Mr.Watching-Me-While-I-Sleep
Luke's heart raced as he sprinted toward the school, glancing over his shoulder. Behind him, a horde of terrifying figures—some stumbling, some limping—charged in his direction. He barely had time to think before he dashed inside the school building. With every breath ragged, he hurried up the stairs and ducked into the nearest storeroom to hide. His mind was still in chaos, trying to piece together what was happening.
Wait a second… is this a zombie apocalypse? he thought, his hands trembling as the school, once filled with the sounds of cheerful students, now echoed with the blood-curdling screams of the living… and the dead.
The school's emergency alarm blared overhead, shaking the walls. Luke barely had time to process this new horror before he heard a low moan—mmm… mmm. His heart skipped a beat, and his mind went into overdrive.
Was it another zombie?
He crept forward, ready for anything, and was startled to find a girl sprawled on an old sofa, snoozing away like it was just another ordinary day. He blinked. Alisha White? The student council president?
What in the world was she doing here, sleeping through the apocalypse?
He shook his head and walked toward her. "Alisha?" he called softly, but there was no response.
Finally, the disturbance roused her. She opened her eyes, then stared up at Luke, who was awkwardly standing there. Her face turned beet red, and she sputtered, "W-What are you doing?!"
"I swear, it's not what you think!" Luke stammered. "I wasn't—"
But before he could finish his sentence, the door suddenly
"Who's out there?!" Alisha asked, sitting up and looking genuinely confused." It's probably just a teacher or janitor... We're so dead right now!"
Luke's face paled. "Just shut up for a second!"
Alisha, oblivious to the seriousness of the situation, continued babbling. "This is so bad. A boy and a girl alone in a storeroom? Do you know what kind of trouble we're in? My position as president is on the line! My reputation will—"
Before she could go on with her mini-tirade, Luke's hand shot out, covering her mouth. "Quiet!" he hissed.
But Alisha wasn't having it. She kicked him hard in the you-know-where😏, knocking the wind out of him in one painful blow.
"Ahhh!" Luke collapsed to the floor, clutching himself. Why? Why now?
Alisha looked down at him, hands on her hips, and demanded, "What did you think you were doing?! You can't just grab people like that!"
Luke was on the floor, trying to catch his breath, his face burning with embarrassment and pain. "Can you not yell? I'll die if I have to explain why I'm here."
But the panic wasn't over. Just as he gathered himself, he heard a scratching noise at the window.
"What's that?!" Alisha gasped, her voice cracking. "Why is it so bloody?!"
Luke's eyes widened as he forced himself up, his body still aching. His gaze locked on the bloodied hand reaching through the window, and he moved quickly to barricade the entrance.
"Help me with this!" Luke snapped.
They managed to push everything in place just as the door groaned under the weight of the growing horde outside. Luke took a deep breath, his mind still reeling from the pain and panic. He turned to Alisha, who was now sitting quietly in the corner.
As he finished detailing the events of the day, he turned to her, expecting her to be processing the information. But when he looked around, she was gone. Silence. But then…
"Wait. Where did she go?"
Luke looked around the room in confusion. Alisha, the same girl who'd been yelling at him moments ago, had vanished. He turned, startled, to see her in the far corner, happily rummaging through some old boxes.
"What are you doing?" Luke asked, eyebrows raised.
Alisha suddenly jumped up, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "You don't get it, do you?!" She spun around with an exaggerated dramatic flair. "This is it! The zombie apocalypse! My dream is finally coming true!"
Luke stared at her, utterly dumbfounded. Is she serious?
"Are you… psychotic?" Luke asked, blinking rapidly.
Alisha gave him an excited little wiggle of her hands, still grinning like a maniac. "I've been waiting for this my whole life! I mean, who wouldn't want an apocalypse?!" Her eyes sparkled with manic glee.
Luke could only stare in horror. This girl...
"Shut. Up." He could feel his patience slipping. "We're going to die if you keep talking! We need to focus!"
But Alisha, seemingly unfazed by his warning, continued her excited pacing. "I can't believe it's happening! I should've been more prepared—zombie survival guides, weapons, the works!"
Luke facepalmed. "No, you idiot! The whole school's about to be overrun by zombies! We need to make sure we don't get eaten alive!"
Alisha tilted her head, giving him a mockingly sympathetic look. "Ohh, Luke... Don't be so serious. Zombies can wait. This is so much better than being student council president!"
Luke had enough. This girl—was she really enjoying the chaos?
He looked at the door, the barricade starting to strain. "Listen, if we don't stop them from getting in, we're both screwed! The barricades won't hold forever!"
But Alisha simply danced around, pretending she was in a zombie movie. "Well, if we're going to be stuck here, I guess I can make the best of it. Do you think I should start practicing my zombie fighting moves?"
Luke's head was starting to spin. How had he ended up here? This girl is the worst...
He glared at her, feeling a mix of frustration and dread. "We're not making it out of this alive if you keep messing around."
Alisha finally paused, her grin slowly fading. "Aww, come on. Don't be such a buzzkill." She pouted dramatically, and Luke couldn't help but sigh in disbelief.
They sat there, both silently waiting for the horde to break through, as the nightmarish reality outside grew louder. It was a strange, bizarre silence inside—only punctuated by Alisha's occasional giggle, as if she had somehow turned the apocalypse into a game.
As the minutes dragged on, Luke sat cross-legged in the corner of the store room, staring at the floor, his thoughts swirling. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened to his friends, his brother... What happened to everything? The silence around them felt like a heavy weight pressing down on his chest. On the other side of the room, Alisha had her face buried in her hands, her posture slouched as if the reality of the situation had finally hit her. Luke tried to avoid looking at her, but the eerie quiet in the room was starting to feel... awkward.
