AN: HUGE. MASSIVE! Thank you goes out to LivieLiv, Ham, PandorasFF, and SushiLovesWhitlock. I don't know what I did to deserve such great friends.
OUTBREAK
My fingers were becoming numb as I held onto my seat. I watched Charlie as his eyes scanned the parking lot before landing on us.
Every deputy from his department was here. Lights were flashing and sirens wailing as they sat wide eyed in their cars.
"It's the Jeep isn't it?" I asked, knowing what they were seeing.
"The what?" Edward asked, looking confused.
"They're staring at it."
"Oh," Edward shook his head. "Probably. It's a mess."
I flinched back, thinking about the blood smeared on the glass and those dead eyes.
"God damn it!" Edward swore as he rolled my window down and leaned across my seat.
"What are you doing?" I tried to push myself into the seat as he gripped the window seal and stuck his head out, ignoring me.
"Charlie!" Edward started banging on the door to get his attention. "Cut off those fucking sirens. Cut. Them. OFF!" He hollered, and one by one they began shutting off the noise.
"What's the problem?" Charlie asked, stepping out of the cruiser, before stopping cold and looking down. "Bella? Bella are you okay? Did it hurt you?" Charlie kicked the dead man out of his path as he practically tore the door open.
"I'm fine, I swear." I grabbed his hand, not wanting to let go of my shirt, but needing some kind of contact with him.
"Edward what's going on? I got a call from Carlisle and then Mr. Greene. I heard screaming and then it was cut off." Charlie was steadily talking but his hands were on my arms checking me over. "You aren't hurt?" I shook my head no, hoping it would calm him down.
"Alice's vision was right. I stayed close by the school, just in case something happened, and I heard the screaming. I got to Bella and took one down just as it grabbed at her."
"Oh, thank God." Charlie looked as if he were about to collapse as the other deputies began leaving their cars and walking toward us.
"Wait, what vision?"
"Alice said she saw something happening today. She saw you sitting out here with me, but she couldn't see the before or the after."
"And you let me come to school?" I turned on Charlie, letting his hand go.
"It was a mistake. I thought it was nothing serious, just you deciding you wanted to come home in the middle of the day."
"Chief Swan?" The younger deputy was looking down at the dead zombie.
"Get your gloves on and move this thing!" Charlie commanded three of the officers.
Edward stayed in the car with me as they made quick work of removing it. He spoke to Charlie about what happened in the school and where the other people were hiding.
I could see the worry in Charlie's eyes as he listened.
"I'm going to put every man I have on the inside and we'll bring people out in groups once we clear sections." Charlie brought his gun up, checking the clip.
"I'll call Carlisle so he can inform the hospital." Edward pulled out his phone, talking quickly to whomever picked up on the other end.
"Is there anything you want me to do?" I asked, turning away from Edward. There was no way I'd be able to make out anything he said, and I was positive he wanted it that way.
"Which section were you in when you saw Eric?" Charlie pulled out his notepad, the cop in him taking over.
"Near the office. I had just left the bathrooms. It happened so fast..." I looked away from him, not wanting to describe that nightmare again.
"I know, Bells. It's okay, I just wanted to know where ground zero was. It'll be okay." He gave my hand a quick squeeze before turning to his deputies.
"We need to secure the building. If any of those things made it out, you find them and you put them down. Understood?"
"Yes sir."
I watched in awe as trunk lids went up and the deputies armed themselves.
"I took out the ones I found. It's nasty in the school though."
"Is anyone..." Charlie trailed off as he squeezed my hand.
"I don't know how many." Edward said.
"Damn. Okay."
"We need to keep the noise to a minimum so radios turned low, boys." Charlie ordered. "We don't know how many of those things are in there, or out here, so stay focused and don't shoot unless you are positive."
"Yes sir."
OUTBREAK
"What are you looking at?" I craned my neck towards the back of the jeep to look out the window. There was nothing but a line of trees and a few street lights.
"Emmett and Rosalie," Edward said as he jumped out. "Hey Charlie, I'm gonna do a perimeter run while you search the school. Emmett can stay with Bella."
"Oh yeah, sure, no I didn't want to come along." I rolled my eyes.
"Everything will go faster if Rose and Eddie do the work." Emmett surprised me as he walked from around the back of the Jeep. "Besides, we should get to know each other."
I gave Charlie and Edward a long look before settling into my seat and waving at them to go.
Being stuck with Emmett didn't seem so bad. The little girly wave he sent Edward did make me laugh, but I wanted to be inside, to help.
I wasn't helpless, just in shock.
"So they stuck you with me, huh?" Emmett laughed, as he leaned against the door. "Did you throw up?"
