Zombie Mode Off

The baseball cap was my armor. Pulled low over my eyes, it was basically a force field against the world—or at least against having to make small talk in the hallways between AP Chem and lunch. Most days, I operated on what I called zombie mode: autopilot, zero emotional energy expenditure, just surviving until I could retreat to my room with my dog, Buster, and cat, Mochi, who were approximately one thousand times better at being there for me than most actual humans.

That all changed when I literally ran into Leo Chen during cross-country practice. I was gasping my way through the final lap,hat flopping uselessly on my sweaty head, when my shoelace somehow conspired against physics and sent me flying directly into his path. He caught me before I face-planted, which would've been social suicide even at my already-fragile confidence level.

"Whoa, you good?" His ridiculous golden retriever energy was completely at odds with his varsity jacket and effortless cool.

"Y-yeah. Just... zombie mode today." The words tumbled out before I could filter them. Smooth. Really selling the mystique here.

Leo laughed, and the sound was annoyingly genuine. "Bro, I feel that. Dead inside is practically my default setting during finals week."

I stared at him. Leo Chen, who somehow maintained perfect grades and a social life and looked like he walked out of a teen drama, felt dead inside? What was this, reverse psychology? Or was everyone else just faking it too?

"Wait, seriously?"

"Dude, absolutely." He adjusted his own cap—worn backwards, because of course. "Some days I'm just running through life wondering when it's supposed to feel... I don't know, real? But then something funny happens and I'm like, okay, maybe I'm not completely zombified yet."

Something warm and unfamiliar bloomed in my chest. Not a crush (probably), but something like... recognition.

"My dog and cat get it," I found myself saying. "Buster and Mochi never expect me to be on. They're just like, 'here for the vibes, here for the treats.'"

Leo's face lit up. "No WAY, you have a cat and a dog? What's the vibe? Do they chaos-destroy your house together?"

And just like that, we were walking and talking, two zombie-mode survivors in a world that expected us to have it all figured out. The hat stayed on, but something about its weight felt different now. Maybe armor wasn't about hiding. Maybe it was about protecting yourself long enough to find the people who made taking it off feel safe.

"Same time tomorrow?" Leo asked as we reached the parking lot. "I can show you this sick trail behind the school. And you can tell me more about Mochi's reign of terror."

"Yeah," I said, and for the first time in forever, zombie mode didn't feel like the only option. "Tomorrow."