AN: I want to focus on quality. So you know what, I don't care how long it takes. I'm going to take my time to write each one of these chapters. I don't want to rush just because Winter might be starting to come up.

Kris was panting pretty heavily, the zombie was right outside the gate and was banging its whole body against it. Still, they were all safe.

"Are you all ok?" said the voice. Kris glanced over, just finally noticing them. They were a cute, antlered, deer girl with freckles dotting her cheeks. She was wearing an ugly reindeer Christmas sweater, some worn out UGGs, and a short black skirt.

"Huh? You look familiar...wait, do I know you from somewhere?"

"You don't remember me, Kris?"

"How do you know my name?!"

"I go to the same school you go to, Kris. I'm in, well was in, your math class. Noelle, remember?"

"Wait, were you the girl who everyone thought was going to be valedictorian?" Martha asked.

"Yup!"

"Oh, right. DUH! Sorry, I don't talk to a lotta people so I don't know a lotta people," Kris apologized. Noelle gave a big smile that showed all her shiny, pearl white, teeth.

"It's fine, Kris. You don't need to explain yourself!" Noelle dismissed. She looked at everyone there, focusing in on Susie. "While me and your friend were together, I managed to find some clothes for her as well!"

Kris glanced over at Susie, who now seemed to be wearing more of a tomboyish look. Ripped up blue jeans, black tennis shoes, and an open purple jacket which exposed a white undershirt. Everything seemed to be clean, no blood on either Noelle's or Susie's clothes.

"There's a clothes store nearby here. I can show you guys it if you want some," Susie offered.

"I'D LOVE TO! But maybe when the zombie leaves and we have some time," Lancer said. He fiddled with his little skeleton fingers, as he kept glancing nervously at Noelle.

"Oh yeah, course'!"

Susie patted Lancer's back, before resting her body against the wall, with her leg as support.

"How long have you been here?" Ralsei asked he stepped forward from the rest of them. He looked at Noelle.

"Well, I came here from the high school,"

"The High School?" Lancer asked.

"Yes, the High school," Noelle answered. "We took a vote on who should go out for supplies and I got the most votes,"

"How many people are there?" Ralsei asked.

"There are 3 teachers as well as Principal Jevil. Then there are, like, a few dozen kids,"

"Then why haven't you gone back?" Martha asked.

"Those THINGS. They've been roaming the mall for hours now. I've tried to leave, but them with the other zombies are just too much,"

Susie sighed, as she impatiently began tapping her foot on the floor. She crossed her arms, as she looked back at the gate. The banging had stopped.

"It should be fine to leave. We can just quickly make a break for it then we'll be free! It's not like they'll hurt us!"

"Are you crazy?! Have you SEEN the hoard out there? It's way too big! We have no chance of surviving it!" Martha waved her hand in the air, as she leaned forward to Susie. Her eye narrowed, she looked like she was almost preparing to get clocked in the face. Susie looked down on her, she snarled. Susie purposely began to rise up, and despite her being tall, it looks like she was twice Martha's height.

"You don't know how weak those things are," Susie snapped. "You literally just have to strike them clean in the head, and they're gone."

"There's no need to fight! Fighting is just going to tear us apart!" Noelle interrupted. Susie laughed, it was a deep dark laugh, and a snicker followed. She took two steps forward to Noelle, grabbing hold of her shoulder.

"You really want to test me? It's best you stay out of things that aren't your business. Otherwise, you might just get a punch to the face,"

Noelle's eye widened, and she began shaking. She quickly put her arms over her face in an X-position, which shielded her face from Susie. She turned away from her and began whimpering.

"I-I didn't mean to upset you! I-I'm sorry!"

"Susie, come on now! You don't need to be rude to Noelle! She just saved you!" Ralsei protested. He stood in front of Noelle somehow fitting into the gap that was there, if there even was one.

"Ralsei, you don't want to do this," Susie warned.

"We can solve this peacefully! But if we're going to be able to do so, you have to stay calm for me. Ok?"

"Get out of my way,"

"Susie please!"

"I SAID OUT OF MY WAY!"

Kris slowly shuffled away from the rest of them and just started to walk around the room they were in. Just from a glance, he could already tell it was a salon. Mirrors lined the walls, with chairs in front of each one. Below every mirror was a small black granite desk, and hair products sat neatly arranged under each one.

Although, it didn't really look tidy, and more of a mess. Blood caked the walls and floor, and even with the room supposedly locked up, there were still severed body parts. Kris frowned, as he walked further back into the salon. He walked near one of the mirrors and looked at himself. All he saw was just a small ugly boy. His hair strung like droopy noodles over his face, and his clothes were a mess. He looked like trash, something that had almost no hope in surviving in this world. At least that's what he told himself.

Kris didn't bother trying to fix his hair or do anything to change out of his coat, he just felt too lazy to change. He began walking away when he heard a sickly crunch.

"Oh no..." Kris muttered. "Please don't be what I think that was."

He slowly looked below, and it was what he thought it was. He had stepped onto a random dead person's head. Moist red blood had sprayed over his dress shoes, and as he looked he cringed and groaned.

"Goddamnit," Kris mumbled. He lifted his foot off the head, it looked like a watermelon had exploded. Kris started heading off when he noticed what the person was wearing. They were wearing a beanie, but also a green coat that looked surprisingly soft. He kneeled down and grabbed hold of the coat...it felt like wool, but a type of wool that wasn't itchy. It was perfect. He picked up the body and began to remove the coat off them. He inched the coat off his arms, then pulled it from under the body and whipped into the air. He pushed his arms through the armholes, then put it over him. He looked at a mirror that was close to him, and it was a perfect fit!

