Once we pulled up to the parking lot, Mr Sullivan turned around to look at me. "Are you sure Mr Morales is here? The place seems to be closed for the night."

I hesitated before answering. Luckily, Nick jumped in to save me just in time. "He's here alright." Nick looked back at me before undoing his seatbelt. "I'm gonna wait with them just to be safe."

As Cyrus, Nick and I got out of the car, Mr Sullivan pulled the window down to speak with us once more before starting the engine. "Alright, I'll meet you guys here after I drop your friends' home, okay?"

As we watched the car drive away, Cyrus went to grab my hand eagerly. "Stay close to me." He said in a low voice.

I guess someone wants to play hero now...

As we walked towards the main door to the grocery store, I looked at Nick in uncertainty. "Are you sure about this? Don't they have an alarm system?"

Nick proceeded to slowly rub his temples with closed eyes before they suddenly shot open. "There's no cameras or anything like that inside. We'll be fine."

I raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "How can you be so sure?" I asked with folded arms.

". It's a new skill I inquired after completing my last mission." Nick said with a wide smile.

"Oh, so you actually succeeded this time?" I said with an air of playfulness as I nudged Nick's arm.

"You betcha. Finding a vaccine for the zombie virus wasn't easy. You have no idea how many human bases I had to search just to get my hands on it."

That does sound a lot more difficult in the grand scheme of things. I suppose when two missions in a row involve saving the world, it must be nice to finally get something more manageable like matchmaking.

"Anyway, in case you're curious my new skill allows me to visualise a location vividly in my head." Huh, sounds useful for scouting purposes. "But it does have its drawbacks since overusing it drains me of all my energy..." Nick said awkwardly while scratching the back of his neck.

A sudden slam was made against the door. "Can I open this door now?" Cyrus angrily spat out through gritted teeth.

Uuuu, his hunger is getting worse by the minute...

I was momentarily caught off-guard by his actions so all I could do was quietly nod my head in affirmation. After getting my consent, Cyrus snapped the entire door handle off and opened it with ease.

Geez, now it really will look like a break-in! I was hoping we could be more discreet about it...

Just as Cyrus was about to make his way inside, I put out a hand out to stop him. "Wait. You can't think straight when you're ravenous." I looked back at Nick who was clenching his side. "Wait here with Nick. I won't be long."

Cyrus was about to protest but I quickly enveloped our pinkie fingers together and continued. "It's a promise. I never break my promises, okay?"

Cyrus solemnly nodded his head as he fell to the ground in dejection. So long as he can suppress his urges for a little while more then we'll be okay. I've got this!

As I strolled down the dark grocery aisle, I stuffed as much pork as possible into my oversized denim jacket. So far, things have been a lot more smoother sailing than I had originally anticipated, but hey, you won't hear me complaining about it.

As I set aside money on the counter, I debated whether or not to leave a note. I might cause unnecessary hassle for Ms McCollin if this leaks out. But it feels wrong to not give an explanation either...

Any further contemplation I planned on doing was quickly thrown out the window as the sound of faint sobbing could then be heard.

That... sounds like a girl's voice. Reluctantly, I went to investigate the source of the sound which of course brought me to the back room of the butchers.

That's strange the bolted door was unlocked. I know the sensible thing would be to not involve myself, but I don't think I could live with myself if I left another girl in distress behind.

I slowly pushed the door open and made my way inside the room. Nothing could've prepared me for the nauseating sight I was about to bear witness to. No matter where I went, I was surrounded by hanging meat and its putrid stench. This would be every vegetarian's worst nightmare!

As I made my way further inside, I covered my mouth with my hand as I hid behind a nearby metal cart.

"So... cold..." was all the feminine voice could say before a frail and pasty white hand fell to the ground.

S-S-She died! I just witnessed a...

I felt bile rise within me. I know I'll only be risking exposing myself if I stayed here a second longer. So, I tried to crawl away as fast as possible. But as luck would have it, I unwittingly let out a gag.

It was enough for them to have been alerted. As what I heard next caused me to freeze to the spot on all fours.

"Who's there?" Rohan demanded.

Oh god no. I need to get out of here quickly! Sensing that he was hot on my trail, I knew I'd have to take a risk and make a run for it. So, I quickly rose to my feet while almost sliding on a blood trail in the process.

I somehow managed to control my footing as I got outside of the room. But that didn't deter Rohan from pursuing me. If anything, panic set in as he broke out into a sprint.

"RUN!" I yelled at the top of my lungs as I came to face both Nick and Cyrus.

It didn't take long for them to get the message as Cyrus grabbed my hand, pulling me along. As we made our way outside, Rohan's indiscernible shouting only got louder.

"Hide behind the dumpsters!" Nick said in a hushed voice as he pulled us to the side.

This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all! If he catches us, then we'll end up like that poor girl! Uuuu... I guess I know why so many girls have been disappearing recently now.

As I tried to calm myself down, I felt a strong and warm grip on my empty hand. Looking down, Nick was holding me tightly in reassurance. I gave him a weak smile as I slowly started to get a grip.

Rohan was probably a few feet away from us as I could hear heavy panting and lingering footsteps. Eventually, he gave up on chasing us as he reluctantly hobbled back inside.

Once the coast was finally clear, I exhaled in relief as I pulled Nick in for a hug. The comfort was short-lived as I was quickly pulled off of Nick.

"I see how it is. It's just like the movies..." Cyrus commented to himself bitterly. His hold on me tightened as his eyes darkened as he stared at Nick. "You're my love rival."

LOVE RIVAL???