The next morning, Sasha looked slightly better, though her pallor betrayed the truth. Beads of sweat clung to her forehead, and her lips were drained of color. Every step she took was with a wince, her hand constantly clutching her wounded side.
The group moved quietly, Kelvin in front, ever the self-appointed leader, while Lexi trailed behind, separated and unwelcomed. They kept her at a distance, as though she were the infection itself. Lexi didn't mind. Their rejection was the perfect veil for her plans.
The streets leading to the hospital were eerily quiet. Abandoned cars stood like rusting tombstones, doors ajar, streaked with dried blood. Somewhere in the distance, a single crow cawed, its wings slicing through the morning air. Every sound, every shadow made their hearts race.
Finally, they reached the hospital. The building loomed tall and broken, windows shattered into jagged teeth, doors half-hanging from their hinges. The red cross on its façade was smeared with something dark and long dried—blood or worse.
Inside, the air was suffocating—thick with mildew, the coppery tang of blood, and a faint rot that spoke of bodies long abandoned. The flickering lights in the lobby painted the place in sickly shades of yellow. Sasha collapsed into one of the dusty chairs, her breath shallow, eyes wild with exhaustion.
Tori and Lisa rushed to her side, crouching beside her, whispering frantically. "You need to rest, Sasha," Tori said, her voice trembling.
But Lisa's eyes darted nervously to Sasha's wound. "You're pale… and your skin—it's cold."
Sasha's head snapped up, her voice sharp, defensive. "Don't you dare look at me like that! I'm not one of them!"
Her shout echoed through the empty hospital, bouncing off the walls like an accusation.
Lisa recoiled, guilt flashing across her face. "I didn't mean—"
"You did," Sasha spat, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "You think I'm turning, don't you? You're just waiting for me to change so you can run."
Kelvin stepped forward, raising his hands as though to calm her. "Sasha, that's not it. We're just… scared. Everyone is on edge. We need to work together, not—"
But Sasha cut him off, her voice trembling with rage and pain. "Work together? You say that now, but you'll leave me the moment it gets too hard. You'll save yourself first, Kelvin—you always do!"
Her words struck deep, silencing the group for a breathless moment. Kelvin's jaw tightened, his eyes flickering with something unspoken—guilt, maybe.
Lexi, leaning against the cracked wall in the shadows, felt her lips curve into a slow, knowing smile. The fracture lines were spreading faster than she had predicted.
"Stop it, Sasha," Tori said softly, trying to reach her. "You're tired. Don't say things you don't mean—"
"I mean every word!" Sasha's voice cracked under the weight of desperation. "None of you care about me. You're just waiting for me to die, aren't you? Waiting so you don't have to deal with me anymore!"
Tears finally streamed down her face, streaking her dirt-stained cheeks. Her anger was raw, born of fear, but it only deepened the unease in the others. They looked at her not as a friend, but as a burden.
Lexi's eyes glittered as she studied them—Tori's hesitation, Lisa's avoidance, Kelvin's silent retreat. Fear had begun to eat at them from within.
Then it happened.
The groan of the undead slithered through the hallways, followed by the thunder of shuffling feet. The sound grew louder, closer, until it became a crashing tide. The hospital doors buckled under the weight of the horde as the first zombie stumbled into view, its jaw hanging loose, eyes clouded with hunger.
Panic ignited.
"Run!" Kelvin barked, already dashing toward the exit.
The group scattered. Sasha pushed herself up, legs trembling, trying to keep pace. But her wound slowed her, and every step was agony. She stumbled, falling behind as the horde surged forward.
"Kelvin! Help me!" she cried, clutching desperately at his arm when he passed by.
For a brief second, their eyes met—hers, wide with terror; his, wide with the instinct to survive. And then, without hesitation, Kelvin shoved her away.
Sasha's scream was strangled with disbelief. "No—don't leave me! Please—Kelvin!"
The zombies were on her in an instant, dragging her down, teeth sinking into her flesh. Her cries filled the lobby, raw with agony and betrayal, as she thrashed helplessly against them. Her eyes, wide and shimmering with tears, locked on Kelvin's retreating back until the very last moment.
Tori and Lisa froze in horror, their faces pale as chalk. They saw it all—the shove, the betrayal, the way Sasha's life was traded for his. They wanted to help, but fear rooted them in place. Survival screamed louder than loyalty. They turned and ran.
Lexi, from her dark corner, watched it unfold with quiet satisfaction. Her heart didn't race like theirs, her breaths didn't stutter. Instead, her mind hummed with calculation. The pawns were breaking, one by one. And as she stepped silently after them, her smile was sharper than any blade.