The Day I Stopped Being a Zombie

Leo's face glowed in the dark, illuminated by his iphone screen at 2:47 AM. Again. He'd been doom-scrolling for three hours—TikToks, Instagram stories, Snapchat streaks—feeling like a total zombie but unable to stop. His thumb moved on autopilot, his brain completely checked out.

"You look like actual death, bro," Marcus whispered in homeroom. "Zombie mode activated."

"Shut up," Leo muttered, but Marcus wasn't wrong. The first period bell hadn't even rung, and Leo was already operating on zero sleep and maximum anxiety. Because today was the day—Hannah had finally invited him to play padel after school. Padel. The sport everyone was suddenly obsessed with. And Leo had zero game. Literally.

Worse: Tyler's crew would definitely be watching. Tyler, the human equivalent of a bull—massive, loud, and constantly charging at anyone who looked at him wrong. He'd been making Leo's life miserable since seventh grade.

"Nice shirt, loser," Tyler said as he passed. "Did your dog pick it out?"

Leo's hands curled into fists. Buster, his golden retriever, was basically the only good thing in his life right now. Tyler's insults were weak, but they still stung.

School dragged on forever. By 3:15, Leo was standing at the padel courts, heart pounding, clutching a borrowed racquet. Hannah was already there, laughing with her friends. She looked perfect. Leo looked like he was about to throw up.

"You coming or what?" she called.

He stepped onto the court—and immediately tripped. The racquet flew out of his hand, sailing through the air in a perfect arc before—CRACK—smashing directly into Tyler's forehead.

Dead silence.

Tyler stumbled back, clutching his face. Everyone stared. Leo wanted to dissolve into the earth's core. This was it. Social suicide. Complete humiliation.

But then Tyler started laughing.

"Holy shit," he said, blood trickling from a tiny cut. "You actually have decent aim."

The tension broke. Everyone was cracking up, even Tyler's friends. Hannah walked over, grinning.

"That was the most epic entrance ever," she said. "You're playing with us."

By dinner, Leo's phone was blowing up. New group chats. Friend requests. Even Tyler had slid into his DMs: "not bad for a zombie lol. next time don't aim for my face"

Buster greeted him at the door, tail wagging like crazy. Leo dropped to his knees, burying his face in golden fur. His phone buzzed again and again—new notifications, new connections, a life that was actually happening offline.

He tossed the iphone onto his bed. Tonight, he'd sleep like a normal person. Tomorrow, he might actually be one.