Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A faint strumming of a guitar was heard beside him as Ted woke up. Who could be playing guitar this early? Other than Diego, of course. A boy emotionally attached to his instrument, taking it everywhere with him, except for matches of course. Ever since they entered the mist, Diego seemed a lot more happy and at peace. Maybe this was better than trying to survive a nocturnal every second of the day.

“Did I wake you?” Diego spoke up, watching as Ted lifted himself up out of bed.

“No, don’t worry. Glad to finally hear you play more.” He smiled, even if he lied about the first part. Diego nodded his head, placing his guitar back on the ground against the couch. “We’re finally in a round together, you excited?” He asked, walking over to Ted, who was turning on the kettle in hopes of having a cup of coffee.

“I mean, we won’t necessarily be together. I’ll be working on those.. generator things, and you’ll be distracting or something.” Ted sighed, leaning against the counter.

“That doesn’t have to happen, I know Kyle or.. maybe his name was Chris.. but he’s joining us, and he’s got that cool bear trap. He’d survive in Ruddleside, you know. I’m sure he’s capable of distracting by himself, and I can help you out.” Diego rambled, trying to cheer the other boy up. Ted just nodded, kind of warming up to the idea of letting Diego even touch a generator. He grabbed a mug and poured the boiled water into it, almost forgetting to add the coffee.

“Yeah, well. Just don’t slow me down, I know you’re not that great with machines.” Ted chuckled, sipping on his coffee.

“Says the one who couldn’t light a fire.” The other boy joked, nudging his side lightly with his elbow. They both laughed and talked about the memories they’d shared in Ruddleside, the good and bad parts.

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As they left their cabin together, Ted and Diego made their way to the gates, where mostly everyone was gathered. Some were saying their good lucks to the people going into the round, the others were by themselves, probably mentally preparing. Ted couldn’t stop thinking about how bad his survival skills were. I mean, sure, he’d survived Ruddleside. But barely, and he got his life saved by some random boy. Without Diego, he wasn’t really survivor material.

“You’ll do fine, Ted. Just clear your head. And hey, if that stupid teacher guy comes after you, I’ll just stab him right in the chest. I have your back.” Diego chuckled, putting his hand on the other boys shoulder.

An announcement on the megaphones sent a bell sort of sound throughout the campsite, alarming all survivors.

“May the following players please head to the gates immediately.

Emery Rivera, Aaaqil Che, Callum Gallagher, Kyle Wolfe, Diego, Ted, Serena Wolfe, Yan Tian.”

All of those survivors were already at the gates since it was announced the day before as well. They were all ready to exit.

“Eiji Inagaki, Nathan Reyes, Mamo Ikaika, Yeona Jeung, Jonas Weber, Dante Fontana-Rosa, Yronica Ayala, Eman Attia, Dakota Nicole, Amari Taymiyyah, Riley West. Please make your way to the gates, as we are about to start the round.”

Everyone’s heads turned to those whose names were called out, they weren’t meant to be in the round. There was about 20 people including them, that’s 12 extra.

“What is this, some sort of scam? Are we getting extra help..?” Serena whispered to her brother, who just shook his head. That one extra announcement caused a commotion between survivors, who were just confused. Some accused others of cheating, but why would they want to join a deadly game?

The gates creaked open, meaning they had about 30 seconds to enter before they closed. Those who didn’t go even if their name was called out, would’ve been forced there anyways somehow. Beyond the gates, a school appeared. The school that a few survivors had even attended, a school that Diego and Ted still didn’t map out fully.

“So, we’ve got an advantage, right? Now I know we’ll be alright.” Diego ruffled Ted’s hair, but he still looked nervous. As the announced survivors walked past the gates, they slammed shut after everyone had gone through. Despite the mixup of survivor count, they still planned out how to win against the killer.

“If it’s the Principal, then we just get people to loop him. We’ve got a lot of loopers now.” Yronica whispered in her group.

“I bet it’s that stupid Warden, god he’s the worst.” Mamo complained from her own group, including Riley and Dakota. Ted and Diego stood next to each other almost aimlessly, they still hadn’t made any friends.

“We don’t need anyone, as long as we stick together.” Ted said to him, looking at those other groups.

Once a bell went, it meant the round had started. Survivors started spreading out around the school, some going inside and some staying out. Ted and Diego headed for the cafeteria, a popular spot among all survivors. Surprisingly, it was empty. They’d all been given an earpiece prior, so that survivors could interact and share information. Ted lead them to a generator, and just as they crouched down to start working on it, a voice, Serena’s voice, started speaking into the earpiece.

“The killer, it’s The Android. Be careful.”

Chapter Text

Diego sighed, reaching at the wires on the machine. The Android wasn’t all that easy to beat, especially since they lacked generator repairing survivors compared to chase exceeding survivors.

“Have you had this guy before? Is it gonna be easy to win?” Ted asked, still fixing the wires.

“Depends on how he’s going to play. I’m sure he’s noticed the amount of survivors, but it depends if he wants to focus on our generator progress or killing us.” The boy explained, slowly working through the machinery.

“He’s a generator patrolling one, yeah? He shouldn’t be fast enough to kill us easily.”

“Faster than our walking speed though, and if he goes for you, well you’re slow anyways.” Diego chuckled, trying to ignore the serious situation.

Ted just sighed, even though he hated awkward silences. Working on generators seemed more important than conversation. They could hear Dakota yelling at the killer, cursing him out basically. It was funny to listen to, I guess that’s a good part about having extras. Footsteps approached Ted and Diego. As they looked up, they saw a sort of familiar face. His name was Amari, maybe? Yeah, Amari.

“Hope you guys don’t mind an extra, Emery’s gen was full.” He sighed, crouching down next to them.

“You’re all good.” Diego replied, but it came off colder than it should’ve. I think he just had that effect on people. Amari didn’t seem to care however, he just stayed silent. Probably because that “Emery” guy was separated from him. It’s reasonable of course, if Ted were separated from Diego, they’d both be miserable. Just thinking about it made Diego anxious. An alarm sort of thing went off, a generator had been completed. Finally, at least a little progress has been made. They only had seven more left, or soon six with their generator.

“Haha, finally! You did it Diego!” Ted whispered as Diego put the last wire together.

“We did it Ted,” He smiled, as the three of them stood up from their spot. “And him, he did it too.. well done.” He mumbled, looking at Amari. They’d completely forgotten he was there.

