~•~ Chapter 11 ~•~
Claire's POV
"Claire, come on, love, we have things to do today." A sweet voice called softly from the other side of the door, bringing me slowly out of the world of dreams.
"Mmm?" I hummed, rolling on my side and slowly opening my eyes.
"Come on, babe, wake up." He said, knocking three times in the row on the door.
"Louis?" I mumbled and rubbed my temple. "What time is it?" I asked.
"Time for you to get off the bed, what do you think?"
I rolled my eyes and stood up. I was so hoping that this week will end and weekend would come, because I was so done with waking up in the morning at 7am.
"Fine, just give me ten minutes." I said.
"Okay."
One glance at the desk brought a smile to my lips, since the cup Harry gave me last night lied on it, empty and cold. I quickly got ready and left my room, leaving the cup back. I will go and clean it up later. Louis smiled at me, greeting me with a flirty wink before we went straight to the cafeteria. I was starting to get into a whole new routine, that doesn't involve waking up with a gun in hand and having to check out if zombies have entered my hideout. It was still new to me, but every time I walk down the hallway with one of the boys by my side, I can't help but feel the adrenaline rising inside of me.
"Breakfast?" I asked.
"Of course, but I get to pick what you'll eat."
I pouted as I took a seat and looked up at him. "Why? I'm not a kid, I know how to pick my food." I said, moving my hand.
He made a face. "I'm in charge, right? So zip it, and wait for me to bring you something to eat. Chill out." He said casually and walked away.
I sighed and let my eyes move around the room, noticing the people staring or stealing glances at me. I stiffened and looked down to my hands, fidgeting with them as I waited for Louis to return.
"Aye ayeee," I jumped at the sudden voice and turned to see Kate taking a seat beside me. "Good morning, Claire." She smiled, her tone light and her blue eyes shining.
"Morning." I let a tiny sigh of relief. Thankfully I wouldn't have to face all the stares by myself. Her smile grew even bigger and she leaned her elbows against the table, her ponytail bouncing behind his head. "You seem quite..happy today, or am I wrong?" I raised my brows.
She shrugged, letting a tiny squeal. "No, I guess you're not." she giggled and turned to me. "I was talking to Chris," she leaned closer so only I could hear what she was saying. "And he told me that I have something interesting that he wants to be close to." She squealed again, her words surprising me. "Can you believe it? Chris likes me!" she was literally jumping up and down with excitement written all across her features.
"Calm down," I laughed, grabbing her hands and lowering them down. "Okay, I can see that you have a crush on Chris." I smirked.
"Just a crush? I'm freaking dying for him!" she gushed, blue eyes wide. "Have you seen his abs? God, he's amazing." She looked up at the ceiling and bit her lower lip.
I laughed again. "Wow, you're so lucky, he likes you back! That's great!" I couldn't stop smiling. I had missed sharing private things with my sister. The emptiness and coldness I felt in my heart after she was gone was finally filled with warmth.
"I've been into him since I arrived here. He and Liam took care of my injures and he was such a gentleman - not that Liam wasn't, but he was just - ugh! He is perfect!" she was rushing the words and it was a bit difficult for me to catch up.
"I'm happy for you," I admitted. "You should take this further."
"Oh, I will make sure we do," she giggled. "Ah, Claire, I'm so happy!" she sighed, staring up at the ceiling with baby blue eyes. She looked so innocent, so careless, like a young kid dreaming his Christmas present.
"Morning, Kate." Louis approached us, carrying a tray. He placed it down on the table and sat opposite us.
"Good morning Louis, how are you?" Kate asked happily.
Louis noticed her over-excitement and gave me a sideways, strange look before he smiled. "I'm good, but you look better." he chuckled, reaching for his apple from the tray. "What happened?"
"Oh, nothing important." Kate shrugged. "I'm just in a really good mood. I have to go now, I'll see you guys later," she said, patting my shoulder twice as she stood up.
"Bye," I smiled and she walked away. I reached for my fruit salad. "How's your face?" I asked, refering to his bruised cheekbone.
He made a face before he bit his apple. "Been better." he said flatly, chewing.
"Still haven't forgiven Zayn?" I raised a brow as I stabbed a fruit from the salad with my fork.
He chuckled. "Of course I have, but I just like to play with him a bit."
"He's really pissed at you."
"He will get over it. Besides, we're brothers."
I smiled. "It's nice seeing you so bonded." I commented, bringing the fork to my mouth.
"Yeah, life has turned out to be tough, so having the four of them being so close to me is a gift." a small smile formed on his lips as he stared at his apple.
"Do you have any relatives?" I asked, curious.
The small smile on his lips faded and I suddenly felt bad for asking that. "Finish your salad," he cleared his throat. "We need to go."
I nodded, realising that the subject 'family' wasn't his favourite list to pick for a conversation.
...
"Here we are," Louis said as we entered another white room, which also had a giant window on one wall. A few computers were on the desks, along with a microphone and some other electronic stuff. A lot of screens were on the wall, showing some hallways. I was surprised to see Liam and Niall there, since I thought they would be practising.
"Hi guys." I greeted cooly. They both nodded at me and gave me small smiles.
