OUTBREAK: ZERO is a semi post-apocalyptic pandemic roleplay set in the fictional city of Lethford, USA. Current season: Winter, 20/21.
March 2020. The world is in pandemonium as one month ago, GHNv-20 was confirmed, five months after the beginning of norovirus season. The number of the infected are in the higher hundred thousands, and the death toll is at an estimated 250,000, with about seventy percent of the rest of the population experiencing mild to moderate illnesses connected to the S. pyogenes bacteria.
The fear of the unknown has caused mass hysteria and panic.
In an attempt to provide a semblance of safety and control, military personnel patrol the streets, even here in Lethford City, and the police force is trying to keep up with the rising street violence, assault, and theft.
Welcome to OUTBREAK: zero. Will you survive?
HAYANA
SITE OWNER + HEAD ADMINISTRATOR
Hi! I'm Haya. I'm pretty much your girl for everything! If you have any questions regarding our plot, membergroups, etc. don't hesitate to ask me. I'm also in charge of coding, graphics, anything skin related, and advertising/affiliates.
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ADDI
ADMINISTRATOR
Hey! I'm Addi. Hit me up if you need help with anything. I'm always for plotting so don't be shy. I like coffee, booze, and working out. I'm back from a long hiatus the dead so if you need anything, best ask the others until I get back into the groove of things!
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FINNLEY
GLOBAL MODERATOR
Hi hello! My name is Finnley, or Finn, call whichever and I'll be there for you (yes like the FRIENDS theme song). I am in charge of the claims and helping with miscellaneous things. Let me know if you have any questions!
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outbreak
/ˈaʊtbreɪk/ zero /ˈzɪərəʊ/
a sudden occurrence of something unwelcome, such as war or disease. number, no quantity or number; nought; the figure 0.
[attr="class","CONTENT"] ‘Do you have an ID on you, Mr. Cheetos?’ ID… ID… Raphael thought about his options for a moment. He carried his regular ID with him at all times but he also had his Lethford Daily ID right under his jacket, hanging around his neck. Biting his lower lip as he ran all sorts of scenarios inside his head he nervously brushed off his hands on his legs. “Sure,” he replied, simple and short. “I’m going to reach into my backpack if that’s okay?” he asked first before slipping it over his shoulder.
He opened the zipper, as slow as he could in case the military dude in front of him would see it as a sign of threat or something and suddenly shoot. A shiver ran down his spine. Today wasn’t the day he wanted to get shot or die, which would be worse, maybe… maybe not. He recalled the other question he was asked, his eyes widening in utter pretense. “What? This is the quarantine zone? I wasn’t aware… I didn’t know...” he uttered quickly, pretending to give his surroundings a look. Raphael shook his head at himself and fumbled around inside the backpack. “Where is ittt... my wallet...,” he mumbled, glancing up at the man.
“Aha! Here it is...,” he paused, pulling his hand out, fingers curled around – nothing. Within a moment he threw the backpack at the guy in front of him and then he ran, as fast as he could on the slippery ground. Raphael ducked underneath a broken fence that led into some sort of backyard and he made his way to the front porch, in hopes to escape inside the building when suddenly the door of the house it belonged to was swung open. The last time he was there most of the houses and apartments were left empty... apparently not all of them.
He came to an instant halt, though stumbling over his own feet, tripping and landing on his butt like so often these days. Lifting his head he looked at a man approaching him, coughing wildly, his clothes stained with… ew, he didn’t want to think about it. The realization only hit when the words quarantine zone echoed in his head. “He’s infected,” he mumbled under his breath, slowly crawling backward.
[attr="class","CONTENT"] A sigh of relief left his lips when the soldier seemed to understand that there was no way he could, or would, drop the expensive equipment he held on tightly in his hands. His eyes flicked between the guy and the camera, skinny fingers nervously curling around it. “Okay. Okay,” he said, lifting the strap over his head and slowly, very slowly, as slow as possible, he crouched. Raphael gasped, his eyes widened in the realization of what he almost did, immediately standing up again, the camera still in his hands. “Sorry. I can’t put it on the ground… there’s… there’s snow,” he told the guy, eyes still wide as he looked at him. His lips twitched in a nervous smile. “I mean, it’s just a camera. I can’t harm you with that… I think…”
Perhaps changing the subject was a good idea. When he was asked for his name Raphael did the only thing that came to his mind - the one thing he would always do whenever someone he didn’t know asked for his name. Was it stupid to do it to government authorities? Maybe. Did he think about that? No. If Raphael was good at something it surely would be the not thinking part in iffy situations. “Raphael Hernandez Paulos Roberto Alejandro Doritos Chipotle Super Hot Flaming Cheetos,” he told the military man with a satisfied grin, followed by a bopping of his shoulders. However, his grin vanished within a moment. “Oh, I suppose that wasn’t… funny?”