“Nicely done, Diego…” Amari replied sarcastically, although he meant it in a light hearted way. The three of them walked off together, heading towards the generator outside next to the exit. Diego and Ted decided to stick with Amari, it was probably safer since he knew the map and they didn’t.

“How did you two even end up here? We’ve all got our stories but, you’re both just so, random.” Amari spoke up, as they walked together.

“Well, we survived Ruddleside. When we left to find a community, we thought we were heading the right way but, we ended up getting attacked by another nocturnal. When running back to the car, it felt like it caught up to us. But instead of dying, we opened our eyes to this place.” Ted explained, Diego just nodding along.

“No offense or anything, but what on earth is a nocturnal?” Amari asked as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“You guys didn’t have nocturnals? I mean, you don’t know what a nocturnal is?” Diego finally said, looking at Amari with the same confused look as Ted was.

“Yeah, I have no clue what you’re talking about. You two aren’t mentally unstable or something, right?”

“Of course not,” Ted replied. “Nocturnals appeared after the meteor hit. How do you not know this? Do we not live on the same earth or something?”

Amari was about to answer, until they saw the Android in the distance, standing near the generator they were heading to. Making eye contact with him was awkward for a second maybe, but fear finally entered them when he started approaching.

“Shit, we have to go. Come on Ted!” Diego said quickly, taking the blonde boys hand and leading him back to the cafeteria. Amari had taken the chase, but it didn’t last long when his perk kicked in and he went invisible. The Android used his detection too late, but if Amari was undetectable and invisible, then the next choice would be to go after Ted and Diego.

After turning a corner to a classroom, Ted huffed as he leaned against a wall, already tired out.

“You’re going to need to hide if you’re tired already. Let me take it.”

“No Diego! I’m not going to sit back while you get chased by a killer robot.” Ted held onto the others shoulder, trying to prevent him from running off.

“I’ll be fine, now go somewhere else. I’ll come back if I do end up dying, so you have nothing to worry about.” He sighed, sitting on top a desk. Ted still seemed hesitant at the thought of Diego getting hurt.

“You know I can’t stand to see you like that, injured and stuff. Can’t we just do it together like we normally do?” Ted sat up next to him, kicking his feet back and forth.

“Just trust me, I’ll be alright. I promise.” He stood up, helping Ted up as well. Once they were both standing, Diego wrapped his arms the other boy, one hand tangled in his hair and the other on his back. Ted just rested his head on Diego’s shoulder, separating himself after a few seconds.

“You better keep your promise.” He advised, walking off and jumping out a window with a vault. Diego sighed, he saw the Android approaching out of the corner of his eye.

“Just don’t die, just don’t die.” He told himself, walking out of the classroom and making himself visible as a way of taunting him.

“You’re going to regret doing that.” The Android threatened, smiling as he quickly walked over to Diego. The boy ran off into the bathroom, an easy place to just run around for a bit while he regained stamina.

Diego ran through the hole in the wall, connecting the room to the other bathroom. It didn’t create distance though, which was the original plan. The Android was able to catch up quite quickly, causing Diego to run to another classroom, one with a vault this time.

“Come on, you stupid robot. You ever going to attack?” He laughed, swerving behind a row of table.

“Maybe I will soon, but for now, this is fun.” The Android smiled, walking towards him. Diego felt his heart racing, even though he tried to look confident. Running from a killer android was harder than it looked.

He glanced over at a window leading to outside, that was his way to escape quickly. But would leading the killer to a more public area be better for everyone else? Shit, he should’ve thought this through. While his mind was racing, he felt a tall figure tower over him. He’d forgotten to run to start with, and now he was practically cornered.

“Do you still want me to attack?” The Android laughed, preparing his arm to lunge. Diego just stood there shaking, his breathing getting heavier. It was too late to escape. A weapon slashed across his face, making him fall to the ground.

“Even that pathetic boy you were with could’ve done better.” The Android said, before walking off to find others.

Diego sat on the ground groaning, blood dripping from his face. He heard Ted panicking on the earpiece when the announcement said Diego had been downed, but all the voices were getting quieter. Diego started to slowly close his eyes, and just before they shut, he caught a glimpse of a blonde haired boy running up to him.

Chapter Text

When Diego opened his eyes, the world around him was hazy, the edges of reality blurring together. Two figures sat near him: a blond boy he recognized and a brunette girl who bore an unsettling resemblance to that bear trap guy. His vision wavered, but he could just make out the girl gently wiping his face with a tissue. Glancing down, he noticed a small pile of tissues—soaked red with his blood.

It couldn’t be that bad, right? He was still breathing, at least for now. But he knew time wasn’t on his side. The bleeding wouldn’t stop on its own; this was a desperate, last-minute save. Voices murmured nearby, though it was hard to focus when pain throbbed across the jagged scar etched into his face. Not the first time he’d been injured, but this was easily the most agonizing. Once the girl finished cleaning his wound, she fumbled with a bandage, trying to secure it across his face. Her hands trembled slightly—it couldn’t have been easy, working on such an awkward injury.

“It’s not a deep scar; it’s fine. Just leave it. I’ll put antibiotics on it when we get out of here,” Diego muttered, his voice cutting through her concentration. The girl paused, startled by his sudden insistence, but relented, slipping the bandage back into her pocket.

“You’re lucky your friend found me. I’m pretty much the only healer left,” she said. Her voice was deeper than he expected, but Diego barely registered it. She had an American accent—maybe that’s just how they sounded. He turned his head, bringing the blond boy into his line of sight.

“Ted,” Diego whispered, his voice hoarse but sincere. “Thank you.”

Ted nodded, acknowledging his gratitude without overplaying it. Rising to his feet, he extended a hand.

“We need to move. The exit gates are opening soon,” Ted said. The girl agreed, and after a bit of effort, the three of them were back on their feet.

Then, as if on cue, an announcement echoed through the school’s cold, empty halls: The exit gates are now open.

They broke into a jog, adrenaline carrying them forward. The nearest gate wasn’t far, but in the chaos, it felt like an eternity away. Each step sent sharp reminders of Diego’s injury. He could feel the scar burning, even though he hadn’t seen it yet. The pain clawed at his focus, but he pushed forward, unwilling to falter now. His breathing grew shallow, uneven, but he ignored it.