"Morning." Niall said.
"How's your knee?" Liam asked nicely.
"All good." I assured.
"Alright, Claire," Louis started, clasping his hands together. "My part of the practise is the best. And the toughest one." He said with a smirk.
"Okay." I said slowly. I was a bit nervous.
"Take a seat, we will first ask you some questions about surviving." Niall urged with a tick of his head towards the chair.
Louis scoffed. "We don't need to ask her questions, this girl survived half a year out there alone pretty well, she knows everything." He claimed, crossing his arms over his chest. His deep brown hair were a bit messy today, but they look great on him.
"What do I have to do then?" I asked nervously.
He walked over to me and put an earphone to my ear. "Alright, now you're ready." he said.
I frowned. "For what?"
"Get in there," Louis pushed me towards a door, making me stumble. "And we will tell you." he opened the door for me and I entered the other room, which wasn't white. It was pretty much dark, and the walls looked dirty and old.
"Louis wait - she doesn't know-,"
"She will be fine," Louis cut Liam off and slammed the door shut, trapping me in the room. I flinched and wrapped my arms around me. It was also a bit cold in here, and the fact that it was dark scared me a bit.
"Umm, guys, what am I going to do?" I asked.
"Now love, you see that little door on your left?" Louis' voice came from the earphone.
I turned my head to see the little door on the wall. "Yes." I answered.
"This is where everything starts. Liam, Niall and I will give you instructions. You have everything you need behind the door." I reached to grab the door handle. "Don't open it!" he hissed, making me come to a halt. "Not yet,"
"I'm a bit confused as to what I have to do. Do I have to open the door? Find a key or something?" I asked, frustrated.
Louis cackled. "No honey, this is a survival project."
"A survival project?" I repeated mumbling.
Suddenly a loud noise of a door slamming shut was heard, making me jump. It was from a few meters away and I couldn't see what waa going on from where I was standing. The hallway had a turn on the left a few meters ahead and it was dark there. I could barely make out that there was a turn.
"Cell 46 emptied. Basic data loaded successfully. Challenge starts in 60 seconds." Niall's voice came through the earphone and I took a step forward to see the boys from the other side of the window. Niall was sitting down on the chair behind the desk, typing down on the computers, headphones on. Liam was sitting beside him, heaphones on, typing on the computer and pressing a few buttons on the wall.
Louis was just staring at me, headphones on and a notepad in his hands. "You're gonna make it." he said, scaring me.
"What are you talking about?" I asked. This is so cofusing.
"30 seconds." Niall said.
My stomach churned anxiously. What the hell is going on?
"Louis, what are you doing?" I asked, pressing my hands on the glass.
"My job." he answered cooly.
"Lights in room 3 are off. Ammo transmition from room 4 to room 2 in process." Liam said.
"20 seconds." Niall spoke.
My heart started poundinng louder with anticipation and nervoussness. I got chills and my hands started sweating. More sounds of something being dragged hit my ears from the center of the hallway, warning me. I glanced at the small door and furrowed my brows. What does it hide in there?
"10 seconds...9..8..7..6.."
"Good luck, Claire." Louis said, his words making my heart shake.
"..5..4..3..2..1..0. Challenge started. Let the game begin." Niall smirked and looked up at me from the PC, blue eyes promising.
I suddenly heard a growl. My heart froze and my blood turned to ice as fear creeped up inside of me. I slowly turned my head to look, trying to see through the darkness. I heard feet stumbling, followed by a grunt. My eyes widened and I swear, I couldn't move. More feet, more growls. I turned to look at the boys, but they only gave me blank stares, studying me closely.
"Boys? Is it..is it a..?" I mumbled, blinking in shock.
Louis nodded and my heart clenched anxiously. I turned my head and gulped. Maybe they're just messing with you. Maybe they just want to see your reaction. Maybe all this is just fake, a game they play to scare you. As relieving as the thoughts were, they didn't make me calm down. The sound of steps came closer and a tight knot came to my stomach. I was holding my breath when I could finally make out a figure and my heart was on the edge as alarms started ticking in my head.
He got closer and with a growl, he stepped into the dim light of the room, sending my heart up to my throat. I gasped in shock, my jaw touching the ground and my eyes ready to bulge out when I saw the zombie. His skin was pale, scratched, with wounds and deep cuts showing his broken bones of his body and face. A long wound was across his cheekbone, entering his red eye. His other eye was a light blue, looking like white. Blood came out from his mouth in a deep red colour. I shivered at the terrifying sight and took two small stepsback instictively.
Holy shit.
"Louis.." I said cautiously. I was locked into a room with a zombie, without any gun with me. My heart picked up her pace as I backed away slowly from the zombie, who was glaring at me.
"Open the door, there are weapons in there. Take as many as you can." Louis instructed, sending a small wave of relief through me.
I slowly moved my arms, touching the glass and the wall that was next to me from both sides. The zombie growled and licked his bloody lips, making me grimace as a wave of nausea rolled through me. Disgusting. He came closer and I moved backwards. One step for him, one step for me. "Why didn't you warn me?" I asked through clenched teeth.
