Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

the sudden, shrieking sounds of screaming students bursting through the glass doors and walls had the cafeteria in a riot. the confusion in the boy had him backing away from everyone as the glass broke and students raced to safety.

everyone stood up and paced in circles to escape unusual looking students. as cheong-san eyed them, he saw a student’s throat getting ripped out by another bloodthirsty student with their jaws.

the confusion and terror boiled inside his veins and escaped to the lunch staff room. he slid under the fence that barely touched the ground and grabbed the nearest weapon he could get his hands on.

he backed his way into a counter and blindly felt a sharp object, feeling like a knife, and instinctively grabbed it and pointed it forward defensively. he heard for any unfamiliar sounds and as he knew it, he heard growling and screaming. oh, fuck no, not at his school.

he panicked. wasn’t that type of stuff only in movies? apparently not, there’s students’ throats getting ripped out, eyes glazing, and bloody hands scattering around everywhere. a student from behind scared him and without hesitation, he slashed half their face as they screamed loudly in pain.

cheong-san covered his hands with his mouth and overreacted, stuttering and apologizing. the student continued to wail loudly. it was already too late anyway, he saw bite marks on them already.

the student tried clawing at cheong-san’s pant leg as they cried loudly, begging to live. there was nothing the boy could do so he shook off the hand sorrowfully and ran to the exit. he heard sounds of munching and loud bawls, feeling too guilty.

he tried to not let it get to him and focused on escaping. the fire alarm went off and water sprayed everywhere, wetting everything just below it. he turned the knob and fled outside to the schoolyard, withdrawing only when he saw more crowds of hungry corpses charging at him.

he stumbled backwards and barely managed to close the door before gory hands flailed from outside. he shut the door with a firm hip bump and gagged when 2 pieces of hands were still moving on the floor. he ran back to the cafeteria and cried out.

it was a fucking zombie fest out there. students were mauled and killed, blood was everywhere, and screams deafened the entire cafeteria. he breathed heavily as everything was perceived in slow motion. he was very wet and smacked his lips. a hand from behind startled him as it enclosed around his. he backed away and almost killed them, until he realized who is was.

“g-gwi-nam?” he whispered faintly under screaming from the outside. the boy shushed him and shoved him under a metal counter. he oddly held onto cheong-san’s forearm, weirdly seeming as if he was… protective or to keep him calm.

cheong-san was a little unsettled and felt a little awkward, because this was yoon gwi-nam, not just some random boy who tried to save them both. he was even more confused at that thought.

the sounds of footsteps echoed in the staff room as the boys saw legs staggering around the room; thank god it wasn’t a crawling zombie. the zombie passed by them but turned quickly and growled, darting to a student.

they soon heard the sounds of a pan clanking on a hard surface, probably a lunch lady protecting the defenseless student. they kept quiet as they overheard a cry and disgusting crunching sounds, presuming that one of them was dead. out of nowhere, 2 students appeared and tried squeezing their way into the space the 2 boys were in.

“get out, get the fuck out!” gwi-nam yelled silently as he shoved them out. they exclaimed and tried going back in, but gwi-nam kicked them and scoffed.

“gwi-nam, no! let them in!” cheong-san pleaded, but it was already too late as the students were being mutilated just beside them.

“there wasn’t enough space, you moron. you wanna die too?” he whispered, seething between his teeth. cheong-san opened his mouth to say something, but he closed it immediately.

he tried staying calm as he felt gwi-nam’s grip on his forearm tighten. gwi-nam gave him a threatening look; as if cheong-san was going to make a noise, he would throw him out to die. his low, ragged breathing and growling just beside them was the only noise they heard.

they waited everything out until it was barely quiet and the zombies had stumbled out the staff room. they waited hours, and cheong-san felt sick. he didn’t want to deal with the apocalypse. those were only in the movies, because this is only real life; and yet, here they are on the brink of death.

gwi-nam threw caution into the wind and stuck his head out, observing for any suspicion or unfamiliar sounds. he quietly stuck his foot out, and eventually pulled his body out from under the counter. he looked around and wordlessly snooped around the room like a bull in a china shop.

cheong-san observed him as he followed suit. he grabbed a knife sitting on the counter and bumped into gwi-nam’s chest. he made a small ‘oof’ sound and looked slightly above him, confused. gwi-nam was staring him down, with a murky look on his face.

“gwi-nam, what’s the matter?” he asked.

“this is not a game, lee cheong-san. everyone in front of us is fucking dead. we’re fucking snowballs in hell.” he shook frighteningly.

cheong-san’s worry dissolved as he was affected by the other’s words. but overall, he calmed himself down with breathing methods.

“listen,” he impulsively held onto gwi-nam’s hand. he sucked in a breath and looked down slowly, noticing his hand on the other’s. he wanted to pull away but gwi-nam had already enclosed his hand around cheong-san’s. he decided to just leave it alone and continue.

“i know this shit is real, but we have to stay calm, alright? it’s not easy to weather the storm, but i’ve watched movies about zombies, and i have at least some experience. so let’s just keep calm and kick zombie ass, yeah?” he said confidently, firing up the other. gwi-nam seemed motivated and ready to fight. cheong-san was relieved to see that it somehow calmed the boy down, and he grabbed his knife.

“yeah, kick zombie ass. let’s do this!” gwi-nam shouted confidently, repeating what the other said. cheong-san smiled in anticipation as they slid back out with courage and sprinted to the exit. they already heard growls and snarls coming at them, but they were too smart for the dead fucks.

cheong-san stabbed inside a zombie’s mouth and sliced his knife upward, splitting the zombie’s head in two. gwi-nam killed one off as he noticed how cheong-san was effectively killing them. he widened his eyes as he held off a zombie trying to bite at him. cheong-san quickly strolled to a large, running fan and tore down the safety blinds.

he grabbed a female zombie charging at him and threw her hair into the fan. the fan sucked in her hair, and ripped out her scalp and half her face. the blood splashed on cheong-san’s face as he closed his eyes; he was proud of his work.

gwi-nam was in awe, too immersed in cheong-san’s killing tactics. cheong-san shot him a sly look before his face subsequently shifted and he ran to him. he stabbed the back of the zombie’s neck that gwi-nam was trying to fight off.

“you’re never gonna live if you keep staring at me.” cheong-san commented jokingly, smiling lightly. he brought gwi-nam up from the floor, as the taller was a little embarrassed.