The walls around them were grimy and lifeless, save for faint graffiti that caught Diego’s eye. The faded colors, scrawled in defiance, sparked an odd flicker of hope in his chest. They were so close. The gates loomed ahead, metallic and imposing. For a moment, Diego thought they’d made it.

But something was wrong.

The gates weren’t open.

“They’re supposed to be open,” Ted said, his voice cracking with disbelief. The group froze, confusion spreading like wildfire.

Footsteps echoed behind them, and two figures emerged: Amari and another boy they assumed was Emery. Both looked equally perplexed.

“I need to find Kyle. Just don’t panic,” the girl muttered before darting down a hallway.

Diego’s heart raced. The timer was nearly up, its ticking etched into his mind like a cruel countdown. If they didn’t escape soon, they’d lose. But how could they escape if it wasn’t even possible?

The clock struck zero.

Silence.

The only sound was their ragged breathing, filling the void left by the now-dead timer.

“Now what? Are we just stuck here?” someone asked from behind them. A brunette girl with an irritated edge to her voice stepped forward.

“Be patient, Yronica,” Amari replied sharply. He was helping support Emery, who seemed to be struggling.

A group of survivors began to gather near the gates. Among them, a red-haired boy emerged as a clear leader. His confidence seemed almost out of place in the suffocating tension.

“We haven’t officially met,” the boy began, his voice smooth. “I’m Callum. Over there are Eman, Aaaqil, and Yronica. Amari and Emery, you’ve already seen. The rest will join us soon.” He extended a hand toward Ted, shaking it firmly before Ted could respond.

More survivors trickled in—a man in a suit with a little girl by his side, a boy holding a camera, and a few others Diego vaguely recognized. It was overwhelming, the crowd and the questions weighing on him. But the one truth stood out starkly: the gates were still closed.

“The Android’s gone. It returned to wherever they store those monsters,” the man in the suit announced, adjusting his tie. “But we’re still here.”

A ripple of unease passed through the group. If the killer was gone, why hadn’t they been teleported back?

“This has never happened before—until they showed up!” Yronica snapped, pointing at Ted and Diego. “They’re obviously involved.”

Diego’s gaze hardened. “Do you really think we’d sabotage a bunch of strangers for fun? We just want to get out of here, same as you.”

“Told you,” Yronica muttered. “Ominous.”

“Relax,” a girl with dark blue hair and piercings said softly. “They’re as clueless as we are.”

“It could be a glitch,” the suited man interjected. “Doesn’t have to be anyone’s fault.”

But tension lingered. The little girl beside him—Yan—whimpered, clutching her arm. She had a bite mark and a nasty cut.

“She doesn’t look good. Aren’t you supposed to protect her, Nathan?” Kyle asked, nodding at the man.

Nathan sighed. “I don’t know how she got that. The Android’s usually… gentler with her.” His voice was strained, almost apologetic.

Yan’s voice was barely a whisper. “I don’t feel well.”

“I’ll find something to help her,” Nathan said, leading her away. The remaining survivors exchanged uneasy glances. Eighteen people, left to figure this out on their own.

As the night crept in, they agreed to rest and regroup in the morning. Ted and Diego, as always, kept to themselves. The day had been a mess, and tomorrow wasn’t looking any better.

Chapter Text

The dim light from the emergency bulbs cast long shadows across the gymnasium, flickering ever so slightly as though the building itself was holding its breath. Rows of students lay sprawled out on mats and blankets, their uneasy murmurs and restless shifting having given way to a heavy, oppressive silence.

Diego stirred, blinking himself awake. Something had pulled him from the depths of an uneasy dream. His gaze darted around the cavernous gym, his ears straining for a sound beyond the hum of the overhead lights.

Then he heard it—a low, guttural groan that didn’t sound quite human.

He sat up, heart racing, his eyes adjusting to the faint light. Across the gym, huddled near the far corner of the room, a figure twitched and writhed under a thin blanket. It was Yan.

Diego stumbled to his feet, a wobble taking over his legs. “Yan? Are you alright?” He whispered, an urgent tone taking over his voice. He slowly approached the girl, who happened to be tossing and turning with pain. Black, thick, veins were sticking out of her throat, as if they had their own heart beat. Eyes widening, Diego lifted her up, sitting her up on the floor.

“Come on, I’ll uh- I’ll get Nathan or something.. it’ll be okay.” He said softly, hoping it’d reassure her somehow. He went to scan the room for Nathan, but he was already awoken with the commotion. The bodyguard rushed over, putting the back of his hand to her forehead.

“She doesn’t have a fever, she’s oddly cold, actually. She may be sick.” He sighed, settling her bangs back into position on her forehead.

“She looks worse than sick. You probably know your way around all this, so i'm going to wake up the others.” Diego replied, sounding quite out of breath for someone who wasn’t even unwell. He picked himself up to his feet, jogging over to a group of survivors sprawled on the ground. Some were awake due to the situation, others in a deep sleep. He particularly went to the red headed boy who spoke to him before, he seemed alright.

“Cody, right?”

“Callum, close enough though.” The boy smiled, helping himself up.

“You seem pretty smart, right.? Like you’d know what to do? That girl Yan, she’s making these weird noises and she just looks ill in general.” Diego hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck. Callum tilted his head to the side, seeing Yan and Nathan sitting next to each other in the distance. He fixed his gaze back to Diego, shaking his head from side to side.

“I’m not that smart, to be honest.. I was always sort of school smart, but I’m not too good in such urgent situations.” He placed his hands in his pockets, trying to shrug his nervousness off. “You’d be better off without my help.”

“That can’t be true, let’s just work together. We can get others too, and find anything we can to help her out.” Diego smiled, although he didn’t even know half the people there.

Callum nodded, waking up his friends. A black haired boy with glasses next to him was the first, despite Diego thinking Yronica would be before him. The boy was scrawny, he didn’t seem that useful, but whatever works for Callum. While the red haired boy woke up more people, Diego went to go find the only person he could really trust, Ted.

The blond was laying on the ground still, his stomach lifting slightly as he breathed. Even with all the commotion, he was so peaceful. Diego almost didn’t want to wake him up, watching him at ease made him feel safe. It wasn’t the right thing to do though. He knew that.

He crouched down to shake the boy awake, the others eyebrows furrowed only slightly as his eyes opened.

