Zombie High: First In Class Read online

  “This zombie invasion is a twin-mergency, though,” Brand interrupted.

  Mo nodded. “Exactly, but her twin-mergency had nothing to do with zombies.”

  “Wait,” John cut in. “You both have cellphones. We can call for help.”

  Gia looked up. “Just keep listening piano boy.”

  John’s eyes widened. “You know me?”

  The twins snickered.

  “We both watched your horrible performance at the talent show last year,” Gia clarified

  John’s cheek grew red as Brand and Carey looked at him. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Nobody talks about it,” Mo said. “But we sure do enjoy laughing about it.”

  “Continue your story,” John snapped. He didn’t want to revisit the shameful moment.

  Gia could sense his anger so decided to cut him some slack. “Anyways, I went to the bathroom and delivered my sister a spare tampon. I decided to play some Angry Pigs on my phone while I waited for her to get her situation together. Ms. Sissa, that Spanish fly on the wall, walked in and saw me on my phone. She gladly took mine and even decided to check Gia for a phone and found it.”

  “Dang,” John whispered under his breath.

  Gia continued, “Before we finally were going to leave the bathroom I noticed my sister’s pants were stained with you-know-what. I’m not the best sister, but I do have a heart. We decided to just hang in the bathroom until school was over. The locked doors made it impossible to just skip and head home. Eventually, we heard somebody shout zombies and we hid inside a stall until we got so hungry we had to venture away. Now, we’re here. Glad to see some others have survived. “

  “And it’ll stay that way if we stick together,” Brand said with a smile.

  A loud set of growls could be heard outside the barricaded cafeteria door. Their enemies waited.

  Chapter 12 – Chaos on the inside, Chaos on the outside?

  Mo always struggled with being a twin and having an actually social life. She had a set of friends she could hang out with on the weekends, while her sister made all her friends online. Mo felt sorry for her sister many weekends, but realized even though they were twins they would eventually grow apart. They would marry different men, have different kids and lead different lives. One Saturday tested Mo though; it was the Saturday of their 15th birthday.

  “I’m going out to see a movie with my friends,” Mo said.

  Her mother continued to decorate their birthday. “After the birthday dinner, right?”

  “Mom, the movie starts at seven. I’m not going to have time for the dinner.”

  “It’s tradition. We’ve always eaten as a family for your birthdays and then rented DVDs.”

  Mo shrugged. “Well, not anymore.”

  “Gia agreed to the dinner.”

  “Because she doesn’t have anywhere to go.”

  Gia entered the kitchen. “I heard that. I can go out if I needed to,” She said angered.

  “I’m not saying you can’t,” Mo clarified.

  “How about you two go to the movies together and then come back for dinner,” Their mother suggested.

  “No,” Mo protested. “She wouldn’t fit in with my friends.”

  Mo hung out with the girls from the dance team; they came from more urban backgrounds.

  “It’s ok, I don’t want to go anyways, “Gia said as she hunched her shoulders and returned to her room.

  “Mom, I can’t believe you just put me in that situation.”

  “It was just a suggestion. I wasn’t expecting you to react that way. I thought you two were close.”

  “We are,” Mo said, “But people change. We grow up and apart. Gia and I only share a face now.”

  Mo had ended up heading to the movies with her friends. Still, as she had sat there in the theater she could only wonder about her sister. Mo had a strong urge to become an individual, but moments like this proved it was going to be a difficult task. She had to stop missing her sister when she wasn’t around.

  Brand watched and Gia, Mo and Carey as they sat a lunch table chatting. It had been over three hours since they found the cafeteria. His stomach was full and ankle was feeling a lot better. Though growling could still be heard outside the cafeteria barricade, he felt safe here and judging by the girl’s laughter and smiles they felt the same. He noticed John sitting alone on the other side cafeteria, staring out a window into the night.

  Brand joined him. “What are you looking at?”

  John pointed toward the narrow road that separated the school property form the main highway. “It’s weird.”

  “The road?”

  “No, that nobody came to pick us up from school. No parents, no buses, it’s just weird.”