“maybe you’re wrong.” he muttered to himself as cheong-san ran to kill off more zombies. it would’ve been way better if gwi-nam was listening to hardcore punk music while killing the zombies. it would be everything for him, but unfortunately for him, there was possibly no chance they could get their phones from the teacher faculty room.

gwi-nam stuck around cheong-san and avoided snapping jaws towards him. he tried to kill the same way as the other, but was not too experienced in this situation.

“fuck! there’s too many, we have to go!” gwi-nam shouted towards the boy, who was still by the large fan, shoving the zombies inside it.

“okay! follow me!” he yelled back. he shoved one last zombie in the fan as it was slowly ground into bits. cheong-san ran to the boy and grabbed his hand, sprinting out of the cafeteria. they trotted outside and stumbled back when there was more. cheong-san landed on gwi-nam’s feet as he quickly brought the shorter back up on his feet and darted.

they entered through a door that lead into the school. they scurried down the hallways and cheong-san staggered into the principal room. he was relieved when he opened the door and noticed it wasn’t locked. they slid inside and locked the door quickly.

they shoved their backs on the door, which was pounding rhythmically with the zombies outside. gwi-nam left the door and got a cushion chair, pushing it to the door. cheong-san backed off and helped the other shove the chair to block the door. they backed away consciously and took a break to catch their breath.

“god, what the fuck is going on?!”

Chapter Text

“god, what the fuck is going on?!”

gwi-nam snapped, shooting his head up quickly. cheong-san was resting on the couch in the office as he took heavy breaths. he was too fatigued to answer the boy so they stayed in awkward silence.

“it’s a zombie fest out there, man.” he eventually answered. gwi-nam gave him a look of confusion.

“what?” he narrowed his eyes questionably.

“i was just answering your question.” he panted out.

“what??” he sounded even more confused.

“never mind.” cheong-san huffed, rolling his eyes.

he continued his ragged breathing until he looked to his right. his raspy breathing suddenly came to a stop as he froze; displayed before him was an ancient odachi katana, untouched for decades just sitting in the case above the principal’s desk.

he walked over to it and admired it, eyeing it all over. gwi-nam was in his own world until he spotted the boy staring carefree at the display case.

“what you looking at?” he asked gravely. cheong-san was still staring at the sword, completely lost in his own world.

“do you think it’d be badass to take this?” he looked behind him, pointing at the case. gwi-nam gave him an observant look.

“what if it’s haunted?” he deadpanned. cheong-san shot him a blank stare whilst slowly turning to face him. he held the knife out and held his other hand in front of his eye. he used the sharp edge to break the glass and it made a screeching, crashing sound.

“shh! did you forget what is literally out there?” he asked bitterly.

“calm down, they can’t get in. yet.” he jeered, shooting him a look. he shifted back to the sword and reached out to touch it. the tiny, visible particles of the untouched sword lightly whirled in the air.

“how the fuck can you tell me to stay calm when it’s the end of the fucking world..” he muttered impassively under his breath, crossing his arms.

cheong-san grabbed the handle of the sword and slowly brought it out, swaying it confidently as if he was slashing imaginary zombies.

“this is totally rad.” he smirked triumphantly, tightening his grip on the sword. gwi-nam eyed him from the corner of his eye, and his face fixed its attention to the sword. he slowly stood up from the couch and observed the other.

“give it to me, i want it.” he extended his arm out, but cheong-san held the sword close to him.

“no, i found it first,” he drew the knife and handed it to the other.

“you keep this one.” he silently snickered, chuckling at gwi-nam’s unamused look. he examined it all around with a disinterested look and a pout.

“whatever, at least it’s something.” he frowned defensively, holding onto the small weapon. cheong-san shrugged unsurely, perceiving that the weapon could do some damage.

he didn’t know whether to hang it on his back or somehow keep it on his waist. lucky for him, there was a sheath resting on top of the wooden display case that was just the size to sling on his back. he grabbed the sheath and enclosed the sword for their safety.

“okay, let’s do this.” gwi-nam said, puffing his breath above his head and let his bangs fly up.

“let’s go through the window, maybe we could escape through there.” he pointed to the blinds. cheong-san looked out the window and opened the blinds, his inscrutable countenance made the other question whether he should’ve have suggested it.

“mmm, it’s crowded with zombies, looks like there’s only one way to get out.” he shook his head and turned to face the other, gwi-nam slightly raised his eyebrow.

“oh, come on.. there’s so many..” he complained bleakly.

“relax, you and i are stable enough to fight them off.” he consoled stolidly. he patted gwi-nam’s back firmly for any acknowledgement and gwi-nam slanted his mouth sourly.

“okay fine, let-“ “STOP!”

gwi-nam jumped fiercely at the sudden shout coming from under the desk. he held onto cheong-san, frightened. if he was a cat, his fur would be sticking out to the max. cheong-san felt a little uncomfortable because his personal space was invaded and physical touch wasn’t his exact cup of tea.

“WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!” he glanced around frantically, too shocked to be the choleric, dominant asshole he always was. cheong-san slowly pushed him off with a light grimace.

“it’s just the principal.” he chagrined, closing his eyes derisively. gwi-nam’s face slowly shifted calmly as he processed what he just did.

“oh. sorry.” he mumbled awkwardly.

“h-hey..! what do you think you’re doing?” the principal commented, finally being recognized after hiding out for so long.

“what do you THINK we’re doing?“ gwi-nam spat bitterly, emphasizing the words.

“hey-hey, that’s not yours! what are you doing with that sword?!” his face was all too serious, and gwi-nam, being the immature and offensive bastard he was, smirked behind his hand that hid that dastardly grin.

“well it’s not like we saw your name on it!” gwi-nam retaliated. cheong-san let out a snort behind his mouth, as he too found the argument quite hilarious.

“don’t you dare speak to your principal that way!” he pointed his finger at gwi-nam.

“really? is that all you fucking care about?!” he shouted. cheong-san slightly widened his eyes at the tone.

“your students are fucking dying out there, and yet you still care about yourself and your status?” he gestured wildly with his arms, disbelief molding him.

“yeah, just because you’re the principal doesn’t mean you’re still in charge of us.” cheong-san joined in. the principal eyed him with shock, never seeing him act so hostile.

“you damn kids listen to me, or i will-“

“or you’ll what, huh?” gwi-nam stomped closer with the knife, drawing it in front of the older man. he smiled darkly as he widened his eyes.

