What would be your reaction if your best friend ran towards you, shouting zombie?

A. Slam the door in her face

B. Stand there confused as she runs past you

C. It is 6 in the morning, ON A HOLIDAY. Not the time for pranks. Go back to sleep.

D. Run first. Ask later

As much as options A and C looked appealing I was forced to go with D. Tossing my chair aside— It seemed I had fallen asleep on my desk which could mean only one thing. Painful neck cramps— I made my way towards the door.

I Ignored the pain in my neck muscles and the sense of deja vu. Maybe I had a similar dream last night...or I was still dreaming?

"Valeria! Open up! There are zombies everywhere! I am serious!"

I flung the door open and Dami came crashing into me and to my horror, a walking corpse came crashing as well. What did I mean by a walking corpse? Exactly that.

A corpse that should not have been walking. Ghastly pale skin that was littered with purplish spots, black veined hands with claw-like nails that seemed to reach out towards...my heart?

My quick reflexes came in handy as I shoved it aside with a swift kick to its stomach and slammed the door shut. I quickly locked the door and turned to Dami who was catching her breath, her face drained of colour, as she slumped against the door.

"Is it already Halloween?" I muttered. It seemed my humour was my coping mechanism these days.

She glared at me. "This isn't the time for jokes Val. There are literally zombies in our campus!"I couldn't exactly deny their existence. I had just shoved one aside seconds ago.

I was pretty sure that if zombies ever existed, they would look very much like what we had just encountered. I just hadn't witnessed one eating humans, and I didn't want to. Ever.

"How..." I paused, attempting to wrap my head around the various scenarios that could explain this. "How is this even possible?"

Dami shook her head. "I don't know. One moment we were sleeping and the next we were being chased by zombies." She said, clutching her hair in confusion. "We were all sleeping in the common room— Kass, Naho, Atlan and I— When We heard a commotion in the hallway.

I opened the door and-" She closed her eyes and took deep breaths.

I handed her my water bottle, and she took a few quick gulps before continuing. "I saw that creature eating a person. Her stomach was ripped open." She paused and gagged. Opened the water bottle and emptied all its contests.

Wiping her mouth with her arms, she said "I couldn't see her face. The one who was being eaten. There was blood everywhere and her hair covered her face but I definitely knew who was eating her."

I leaned forward, my curiosity greater than my feelings of horror "Who was it?"

Her voice dropped a beat."Rizen."

"Our classmate Rizen?"

She nodded"Your Ex-"

I earned another glare from Dami. "Yes him! He was eating her innards as if it were noodles and when he saw me he leaped at me."

"You mean that thing behind yo-"

Dami interrupted "Yes! The zombie you kicked was him."

"Wow. Surprising how you could still recognize him in that condition. Maybe it really was true lov—" Before I could finish my sentence, a pillow landed squarely on my face.

"Sorry sorry. So what do you suggest we do?" I tilted my head and leaned sideways till my head plopped on my pillow. "Sleep a little more till the alarms ring and we are told what to do?" I patted the place beside me. "Seems like a really enticing op-" I earned a slap from Dami.

Dami shook my shoulders. "Valeriaaaa! Why are you so sleep deprived? What were you doing all night? You didn't even come to the sleepover."

This reminded me of the thing I had wasted my precious sleep on. The scene a few minutes ago felt as if I had experienced it— No read about it somewhere. The Diery app. Was it an app that predicted the future? 

If yes then things were about to turn worse and I had only read half of it.

Suddenly, a series of loud bangs resonated from behind the door, startling us. Seems like Rizen hadn't given up.

How did you get rid of zombies again? Should I even be getting rid of them? What if they are still alive inside? And what was Rizen doing in the girl's dorm? I am glad Dami dumped him.

Ridding myself of these useless thoughts I sprang up from the bed, causing Dami to suddenly fall.

"Wha-"

I rummaged for my military rucksack and began tossing some change of clothes, the medical kit, my Swiss knife, water bottles and my handy tool kit. From the toolkit, I removed a hammer and placed it on the table. It would make a good weapon.

Dami stared at me for a good three seconds, surprised, but quickly regained composure and started dialling in numbers on her phone while simultaneously grabbing her own rucksa— wait what suitcase?

"Damini! How will you run with that monstrosity?"

She brought her finger to her lips. "Oh sush. My stuff would never fit in the tiny rucksack." Releasing a sigh, I yank open the top drawer beside my bedside, sending its contents clattering to the floor.

