Chapter 29: Suicide Squad

"I’ll go."

I spun around in shock to see Sydney raising her hand lazily behind me.

"S—Sydney?" I stammered, completely caught off guard. The last thing I’d expected was for her to volunteer for what was essentially a suicide mission. "You can’t be serious."

But looking at her face, I could see that she was absolutely serious.

The thing was, while I appreciated her willingness to help, I wasn’t sure she was the right person for this job. What I really needed were people who knew the layout of Lexington Charter inside and out, people who could navigate the building’s corridors and hidden passages without getting us all killed.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Scott asked, his tone dismissive as he looked Sydney up and down.

"I don’t give my name to random assholes with the emotional maturity of dogs in heat," she retorted, barely bothering to glance in his direction as she delivered the insult.

The effect was immediate.

Several people actually gasped audibly, their eyes widening in shock at the crude directness of her response. Even Mei looked up from her book with raised eyebrows, clearly impressed by Sydney’s complete lack of social filter.

She wasn’t just ignoring social niceties—she was obliterating them with the precision of a surgical strike.

As expected of Sydney...

"What did you just say?!" Scott’s face flushed bright red as the full impact of her words hit him. He took a step toward her, his hands clenching into fists, clearly preparing to do something stupid.

But I was already moving, stepping between them before he could get any closer to Sydney. "Move the fuck out of my way," he snarled.

"Cut it out," I said.

"What?" He glared at me, his anger now fully focused in my direction.

"I said cut it out." I met his gaze directly, letting him see the coldness in my gray eyes. I couldn’t believe as I spoke this words with a voice I barely recognised as mine but I quite annoyed as well.

Scott actually pulled back slightly, his head jerking away from me in instinctive surprise. Whatever he saw in my expression apparently gave him pause.

I ignored his reaction and turned to address the group as a whole. "I don’t care what any of you think about me, my school, or my background. And I have absolutely no intention of leaving my fate in the hands of whatever gods you pray to, or in the slim hope that any of your parents will miraculously appear to rescue you."

I paused, letting my gaze sweep across their faces, seeing the mix of anger, fear, and dawning realization in their expressions.

"And even if they do come," I continued, my voice gaining strength, "do you honestly think they’re going to arrive with ten helicopters and a full military escort to evacuate every single person in this room?"

Gasps echoed audibly after my words.

I could see the moment when reality began to penetrate their privileged assumptions, when they started to realize that rescue—if it came at all—might be far more selective than they’d imagined.

I pressed on, knowing I had to drive the point home while I had their attention. "At best, if any of your parents do manage to show up, they’ll arrive in a single helicopter with room for maybe five people. The rest of you will be left here to rot."

The words were harsh, deliberately so, but they had the desired effect. I watched the color drain from several faces as the brutal mathematics of survival began to sink in. Even Scott had stopped smirking, his expression growing more serious as he processed what I was saying.

"Because unless one of your parents happens to have an entire military battalion at their disposal—complete with the firepower necessary to clear this entire campus of infected—you’re not all getting out of here alive. Not if you’re just sitting around waiting for someone else to save you."

Truth be told, I wasn’t entirely certain of my own assessment. Maybe one of their parents really could pull off some kind of miraculous large-scale rescue operation. Stranger things had happened, especially when you were dealing with people who had the kind of wealth and connections these families possessed.

But I wasn’t willing to gamble my life on that possibility. And more than that, I had a pretty good idea of how someone like Tobias would handle a situation where choices had to be made. Even if his father did show up with enough resources to save everyone, I could easily imagine Tobias whispering in daddy’s ear about how the "public school kid" wasn’t really worth the effort or the risk.

No, I preferred to rely on myself. At least that way, if I died, it would be because of my own decisions rather than someone else’s prejudices.

"What I’m proposing is dangerous," I sighed. "I’m not going to lie to you about that. I’m not even sure it’s going to work. But if it does work, if we manage to get that radio operational and establish contact with the outside world, then we might all be saved. All of us, not just the lucky few who make it into the helicopter."