“you’re not the boss of us so listen to what we fucking say.” the principal was in terror, his breathing became heavy. he slowly put his hands up in mercy and gwi-nam smiled approvingly.

“that’s it..” he muttered dominantly.

“gwi-nam, i think we’re taking it too far.” cheong-san didn’t want gwi-nam to torture or hurt him, but just to get the principal to listen. gwi-nam wordlessly turned his head to face cheong-san, the shorter boy cowering the slightest under his wryly gaze.

“are you blind? this asshole,” he gestured with the knife between him and the principal, making it more clear he wanted to get his way.

“is trying to test us. he wants us to listen to him so he can kill us off.”

“that doesn’t mean we physically torture him! we can talk about this.” he tried, almost sounding like a plead.

“we can’t talk about sh-“

the principal tried making a move to grab at gwi-nam’s knife as the boy was too late to react and was pinned on the floor. the principal and him fought for the knife as cheong-san was too stunned to comprehend anything.

“cheong-san! kill this fucker! i’m gonna die!” gwi-nam shouted at the boy. his mouth was soon covered by the principal’s large hand, suffocating slowly.

“don’t listen to him, cheong-san! kill him! i’m your principal and you do as i say! he’ll kill you too!” the principal yelled. gwi-nam bit into his hand as hard as he possibly could.

the principal shouted in pain as he tried to let loose out of the other’s jaw’s. he tore off a piece of flesh from the hand, spitting it carelessly to his side.

cheong-san was breathing heavily as he was stuck in the worst position.

either his principal dies… or does gwi-nam have to die..?

he sucked in a breath before raising the sword up. his hand shook violently as he couldn’t choose, the fighting between the two just had to stop.

he could either build small trust in a brute or betray the most loyal in the school. he shut his eyes tightly as he swung his katana down swiftly.

the choking sounds came from one of them. cheong-san did not want to open his eyes to see what he has committed. the sounds slowly came to a stop as it was replaced by one last breath.

he cracked opened his eyes and his face darkened very bleakly. he had killed the principal. he fucking murdered someone. he slashed the back of his neck. gwi-nam was still on his back, bug eyed and breathing heavily. he held onto his heart as his pupil found cheong-san’s.

“you…” he whispered, almost as if he sounded scared of him.

“you killed him. you murdered him.” he muttered, still too shaken to move. cheong-san dropped the katana and started spiraling.

“no-no-no-n-no! i-i-i-i didn’t mean to; i-i swear!” he sobbed out loud, a tear blinding his eye. gwi-nam’s terrified breathing suddenly stopped, he seemed confused about something.

“..but why me..?” he asked softly. cheong-san stopped at the question.

“what..?”

“why me over.. him? why would you kill him over me..?”

“i..i don’t know, i just swung down; i wasn’t even looking at who i…” he looked at the principal dead on the floor, shivering as he didn’t want to finish his sentence.

gwi-nam was even more confused as he tried gathering his thoughts. he got up cautiously and got on his knees, begging for mercy at cheong-san’s feet.

“please.. please don’t kill me.” he pleaded. cheong-san raised his eyebrows vacantly. was gwi-nam really begging to live? cheong-san has never seen him act this vulnerable.

“relax, relax.. i’m not gonna kill you too. i just wanted the fighting to stop.” cheong-san slowly stood him up back on his feet, as he saw how relieved gwi-nam looked.

“ah, okay.” he said kind of awkwardly, still showing that he was uncomfortable.

cheong-san wouldn’t lie and think he wasn’t guilty for what he just did. he just killed someone who was a way higher status than him. but knowing gwi-nam, he probably knew the taller boy would’ve already killed him too. he never fully knew him, but he always knew what his intentions were.

maybe there was some room for trust in him.

Chapter Text

the pair reluctantly waited out for any stumbling zombies outside. it sounded calm and quiet, but it didn’t mean that it was safe. cheong-san kept watch for any nearby zombies while gwi-nam flicked his lighter, bored. he had found the lighter in his pocket as he forgot about it, but now that he knows he had it, he doesn’t think it has any good use other than for smoking.

“ugh.. there’s nothing to do in this stupid school, i need to smoke.” he complained out loud, setting his hand with the lighter back down.

“well too bad, that’s not my problem.” cheong-san said. gwi-nam puffed out his breath in annoyance.

“ughh!” he scoffed dramatically. cheong-san was tired to hear him complain almost the entire time so he shut the door.

“come on, gwi-nam. it’s more clear now so i say we leave now, better late than never.” he told him, which caused gwi-nam to pout petulantly.

“gwi-nam, stop acting like a child. it’s better to go now than wait here for a few days.”

“fine..” he muttered angrily, rolling his eyes mockingly. cheong-san peeked out the door one last time before nodding to gwi-nam. the taller boy just gave him a confused look.

“okay, let’s do this quickly, if you fall behind, you stay behind.” cheong-san warned. gwi-nam just rolled his eyes tiredly.

“mm.. yeah whatever.”

cheong-san was about to rush out, but abruptly stopped. gwi-nam was already prepared to dash out, but bumped into cheong-san, knocking them both over.

he gained his senses back and he swore he felt his heart stop beating when he looked up, because he was right on top of cheong-san. they both stared awkwardly into each other’s eyes and breathed heavily.

“emm, gwi-nam..” he muttered.

“..yeah?” he answered gravely.

“can.. can you get off me..?” he shut his eyes embarrassingly.

“oh.. yeah, sorry.” gwi-nam whispered quietly. he stood up and offered a hand to help cheong-san up, but when he noticed he got up by himself, he put his hand back in his pocket awkwardly.

“anyways.. let’s go now.” cheong-san said very awkwardly. gwi-nam felt he could just die on the spot because of what he just did. when cheong-san took one more look out, gwi-nam smacked his fist into his forehead.. like if he wanted something but had failed.

“fuck..” he muttered audibly. cheong-san signaled with his hands that the coast was clear and they could make a quick getaway. gwi-nam nodded blankly in agreement.

the taller boy looked over to the principal’s desk and froze. he spotted a can of aerosol spray and walked over to it, picking it up cautiously and examined it.

“okay, ready gw-… gwi-nam?” cheong-san said, ready to move, but when he saw gwi-nam by the principal’s desk, he closed the door and walked behind him.

