Zombie High (30 page)

You quickly try to tell the others to turn around,
but by the time they do the zombies are already on them.
One zombie seems to jump on Ryan’s back as it sinks its
teeth into his neck and a spurt of arterial spray hit not just
the walls, but you as well. Chris at least has the
opportunity to get to face his attacker but is still brought
down by an attacking zombie who looks a lot like one of
the teachers here at the school. The one who gets it the
worst, however, is Bagdonas. Two zombies grab hold of
her at the same time and begin to force the poor girl to
the ground. One of them, with its hands on her neck,
begins chewing off parts of her face starting with the
cheeks and working its way around, while the other one
settles itself on top of one of her legs while it lifts the
other one up and takes a bite out her thigh.

The two remaining zombies seem to consider
joining in on the feast that has already been laid out
before them, but eventually think better of it and decide
that they do not want any would-be morsel, namely you,
to escape their mealtime. Lifting your two-by-four, you
crack the first one with what would have been a
devastating blow to the head but find that instead of
destroying the warped mush in its head that passes for a
brain, it’s your board that breaks on impact. Realizing
you’ll never generate the force you need with only half a
stick of lumber, you throw the remaining piece in its face
and reach for the hammer in your belt loop. As you try to
yank on it, however, you find that it’s caught on
something, and the handle won’t just slide out as you
expected. Not realizing that it’s the belt loop which has
somehow become twisted, you continue to yank on it
hoping that it will somehow become free if you just pull
harder.

It’s this delay in your response and your clear lack
of vigilance which becomes your downfall, and as the
zombies bring you down and begin to dig their way into
your abdomen, you realize that all of this could have been
avoided if you were paying closer attention to your
surroundings.

History has always been one of the most boring
classes and listening to Miss Millstone drone on about it,
essentially reading the textbook to the class every day has
done nothing to improve your feelings about it. It’s for
that reason that you have been sleeping through as much
of the course as possible this year and barely know
anyone in the class. Next to you is Jeff, one of the guys
you knew back in middle school but haven’t talked to very
much over the past few years. With no one else you really
know nearby, you opt to just stay seated and remain
quiet.

It doesn’t take long until the class begins to occupy
themselves with whispered rumors and stories, and you
find yourself leaning in to hear what they’re saying.

“Hey, Sarah, what happened down there?” asks Jeff
as he tries to get caught up.
“Well, I was downstairs coming from Mr. Parks’
geometry class, and a crowd was all around the front
door. My friend Jessica and I tried to squeeze our way in,
but that’s when the principal showed up and told
everyone to go to class. From what I heard, though, Mr.
Tibbs went ape on some old guy after the geezer bit him
or something.”
Inserting himself into the conversation, Ben says, “I
was in Mr. Tibbs’ room first hour. That guy is awesome.”
“Well, if you were there, what did you see?” asks
Jeff.
“Okay, so like, Mr. Tibbs went out to the hall like he
always does when the bell rings, and we all got our books
and stuff and started to head out too. Anyway, some old
guy came up to the doors and started knocking. From
there, I’m not sure, I was a in a hurry to get here on time,
but I heard he opened the door and the guy started trying
to eat him or something. Mr. Tibbs defended himself, and
…,” but the rest of Ben’s words are cut off by Miss
Millstone.
“Excuse me,” says Miss Millstone loudly from her
stool in the front of the room. “This is a lockdown. You all
shouldn’t be talking back there,” completely ignoring the
fact that for as much as they were having a whispered
conversation if there was someone out there looking for
them, she just announced all herself to at least half the
school.
Ducking down sheepishly, Ben says, “Sorry, Miss
Millstone,” before he leans back and rests his head
against the wall saying, “She has no idea what an ‘inside’
voice is.”
Realizing that none of them seem to know anything
substantial, you figure that they aren’t about to make the
connection you have that these old people are zombies,
and without anyone else around that actually saw them,
there’s no way any of them will believe you. Just then,
you hear a thud at the door.
Normally in a lockdown, no one is supposed to be
in the hall, so this is more than a little unusual. Standing
up from her stool, Miss Millstone walks over to the door
and waits. A moment after she gets close to it, there are
two more thumps on the door. To someone not listening
for it, it might sound like someone knocking, but you
could swear the thumps sound a little too squishy, and a
little too wet, almost as if someone more like bumped
into the door with their face.

If you open the window and jump, turn to page ………. 37
If you crawl further back and hide, turn to page ………. 51
If you want to wait and sneak out, turn to page ………. 53

Shawn Kass was born in Killeen, Texas. He
attended a series of colleges while serving as a Staff
Sergeant in the United States Air Force. He earned five
degrees in subjects including Mathematics, Psychology,
Education, and Secure Computer Systems
Networking. While on active duty from 1997 to 2006, he
was stationed stateside in Texas, California, Florida,
Illinois, and Washington, D.C. While overseas, he served
in several Middle East locations.

Upon exiting the service, Shawn became a high
school math and science teacher, educating students in
Washington, D.C., England, and Michigan. He currently
lives in Farmington Hills, MI with his wonderful wife and is
currently teaching at a local high school.

https://www.facebook.com/shawn.kass.1
or
https://sites.google.com/site/secondchanceandtheallonsy
/home for news on his next Allons-y book.