Xender didn't wait. The bat came down again and again, crushing his skull. Blood splattered across Xender's face and clothes.
He turned, glaring at the remaining muscle heads. One of them charged. Xender blocked the swing, kicked him backward, then cracked his neck with a clean blow before finishing him off with another strike.
It didn't even take two minutes. The fight was over before anyone could breathe.
"Anyone else?" Xender said, his voice cold, dripping with authority. He glanced at the lunatics. "How about you crazy bastards?"
The nerds puked up the snacks they'd just eaten. Lucy joined them. Cindy trembled. Kayla could barely look away.
But Sasha? Sasha smiled like she'd just fallen in love.
The lunatics spread out, circling Xender like a pack of hungry wolves, waiting for Sasha's signal to tear him apart. The muscle heads stood frozen, completely lost. Their leader lay dead at Xender's feet, skull cracked open like rotten fruit.
Sasha stepped forward, slow and amused, clapping her hands.
"Such a strong one," she said softly. "It'd be a waste to lose you. How about you join me?"
Xender chuckled. "In this messed-up world, only messed-up lunatics like you can survive. How about you join me instead?"
"The fuck are you talking about?" one of the lunatics shouted.
"Let's kill this bastard now!" another snapped.
Sasha smiled. Deep inside, she knew the truth—she couldn't beat Xender in a one-on-one fight. And she didn't want to. Something about him drew her in. She didn't mind following him… maybe she even liked the idea.
"Shut the hell up!" Sasha barked, silencing her lunatics instantly.
"Fine," she said, eyes locked with Xender's. "I don't mind following you. But if you ever show weakness, I'll kill you myself."
"Like seriously…? Boss?" the lunatics whispered, stunned.
Xender smirked. He stepped forward, standing tall in front of everyone.
"I won't force anyone to follow me," he said. "But from this moment on, I make the calls in this cafeteria."
The lunatics shrugged—new boss, same chaos. The nerds? They were shaking so hard they almost dropped their glasses. After watching Xender kill three men like it meant nothing, they could only imagine what he might do to them.
The girls stared at him differently now. Lucy, Cindy, Kayla, none of them recognized the boy they thought they knew. Maybe he had changed. Or maybe he had always been like this.
"So," Sasha said, folding her arms. "What now, boss?"
"Clean this mess." Xender pointed at the bodies.
No one moved. Then Xender's death glare swept over them, sharp enough to slice skin. A few lunatics and remaining muscle heads scrambled into action, dragging the corpses and tossing them out the windows like bags of trash.
Xender walked to the refrigerator, pulled out some leftover chicken, and started eating.
"You two," he said to the girls, motioning with his head. "Give everyone the cooked food. All of it."
The nerds couldn't believe it. The lunatics and muscle heads stared in confusion.
He wasn't being generous, far from it. He only let them eat because the food was already spoiling.
This will be the last time anyone gets food for free, Xender thought, a wicked smile creeping across his face.
Time crawled on.
Outside, the Z's gathered in the hundreds—maybe more. Their growls and throaty snarls blended into a constant, deafening hum. They slammed against the glass, the doors, the metal frames… over and over. The cafeteria walls trembled with every hit.
Everyone inside knew the truth: They were trapped.
But at least, for now, they had food. Enough for a few days… if they rationed.
Everyone had eaten already. Now they stood or sat quietly, staring at the silhouettes of Z's pounding outside like beasts trying to break into a cage.
Kayla hugged her legs tightly. "What… what are we gonna do now?" she whispered, her voice shaking.
Xender stretched his neck, completely unbothered. "Good question," he said. "We all know we'll have to take care of those Z's sooner or later."
The nerds exchanged terrified looks—pale faces, sweaty foreheads, glasses fogged from breathing too fast.
"I… I can't fight those things," one stammered.
"We're screwed, man," another muttered. "We're actually screwed."
"Typical nerd bullshit," one of the muscle heads scoffed.
"Let them cry in the corner," another said, cracking his knuckles.
The lunatics grinned wide, eager.
"Let them come," one whispered, eyes shining crazily.
"I wanna slice some skulls," another giggled.
Lucy stared at Xender, horrified. "He's insane…" she murmured.
Cindy nudged her. "Insane? Lucy, he's beyond insane."
Xender ignored everyone, rubbing his forehead. "Now… let's use this time to rest," he said. "And hope those damn Z's don't break in till tomorrow."
He walked to a quiet corner, laid down, and slept almost instantly—like all the killing and chaos meant nothing.
The others stared at him in disbelief.
"Is he… seriously sleeping?" a nerd whispered.
"After all that?"
"He's not human," one of the muscle heads muttered.
Sasha sat on a table sharpening her scalpels with slow, rhythmic strokes. She glanced at Xender repeatedly.
"How can he sleep like that?" she muttered to herself. "After everything he pulled… he's not even afraid someone might try to stab him in his sleep?"
A lunatic beside her giggled. "Want us to test him, boss?"
Sasha's eyes snapped to him. "Try it and I'll gut you myself."
The lunatic swallowed hard and backed away.
She returned her gaze to Xender, a strange curiosity flickering in her eyes. No… I won't let anyone touch him, she thought. I want to see what else he can do.
Across the cafeteria, the nerds huddled in a corner, whispering nervously.
"We should make a plan," one said.
"A plan for what? Dying?" another snapped.
"No, man… maybe we stay behind him. Like… like body armor."
"That's not a plan, that's suicide!"
Lucy and Cindy sat close, trying to calm their nerves.
"Cindy… he killed them like it was nothing," Lucy said quietly.
"I know," Cindy whispered. "But… I don't think he's the same Xender we knew."
"Or maybe he was always like this," Lucy said, her voice trembling. "And we just never saw it."
Kayla sat alone, hugging herself, staring at Xender's sleeping figure.
"How can he just sleep…" she murmured.
"He's different," Cindy answered without looking up. "We're stuck in hell… and he's the only one acting like he belongs here."
The pounding outside grew louder. The Z's weren't stopping.
But slowly, conversations died down. Some people lay down. Some simply sat against the walls, trying to rest but too afraid to close their eyes.
Xender? The bastard slept like the world had already ended—and he was ready to rebuild it himself.
Morning came with chaos.
Everyone inside the cafeteria jolted awake as a roar of movement echoed from outside. A wave of noise… the Z's sounded different — frantic, rushing somewhere.
One of the nerds rubbed his eyes.
"Wh–what's happening? They stopped pounding on the door."
The lunatics and muscle heads pushed toward the windows, peeking through cracked blinds.
A lunatic hissed,"What the…? I thought we were the only ones left."
Another pointed through the glass."Bro, look at those idiots. Who the hell are they?"
Outside, it was madness.