Love Bites ~ Craig of the Dead au ~ Tricia x Karen fan fiction [COMPLETE]

20

"Where did you find that?" Phillip gasps, "The one in the library was damaged, it didn't have the code."

"This isn't the same book. Karen found it in the library and she carried it all the way here." I grin at Karen, who is sitting in the middle seat at the back with a big, proud smile on her face.

"Are you getting in or not? I want to get to this stupid lab as soon as possible." Henrietta interrupts us.

Karen leans over and opens the back door for me. Quickly thanking her, I slide in and buckle my seatbelt whilst Henrietta recklessly pulls out of the school grounds.

As the school gradually becomes less and less visible and more and more distant, I think about what happened in there. My discovery could change everything: our lives, how long it takes to make a cure....

"Guys, I've got some news." I break the silence and everyone, aside from Henrietta who keeps her eyes on the road, turns to look at me.

With a warm smile, Karen squeezes my hand, "I think the haircut looks great, sweetie."

"Wh- Oh!" I remember my hair and self consciously reach up to feel it, "Thank you, but that's not what I was going to say."

"Well then spit it out. We haven't got all day." Henrietta snaps whilst making a harsh turn.

"You were so much nicer when we were locked together. What's changed?" I ask.

"I shared my tragic backstory. That doesn't mean I'm going to be nice to you."

Fair enough.

I kind of didn't expect her attitude towards me to change, if we're being honest. She doesn't seem like the kind of person to be nice to anyone, let alone someone she nicknames 'Pillow Princess'. I don't even know what that means.

With the gang looking at me expectantly, I prepare myself to give them the news.

"As I was rescuing you guys, I came to a realisation - the disease has mutated," I pause for a second as the others gasp, or curse under their breath, "it's airborne. The masks gave them the disease."

"So we can't even fucking breathe anymore?" Phillip punches the seat in front of him, causing Firkle to whip around and glare at him, "sorry."

"Are you sure?" Karen asks.

"I'm certain." I reply.

We all fall into a silence as everyone falls deep into their thoughts.

Ahead, there's an old children's playground. All of the play equipment has rusted after years of rain, and there's layers of bird shit caked onto the metal slide. The sandpit appears to be the home of a family of cats, all of which are feasting on a dead possum.

Underneath the previously mentioned slide, a weird looking creature is squatting over a zombie.

I point the creature out to Karen, "We saw that thing a few days ago, right?"

"Yeah. It looked like a dog." She nods.

"Slow down a sec," I tell Henrietta, "There's something weird about that creature."

With a sigh, the goth hits the breaks. Despite me requesting that we slow down, she stops the truck.

The creature is black. Pure black. So black that it doesn't look real. Almost too black. Even from this far away, I can tell that this creature is furry like a dog, and the long, whiskered nose and the large, flapping ears further confirm my suspicion that this is some sort of mutation or undead dog.

With sharp claws protruding from its canine front paws, the creature rips into the zombie's rotting flesh, tearing out its failed organs which are covered in thick, black blood. It slurps up the large intestine like a forkful of spaghetti.

Strangely, the back legs appear human, unlike the rest of its canine body, right down to having individual toes and human toenails. However, like the rest of the body, they are all eerily black.

Teeth. Rows upon rows of sharp, jagged teeth slice into each mouthful of rotting flesh. I don't think I've ever seen so many teeth on a single creature.

Each tooth is pure white, contrasting with the darkness of the body, pearly white like the people in toothpaste commercials. They stick out like a sore thumb.

Surprisingly, the zombie beneath it doesn't seem to be at all bothered by the fact that it is being eaten from. In fact, it's just lying there, staring into space as the black creature strips it of its entrails.

"Ew, what the hell is that thing?" Firkle scrunches up their nose in disgust.

"Oh my god," Phillip almost screams, immediately sitting up in his seat, "we need to get out of here. It's an experiment, one that went hideously wrong. It'll kill us if it spots us."

"What?" Henrietta whips around in her seat, "Why did you let me stop then?"

"I didn't see it!" He holds his hands up defensively.

"I swear to god, you guys are fucking idiots." She mutters to herself, starting the car up again.

Making sure not to go too fast to attract the attention of the creature, Henrietta drives away from the playground.

There isn't much going on around us in terms of buildings. Aside from the odd crumbling house, the area is relatively empty and the roads are long and clear, meaning Henrietta isn't going to cause any damage with her reckless driving.

"When did you learn to drive?" I ask, "You're terrible."

"Gee, thanks," She rolls her eyes, "and Lonnie's dad taught me when I was around fifteen since I couldn't afford lessons. I kind of forgot the specifics but hey, I've gotten us this far, right?"

"Only just." Firkle mumbles under his breath.

Henrietta glares at him.

"Well if I'm so shit, why doesn't the expert drive instead?" She snaps, making a sharp turn to the side of the road.

Angrily, she hits the breaks and parks half-on the road and half-on the sidewalk, then unbuckles her seatbelt and gets out of the truck. Arms folded, she gestures for me to get out.

"Uh oh, we've angered the beast." Phillip mutters behind his hand.

"Come on, princess," Henrietta bangs on the window, "if you're such a good driver, you take over."

Reluctantly, I follow her out of the vehicle and get into the front seat. Whilst she sits beside Karen, I buckle my seatbelt.

"Okay, which way to your group?" I ask Phillip as I sort my feet out on the pedals.

"It's only another mile or two ahead, then a left turn at the motel." He replies.

So I start driving. It feels good to be in control of where we're going.