He fiddled with his hands before scratching the back of his head. "As for what I'm doing here... just... taking pictures of-" he paused to look around him, squinting through the darkness. "Stones. Taking pictures of stones," he said, nodding aggressively.
[attr="class","CONTENT"] 'Hands up! Drop what you're holding immediately!'
The moment he pressed the button and a sound came out of the camera indicating it just snapped a picture a voice broke the silence. Startled, Raphael flinched, accidentally flipping the camera in his hands and tossing it slightly up. Clumsy hands caught it and he tightened his grip around the edges until his knuckles turned white. A small sigh of relief found its way past his lips when he was told to drop what he was holding.
Nooooo. This was exactly what he couldn't do. Anything, really, but not dropping expensive equipment that had been given into his care. For once, just once, he wanted to take care of it and not return it all broken or mangled, or with a piece of paper instead of telling them to go pick it up at the police station. He just started his internship but here he was, having high hopes of being the overachieving newbie who was able to get his hands on a good picture of two exposing the quarantine zone.
Slowly, Raphael looked at the man who gave the order. He swallowed hard, his breathing slow but unsteady. He didn't want to let go of the camera. It wasn't strapped around his neck. If he did let go of it it would fall to the ground and most likely break - at least partly. The lens probably wouldn't survive a fall on concrete. The brunette looked at a guy in military uniform, though, his silhouette was cloaked by shadows. Nevertheless, the sight of him made Raphael shudder as well as the freezing temperatures.
"I... I can't. I can't let go of it." he stuttered, swallowing hard once again. He held the camera in front of his chest but didn't dare to move much more.
[attr="class","CONTENT"] Raphael had found yet another stupid idea that came to his mind just as easily as the thought of food. He needed food to survive and apparently, he heeded stupid ideas to survive as well. The thrill of sneaking around in places he should most definitely not be and now, now that he started working as an intern at Lethford Daily, he even had the perfect excuse and an intern reporter ID to slap in people’s faces. Of course, it didn’t give him any authority to be there and yes, he might have had his roommate edit it slightly to make it look more… serious.
The area he found himself walking around was one he explored before. Last time he stumbled upon, and over, a rotten corpse nearby the quarantine quarters. It was suspected the body was infected and thus passed away from his symptoms but he never heard again from the detective who caught him and dragged him out. It was one of the two incidences of almost getting arrested. Almost. For some reason, he was lucky enough to slip away.
If he could get away today as well he already planned a visit to the movie theater in the area. What perfect occasion this was. He would be alone, didn’t have to pay for a ticket or the overpriced snacks, could just take a bath in popcorn and then watch whatever they had - which was probably some movie that has been released at the beginning of the year. He could think of one or two good ones. But until then he had 'a job to do'.
Man, this whole reporter thing gave him Spiderman vibes. He was given a camera, probably expensive and worth more than he ever owned in his entire life. But they gave it to him. What a reckless thing to do. Raphael knew himself better than others, sometimes at least, and he knew, lowkey expected, to drop it at some point.
His sneakers moved through the thick snow on the ground leaving an easy to spot and follow the shoeprints behind him. Raphael calculated a lot of things but he also tended to forget a bunch - the easiest parts like leaving tracks or screaming out loud because what else would someone do when stumbling over a corpse. As he moved through the area, he attempted to take pictures of the run-down buildings, the yellow warning tape, and everything he thought could be important. When he checked the roll he saw that most images were blurry. Well, gotta try again.
Voices in the distance reached his ears and he turned around, hiding behind an abandoned car, camera ready to snap some soldiers or police officers in action. His hopes were up that he could catch an infected person on camera but he was also certain he wouldn't have the guts to go near them to do that.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Confused eyes stared at her in even more bewilderment. "What? No, of course not. This isn’t Area 51. Pfft." he started, before tilting his head to the side. His lips formed an O as he thought for a moment, wild thoughts running through his head as always. "Or I mean… would that help? If I was an extraterrestrial being? Would I still need to surrender?" he asked, scrunching his face together into a very, questioning grimace and letting out a series of nonsense words and strange sounds. Not resisting would make this way too short lived. This whole great conversation about aliens and handcuffs.
