Chapter 37: Camera
Miles said nothing in response. The man was too far to hold a conversation without breaking the rules.
But he’d likely seen the notification, judging by the looks Morgan kept throwing his way, at least.
It wasn’t new information atleast. Brandon had said it all before, back when he killed Mia’s friend
Chloe knelt over her ghoul to the side, shakily picking up the bat she’d dropped, a dazed look still on her face. Ryan, on the other hand, began walking back to Morgan, the only change in his demeanor being the resoluteness with which he gripped the bat.
Morgan walked back to the group, the two following behind him. His gaze was fixed directly on Miles.
Right before he could begin questioning, the sound of a phone ringing interrupted him.
Miles felt his pocket vibrate. Instinctively, his hand reached for it, then paused. He couldn’t touch it, not if he wanted to live.
He remembered what Henry had told him last night. To call first thing in the morning.
Although he couldn’t see the screen, he knew it had to be Henry on the other end. Yet he couldn’t even touch it.
The ringing seemed to last an eternity before cutting off. Then it started again. It rang three more times, the generic tone pressing against his chest like a boulder.
Finally, it stopped, the person on the other side giving up.
It wasn’t until then, Miles realized he was drenched in cold sweat. His hand still hovered above his pocket, twitching against the urge to check the phone.
"Are you alright?" Morgan asked, worry lacing his tone.
"Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine." Miles shook his head, wiping a hand over his face as he wrestled down the anxiety bubbling in his gut.
’Does he have any new info to tell me? Did something happen to them? Or maybe his wound grew worse?’
It was impossible to stop his thoughts from spiraling.
Morgan, seeing his predicament, decided now wasn’t the best time for questions. He turned to face the rest of the students.
"We need to start preparing."
---
An hour passed by rather quickly, during which Miles had finally been able to calm down, if only a little. There was nothing to be gained from panicking.
It was either he picked up his phone and died, or he found a way out of this hellhole. Only one of those options sounded appealing, so it was best to put all his efforts towards achieving it.
Worry still burned at the back of his mind, but he could at least focus on other things now.
Morgan had scrounged all the remaining food in the meantime, sharing it amongst them to at least boost their energy before the raid. Luckily, Miles didn’t need Chloe’s help this time, on account of his hands healing a bit overnight.
They were numb but didn’t actively hurt to move now. Miles still kept the bandages on, though, if only for the meager warmth they provided.
With the last of their food gone, Morgan had gone about the business of moving the ghouls into the storage room, joined by Ryan and, strangely enough, Mia.
After that, all that was left was packing up.
Some students, like Chloe, had brought their bags with them while fleeing the classrooms. Miles hadn’t. However, it wasn’t as though there was anything particularly useful in his.
Plus, there were enough bags lying around here that he didn’t even regret the choice.
He settled for a pink, flowery backpack with a small teddy bear hanging off its zipper. Purely for practicality, of course. It was the largest abandoned bag here.
With sunrise already long past now, and the door to the locker room open once again, there was a bit more light in the room.
Miles could feel the weird stares he was getting from his fellow students but didn’t bother explaining himself.
Rummaging through the bag, he could only find a few textbooks, a small camera, and one particularly bright pink decorated book.
A diary.
On it, a name was written in a stylized font, covered in glitter and stickers. Sophie.
It didn’t ring any bells. She was likely one of those who had followed Mr. Freeman back then, forgetting her bag in the process.
Miles dumped the books out, then hesitated a moment before leaving the camera and the diary inside.
’Might have some use later.’
How exactly? He had no idea, but it cost nothing to keep.
He stuffed two of the water bottles that Morgan had shared into the bag. He shoved a thermal blanket, and his semi dried hoodie inside, before finally zipping it shut.
Scanning the room, he found most of the others just about done with their preparations and gathering around Morgan.
Slinging the bag across his shoulder, he stood up to join them when, suddenly, his phone began ringing again.
Miles froze, his heart rate shooting up at the sound of the ringtone.
’Of course they wouldn’t give up after one try.’
It warmed his heart in the most agonizing way.
He forced himself to take deep breaths to calm down and wait out the ringing. It worked. Barely. He couldn’t even put the phone on silent to stop the torture, as that would amount to using the phone as well.
Still, he was able to wait out the call again, even as it rang twice more before stopping.
Miles tried his best not to imagine what was happening on the other side, the disappointment and fear they’d be feeling at the moment. It did little to help.
He sighed shakily, wiping the sweat off his forehead before walking towards Morgan again.
The vice-principal, framed by the light coming from the locker room, had a look of concern in his eyes. He stood near the room’s exit.
Miles ignored him, even as the man struggled between comforting or questioning him before eventually sighing.
He asked quietly,
"Are you ready?"
Miles simply nodded before walking towards the door, the crowd parting to form a path for him. He placed a palm on its handle.
’It’s time to get out of here.’
Then, he pushed it open, letting the cold wind rush back in.