Yellow Tape around this Animal

Chapter 2

Gracie's Point of View

"Margo, calm down it's going to be fine," I say to Margo as we pull into a hotel parking lot.

"Gracie Lewis!" Margo screams, "do you not understand that we almost just died by some crazy guy and now the world is being taken over by fucking cannibals!" I stop and look at her.

"Margo, please breath, we will get through this, we just need to stay strong, okay?" I tell her and she sighs.

"I will try," she says and climbs out of Jeremy's car. I follow her out of the car and into the hotel room that DJ got into since the whole place went abandoned. I sit on the bed while Gavin paces around the room and DJ and Jeremy stand in the doorway to guard the room just in case any funny business occurs.

"This can't be happening," Zayne cries from the top of the bed. "I just want to go home and see Rocky and my parents," she says stuffing her face into a pillow to hide the tears. I watch Margo rub her back hug her.

"Zyn, it's going to be okay," Avery says from the other side of the room where her, Brycelyn, Will and Gage are.

"I just want to go home and wake up from this nightmare," she cries and Margo begins to cry with her.

"I do too Zayne, but we have to stay put," Will says, "the radio broadcast to stay indoors and not to outside, we already broke that rule we just need to stay put till further notice," he tells her.

"I swear it'll be fine Zayne," I tell her and she lies back down.

"I don't know how all of you are staying so positive about this knowing what is going to happen," Zayne says leaping up. "We are going to die, whether that being staying up in this room or one of those monsters," she says and cries harder. I watch Jeremy and DJ look over from the doorway and sigh. Jeremy walks away from the door towards Zayne and hugs her.

"It's going to be fine, okay," he says. She shakes him off.

"You can't be positive about that, we could easily be dead this time tomorrow," she yells and I watch everyone just look at the ground.

"Zayne, we just need to trust our guts right now and hope that everything will be fine," Gavin says once he stops pacing.

"Zayne, just try to sleep please, it might help to calm your nerves," Brycelyn says not looking up from the ground.

"I don't know how y'all are so calm about this situation!" Zayne says sitting on the bed and laying down before closing her eyes. I stand up and walk out the door and stand against the railing.

"That might not be safe," Gavin says coming next to me putting his arm around my waist. I sigh and shake my head.

"I'll be fine, we'll see and hear anything coming our way," I tell him and he nods.

"I mean something or someone could sneak up on us," he says. "And if we're ambushed, we will not be ready at all," he tells me and I sigh.

"We can't think like that," I tell him. "We have to have some hope that this infection will pass and we will not have to deal with this anymore," I add. He shrugs his shoulders and is about to say something when DJ finally walks through the doors and stands next to Gavin.

"So," he begins, "how do you guys feel about all of this?" I look at Gavin who shrugs.

"It's crazy," he says, "its just all a giant dream to me," he adds.

DJ nods, "I agree with you there," he tells us. "I'm just in a lot of shock about the whole thing."

"It could always get better," I butt in, "this could all go away in a few days," i say trying to put a positive spin on everything.

Gavin opens his mouth to say something, but it is interrupted by Jeremy grabbing shirt collar and pulling him back. "Guys," he says pulling all of us down to the floor with him.

"Jesus," Gavin snaps at him, "what the fuck was that for?" Jeremy puts his pointer finger up to his mouth to shush Gavin and points to the left of us. A group of those drunk people we saw at the playground are coming out from the trees.

"Shit," DJ whispers and silently backs into the room to warn everyone.

"Stay absolutely quiet," Jeremy whispers as we crawl back into the hotel room. It seems like a century as we crawl backwards into the room and I feel the disgusting carpet floor against the palms of my hands again. I stand up and see everyone gathered in silence.

"We might need to get out of here," Gage says and everyone looks at him.

"No shit, Gage," Will says to him and Gage takes a seat back on the floor to attempt to get some service on his phone to let his parents know he is okay.

"Gage seriously?" I say, "this really is not the time to be doing that," I tell him and he looks up at me. One of the first times that has happened because he is over 6 feet tall, while I'm over here being somewhere over 5 feet.

"Gracie," Gavin says coming over from the window, "we do not need to be picking fights right now," he says.

"I'm not picking a fight," I say to him glancing over at Gage who clearly stopped caring at this point. "I'm just telling him we have much bigger things to worry about," I tell Gavin looking back at Gage every so often.

"Still," Gavin begins.

"Guys, not now," DJ says from the window. "Look," he says opening the window enough for the rest of us to see. Down below in the grass the drunk people walk along the grass confused, but clearly after something.

"What are they doing?" Margo whispers from DJ's side.

"I have no clue," DJ whispers back as those "people" continue to follow go along the bottom floor of the hotel.

"We have to get out of here," Brycelyn says reaching for the doorknob.

"B, no!" Zayne screams. Which was a god awful decision.

"Shit," DJ says and I look out the window and those things look up at us.

"Oh fuck," Gavin whispers and we all stand completely still. All you can hear is the shuffling of their feet as they head towards one of the staircases.

"We now really have to get out of here," Brycelyn says backing away from the only exit.

"We just need to dip," DJ says walking towards the dresser. "Gavin give me a hand," he says as he begins to tip over the chair.

"What the hell are y'all doing?" Margo asks.

"Breaking the leg off of the chair," DJ says trying to break off the leg. He starts stomping on the leg of the chair when it finally gives in and breaks off. I look out the window and the people are no longer in sight.

"Let's go," I say and Brycelyn swings open the door and DJ rushes out with Gavin at his side. I follow with everyone else not too far behind me.

"Get to the cars," Will shouts from the back.I quickly look behind me and there is the group of those people chasing us.

"Run!" I scream as fly down the stairs into the parking lot. I rush over to Jeremy's car and pile inside as he starts the engine and drives out of the lot with Will not too far behind him.