I paused, letting that sink in before continuing. "I’m not forcing anyone to come with me. The plan involves jumping between buildings and breaking into the Director’s office, which means we’ll almost certainly encounter infected along the way. But I genuinely believe that the more people we have, the better our chances of success. So it’s up to each of you to decide whether you want to help find a real solution, despite the risks involved."

I was surprised by how steady my voice sounded, how clearly I was able to articulate my thoughts to this group of people who had spent the last several minutes treating me like something they’d scrape off their shoes. Maybe surviving the apocalypse was helping me grow a backbone I’d never known I possessed.

The silence stretched on for what felt like an eternity. I could see people glancing at each other, having entire conversations with their eyes, weighing their options and trying to decide whether trusting the "public school reject" was worth the risk.

"I... I will go with you."

The voice was soft but clear, and when I turned toward it, I felt my heart skip a beat. Elena had raised her hand, though she was biting her lower lip nervously.

"E... Elena?" Alisha shot to her feet, her voice filled with shock and what sounded suspiciously like panic. "You can’t be serious."

"He’s right, Alya," Elena replied, her voice gaining strength as she spoke. "You said it yourself—we have to try something. We can’t just sit here waiting to die."

"No, absolutely not. You’re not going anywhere—"

"I’m flexible enough to make that jump between buildings," Elena interrupted, cutting off her sister’s protests with practiced ease. "You know I am. I’ve been doing gymnastics since I was six years old. Don’t worry about me."

"Then I’ll come as well—" Alisha started to say, but Elena was already shaking her head.

"You can’t." Elena’s voice was gentle but firm as she gestured toward Alisha’s ankle. "You’d just be slowing us down, and you know it. That injury is worse than you’re letting on."

"But..." Alisha’s voice cracked slightly, and I could see the internal war playing out across her face—the desire to protect her sister warring with the knowledge that Elena was right.

She was scared for Elena, which was completely understandable. And if I was being honest with myself, I’d rather have Elena stay safely in the library too. It was hypocritical of me to favor the safety of people I knew, but what was I supposed to do? Pretend I didn’t have feelings?

"Don’t worry, I’ll be fine, sister," Elena said again, crossing the space between them to place a reassuring hand on Alisha’s arm.

Alisha just lowered her gaze, clearly torn between wanting to support her sister’s decision and or convince her in some way.

I approached Elena hesitantly, still not entirely sure this was a good idea. "Are you absolutely certain about this?" I asked quietly, searching her face for any sign of doubt or second thoughts.

Elena nodded, though I noticed her grip tightening on her arm. "I... I owe you for what you did earlier. It’s the least I can do."

"No." I shook my head, frowning at her reasoning. "You shouldn’t think like that. I didn’t help you and Alisha because I wanted you to feel indebted to me. You don’t have to force yourself to do this out of some misguided sense of obligation."

"I’m not forcing myself!" Elena’s response was immediate and heated, her arms crossing defensively as she glared at me. "I’m doing this because I want to. Because it’s the right thing to do. Shouldn’t you be glad that at least someone is willing to accompany you?"

She was clearly frustrated with me, unable to understand why I was suddenly trying to talk her out of something I’d just spent several minutes trying to convince everyone to do. The logic was somewhat contradictory, I had to admit.

The truth was, I didn’t want her to get hurt. But of course, I couldn’t just say that out loud.

She was a good woman and she treated me well compared to the guys here. After meeting her classmates now I could get the clear difference between Elena, Alisha and people like Tobias.

"Then I’ll come as well!"

The sudden declaration startled the three of us Daisy had stepped forward with a determined smile, her hand raised in the air like a student volunteering to solve a difficult math problem.

"D... Daisy? Absolutely not," Elena cut her off immediately.

"Why not?" Daisy’s voice climbed toward a wail, her face crumpling with disappointment and hurt.