"Huh..." Kris said, as he twisted his torso around and looked at himself. He actually felt like it matched him. He glanced back down at the zombie, to see another weird surprise. There was a pair of bloody scissors next to the moved body. He kneeled back down and picked them up, fitting them around his fingers, as he snipped the air. He put the scissors in his pocket, then went back to the group.

"We agree to just stop, alright? We call a truce and we just wait, right?" Noelle asked, looking at both Susie and Martha as they exchanged looks.

"As long as we try to leave tomorrow," Susie said, looking back at the closed gate.

"You're exploring first then, before anyone else," Martha snapped, pointing at her.

"Works for me. Far away from you at least."

"Do not start up another argument, Susie. You aren't helping the situation!"

"You--"

"Susie. Enough! Let's just all leave each other alone! I need a break anyway!" Martha 

Susie growled, she crossed her arms once again and turned away from everyone else.

"Retards..."

Noelle was just in the corner of the room since she didn't want to get involved. She looked nervous just looking at Susie, and was fidgeting really bad. Her eyes kept wandering and she just seemed really out of it. Kris couldn't blame her, he'd probably be scared if he actually had feelings.

Kris gave a blank stare as he watched what happened. Something screamed inside of him to care what was happening, but he didn't. He just kept watching, emotionless, and after all, it's not like he cared for Martha or Susie.

"Kris?"

Kris snapped back into reality, he shook his head and looked down at Ralsei.

"Huh? What is it?"

"You looked like you saw a ghost is all. You all right?"

Kris looked at the scene once more, Susie and Martha were in separate corners of the room. Noelle and Martha were talking in one and Susie and Lancer were talking near the other.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure I'm sure."

"If you want to talk, I'll be in the back. Alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," Kris dismissed. With that, Ralsei walked towards the back of the salon, which left Kris alone. He walked to the gate, putting his hand over it as he felt each little line and crevice of it against his fingertips. The coldness colliding with his hot fingers felt nice and almost relaxing. Just what he needed at this time.

Still, though, the loneliness felt a bit too much for him. Besides, he couldn't just leave Ralsei alone when he knew nobody was going to talk to him. Kris walked past the four of them, as they gossiped about one another, and walked to the back where he saw Ralsei sitting all alone.

"Oh, hey Kris!" Ralsei greeted. "You can sit here!"

Ralsei patted the space next to him. Kris sat down right next to him, his legs pointing up and his arms curled around his legs like he was a child.

"So," Ralsei started. "You ready for tomorrow?"

"What?"

"You didn't hear that argument between Martha and Susie?"

"Not really, no. I blocked it all out."

"Susie and I will be scouting tomorrow. We'll be watching the hoard and look for an opening when it's time we signal everyone else and we run for it,"

"Oh," Kris muttered. "Here, since you're going out then."

Kris took out the pair of bloody scissors and handed them to Ralsei.

"Awww, thanks, Kris!" Ralsei thanked. He set the scissors in his pocket, as he leaned back against the wall.

"I'll try not to die for everyone else's sake,"

"What's amazing is that we need 3 f'en people to calm down Susie and Martha. It's like they WANT karma to come to take their lives,"

"I mean, Susie does have anger issues."

"I guess that's true. Still, though, at this rate, she might just take the life of someone else."

"Hope you didn't just jinx it," Ralsei whispered, as he leaned back and watched as Susie paced the room.

"I ain't crossin' my fingers."

"You have to at least give everyone else a chance, Kris! They're all nice people!"

"You get along with everyone perfectly. Not like there's any hope for me getting any friends."

"Once people get to know you--"

"They'll see how much of a useless wreck I am."

"T-That's not what I meant, Kris!"

"It's what everyone thinks, don't they?"

"Nobody thinks like that! You're a nice and kind friend, Kris! I know you!"

"But nobody else knows me."

"Well, we have the perfect chance for people to be introduced to you!"

"What's the point when everyone is going to die anyway. This world deserves to die, and so does everyone else,"

Ralsei's eyes watered a little bit as he said this. Kris just sounded so...dead, lifeless, uncaring. He put his hand on Kris's.

"Kris, cmon'! Don't be like that!"

"It's true! No one likes me! They all hate me! I'm just messing everything up with being so snappy! I can't help it, it's just something I do! But they don't know that and so they leave!"

"I like you, Kris!"

"You're the only person who likes me."

"Exactly! Whatever anyone else says does not matter! As long as we stick together we can do anything!"

"What if they murder me? Or throw me under the bus?"

Ralsei slowly slipped his hand back onto the ground, as he looked up at Kris. He didn't even get to say anything before Kris came in and said what was on his mind.

"No one likes me apart from you. That's just the fact of it...and they never will," Kris said. He stood up and walked away, putting his hands in his pockets and looking down with tears in his eyes. Ralsei sat there, saddened and alone, as he curled up into his own little ball before laying onto the ground.

"Tomorrow will always be better, Ralsei. Tomorrow will be better. Just you wait," Ralsei mumbled. He kept repeating that tomorrow would be better as if he was insane. He closed his eyes, hoping that tomorrow would be a better day. All his thoughts fizzled out as he slowly drifted off to a distant and happy dream.