Claustrophobic | Skephalo

One Last Night

thank you so much for 1k reads!! i love u guys so much <3

•••

Darryl

Darryl has never been relieved to see a little red house until him and Zak approached the one they had been staying in. The place was just how they left it, all of their few things still intact. He quickly packs anything not already in his backpack, and watches as Zak does the same.

It was beginning to get dark, so the two boys agreed on staying one last night, then heading out to find a new place to live. Hopefully, it would last a little longer.

As soon as the sun began to rise, they would be off, not wasting any daylight. Hence the reason for packing so early.

Zak positioned himself under the table, using his backpack as a pillow again. He fell asleep relatively quickly, most likely overtired from the day's events. Darryl laid underneath the window, staring up at the frame. He couldn't relax enough to sleep.

When he was with the Skeletons, he felt somewhat secure, but now that he was on the outside, he felt like there was a giant target on his back. And Zak was part of it, too.

They know where I am. They know about Zak. We have to move somewhere else, we have to run. This is all my fault... And now his life is in danger because of me.

Darryl felt a tear roll down his cheek, and he quickly wiped it away. He wouldn't cry anymore.

No, this could be a good thing. Now I'm not committed to the Skeletons anymore. I can find supplies for myself and Zak instead of them. We can make it on our own. We'll leave in the morning like we planned.

Darryl had a newfound sense of freedom in his chest, and it made him feel confident and sick at the same time. He peeks over at Zak, who's breathing was soft and quiet as he slept. It's a sharp contrast from when Vincent and Darryl used to sleep in the same room. Darryl could never get any rest because of Vincent's loud snoring. To Darryl, that seemed like a lifetime ago.

Whatever Vincent— Whatever the Skeletons are planning to do with me, Zak stays out of it.

For the first time since he joined the Skeletons, Darryl had no idea what time it was. He turned his watch over, so that the side with the clock faced away, causing it to beep lightly.

A heavy sigh could be heard from Zak's direction. "What was that?" Zak's speech came out more as a mumble, but Darryl managed to catch what he said.

"Sorry. My watch." Darryl whispered. "Go back to sleep."

Zak rolled over and opened his eyes. "Hm? How come you're not asleep?"

"I'm just thinking, that's all."

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, you muffin. Now go back to bed, you sound exhausted."

"Muffin."

•••

Zak

The morning came a lot quicker than Zak wanted it to. Since he was such a light sleeper, all it took was Darry standing to wake him up. Zak threw his arm over his eyes, turning away from the window. He didn't want to leave the comfort of the indoors yet.

There was a few minutes of Darryl rustling around before he spoke. "C'mon, Zak. I know you're awake. We should get moving soon."

"What time is it?"

"Who cares? I stole two more containers of Froot Loops from my last supply drop. Want some?"

I'm impressed.

"Do you even need to ask?"

Zak climbed out from under the table and walked over to the window, where Darryl was standing. It was just like the day before, but it just felt different to the two boys. Today, the sky was painted a bright pink that reflected off of Darryl's thinly rimmed glasses, and Zak wished he could take a picture.

For the first time since the apocalypse started, Zak wasn't afraid. He didn't feel so alone anymore. He was... Happy. Maybe even somewhat healthy.

That's all anyone can ask for, right?

"What did you say?" Darryl asks, snapping Zak out of his thoughts.

"Huh? I didn't say anything."

"Yes you did, you said something about being healthy."

"I'm just feeling better, that's all."

What has gotten into me lately? I need to keep myself on track and stop zoning out so much. Wait. Am I zoning out right now?

"I'm glad to hear it." Darryl gives Zak a soft smile, popping a Froot Loop into his mouth.

They eat their breakfast in a comfortable silence, both lost in thought.

Should I tell Darryl about my old house? Does he have an old house? Maybe his would be better.

"What if we lived in one of our old houses?" Zak blurts out, causing Darryl to jump a little.

"You mean like... Before the apocalypse?"

"Yeah. Did you live anywhere close to here?"

"Not really. It would take at least a few weeks to walk there." Darryl looks down at the floor. "I'm not sure I'm even ready to go back."

Me neither. But I can't let Darryl down now that I've thrown the idea out there.

Zak shrugs, standing. "My old place is only a few days away. We can go there, if you want." He grabs his backpack with all of his things inside and throws it over his shoulder.

"Sounds like a plan to me. You're okay with going back?" Darryl asks, standing up alongside Zak.

No.

"Yes."

•••

Vincent

"It sounds crazy, but I think it could work. I mean, it's just like hunting, right? If I want to catch prey, I need to know how prey thinks," Vincent was talking to a small group of spies in one of the many dark rooms throughout the Skeleton building.

"I see your point, but there's just no way we can find out every little detail of this person's life. Maybe if the internet was still around—"

"—I don't need every detail. Just enough to get an idea of who he is and how he acts."

Maybe I can even fix a friendship in the process. God, this feels so weird. Just last night I almost killed Darryl. And now I want to reconcile?

"Why does this even matter?" The spy seemed annoyed from the tone of his voice. "I'm not trying to be disrespectful or anything, but who is this Zak to you, anyways?"

"Nothing. He's nothing to me. For now, at least," Vincent sighed, running his fingers through his hair.

I doubt this is going to work.

"Okay." The spy looked to his friends. Well, as spies we can agree that the best way to figure out a person is to start from the beginning. Luckily for you, we already got an address."

"You did?"

"Yeah, I guess Zak used to live there. It's pretty far, were you planning on coming with us?"

This is the only way I can get Zak out of the picture and save my friendship with Darryl.

Vincent grabs his crossbow. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."