idiot!" "I wanted to find you!"
"You should have waited for the lights to come on!" "They might never come on!"
"How do you know?"
"Pessimism, my friend. Pessimism." "God, I'm sorry Ian. But you scared me." "S'okay. Just help me up."
Sliding my hands under the boy, I helped push him up, just enough so he was sitting like a regular human being. I was rather afraid that I'd broken something. With zombies walking around, I didn't want to be running around with a boy whose back I'd conveniently broken. I wasn't sure I could handle that guilt, on top of all the other guilt flowing through my body.
Another scream.
Ian flinched beside me.
One of us moved to snuggle against to the other. We were scared.
We were adults.
But we were cowering all the same.
The screaming in the distance kept getting louder. More constant. Words started showing up with it. Curses. Prayers to God. The words sent shivers up my spine, down my arms, through my stomach to my legs. It raised goose bumps about my skin. It brought tears to my eyes. Someone was hurt, being hurt, about to be hurt. I didn't know how. I didn't know why. But I wanted to help.
"Come on Ian." "What?"
"We need to help her."
Surprisingly the boy didn't question me. He just forced his way to his feet, with minimal support from my extended hand. I spent a few moments searching my pockets, hoping that there was some source of light in my pants. But I wasn't that lucky. There was nothing but a rubber band, a bit of lint, and a gum ball. A gum ball of all things. I didn't even know how it got there. I didn't want to know. Why I thought there might be a source of light in my pants, I hadn't the faintest clue but you can't say I was blind for lack of trying.
A lighter was pushed into my hand suddenly, from Ian one had to assume. Regardless of who it came from, there was a source of light in my hand, and I did the one thing I could. I lit it. I pushed down the switch, and almost sighed in relief as a tiny flame popped into existence. It wasn't a flashlight, or a torch, but it did manage to light the hallway just far enough for me to swing my chain. I was sure I'd be able to see something coming, given it wasn't running.
Seeing as neither Ian, or I had any idea where the screaming was coming from, I led the way toward the sound to the best of my ability. Peeking into this doorway, and that one just to make sure it wasn't one of the rooms we passed. Figuring there may have been something unpleasant hiding in those rooms, I didn't want my back to them.
Suddenly the screams stopped. As if someone randomly died, without any warning whatsoever. Like someone pressed the mute button. Then, with even less warning then it had stopped, this single blood curdling scream was let out from the room in front of us. Shining the light through the doorway, I could barely make out a girl, shaking on the floor.
Apparently she saw us too.
"Help me!" There was a terror I'd never seen the likes of in that plead, in those eyes. But I didn't know why. What was wrong? She looked fine. She looked healthy. But she looked so close to tears that I wanted to go over and hug her. She looked no older then sixteen, one of the high school students that I vaguely recognized.
"Why? What's the matter?" I tried to fight the anxiety out of my voice, as I approached her. Stepping out of the way as Ian rushed over. He wrapped his arms around her, scooping the bawling girl into his embrace as gently as he could. He didn't understand the situation anymore then I did. I could tell.
"I.. I don't want to! I don't! I don't !" The girl screamed, wrapping shaking fists in Ian's top. Crying hysterically for reasons none of us understood. Something terrible was happening in her head. Something that we just couldn't figure.
"What don't you want to do?"
"I don't want to be one of them!"
"One of" I didn't bother finishing my sentence. Somewhere along the way, the
"You should have waited for the lights to come on!" "They might never come on!"
"How do you know?"
"Pessimism, my friend. Pessimism." "God, I'm sorry Ian. But you scared me." "S'okay. Just help me up."
Sliding my hands under the boy, I helped push him up, just enough so he was sitting like a regular human being. I was rather afraid that I'd broken something. With zombies walking around, I didn't want to be running around with a boy whose back I'd conveniently broken. I wasn't sure I could handle that guilt, on top of all the other guilt flowing through my body.
Another scream.
Ian flinched beside me.
One of us moved to snuggle against to the other. We were scared.
We were adults.
But we were cowering all the same.
The screaming in the distance kept getting louder. More constant. Words started showing up with it. Curses. Prayers to God. The words sent shivers up my spine, down my arms, through my stomach to my legs. It raised goose bumps about my skin. It brought tears to my eyes. Someone was hurt, being hurt, about to be hurt. I didn't know how. I didn't know why. But I wanted to help.
"Come on Ian." "What?"
"We need to help her."
Surprisingly the boy didn't question me. He just forced his way to his feet, with minimal support from my extended hand. I spent a few moments searching my pockets, hoping that there was some source of light in my pants. But I wasn't that lucky. There was nothing but a rubber band, a bit of lint, and a gum ball. A gum ball of all things. I didn't even know how it got there. I didn't want to know. Why I thought there might be a source of light in my pants, I hadn't the faintest clue but you can't say I was blind for lack of trying.
A lighter was pushed into my hand suddenly, from Ian one had to assume. Regardless of who it came from, there was a source of light in my hand, and I did the one thing I could. I lit it. I pushed down the switch, and almost sighed in relief as a tiny flame popped into existence. It wasn't a flashlight, or a torch, but it did manage to light the hallway just far enough for me to swing my chain. I was sure I'd be able to see something coming, given it wasn't running.
Seeing as neither Ian, or I had any idea where the screaming was coming from, I led the way toward the sound to the best of my ability. Peeking into this doorway, and that one just to make sure it wasn't one of the rooms we passed. Figuring there may have been something unpleasant hiding in those rooms, I didn't want my back to them.
Suddenly the screams stopped. As if someone randomly died, without any warning whatsoever. Like someone pressed the mute button. Then, with even less warning then it had stopped, this single blood curdling scream was let out from the room in front of us. Shining the light through the doorway, I could barely make out a girl, shaking on the floor.
Apparently she saw us too.
"Help me!" There was a terror I'd never seen the likes of in that plead, in those eyes. But I didn't know why. What was wrong? She looked fine. She looked healthy. But she looked so close to tears that I wanted to go over and hug her. She looked no older then sixteen, one of the high school students that I vaguely recognized.
"Why? What's the matter?" I tried to fight the anxiety out of my voice, as I approached her. Stepping out of the way as Ian rushed over. He wrapped his arms around her, scooping the bawling girl into his embrace as gently as he could. He didn't understand the situation anymore then I did. I could tell.
"I.. I don't want to! I don't! I don't !" The girl screamed, wrapping shaking fists in Ian's top. Crying hysterically for reasons none of us understood. Something terrible was happening in her head. Something that we just couldn't figure.
"What don't you want to do?"
"I don't want to be one of them!"
"One of" I didn't bother finishing my sentence. Somewhere along the way, the
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