“what is it?” he asked, trying to see what the other was doing. he saw the can of aerosol the boy held and had a great idea.

“oh.. are you going to burn them?” gwi-nam jarred slightly from the sudden voice. he turned to face the other with a serious look.

“what? burn what?” he asked confused. he was even more confused when cheong-san gave him a look, as the shorter boy mistook the tone as sarcasm.

“umm.. the zombies?” gwi-nam raised his eyebrow until he realized what cheong-san was trying to imply.

“ohhh, yeah, okay, yeah that works.” he smiled vaguely. cheong-san let the other keep the can just in case they figure something out.

“okay, let’s go out for real this time..” cheong-san dashed out quickly, and gwi-nam was almost too late to follow. he stayed behind the other as cheong-san lead them upstairs. gwi-nam didn’t know where he was being lead to, but he’s hoping cheong-san was not leading them to death’s door.

cheong-san scurried inside a room full of.. people he knew.. just great. the recording room wasn’t always the best room. gwi-nam didn’t want to go in, but cheong-san grabbed his forearm and took him inside quickly just before a zombie could get to him.

————————————

the people inside turned their heads to the pair that walked in and a girl immediately hugged cheong-san tightly. she had a low ponytail, she was probably his childhood best friend, typical. the thought of that made him want to gag. she stopped hugging him and looked at gwi-nam, giving him a bitter look along with the rest of the crowd.

“why did you bring him?” she asked, tilting her arm towards the tall boy. gwi-nam frowned offensively, not wanting to be in the same room as her at all. cheong-san looked at him and he glared back.

“he’s been helping me, i think he’s a pretty good fighter.” cheong-san gave him a small but genuine smile. gwi-nam slanted his mouth and broke eye contact, rubbing his neck awkwardly. if cheong-san could be able to read him, gwi-nam seemed embarrassed and… kind of flattered to hear that.

“but why was he with you?”

“because i saved his ass alright, we’re practically best friends.” gwi-nam said all of a sudden, slinging his arm around cheong-san’s neck.

“uhh.. yeah, definitely.” cheong-san agreed awkwardly, flashing a half smile. on-jo eyed them both before shaking her head and joined back with the group, who were currently discussing escape plans.

the group didn’t even bother to include the 2 boys because of the newly added member. surprisingly, they didn’t even seem interested or were curious how they even made it out alive, especially their dear friend.

they were resting in a corner of the room until gwi-nam abruptly stood up quickly and stormed into the recording room. everyone watched him, and when he was settled in the chair, they went back to their discussions.

the fact that they ignored something that was wrong with him made cheong-san kind of angry. just because they didn’t like gwi-nam didn’t mean they don’t have to take custody of him.

cheong-san decided to be brave and just suck it up. he also stood up as he caught a few of the group’s attention. he went in the announcement room and tried to get gwi-nam to trust him and his friends. cheong-san’s friends would have to learn to trust him, too.

“hey.” he tried. gwi-nam was clearly too ‘interested’ in his lighter flicking monotonously. cheong-san hesitated and grabbed the lighter, slightly touching his hand. gwi-nam turned his head to face him and cheong-san gasped.

“s-sorry.. you weren’t answering.” he admitted awkwardly, backing his hand away.

“whatever.” he croaked. he continued to stare blankly at the lighter. little did the pair know, the group was watching their every move through the glass, making jokes and malicious remarks.

“gwi-nam—“ he called out, tired of being ignored. he grabbed his hand and gwi-nam stood up defensively.

“what? what is with you?” he questioned, pulling out of his grasp.

“you’re being an ignorant asshole! i’m trying to talk to you and you’re not responding. you need to start being more considerate, there’s nobody to watch you be ‘mysterious’, you know.” he spat. gwi-nam widened his eyes brusquely.

“what the fuck?! what are you saying all of a sudden? i never fucking cared of what people thought of me!” he gestured wildly with his flailing arms. cheong-san wasn’t hesitant in his presence, he wasn’t scared to claim the dominance.

“you’re going outside right now… and tell them you’re sorry for everything you’ve ever done that was bad, or so god help me i will make you beg for forgiveness like the vulnerable trash you are. i’m not afraid to use this.” he snapped, drawing his katana.

gwi-nam instinctively raised his hands up mercifully as he breathed heavily. the group was even shocked to see what he just did, it was something he’d never do, but then again, he just did it to make sure gwi-nam would listen. gwi-nam tilted his head up to avoid the blade right next to his throat and frowned defeatedly.

“fine..” he murmured. he shoved his hands down as he tucked them in his pockets, scoffing. cheong-san withdrew the katana and put it back in its place. gwi-nam opened the door as the group backed away from him and cheong-san.

“chill.. i just want to apologize for everything i’ve done, and i’ll make sure i won’t do it again, i mean it.” he chanted monotonously, not at all meaning what he said. the group still wasn’t so fond of him, so cheong-san decided to take a risk.

“if you guys don’t want to trust him, then i’ll stick around him to show you he’s not so bad.” he blurted out. the crowd widened their eyes, murmuring remarks of disagreements and disapproval. cheong-san slung his arm around the taller’s hips as he was given an awkward look from the boy.

“but-but cheong-san-“ on-jo tried, but was cut off.

“on-jo, i don’t wanna hear it. if you guys are so scared with him being in the group, then i’ll be with him.” he stated. gwi-nam was unsettled, but also surprised with the fact that cheong-san has the audacity to even touch him, considering that he does not like physical touch.

he just stayed quiet as he heard cheong-san and on-jo arguing, but it sounded muffled to him. he had no interest in it, yet he couldn’t hear. it was bothering him. the argument eventually came to a stop with an annoyed on-jo and a confident but imperious cheong-san. when the group payed no attention to them anymore, the boys still stuck in the corner.

“why would you say that?” gwi-nam asked him as they sat upon a wall.

“i.. i don’t really know, i was just tired of them being so.. stuck up. they have to learn that you’re apart of the group now, whether they like it or not.” he said. gwi-nam widened his eyes the slightest as he cleared his throat.

“umm.. yeah, thanks.. for trying to do that.” he mumbled. cheong-san looked at him and nodded with a small smile. to his surprise, gwi-nam smiled lightly back. he’s never seen him genuinely smile before, but it’s kind of… nice to see him act less hostile.

it was quiet for a while until everyone parted and started to get comfortable in the room. they were probably going to sleep since it was dark, not to mention a very long day.

