Chapter 33 Naomi
My mind goes blank, and suddenly, I can’t feel my knees.
Deep in my gut I know what this is but my brain hasn't caught up yet.
A scream splits the air, high and primal, before the first group of people burst into the hallway from the gym.
The chaos that follows is ugly. Bodies crash against each other like a frantic tsunami tide.
"He has a fucking gun!" someone shouts.
The blood in my veins turns to ice.
"We gotta go," Ty’s voice says next to me. He grabs my hand, and his touch wakes me up from my stupor.
We start running. I don’t know where. We're swept along with the panicking crowd, down the corridor connecting the gym facilities to the neighboring building. Left, right, left again.
What's happening?
Is this even real?
Or is the world ending?
I'm spinning out, but Ty’s grip never wavers as we continue our escape. There’s a set of classrooms that come up on our left, and I see several people hide there, ducking under the tables, trying to stay low.
I don’t look back. I'm too scared. I can hear the sporadic shots rattling somewhere behind me, but I don’t dare check to see what’s going on. My fear won’t let me. It burns through me, makes everything blurry, makes everything seem like it’s not real, like I’m in some strange nightmare.
We turn another corner. I stumble, and my hand slips from Ty's. He catches me, breathless and wide-eyed, his grip tight and sure.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes."
He kneels down and removes my shoes, muttering about how someone could break their legs in these heels. I let him do it; I'm too shaken to think clearly.
Another familiar face appears out of nowhere—it's Theo. We used to call him Blabbermouth back then. Why this matters now, I have no idea. My mind seems scrambled, pulling random details from its depths because it can't fully process the situation.
"Get out of here, you two!" Theo yells, waving his hands urgently.
"What's going on?" Ty asks, jumping to his feet. He's holding my shoes in one hand while the other grips mine tightly.
"I don’t know! Someone’s got a gun!"
"A gun?" I repeat stupidly.
But Theo’s long gone, disappeared behind some door. Could be a closet, could be the teachers’ lounge.
I don’t remember what’s where very well. It’s been seventeen years since I stepped foot in this part of the school building. Most of my volunteer activities happen either at the gym or inside the assembly hall, which are both located in different buildings.
Ty readjusts his grip and dashes forward. "Come on, Nomes. Let’s find somewhere to hide until the authorities get here."
A woman to my right, Sharon, is shoved into the wall by a passing man in a suite. She slips to the floor, hitting it with her shoulder with a pained cry.
I yank Ty's hand and move toward her to help.
"Take off your platforms, Sharon. They are too heavy. They'll slow you down," I rattle off, as I drop into a crouch and try to lift her up.
She looks at my bare feet with dread in her eyes, and fumbles with the zipper on her left boot. I grab the other one and remove them together.
"Sharon!” a female voice carries from somewhere nearby.
Then another woman rushed over. All three of us, including Ty, get Sharon back on her feet.
"Thanks, you guys," she rasps out before her friend hauls her away.
"Let's go." Ty steers us forward.
We make no more than three steps, when I spot him at the far end of the hallway, moving against the foot traffic.
My brother.
"Hey, you goddamned lovebirds!" he shouts, pushing through a group of people who are arguing. His service weapon is drawn but held low. "Come on, we need to find cover."
"Adri! What are you doing here?" I choke out.
"What do you think, Shrimp?" he replies, reaching us. There’s a hint of panic in his voice, but it’s so subtle, most people wouldn’t notice. "I'm doing my job."
"Do you know what's happening?" Ty asks, glancing around.
"Someone started shooting outside the gym," Adri quickly explains. "That's all I know."
"Is it just one shooter, or are there more?" Ty continues.
"Why would anyone do this at a high school reunion?" I wonder aloud.
"Don’t know, Shrimp." He grabs me by my elbow and starts walking. "That’s not important right now?"
"Is this some kind of prank?"
"I wish," Adri grumbles.
We break from the crowd. Ty’s still holding my hand and my shoes, and I feel like a doll being dragged by them.
More yelling. Another set of shots fired. This time, they’re closer. The shooter—or shooters—is out of the gym, probably inside the connecting corridor or maybe in the main building.
Footsteps.
Chairs clattering to the floor.
A single shot rings out.
I freeze, terror locking my legs. Tyler and Adri tug me forward.
"We got you, Nomes," my brother whispers.