"What?"
"You know... when you saw that thing in there." Emmett tried to imitate gagging, but failed. He sounded more like a wounded dog and I tried not to laugh.
"Almost."
"Yeah, most chicks in the movies do." He shrugged, drumming his giant fingers against the door.
"I have never seen a dead person eating someone before, give me a damn break." Grumbling, I tried to ignore him. Anyone would get sick if they saw their friend's face eaten off.
"You just need to become immune to seeing one."
"I really don't think that would help." My stomach was already beginning to roll just thinking about them.
"Come on." Emmett opened my door, pulling me out. "You never know until you at least try."
"Charlie would kill me!" He would do much more than kill me. I'd be locked in a basement somewhere, far away from Emmett and all the zombies.
"No. One of those things would kill you if you don't man up and grow some balls." He laughed before looking at where my junk would be if I was a guy and shrugged.
"Emmett." I groan, wishing the parking lot would open and up and swallow me.
"What happened to the little spunky badass Edward talks about?" Emmett teases.
"She saw her friend get eaten." I deadpan.
"Fine, call this revenge then. Either way, I'm not missing out on the action." Emmett huffed.
"You want to go in there?" I pointed over the side door, a cold chill running down my spine.
"Aren't you curious at all?" His eyes lit up as he towered over me. If not for the sweet smile on his face, I might have been scared of him.
He glanced back at me as he strode over pushed open the doors, waiting.
"Come on, Bella, are you chicken?" His imitation of the chicken was much like the dog from earlier.
"Fine." I laughed nervously, swallowing down my nerves. "But what is it you expect me to do once we're in here?"
"Tap into the badass I know is in there somewhere and use her."
OUTBREAK
"A bench, Emmett? Really?" He'd scoured the bleachers for something for me to use, but came up empty.
We'd been in the gym for almost five minutes when he found the locker room. He didn't even bother looking around for the dead people. He said it took away the excitement and thrill of surprise.
"Just try it out. You never know until you get the feel for your weapon." He picked the bench up with ease before handing it off to me.
"Not so bad." He placed the bench into my hands and it actually felt pretty light.
"I'm still holding it." He gave a loud chuckle, shaking his head at me.
"Oh." He let go and it dropped, pinning me to the floor. "Holy shit! I can't breathe, Emmett!"
"Oops," Emmett laughed as he lifted it off me with ease. "Sorry, I forgot you were a human for a minute."
"Nice, Emmett. You're gonna get me killed." I laughed as he helped me up.
"Nah, I'm gonna teach you how to protect yourself."
Brushing my backside off, I looked around. "There's nothing in here."
"Is there a janitors closet or something?" Emmett scratched his head, looking around.
"It's in the gym, but the door is locked, Emmett." I was starting to feel deflated. I got excited when Emmett offered to bring me in here, but no way could I fight hand to... well, zombie.
Death by finger chewing. That's exactly how I wanted to go.
"Ah, you doubt me, young one. Just follow me." Emmett winked before trotting out of the locker room.
I pointed to the locked door close to where the coach stored the basketballs, and Emmett looked so excited as he ran toward it.
"One of the many perks of being a vampire." He wiggled his eyebrows as I made my way over to him. "Nothing can keep us out." With that, he twisted the knob with ease, breaking it off into his hand.
"You mean breaking and entering." I laughed as he started tossing out cleaning supplies.
"Haven't you ever wanted to break the law?" He looked back at me with a mischievous smile. "Now grab that stick thing over there."
I walked over to the field hockey sticks Mike had been so fond of last summer and grabbed two, just in case.
"What do you plan to do with these?" I fumbled with them as I tried to twirl one.
PE was never a strong subject for me.
"We need back-up weapons, Bella. And don't knock yourself out with that thing." He took both the sticks from me before pulling out a metal rod from the closet.
"What the hell is the janitor doing with those?" I couldn't think of a reason for him to clean the school with that thing.
"Don't know, don't care. What we are gonna do is kill some zombies." Emmett showed off by spinning the pole easily in his hand. "You better be up for this. I mean, I get it, you're a girl and girls don't like creepy nasty dead people or getting dirty." He put his hand to his mouth, mock gasping and started mumbling about his nails.
It only angered me. He had no idea who I was, or what scared me. I wasn't anything like those other girls. I hunted and fished with Charlie during the summer months. Hell, I played in the dirt until I was nine.
No way was I gonna back down.
"Gimmie the damn pole, Emmett!" I snatched it out of his hand, earning me a smile. "It can't be that hard. Just smack them in the head right?"
"That one is pointed. Just stab it in an undead eye and BOOM! You got your first kill."
"Let's do this."