“come on gwi-nam, let’s go to sleep.” cheong-san yawned. gwi-nam was already getting ready for a nap as he laid down and positioned himself comfortably.

cheong-san laid down right next to him, but it felt really weird. he was facing the other, who was sleeping calmly. he turned the opposite way as he was somehow embarrassed to be the first thing that gwi-nam sees when he wakes up.

“goodnight, gwi-nam.” he declared. gwi-nam lifted his head and raised his eyebrows vaguely.

“night, cheong-san.” he whispered as he laid his head back down.

Chapter Text

the morning came as cheong-san stirred in his sleep, still in slumber. he instantaneously cracked open his eyes as he looked around hazily, feeling fatigued and groggy.

his friends were still asleep all over the room. the morning light had creeped into the visible window, creating drowsy silhouettes.

cheong-san sat up as he stretched lightly, his joints popping comfortably. he felt a little more energized from the stretch and stared down at the lazy, sleeping figure besides him.

gwi-nam even frowned in his sleep, and somehow cheong-san found it kind of funny that he still had that same annoyed look. the boy furrowed his brows as he breathed consciously and rhythmically.

cheong-san observed his surroundings and slowly stood to his feet. he walked to the doors and opened it to be aware for any zombies, and thankfully, there was barely any in the hallway.

he hadn’t double-checked if gwi-nam was fully asleep, because the boy was already awake before cheong-san and stood silently behind him. cheong-san slid the door closed quietly and as he turned around, he let out a startled noise, immediately covering his mouth to prevent the loud volume.

“you scared me,” he gasped out, clutching onto his heart that was pounding. gwi-nam just let out a blank “mm” noise while stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“why did you scare me?” cheong-san breathed out, spontaneously backing off as gwi-nam was a little too close for his liking.

“hmm? oh, sorry, i didn’t mean to.” he spoke monotonously with a vacant countenance, backing away from the other, a little too far as cheong-san wanted.

“yeah.” cheong-san scoffed. he wordlessly tiptoed to the windows as he made sure he wouldn’t wake up his friends. he peeped out the window and let out a silent sob.

the whole school he knew was gone. completely devoured and gone. he didn’t think it would end up this way. with him and his friends reunited, it still doesn’t feel the same anymore. they were happier and more connected before this whole shit show had happened.

he hid his face with his palm as he lowered his head, wallowing silently in despair, sorrow and even guilt. everyone he ever knew would never come back. he was happy to still be with his friends, but it wasn’t the same without everyone else in the crowd. those poor students shouldn’t have died. now instead of making friends, he’ll be surviving against them until the day he dies.

he was stunned when he felt odd arms enclosing around his waist, the figure holding him close as they hugged him.

he slowly turned his head and fearfully realized who was hugging him. it was yoon gwi-nam. out of everyone in this cramped room, it was yoon gwi-nam hugging him. cheong-san’s breathing became heavy as his heart started beating faster than its normal pace. he hitched his breath when he felt his head rest on his shoulder.

“gwi-nam.. what are you-you doing?” he uttered.

“i’m not good at comforting people with words, because i’ve… never done this, ever. but i still don’t think you should cry, you’re better than that.” he replied solemnly.

he wasn’t wrong when he mentioned he wasn’t the best to offer comfort, but he was hugging cheong-san when he was hurt. and yet, cheong-san felt… warm. it was definitely better than just a shoulder bump and a “hey everything’s fine, no worries”.

he didn’t sleep with a blanket the entire night, but gwi-nam’s embrace was warming to him. maybe it wasn’t only the embrace, maybe the feeling that he feels when someone… cares. gwi-nam actually cares.

cheong-san sniffed as he wiped his face. gwi-nam backed away and gave him space, feeling extremely awkward from what he just did as cheong-san turned his body towards him.

“thank you..” he muttered silently, bowing slowly. gwi-nam nodded inscrutably.

“you’re right, i know we can’t bring them back to life.. but it’s still so sad.” he weeped.

“i understand, but it’s not like we can do anything about it anyways.” gwi-nam shrugged, turning on his heels. cheong-san slanted his mouth, feeling a bit hurt. he sighed heavily and stared at his friends still in slumber.

he shook on-jo awake, and she examined her surroundings drowsily, her hair all tousled.

“wh-what’s going on?” she groaned, lifting her head as sleep was still in her body. she slowly set her head back down.

“nothing.. we need to move.” cheong-san stated ruminatively. on-jo brought her head back up, confused.

“why? we’re fine, cheong-san. we just have to wait for them to rescue us.” she replied huskily.

“but what if they don’t? i’m trying to..” cheong-san used his hands while talking, but on-jo was too fatigued to comprehend.

“what if they never come? we have to go and explore, maybe find something to connect to the outside world. we need like a.. phone! in the faculty room, there’s phones, and we could try to send someone to retrieve one.” he was being logical with his reasons, and that somehow seemed to spark something in on-jo. she took in what he said and decided it was a good plan.

“okay.. but, who will we send to get the phone?” she questioned, a little more enthusiastic.

“i-“

“i’ll go. i’m stonger and faster.” gwi-nam cut off cheong-san, placing his hand on his shoulder. cheong-san still had his mouth open while slowly turning his head to glare at the tall male, who displayed a smug but somewhat serious face. he looked down on the hand that was on his shoulder, and shook it off, earning a dirty look.

“okay.. i’ll go as well, but on-jo, we should wake the others up and ask what they think.” he turned to the girl. she nodded and stood up. the pair walked around to wake everyone up, except gwi-nam.

he was still upset about yesterday, so he doesn’t think the group would wanna be the first thing they see when he wakes up. he just nestled in a hidden corner while he eyed the pair waking the others up.

eventually, the crowd woke up slowly and had realized they overslept, not that any of them cared though. they were weak, hungry, and basically bored to death. there wasn’t anything fun about barely living in an apocalypse.

“cheong-san..? what’s going on.?” su-hyeok said, rubbing his eyes slowly to wipe off the groggy feeling of sleep that was still in his system.

“we’ve made a plan for someone, or 2 people, to go to the faculty room and retrieve a phone. we need to see how hyosan is doing and try to communicate with the outside world.” cheong-san stated. su-hyeok looked at something for a moment, and his face shifted to something unreadable.

“what??” he squinted his eyes, looking back at him confusedly.