"You can barely walk in a straight line without your glasses," Elena said bluntly, "and you want to attempt jumping between buildings that are four stories high? Are you trying to commit suicide?"

"T... That’s..." Daisy started to protest, but the words died in her throat as she realized Elena had a point.

"Just stay here and look after my sister," Elena said, her tone softening slightly as she realized how harsh she’d sounded. She glanced around the library until her gaze settled on a woman wearing a white coat who had been sitting quietly in one of the reading alcoves. "Miss Ivy!"

The woman looked up with raised eyebrows and approached our group.

She seemed awfully casual for an adult who was supposed to be the one giving leads and orders.

She appeared to be in her late twenties, wearing a white coat.

"My sister’s ankle is injured," Elena explained as Miss Ivy drew near. "Could you take a look at it? Make sure it’s not worse than we thought?"

"Hmm." Miss Ivy nodded, her sharp eyes already assessing Alisha’s posture and the way she was favoring her left foot. "I can do that."

Ah, so she was the school nurse. That explained the white coat and the no-nonsense attitude.

Elena started to move away, but Alisha caught her arm before she could take more than a step. "Please," she whispered, and there was so much fear and love packed into that single word that it made me feel somewhat guilty.

"I know," Elena replied, covering Alisha’s hand with her own. "I’ll be back, I promise. Don’t worry about me, sister."

With that, she gently extracted herself from her sister’s grip and walked over to where Sydney was standing, presumably to introduce herself and get to know the person she’d be risking her life alongside or maybe the person who pissed off Scott this easily. I didn’t miss her smirk at Sydney’s reply.

"Ryan." Alisha’s voice called me over, and when I approached, I could see the internal struggle written plainly across her face. "I know I’m being selfish, especially after you nearly died because of us earlier, but..." She clenched her fists, clearly wrestling with what she wanted to say.

"Don’t worry," I interrupted, offering her what I hoped was a reassuring smile. "I won’t let anything happen to your sister. I promise I’ll bring her back safely."

"Thank you..." Alisha nodded relieved though worry still clouded her features. "And you be safe too, okay? Both of you need to come back."

"Yeah, I’ve got it."

"Can you move away, boy?" Miss Ivy’s voice cut through our conversation, sharp with professional impatience. She had knelt down in front of Alisha and was looking up at me with weary eyes that suggested she’d dealt with more than her share of hovering relatives and concerned friends over the years. "I need space to examine her properly."

"Y...Yeah, of course," I stammered, stepping back to give the nurse room to work.

Lexington Charter was certainly full of weirdos...

As I moved away, I noticed a guy with glasses making his way toward Alisha, as if he’d been waiting for me to leave before approaching. He settled down beside her with a friendly smile and began speaking in low, concerned tones. I’d seen him talking with both Alisha and Elena earlier—probably one of their classmates who’d been hanging back during the more heated discussions.

I dismissed him from my thoughts and made my way over to where Sydney and Elena were standing.

"Do you really want to die that badly, Sydney?" I asked, still unable to fully comprehend why she was so eager to volunteer for what was essentially a suicide mission.

Sydney turned to me with that mischievous grin I was beginning to recognize as trouble. "As long as I’m beside you, the Hero, I’m not worried about dying. Just make sure to share some of that plot armor with me, okay?"

I felt my cheeks twitch involuntarily at her words.

"Hero?" Elena raised an eyebrow, glancing between Sydney and me with obvious confusion.

"Don’t you know?" Sydney leaned in conspiratorially, dropping her voice to what she probably thought was a whisper but was still perfectly audible to anyone within ten feet. "Ryan here has this amazing ability to fight his way through dangerous situations and always come out alive. Plus, he has this weird habit of constantly saving people—mostly women, which is kind of suspicious if you ask me, but it still makes him like the protagonist of some action novel or video game, don’t you think?"

"I mean..." Elena trailed off, clearly at a loss for how to respond to Sydney’s bizarre analysis of my survival skills.

"She’s from Lexington Charter," I said to Sydney. "Do you really expect her to understand references to video games and adventure novels?"

