Every phone on the floor, including yours, suddenly started ringing. The sudden noise startled you so much that you jumped in fear, accidentally hitting your head against the wall.

"Shit. My head. What the hell?" You pulled your phone out of your pocket, only to see it was an emergency alert.

You rubbed your sore head and muttered under your breath, "Fuck, It's just an emergency Alert." 

As you unlocked your phone and silenced the alert, your eyes landed on your wallpaper—your mom. Seeing her face, the weight of the situation slowly sank in.

You immediately called your mom, but all you got was a busy tone. A few seconds later, the signal dropped to zero. Frustration and panic surged through you as you yelled out "FUCK IT!", your voice was mixing with the distant groans and sporadic alerts echoing from outside the room.

You glanced at your phone again, silently hoping, "Please, be with my mom, Arya."

You swiped left on the home screen, and there she was—the girl you loved. Even in this moment, a wave of guilt hits you. Why didn't I just be honest with my feelings when I had her, one word away? She was Nita. Your step-sister, Natalie.

In that moment, you completely came back to your senses: "Wait, Nita is outside among them?" You remember all the happy moments you spend with her in that few seconds and the love you have on her

"She's a pain in the ass, but that doesn't mean I'll leave her to die," 

"Staying here won't solve anything either. What if no one comes to save me? What if that thing breaks in?" 

After getting your shit together, you remembered, "Ah... fuck! I shit my underwear." Feeling embarrassed for a sec, you cleaned your pants and threw away the damn underwear. After washing your hands and face, you leaned against the sink, muttering to yourself, "Just stay fucking alert, and you can reach the rooftop."

"Huh!" You sighed and glanced around the restroom, and found some metal pipes and fittings. Memories flooded back – just three months ago, boys from this floor had filed a complaint about rusted toilet sink pipes and water leakage.

But they had begun repairs the day before the lockdown. "I still have luck on my side," you muttered, a hint of relief in your voice. You took the longest pipe you could find, longer than your arm, and connected it with pipe fittings on both ends.

You tightened your grip on the pipe and swung it a few times, steadying your nerves. "Alright… I got this." Pressing your ear against the door, you held your breath, listening. The howls were still there—those things were close—but at least they weren't as loud as before.

You cracked the door open and stepped outside—only to be hit by a scene straight out of a zombie horror flick. The walls were smeared in crimson, fresh and glistening. People had turned into mindless savages, tearing into each other like wild beasts. The thick, metallic stench of blood clung to the air, heavy and suffocating, like a butcher shop left to rot. Corpses littered the hallway, a brutal reminder to the madness that had already unfolded.

Your stomach twisted at the sheer horror of it all, but forced yourself to move, stepping cautiously over the blood-soaked floor. Each step felt heavier, the air thick with the stench of death. But just as you neared the stairs, movement caught your eye. Less than ten zombies—your former classmates—dragged themselves over the corpses, their hollow eyes locking onto you.

The sight of those horrendous creatures shambling toward you sent shivers down your legs. Your knees almost buckled, but before you could collapse, a single thought snapped you back—Nita.

"NITA!"

You gritted your teeth and slapped yourself hard across the cheek, forcing the fear out of your system. Tightening your grip on the iron pipe, you scanned your surroundings.

Just as before, a few zombies were slowly approaching, but most were still far off. The real problem? Three of them were dangerously close.

The furthest of the three lurched straight toward you, while the closest one—a limping mess—staggered out of your classroom from the left. Another undead figure emerged from the narrow hallway on your right, its lifeless gaze locked onto you.

You were surrounded.

You muttered, "Time for my courage test."

With a deep breath, you charged at the limping zombie, gripping the pipe tight. You swung with everything you had. The metal crashed against its leg with a sickening crack, sending it stumbling. But you didn't stop.

Before it could recover, you brought the pipe down on its head in a brutal follow-up. CRUNCH. The skull caved in, the impact vibrating through your arms. As you yanked the pipe free, a thick gush of blood splattered across the floor, chunks of brain matter oozing out like something out of a nightmare.

Without hesitation, you dashed toward the zombie on your right. A pang of sadness hit you, but there was no time to dwell on it. "I'm sorry," you muttered before swinging hard. The pipe crashed into its skull, shattering it in one brutal blow. The body crumpled, lifeless once more.

"Two down!" you shouted, adrenaline surging through your veins. But before you could catch your breath, the third zombie lunged.

It was fast—too fast.

Your instincts kicked in, and you barely managed to raise the pipe in time, shoving it against the creature's mouth. Rotten teeth scraped against the metal as it pushed against you with terrifying strength.

"Damn it," you gritted your teeth, muscles straining to keep it at bay. "I didn't think they'd be this strong… Is this how it ends?"

As you struggled to keep the zombie at bay, you suddenly heard hurried footsteps approaching. Before you could react, a heavy THWACK echoed through the air.

A cement brick smashed into the zombie's head, stunning it on impact. The force sent it staggering, its advance momentarily halted.

As the zombie staggered, you seized the moment. With a grunt, you shoved it aside and swung your pipe down with all your strength. CRACK! The skull split into three jagged pieces, sending a gruesome spray of blood and brain matter flying all over the place. 

The sheer horror of it all twisted your stomach into knots. You gagged—then lost it entirely. Doubling over, you vomited onto the lifeless corpse, the acid burning your throat.

Through the dizziness and heaving, movement caught your eye. Your blurry vision cleared just enough to spot a familiar figure to your right.

"HINA!"

You tried to hold back the nausea, but your body had other plans. "Blerrrgghh…!" You spewed again—this time, right in front of her.

For a moment, all you could do was breathe, waiting for the sickness to pass.

While you were still recovering, Hina hurried off to the women's restroom. Moments later, she returned with a bottle of water and handed it to you.

You gratefully took a swig, rinsed your mouth, then washed your hands and face. With a sheepish look, you muttered, "Sorry about that."

She chuckled softly. "No need to apologize. Trust me, I've seen worse."

"Yeah, you definitely have..." you admitted, shaking off the last of your nausea. Then, your expression turned serious. "By the way, where were you all this time? Are you okay?"

Your gaze swept over her, scanning for any sign of injury.

"See? Still in one piece." She gestured to herself before letting out a tired sigh. "Some lunatic snapped and went on a shooting rampage, taking out a quarter of the class in a blind panic. When I spotted an opening, I dragged him and a few others to safety. We holed up in the women's bathroom for two long, miserable hours."

You blinked, processing her words. "Wait… You saved that moron Trident? After everything he did to you?"

Hina shrugged. "It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. He may be a beast, but I refuse to stoop to his level—especially not when it comes to one of our own."

"I'm relieved to see you're okay," you said, exhaling deeply. A brief silence hung between you before you continued, "I have to get to the rooftop. I need to find Nita."

Hina hesitated, her expression darkening. "She might have… turned into one...."

"STOP!" The word burst out of you, sharper than intended. Hina flinched slightly, and you immediately softened your tone. "Sorry… I just—I need to find her."

You took a step back, gripping the pipe tighter. "I gotta go."

As you rushed up the stairs, Hina's soft voice reached you.

"Whatever happens… I'll be waiting for you."

You didn't stop. You didn't even look back.

No response left your lips—not because you didn't hear her, but because you didn't want to. You didn't want to understand what those words meant.

Not now.

Not yet.