Finally, unable to bear the stillness any longer, Luke stood up, stretching his arms out with a dramatic sigh. Okay, enough with the brooding. Time to get back to the action. He turned to Alisha, who was still seated in the same position.
"Hey, do you have any... plans?" he asked, his voice a little too hopeful. Please say something other than 'I'm taking a nap'.
But to his dismay, Alisha, without skipping a beat, simply closed her eyes, letting her head fall back against the wall. A soft snore followed.
Luke stared at her, slack-jawed. She's... sleeping? In the middle of a zombie apocalypse?
Frustrated, he let out an exaggerated groan. Unbelievable. He considered slamming his head against the nearest wall, but just as he was about to do that, something caught his eye.
Alisha's eyes were now open, and she was staring up at him.
"Mr.Watching-Me-While-I-Sleep," she teased, her voice dripping with mischief. "You really have a thing for watching girls sleep, huh?"
Luke froze in place, his face turning a vibrant shade of red. Did she—?! His words tangled in his throat as he stammered, "I wasn't... I mean, I wasn't watching you sleep! I just... um... I—"
"Really?" Alisha smirked, clearly enjoying his embarrassment. "Because it looked like you were staring at me all creepy-like."
Luke's face turned so red it looked like he might spontaneously combust. "I wasn't! I—I'm not that kind of guy!" His body shifted nervously, and he took a step back, trying to find a way to escape her teasing.
Alisha giggled, clearly satisfied with his reaction. "I'm just messing with you, Luke. You're too easy to tease."
Just as Luke was about to bury his face in his hands in total defeat, Alisha turned back to the boxes she was rummaging through, her face growing serious again. She pulled out an assortment of old, tattered books and duct tape. Luke blinked in confusion.
"Uh, Alisha," he asked, his voice filled with uncertainty. "What... exactly are you doing?"
Luke stared at her, utterly perplexed. What is she doing? His brain struggled to keep up with her bizarre actions. Is this her plan?
Alisha caught his gaze and raised an eyebrow. "What? You've never seen someone get ready for the apocalypse before?" She tossed him a teasing look before returning to her task. "I'm not gonna get bitten just because you're staring, you know."
Luke's face was now crimson. "I wasn't staring at you!" he protested, but his words only seemed to make her grin wider.
"Really?" Alisha smirked, clearly enjoying his discomfort. "Because it looked like you were trying to get a good look at me."
Luke blushed fiercely, immediately turning his gaze away. "I wasn't staring! I was just... trying to figure out what you were doing!"
Alisha smirked at his reaction, clearly enjoying how easily she could fluster him. "Right, sure, Mr. Not-Staring."
After a moment of silence, Alisha looked at him and grinned. "We have to protect ourselves, right? If the zombies attack, at least this way we won't go down without a fight."
Luke blinked, more confused than ever. "Uh, isn't this a little... much? You really think duct-taping books to your body is going to save you from zombies?"
Alisha gave him a playful smirk. "You got a better idea? We've got to do what we can. And this? This is fashionable survival."
Luke couldn't argue with that logic. This is insane.
Without waiting for his response, Alisha tossed him a roll of duct tape and a couple of old books. "Your turn, Mr. 'Watching-Me-Sleep'. You want to live, right? Get to work."
Luke looked at the books in his hands, then back at Alisha, who was now proudly parading around in her book armor. He could feel the sweat building on his forehead. This is absurd... but what choice do I have?
He reluctantly started wrapping the books around his arms and legs, trying to make his own little armor. It was clumsy and awkward, and he couldn't help but feel ridiculous.
When he finally finished, he looked down at his own masterpiece—a mess of books and duct tape—and sighed. "Well, this is... something," he muttered.
Alisha didn't miss a beat. She raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Not bad. You're looking pretty buff now, Luke."
Luke rolled his eyes, his face redder than ever. "You're unbelievable."
But just then, as Alisha turned to continue her armouring process, she caught Luke staring, his eyes quickly snapping to her chest.
"What?!" Alisha's voice was sharp as she suddenly whipped around, her eyes narrowing. "You're staring at me again, aren't you?"
Luke's eyes widened, his entire body stiffening. "I—I wasn't staring! I swear! I was just—um—"
"Uh-huh," Alisha said with a smirk, clearly enjoying his discomfort. "Sure you weren't. Let's just pretend you weren't mentally undressing me or anything."
Luke, mortified, tried to scramble for words. "I swear I wasn't! I was just... uh... thinking about survival! And... books!"
Alisha burst out laughing, clutching her stomach.
Luke just sighed and dropped his head into his hands. This is torture.
After a moment of silence, Alisha smiled at him. "I guess we're both ready for the apocalypse now, huh?"
Luke hesitated before looking up. Despite everything that had just happened, he couldn't help but laugh a little. "Yeah... I guess so. Who knew books and duct tape could make such great armor."
Alisha gave him a grin that was borderline maniacal. "I knew it all along. This is just the beginning. Who knows what other weird stuff we can make out of school supplies? Maybe we'll start our own survival kit!"
Luke shook his head. "At this point, anything's possible." He sighed. "We really are insane, huh?"
Alisha winked. "You're not the only one. But hey, we'll make it through this—together."
Luke glanced at her, still feeling the awkwardness of their strange alliance, but something in him couldn't deny that, despite the craziness, Alisha's energy was... contagious. Maybe they would survive this after all.
With a deep breath, Luke stood straighter. "Alright, we've got this. Zombies? Bring it on."