  Brand wondered the same thing, but feared his own theory. “What if...”

  “…I know what you’re going to say. What if they’re dealing with the same problem we’re having?”

  Brand nodded. “One of those frogs could’ve escaped through a pipe and spread the chaos.”

  “Not getting an answer will drive me crazy. We need to discuss our next move. Talk with the girls.”

  Brand nodded in an agreement. There was no point in wondering ‘what if’. The time for relaxing and laughing was over; it was time for them to get back on track. Things changed, they added more members to their group and the twins deserved to hear their plan and add input.

  Chapter 13: Me, Me, I, I, We

  It was a big day in the Conner household. They gathered around the kitchen table to decide on which location they would go for their vacation. Mr. Conner had pamphlets for the top five locations and spread them out on the table. Mrs. Conner prepared some mini-sandwiches, knowing they were going to be in for a lengthy discussion. Last year the family took an hour to decide on a trip to an amusement park.

  “I have a feeling for camping this year,” Mr. Conner said.

  Mrs. Conner nodded in agreement. “It’s secluded and we won’t have to deal with long lines to have fun.”

  Gia wrinkled her nose, not fond of the idea. “Ew, bugs. How about a resort? We had so much fun at the last one.”

  Mr. Conner glanced at Mo. “Are you going to join mom and me or tie things up with your sister?”

  Gia formed a confident smirk. Both she and her sister loved resorts.

  “I’m…” Mo made sure not to make any eye contact with Gia. “I’m going to join you and mom. Let’s go camping.”

  Mr. Conner happily stood from the table. “So, I’ll be buying a tent this summer excellent.”

  “This has been our quickest family meeting,” Mrs. Conner said. “I guess these sandwiches can be used for lunch.”

  Mr. and Mrs. Conner headed to bed, leaving their daughters to chat alone.

  “And when did you start liking camping,” Gia snapped.

  “I just want to try something different. We already did a resort.”

  “But you love going to resorts. Last time we sat up all night looking at pictures of the pool and hotel.”

  Mo shrugged. “I changed, ok? I’m not just like you.”

  Gia stood up from her seat. “Yeah, I’ve noticed you’ve been trying really hard to change that. Mo, you’re an idiot.”

  Mo sat steaming as her sister stormed off. She wanted to be more than a twin, desperate for individuality.

  Though that was only a short time ago, this zombie invasion changed a lot between the two sisters. They had never been so close. Just this morning before school they were arguing over what music should play in the car, now they found themselves fighting against zombies to protect each other.

  John finished telling them about the original plan. “So, what do you ladies think?”

  Gia shook her head. “It sounds too dangerous. Let’s say we make it to the main office and the phone is broken, we basically wasted all of our time and risked our lives. I’m sure at some point help will arrive. I say we stay here in the cafeteria where it’s safe and wait for other survivors
to join us and for rescue to arrive.”

  Mo nodded. “Yeah, I agree with my sister,” She said, words she hadn’t spoken in a while.

  “I don’t,” Carey said. “I hate waiting. I want to see my daughter. Hold her.”

  “And there’s a chance nobody might come for us,” John said. “We need to make contact and if that fails, escape.”

  All eyes were on Brand. He had to break the tie. Brand was willing to venture outside the cafeteria and risk it all. He figured it would be much easier since their group was bigger, but he wondered how many others will join them if they sat and waited. Brand also badly wanted to get out this school and check on his mother. He yawned and his eyes got heavy for a few seconds.

  Brand yawned once more. “I say…we sleep here until day light. Have breakfast, wait another hour then leave.”

  Mo rubbed her neck. “I am getting tired.”

  “And we’ll have more energy to fight our way to the main office,” Brand added. “John, let’s not get hasty.”

  John looked at Carey and then back to Brand. “Fine, but the plan stays this way. No more alterations.”

  The group came to agreement and sat up doing a bit more planning. Once they were all too tired to even speak, they double checked the barricade; made sure the kitchen was secured and found spots to sleep. They all hoped to themselves this would be first and last time they spend the night in school.

