Surviving In The Freezing Apocalypse With My Alpha

Ava's body stiffened, as her breath became more rigged, it was the same for Liam and Mia.

But as the shadows stepped into the light, their bodies finally relaxed. Ava took a breath of relief.

The Five Shadows were a group of students, and leading them was Ava's best friend, Riley.

Ava's breath caught. "Riley?"

The girl stood there, eyes wide, coupled with her usually bubbly expression, tense with worry. "Holy shit, Ava!"

Before Ava could react, Riley rushed forward and yanked her into a tight hug. For a second, Ava was too stunned to do anything.

"You're alive," Riley breathed, her grip tightening.

Ava let out a shaky laugh. "Barely."

Riley pulled back, her eyes scanning over her. "You're not hurt, right?"

"No," Ava said, shaking her head.

Riley exhaled as she glanced over at Liam and Mia, her expression changed.

Seeing her reaction, Ava's stomach twisted as she noticed the small flicker of surprise on Riley's face when her gaze landed on Liam and Mia standing close together.

Mia was still clutching onto Liam's arm, her fingers lightly tracing his sleeve.

Riley turned back to Ava, lowering her voice. "You were with - them!?"

Ava forced a smile, even though it felt like her ribs were caving in. "Yeah."

Riley's brows furrowed, but seeing Ava's expression, she stopped asking much further.

Riley already knew about Ava's crush on Liam, and she knew Ava's condition when she had to see Liam and Mia so close to each other, repeatedly.

Nobody spoke anything much later, the gym felt eerily silent, except for their breathing and the faint howling of the storm outside.

The makeshift barricade of bleachers trembled slightly with every gust of wind, making everyone startle whenever a big blow of wind crashed against the bleachers, producing a loud sound .

But the pounding from the Frostborn had stopped, for now.

Ava sat on the cold floor, Liam's jacket still around her shoulders. 'I should probably give it back, it isn't mine,' she thought.

But the warmth, the scent, the lingering comfort—it made her hesitate.

Riley settled beside her with a sigh. "Okay, so what the hell is going on?"

Ava shook her head, still trying to process it herself. "I don't know. It started when people got frostbite—then they changed."

Riley exhaled sharply. "So, like, zombies?"

"No." Liam said, his voice firm. "They're fast. And smart."

"And they observe," Ava added, clearly recalling how the Frostborn that entered the cafeteria for the first time stared at her as if it was observing.

Mia, still clung to Liam's arm, shuddered. "We need to get out of here. Someone has to be looking for us, right?"

Ava swallowed. Her mom, her little brother Noah—were they safe? She hated not knowing.

The wind outside howled, rattling the gym doors.

"Alright," Liam said, running a hand through his messy hair, his sharp jaw clenched. "We need food, water, and something to burn."

"It's only getting colder, and I doubt it would be any better."

Riley groaned, "You mean we have to leave the gym?"

Liam nodded. "Sooner or later, yeah."

Ava exhaled, already hating this plan. "There's a supply closet near the locker rooms. It might have emergency blankets, maybe even snacks."

Liam turned to her. "Then we check it out. You and me."

Ava's heart skipped, as it screamed in flustering.

But Mia instantly stiffened. "Wait—why just you two?"

Liam frowned, like he didn't see the problem. "We need to be quick. A smaller group moves faster."

And before Mia could say anything more, Riley joined in. "Yeah, you are right, it's good."

But opposite to what Riley had anticipated, Mia's grip on his sleeve tightened, clearly staring at Ava with her sharp gaze.

And something inside Ava snapped. She stood up, brushing off Liam's jacket and tossing it back at him. "Fine. Let's go."

Liam caught it mid-air, giving her a confused look. But he didn't say anything.

And slowly, they got out from the gym's back door while the group again closed the gate, adding furniture to barricade it.

Ava's boots crunched against the ice-coated floor of the hallways. It was darker now, the storm had covered the windows with thick frost.