As he made a run for it he heard her calling after him about the paperwork. "Have fun with that!" he yelled. He did feel sorry for her. Paperwork sucked. But that wasn’t his problem. For once something wasn’t his problem unless she caught him and made him do the paperwork about himself. That might be a small problem.
Usually when someone said they jumped because they weresurprised by something or someone they just say it and do nothing more but flinch, however, Raphael literally jumped when the soldier appeared on the other side forcing him to throw himself against the container. "Son of a dorito! Holy cheeto." he screamed, yes, screamed, high pitched voice and all. His hand immediately went to his heart and he could swear there was a tear trying to make its way out of his eye. He took a couple of deep breaths, perhaps being a tiny bit overdramatic but that’s just how he was if he wasn’t being an idiot and a fool.
"I hope you know CPR because I think I’m about to have a heart attack." he told her, blowing out air through his deep breaths. Raphael nibbled on his lower lip when she asked him where he was going to go. He did believe her that she could do this all day. He couldn’t. The sprint from his starting point to the back of the container was already too much for him to handle. Exercise? What’s that? But did that make him want to give up and surrender? Nah.
Slowly holding up his hands in an act of surrender he nodded towards the container, giving her a small shrug and puppy eyes. "I was going to merge into this container, enter through the walls. You know since I might be an alien and stuff." Raphael joked,giving her the most awkward wink ever. Sometimes a human could be just a little too curious and these days it’s so boring sitting at home during this lockdown so when you have nothing to do you kinda get those stupid, foolish, dumb ideas like… let’s say breaking into a military base. That was one of them even though Raphael was most likely the only one stupid enough to do that or even think about doing that but here he was really doing it.
Well, crap. He realized he couldn’t get away from her or escape. And perhaps if he gave it another shot, running away, she might end up shooting or taser him. Or maybe he would just trip over his own feet and end it himself. Yeah, the probability for that to happen was definitely the highest.
Standing there, he looked at her, pressing his lips together. He pulled in his arms closer to his body but still keeping them raised beside his head. Taking a deep breath he slowly moved his right arm forward, straightening it into her direction, index finger pointing at her. "E.T. phone home?"
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Raphael was thinking about all the stupid and foolish choices he had made in his 23 years of living this life. Did he regret a lot of them? Maybe. Did he regret the one where he thought sneaking into a military warehouse was a good idea? For sure. Did he have a plan to get out of this mess? Not really. He wasn’t even sure he could make it this far and yet here he was standing in the middle of a warehouse, surrounded by military properties on military ground.
And considering that he sort of expected a whole group of soldiers to appear but… to his relief it was just one. Not that it helped him much because he wouldn’t be able to handle one no matter who it was. Raphael would be the easiest target to capture, to arrest, to scare into wearing those handcuffs and he would probably end up putting them on by himself.
Nervous, he glanced at the handcuffs he was swaying in her hand. Raphael held up his hands slowly to the sides of his head. "I- I come in peace." he said, in response to her, throwing her a peace sign with one of his hands up as well as an awkward, teeth-showing grin. When she asked him to put his hands behind his back he swallowed hard. Was it really going to happen this time? Was this the day he would get arrested?
He looked at her, eyes wide, nose scrunched up, lips pressed together. There were a lot of thoughts that ran through his mind at that moment but of course, Raphael being Raphael called for the dumbest one. "Uh... those cuffs look very uncomfortable." he let out, grimacing at it. "You don't happen to have the ones with plush around the wrist things? Preferably in black." the brunette teased, maybe, maybe he was serious. Lots of maybes in his cases.
"Umm... about the whole getting caught issue... ROLL THE DICE." he blurted out, hoping it would somehow work as a distraction. She only held up the handcuffs. She didn’t have a gun pointed at him yet. If there was a slight chance of escaping… he would take it. So he screamed at her and sprinted towards a row of big, wooden containers.
