It was now nightfall. The moon cast its light on the broken window as the night sky fell deadly silent, save for a few gusts of wind blowing over. No cars going by, no people talking to one another. It had been weeks, but Ryan had never gotten used to the strange quiet that befell the evenings. It felt almost peaceful and serene, like he could finally relax and get a good night's sleep.

  Too bad he was still sleeping on the cold, hard floor. The soft groans from outside quickly reminded him of what they'd lost and the situation he and his buddies found themselves in. He could never truly find peace, not when he didn't feel the slightest bit safe despite the security breach from outside the school walls.

  The group had said their goodnights and gone their separate ways. The boys set blockades for the windows before taking their sleeping bags and placing them down on the floor. While getting comfortable, Taylor excused himself and left for the restroom, leaving Ryan and Mike alone. They both decided it would be best to wait for him to come back before blocking the door as well.

  The room fell silent as Ryan sat up in his sleeping bag. There was no way it could wait until tomorrow. It would’ve eaten him up alive all throughout the night. He had to get the first chance available to talk about it to someone, and he knew just the one. This was the best chance to do so, but he had to hurry.

  He glanced over to Mike, who was reading a book while lying down and called out to him. Once he got Mike's attention, Ryan explained his thoughts about earlier in the day to him.

  “Huh? What makes you think that?”

  “Well, when I brought it up, you seemed upset by that, so I kind of stopped myself.” Ryan replied. “Although you hadn’t said anything, and I didn’t want to assume, so I thought about bringing it up now...”

  “Well, I appreciate you not jumping to conclusions, for once.” Mike closed the book and set it aside. “I don’t hate the idea, to be honest. I can see where you’re coming from...”

  Ryan’s eyes widened as he leaned forward. “Then does that mean...?”

  “Hold up. I never said I’d be on board with it, either.” Mike straightened himself and sat up as well. “Like I said, we’re safe here. I don’t see a reason to leave a fortified base of operations and risk putting our lives in danger.”

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  “Then how do you except us to escape this nightmare?”

  “We can just wait it out. I’m sure word of this got out somewhere. If we stay here in one spot, then it’d be easier for a rescue party to find us and get us out of here.”

  Ryan looked down at his hands, then at the horizon outside the windows. He had a point. Just the other day, Ryan had to fend for himself and struggle just to find food and shelter. Somebody he could talk to that wouldn’t try to eat his brains.

  As long as he stayed confined in the one building, he wouldn’t have to worry about his old work-filled life or danger again. Right? So then, why did he want to go back to that life he previously hated so much?

  He still had people he cared about and didn’t know of their fates. They all did. There could be other people out there, struggling, in a similar predicament he’d been in, or worse.

  “How much longer can you guys wait?” Ryan asked.

  “Excuse me?”

  “You saw the map. We went over it a couple of times. We cleaned out a lot of their supplies for ourselves. There’s not a lot left. Not to mention, how much longer do you think this building can sustain itself? Or what will happen if the electricity stops working? We lost the water supply system here. It’s possible.” Mike opened his mouth, but words wouldn’t come out, no matter how hard he tried. So, he continued listening to him. “Listen, I’m willing to wait this out with you. I like being here. But we got to at least consider our options, and prepare for the worst, just in case. We don’t know when or if a rescue party will even arrive here on time.” He waited for Mike to answer.

  Mike clenched his fists and stared at the door before replying. “Look, I understand that. Believe me, I do. But I don’t want to put everyone’s lives on the line and take them out of their safe space, especially when they don’t want to leave. And for the record, I’m not the one who’s against the idea.”

  “Huh?”

  “The vote has to be unanimous. That’s how we do things around here.”

  “Whoa, hold up, who’s against the idea of—?”

  “Oh? I thought you already knew the answer to that.”

  I do?

  “Hey guys, I’m back!” Taylor exclaimed, entering the room and closing the door behind him. “Did I miss anything?”

  “No, not really.” Mike said, letting out a yawn. “What took you so long?”

  He chuckled lightly. “I didn’t think I was gone for that long...”

  “Well, it sure felt like it to me.”

  “Getting tired would do that to you,” Ryan pointed out. The time for that topic was long over now. “So, how about we board up the door and turn off the lights?”