“it’s our only option. if we wait for rescuers, they may not arrive in time; we’ll most likely die of starvation, dehydration, or the zombies getting to us first. it’s better to die trying.” su-hyeok seemed to understand what he was saying, but was still not induced enough.

“are you the one going out then?” hyo-ryung questioned softly, her doe eyes appearing innocent.

“..yes, but gwi-nam will come with me.” he shrugged. she looked at the tall boy behind him, and gave him a scared look. gwi-nam curved his lips slightly upward, smirking at the cowering gaze she delivered to him.

“okay, cheong-san, i asked everyone about the plan and they agree.” on-jo came in his view, a confident smile on her face.

“okay, me and gwi-nam will go.” he nodded, smiling lightly back at her. gwi-nam looked between the two of them, and scoffed, rolling his eyes as he faced another direction. he didn’t care about them or their special relationship, at all.

“ugh..” gwi-nam audibly scoffed, but just quiet enough so only he heard himself. he crossed his arms, and his shoulders tensed.

cheong-san looked to his right and eyed gwi-nam, who was staring outside the window. he was stiff; the kind of stiff when you’re thinking really hard about something. he knew that there was something bothering him. on-jo seemed to notice it too, but it didn’t mean she wanted to comfort him, let alone approach him.

“cheong-san, could you talk gwi-nam into your plan? i know he volunteered to go out, but i think he’s second guessing..” on-jo whispered to cheong-san, pointing at gwi-nam.

“yeah, he does look a little.. off, but yeah, i’ll talk to him.” he quickly patted on-jo’s arm and nodded.

he walked over to gwi-nam and placed his hand on his shoulder, startling him. cheong-san didn’t notice he’d done that, but oddly it felt instinctual for him to do that.

“sorry. i didn’t mean to startle you, but are you alright?” he asked gently.

“psh, why do you care?” he scorned. cheong-san was taken aback by the sudden snap. gwi-nam continued to stare intently at the outside, his countenance was read as something suspicious and augurous.

“because i’m worried about you.” he said. gwi-nam tightened his grips on his forearms as the fabric of his jacket bunched. gwi-nam shook the hand off of his shoulder, as he was just a ticking time bomb.

“well, fuck off. i don’t need anyone looking after me.” he let loose out of the bunched fabric. his shoulders stopped tensing as he let them rest.

cheong-san knew he shouldn’t get close to gwi-nam, especially because of how he is, but he walked back over to him. he placed his hand back on gwi-nam’s back, but this time gwi-nam didn’t snap at him. he just let it happen.

“gwi-nam.. i know something is wrong. tell me.”

“i just told you to fuck off. are you deaf?” he shot his head to face cheong-san, a menacing look in his eyes. cheong-san didn’t care though, he wasn’t a whole coward just because of some bully and his methods of violence and conspiracies. he stared down at the other to prove that he wasn’t afraid of him like everyone else.

“no, gwi-nam, i will not fuck off. you know that you need my help to survive.” he chanted, causing gwi-nam to suspiciously eye him with half-lidded eyes. the taller boy resorted to staring outside to avoid conversation, but it seems cheong-san’s words were getting to him.

“if i weren’t there to help you back at the cafeteria, you’d likely be roaming around the school by now. you may be strong and tough on the outside, but i saw you cowering, you’re not fully experienced in these types of circumstances.” he stated in the most non-sarcastic way. gwi-nam eyed him from the side without turning his head, and then looked back out the window.

“look, it’s fine, and i understand that su-hyeok,” the mention of the ex-bully had him breathing heavily in anger, the tall boy who betrayed them, and switched to the pure, good side. he was always trying to play the goody two shoes role.

“that su-hyeok is stronger and more athletic than most of us, but i trust you can help us. i know you are strong and athletic too, but i also want you to improve and be better. i’m not saying you’re weaker than him, but that we need more people to depend on when something goes wrong. the group may not like you, but you can still change your ways, it’s okay.” if cheong-san was able to read gwi-nam fully, the taller boy seemed to soften a bit at the words.

“yeah, ‘kay, i’ll try. thanks, i guess.” he shrugged, clearing his throat. cheong-san mentally breathed out a sigh of relief that he convinced gwi-nam to try and fit in, even if the group wasn’t so fond of him.

“mhm,”

“but..” gwi-nam said before cheong-san could walk out of their discussion.

“yeah?”

“if,” he gestured portably with his hand.

“i ever become a zombie, just know that i won’t go after your neck first, you’ll probably be the last person i bite.” he joked with a blank face, but no one ever perceived him as humorous. nobody ever knew if he was serious or sarcastic at times.

cheong-san chuckled awkwardly and humorously, but focusing on the humor. gwi-nam shot him a very small smile. the smaller boy smiled lightly as well.

“anyways, i was just gonna ask if you wanna go already? i know it’s early, but i thought of some back up plans whenever you’re ready to hear them. i’d rather tell you now in case i forget.” cheong-san quickly cleared his throat and changed the subject.

gwi-nam examined the hand on his shoulder that was slightly kneading his clavicle. cheong-san observed how he felt the tension in the taller male’s shoulder leisurely pacify, and felt at ease.

there was a silence in the conversation, but it wasn’t awkward. for cheong-san, it didn’t seem as unpleasant or awkward, but instead preternaturally appeasing. and for gwi-nam, it wasn’t a good or familiar feeling, but not bad either.

despite gwi-nam’s intimidating and retaining aura, cheong-san was still standing by him. he didn’t exactly feel safe around him, but didn’t feel uncomfortable either.

“ok.” he muttered.

“alright,” cheong-san patted his shoulder and lead him near the door, earning confused and protruding faces from his friends as they strolled to the exit.

“here’s what we’re gonna do…”

Chapter Text

“you got all that?” Cheong-san asked Gwi-nam as he nodded. Gwi-nam nodded back with a blank but determined expression.

Cheong-san was about to check out the door, but Gwi-nam stopped him in his tracks.

“wait,” he said. Cheong-san quickly turned around and gained his composure back, a little caught off guard from the sudden tone.

“yes?” he asked, trying not to make it sound sarcastic.

Gwi-nam pulled out the aerosol spray and his lighter.

“this is probably a bad time, but i just remembered that i used to create molotovs back in middle school and i would burn shit.” Cheong-san paused and halfly smiled awkwardly, hearing that it wasn’t necessary for Gwi-nam to explain his past life.