“Good, you’re up. We need your help, alright?” Diego smiled, ruffling the blonds hair. Ted didn’t even get to speak before Diego grabbed his hand and pulled him up. Poor guy was barely awake.

“Jesus Diego, what’s the rush? Could’ve given me like a few more minutes..” He chuckled, rubbing his eyes. Diego led him over to Callum and his little group, three unfamiliar survivors were next to him. Sort of unfamiliar, at least.

“Ted, Diego. You should’ve met these guys, right? Aaaqil, Eman, and Yronica?”

“Vaguely remembering it. But that doesn’t matter right now, we need to help Yan.” Diego instructed, his voice sounding a little less shaky than it has been. Callum nodded, jogging off with his friends to find a sick bay. Americans have sick bays, right? Whatever, not important.

Diego looked around the room for anyone else who looked useful. Now that he thought about it, that lantern guy saved his life a bunch in previous rounds. Dante was his name, maybe? Diego approached him, Ted following out of reflex.

“Dante, is it?” Diego spoke, offering the boy a hand to help him up. “You’re awake, and we need your help.”

Dante took his hand, helping himself up to his feet. “Yeah, that girl woke me. What can I do for you?”

“Just look for something that might help, get others to as well if you need.” Diego replied, watching Dante run off almost immediately to wake up another boy. Some guy in a blue jacket, he looked kinda cool actually. Like a rockstar. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy Dante would be friends with, but whatever works.

Amari and Emery ended up wanting to help out too, and after all those collected gathered together, they went their separate ways. Ted and Diego split up, but they were hesitant about it of course. It was a smarter idea though, to cover more ground and help the girl quicker.

Diego started with heading to the middle of the school, where he saw the completed generator. It only agitated him more, knowing he couldn’t escape. The cafeteria being closest, he headed there. At least it was a familiar place. When he entered, he saw Amari and that boy in the blue jacket. God, he needed to get better at names.

They were sitting at a table, which he thought was odd since they should’ve been looking for something to help. Those two actually seemed to get along well, even though they’d never interacted before.

Diego approached the two, sitting across from them. They both fell silent, but something about them made it feel less awkward.

“I haven’t met you yet,” Diego said, looking towards the unfamiliar one. “Your name is?”

“Jonas Weber, at your service.” He smiled, shaking his hand. He had this confident charm to him that Diego couldn’t understand. He wished he could be more like that, more friendly. Instead he came off as someone cold, who preferred being alone. That wasn’t entirely wrong when he thought about it, but he used to love socialising before the nocturnals showed up.

“Why are you just sitting around instead of searching for things? Could use all the help we could get, you know..” Diego asked, pulling his hand away. The two boys looked at each other, Jonas pulled out a few things from his pocket.

“Some soup and water we found in the kitchen, and I can give her a soda if she wants.” He replied with confidence, placing said items on the table. A bottle of water didn’t look so bad right now, but Diego couldn’t be selfish when someone else needed it.

“So, Diego. We showed you the items, let’s just talk now.” Amari suggested. It was actually really out of character for him to want to talk to people. Maybe that Emery person changed him.

“What do you want to know then?”

“What’s up with you and the blond? You seem suspiciously close, I only realised when Yronica pointed it out.” He started to say, clearing his throat. “Don’t get me wrong, I hate that girl. But you two just showed up and started going on about these nocturnal things, plus you only really talk to each other. You’re either hooking up or planning on killing us all.”

Diego just started at Amari. His ability to speak just vanished when he really needed it most. It’s not like any part of it was true, of course. Actually, why was Diego making such a big deal out of this? Wasn’t like he was being accused of a mass murder. In fact, Amari was probably kidding anyways..

“Hello? Diego..?”

Well, he’d gotten distracted by his thoughts again. Except last time it happened he got basically stabbed in the face.

“We’re not planning on killing you, or hooking up, actually.” He finally replied, his voice sounding unsteady. Well, now they’ll either think one or the other. Maybe killing them would be a good idea.

“Yeah, you sound so sure.. lighten up, Diego.” Jonas said, letting out a laugh, or more a giggle.

Diego could feel his cheeks going a little red, thankfully not being that visible. Amari and Jonas were menaces when they were together, there’s no other conclusion.

“What about you and that curly haired boy, Emery? You two seem awfully close. Does someone fancy someone?” Diego asked, trying to change the topic.

“Fancy? God I forgot how different you and that other one speak. Yeah, I don’t know. He’s nice, pretty cute. Nothing really strange, I don’t really know how to feel about him.”

Diego found it weird that Amari was so honest and sincere sounding. Yeah, he definitely liked him. Amari kind of continued to rant about Emery, talking about all his magic trick attempts and stuff. Diego couldn’t really focus too much on that, he was still hung up on the question he was asked. He’d thought about him and Ted before, as friends and as more than that. But when someone else mentioned it, it made him overthink. Did Ted get the wrong idea? Is it even the wrong idea, does Diego have any feelings like that towards him?

Jonas was actually oddly good at listening, almost as if he’s heard these problems Amari had before. Yeah, these two had some weird, edgy connection that Diego couldn’t understand.

“So, we all have the same conclusion.. Amari’s got a huge crush on Emery!” Jonas said, almost shouting really. His grin and excitement overpowered Amari’s voice, which was yelling at him to be quiet.

“You can’t complain about us accusing you of liking him once you’ve made it so obvious.” Diego chuckled, joining Jonas while he teased.

“You can’t talk Diego, you also obviously like that other guy!” Jonas replied, “What’s his name.. Theodore.? Yeah! Theodore and Diego sitting in a tree. K, I, S-.”

“Shut up! I didn’t even say anything about him.” Diego snapped back, reaching over to place a hand over the boy's mouth. Wasn’t he supposed to be an adult?

“Well you two are absolute children. I believe that Jonas is the cause of all our problems, and if we have to, we eat him first.” Amari chuckled, making Jonas gasp in disappointment.

“After I confessed to you all those secrets? Augh, the betrayal!” He replied dramatically, pretending to weep. They all just laughed at each other. Not because of their actions, they just enjoyed each other's company. It felt nice to have a childhood again.

After what felt like hours, the three of them decided to head back to society. Diego felt accomplished after making new friends, especially those who looked really cool. Maybe Amari could pierce his lip too or something, that’ll attract ladies. Surely.

