RIM OF THE WORLD | Gabriel

chapter three

"Was that an alien!" Dariush screamed as we sprinted for the mess hall. I shrugged, pushing my legs to move faster as I let go of Gabriel's hand and flung open the doors of the building. "Let's go! Let's go!"

I stood in the doorway and watched as Alex slowed down and turned around. "Alex!" I screamed, making Gabriel turning around and curse, running out to get him. "It has a dog!" Alex screamed just as Gabriel reached him, "Alex! Come on!" He shouted, grabbing his arm and running back.

I follow them inside, slamming the doors shut and running into the cafeteria where the others are. "Hey, wait! Wait, wait!" Dariush pants, stopping. "How big was it?" He asks, "was it, like, puppy-size? 'Cause maybe it just wants to cuddle."

I stop and turn around giving me a weird look, "you really think it's going to want to cuddle when that other thing just killed that woman!" I shouted, looking at him in disbelief. A loud growl interrupts us as the doors burst open, "Hell, no! We have to go!" Dariush screams as soon as the shadow of the alien appears.

I groan as I push myself to run into the kitchen, my limbs aching with every step. I throw myself to the floor next to ZhenZhen and Gabriel as Alex and Dariush make their way inside. "Are you okay?" Gabriel whispers, grabbing my arm and pulling me closer to him. I nod my head and place my head in the crook of his neck, breathing heavily.

"Alex! Alex, come here!" Gabriel whispers, motioning for Alex to join us. Alex spots us and runs over, sliding across the floor.

"Dariush. Come here! Dariush, come here!" Gabriel whispers again but before Dariush can reach us, the doors of the kitchen swing open and Dariush runs to hind behind a shelf. The alien dog growls and walks forward slowly,  nearing the table where we're hiding.

I push Gabriel slightly and motion him to move to the other side so the alien doesn't find us. I hold my breath as the footsteps of the alien gets closer. I squeeze my eyes shut and lean back, but a warm, large hand finds mine and gives it a reassuring squeeze. Gabriel.

I curse lowly when a loud crash is heard near where Dariush is, making the alien dog snarl and run in that direction. "Oh, fucking shit." I curse when I hear Dariush's screams. I stand up quickly, pulling Gabriel up with me as we watch Dariush climb through something and the alien follows him.

The four of us made our way to the back of the room by the freezer, "Dariush come on!" Gabriel shouts. "I'm coming!" He shouts back, running towards us with the alien hot on his heels. We all duck as the alien jumps towards us and ends up flying into the freezer. ZhenZhen quickly pulls the metal bar that locks it and we all stand up, already climbing through a window.

I stopped when I realized Alex wasn't with us, he was leaning against the wall, panting heavily. "Alex come on!" I shouted. He looked at me and nodded, but ended up screaming when the other alien creature broke through the wall.

Alex and I sprinted after ZhenZhen who was running towards the toilet. I looked back and saw Gabriel and Dariush crawling under the stairs. I yelped when I was harshly pulled back into the toilet and the door slammed behind me.

"Sorry," Alex whispers as he and ZhenZhen peered through the cracks of the door. I crouched and did the same, my heart clenching when I saw the alien dog near Gabriel and Dariush.

Alex turned around, pressing his back to the door. "He's coming, we have to hide please." He whimpered. "Shh! Shh!" ZhenZhen slapped her hand over his mouth as we backed away from the door.

I looked around as Alex continued to freak out, I noticed ZhenZhen looking down the toilets. She looked at me and I nodded. I got up and pulled it open. "That's fecal suicide! No!" Alex protested.