  Chapter 14: Damn Awesome

  Brand and his father had many things in common, including how they dressed. They kept things simple and only got fancy when they were desperate. Brand was so desperate that he put on some slacks, a nice shirt and tie. His mom had revealed that they were moving and he would have to transfer to a new school. He wasn’t willing to leave behind his friend and especially Matt. Brand knew some would say he was too young to understand love or that this version of love was not pure, but he needed Matt in his life. He even invited him over to dinner to help convince his mom they weren’t moving.

  His mother made his favorite dish for dinner, hamburgers and sweet potato fries.

  Matt sniffed his plate of food. “This smells awesome, Mrs. Jefferson.”

  She took a seat the table. “Just call me Sheryl.”

  “Well Sheryl, excuse my language but once again this smells awesome, damn awesome.”

  Sheryl laughed. “Matt you’re so silly.” She glanced at Brand. “Satisfied?”

  Brand nodded. “Of course, but not really.”

  “Is this about us moving?”

  “Yeah, mom I don’t want to go.”

  She shook her head. “I can’t afford to stay here. I’ve found a better job.”

  Brand only got frustrated each time he heard that response. “Mom, life isn’t all about money. We can move to an apartment complex. I’ll do anything instead of moving away from here. You just don’t understand what I have in this town. The memory of dad is here, my friends are here and even my first and forever love.”

  Sheryl rolled her eyes. “Love?”

  Brand glanced over at Matt. He was ready to reveal a new side of him to his mom. “Yes, Matt. I love him.”

  Matt got nervous, not sure how the woman to respond to her son being gay. “He…does.”

  Sheryl sighed. “I know you do. I saw it on your webshow when you read his coming out letter.”

  “You know about that,” Brand asked in shock.

  “Yes, I always sort of knew about you two. You spend way too much time together. I’m fine with it.”

  “Then why split us apart,” Brand said.

  “You can always meet back up when you go to college. It’s just three years, love can survive that.”

  Brand now felt as if he had to prove their love could possibly do that. “It’s still not fair.”

  The dinner that night had been full of them discussing their relationship. Brand wished he could have predicted the move in hope of being able to do more to stop it, he wished he could have predicted this zombie invasion but he now understood life was unpredictable. As, Brand, John, Carey, Mo and Gia slept soundly in the cafeteria another unpredictable situation was unfolding, their barricade was weakening and the hoard behind the door was strengthening.

  Chapter 15 – Lunch Time

  Brand was having a sweet dream. A SWAT team arrived and took out the zombies. All the surviving students were rescued and delivered home to their parents. His story and the others were shared to the world and they eventually became famous. Brand’s body was warm with joy as the dream continued. Suddenly a cold touch on his right calf was becoming a distraction. Soon growls started to make their way into his pleasant nightmare. The warmth of joy throughout his body was replaced with fear. Brand couldn’t sleep anymore.

  He slowly parted his eyes to discover a gang of zombies feasting on Carey. “What,” He whispered out.

  Brand shut his eyes, sure he was still sleeping. He opened them again to discover the same set of zombies feasting on Carey. He glanced downward to discover another zombie seconds away from biting into his calf. Brand’s heart went into overdrive as he kicked the zombie away from his leg and sat up. He noticed their barricade had been obstructed and student-zombies were slowly climbing in.

  Brand glanced to his left at John who slept unbothered. “Get up,” He whispered.

  John simply turned over.

  Brand scooted over to him and elbowed him. “Dude, I’ve messed up bad.”

  John yawned as he sat up. “Huh?”

  “We should’ve not slept. They got in.”

  John perked up and looked toward the obstructed barricade. “Holy-“

  Brand covered John’s mouth. “Don’t make any noise. They’ll come after us quicker.”

  Tears started to pour down John’s face as Brand removed his hand from his mouth.

  John looked over to where Carey was being fed on. “I’m going to be sick.”

  “We’re going to stand up, wake the twins and move towards the kitchen.”