It seemed that Yan was already being tended to. She had food, water, and a pile of jackets on top of her. Well that made the three of them almost useless, it made them feel a bit guilty, actually. While they were enjoying themselves, she was suffering. There’s nothing they could do though, it’s better to be happy while you can. She got the help she needed, or so they thought.

Diego approached Ted. The boy seemed kind of upset or grumpy about something. His arms were sitting in his lap, and he was sat with his back leaning against a wall.

“Hey, did you have any success?” He asked, sitting next to him.

“A little. Why’d you leave me all alone, Diego?” He replied softly, getting to the point really quickly though.

“We all had to split up, to cover more ground. I didn’t leave you because I didn’t want to be near you, Ted.”

“Yeah but, you came back with those other boys.” He continued, it almost sounded like his voice was breaking. “If you could find them, you could’ve maybe found me. I thought we’d always choose each other first before anyone else.”

“We got carried away, I’m sorry. You should be making friends too though, they’re a lot more social than you are. Maybe find your own kind of people?”

“You’re my kind of person, Diego. I want to stick with you, not find some random strangers.” He sighed, leaning his head on the wall. He fixed his gaze to the roof, almost as if he was avoiding eye contact.

“Just because I’m making new friends doesn’t mean I’m ditching you, idiot. If they don’t like you, I’ll force them to. Or we can just leave them, whatever you want.” Diego replied, trying to reassure the boy. He put an arm around him, rubbing the other boy's shoulder. Ted seemed to be feeling a little better, now he could fall back asleep easier.

Yan had finally dozed off, but she was still in pain. Nathan slept next to her just in case something else happened. Everyone else stayed relatively far, in hopes of getting a good night's rest. Diego and Ted stuck close together, obviously. It wasn’t easy for Diego not to look at Amari and Emery though. They both looked so cute together, which was odd, since Amari was the opposite of cute. He was just some raggedy, rebellious looking guy. Diego turned his head to Ted’s direction, he wasn’t surprised when he was sleeping. He looked so nice and gentle when asleep, so addicting to watch. Diego thought about how if Ted and him were ever something like the other two, he’d be the raggedy one. Ted would be the pretty jellyfish in a sea of fish. He’d be the parrot in a sky of birds. Diego just looked scary, kind of. He sighed, turning his gaze back to the ceiling. It was easier to fall asleep once he’d known Ted was asleep.

Chapter Text

Diego blinked awake, greeted with the bright barely attached to the ceiling. God, if this place couldn’t be more unbearable. Sleeping on the floor wasn’t ideal, but at least the sewing room had fabric to cover them. He turned his head to the right, a smile appearing on his face when he saw his friend peacefully sleeping. If there was anyone he’d want to be stuck in a school with, it’d be him. He propped himself onto his elbows, glancing around the room. Almost everyone was awake, or at least those who didn’t have to stay up tending to a sick child. He looked over at Jonas, who was oddly chirpy for someone who didn’t get a lot of sleep. He was practically talking Dante’s ear off. If Diego didn’t know better, he would assume they liked each other maybe a little. It was surprising how open people were about their sexuality. Where Diego grew up, no one ever did. It was nice being in a familiar environment, especially with his best friend. Now that he thought about it, it’s much better than Ruddleside.

Amari and Emery were talking to Dante and Jonas, those four seemed oddly close. Diego assumed they were all connected by Amari and Jonas, and those two were friends because they’re both cool looking. That didn’t make much sense actually, the second part. Even if Diego didn’t know them that well, it was still kind of funny how they managed to have a group like that. Despite Amari and Jonas, the other two were extremely random. Only things they’d have in common is that they were associated with a wannabe rockstar. A small groan was heard next to him, causing Diego to turn his head. Thankfully, it was just Ted waking up.

He seemed extremely tired still, but managed to look happy to be there anyways.

“Sleep well?” Diego chuckled, being happy to finally speak to him instead of having to watch him sleep.

“Yeah, well enough. I’m really hungry though.” Ted replied, his voice almost as soft as a whisper. He looked incredibly exhausted, it hurt to see him like that.

Diego helped himself up, lifting his friend along with him. “Let’s head to the cafeteria, yeah? I’ll introduce you to those friends I made.” He rubbed the other boys back, trying to reassure him. It was kind of awkward, actually, but Ted fortunately didn’t mind.

“Mhm, sure. I’d be glad to meet your new friends.” He smiled, although the tone in his voice sounded not as happy. Diego picked up on it, but he could only hope he’d feel better by the time they got there.

When walking to the cafeteria, Ted remained silent. It didn’t bother Diego, he just assumed he was still tired. He was scared that his silence would make the others not like him, which was unlikely, since Ted is the most likeable person ever. When they met, Ted trusted him always straight away. He knew somehow that Diego wouldn’t hurt him, even though he had him handcuffed.

As they arrived, Jonas looked more than happy to see Diego again.

“Look who’s up! Diego and his little friend..” He chuckled, offering them a seat at their table.

“Yeah, nice to see you too. Ted, the one with the soda on him is Jonas. Those two, Amari and Emery, you should know them. And then there’s Dante, he’s got this cool lantern.”

Diego started pointing to people and explaining more in detail about them, but Ted was honestly too tired to comprehend it all.

“Yeah, I know Dante. I found him while we were looking for stuff.” He replied, giving Dante a weak wave. Diego seemed a bit off about it, especially since Ted didn’t mention it yesterday. The four of them continued their conversations about the “easiest killers to go against”, (the majority voted The Werewolf, by the way). Ted and Diego remained silent, they just listened to their debates and arguments. Diego actually kept his gaze on Ted, who was slowly dozing off. It was so odd that watching him sleep was so soothing. Diego might need to get that checked out.

Ted eventually gave up on trying to stay awake, he just collapsed onto the table basically. His head rested on his arms, covering his face, unfortunately for Diego. The rest of them turned their heads to look at the other two, they seemed to be in their own world.

“Watching him sleep?” Amari said, snickering to Jonas next to him. Diego turned his head to the side, although not looking at Ted felt like a divorce.

“I’m not particularly watching him, I guess. He’s just so nice to look at.” He sighed, resting his chin on his hands. I think Ruddleside got a bit lonely for Diego, that’s why he’s so attached to Ted. The first person who could earn his trust so quickly, after all that happened before.