But slowly and steadily, she moved beside Liam. The whole school felt silent, except for some periodic crunchy and crisp sounds apart from the storm's. The way the school was now, it felt like a graveyard to her.

Her stomach twisted as she thought about her younger brother, who also studied here, somewhere in this graveyard of a school. She knew she had to find him before it was too late.

Liam walked beside her, his jaw tightened, fists clenched hard.

Ava exhaled. She could feel the tension rolling off of him.

"Are you always this bossy?" she muttered.

Liam cut her a glance. "Are you always this stubborn?"

Ava stopped. She knew now she was going to lose in this race of sarcasm if she continued.

They reached the supply closet, but before Ava could try the handle, Liam suddenly froze.

His breath hitched. His hands trembled—barely noticeable, but she saw it. She had been noticing it since they left the gym.

Liam was breathing rigorously. Although earlier she thought it might be due to being tired, now the case seemed to be something else.

"Liam?" Ava asked, frowning.

"Nothing," he replied, but his eyes didn't seem focused anymore. They seemed anxious.

The situation worsened. He began to tremble, his entire body shaking.

Ava's stomach dropped. She realized that this wasn't normal.

"Hey." She said softly, hesitated, then touched his wrist gently.

Liam flinched at first. Then he blinked, like snapping out of a trance.

"....Sorry," he muttered. His voice was rough, uneven. He looked away as his jaw tightened.

Ava's chest ached at the sight. It felt like there was something really wrong with him, especially the cold.

She didn't push. But she noticed.

Ava finally tried the door. Locked.

"Step back," Liam muttered, his voice more steady now.

Ava barely had time to move before Liam kicked the door open.

Inside, it was dusty and cramped, filled with sports equipment—and BINGO. A stack of energy bars and water bottles.

Ava grabbed a few, stuffing them into a bag she picked from a locker beside.

They tried one shelf after another, but except for a few, none had anything useful.

While they were still trying to open some of the last shelves—

A noise

Their bodies stiffened like stone, breath caught.

Ava turned sharply—just in time to see a Frostborn dragging itself out from behind a shelf.

Its pale, cracked fingers reached toward her—

But just in time, Liam yanked her back, shoving her behind him.

Then he swung a metal bat he had taken earlier—cracking it against the creature's skull.

The Frostborn stumbled, half of its brain smashed, the other half wide open, but it didn't stop.

Ava grabbed a heavy trophy from a shelf and hurled it, hitting it in the side of its head, smashing the leftover brain.

That did it. The thing collapsed, twitching for a moment—then went still.

Silence.

Ava's heart hammered.

Liam turned to her, breathless. "Are you okay?"

Ava swallowed. "Yeah."

She hated how much she liked the way he looked at her just then. Like he would do anything to protect her.

For a minute, both stared at each other's faces, straight into each other's eyes.

"Ahem." Soon Ava broke the silence as she looked away, blushing.

"Ah... Let—let's gather the supplies real quick," Liam said, flustered, as both of them gathered the supplies and hurried back to the gym.

The second they walked in, Mia rushed forward.

"Liam!" She grabbed his arm again, scanning him for injuries. "What happened? You were gone forever!"

Ava rolled her eyes but said nothing.

Liam pulled away gently, rubbing the back of his neck, checking a quick glance at Ava. "We're fine."

Riley, from her seat on the bleachers, smirked. She shot Ava a knowing look, like she saw straight through her.

Ava ignored the way her face heated.

Mia, however, didn't look convinced. Her eyes flickered between Ava and Liam. "You didn't get hurt, right?"

"No," Liam said. Then his gaze drifted to Ava, lingering for a second longer than necessary. "She held her own."

Ava's stomach fluttered.

Mia's lips pressed into a thin line.

She pulled Liam closer, resting her head against his shoulder. "I'm glad you're okay."

Ava didn't know why, but that stung.

It shouldn't.

But it did.