Zombie Guy

Chapter 14: We meet again

After days of trying and failing to spot Linda from the trees, Jaime and I were just about ready to throw the whole "wait and see" approach out the window. I wanted to see Linda—I needed to see her—and if lurking around outside wasn't going to cut it, well, then there was only one option left.

"We sneak in," Jaime said, her eyes bright with excitement. "We get close enough to make sure she's in there, then you go in, grab her attention, and—bam! Quick reunion before anyone notices."

I raised an eyebrow, crossing my arms. "So that's the whole plan? Sneak in? It's not like we're invisible."

Jaime grinned, unzipping her bag and pulling out a pair of white lab coats, grinning like she'd just hit the jackpot. "Not invisible, but... blendable."

She slipped into one of the lab coats, buttoning it up and adjusting the collar with a smirk. "We look the part, no one will look twice."

I stared at her, half-impressed, half-wary. "And where did you get those?"

"Thrift store, my friend," she said with a wink. "People donate the weirdest things."

Before I could protest, she tossed the other coat my way. "Now, just look like you belong here. And remember: Act natural."

With Jaime leading the way, we walked up to the entrance. I kept my head down, trying to look like any regular staff member going about his day, while Jaime strolled beside me like she'd been working at the place for years. Somehow, no one stopped us as we made our way inside, though my heart was racing so fast I could feel it in my throat.

Once we were in, we slipped into an empty hallway, where I finally had a moment to catch my breath. "It has to be lunchtime since here is practically no one in the halls."

Jaime glanced around, then nodded to the left. "Break room's this way, right?"

"Yeah," I whispered, my nerves buzzing. "That's where we usually sat during lunch."

We crept down the hallway, ducking into doorways whenever someone passed by. My stomach twisted with nerves, but Jaime kept shooting me encouraging looks, whispering, "Keep going!" every time I looked like I was about to bail.

Finally, we reached the break room door. I peeked in, and there she was—Linda, sitting alone at our usual spot, staring at her coffee cup. My heart twisted at the sight, both painful and relieving at once. She looked the same as ever, but there was a sadness in her face that I couldn't stand to see.

Taking a deep breath, I slipped inside, careful to keep my voice low. "Linda."

She looked up, her eyes widening as if she'd seen a ghost. "Kevin?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her hand covered her mouth, her eyes brimming with shock and... relief?

I gave her a shaky smile, gesturing for her to follow me. "Come on. We need to talk—somewhere quieter."

She nodded, stunned, and stood up, glancing around to make sure no one was watching as we snuck down the hallway together. I led her to an empty storage room, closing the door behind us.

The second the door clicked shut, Linda turned to me, her face pale with shock. "Kevin... how...? They told me you were... that you'd died." Her voice broke on the last word, and I could see the hurt and confusion in her eyes.

I took a breath, struggling to find the right words. "It's... complicated. I didn't die, obviously. But things went wrong with the treatment, Linda. I had to get out, and they didn't exactly let me go willingly." I left out the whole part about the zombie transformation, figuring that was a conversation for later.