With practised precision, I apply pressure to the false bottom, causing it to spring open. A sleek semi-automatic pistol stares back at me. A lone magazine rests beside it, containing exactly 6 rounds.

"You still haven't returned that" Dami exclaims, as she peers into the drawer. "And you are gonna use that?"

I gave her a broad smile.

At VIGIL we aren't allowed to carry or store any personal firearms. You might be wondering how this little guy ended up in my drawer. It's all thanks to a little game of Truth and Dare.

I had managed to sneak it from the weapons department last week but had never gotten the chance to return it back and since it's a pretty old model, it rarely undergoes inspection.

I would have to use the pistol sparingly until we could grab better weapons from the weapons room.

The bangs suddenly stopped. My eyes met Dami's as we gazed at the door, frozen. Then, a voice shattered the stillness.

"Damini... it's me. Your boyfriend." The zomb— No Rizen said. After a few seconds of silence, when he realized no one would be opening the door he yelled " Open the door! I know you are in there!" We both jumped as his bangs continued once again.

My heart pounded like crazy. Was he still conscious? Or was the monster playing with us? Whatever the case we outspokenly decided to not open the door. It was best to quickly pack up and leave.

Swiftly, I grab our black VIGIL combat uniform. It was comfortable, and durable and gave good camouflage, especially at night. Over the shirt, I slipped a brown leather jacket.

It was more reddish than brown but it would have to do. Grabbing the holster, I affix it to my belt and secure the pistol snugly inside. 

I stash the magazine into one of my front pockets, along with my hammer and stun gun. Another reason why I loved my uniform was the pocket space. I felt as if I could stuff Dami inside and it would still have space left over.

Meanwhile, the bangs started to get louder, and the door started to shake heavily. I looked around my room to find something to block the door a little longer. My eyes landed on our shoe stand. I quickly pushed it towards the door. 

This would buy us some more minutes.

My heart had already started to beat in sync with the loud bangs on the door. Grabbing the toiletry essentials I made my way to my now half-stuffed rucksack I made the mistake of glancing sideways at Dami's bag and oh boy did I regret it.

It was filled with clothes, shoes? Or were those boots I was seeing? With heels. I was amazed that the bag still had space left for more.

"You know we are gonna need food more than clothes right?"Dami hailed a string of curses as she unpacked some of the clothes. I slip on my hiking boots and fasten the laces.

"You know I am starting to think staying here would be a better idea after all." She muttered as she pushed her packed suitcase aside.

As if to prove her wrong the door finally broke— Hostel doors I tell you— and there stood Rizen, his undead form growling menacingly. Shit.

While I hesitated about whether to fire my pistol or not, Dami screamed and hurled her high-heeled boots straight at Rizen's head. The boot, true to its aim, struck him squarely, and he crumpled to the ground.

Were zombies really this weak, or was it just Rizen? Whatever it was, I didn't want to stay behind to find out. Especially with Dami's scream a second ago. It could attract even more zombies.

"Now's the time. Grab your boots and suitcase, Dami!"

With boots in one hand and bag in another, we shoved the shoe stand aside, jumped over Rizen's crouched form and made a dash towards the pantry.
Food was a must for survival. I quickly slung my rucksack to the back and Dami did the same with her suitcase. 

Surprising how she could sling that monstrous thing around as if it weighed nothing. She pulled out her steel water bottle from the bag. Holding it as if it was her weapon...I guess it was. In a way.

But before we could even run a few meters, something caught my leg. I looked down to find Rizen's ghastly, elongated hands clutching my leg.

He was quick I'd give him that. But he was elastic too? His body lay where it was but his hands now stretched over 2 meters long. 

I smashed his hand with my other leg but he still wouldn't let go. Annoyed I brought down my hammer and Dami brought down her bottle. But before we could do any real damage, he was on us.
Up close, I could see the black veins coursing down his cheeks like a grotesque network of nerves. 

His eyes, instead of the usual brown, now had a sickly yellowish tint as he glared at us.

His movements were erratic and unnatural, a stark contrast to the human called Rizen we once knew. Our efforts to shove him off us were being of no use. Smashing his head felt like hitting a rubber balloon.

Suddenly, he shifted his attention from me to Dami, a hint of recognition in his eyes.

With a guttural growl, he lunged at her, teeth bared and decayed face inches away from her neck.Ah, the classic love bite. I hope he had been flossing those charming teeth.