The school day unfolded like any other—or so it seemed.
The late morning sun peeked through the classroom windows, casting angled rays over the rows of bored students. Papers rustled, chalk scraped the board, and someone at the back quietly munched on chips despite the teacher's glaring.
Ayush sat at his usual window seat, one earbud in, but he wasn't listening to music today. His mind was still on the call from last night.
"It's not a drill."
Those words kept echoing.
Across the room, Ananya and Sanaa were giggling over something on a notebook. Kartik leaned back in his chair, spinning a pen between his fingers with a lazy grin. Everything looked normal.
But Ayush didn't feel normal.
He wasn't scared—not yet. Just... unsteady. Like something was brewing just outside the school walls.
And then—
BANG!
The classroom door burst open.
A girl staggered in. Not from their class. Her uniform was crumpled, torn near the sleeve. Her arms trembled. Her breathing was ragged.
Blood dripped from her nose.
Her eyes—red and wild—scanned the room like she didn't know where she was. Her legs gave out as she collapsed near the teacher's desk.
Gasps echoed. Chairs scraped. Some students screamed.
"Someone help her!" the teacher shouted, rushing forward.
Kartik was already moving.
Ayush jumped up too, heart pounding.
Ananya and Sana hesitated—but followed.
The teacher instructed, "Get her to the medical room! Hurry!"
Together, they lifted the barely conscious girl and carried her down the hallway, Ayush supporting her from behind. Her body jerked unnaturally, like she was fighting something invisible.
Her fingers twitched violently. Her skin was pale... ice-cold.
Medical Room
Nurse Priya, the school's only in-house doctor, saw them entering and immediately sensed the urgency.
"What happened? Accident?" she asked, snapping on gloves.
"We don't know—she just collapsed," Kartik said breathlessly.
Ayush helped place the girl on the medical bed.
She began seizing.
The nurse reached for a sedative.
"Hold her down," she instructed.
They obeyed.
As Nurse Priya injected the dose into her upper arm, the girl suddenly snapped her head around—and bit into the nurse's wrist.
Blood sprayed.
"AAAHH!!" the nurse screamed, falling back.
Kartik rushed to pull the girl away, while Ananya and Sana screamed in shock. Ayush grabbed the girl's wrists—her strength felt unnatural.
The sedative finally took effect, and her body sagged limp again.
The nurse clutched her bleeding wrist, panicked. "She bit me! What the hell is wrong with her?!"
"I'm calling the ambulance," the teacher said, hands trembling.
Ayush looked down at the girl's face—her eyes were twitching under her lids.
This didn't feel like epilepsy. Or stress. Or anything... normal.
Back in Class
When Ayush and the others returned, the class was buzzing with murmurs.
"What happened?"
"Who was that girl?"
"Did she faint?"
The teacher raised her voice. "Silence! Everyone remain seated and do not talk about what happened outside this room. That's a direct order."
The room quieted—but unease hung in the air like smoke.
Ayush returned to his seat.
Kartik leaned over and whispered, "That girl... wasn't right. You felt that too, didn't you?"
Ayush nodded.
Ananya, sitting behind them, said softly, "Something's really wrong."
He looked out the window.
Somewhere far, faint sirens were beginning to howl.
Principal's Office – Moments Later
Principal Mehra slammed his hand on the table.
"You called the ambulance without informing me first?"
"She bit the nurse!" the teacher argued. "There was no time!"
"We have an evaluation coming up this month! What if word gets out—what if this reaches the board?"
"I already called the police as per emergency protocol."
"What?! You—"
Knock knock.
The door creaked open, and two men in plain clothes stepped in. Their IDs flashed: Detectives.
"We're here about the girl."
Principal Mehra's face drained of color.
Meanwhile – The Infection Spreads
Nurse Priya sat trembling in the corner of the medical room. Her wrist was throbbing. Blood had soaked through the gauze. She reached for an antibiotic—but her fingers twitched.
Her vision blurred.
She blinked rapidly, trying to stay upright. Her knees weakened.
Something's wrong... something's seriously...
She looked in the mirror.
Her pupils had dilated.
Veins crawled up her neck—black and angry.
Then came the nosebleed.
She stumbled, knocking over a tray of tools. The metal clatter echoed through the hall.
The nurse collapsed to the floor—convulsing.
And when she rose...
She wasn't herself anymore.
Corridor – Moments Later
The same three bullies from yesterday walked by, laughing.
"Bro, did you see the way she looked? Like she was drunk or something."
One of them smirked, pointing through the slightly open infirmary door. "Look, she's still crawling around. Let's take a video—send it to the boys."
They chuckled.
The nurse, now turned—heard them.
Slowly, she twisted her blood-soaked face toward the door.
Red eyes. Blood dripping from her mouth.
Then she sprinted.
Straight at them.
SMASH!
She slammed into the wall first, then lunged again—this time faster. The third bully didn't react in time.
Her teeth tore into his neck.
He screamed—a sound that curdled the blood.
The others tried to pull her off, but she was like an animal. One ran. The second was grabbed and flung into a cabinet.
Blood spilled across the floor.
The infection had begun.
Back in the Canteen
Elsewhere in the school, students were laughing, gossiping, eating lunch—completely unaware.
But panic had started to ripple through the medical wing.
And it wouldn't stay there for long.