Chapter 19: Start of Survival Class

Ouch?

"Argh! Wake up, idiot! Hold my hand!"

I looked up and saw Azriel pulling my hair. "Stop! It hurts!" I said, reaching for his hand. He really is weak; he couldn't even pull me up.

"Aaah! You're so heavy! You should lose some weight, BJ!"

"I'm not heavy!" I shouted. Uncle Karlo quickly helped us, pulling me up. I ended up on top of Azriel.

"My arms hurt."

"Shut up!" I stood up, feeling embarrassed.

"Are you okay, BJ? You're not hurt, right?!" Uncle Karlo asked, spinning me around to check.

"I'm fine, Uncle Karlo. I'm sorry," I said, looking down.

"You almost gave me a heart attack! If you want to see outside, just ask me next time," Uncle Karlo said, hugging me.

"I'm really sorry, Uncle Karlo."

"You should thank Az. If he hadn't caught you, something bad could have happened," Uncle Karlo said, pointing to Azriel.

I looked at Azriel, who was holding his arms. Should I thank him? But I don't like him!

"Come on, BJ, say it," Uncle Karlo urged.

"He should apologize first! He pulled my hair!" I hugged Uncle Karlo.

"At least I caught you, so you should thank me," Azriel said with a smirk. I looked away.

I want to thank him, but I just can't say it.

"You should thank whoever helped you, BJ," Uncle Karlo said. I held onto his shirt tightly.

"I'll be waiting," Azriel said, walking away. I wanted to call out, but I couldn't.

"Why are you mad at Az, BJ?" Uncle Karlo asked.

"I'm not!" I shouted.

"Come on, BJ, you can't fool me. If Az hadn't caught you, you could have fallen," Uncle Karlo said, pointing down.

I gulped, feeling scared. I was really thankful Az caught me.

"I don't know, Uncle Karlo. I just can't thank him," I said, looking down.

"That's okay, but promise me you'll thank him someday since he saved you. His arms must hurt," Uncle Karlo said.

"Hmp! I'm not that heavy!" I replied, noticing Uncle Karlo struggling to carry me.

"To be honest, you are pretty heavy," he admitted, putting me down.

"Am I really that heavy?!" I asked. I'm not even overweight!

"Is that why you guys don't want to carry me?!" Uncle Karlo nodded, scratching his head.

"No!"

"How heavy am I?! I'm not like Pane, right?!"

Pane is one of the chubby kids. Uncle Karlo looked at me apologetically.

"No way! I'm not the same as him?! Waaah!"

"Shh, I won't tell Bea and Tin about tonight. Just go back and don't do this again without someone with you, okay?" I nodded, feeling tearful, and he patted my head.

"It's okay, BJ. Being a little heavy isn't so bad."

"No! I don't want to be like Pane! Huhuhu, I'm slim, but why do I feel heavy?!"

I ran and ran. Huhuhu, I'm going to lose weight! I won't eat for a whole week!

Waaah! I hate you, Az!!!

Two weeks later...

"Baby girl, you shouldn't do that to your body," Mom said, feeding me.

"But Mom! I don't want to be fat like Pane! Huhuu!" I cried, coughing.

Dad helped me drink water. "You aren't fat like him, BJ. Not eating for a week won't help you lose weight," he said.

"Here, eat a lot. It's our fault for feeding you too much," Mom said.

"Fat! Huhuhuu, Mom, I want to be slim!"

"Yes, yes, eat vegetables and stop eating sweets. You need to catch up in class," Mom said as she fed me.

I will stop eating sweets, but it's hard! One week ago, all kids six and older started classes. Mom and Dad were helping me get strong to keep up. It took a week to get our classroom ready, but I collapsed before it started and was in bed for a week. Huhuu.

"I'm fine now, Mom! Can I go to class today?" I asked, but they said no.

"Tomorrow, so sleep and rest," they replied.

I ate a lot, but I know I've lost some weight. I need to control what I eat. We went to bed early, and I woke up early to get ready.

Mom gave me a book and a pen. Since Uncle Peter and the others had only a few notebooks, they had to share fairly.

"We're glad that Lycca teaches you kids to read and write early," Mom said, fixing my hair.

I was so excited! A week ago, Uncle King and the other leaders made a hole in the wall, connecting to an abandoned building. They turned it into our classroom. Dad held my hand, and we went outside the warehouse where the other kids were waiting.

"BJ! Are you okay now?" Reed ran to me.

"Of course! Don't ask, okay?!" I replied, and he nodded, scared. Good.

"BJ! Can you really attend classes now?"

"Can you walk?"

"We heard you were sick."

They surrounded me, and I clenched my fists. I didn't want to talk about it.

"I'M FINE! So let's go! And don't ask about this anymore, understand?!" I shouted, and they stepped back, nodding.

Suddenly, Dad pinched my cheek. "Don't be bossy, BJ. They're just worried about you."

"Hmp! They're being annoying," I pouted. Dad looked at me, so I sighed.

"I'm sorry, and thank you for worrying, but I'm really fine now," I said, not looking at them. Then I saw Azriel looking at me, so I looked away and went to Thame.

"You're back, BJ!" Thame hugged me.

"It's so sad! Last week was so fun! But don't worry, I can give you my notes," Roseann said.

"Okay," I replied. Then Auntie Lycca and Uncle Kame came in and clapped their hands.

"Let's do a count, kids!"

"Yes, Teacher Lycca!" everyone shouted. I was confused.

"Teacher Lycca and Teacher Kame do this every time we start and finish class, just to make sure we're all here," Azriel whispered.

"I know!" I said, pouting. I already knew that!

We lined up, and I was last, with Azriel in front of me.

"20," Azriel counted, and everyone looked at me.

"2-21!" I shouted.

Wait, we're only 21?

"Okay, kids! Follow Teacher Lycca closely!" Teacher Kame clapped, and we lined up. Roseann, Zach, Az, Thame, and Reed were in front. My heart was racing! I couldn't wait to see our classroom!

My eyes widened; I thought the hallway they built was like a wall but it wasn't . It looked like it was made of metal, and we could clearly see the zombies in this hallway. There were guards standing by with guns, watching us as we walked. I noticed that none of my companions seemed scared.

"This is how you can understand what we'll be teaching," Teacher Kame said.

"Teacher, where are the other kids?" I asked, noticing how few of us there were.

"The leaders had a tough time figuring out how to teach all 603 of you, so they divided everyone into 30 groups of 20 kids each. Since there are only a few people who know a lot about the apocalypse and are willing to teach, each group has two teachers," he explained.

"Will there be a difference in our class compared to the others?" I asked.

"Yes, the older kids, those 13 and up, don't know much about the apocalypse. Only kids aged 12 to 13 are allowed to train outside, but don't worry; it will take a few months before they experience that," he replied.

"What about the kids who are 14 and older but haven't gone outside yet?" I asked.

"Those kids will also have classes, but they will be more advanced, They are in the separate groups and We're actually looking for their own building " Teacher Kame smiled.