  John nodded, trying to hold down his vomit. “I’m not ready to die.”

  Brand helped him to his feet. “Me either.”

  Brand spotted Mo on the left side of the cafeteria sleeping peacefully, but noticed two zombies starting to chew on Gia who slept on the right. He was tempted to rescue Gia, but knew it was already too late for her. He dragged John over to where Mo slept and woke her up.

  She woke with a smile on her face. “And I thought I slept well in math class. The cafeteria is comfy.”

  Brand knew her joy wasn’t going to last long. He started to cry. “I need you to get up and move to the kitchen.”

  Mo’s smiled faded. “What’s wrong? Where’s my sister?”

  “Just get up and move,” Brand repeated. “Ready?”

  “I’m scared,” Mo said. “Where’s my sister?”

  “I said are you ready,” Brand said once again.

  “Yes damn it but I swear you better answer me the moment we start to move.”

  “I promise,” Brand said as he wiped his tears. “Now move.”

  Mo got to her feet as quickly as she could and laid eyes on the unfolding madness. As they rushed toward the kitchen she first noticed the barricade was breached and zombies were making their way in, secondly she noticed what was left of Carey being chewed on and finally she noticed the student-zombies were half-way done with her sister. Mo lost control and cried out for her twin.

  Her noise alerted the zombies of more fresh meat. The hoard redirected their attention to the last three standing. As they kept moving toward the kitchen and trying to stop Mo from going after her already lost sister, Brand realized the only exit was locked. The only way out was through the hoard and over the barricade of collapsed lunch tables. He was out of ideas. All Brand could do was stand here and blame himself for voting they slept.

  The hoard approached.

  Chapter 16: Off With Their Heads

  Brand hated to admit it, but if he could swap his deceased father for his living mother, he
would. Though his dad was around less, Brand idolized him and cherished each moment they spent together. As he stood over his grave, he wanted to weep but ran out of tears. It’s all he did over the last week, just weep and weep over his father’s death. His mom hugged her around him.

  Brand looked up at her. “I hate death.”

  “Nobody actually likes death but it exists and it’s painful.”

  “I hate it for what it did to dad, but I’m ready to face it.”

  Shirley furrowed her brows. “Why would you say that?”

  “Because after I die I know dad will be waiting on the other side for me.”

  “And what about me? Are you just going to leave me alone? I need you, Brand.”

  Brand just wanted his father back, to hear his laugh. “You’ll meet up with us again.”

  “Just promise me you won’t kill yourself.”

  Brand knew the consequences of suicide. His granny thrilled bible scriptures into his head when he was a kid. “I won’t.”

  “Good,” Shirley hugged him closer. “Because if you do, I’ll ground you forever.”

  As Brand stood with his back against the cafeteria buffet he realized he had changed. He wasn’t that hurt kid ready to face death anymore. Brand had too much here and though he loved his father, he knew the man would want him to enjoy all that he had. He looked right at John who stood frozen and was as pale as a ghost. To his left, Mo stood mumbling to herself and looking over to where the bits of her sister’s body remained. The hoard was approaching, Brand wasn’t ready to go. He had to do something.

  “We have to fight,” He declared.

  “I’m not ready to be alone,” Mo said. “I feel half dead without her. I’m stupid.”

  “You’re not stupid,” Brand said.

  “I spent so much time trying to get away from my sister. Now she’s forever gone.”

  “Are you guys my friends,” John cut in.

  “Of course we are,” Brand said.

  John cracked a smiled. “I made friends. I get to die with friends.”

  Brand’s spurt of hope faded. These two weren’t going to join him. “It’s over,” He breathed out.

  A loud roaring engine and bright light could be seen through the barricade in the halls. Into the cafeteria rode a brown-skinned student on a motorcycle and armed with a fencing sword. He sped around the cafeteria on the bike using his weapon to behead the zombies. Once the hoard started to thin, Brand ran over to his flute, grabbed it and started to help the biker student fight. It wasn’t long before the two managed to clear the hoard. Brand ran over to the barricade and secured the cafeteria doors closed.