Hating everything and everyone right at that moment, Robert grabbed a shopping cart, blew past the employee that tried to greet him, and headed straight for the canned goods aisle. The sound of a body slumping to the floor like a sack of wet meat didn’t even register on his ears. But that music… Christ he hated that music. It felt like it was trying to bore its way into his skull and build a nest. What a nightmare that would be, trapped with this fucking song for the rest of-<br/><br/><i>Why is my nose bleeding?</i><br/><br/>His hand was shaking when he reached up to touch the wetness on his lip. Pain radiated out of his forehead and there was a ringing in his ears. The world spun and blurred when Robert turned his head to look around, to see if anyone else was experiencing the same symptoms. Was there a gas leak? Had there been an earthquake? An explosion?<br/><br/>The aisle was empty, but the music in the store had been replaced by… a sound. A god awful screech of noise that clawed at his ears. It made his eyes water and his spine clench the way he did when someone scratched a chalkboard. Angry, Robert left his cart behind and walked toward the back of the store to find a manager to complain to. If this sound system had broken and damaged his ears, there was gonna be hell to pay.<br/><br/>A woman wearing a uniform and a nametag came out of an aisle ahead of him, and he raised his hand to get her attention. The way her head snapped in his direction at the motion gave him pause, but the look in her eye made him take an involuntary step backward. Her eyes were bloodshot and wide, but not with fear. There was no time for his brain to figure out what the expression meant, because mere seconds after spotting him, the woman opened her mouth wide, howled like a demon, and started sprinting at him.<br/><br/>“Hey, Lady, I didn’t--” Instinct took over, as soon as it became clear this woman intended to attack him. A year spent in the forest hadn’t dulled his reflexes. He stepped into the woman’s reach, grabbed her wrist, and brought it down as he turned. Her momentum carried her over and through the air and she went sprawling onto the tile floor.<br/><br/>Adrenaline pumped through his veins, and Robert prepared to have to fight her off again, when he heard the other screams. The whole store filled with them, like a rising storm. Not just the howling that this woman had done, but screams of terror and pain.<br/><br/>Robert turned and ran before the woman had a chance to get to her feet.