The words were meant as a gentle tease, but Elena’s face immediately flushed with hurt, her eyes flashing with something that looked suspiciously like wounded pride.

Wait, no. I was trying to compliment you, Elena. You’re too refined for that kind of pop culture nonsense...

Before I could clarify what I’d meant, I saw Rachel and Rebecca approaching our little group. Rachel’s expression was pained, her usual cheerful demeanor replaced by obvious guilt and regret.

"Ryan..." Rachel began, her voice soft with apology. "I’m so sorry I can’t come with you. I know you could use the help, but..."

"Don’t," I cut her off with a shake of my head. "I understand completely. Just focus on taking care of your sister. That’s where you’re needed most right now."

"Yes..." She nodded, but I could see the conflict in her eyes, the part of her that wanted to help warring with her protective instincts toward Rebecca.

"Well, be careful out there," Rebecca said curtly, her arms crossed defensively across her chest. Her tone was as sharp as ever, but I caught a subtle note of concern underneath the attitude—probably the closest thing to emotional vulnerability I was likely to get from her.

As always, the younger sister seemed to have some kind of issue with me, though I’d never been able to figure out exactly what I’d done to earn her disapproval. At least she was showing some hint that she didn’t want me to die horribly, which I supposed counted as progress.

"So it’s just the three of us then?" Sydney asked, glancing between Elena and me with obvious satisfaction.

"I guess so—"

"We’re coming as well."

I stopped mid-sentence and turned around, surprised to see a couple I hadn’t noticed approaching before. The girl had medium-length blonde hair that fell just to her shoulders, cut in a practical style that framed her face nicely. The guy beside her had short dark brown hair.

Elena didn’t seem to recognize them, so they were probably from another class or year—which wasn’t really surprising.

"I’m Cindy," the girl spoke first, extending her hand with a confident smile that didn’t quite hide the nervousness in her eyes. I shook her hand lightly.

"Christopher," the guy added, nodding in acknowledgment.

"You want to come with us?" I asked, wanting to make sure I’d understood correctly. The more volunteers we had, the better our chances, but I also didn’t want people joining on impulse without understanding what they were getting into.

"Yeah," Christopher nodded.

"Are you sure you can handle it?" I asked. "This isn’t just about jumping between buildings—though that’s dangerous enough. We might have to fight infected, navigate unfamiliar parts of the school, and deal with situations where split-second decisions mean the difference between life and death."

"We’re not cowards, you know?" Cindy replied with a laugh. "We didn’t survive these two days long by being helpless."

"Yeah, and you’re right about one thing," Christopher nodded. "I can’t just sit here doing nothing while you guys are actually trying to find a way out of this nightmare. If there’s a chance to get out of here quicker, then we need to take it."

I smiled. "Good, then—"

"I... I will come as well."

Once again, I was interrupted, but this time the shock of seeing who had spoken left me momentarily speechless.

"Jason?"

The frail-looking guy was standing a few feet away, his usually pale complexion even more waxen than usual, but there was something different in his posture—a kind of quiet determination I’d never seen from him before.

Rebecca, standing nearby, looked absolutely stunned, her mouth hanging slightly open as she stared at her classmate. She clearly didn’t expect this guy to offer to accompany in this suicide mission

"If... if you’ll have me," Jason added quietly.

"Are you sure you can handle this?" I asked, not unkindly but with obvious skepticism. Jason looked like a strong breeze might knock him over, and what we were planning would require physical stamina and mental toughness that I wasn’t sure he possessed.

I didn’t want to bring people along just for the sake of having more bodies if it meant leading them to their deaths. That would be worse than useless—it would be cruel.

"Yeah," Jason nodded, and to my surprise, he clenched his fists and looked up at me with more direct eye contact than I’d ever seen from him. "I’m actually very good at climbing—rock climbing, specifically. I’ve been doing it since middle school. I know I don’t look like much, but I could be useful. Please... please take me with you."