p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"Chapter 1 /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI looked up jerking awake only to see everybody on the bus getting off. I rose and out of the corner of my eye saw the new girl what's-her-name sitting all alone. I hesitated for a moment hovering indecisively on whether I should ask her to come or not; she had after all earned a bit of my respect by being the only person from my class apart from me to confront the double-diamond black runs. Pulled out of my stupor I realized that everyone was already at the cheery chomper and were chugging glasses of some free drink./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI squinted at the sign it read /spanem style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua',serif;"'Carrot Man Veggie Juice! Put some fire in your belly!' /span/emspan lang="EN-US"I groaned but still headed to the door of the bus. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Smitty, you'll be staying here with me."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMr Taylor is barring my exit and I inwardly let out a groan. But I drawl "Mr. Taylor, you can't keep me on this bus, it's against my rights." His eyes squint in a leer./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I can and I will." He pulls a wry grin, the effect of which is lost when he sneezes violently into his handkerchief. "You lost all your rights with me when you deemed it necessary to buy vodka and cigarettes with a fake ID. Now sit down and shut up, and pray I don't give you this 'flu."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI throw my hands up in frustration and stomp back up the aisle. "I warned you, Mr. Taylor. Don't know what the school governors will think when they hear you wouldn't give me food. That's deprivation, that is." I threaten tugging my leather jacket./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Big word for you, Smitty." He jokes but I can make out doubt in his eyes. He puts on his disgusting fluoro skiing jacket and says "OK, I'll get you a sandwich. But do not move from this bus." He jabs his fat finger at me "Under any circumstances. Or there'll be hell to pay. Believe me, I am in no state to be trifled with." He sneezes again as if to prove his point./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThis rather than scaring me makes me feel pissed. Just as he gets off the bus I shout out. "Don't forget I'm allergic to nuts, sir! You wouldn't want my parents to sue if I drop down dead!" the door slams shut./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI storm back to my seat and try to sit still. The driver has put on some lame song and I can't bear it any more. "Oi, mate. Let us off for a bit, will you." I shout only for the driver to glare at me and reply "Sit down, lad. You heard what your teacher said." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI make my way to the front of the bus and say "Come on, geezer. Just want some fresh air."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Ha! Catch your death more like." The driver retorts. Just as I'm about to respond the driver says "Hey you, lassie! Toilets closed when the bus is stopped." I turn startled I had completely forgotten about new girl./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"But…" she says her cheeks turning a delightful shade of crimson. "Company policy! Use the facilities in the café."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"She lingers uncertain but before she moves I shout out hopping from one leg to the other "I need to go, too!" new girl frowns and I wanna undo what I just did. '/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Sit down! And you-" before he has time to complete what he is saying something slaps the windscreen. All three of us jump and the driver swears./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnother smack and this time we get to see a fat pink hand waggle away the snow from a patch of the window./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Damn kids! Clear off!" the driver shouts just as something slams into the bus and the driver bangs his head on the steering wheel. "All right, you asked for it! Stay here!" he shouts and then clomps down the steps./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I won't tell, Newbie. If you wanna go potty." I tease. She just gives me a snarky eye roll./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSuddenly the bus jerks forward violently, flinging us to the floor. I'm shocked but regain my senses and check if I'm hurt. After a moment I ask "You Ok?" she just replies "Yeah. What was that?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Dunno."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm already on my feet "We were hit." I leap over her and run to the back of the bus. I rub my hand across the windscreen "Can't see anything."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOut of the corner of my eye I see her get up and make her way to the seats beside me. I notice that she stumbles a bit and is clinging to the seats. My mind fills with worry for her./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'm going to look." I say and bound up to the door. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""No!" her voice rings out stopping me for a moment./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Someone could be hurt." I say touched by her concern for my wellbeing. "We should stay here until the driver comes back." She says biting her lip. I feel my heart start to race but say "What if the bus explodes because something crashed into us?" I say/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe blinks and says "Yeah. That so doesn't happen in real life."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Says who?" I say pulling a scream face at her. "What if the driver dude is stuck in the wreckage? I cold like totally save the day."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI jump down the steps to the door and freeze/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Whoa."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""What's wrong?" slowly I point to the pool of blood collecting on the white snow./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""What's that?" she asks totally clueless. I sigh and say "Nothing good."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanTogether we lean out and peer round the doorway. Suddenly I hear a screech and turn to see a figure running towards us. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""What the…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"My heart starts pounding and I run to the driver's seat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Move!" I say as I pull a lever and the door slams shut./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Hey!" she protests just as the thing appears at the door. "Open the door!" she shouts at me. My eyes widen and I say "Are you crazy?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Now!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"I don't move but she does, she scrabbles up the steps and hits the lever herself. The figure propels itself into the bus and screams "Shut the door."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm already on it and the door shuts. The figure lifts its face. