The Man Who Looked DEAD

I lay on the hard asphalt ground, gazing at the sky. It must've been evening, and the sun was setting. The signature red sky was fading slowly.

"Heh. . . Kazuya. . . You brought yourself back from the dead, huh? That was oddly terrifying. . ."

. . .

Shouldn't I be in hospital by now, though? Wait. . . Where am I even?

I slowly raised myself into a sitting position. There was a large black gate in front of me. So that was the metal object I kept banging into. It took me a moment to realise it, but I recognised it.

This looks like the gate in front of the school. . . But how is that possible? I was downtown only this morning before I went unconscious.

Shouldn't I have been driven to the hospital or at least be surrounded by doctors? And. . . Every bone in my body was fractured, so how am I still able to move?

This wasn't right. It had been a strange day full of chaotic and strange events, but this was all wrong. How are you okay with this Kazuya? 

Earlier I was in a traffic accident, and now I've woken up in front of the school, without knowing how I got here. Still, I don't understand how I am not surrounded by doctors and currently in the hospital. . .

Dammit, how about everybody at home! They must all be worried sick about why I haven't come home yet. I reached into my pocket, and pulled out the crushed smartphone. Crushed was a bit of an understatement. This thing had been through a traffic accident, and was obviously no longer functional. 

"Piece of crap!" I shouted, hurling the phone at the ground. I stood up. 

"Didn't think I'd ever say this, but the hospital can wait. I gotta get home--"

There was a sudden high-pitched shriek, echoing from the school. Then everything went silent.

"Go! Just run!" A voice shouted loudly from inside the building. Soon, the echoing noise of a panicking crowd emerged from the cries of fear.

"Don't stop, you have to keep on going!" It was the same voice again, ordering the crowd.

The school doors flung open and out ran a crowd of people. They continued running towards the gymnasium, almost. . . Desperate.

"Oi, what's going on!" I shouted at them.

The crowd's shouting must've deafened my voice because none of them replied.

Soon, they had all arrived at the gymnasium, and quickly ran inside, slamming the doors behind them.

With that the night grew silent once again.

What was that all about? Besides, they aren't allowed to be on school premises after hours! Calling me a troublemaker? The only crime I am an offender of, is the tardy ones. These people broke into a school! How is that worse than what I did!

Speaking of tardies. . . I didn't even go to school today! No! I had an illegal absence! I. . . Am. . . Screwed!

While I had returned to my earlier panic attack after having missed school for an entire, and worrying whether or not I would've been expelled, there was a set of footsteps drawing nearer.

I turned around, and saw a dark figure, stumbling towards the gate.

"I know this looks bad and like I'm a part of this, but just to clarify, I have nothing to do with this situation!" I quickly affirmed.

The man didn't reply, but rather just growled continuing towards the gate, in his stumbling fashion.

. . .

"Uhm. . ." I really didn't know what to say. He had just ignored me after I had stated that I hadn't done anything. I guess this is what a being very charismatic is like? Although I'm pretty sure I, in fact, wasn't charismatic at all. . .

The man reached the gate, but rather than stopping he continued into the gate. Clank.

"Eh. . . You're supposed to open the gate. . ."

Again, he didn't listen, but continued trying to force his way through the gate, although rather unsuccessful. Clank.

Perhaps he was long-sighted. . .? Even if he was, he must have realised he was walking into a gate by now and tried to open it. . . Actually what was he even doing here at this time? I guess he was nearby and came to check on the noise--

It had been quite dark at the time, but I could definitely tell what was trailed along the ground. . . A trail of blood leading all the way along the road up to the man. His leg. . . It had been mauled severely. Yet he didn't seem to be in pain or even aware of it.

Thinking back, what I did next had been quite stupid. Slowly, I walked up to him to take a better look at his leg. Like I said earlier, it had been mauled. Torn and ripped through severely. There was no way he could still be walking on it with that amount of pain. 

There was still something that bothered me, though. Sure, I had been hit by a truck and broken every bone, and it had burnt like hell. . . Yet he didn't seem to react to the pain in the leg at all.

"You should probably take that to the hospital. Trust me, for someone who had been by a truck earlier that looks quite--"

I glanced at his face. It had a stone cold expression on it. I hadn't realised it earlier, but his skinned had been a dark gray colour. His eyes were to empty irises with no sign of life in them.

There was something very wrong with him. Worse than the state I had been earlier. Much worse. This man wasn't just in a bad state. . . He looked like a walking corpse.