“okaaay, and do you have an idea?” he questioned, squinting his eyes the slightest.

“yes. i noticed this can of aerosol is an alcohol type, and that is what we need for making molotovs. there’s also more alcohol in the nurse’s office along with a lot of shit that could be useful, so we could use that.” Cheong-san took in his words, and thought that his idea was a really good one.

“also, before i found you back at the cafeteria, i noticed a fire going off in the kitchen, and saw a zombie running to the fire. i think they sense the heat levels inside us, so i’m thinking that’s why they want to eat us.” he continued.

“yeah! good idea and logic, but if we want to get to the nurse’s office, we have to think of a way to distract them. since…” he trailed off until he had vaguely remembered something.

“oh..! On-jo! didn’t you say Nam-ra knew how to function the panel in the morning announcements?” he strolled to her, her attention immediately focusing on him. Gwi-nam couldn’t help but slant his mouth.. enviously.

“yeah! i’ll ask her if she can. there has to be a disk they always play in the morning, we just have to look for it.” she told everybody about what their master plan, and all agreed in hopes of Cheong-san’s return with supplies (if he even makes it).

they all didn’t like that Cheong-san would risk his life just to retrieve a device or supplies, but it would be worth trying though, better than just sitting until death creeps up on them.

“okay, Gwi-nam, everyone agreed for us to go. so come on.” Cheong-san turned to Gwi-nam, who picked his head up instantly as soon as he was acknowledged by the shorter male.

he nodded and curved his lips upward, a neutral smile on display. Cheong-san smiled lightly back at him. Gwi-nam’s smile converted into a deep frown as he eyed On-jo approaching them.

“we’re counting on you, Cheong-san. we’ll support you, no matter what.” she beamed elatedly. Cheong-san smiled brighter with her words of encouragement.

‘tch, bitch. you just want me fucking dead, and your damn boyfriend to live.’ Gwi-nam thought, deepening his frown even more as he crossed his arms. Cheong-san was just stealing his thunder. at least, that’s what he thought.

“we found the disk!” Dae-su called out.

“okay! we’ll start the track now.” On-jo told everyone.

“wait.” Nam-ra spoke, startling everyone with her sudden comment. it didn’t seem normal for her to speak abruptly, especially since they all agreed on the plan even if it was perilous.

“what’s wrong, Nam-ra?”

“what if this doesn’t work, and what if the undead suddenly see them?” Nam-ra’s face did not move at all, almost startling everyone in the room with how tranquil she was in a time of crisis.

“i have some plans i talked with to Gwi-nam, we’ll be fine.” Cheong-san reassured, earning little sighs of relief around the room.

Nam-ra stood still, staring intently into space until she then spoke.

“but what if the track ends? what else should we do?” she asked blankly. everyone seemed alarmed now and unsure. both boys felt dettered from Nam-ra’s remark.

“we.. um.. we’ll probably be back before the track ends.” Cheong-san stated, but it sounded unsure and dubious.

“how would you know?” she questioned, raising her eyebrows moderately. the simple question had Cheong-san sweating apprehensively.

“umm.. i don’t. we’ll figure something out though.” Cheong-san gave a small smile. Nam-ra broke eye contact, and nodded faintly.

“wait! i just found something! i think it’s a phone! someone left a phone here!” Dae-su called out, waving the profound device around.

“what! where did you find it?!” Joon-yeong questioned, rushing to the stout pupil.

“it was hidden in this file cabinet!” he cried of relief.

“wait a minute, does it still have battery?” everyone had gotten their answer to their question as Dae-su happily stomped with imaginary tears streaming down his face. everyone gathered around him to have a look.

“yes! yes it does! only 20 percent though! we need to use it wisely.” he turned on the device, and groaned when he was met with face id or a password.

“what’s wrong?”

“face id or password.” Dae-su said, trying to tap his way to unlock the device.

“wait, i recognize the wallpaper, it belonged to a student that was in the same class as us. maybe…” Wu-jin pointed out. he looked over to a small mob of zombies trying to burst inside their room. he recognized her face when he had noticed her wallpaper and theme.

“over there, over there! it belongs to her! try using face id.” he pointed out quickly. Dae-su rushed over to her, and brought the phone up to her level. it successfully scanned her face, and Dae-su immediately opened up facebook.

“ugh.. i hate this school wi-fi.” he complained. he tried refreshing the wi-fi and data on the phone, but it was lagging badly. the phone had a crack and no screen protector, so that was their luck given.

“wait! it’s working now!” Joon-yeong uttered. Dae-su quickly typed in ‘hyosan outbreak’, and was met with a lot of crucial and very degrading things.

“oh… it’s very bad, look.” he let everyone examine the device, and they all gasped and whispered about the remarks of the school.

“hmm… try contacting the police now.” Joon-yeong hoped at least the police would respond or rescue them. Dae-su dialed the number while everyone gathered around him to hope, too.

there was no answer. Dae-su was left on voice mail, but he didn’t give up. he kept trying just for anything. voice mail after voice mail, the group began to lose hope.

“we can’t contact them, i think they cut us off.” Dae-su mumbled, furrowing his eyebrows.

they all used 3 bars of percent of the phone, but decided to save the battery for better uses.

“wait! if the disk stops working, we can still use music to prevent the zombies from reaching Cheong-san and Gwi-nam, right?” Hyo-ryung questioned softly.

“oh my god, yes! that’s a good idea, but we have to make sure they come back safely, and in time before the phone dies.” On-jo agreed along with everyone else.

“if the track is done, what music do we play?” Dae-su questioned thoughtfully.

“something cool, like…”

“alternative and hard rock music.” Gwi-nam had finally said something, to everyone in the room. they all stared at him. he didn’t care if he was given worried or dirty looks, he was used to it anyway.

“okay, sure…” Dae-su answered, squinting his eyes vaguely and confusedly.

“but… can i.. choose the music?” Gwi-nam questioned gravelly, fiddling with his fingers nervously.

“okay, yeah. here.” Dae-su handed the phone to him reluctantly. Gwi-nam took the device carefully. he tapped his way to create a playlist of his favorite music, and handed the phone back.

“okay, let’s start this.” Cheong-san said confidently.

“yes. if the track suddenly stops when you’re still out, we’ll have the playlist ready to play, okay?” On-jo spoke hopefully.

