Claustrophobic | Skephalo

Vaulted

Darryl

The hissing sound outside was still loud, even through the ground and the metal door above Zak and Darryl. Although he hadn't gotten a good look at the monster, the seriousness in Zak's voice when he described it terrified Darryl. His grip on Zak's hand was still tight, and his body trembled as he tried to control his heartbeat.

I bet it can hear my heart beating down here. Zak's, too. Oh my goodness, if it gets inside somehow... We have no way out. The only place to hide is under a blanket. Would that work?

"Darryl?" Zak breaks his train of thought.

"Yeah?"

Zak shakes his head. "I know you're stressing yourself out right now, so stop. We're safe down here as long as the door stays closed."

What if it can open it?

"—And I locked it, too. So unless it somehow goes through the walls, we're safe down here. It's okay." Zak explains, giving Darryl's hand a squeeze of reassurance.

Darryl squeezes back. "Thank you for being so... Understanding."

"Of course, Dar." Anyone who treats you poorly for things that are out of your control are... Well... They're idiots." Zak replies.

"Yeah." Darryl exhales out of his nose in amusement. "Idiots."

Shifting his attention towards the different objects lining the shelf, Darryl notices a bottle of whiskey behind a package of batteries.

That doesn't belong there.

Zak follows his gaze, smirking. "What, you wanna get drunk?"

"No! I was just looking around. That would be so stupid, Zak!"

"Relax, I'm kidding."

"Okay, good. I don't really drink, anyways."

"Seriously?"

"No, I don't like how it makes me— Wait a second, you're not even old enough to drink, are you?"

"I'm nineteen. Close enough."

Darryl rolls his eyes. "Whatever. You can get drunk as soon as we're out of immediate danger."

The hissing stopped. I wonder if the monster left. There's no way I'm opening the hatch to check, though, until I'm completely sure.

Zak seemed to think the same thing, and looked towards Darryl. "I can look, if you want. You'll have to let go of my hand, though."

Darryl shakes his head. "We can just go together."

"I can't climb with one hand. Just let go, it'll only be a second."

"Please don't let go yet." Darryl pleaded, placing his other hand on top of Zak's.

"Darryl, I know this is hard for you, but we'll never get out if we don't take a few risks. I'll be right there."

It'll only be a second. I can do this.

Their hands slowly separate, with Darryl now hugging his knees as a form of comfort. Zak climbs his way up the ladder again, slowly unlocking the hatch. It clicked loudly, and made a whoosh sound as he opened it slightly. Peeking around the hole in the ground, Zak kept his eyes peeled for a hint of black or purple.

Purple was the first color he saw, far back, maybe a few meters away. He stared at it, trying to get a grasp of what the monster might have been before the apocalypse, but nothing came to him. With a body like midnight and eyes like the universe, Zak had no idea how to understand it like something as simple as zombies. All he knew is water somehow affected it.