𝕯𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖘𝖍𝖔𝖙

Over the Horizon

Nathan woke up, blinking sleepily at the digital clock by his bedside. It flashed 7:03 AM in bold red numbers. He stretched, rubbed his eyes, and blinked again, realizing what he was seeing. Sunlight. Real, actual sunlight was pouring in through the window.

For the first time in days, the sky wasn't painted with the blood moon's eerie red glow. He jumped out of bed, throwing open the door, his heart racing with excitement. "Lorenzo!" he shouted, banging on his friend's door.

No answer.

"Fine," he muttered. He pushed the door open, grabbed an eraser from a nearby desk, and hurled it at Lorenzo's sleeping form.

Lorenzo groaned, covering his head with the blanket. "What the hell, Nathan!?" Nathan was practically bouncing with excitement. "Dude! The sun is rising!"

Lorenzo sat up, rubbing his eyes, his face scrunched in disbelief. "Wait, what?" "I said, the sun is rising!" Nathan repeated, this time practically dragging Lorenzo out of bed.

Lorenzo's eyes widened as he pulled on his hoodie. He dashed past Nathan and down the hall, waking Kaylee as he went. "It's real— the sun's finally out!"

Gian was fast asleep on the couch in Kaylin's wing, but Nathan and Lorenzo burst into the room, shaking him awake. "Get up, Gian! The sun's finally here!" Nathan said, half-laughing, half-shouting.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Gian muttered, rubbing his eyes. "The sun, dumbass!" Lorenzo exclaimed. "It's finally rising. You gotta see this."

Kaylin emerged from her room, looking confused. "What's going on? Why is everyone shouting?" Nathan pointed at Gian. "Tell her, Gian." Gian yawned, stretching. "Yeah, yeah... sun's back or whatever. Can we go back to sleep now?"

But no one was going back to sleep. They scrambled up to the rooftop, just in time to see the sun peeking over the horizon.

The group gathered in silence, shielding their eyes as the warm light spread over the city. It felt like a forgotten warmth, something they hadn't realized they missed until it was gone.

Nathan stared out at the skyline, his heart swelling. "Wow..."

"Yeah, wow," Kaylee echoed, resting her head on Lorenzo's shoulder. The air was crisp, almost refreshing, after days of the blood moon's oppressive red light.

After a few quiet moments, Julian broke the silence. "Alright, people, let's get back to planning. We've got a lot to figure out."

They made their way downstairs, back to the meeting room on the third floor. Everyone settled into their usual spots around the table, but the renewed energy from the sun's appearance carried over into their planning session.

Nathan leaned forward. "Julian, I think we should split into two groups today. I know a couple of good spots—Target and Walmart. 

Julian nodded. "Sounds good.." "Walmart is an hour's drive away," Lorenzo added. They'd head to Target and then Walmart.

Emma was already revving the engine of the SUV by the time everyone else had piled into the car. "Let's get this over with," she muttered, eyes focused ahead.

Gian scrambled into the back seat, still half-asleep. "Is this necessary?"

"Yes!" Emma snapped. "Now sit down, put your seatbelt on, and for the love of God, don't slow us down." Kaylee glanced at Gian's bat, which was covered in nails and barbed wire. "What's with the bat?"

"It looks cool," Gian grinned. "Cool? Dude, that thing belongs in a post-apocalyptic movie," Drake said, adjusting his sniper rifle.

Russell chuckled, looking out the window. "Gian, you're like a walking TWD character."