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"It is none other than Malice strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"(Alice Hicks). /strongspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe looks creepy with mascara running down her face. I've never seen her not perfect before. But before I can think further on that 'Dead' she screams /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"'Everybody's dead!' /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI looked up jerking awake only to see everybody on the bus getting off. I rose and out of the corner of my eye saw the new girl what's-her-name sitting all alone. I hesitated for a moment hovering indecisively on whether I should ask her to come or not; she had after all earned a bit of my respect by being the only person from my class apart from me to confront the double-diamond black runs. Pulled out of my stupor I realized that everyone was already at the cheery chomper and were chugging glasses of some free drink./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI squinted at the sign it read /spanem style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua',serif;"'Carrot Man Veggie Juice! Put some fire in your belly!' /span/emspan lang="EN-US"I groaned but still headed to the door of the bus. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Smitty, you'll be staying here with me."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMr Taylor is barring my exit and I inwardly let out a groan. But I drawl "Mr. Taylor, you can't keep me on this bus, it's against my rights." His eyes squint in a leer./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I can and I will." He pulls a wry grin, the effect of which is lost when he sneezes violently into his handkerchief. "You lost all your rights with me when you deemed it necessary to buy vodka and cigarettes with a fake ID. Now sit down and shut up, and pray I don't give you this 'flu."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI throw my hands up in frustration and stomp back up the aisle. "I warned you, Mr. Taylor. Don't know what the school governors will think when they hear you wouldn't give me food. That's deprivation, that is." I threaten tugging my leather jacket./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Big word for you, Smitty." He jokes but I can make out doubt in his eyes. He puts on his disgusting fluoro skiing jacket and says "OK, I'll get you a sandwich. But do not move from this bus." He jabs his fat finger at me "Under any circumstances. Or there'll be hell to pay. Believe me, I am in no state to be trifled with." He sneezes again as if to prove his point./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThis rather than scaring me makes me feel pissed. Just as he gets off the bus I shout out. "Don't forget I'm allergic to nuts, sir! You wouldn't want my parents to sue if I drop down dead!" the door slams shut./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI storm back to my seat and try to sit still. The driver has put on some lame song and I can't bear it any more. "Oi, mate. Let us off for a bit, will you." I shout only for the driver to glare at me and reply "Sit down, lad. You heard what your teacher said." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI make my way to the front of the bus and say "Come on, geezer. Just want some fresh air."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Ha! Catch your death more like." The driver retorts. Just as I'm about to respond the driver says "Hey you, lassie! Toilets closed when the bus is stopped." I turn startled I had completely forgotten about new girl./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"But…" she says her cheeks turning a delightful shade of crimson. "Company policy! Use the facilities in the café."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"She lingers uncertain but before she moves I shout out hopping from one leg to the other "I need to go, too!" new girl frowns and I wanna undo what I just did. '/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Sit down! And you-" before he has time to complete what he is saying something slaps the windscreen. All three of us jump and the driver swears./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnother smack and this time we get to see a fat pink hand waggle away the snow from a patch of the window./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Damn kids! Clear off!" the driver shouts just as something slams into the bus and the driver bangs his head on the steering wheel. "All right, you asked for it! Stay here!" he shouts and then clomps down the steps./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I won't tell, Newbie. If you wanna go potty." I tease. She just gives me a snarky eye roll./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSuddenly the bus jerks forward violently, flinging us to the floor. I'm shocked but regain my senses and check if I'm hurt. After a moment I ask "You Ok?" she just replies "Yeah. What was that?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Dunno."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm already on my feet "We were hit." I leap over her and run to the back of the bus. I rub my hand across the windscreen "Can't see anything."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOut of the corner of my eye I see her get up and make her way to the seats beside me. I notice that she stumbles a bit and is clinging to the seats. My mind fills with worry for her./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'm going to look." I say and bound up to the door. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""No!" her voice rings out stopping me for a moment./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Someone could be hurt." I say touched by her concern for my wellbeing. "We should stay here until the driver comes back." She says biting her lip. I feel my heart start to race but say "What if the bus explodes because something crashed into us?" I say/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe blinks and says "Yeah. That so doesn't happen in real life."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Says who?" I say pulling a scream face at her. "What if the driver dude is stuck in the wreckage? I cold like totally save the day."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI jump down the steps to the door and freeze/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Whoa."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""What's wrong?" slowly I point to the pool of blood collecting on the white snow./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""What's that?" she asks totally clueless. I sigh and say "Nothing good."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanTogether we lean out and peer round the doorway. Suddenly I hear a screech and turn to see a figure running towards us. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""What the…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"My heart starts pounding and I run to the driver's seat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Move!" I say as I pull a lever and the door slams shut./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Hey!" she protests just as the thing appears at the door. "Open the door!" she shouts at me. My eyes widen and I say "Are you crazy?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US""Now!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"I don't move but she does, she scrabbles up the steps and hits the lever herself. The figure propels itself into the bus and screams "Shut the door."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm already on it and the door shuts. The figure lifts its face. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"It is none other than Malice strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"(Alice Hicks). /strongspan style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe looks creepy with mascara running down her face. I've never seen her not perfect before. But before I can think further on that 'Dead' she screams /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-US"'Everybody's dead!' /span/p