If it wasn’t made obvious enough, Diego may have had some sort of feelings towards Ted. Ever since they escaped Ruddleside, he just grew on him. Ted was so nice to everyone, it was easy to talk to him too. He always tried to crack up jokes to lighten the mood, Diego loved that about him. He saw the good in bad situations, but still managed to fix the problem. He was smart, and funny, and he knew how to drive too.

Diego had completely zoned out just looking at the boy, he didn’t realise the others had given up on talking to him. Amari and Emery seemed closer than usual, that was cute. Diego felt jealous that he and Ted couldn’t be like that, it was all he could wish for other than safety right now.

“So, you think that slasher guy has a feet finder account?”

A scream was heard from the gymnasium, immediately catching the attention of all six of them. Ted lifted his head, they all stood up from the table.

“The scream,” Dante said, “it sounded a lot like Dakota, right?”

“What could’ve happened, did she break a nail?” Jonas suggested, almost laughing. Although he remembered the situation they were in, which meant a lot worse had probably happened compared to a broken nail. The six of them headed back to the gymnasium, where they saw Dakota backed against a wall, holding onto her arm. She had blood dripping down her sleeve.

“What happened, how’d she get hurt?” Ted asked, rushing towards her.

“That brat! The girl did it!” Yronica snapped, pointing at poor Yan, who was in tears in a corner. She had Nathan next to her, but he wasn’t trying to comfort her at all. He seemed scared too, actually.

“What is it, a scratch?”

“She bit me. I don’t want to blame her, but she bit me..” Dakota said softly, her voice shaking from most likely fear. Ted wrapped a bandage he’d found nearby around her wrist, taking a glimpse at the bite mark before continuing so. Yronica, she seemed most angry at the girl, she kept calling her things like “feral”. Ted believed there was more to it though, Yan wouldn’t have acted like that. She’s childish, but she wouldn’t hurt anyone.

Chapter Text

Yan’s wailing could be heard from miles away, she couldn’t stop. She was tied to a beam, the type they use for gymnastics. She’d been put there to keep others safe, but honestly, they’d rather get hurt than hear her cries.

Dakota had calmed down, her breathing was finally at ease. It was hard for anyone not to look at the injury, it’s all they could think about. Her eyes were red, it was difficult to tell if it was because of Yan, or because she may have been crying. Either option was bad, one way or another.

“Honestly, I feel alright now. You should check on Yan instead, she must be devastated.” Dakota suggested, an oddly warm smile stuck to her face. Usually she’s prone to getting angry quickly if something like this happens, many killers would be able to back that up. She must have a soft spot for children, or her fellow survivors. Dakota’s a strong girl though, she could survive a tiny bite.

Ted walked over to Yan, who still looked absolutely miserable. She had finally stopped crying at least, she was staring at her arms which were wrapped around her knees.

“How are you holding up, still upset?” Ted asked, rubbing her shoulder out of sympathy. She remained silent, refusing to even look at him. Her eyes were also red, it broke Ted’s heart. It was easy to tell it was from the crying this time, and she was a lot more fragile than Dakota was.

Out of nowhere, another person sat next to Ted. Someone whom he was familiar with.

“Hey Diego, she’s still upset.” He whispered, moving his head away from Diego’s ear afterwards. The other boy nodded, and took a glance at the girl. She didn’t really look sad, more like angry or disappointed. It was fair enough, she had just injured someone. That made people angry with her, probably made her more upset.

“You don’t have to speak to us now.” Diego said, “But let me tell you a story.”

A story? Diego wasn’t one to tell stories, and there probably wouldn’t even be any to entertain a young girl.

“When I first met Ted, I thought he was really stupid.”

Nevermind. That was one to catch a young girl's attention.

“For starters, he had stabbed himself with a seat belt. He also crashed his truck, which wasn’t particularly his fault, but it still happened. I found him and had to patch him up. He told me he didn’t know how to do it himself, I felt bad for the guy.” He chuckled, and Yan actually seemed interested, which almost offended Ted.

“Is now really a good time to do this?”

“Of course it is, it’s helping. Get this, he didn’t know how to light a fire. We’d been surviving for years, and he didn’t know basic skills we all required.”

Yikes, that may have hurt more than it should’ve. Ted was always the odd one out, always behind everyone else.

“Regardless, I stuck with him. He’s irresistible, what can I say? I’d die for him now, and he’s not all that bad. It didn’t matter what he could and couldn’t do in the end, I knew I wanted to stay with him. He saved my guitar, knowing how much it meant to me. Now I need him by my side wherever I go, even if I was going into the mist.”

Diego had never mentioned how much Ted meant to him before, it was odd hearing it. He’d always expressed how grateful he was for saving his guitar, but he never knew it meant that much.

“Jeez, Diego.”

“Don’t say that as if you didn’t know I appreciated you.”

Ted felt a hand slip into his, fingers intertwining with a quiet confidence. He couldn’t help but smile, Diego always brought that side out of him.

Ted was hesitant, not only because someone was holding his hand, it felt weird to do so with a little girl there. Although when he turned his head to the side to check on her, she was gone. Either the story made her feel better, or the hand holding creeped her out.

Diego seemed more than comfortable openly expressing his feelings. It finally felt right. Plus, he was never one to really fall in love, or even crush on someone. Many girls had asked him out in the past, but he didn’t enjoy dating as such.

Ted was almost the opposite. He’d always dreamt about falling in love, or even just getting into a relationship. Unfortunately, growing up in a zoo meant that dating wasn’t really an option. He never got asked out, he’d never asked anyone out. He didn’t know what love felt like.

The two of them sat there in silence. It was hard for Ted to stop himself from flushing a pinkish colour, although that just made Diego laugh. Not many people paid attention to them, they were all caught up with Dakota’s business. Fair enough though, they could either hear a cool story, or watch two awkward boys hold hands. It was like a kindergarten relationship.

Diego and Ted assumed Yan ran off to Nathan, which was probably true anyways. He was really good at taking care of her, a brotherly figure almost. Well, Ted kind of grew up with siblings, it was nothing like that. All those other kids at the zoo were annoying, there were only a few he could actually tolerate.

“You’re alright with this, right?”

Ted turned to the side, he was greeted with a worried look from Diego.

“It’s just, you haven’t said anything. I don’t want to force you or something.” He mumbled, almost pulling his hand away.

“No Diego, it’s alright. I’m happy like this, I’m just not used to it.” Ted chuckled, softly tightening his grip.