It probably would have been a thousand times smarter to just surrender and either get kicked out or go wherever they would have taken him. Although, that idea scared him a little. Raphael pressed himself against the container, trying to stay out of sight as he attempted to step around the other side.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Stupid idea number three emerged from the pits of his brain on a seemingly normal Thursday morning. At this point, Raphael had completely lost it. With each day he would venture out more and more, leaving the city and the suburbs behind. With the help of his roommate who was basically forced to help him with every stupid idea. His ideas started out small, very small but as time passed and the virus seemed to progress further and further, claiming almost half of Lethford City’s population, Raphael started having grant vision - of stupidity. First, he sneaked into the quarantine zone and then a rebel hideout in the suburbs of Lethford Heath... no one stopped him now to sneak into the military base.
It took the whole day to prepare, and finish the game he was playing before he left his apartment once the sun started to set. He took his normal route - walk, bus, bus, walk - until he was in Lethford Heath, where he managed to arrange a bicycle waiting for him because there were no busses who could take him to the base. He jumped on the bike and stepped into the pedals with all his might.
Raphael knew the base itself was located underground but he was sure some of their warehouses wouldn't be. It wouldn't make sense, wouldn't work. He arrived at a chain-link fence circling the base and got off his bike, hiding it behind some bushes nearby. He started looking for cameras aimed at the fence and spotted some. Thinking he could avoid all of them he tip-toed past them, playing James Bond, as he walked until he spotted one of the bigger warehouses.
"Easy." he said, smirked, and proceeded to climb the fence, only to fall off after the first attempt... and the second, the third, the fourth. Raphael grumbled, rubbings his palms together for yet another attempt. Fascinated and proud at the same time he managed to get over it but not without ripping his shirt on the spiky ends. Eh, at least it wasn't his favorite. With a thud, he landed on the ground, head flipping to the side to check if anyone was there. "Whew." he let out, wiping away imaginary sweat off of his forehead before moving towards the door of the warehouse.
He listened for voices but couldn't hear anything, pushing the door open as quietly as he could and squeezed through. Leaving the door open because Raphael doesn't always think of everything and gets distracted quite easily, he spun around in awe at everything inside of it. It was huge. Huge enough to hide supplies lasting for years.
Raphael heard the footsteps of someone approaching and a clicking sound, thinking it's a gun his arms shot up almost immediately. "I'm innocent!" he shouted, with his back still towards the stranger. "I... I lost my way to... uh- my D&D group meeting. This is not 27th Willowby Street, is it?"
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
‘It’s not hurting anybody.’
Raphael lifted his head to look at the painting on the wall and then to Mackenna. It might not hurt anybody per se it did cause trouble and more work for others. He wasn’t totally against her cause or whatever her reasonings were. He couldn’t really say he was innocent either. And his troubles had probably caused more issues than her murals. “Have you ever thought about the poor janitor who has to scrub it off the walls? No? No one does. Poor janitor.” he said, sniffling softly and wiping away a fake tear but also smearing more paint at his face.
“Chaotic is my middle name. I am the embodiment of chaos. Har, har, har.” Raphael blurted, nostrils flaring softly as he made a funny face and tried his best at making a bad villain voice. Or was that the bad pirate voice imitation? His arms were raised at his sides, mimicking something he had seen on television before he dropped them and swirled around at her telling him about cleaning supplies in her bag. He shook his head, hair shagging like a labrador, a bit of glitter falling out of it.
Without further ado he went for the bag, carefully opening it with his elbows. He struggled with that but surely the cloth was soon dragged out in between his elbows. “A sauce bottle?” he questioned, one eyebrow raised in curiosity and suspicion at her choice of container. “I really hope you didn’t accidentally grab the ketchup bottle from home. I’ve had a bad experience with that.” he said, shuddering and shaking his head at one of his many childhood memories.
He was just about to sit down to clean himself when she asked him if he wanted to paint something too. That’s when an idea hit him. An invisible lightbulb lit up above his head as he dropped the cloth next to the bag and walked over to the wall to just smear the paint on his hands on the wall. He placed both his hands next to her drawing, so he wouldn’t cover that beauty up with his doodling. “Does this work?” he wondered, removing his hands to see two golden prints on the wall. “Ha! Cool. It did. You should totally do the same. Leave a signature of some sort. One that only we will remember.” he told her, smiling at the prints of his hands like a small child who just finished a painting in elementary school.
Raphael stepped back from the wall, a sneeze escaping his nose as he turned away from her. For a moment he thought the world was spinning but that was more or less just hallucinations. "Oops. Maybe I am already high." he said jokingly, chuckling before rubbing the leftover paint on his hands on his pants.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
”And here I was hoping I’d finally met my very own Prince Charming.”