"I believe in your skills and creativity. Surprise us." Louis answered easily.
"Are you kidding me?" I hissed. The zombie's face scrunched at the sound.
"Open the door and take out the guns. Be quick." Liam instructed. As if it's that easy...
I held my breath and decided to just go on with it. I quickly turned on the side and grabbed the door handle, making the zombie increasre his speed and run over to me. Panic flooded through me when the door wouldn't ope, making my eyes widen. I pulled, harder and harded, only managing to open it a few inches before it closed again. The wood was heavy and I couldn't move it easily. The zombie grunted and made some strange noises as he rushed over to me, making my heart race with fear. Please open, please open.
I tightened my grip on the door handle and pulled with all my strength, managing to open the door just enough to put my foot inside and hold it open. A grunt came from my throat as I tried and I finally opened it, just when the zombie approached me and reached for my head. A small scream came past my lips as I ducked down and sneaked through the door, quickly entering the small, tight room. The zombie knocked on the door and brought his hands through the gap, trying to grab me.
"Woah, that was close!" Louis gushed.
Adrenaline rushed all the blood through my system as I picked up the first gun I found. My shaky hands quickly checked out if it was loaded, my back pressed against the door to block the zombie out. His hands tried unsuccessfully to touch something right next to my head, but I ignored him as I worked on the gun. I was relieved to see it was loaded, so without hesitation, I moved forward, letting the zombie bring his face through the gap of the door as I raised my big gun. I aimed his head and without hesitation pulled the trigger, a bang echoing in the air as the bullet sank into his eye and dropped him to the floor. Thick sweat trailed down my neck and heat had taken over my body, but I ignored it as I hurriedly started picking up the guns.
"Check one is successfully done. Stage one starts in 10 seconds." Niall spoke.
I found a backbag on the floor and picked it up. I shoved guns in the backbag, holding one in my hand and having two others tucked in my waistband. Just as I was about to turn around and leave, Louis spoke. "Take the one hanging on the wall." he ordered and I turned my head to see a large gun hanging on the wall next to the door.
"You don't miss a thing." I mumbled as I picked up the gun. Oh God, this is the confusing one Niall kept explaining to me for an hour.
"Not when I have eyes and ears everywhere." I could hear him smirk. I looked up at the corner of the small room and saw a camera. I huffed and opened the door before quickly stepping out.
"Alright Claire. You need to explore this little maze we created for you." Liam said as I walked forward, holding the gun in my hand. I tucked the other one in my waistband because I needed to have my hands focused on one gun only.
"Maze? What kind of game is this? Hide and seek?" I muttered, shaking my head in disapproval.
Louis and Niall chuckled. "More like, find and kill game." Niall said cooly.
I shivered as I turned in the corner, my gun steady and ready. I heard another growl from the end of the hallway and I squinted my eyes to see better through the darkness. Suddenly, the growls multiplied and my heart froze when I saw two figures running towards me, screaming terrifying sounds that gave me goose bumps. I raised my gun and quickly tried to aim, but since I was panicked, I pulled the trigger and shot the wall behind the zombies, the bullet hardly reaching their heads. They raised their arms to grab me as they got closer and I took a deep breath before aiming and shooting one of them on the leg, making him collapse down on the floor. I moved backwards to gain some time and space as I aimed the other zombie and a wave of relief washed through me when I shot him right in the brain. Blood burst out from his skull across the wall, the smell hitting my nostrils and making me nauseous.
The other zombie was still on the floor, making weird noises as he tried to stand up and come closer. He crawled, using his hands as he desperatedly wanted to reach me. I walked towards him, my heart pounding faster with determination and adrenaline. I got this. One step before him, I shot him right in the eye, ending his life for good. His head tilted back and blood ran down his face. I stepped around him and walked forward, both hands holding my gun.
"You're getting closer to danger. Remember, when you feel like you're not ready to face them, run." Louis instructed, making me gulp.
"Room 1 is full. I'm unlocking the door A, lights go off at hallway B," Niall said and suddenly the lights turned off, capturing me in the darkness.
My heart skipped beats as I came to a halt for a moment. "How am I supposed to walk now?" I said, keeping my voice low.
"Just walk forward." Louis said.
I walked, my gun always before me. When the tip of it hit a wall, I jerked backwards instictively. "This is door A. Open it." Liam said.
I tapped my hand on the door, trying to find the door handle. Once I touched it, I wrapped my hand around it, twisted it and pulled. Light came into the hallway as I opened the door and got inside. The door closed behind me and I turned to see the letter A written on the iron door in a red colour. I took a deep breath and reached to open the other door ahead of me, which had the words 'room 1' written across it. I opened the door and immidiately fear hit me like a truck when I saw around 20 zombies in there, all of them turning to look at me as they held some bloody meat in their hands and ate like starving animals.
Oh. My. God.
This is going to be tough.
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A/N: That was soooo big, so pleaseee vote & comment a lot!! Next chapter will have a surprise for you ;) Hope you enjoyed this chapter because I was really in a good mood while writing it. Also, I watched,xxThe Maze Runner 2 at the movies, and it was perfect!! Loved it sooo much!
Thanks for reading! Love you lotss xx