[Win – 9:03 a.m.]
The rooftop door groans open.
Rust flakes into my face.
Kao leads. Lin follows, cradling her arm.
Palm pulls the door shut behind us.
Wind whips across the open rooftop.
The sun's higher now — but it doesn't feel warmer.
And then—
We see them.
[9:04 a.m.]
Two people are already up here.
One kneeling.
One standing beside him.
The kneeling one looks like a kid.
Small, messy hair, eyes too sharp for someone that young.
The standing one — taller, broad-shouldered, holding a wooden bat wrapped in wires.
He raises a hand slowly.
"We're not infected."
I grip my weapon.
"And we're not stupid."
[9:05 a.m.]
Palm whispers to me,
"That's Best. He was in the science building during lockdown. I've seen him before. Volleyball team."
Lin nods slightly.
"He's clean. For now."
The boy beside him stands up. He's only twelve, max.
But something about him makes my chest tighten.
Like he's not… afraid.
Not at all.
[9:06 a.m.]
"Name's Best,"
the guy says, approaching carefully.
"We've got four others downstairs. But this one—"
he gestures to the boy,
"climbed up here to scout."
The boy gives a little wave.
"I'm Dean,"
he says, voice weirdly calm.
"You make a lot of noise."
I glance at Palm.
"We attract things,"
he whispers.
> "So do they."
[9:07 a.m.]
Behind them, something thumps.
Hard.
The door on the opposite side of the rooftop rattles.
Dean tilts his head.
"That followed us."
The door SLAMS again.
We hear it before we see it—
That high-pitched, bone-grinding scream.
A Screamer.
[9:08 a.m.]
Palm's already stepping forward, weapon raised.
"Back away from the door!"
The others form a line.
Best grips his bat.
Dean doesn't even flinch.
CRACK.
The door bursts open, slamming against the wall.
The Screamer charges.
It's bigger than the others.
Faster.
And so much louder.
[9:09 a.m.]
Kao reacts first.
She slices, clean and quick, but it dodges — slithers under her arm and leaps toward Palm.
Lin tackles it mid-air.
They crash to the ground.
Palm swings. Misses.
Kao drives her axe into its spine — and it screeches again, grabbing her ankle.
Dean watches without moving.
Then calmly steps forward,
grabs a stray rod,
and jabs it through the back of the neck.
THUD.
It goes still.
[9:11 a.m.]
We all freeze.
Lin slowly stands.
Breathing hard.
Palm wipes blood from his cheek.
Dean looks at the corpse.
"Loud things die easiest when they're not looking."
Best sighs.
"We owe you one."
"No,"
Kao says.
"You owe the kid."
I glance at her.
She's watching the boy too closely.
And she's not blinking.
[9:13 a.m.]
We drag the body aside.
Kao cleans her blade without a word.
Lin mutters something and leans against the wall, holding her arm again.
Palm walks up to Best.
"You said there are four more?"
"Yeah,"
he replies.
"They're holding down the science block stairwell. We've got food. Barely. What we don't have is safety."
I stare at him.
He looks real.
Kind, even.
But we've learned one thing:
Kind doesn't always survive.
___________________________
-------- CHARACTER INFO-------
1. Best: charismatic, trustworthy leader
2. Dean: 12 year old survivor wearing 7th grade uniform.