The laugh that left her lips took him a little by surprise. And he couldn't help but stare at her back, her golden locks softly bouncing up and down her shoulder. He caught himself staring, his mind had wandered somewhere else, shaking his head and slapping his right cheek to get back to reality. Whew. For a brief moment he almost thought he was in the process of catching feelings for a stranger - a beautiful stranger that is.
Raphael gave her a small pout, shaking his head. "You wish I was a prince. Have you seen Shrek? If you did, remember the donkey? That's me." he told her and laughed at himself, his shoulders moving up into a small shrug. He never imagined himself as anything but a minor sidekick character. She could easily be the badass heroine of a movie, the one who comes to his rescue just like today. But at least he wasn't a criminal or like she worded nicely a murdering thief.
"Painting."
The brunette paused at the door while she walked outside and over to the wall of the school building. "Painting..." Raphael repeated after her, head bopping up and down, his lips slightly arching downward with his bottom lip slightly pushed forward. "But... you know that this is a felony right? It's not really painting it's more like... you know... vandalism." he said, a finger raised to point at the incomplete mural on the wall. But who was he to say anything. He broke into the school. Breaking in and entering was probably a worse felony. He could get arrested if they got caught because with his luck he wouldn't be able to escape the police. Not to mention he wasn't the best in shape. What's exercising? Unless you count e-sports.
He followed her outside once she got her things and showed it to him. Curious eyes looked at her gear and a can that looked like it fell out of her backpack. He leaned down and reached for it, slender fingers grabbing the can of spray paint and picking it up from the ground. He turned it in his hands to read the label trying to figure out what color it was - gold. Well, Raphael had always wanted to paint walls with spray paint. This was his time to shine! He gave the can a good shake, just as he used to see on television, removed the cap, and then pushed down on the black nozzle on top. Pfffshhhhh.
"Uh-" Raphael managed to say before starting a bit of a coughing fit, head slowly dropping down to look at himself. He didn't check the direction of the opening in the nozzle and now... the gold paint was all over him. "You think I could get a role in the next James Bond movie?" he asked her, scrunching his nose at the stinging smell of the paint.
Raphael held his hands up in front of him to look at the mess, touching his clothes and making it worse. But then he noticed something about it, eyes widening and glimmering like a small child. "Noooo. Maybe I have the Midas touch now! No more studying or working." he said, a little too excited as he inhaled some more of the paint and started coughing once again, waving his hand at the air in front of his face and accidentally smearing gold paint on his face. "Or maybe not."
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Raphael listened to her explain who she identified with more, flinching as she said she did indeed identify more with the rebels than the government. He pre-cautiously took another step back, his hand resting on his back, still pretending to have a weapon ready for usage. “Sooo… you’re half a rebel?” he suggested as an answer, eyebrows drew together and lips pursed outward as he stemmed his hands on his hip. “I guess I will trust you 50% since you’re only 50% rebel.” he added, nodding as if what he was saying would make any sense. It did to him… kind of? All the nonsense that came out of his mouth always made sense to him and sometimes even his roommate understood but that’s about it. Strangers? Hello no, they probably all thought he was some sort of crazy nerd who played too many video games and watched too much Star Wars… which admittedly, he did.
He watched her start moving down the hallway and he hesitated for a moment, both hands moving up to his hair as he pulled at it softly, trying to make a decision. To follow or to not follow? She was just a girl, he thought, but even then she would probably be able to overpower him more than he could her. Probably. A swift glance at the door of the room he was locked in just a few minutes ago and he considered going back and locking himself up on purpose in case she was out there for some blood - his blood. A couple of wild scenarios ran inside his mind like several movies cut together. Go. Don’t go. Go. Don’t go. Go. Go. Go. He silently mumbled inside his own head, thinking.
“Wait!” he called out.
Without hesitating any longer he dropped his arms to his side and jogged down the hallway to catch up with her, stopping just behind her into a regular walking speed, hands tucked away inside the front pocket of his hoodie. Raphael gave her a small bow, one arm folded in front of his chest and the other behind his back. “Knight in non-shining armor. At your service.” he said, pretending to have a serious expression on his face before returning back to his normal, dorky self. “Nice to 50% meet you too, Mack. I wonder if we get a chance to meet 100%.”