Another shot. Another scream. Everything pulses, frantic and loud.
Adri's face comes in and out of focus when I look at him.
He pushes forward without missing a beat, and I remember that this was his everyday reality when he served. He hardly talks about his time overseas, but deep down, I know the things he saw weren’t for the weak of the heart.
"This way!" he instructs, gesturing toward the stairs.
We take two at a time. Ty helps me to stay on my feet.
My trust in my brother is blind and raw, and I feel it like a bruise. I feel it everywhere. The noise fades, replaced by the thud of my bare feet and their boots on the steps.
We get to the second floor, and a long hallway stretches out before us, eerily empty.
My thoughts race ahead as my brother inspects the locks and does things I don't understand on the keypad.
These doors were different back when I was in high school.
The stairs doors had to remain open and everything was analogue.
"What are you doing?" Ty asks him quietly.
"Trying to cut off access to this floor." He finally punches a few buttons and something clicks inside. "That'll do for now," he breathes out.
We move through the corridor. Adri shoves open the door to a classroom and shouts for us to get in.
We're inside, but safety is just a ghost against the reality of a bullet.
Fear slips through the cracks, leaving the chill of uncertainty behind.
My breath comes in ragged bursts as Adri surveys the room, then points at the teacher's desk and says, "We need to block the elevator too. " He looks at Ty. "Help me with this."
Ty leaves my shoes on a chair nearby and joins Adri.
"Where are you going?" I ask, watching them haul the desk through the door and out into the hallway.
"Stay here, Nomes," Adri orders. "We’ll be right back."
There’s no time to argue. They’re gone before I know it. I can hear them dragging the desk away. When I poke my head out, they’re shoving it between the open elevator doors, then rushing back.
Adri slams the classroom door shut and turns the lock.
"Give me a hand," he tells Ty, motioning at the student desks.
They start grabbing them one by one, stacking them, against the door.
"These are not going to stop him," I say.
"At the very least, it'll slow him down," Adri replies.
They mount as many desks as they can, barricading the entrance to the classroom completely. I realize that for the first time in almost two decades, they’re actually not arguing but working together.
Apparently, all it took is a death threat.
I don’t know if I should be laughing or crying or thanking God they’re putting their differences aside, at least for now.
My feet hurt. My left one worse than my right.
I may have stepped on something sharp earlier in the hallway.
But I’m afraid to check. Somehow not seeing, not knowing, feels like it’s not real.
"How are you holding up, sis?" Adri asks, drawing closer.
"I’m fine. Sorry, I kinda freaked out."
"Don’t worry," Ty says softly.
Adri glares at him but remains silent. He’s holstered his weapon and is currently scanning the room, checking the windows, and messing with his radio’s volume.
It's just the three of us. Me and the past and the fear that we'll never outrun this nightmare. Something has caught up with us finally. We don’t know what it is yet, but it’s here and it’s dangerous and it’s making me rethink my entire life.
I wrap my arms around me to stop the tremor in my body, but it’s not due to the cold. It’s the dread of being discovered.
Ty closes the distance between us with one long stride and pulls me to his heaving chest. His arms are strong and certain, but I notice the distress in his eyes that wasn't there before. He knows we're not safe. He knows there's more.
I know it too.
I can hear it—the occasional shots coming from the first floor. Not as loud as before, scattered across stretching time as if the shooter's looking for something—looking for targets.
In the corner furthest from the door, Adri fumbles with his radio again.
"This is Sheriff Adrian Medina. I'm at Sageview Ridge High School. We have an active shooter situation on premises. I've got civilians hiding with me in a classroom on the second floor, northwest wing." His voice is a rushed staccato, and it cracks halfway through his speech.
There's a sputter of static before a response comes through. "Copy that, Sheriff Medina. All available units are en route. ETA eight minutes. What's your status?"
Adri glances nervously toward the barricaded door.
"The shooter is still active, moving through the first floor.
I can hear sporadic gunfire—it sounds like an AK-style rifle.
My priority is securing the civilians until backup arrives.
" He pauses, his brow furrowing. "I'm not sure if there's more than one perpetrator, but it seems to be just one from what I can tell. "
"Understood. Any casualties?"
"I saw one male down on the first floor, looked like a gunshot wound. I couldn't get a better look without exposing myself."
"Copy that. Maintain your position and do not engage."