C H A P T E R  8

❛ the cafeteria. ❜

MILO

     WITH AN ANGRY SCREAM TOMAS THREW his plate across the cafeteria. The little bit of food that had been left on it flew through the air and landed on the ground. The plate clattered on the floor with a loud noise that made Milo wince.

'What a waste,' Oscar mumbled, making Milo smile despite the situation.

'Ten months!' Tomas screamed, his voice bouncing through the small space.

'Sshh!' Big Tiny whispered, pointing at the door. They all knew too much noise would draw the dead people closer but lately their fellow inmate didn't seem to care much.

'Let them come!' Tomas shouted, kicking at one of the chairs, sending yet another object flying across the room.

A tired sigh escaped Milo's lips. He was frustrated at being locked in this small space as well and with five other men around him all the time the situation became even more exhausting. He missed the sunlight, privacy and a decent bed. But that didn't mean he screamed or threw stuff across the room to get rid of his frustration. Tomas, however, liked to burst into a rage fit every now and then. Milo only let him because he'd claimed the only gun they had, or else he would've stepped up and knocked him out a long time ago. Instead he sat at a table in the corner with Axel, Big Tiny and Oscar as they played a card game. They'd been lucky Axel happened to have a set of cards in his pockets or else each day would have been an even bigger torture.

They had enough food to last them months and it seemed like the water supplies hadn't been cut off because the tap still worked fine. They wouldn't die of starvation or dehydration any time soon. No, Milo was convinced he'd sooner die of boredom. Being locked in a cafeteria with nothing to do whatsoever was a one hell of a sad way to die and so he tried to keep some sort of routine to stay sane. The most important thing on his daily schedule was exercise. If he were ever to get out of here he had to be able to walk more than a few miles before being completely out of breath.

If they would ever get out of here...

The first week they spent locked up, Milo was certain they would be rescued. Even after the gunshots stopped and the screams had been replaced with the endless growls of the dead. Even then he was convinced someone would come to get them out. But the guard never came back and neither did anyone else. No police, no army or national guard. It felt like the whole world had been put on pause and no one wanted to deal with a prison filled with walking dead people.

After all the months that passed by Milo wasn't stupid enough to believe anyone would come for them anymore. He didn't like thinking about what was going on outside the walls of the prison. His mind couldn't work up the courage to even begin to imagine what would have happened to the world if these dead people were everywhere, what would have happened to Quinn...The inmates had tried many times to escape themselves but even the slightest sound they made when trying to break the door open drew the dead ones closer. They would throw themselves at the doors while growling and biting and banging with their fists against the iron. And none of the men had dared to suggest fighting them. They didn't have the weapons to fight their way out of here if they wanted to.

Tomas threw another chair through the room before finally sitting down against a wall, the gun in his hands. His rage seemed to have calmed down, for now. But Milo knew even the smallest thing could set him off again. It felt like occupying the same space with a timebomb.

'Sorry boys, seems like I won, again,' Axel said, pointing at the cards.

Milo shook his head, turning his eyes away from Tomas. 'You're impossible to beat.'

Oscar threw his cards on the table with a sign. 'Congrats man,' he said, then turned to look at Milo. 'How about we go stretch our legs?'

He raised his eyebrows at his friends. 'You sure you want to do that?' He questioned.

'We ain't got nothing else to do,' Oscar shrugged.

'As you wish,' Milo replied, standing up and making his way towards the middle of the room.

As soon as Oscar had joined him, he started circling around the man, his hands raised to protect his face. Fighting each other was both meant for exercise and entertainment. And so far Milo remained undefeated. He knew it annoyed Tomas to no end. His skills with his fists kept him safe from the man. Milo was very much aware that Tomas was watching him. The man wasn't completely stupid, he knew Milo disagreed with him and many times came close to speaking out against him. He suspected that the only reason Tomas and Andrew hadn't tried anything yet was because they couldn't get rid of his body. And so for now, Milo knew he had nothing to be afraid of. Still, he'd gone a lot of nights without closing an eye.

Oscar planted his feet steadily on the ground as he suddenly threw a punch, forcing Milo out of his thoughts. He jumped to the right which made the man lose his balance and stumble on his feet. Quickly gathering himself, however, Oscar readied himself to throw another punch but Milo saw it coming and quickly bent through his knees. The punch flew right over his head.

A cheer came from Big Tiny and Axel clapped his hands.

Milo ignored them and focused on the fight instead as he went from defense into attack. He stepped forward and threw his fist at Oscar, who tried to turn away but was too slow. His fist connected with his opponent's shoulder.

He grinned and held his arms up again, making sure he covered his face when Oscar lashed out once again. Milo jumped to the left, then stuck out his feet so Oscar stumbled right over them, falling to the ground. He managed to catch himself just in time before he'd land with his face on the concrete floor.

Applause came from the side lines as Milo offered his hand to Oscar. The man stared at him for a while before bursting out laughing and taking his hand, letting himself be pulled up.

'I don't know how you do it,' Oscar said, patting Milo on the shoulder.

Milo simply shrugged. 'You're all not fast enough, it's that simple.'

'You gotta teach me that sometime,' Tomas said from his position against the wall.

Milo turned to look at the man, feeling unease grow in his stomach. There was no way he was going to teach this man his tricks. Combined with his gun, they would all be pretty much helpless against him. But refusing him wasn't an option either and so Milo settled for a simple nod in the inmate's general direction before moving over to one of the chairs and taking a seat.

