Zombie Games Read Free Page B

to walk away. 
    “Hey Eva,” Nora said grabbing a paper towel.
    She turned around and snapped, “What?”
    Nora smiled coldly. “You do realize that this is only high school? Being popular here doesn’t matter in the real world.”
    Eva scowled and stomped out of the bathroom.
    I giggled. “Nice.”
    Nora shrugged. “Well, she deserves it. She thinks she’s so much better than everyone else. What she really deserves is to get knocked on her ass. I just wish I could be the one to do it. But hey, you know that code of honor thing-a-ma-jig.”
    One of the principal rules of karate is that you can only use it for self-defense. Ever since Nora joined the class, she‘s stopped getting into fights. I’m sure it‘s been challenging for her.
    I nodded in agreement and picked up my backpack.
    “You sick?” she asked, running her fingers through her long black hair. Streaks of bright blue framed her pale face. I imagined without the heavy Goth makeup, dyed hair, and various piercings, she might look like the girl next door. 
    “No. Not yet anyway.”
    Nora threw her head back and laughed. She knew about my phobia. “That must drive you insane; being around these germy bastards. I’m not sick yet either, but my old man is.”
    Nora normally lives with her dad, Ivan Biggs, who’s a guitarist for Death Row, a popular rock band. Unfortunately, he’s on tour in Europe right now, so she sees very little of him. Instead she stays with her grandmother, Iris, who has some kind of dementia and is frightened of leaving her house. She can’t even take a step outside; she’s so scared of something awful happening to her.
    “I heard almost everyone is sick in Europe.”
    “Yeah, he’s in Germany right now. They’ve all been getting vaccinated. I don’t know what the big deal is, it’s just the flu. Tell you one thing; nobody’s giving me a shot. My old man isn’t around to sign the sheet and I would rather take a week off from this crap-hole. What about you?”
    I cleared my throat. “Well, I won’t be getting the shot either. My family never gets flu shots.”
    Nora jaw dropped. “No shit? With you being so paranoid about germs and your mom being a “ Daycare Lady” , I thought you‘d have gotten your shots for next year’s flu season by now.”
    I stared at her. “Um…I’m not tha t paranoid.”
    She snorted. “Whatever Wild. Listen, I’ll see you at karate class later.”  
    I watched as she strutted out of the bathroom in her heavy black boots and then looked in the mirror. I’m not paranoid , I reminded myself , just very cautious...
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Three
     
     
    My stomach was growling by the end of the day, so on the way to karate class, I stopped by a McDonald’s drive-thru and ordered a cheeseburger; extra pickles. As I handed the cashier the money she sneezed all over the bag without apologizing. As horrified as I was, I held my tongue and choked down the food; I was that hungry.
    It was just after four o’clock by the time I made it to the dojo. Nora and Scott were already there, joking around and stretching out. I thought back to my dream where Scott had turned into a zombie, killed my neighbor’s dog, and viciously attacked me. Fortunately, his skin was clear and his green eyes were as lively as ever. He caught me staring at him and smiled curiously.
    “Wow, small class today,” stated our instructor, Master Jordan, as he entered the room. He’s a sixth degree Black Belt and has trained for over eighteen years.
    “Everyone must be sick,” replied Scott. I noticed he’d gotten a crew cut, which didn’t surprise me because I knew he had plans to join the military after graduation. We’d been really good friends for the last two years and although we’d gone out on a few dates, both of us agreed that we were more comfortable in a platonic relationship.
    Master Jordan sighed. “Well,” he replied, rubbing his chin. “Since it‘s such a small