“How am I supposed to believe that? Ted Ainsley, never holding someone’s hand? That’s ridiculous.” Diego joked, but he wasn’t really kidding. To him, Ted was like this handsome angel, or a really cute dog. Whichever works.

“Oh stop it, you’re just trying to make me feel better.”

“I’m serious Ted.” He replied, his tone changing in only the slightest. “You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. Not only that, you’ve got the most admirable personality. Although, you need to work on your jokes.”

Ted didn’t know what to say. He just smiled, continuing to look into the others eyes. He wished he could say something back, like how he really feels. But being almost frozen in the moment worked as well, it was romantic in a cheesy way.

“Yan? Yan, are you okay?”

A female’s voice was heard, as that brown haired girl stood up. The one that looked like Kyle. Serena? Yeah, Serena.

She stared at the hallway leading to the cafeteria, the only light source being an old dimly lit one from outside the gymnasium. A shadow creeped into vision on the ground, eerie, skinny and tall. Yet it was shaped into the form of a little girl, fragile and scared.

“Yan, where’d Nathan go?” Serena asked again, this time backing away from the door a little. She stood side by side with Kyle, who was about to place his trap down. Although the trap probably wouldn’t work as well on a survivor, as well as the horrible placement due to being in an open space.

The shadow came closer, until a tall creature stepped into the room. A horrible sensation fell upon them, it was certain everyone felt it. The creature was pale, and dressed. However, the clothing was ripping a little. The only thing that made it clear that it was a human, was the white bow on top of its head.

It was maybe 5 '10, almost 6 foot. The height looked forced though, like skin was stretched out. It wouldn’t have been abnormal if it weren’t for the fact that the creature used to be 5 ‘2, but that wasn’t the main issue. That thing was recognisable, it had a familiar worried expression to it. It was Yan.

Chapter Text

Yan was taller than every survivor now, but it was hard to determine why. She didn’t seem aggressive yet, in fact, she was more scared than the majority of them.

Yah stepped forward, towards Yronica. To be fair, if any of them were to die, they’d all prefer it if it was her. After getting close enough, a chime-like sound was heard from another survivor. Yeona pulled out her phone, hesitating since it wasn’t supposed to be working.

“Sorry, I don’t know why it’s being like this..” She muttered. A notification was at the top of her screen, showing her the location of Yan. It was as if Yan was a killer, and her perk was working with her.

It couldn’t be possible, the young girl was a survivor, like the rest of them. The phone continued to go off as she stood near Yronica, the mean girl's heart beat escalated. Riley approached Yeona from behind, taking a look at her screen.

“She’s right, it’s still going off. Her phone’s registering Yan as a killer.”

Everyone started mumbling and whispering about it, which didn’t exactly help the situation. Although, Dakota was the most scared. If Yan was sick, could she have given it to her?

“So what.. is she going to kill me or something..?” Yronica muttered, a nervous tone to her voice. It was refreshing hearing something not-mean coming out of her mouth for a change.

“Unfortunately, probably not. But watch your back.” Serena scoffed, humbling the other girl quite a bit.

Yronica slowly backed away from the creature known as Yan, running behind Callum after getting far enough. Eman glared at her, only because she knew Yronica didn’t even like Callum. To be honest, Callum had made it extremely obvious that he didn’t like her. Especially with his interest in Aaaqil, which was unexpected, but he’s a better option than Yronica, so who can blame him.

“Everyone just calm down, it’s not like she’s going to hurt us yet.” Amari butted in, trying to reassure some people, but also attempting to spook Yronica. That brat deserved it though.

“He has a point. It’s been a while since we had any food, so we should split up for supplies.” Serena added, almost everyone agreed immediately. No one really kept track of how long they’d been there, but it wasn’t a long time. Just enough to make them eagerly hungry.

The survivors had split up into groups once again, but they tied Yan to the beam before doing so. She didn’t seem too upset about it, she must’ve understood.

——————

Kyle and Eiji decided to go upstairs, although they didn’t have much hope. Finding food in the mist was hard, but there was possibly a small chance. Maybe..

“So, we’ve never really spoken much, right?” Eiji asked whilst they walked up the stairs, trying to start a conversation.

“I suppose there’s not much to talk about.”

They walked together in an awkward silence, until Kyle finally decided to speak up again.

“So I assume you’re into photography, huh?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s not really a profession I’d say, just a hobby..” Eiji smiled, looking down at the camera around his neck.

“Well it’s a sure useful skill in the mist I guess. You got lucky. Blinding the killer with the camera?” Kyle chuckled, just trying to boost the others ego, of course. Eiji felt his cheeks flushing, although it was probably only because of the compliments. He never really got much attention from other survivors, other than Jun.

“I guess so. Your trap is pretty cool too, you know.” He smiled. The difference between the two of them was the fact that Kyle seemed to compliment him in a joking manner, however he meant every word he said. Eiji was more sincere, Kyle wasn’t really used to such affection.

“Only bad part about it is that they can lunge at me while trapped. That kind of sucks.” He scoffed, a smile sneaking through.

They continued to the generator near the open windows, leading outside. Inside the classroom, tables were flipped, it was a lonely machine. Nothing they hadn’t seen before. They ransacked through former student’s bags to see if there was anything to eat, but they weren’t that fortunate.

“Yuck, just rotten food.” Eiji frowned, placing an apple back into a bag.

“As long as it’s edible though, right? Or are we going to have to be picky.” Kyle asked. It sounded like he was trying to be sarcastic, but he was genuine. He didn’t know whether or not people would eat rotten food in a situation like this.

“Jeez, have you actually eaten rotten fruit? Like, seriously?” Eiji chuckled, although he felt uneasy about it.

“Me and Serena were always hanging around the woods, eating what we could find. Not in some weird survival abuse kind of way, just like pretending. But thinking about it now, me and her may have been a little weird.” He confessed, pulling out a packet of chips from a kids bag.

“Hey! You found something!” Eiji laughed with joy, pointing at the food. But Kyle placed it on the ground, looking a bit upset about it.

“Salty foods will make us thirstier, I’m not sure if we can afford eating stuff like this.” He sighed, sighting properly and comfortably on the ground.

“It’s alright, Jonas gets a drink regenerated every few minutes or so. We should be fine for hydration.” Eiji smiled, moving closer to him in an attempt of reassuring.

