believe you. No matter what you say.â He slammed the lid and then used Meganâs own key to lock her in. âYou are alone,â he repeated.
Alone . The word echoed through the blackness. She could smell the stink of her own flesh decaying. Megan gasped for fresh air.
âAlone.â Happyâs voice reverberated in her ears.
âAlone,â said Sam.
âAlone,â said Zach.
âAlone,â said Rachel.
âAlone,â said Brett.
âAlone,â said the Bs.
âUhhhh-uhhhh,â Megan cried out. She tried toraise her arms but they were pinned to her sides. Her legs were stuck straight. Her breath felt hot and shallow. The bottom of the coffin opened and the next thing Megan knew, she was falling into an endless darkness.
With a start, she woke up. And she realized something very important. If she didnât find the cure, sheâd be alone forever.
On Sunday morning, Megan met her family on the front steps of the school. They wore masks with monster faces painted on them, thanks to Zach.
Megan rushed to give them all a hug. She was even happy to see Zach.
For this special occasion, Mr. Jones had ordered school uniforms. The girls were required to wear a dark pink skirt with a white blouse. The boys had on dark pants with their dress shirts, and pink, plaid ties that matched. Megan pulled back her hair, hoping that her parentâs wouldnât notice the zombitus gray streaks.
Her parentâs noticed. The first thing Mrs. Murry did was reach out and touch a thick, discoloredstrand of Meganâs hair with her hand. The required plastic glove felt cold against Meganâs skin.
âWhat happened?â her father asked, leaning past Mrs. Murry to examine the gash on Meganâs head. âAre you okay?â
âIâm fine,â she replied. âDonât worry.â
âAll part of zombie transformation,â Zach told their dad, as if head wounds were to be expected.
Mr. Murry didnât seem to believe Zach, so Zach explained about how getting emotional sped the transformation.
âGrrr.â Megan flashed her sharp teeth at him and snarled. âYou didnât warn me to stay calm.â
âNot my job.â Zach shrugged. âDidnât the nurse tell you? She should have.â
âOh, all right,â Megan said. âShe did. I didnât listen.â
âYou wouldnât have listened if I said it either,â Zach told Megan with a laugh. He was wearing a new T-shirt that said MY SISTERâS A ZOMBIE .
âNice,â Megan told Zach.
âMade it myself,â Zach said with pride. âAnd the masks, too.â
âI think you should show ââ Megan started to say he should show Happy his fashion creations, butthen changed her mind. Happy wasnât her friend anymore.
âOh, there they are. Dr. Shelley gave Rachel a lift,â Mrs. Murry said as a small sedan drove up to the gate. Rachel hopped out while Dr. Shelley went to park.
âHi, you!â Rachel said, rushing up to Megan.
The two girls hugged for a long time. Megan felt like crying. She knew sheâd missed her best friend, but until that moment, she hadnât realized how much.
âI have so many things to ââ Megan started, when Rachel suddenly pulled back.
âHang on one little second,â she told Megan as she rushed to where Brettâs family was getting out of their own car a few feet away.
âBrett!â Rachel shouted. âThe playâs not the same without you!â
âHey â¦â It took him a second to come up with the name. âRachel.â His eyes lit up and Brett gave Rachel a high five, then tugged her in for a hug.
Megan squinted at them. There was something about the way Brett was holding Rachel. Like he wasnât going to let her go. He glanced over Rachelâs shoulder and gave Megan a wink.
Brettâs sister, Hailey, got out of the family car and
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