15.| When The Whistle Blows

Before The Fall

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The static stops and I can no longer hear the man's voice over the intercom.

"No." Rose says.

I'm guessing she knows what's on my mind.

"Helloooo? They have guns." She waves her hand in front of my face. "Earth to Ian."

"Don't you think I know that? What am I supposed to do, stand around and let others die for me?" I point at my chest and Ryan nudges my side with the barrel of his gun, making me glare at him.

"She's right. You getting killed changes nothing. But I don't think they want to kill you. They had ample enough time to do that." He scratches at the white stubble of hair on his jaw, thinking.

I throw my hands up. "So what do we do? I don't want to just lay down and let them hit me with everything they've got"

Not after learning how to fight and fend for myself long before the world went to shit. I may not have cared about school, but I care about living solely to protect my brother.

"Make a plan. Make him come to us, we lay out a trap. Easy." Ryan smirks, then cocks his shotgun. "Let's patch your friend up first, then we can worry about these tough guys later."

Me and Rose nod. Things may be finally looking up for me. One step close to Ivan, I remind myself and a calmness washes over me as we head out of the cafeteria for the roof.

***

We left for the roof using the main stairwell of the school building, still careful not to make too much noise even if there is still no sign of Casey or our teacher. Well, what once was Casey and our teacher. It leaves me wondering if the people that are looking for me finished them off when we couldn't.

Though I doubt it. None of us heard any gunfire outside of when they killed principal Riley.

I shake the morbid though from my mind as we ascend the stairs , following behind Ryan who's leading the way. Rose is beside me, silently gripping the railing, keeping her attention ahead of her.

As for Julia, she's digging through the goods she collected for Jake. I don't understand how she thinks he's still in charge with Ryan here.

We reach the roof and he pushes open the door. We step out into the cold wintry air, the last rays of sunlight twinkly in the dark, grey and scarlet horizon.

"Where is everyone?" Julia asks, looking around.

I follow her gaze, noticing that the tent is knocked down, Zeke's book bags are thrown all over the place. There's a smear of blood from where he was laying that's leading toward the roof entryway where we just stepped from.

"Those bastards might have him." Ryan points out.

"That's what he meant when he said he didn't want to kill anyone else." I grit my teeth.

Ryan spits in the snow. "Well shit, kid. I don't think we have a choice but to go to the office."

Once more we hear crackling and the intercom of the side of the building screeched.

"What the fuck are they doing? They are going to draw attention to those things that may be in the city." Julia hissed out.

"By now you've probably noticed your other friends are missing." The man from before speaks, his voice echoing in the parking lot below loud enough we can hear it from up here.

"Like I said, the clock is ticking." He says, and I can hear a trace of a smile in his voice seconds before I hear Zeke scream.

"No!" I shout, even though I know they can't hear my protests. Zeke's already hurt. He's been through enough! I need to save him. No, I have to. I owe him so much for the day he saved me and Ivan.

There's a raspy chuckle that follows and my stomach drops. "Oh yeah, everyone was quick to give names of who you're close to. His name's Zeke right? Your best friend since elementary school?"

Ryan's watching me, but I can't stop shaking, my anger is getting the best of me.

"I have to thank Jake, I kinda like that he's like the little leader in Lord Of The Flies. You know how that ends right?"

I swallow at his words. Last year we had to read that book in literature.

It tells a story of a group of British boys who are stranded on a deserted island after their plane is shot down during a war. The boys try to create a civilized society, but they soon descend into savagery and violence as they struggle for power and survival.

So I know what he's trying to tell me. We are facing the main theme of the novel. Mortality and the loss of innocence.

I remember at the end of the book, the boys didn't realize who they were anymore. They killed people, and broke down crying once they realized what they had done.

"I'll give you five more minutes. Meet me in room 322. The rest of your class will be waiting there."

The intercom goes off again and I don't wait for Ryan to tell me what to do, or Rose to try to stop me from doing something stupid.

I run back to the stairwell and descend the stairs faster than I realize. I don't know how I did it, and I don't care, I just keep running with my legs burning in protest.

Lungs hurting and my head spinning, I finally stop at Room 322, my shoes screeching on the linoleum floor as I slam into the door and throw it open.

Our classmates are sitting in desks looking frightened. Jake is pacing as usual, and Zeke isn't here. He must still be with them.

"You've got us into some bullshit!" Jake spits out. "First your fucking murderous mother, then your fathers workplace starts the end of the god damn world, and now there's men here looking for you and threatening all our lives."

He jabs his fingers at my chest and I backhand him so hard his head jars to the side. "I didn't ask for this shit!"

I yell and shove him until he lands harshly in the desk. The other students stand up. Just as I feared. He's the leader. They're following him now.

"Settle down." I hear the cold voice of the man from the intercom, but this time in the flesh. In person.

Everyone falls quiet and I slowly turn around.