Author's note: Sorry about the screw up when I first posted this chapter. Class was dismissed as I was uploading the story, and i must have accidentally chosen the wrong one. Again, sorry, but its fixed now!
Chapter 12
Not the Only One
Trent was running through the back alleys. He had finally gotten away from the monsters that were chasing him, but that didn't mean that Gwen was safe. If she was in trouble, he needed to get there in time for her.
The guitar player saw a building with its lights on. A bright neon sign hung over the entrance.
"J's bar…"
He couldn't see anyone inside, but there had to be someone there. At least, he had hoped so.
Trent opened the door, surprised that it wasn't locked. Inside were shelves of alcohol bottles, all lined up neatly behind the counter. By the big front windows were big, tall barrels that had been used as tables. The ceiling fan overhead spun slowly, casting a shadow on the walls. Trent clutched his broomstick.
"Hello? Anyone here?" he said in a cautious voice.
There wasn't any reply.
Trent tried again, this time a bit louder.
Nothing.
He took a seat at the bar and sighed.
"Looks like no one's here…"
He leaned his pole on the side of the bar and rested his head in his hands.
There came a sound from a door behind the bar. It sounded like someone quickly running down a flight of stairs. Then there was a loud thud, and it sounded as if someone had tripped and started rolling uncontrollably down the remaining stairs. Trent quickly grabbed his broomstick and jumped out of his seat. The door swung open. Trent held out his pole, ready to attack. A figure stepped out, and the musician swung his broomstick at it. He stopped short, just a couple of inches from the figure's face.
"Whoa! Dude, what the?!"
"Tyler?"
The Jock in the red track gear was looking at Trent, a lighter held tightly in his right hand.
"Trent?"
Trent pulled back his broomstick and smiled.
"Man, its good to see you. Its great to finally find someone out here."
"I know! I've been holed up in here for a while now. I hoped that the lights would, you know, get people to show up."
The two talked for several minutes. Tyler mentioned that he had been searching through the bar for anything useful, and had also been preparing an escape route in case something were to happen.
"That's pretty smart, man. Good thinking."
"Yeah, I know" the jock said, taking in a deep breath and smirking.
As the two laughed, they didn't notice the crowd building up outside the bar.
"So, I've been looking everywhere for Gwen. I have to find her and make sure she's safe."
Tyler nodded
"Yeah. I'm hoping I'll find Lindsay too. She's to beautiful to be out there, alone."
Both boys sat quietly, looking at the floor and thinking about they're loved ones.
Trent looked up.
"Hey, what do you say we-"
CRASH!
The windows on the front door busted open, and several cold, pale hands reached through.
"Shit! Oh man, what should we do?" Trent said as he held his broomstick ready.
"Dude, take the barrel tables and push them in front of the door. That'll hold them for a little bit."
Trent was surprised at how in control Tyler was, given his typical clumsy nature. He took the barrels and pushed them in front of the door, avoiding the hands that were reaching in.
"There, that'll hold 'em"
The musician turned around, and saw Tyler pouring alcohol across the floor. The floor was completely covered. The jock finished soaking the floor and ran over to the door leading upstairs.
"Trent, c'mon! I have a way out!"
CRASH!
The large windows shattered, and the decaying bodies that were banging on them had finally gotten inside.
"Oh crap!"
"Lets go, dude!" yelled Tyler.
Trent ran over to the stairway and ran upstairs. Tyler held up his light and lit it. He smiled and threw it out at the crowd. In typical Tyler fashion, the lighter hit the ceiling fan instead of the floor. Luckily, the fan knocked the lighter over to the bottles of alcohol on the shelves. The bottles caught fire, lighting each other, one after another. The flames reached the ground, and ran across the floor. The hordes of flesh eaters were set ablaze.
Tyler smirked.
"Take that, you freaks!" he yelled, just before running up the stairs.
Trent was waiting in the employee lounge on the 2nd floor. Tyler ran into the room and straight for another door. He flung the door open, but it bounced back and hit him in the head. He shook it off and signaled over to Trent.
"What did you do?"
They were running up another flight of stairs.
"Those things are taken care of. The building's gonna catch fire though.
"Wait, what?!"
Out on the rooftop, Trent and Tyler looked over at a neighboring building. Trent stepped back a little. He took a running start and jumped over to the other rooftop. Tyler followed behind him. Just before jumping, the jock managed to trip on his shoelace, making him stumble and miss the jump. He started falling.
"Grah!" he grunted as he reached out for the ledge of the rooftop.
Trent quickly reached down and grabbed Tyler's wrist. He pulled the clumsy jock up to the roof with al his strength. The two sat down, taking a second to catch their breath.
"Hey…" Trent said between breaths. "Lets work together. We'll find Gwen and Lindsay together."
He looked at Tyler.
"What d'you say?
Tyler nodded.
"Yeah! Lets do it man!"
The two stood up and shook hands. They ran for the stairwell and made their way back down to the streets. They looked at the front of the bar and saw the bodies of the flesh eaters burning to a crisp. They left it all behind and started running out into the city.
"We're coming girls. Don't worry."
The boys are safe, at least for now. How are the other groups holding up? Is Lindsay still okay? And where is Gwen?
Next episode: An Almost Victory
