Sometimes, the scariest monsters aren’t the ones outside—but the ones we become to survive

We finally decided to take a break and sleep over in this abandoned hospital and decided we should sleep in one of the patient rooms that looked at least a bit cleaner than the others we saw since its way better than slacking outside with zombies scheming around. Just thinking about them— once human now they’re walking the walking dead.

Kennedy set some barricades to close the door so no zombies could enter and turn us into one of them. Kennedy opened a can of fuel and gestured me to get up and I didn’t refuse. Just did as he said.

“Where did you get a can of fuel from?” I questioned, and squinted my eyes as they began to water because of how strong it is.

“Oh, you know, short stack. It magically appeared in my hands.” He cackled while opening the can. He grabbed me by my arms and was about to pour the fuel on it as I smacked his hand away.

“Are you crazy?!” I shouted at him, clenching my jaw tightly. “Are you stupid enough to not know that fuel can irritate any skin??”

He grinned at me and snickered. “First of all, don’t yell, unless you want to be heard. Second of all…” He paused and face palmed while holding back his laughs. “Second of all, I was just checking if you knew the importance of avoiding stuff like that.”

I opened my mouth in anger just to get startled by some sounds outside the patient room we were in. It sounds like…cries. Almost like as if there is a human being, just like us! Kennedy grabbed my arm, again. I looked at him confused as he hushed me.

“Someone is alive out there!” I muttered to him. But he looked at me with cold eyes and shook his head.

“That’s not someone,” he muttered, barely above a whisper. His grip on my arm tightened.

I furrowed my brows. “What do you mean—”

Before I could finish, the cries outside shifted. No longer just sobs, but something… distorted. A gurgling noise, like someone choking on their own breath. My stomach twisted, I felt nauseous.

Kennedy leaned in, his voice eerily calm. “If it was human, it would be begging for help.”

A chill ran down my spine. The cries continued, broken, desperate. But now, I wasn’t sure if they were asking for help… or luring us in.

He lead me down the corner— away from the entrance of the room. Our each step causing my heart to beat faster and faster. I felt my cheeks get wet from the tear drops running down. Kennedy gently wiped them with his hand and gestured me to hush.

The cries outside stopped. I looked up at Kennedy as he furrowed his thick eyebrows, squinting his ocean blue eyes.

“Something’s wrong…” He muttered almost afraid to repeat it again.

“what’s wrong?” I spoke in a low, questioning voice.

He looked at me then back at the door. It’s suspiciously quiet out there now. My heart beated faster and faster, as my lungs felt like they were about to explode.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. Again.

BANG. BANG. BANG!

I yelped and Kennedy picked a metal pole up as the sounds of growls were trying to barge in. Bang, bang, bang, bang, BANG! It wont stop…My ears, I cowered my ears. Shutting my eyes completely i crouched down in the corner.

“Hey, stay here, girl.” Kennedy commanded and ran to the door. “HIDE! NOW!”

I sprang to my feet, heart hammering, and darted toward a closet. I slipped inside, shutting the door behind me just as the room erupted into chaos. Furniture crashed against the walls, metal clattered to the floor, and beneath it all—those guttural growls. Low, animalistic rumbles that sent chills down my spine.

Then I heard something else. Groans. Not just from them.

Kennedy.

My breath caught in my throat. Was he—? No. I squeezed my hands over my ears, shutting out the sounds, forcing myself not to think.

Seconds felt like hours. Then, silence. A pause. A shift. Panting.

“Kennedy…” I muttered under my breath. Not to loud yet not to quiet. I felt my tears running down my cheeks as I covered my mouth with my hands. Thumph…thumph…thumph… That’s how my heart is beating. Thumph…thumph…thumph… a wild, frantic thumping filled my ears. My pulse drummed so hard, I swore the whole room could hear it. Then suddenly, i heard slow steps coming towards the closet. A soft creak echoed through the room as weight shifted on the floorboards.

The steady tap… tap… tap… of footsteps sent chills down my spine. Then suddenly the closet door swung open and I instinctively launched a kick, closing my eyes as I felt someone or something grab it.

Pulling me into a hug I realized its Kennedy, showered in blood.

“K-Kennedy?! Oh my god are you hurt??” I asked, my voice trembling. I found it harder to breathe. My lungs burned, desperate for air, but I couldn’t risk making any sounds.

But then the mood changed as he began laughing. What the actual hell is wrong with him?

“You should’ve seen your face, HAHA!” He burst out laughing.

“That’s not funny! It’ not! I thought you got killed by them…I was fucking worried about you!” I shouted, breaking down into tears.

He looked at me with an amused look and soothed me.

After calming down he cleared his throat, making the atmosphere less awkward.

“So, yeah the zombies were here, just like you heard. Now we have to use their blood and basically shower in them.”

“WHAT?!” I gasped. “What do you mean? Why?!”

“Think about it. What’s the reason those zombies found us? Yes, because of our human scent.” He paused…“And the blood you’re seeing on me is not mine. It’s their blood.”

I looked around the room, the floor, the entrance where the now dead corpses were laying. Their guts scattered around the room, and the smell. The air was thick with the stench of rotting flesh, sour and suffocating. I felt nauseous.

“Okay,” I agreed, barely suppressing a shudder as he smeared the rancid guts over my skin. The stench was unbearable—thick, putrid, clinging to me like death itself.

Luckily, my wounds had already healed, so infection wasn’t a risk. Still, we weren’t taking chances. Before covering me in their blood, we doused my skin with alcohol, the sting sharp but necessary. The burn was nothing compared to the horror of what came next.