Maybe it was because of the fight, or maybe it was because of Tomas' tantrum earlier but the dead people seemed to be more restless than normally and it scared him. He could hear them shuffle through the hallways, the horrible sounds they made leaving an eerie echo behind. He was glad he couldn't see them because he was sure he would be scared to the bone.

The image of the dead at the fence the day the prison fell was still burned into his mind. Milo was pretty sure he wouldn't forget it any time soon. But despite his fear he was still hellbent on finding a way out of their prison. More than anything else in the world, he just wanted to get out of here. He wanted to see what the world had become. He wanted to know what the hell had happened and why no one had come for them yet but most importantly he longed to know if Quinn was okay. She'd been on his mind almost everyday and no matter how much he tried not to think about her, she always seemed to work her way back into his raging thoughts.

Some days he missed her so much that it felt as though his heart was being ripped out of his chest. Other days he was overwhelmed by an all consuming grief that seemed to weigh on him so heavily he could hardly walk. And it wasn't just for his sister. He tried so hard to keep Aiden from his thoughts but then night came and he was waiting in the shadows of his dreams. The never ending image of watching Aiden fall down in the grass, dead, pained him more than the thought of never getting out of here again.

'Did you hear that?' Axel spoke up.

Milo looked up from the ground, then frowned when he saw Axel had placed his ear against the door.

'What are you doing, man?' Andrew asked.

'I thought I heard voices,' Axel replied.

Milo got to his feet and walked towards the door. He leaned against it to listen as well but all he heard were the bone chilling moans of the dead. 'You must've imagined it.' He said, frowning at his friend as he stepped away from the door.

But just as Axel opened his mouth to defend himself a scream tore through the hallways. It took a second for Milo to realise it was real. And then it came again, loud and clear. The scream of a man in pain, someone alive.

He gave himself no time to be shocked about it. Quickly he reached for Axel's shoulder and pulled him back from the door. 'We don't know who that is,' he mumbled upon seeing the confused look on his friend's face. He gave Axel no time to catch up to his thought process and instead headed for one of the brooms that stood against the wall. He grabbed the wooden stick and with one kick he removed the brush. It wouldn't do much if whoever was on the other side of that door had guns, but he felt a little better with at least something in his hands he could use as a weapon.

A loud bang came from the other side of the door and Milo turned with the stick firmly in his hands, his heart racing from the sudden rush of adrenaline pumping through his veins. Another bang followed and he realised someone was trying to break the door open from the other side.

'In here,' Oscar said, gesturing for Milo and Axel to come to the back of the cafeteria where they could hide behind the wall that seperated the eating area and the kitchen.

Milo pulled Axel along as they ran towards the others and knelt down behind the wall.

Another bang made the door shake and then it was thrown open with a loud crack that echoed through the small space. A group of people stumbled inside, quickly closing the door behind them. One of them leaned against it to keep the dead ones from pushing the door back open again.

Something was very wrong. One of the people, a man, lay on the ground whimpering in pain. Three other people sat around him while a fourth went to help the man who was trying to keep the door closed. One of the three people kneeling on the ground was a girl, crying softly as she held the wounded man's head in her hands. The others were all men, all carrying various weapons and all of them covered in blood and sweat.

Milo's heart was racing in his chest as he realised these people had no idea the inmates were here. They weren't some sort of rescue party, they seemed more like refugees. He watched while one of the men removed his belt and bound it around the leg of the wounded man, making him cry out in pain. Milo winced at the sound but couldn't look away. His eyes widened as he saw the same man who had removed his belt reach for his hatchet.

'Only one way to keep you alive,' he said with a heavy southern accent. Then he raised the weapon and brought it down in one, strong, swing. The sound of blade meeting flesh was horrible but even worse were the pained screams the man gave before falling silent, leaving an eerie silence behind. Milo couldn't tell if he was dead or unconscious. Even from this distance he could see the puddle of blood on the ground and the leg that lay there, a forgotten limb. The iron smell of fresh blood reached Milo's nose and he trembled, whether from disgust or fear he could not tell. He tightened the grip on his stick, hoping the feeling of the weapon in his hand would keep him grounded.

Next to him Tomas moved and it took a second for Milo to realise he was standing up straight, revealing himself to the intruders. They only had to look up to see the prisoners. Milo hesitated, but the others followed Tomas' lead, leaving him without much of a choice. Staying hidden wasn't a great option anyway. If the group was planning on staying they would probably find the inmates eventually. And so he got to his feet, holding the stick firmly in his hands. His eyes focused on the gruesome scene unfolding before him.

'He's bleeding out,' the man with the hatchet said.

Most of the group seemed too busy with the wounded man to even notice the prisoners, but not the man with the crossbow. His gaze was focused on the prisoners, a venomous hatred burning in his ice cold blue eyes. Slowly he walked towards the three people huddled together on the ground. 'Duck,' he whispered at them, making them all do so without question.

In a quick movement he turned, his crossbow pointed right at Milo and the other inmates.

'Holy shit,' Axel breathed.

A U T H O R 'S  N O T E

And there they are, our favorite characters! It's so much fun to write about them from the prisoner's perspective. Just imagine seeing Rick cut someone's leg off without knowing that a bite makes you turn. I'd be scared as hell, that's for sure.

I'm so excited to get this storyline going. Season 3 is still one of my favorites which makes it all the more fun. The Governor was such an interesting villain and I have so many things planned out already that I can't wait to show you guys!

Also, did you all see last week's episode? I won't give any spoilers but I cried my heart out. This season has made me cry more than any other season has so far. Fun!

Anyway, that was it for today. Please leave a vote or a comment and I will see you all saturday!

xXx

UYM

edited: ✔