“By the way, I love how you’re assuming I’m capable of murder, theft, and assault. Even if it’s just a little. You're having some high expectations of me there. Sorry to let you down.” he said, laughing at the thought of himself trying to rob a store or getting into a brawl. He saw himself knocking himself out in both events and then getting arrested. There was no chance he would manage to pull it off. He could pull off a heist in an online game with his squad, yeah pretty sure, but in real life? No way. Raphael was just way too… Raphael for that. It was a miracle he had not been infected with the virus yet.
“What is a lone wolf doing out here in the suburbs? Hunting for something?” he wondered, softly laughing at his joke, although it probably wasn’t even anywhere near funny. Craning his neck to see further ahead in the hallway he looked at the lockers lining the walls - some open, some forcefully opened with dented doors, some still closed. He tried to spot if there was anything inside of them as he walked past, almost tripping over a pile of school books scattered on the floor, but he noticed, doing a little skip over them.
Shuddering, he took out his hands out of the comfortable and warmth of the hoodie and rubbed his arms. “I never liked school back then. Don’t think being an adult changes anything. And the school being so empty? Spooky.” he babbled, pointing back over his shoulder at the books on the floor. “Algebra. Scary.”
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Raphael exaggeratedly rolled his eyes at her, making a great motion with his head as well to get his point across. “Thanks for thinking I am capable of murdering people despite me being stuck now in this classroom.” he said, enunciating each word clearly, eyes widened, head tilted slightly down and to the side, as he nodded, a mocking are you serious smirk playing around his lips. He tossed his hands up when she finally told him she believed him not to be a drug-addicted murderer. “THANK YOU.” Raphael replied, shaking his head lightly.
Raphael watched her move the stuff around, drumming his fingers against the door hoping she would hurry up a little bit. He almost said something but bit his lower lip to keep his mouth shut. Nagging the only person who could help him out of this situation wasn’t the best idea… not that this whole day was anyway. His eyes kept glancing at all the things scattered around the floor, his lips parting and closing, feeling the need to tell her to move this instead of that.
Stepping out of the room the brunette felt the biggest wave of relief wash over him. He could hear angels sing in the background, as he was so happy to be free again. “Freedom! And fresh air. Haaah-” he uttered, waving some hallway air into his face, nostrils flaring as he made sure to take deep breaths through his nose. But when the dust hit him in the nose he coughed, slapping his chest a few times. “I’m good, I’m good.” he assured, more to himself than to Mack. Once he was back on track he cleared his throat, ruffling his hair slightly gave her a cool head nod. “Raaaaph-” he paused, knitting his brows together. “-ael Hernandez Paulos Roberto Alejandro Doritos Chipotle Super Hot Flaming Cheetos.” Never trust anyone, he thought, giving her a satisfied smirk.
“No, nope. I’ll gladly join you. You shouldn’t be running around here alone anyway.” he said, shuddering at the thought of being stuck on the roof or simply another classroom. All the nightmares from school and his teachers came rushing back at once and he rubbed his arms, trying to keep the goosebumps at bay. “I was just… exploring. Going after rumors, investigating. They say rebels have taken over the school district over here.” he stopped in his tracks, backing away a step, back arching inwards very softly, his chin meeting his chest as he looked at her. “You’re not… a rebel, are you?” he asked her, wanting to slap himself for getting distracted by her asking him if he was a murderer but not thinking about doing and assuming the same.
What if she was the murderer here? The drug addict? Although, she didn’t look like a typical drug addict. Raphael took another step back, lips pursed outward, brown eyes glued to her. “I have a weapon. He didn’t. If you do anything shady I won’t hesitate just because you’re a girl.” he told her, trying to sound a little badass as if he was making an actual threat, however, if it really sounded like that was up to the listener. Pretending to fumble around at his back as if he actually carried a gun or a knife with him.
He looked her up and down, giving her a thorough once over. She looked like an angel, in combat boots, but Lucifer was once an angel too before he fell and descended to hell. And after mentioning handsome serial killers he couldn’t be too sure.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Raphael’s hand started hurting from the pounding against the door. It was no use. He almost found himself getting quite comfortable with the thought of starving and dying in a classroom. He never thought he would live his last hours on earth inside one of the most hated places in the world. School. Awful, horrible, terrible. “Whyyyyy, whyyy me? Why here?” he half-sobbed, slapping the palm of his hand against the glass. He checked the door itself, the hinges, everything around the frame, but nothing seemed to be the cause of the problem. It had to be outside. He remembered the noise of something falling... could it be the shelf blocking the door? He pushed against it, trying hard, but it wouldn't budge.
