Lockdown (Picture Day book 2; an II fanfic)

Ventilation

Chapter written by: horrorluv08

(Just a quick note, some chapters may have a different writing style than others, this is because some are written by horrorluv08 while others are written by me. Thank you to horror for helping out with this story! Be sure to give him support!

Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!)

Balloon awoke in a cold sweat. His hands were trembling, though he managed to stay in control of his breathing. He couldn't put his thoughts into words, even if he tried. All he knew was he had a nightmare. It was...vague, to say the least.

Nothing from the dream could be made clear in his head. It was something horrifying, something that must have scared him into waking up. That's all he knew. Despite that, he remained fearful.

He blinked a few times, his teary eyes adjusting to the scenery. It...it wasn't his house. It wasn't his bedroom. It was...school? He shuffled his feet on the hard ground, noticing the location in the school. The gym.

Everything came rushing back.

Balloons teary eyes returned, and his hands began quivering more than ever. He quickly scooted back, the room still dimly lit. The dark. He hated the dark.

He suddenly bumped into someone, making the person stir. He turned, slightly surprised, seeing Fan sleeping (somehow) peacefully. Balloon felt more than guilty at the thought of waking him up but...but Balloon couldn't do it alone.

He slowly but surely grabbed Fan's shoulders, shaking him softly. This just got Fan to groan in annoyance. Balloon shook Fan a bit rougher the next time around, getting Fan to open his eyes. He lightly pushed Balloon away, groaning. "...What..." He mumbled, before his expression changed. "Wait, Balloon?" If he was tired before, he was wide awake at this point. "What are you doing here?" He asked with confusion.

Fan didn't remember either. Balloons expression softened. "Cobs...MePhone, it- It wasn't a dream." Fan took a few moments to process this, staring at the floor with a focused look on his face, before his eyes widened and he looked up at the surroundings.

Fan slowly began talking to himself, "It's...it's real?" Balloon nodded, his eyes watering with tears again. Not the best time to get emotional, Balloon. "I- Fan, I can't do this again!" He whispered, taking Fan's hands and squeezing them. Fan pursed his lips, "Hey, breathe. We'll...we'll be okay." Balloon shook his head, not accepting what Fan said.

"Last time you said that, somebody died!" Balloon whisper-yelled, his voice quivering. He certainly didn't mean it as something hurtful, but to Fan...

Fan was taken aback for a moment, sadness filling him. Covering his mouth, Balloon apologized profusely. "Don't...don't mention it. It's alright, Balloon. Really. I'm sorry, I know things aren't alright and we probably won't be okay but...but like I told you last night. We escaped before, we can do it again. How hard can it be?" Balloon wiped a few tears away, giggling softly. "Pretty hard."

"Yeah, but you're the toughest guy I know." Fan grinned at Balloon, giving him a playful punch in the arm. This reassured Balloon, just slightly. Balloon took Fan's hands again, "As long as everyone's here with us, as long as nobody dies, then we can do it. Nobody's awake right now, we can...try and find an exit." Fan stood up, pulling Balloon up with him. Balloon sniffled, nodding, "Let's do it."

Fan and Balloon carefully approached one of the exit doors—or, the would-be exit doors, if they weren't locked. Fan crouched down, motioning his head to direct Balloon to do the same. They each attempted to grip the iron doors base, but failed to do so. Fan, in a moment of hopelessness, tried pushing it up as well from the side but to no avail.