The patter of heavy combat boots echo through the hallway, deafening silence cloaking the building. Locks are hastily clicked into place just as window blinds are thrown down, students curled onto the marble tile. Some have their eyes spread open in fright, others shutting them as tight as possible in hopes that their reality is simply a figment of their imagination, that as time progresses it will dissolve before them. Instead, sweaty palms are wrapped around folded legs, sluggishly rocking themselves back and forth. Faint whispers fill the air, mumbles of prayers and false hope spilling out as each set of lips part. Streams of liquid pour down each cheek, hands grasping one another unsure of whether or not they’d be able to once more. Seconds tick by painfully slow as necks start aching, bent under each wooden desk with caution. Fright progresses into despair, both the fondest and most regretted memories projected in loops within each individual’s mind. Deep breaths turn to fast-paced ones, anticipation wide-spread, waiting for a beam of light to shine into the room dressed in pitch-black. It never does. Seconds continue to tick by, until eventually, a deafening sound pierces the air. As opposed to the ring of a bell and chatter of children every person had been yearning to glide through their ears, a startling boom is followed by flashing coloured lights and a sharp shriek which penetrates the school. Perhaps it was not a drill after all…