He paced around the room, checking out the windows. A quick look out of the window by the front and he knew he wouldn’t be able to survive that jump - or get away with it without sustaining any injuries related to broken bones. He considered it but promptly dismissed the idea. Raphael could be stupid at times - like at times like this - but he wasn’t that stupid. A shudder went up his spine and he couldn’t help himself but grimace at the thought of his bones sticking out of the flesh, lying on the ground in agonizing pain. No, thank you.
Moving back to the door he tried to look out, but his view of the corridor was very limited. The chances of anyone being outside now were so low he almost gave up when he heard a voice speak to him on the other side of the door. He stood in front of the small window, looking at whoever came to his rescue - or so he hoped. His eyes lit up at the spark of hope appearing out of nowhere. The lights appeared to brighten up the area around her, or so he thought, and he spotted her blonde hair. Was it an angel who came to his rescue? “Uh yes, please. The… the door doesn’t open anymore.” he explained, trying to move the doorknob again just to make sure and to show her.
The brunette raised an eyebrow at her question, looking up, lips pursed as he thought for a moment. Stepping back but still visible through the window he pointed at his own face. He wasn’t sure if he should take it as a compliment or insult. Compliment: because she thought he would be smart enough to be a thief and rich enough to buy drugs. Insult: because she thought he was a thief and a drug addict. “Do I look like a thief jacked up on drugs who is going to rob you as soon as you let me out?” he asked, bewildered, tapping his chin in a thinking motion. “I would rather be called a serial killer like Bundy… at least that would mean I’m attractive.” Pretentiously running a hand through his hair, he winked at her and was meaning to do a half-spin and pose but he ended up tripping over his own shoelace, sending himself face-first into the door. Grumbling he pushed himself back, taking a step away.
Raphael coughed, clearing his throat, trying to play it cool. That never happened. “See. I’m neither. I’m just a guy stuck in a room because the door won’t open. So if you could please, please, let me out I promise I won’t rob or murder you and I totally owe you.” he said, half-pleading, his lips forming into a pout. He dipped his head, eyes looking up like a puppy’s. “Pretty please?”
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Another day, another stupid idea. Raphael rolled out of his bed early - or at least what he considered early. The digital clock on his bedside table displayed 4:38 PM in bright, red digits. His sleep schedule was pretty messed up ever since the lockdowns started and school closed. He opted not to take online classes if possible because he just didn’t feel like attending them. He would rather play games all night. After a quick five minute shower, slapping on some wearable clothes aka his all-time favorite grey hoodie and a pair of jeans which seemed to smell just fine despite being in the laundry basket, Raphael grabbed a slice of leftover pizza, his backpack and rushed out of the apartment.
He took the bus to the suburbs, which was a good thirty minute ride from his apartment. The only good thing about this whole pandemic was that traffic was actually okay. In fact… the city was almost empty. He adjusted his black and red bandana and tightened it around his mouth-nose area. Once the bus reached the last stop between city borders and suburbs Raphael let the bus driver know to stop and got out of the vehicle. Raphael, trying to look cool, jumped out of the bus but instead of landing with a cool pose he twisted his ankle and tumbled to the ground. The bus driver didn’t care and just drove away.
Mumbling his overwhelming gratitude under his breath he got back up to his feet, popping in his wireless earplugs, blasting Mr. Blue Sky on the highest volume possible, and walked towards his final destination: the school district. All schools were forced to shut down once the pandemic arrived at the end of the city but Raphael had other plans. He wasn’t planning on attending classes - not to mention he was a university student and not a high schooler, even though, people would mistake him as one just by his behavior.
His reason to check out the school buildings were rumors. Just like always - rumors. Rumors about rebels using it as a hideout, illegal gatherings for a cure, military using it to hide away stashes of supplies. Of course it made Raphael want to check it out… like last week, when he thought it was a good idea to sneak into the quarantine zone only to stumble over a dead body by accident and getting his ass whipped by a cop. This time he made sure to make an escape plan beforehand.