"So many 'that's what she said' jokes, so little time," he grumbled before he pushed open the gym doors leading to the hall.
OUTBREAK
"He's slow, Bella, take your time. Just aim and jab." Emmett had corralled a zombie for me after he made three his bitch.
His words, not mine.
We didn't even get five feet out of the gym when one walked out of the bathroom. She wasn't someone I knew, which made killing it easier.
"Dammit, Emmett just shut up and let me concentrate." My hands shook as I held on tight to the poker. It wasn't as easy as just point and dead.
What if I missed?
"You're overthinking it. Zombies only want one thing. You only want one thing. Now kill it!" He was like some amped-up soccer coach as he egged me on.
I stood for a moment, telling myself they were dead now, they couldn't be helped. I saw Emmett kill without hesitation and his attacks were as graceful as they were gory. I, on the other hand, wasn't so sure of myself.
Emmett had made it look like a cake walk, whacking one so hard, half his face flew off.
If I missed, they might have enough time to lunge at me. Then what?
Emmett jumped behind me, pulling me out of my thoughts as he began poking it.
"DINNER!" he hollered at the thing as it lurched and opened it's mouth.
"You asshole!" I tried to jump back, but Emmett blocked me as that thing made a horrible gurgling moan. I didn't think as I jammed the end of my pole into its face.
I heard the sickening sucking noise it made when the sharp point entered her cheek. It was as if it swallowed it.
"Hell yeah! TOLD YOU!" Emmett cheered as her eyes rolled back and she went limp, pulling me down to the floor with her.
Emmett grabbed the stick, one foot on the zombie's chest, and snatched it free.
I looked around, dazed and excited at what I had just done. "I killed it. Emmett, I did it! I fucking killed it!"
"Yes, you fucking did!" He grabbed me into a bear hug, before handing me the bloody weapon. "You ready to try it again?"
"How many more of them are there?" I stared down at her, wondering if she tried to fight back when she was bitten.
"I can hear two more, but I also hear your dad's deputies. They've killed three since we've been in here." Somehow hearing that number made me feel better about what happened.
"Are they saving anyone?" We had eight-hundred students here and Edward said most were barricaded away from the zombies.
"Charlie got five classrooms out." I jumped hearing a gunshot. I'd been so distracted before, I hadn't heard any of them. "We're saving people by killing them, I promise."
I knew he was right, if we killed the ones here, that would mean my friends, the ones that survived would be okay.
"It's okay to be excited."
"I feel bad for it. I mean, she had a family." I waved to the girl I impaled.
"And so does everyone else here that you just protected by getting rid of it."
"What are they gonna do with the dead?" I asked, turning away to wipe my sweaty hands on my jeans.
"Burn them maybe?" Emmett shrugged, before his head snapped to the other end of the hallway. "Those two I talked about before? They're here."
Emmett was practically bouncing as he waited for me to aim and attack.
I hesitated for a split second. As soon as I heard the first one round the corner, I was fast behind Emmett, ready to be his sidekick once again.
"You got this, Bella!" He moved out of the way quickly and without thinking, I ran the sharp end into the zombie's neck, missing it's face by an inch.
"Shit!"
"Try again. You're fucking bad-ass now, remember that. Make it your bitch!" Emmett bounced around the other zombie, poking it and laughing, as I pulled the rod free from its neck.
I thought about Jessica as I reared back and with all my strength, stabbed straight through its nose. The crunching sound that followed was the worst and Emmett didn't laugh, thankfully, when I threw up.
"Thank you," I panted when he carried me over to a water fountain.
"I'm so proud of you, dude." He patted my back, giving me a broad smile.
I was shaking all over, half fear, half excited at what I'd done. "My dad's gonna kill me."
"Not before I kill, Emmett." I didn't even have time to blink.
The crack in the linoleum was louder than anything I have ever heard, followed by the lockers screeching and caving in.
Edward had Emmett by the throat holding him in the air.
"Aww, did you miss me?" Emmett made a kissing sound with his lips before he was flung across the floor, sliding to stop next to me.
When Edward's glare was turned to me, followed by Charlie's booming voice calling my name, I knew I was in deep shit.
AN: Damn Emmett! And poor, Bella. All she wanted to do was not feel useless.
This chapter was lighthearted and I hope you enjoyed it. After the last two, I figured you could use a little fun. It was supposed to be short, but it turned into a monster. Emmett is VERY wordy.
Also I want to thank you guys. It's because of your awesome reviews that this story is alive. I'm amazed you've given me so much love. It's means a lot, thank you.
I posted a Dexterward type fic for those interested. It's 5 chapters and will post daily this week. If you'd like pop on over and give it a read!