Being a decapitated head had its disadvantages. Sure, it made you a smaller target, but it didn't help much with your mobility. Nick could only wait on a edge of the teacher's desk in an abandoned classroom, anxiously turning his eyes from side to side as he pondered what sort of nightmarish creatures Juliet must have been fighting somewhere else in the school. She had promised she would be back as soon as she cleared a path to safety.

Where IS she?

The lack of electricity in San Romero High had stopped the lonely clock on the classroom wall, but he was still able to guess hours had passed by looking toward the windows. The sun had set some time ago, and now the sky was black and full of stars.

"Braaaains..."

He jumped on the base of his chin when he suddenly heard distant moaning coming from the hallway outside. The sound of a single pair of sneakers shambling toward the classroom in uneven steps grew louder as the voice become more recognizable.

"Where are you hiding, Nick? I totally need your braaaains~."

Nick's expression changed from fright to confusion once he realized the moaning was in Juliet's always spirited tone. The source of the noise stopped just in front of the wooden classroom door before fumbling with the knob for a few seconds and then flinging it open. Her signature chainsaw was missing, but she burst with joy upon seeing Nick was still waiting for her.

"There you are!"

While she still had her familiar personality, this was not exactly the same lively Juliet who had left him behind for safe keeping. If anything, this Juliet looked rather dead. Her skin had changed to a light blue. Her right iris had lost most of its color, leaving a milky off-white ring around the pupil. One of the straps of her cheerleading tank top was torn away to reveal a rough spot where something had been gnawing on her shoulder. Lighter bite marks dotted her sleeveless arms. The same types of marks were present on the side of her midriff, just where her hip began to curve. Her miniskirt now sported an unintended slit on the same side, and her stockings had been reduced to shreds. The exposed parts of her legs were covered with scratches from being dragged to the ground by dozens of bony fingers, and more bite marks highlighted where a random zombie or two had made an appetizer out of her ankles and thighs. Oddly enough, the braids in her pigtails were still perfectly in place.

Upon realizing his girlfriend had been ravaged by the plague and was now a member of Swan's undead army, Nick only had one thing to say.

"Oh fuck."

Juliet cheerfully lurched closer until she was able to lift Nick off the desk, holding him between her arms and her cushioned bust. A pouty look appeared in her mismatched eyes as she spoke.

"I guess trying to get through the gym all Rambo like that was a bad idea, huh?"

Her damp forehead furrowed in concern as her purple lips formed a frown.

"Whose plan was it, anyway? I had this really bad fever after I was bitten, and everything before that is just kind of a blur."

Nick answered her inquiry in a nervous stutter. He would have had a guilty conscience if he weren't overwhelmed by his current situation.

"Mi-... mine?"

Juliet succumbed to a small fit of giggling as her expression changed back into a loving smile.

"That's okay. Everyone makes mistakes, and you know I can never stay mad at you for long. I bet I'll feel even better once I get something to eat."

She rolled him into the crook of one arm and used her opposite hand to brush her fingertips through his hair, briefly putting his thoughts at ease. This changed when he noticed she was subtly licking her lips each time she caressed his scalp. His eyes went wide when her stomach let out an impatient growl.

"Juliet, wait a minute! Can't we talk about this?"

She carefully lifted him in both of her hands so he could be at her eye level. She spoke after giving his forehead a lukewarm kiss and playfully winking.

"Don't worry, baby. I read somewhere when a zombie eats someone's brains, they get to absorb their memories and stuff. We'll be together forever just like we always wanted."

Nick could do nothing as she tilted him forward and positioned the top of his head in front of her mouth. When she bit down, she crunched into his skull as if it were an oversized lollipop.