Once there, he hid behind tree to check out the area, his gaze wandering from one side to the other while he took out the earplugs. Quiet. No one seemed to be around. Maybe it was too early. With an excited grin on his face the brunette tip-toed over to the main entrance of the high school building but soon discovered it was locked with a pair of heavy duty chains. He sneaked around the building, his body pressed closely to the wall, as his eyes spotted a door with the chains broken or cut through. Now, everyone would say it’s definitely not a great idea to enter a building when obviously someone already went there. But it was Raphael… he didn’t think about that. He opened the door, his hand covered with the sleeve of his hoodie as he turned the knob, and squeezed through.
His head whipped left and right, checking the darkened corridors for other people. Making sure no one seemed to be around he made his way down the hallway, checking one classroom door after another. Locked. Most of them were locked. Letting out a frustrated sigh he climbed up the stairs to the second floor. After another bunch of locked doors he thought about giving up and he blankly stared at a shelf full of cleaning and restoration supplies, but then click... a door right next to it opened. Raphael slipped inside the room, closing the door behind him with a little too much force.
Raphael jumped at the noise the shelf made as it tumbled over, everything on it crashing to the floor. He winced, grimacing at the scene unfolding behind him. Slowly he turned around, his hand reaching for the door handle. He pushed. It wouldn’t budge. Great. He was stuck. A student’s worst nightmare? Being stuck in a classroom. Well, at least he wasn’t naked.
He tried to push against the door with all the power he had, slammed his fist against the hard material and screamed his lungs out. “Hello? Hello? Hellooo? Is anybody out there? Help? I could need a little … help?”
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
“I would rather die getting eaten by zombies than just getting hit by a car or because of a heart attack. At least my friends would have a story to tell.” he said and nodded, listening to her theories about zombies. There was a sparkle in his eyes as she mentioned allowing him to tag along in a zombie apocalypse and having a fair share of weaponry at home. Raphael never got around to buying himself a gun. For one… he wouldn’t need it, and second… he would most likely end up shooting himself in the foot with it. He was not to be trusted with things capable of hurting, maiming, or killing himself and others.
Raphael gladly accepted the hand sanitizer and stretched out his palms so she could squeeze it on. He blinked at the awful amount of clear liquid in his hands. “Thanks.” he said and rubbed both palms them together, trying to distribute it so it wouldn’t go to waste. But considering he had just touched a dead body which has been lying there for no one knew how long, there really wasn’t going to be any waste. Heck, he would even spread it all over his arms if the amount was sufficient. Once he was done with his hands he slapped the remainder on his face where he touched his cheek - just everywhere. If he could take a bath in sanitizer after this he would definitely do it. “Do cops these days switch out their handcuffs and radios with sanitizer and wet wipes?” he uttered jokingly, glancing at her with a wary look in case she might pull her gun on him again.
His eyes wandered to the phone and he really didn’t want to reach down between those limbs and pick it up. Maybe he should just get a new one instead. Maybe insurance would cover it. The call might be a little awkward but it still sounded much better than touching the corpse again. The sudden question about the real reason he was here made him press his lips together, head slowly moving around to look at her.
“Uh-” Raphael glanced around the room, clicking his tongue as he thought of a good reason. He wasn’t sure why exactly he was there. An imaginary light bulb popped up above his head as his eyes found the bedroom door. Just five big steps. “Well, I was-” he began, taking innocent steps around her and playing with papers he found on a desk near the wall. He picked up a pen, clicked it, and put it back to where it was. “-hearing rumors about this place.” the brunette continued, making his way towards the door.
“BYE.” he yelled and bolted out of the room, closing the door behind him with a loud bang and holding shut while leaning against it with all his body weight. “I’m sorry detective. But according to game rule 142, this is either a trap and you will arrest me ooor you’re the zombie.” he explained, scrunching his face together in an apologetic way. “So so sorry but if you just give me a ten minutes headstart we’re good. If we see each other again, hopefully not, but if we do I will buy you a coffee.” he offered and he would do it but for now, he had to run.
He let go of the door and dashed out of the apartment towards the stairs. Just as he was thinking how cool he was his shoelace came undone and he tripped, tumbling down the stairs like an idiot. He hit his head on one of the edges… and once he was at the other end and stopped rolling he wished he would continue rolling out of the building and out of this embarrassing situation. “Ouch.” he mumbled, his hand ruffling through his hair. “That...was a test! You passed! Congratulations. You’re worthy of your rank.”