Kyle just nodded his head, stuffing the chips into his pocket. “Well, we found something at least.”

Eiji hopped up from the floor, immediately pulling the other boy up with his hand. They continued to explore the second floor, but there wasn’t much to find. There was a cute keychain a student had, which Eiji decided to keep. It looked nice with his camera, Kyle also thought so. The keychain had a small cute bear on it, which reminded the other boy of the woods near his home.

“What are you going to name him?” He asked, looking down at Eiji, who was still holding the keychain in his hands.

“The name Kyle will suit it, right?” He chuckled, attaching it to his camera. “It reminds me of you.”

Chapter Text

Yronica, Eman, Callum, and Aaaqil. They insisted on going to the cafeteria. It was probably the most logical place to go if you’re looking for food, but they weren’t even sure this school was a real school. The real one is in the real world, the mist just makes these places to toy with them.

“Why were we the only people with brains in here, who wouldn’t check the cafeteria?” Yronica huffed, seating herself at a table. Callum walked to a vending machine, examining it to see if there was a way to force food out.

“The others probably thought about it, but decided to check other places since the cafeteria would be a popular option by assumption.” Aaaqil spoke up, his soft, kind of high, voice almost making the mean girl jump. He always made himself sound so proper, wondering why Callum even liked him made her sick.

“Shut it, loser. If the answer’s coming out of your mouth, I don’t wanna hear it.” She groaned, acting as if he gave her a headache, which may have been true. Eman was stood in between the two, rolling her eyes. It was like dealing with children. Aaaqil having the sensitivity of one, and Yronica just behaving like a playground bully.

“Jeez, both of you should be quiet. Mainly Yronica though, but seriously.”

“She started it-!”

“God Aaaqil, you need to learn how to stand up for yourself.” Eman sighed, walking up to him. She knew it came off mean, but she was only trying to help him. Aaaqil knew that she was right in the end though, so he just walked over to Callum.

Seeing those two together did bring out the more angrier side of Yronica. She doesn’t even like Callum in that way, but it still annoys her to see some twink flirting with him.

“It’s so obvious Yron, those two bother you.” Eman chuckled, sitting down next to her. Yronica looked away in embarrassment, but couldn’t help but laugh a little. Eman was slightly funny when they were alone, slightly.

“Callum just, seems so much happier with him.. with me, he’s a dud.” Yronica sighed, still trying to keep her smile. Eman looked over at the two boys, they did seem a lot happier, and they sure laughed a lot. Callum always looked like he was holding back when they were with Yronica, but he was himself with Aaaqil.

“Maybe it’s time to move on, stop trying to share a blanket with him and give up. It’ll be nice to find someone new, plus, would you rather him break up with you?”

Yronica stayed silent thinking about it, twirling her hair anxiously before mumbling. “No.”

——————————

Mamo lightly swung her bat around, letting it cut through the air in lazy arcs. The blonde next to her giggled.

“Careful, you might actually hit something,” Dakota chuckled, watching as Mamo swung like she was back home playing softball

“Nah, I wouldn’t hit anything. You know I’m cay-tious.”

“…Cautious?” Dakota raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, that. Plus, what if someone attacked us right here, right now?” Mamo grinned, resting the bat against her shoulder before sliding it back onto her back.

“You know lighting them on fire would be more effective, right?” Dakota deadpanned, shoving her hands into the pockets of her blinding pink jumper. “And who’s even attacking us?”

Mamo sighed, kicking a stray rock down the hallway. “I mean… if Yan attacked you, what if someone else went feral?”

“Yan is not feral,” Dakota shot back, but there was a pause before she added, “She’s got something going on, but it’s not like rabies. I hope.” She smiled softly, but her gaze flickered down to her right sleeve, fingers grazing the fabric. Underneath, she knew, was a bite mark—deep, jagged, impossible to ignore.

“You know,” Mamo paused, slowing her pace slightly, allowing the blonde to adjust hers. “People say you’re just some dumb blonde, but you’re actually really smart. And insightful, you care about other people Dakota.”

The other stopped walking, reaching her hand out of her pockets to pull Mamo back with her.

“Why are you saying things like this?” Her eyebrows furrowed, “I know people just make things up about me because I’m pretty. But how come you’re being really sentimental now?” She asked, giving the other a stern look.

“I don’t know what’s gonna happen to you with that bite. When something.. if something happens, I’ll never forgive myself if I don’t tell you how I really feel.” She said, but her response slowly turned into a mutter the more she got embarrassed.

“Jeez, Mams. I’m not going to die! I’m just sick of people treating me like a bite is gonna kill me. If you’ve got some weird romantic secret love for me, you can tell me when you’re ready instead of rushing it!”

Silence fell upon the two as they looked at each other. Dakota couldn’t tell if Mamo wasn’t speaking because she was embarrassed, or upset that she raised her voice. Mamo didn’t like arguing with Dakota, which sounds like a normal thing people do, but she really hated it.

“Fine, I like you. It’s not a weird romantic secret love for you, it’s just like a crush.” She mumbled, twirling on the ends of her braid. Dakota smiled hearing the news, but she wasn’t very satisfied with how she got it out of her.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to call it weird. I think you’re pretty cute, you know. I’m not too sure why I reacted that way.”

“Nah,” Mamo smiled softly, trying to lighten the mood, even if just a little. “It was my fault for treating you like that. You’re strong, Dakota. I know you’ll be alright.”

Dakota stuffed her hands back into her pockets, a barely visible smile appearing on her face as her head tilted down. Things seemed well, until her smile slowly faded. She yanked her arms out and didn’t hesitate to lift up her sleeve immediately, staring at the bite mark. A red undertone travelled around the wound, her veins getting darker until they were black. She watched her fingers stretch out, following with her legs and arms.

“Dakota! Dakota what’s wrong?” Mamo yelled, holding onto her hand. The blonde instantly pulled away, keeping her hand close to her chest.

“Don’t touch me, you might get it too!” She cried, watching as she grew even more. Dakota was over 6ft now, and she was already tall without the bite mark. Mamo had run off to go get Riley, who was actually already on his way. He brought along Serena and Kyle, the only two who probably had experience with a medkit.

“Can you hear us? Dakota, can you hear us?” Kyle asked, waving what looked like a hand in front of her face. It was all a blur, her head spun, her heart thumped in her chest. Those were the last words she heard.