“i hope this plan works.” Dae-su whispered to himself, sending a silent prayer. he inserted the disk. Nam-ra stood in front of the panel to control how loud the frequency should be, and where the sound should be playing. to their surprise, there was no sound coming out. all of them groaned in annoyance.

“maybe the disk is scratched. isn’t it really old?” Wu-jin asked, already knowing the answer. he clicked the button to retrieve the disk back, examining it all over for any scratches or unusual features.

“maybe we have to clean it or something, someone grab a tissue and clean it.” Joon-yeong proclaimed.

“here.” Dae-su passed Wu-jin a tissue. he tried cleaning it thoroughly without scratching or messing up the disk, as it was their only hope right now. he blew onto it to remove any unwanted particles on the object.

“okay, here.” he handed the disk over back to Nam-ra. she leisurely but carefully inserted the disk into the projector.

it was pretty loud as it screeched, and a familiar voice announced all around the school.

“oh, thank god.” Dae-su said, shutting his eyes tiredly.

Cheong-san scampered to the door and peeped outside the window, noticing the zombies dashing to the left. Gwi-nam instantaneously followed suit. they all scratched and scraped the speaker that blared the audio, attracting the attention of super heightened-sensed corpses.

“it’s working! they’re running to the left!” Cheong-san cried out of relief, looking back and forth to the group and the outside. Gwi-nam widened his eyes incredulously while staring at the sprinting zombies.

“okay, Gwi-nam, it’s time.”

Cheong-san turned to Gwi-nam. he nodded blankly, and stood by the door. he opened it very cautiously and slowly, and stuck his head out.

out of the blue, Gwi-nam grabbed Cheong-san’s hand, and quietly tiptoed outside. anxiety was rushing in Cheong-san as he feared a hidden zombie would catch them off guard, and maul them.

but he didn’t have to worry much. after all, he had a katana, a stable weapon, and Gwi-nam, someone who he knows has his back, with him.

Gwi-nam was going really fast for Cheong-san’s liking, but he knew it was necessary. he didn’t think the taller male leading him by the hand wasn’t, though.

they managed to avoid a good amount of zombies, but one crawling zombie clutched onto the back of Gwi-nam’s pant leg, and tripped him. he caught himself just in time, but he let go of Cheong-san’s hand, and fell on top of him.

he quickly stomped on the hand, and gained his composure back, stumbling and dashing up the stairs. Gwi-nam swiftly lifted himself up, and followed Cheong-san with every breath in his lanky body.

“Gwi-nam! to the teacher faculty room!” Cheong-san shouted, barely dodging an erratically moving hand that was stuck in a broken glass window frame.

they ultimately made it to the faculty room, only retreating apprehensively when more of the living dead spotted them, and sprinted towards them.

“fuck, fuck! let’s go to the nurse’s office!” Gwi-nam said, changing their plans. the pair ran back down the stairs to hopefully reach the nurse’s office without alerting anymore of the stragglers.

they scampered safely inside the nurse’s office. Cheong-san instinctively searched for any heavy object to block the door. he scooted a long bench by the door with the help of Gwi-nam. it was heavy, but it was moved faster with 2 people.

there wasn’t much of the undead right outside. if the boys stood hidden somewhere, the zombies would eventually lose their senses, or leave for something else more interesting.

it was still so petrifying in the aftermath of a near death experience.

Chapter Text

“we just almost fucking died.” Gwi-nam panted out, panicked. he clutched onto the seat of the bench that was blocking the doorway. his hands shook as he felt jittery at the thought of death.

“we’ll-we’ll be fine Gwi-nam, we’ve been through life and death together, but that doesn’t mean we’ll die easily.” Cheong-san solaced, trying to not to make it sound like it’s the end of the world when it possibly was. he gestured with his hands while he spoke solemnly.

“by the way, since we’re in the nurse’s office, do you even know how to make molotovs?” Cheong-san questioned carefully, changing the subject. he just earned a blank stare from Gwi-nam, a little unsettled. the look wasn’t pleasant nor content. the smaller boy smiled hesitantly and awkwardly.

“why the fuck do you think i mentioned it?” he asked, seething through his teeth. Gwi-nam’s eyes were darkened with annoyance, a feeling of irritation behind them. Cheong-san widened his eyes and furrowed his brows at the sudden snap, feeling sour and discomposed.

“okay.. don’t have to be so harsh.” he muttered quietly, scoffing.

“what do we need to make them anyway?” Cheong-san asked once more, hoping that he didn’t upset Gwi-nam or make him think that he was disinterested.

“uh… we need alcohol, a bottle, a rag, and a lighter. i already have a lighter and the aerosol spray, i’ll save this, and i’m pretty sure there’s the extra stuff we need. just grab anything that looks useful.” Gwi-nam chanted. he spotted 2 duffel bags from students who left their things behind.

he walked up to the bags by one of the resting beds, and went through them, disposing and dumping anything that didn’t seem useful to them.

he got rid of a large amount of things inside, and threw a bag to Cheong-san’s direction. the smaller boy barely caught it as he felt a little embarrassed for not being too careful and attentive.

“thanks.” he muttered.

“put anything in there that’s useful: food, water, alcohol, rags, medicine, anything.” Gwi-nam said, already filling the bag with alcohol bottles. Cheong-san feared the loud clanking of the bottles would overpower the sound coming from the recording room, but the zombies stayed where the sound was still playing.

the boys had long filled their bags with everything they could need. it might’ve not been enough for everyone that was in their group, but it’s better than coming back with nothing.

“okay Gwi-nam, how do we make the molotovs now?” Cheong-san questioned, slinging the bag off of his shoulder and pulling out the necessities required.

“it’s easy. it’s not rocket science. first,” Gwi-nam grabbed an empty glass bottle, and filled it halfway with alcohol.

“you fill the bottle with alcohol. then,” he clutched onto a rag, and carefully applied alcohol on it.

“you put a little bit of alcohol on the rag, and then,” he flicked his lighter, and hesitantly lit the rag.

“boom.” he chanted cockily, feeling impressed of himself.

“just be careful not to drop it.” he warned.

“okay, cool. i’ll help make them now.” Cheong-san said monotonously. the boys continued their careful work of molotov creations, and successfully made more than enough to distract a whole horde.

“awesome. can’t wait to test these out.” Cheong-san chuckled amusingly, admiring the flame of the molotovs displayed before him.

“i’ll carry them, and you can carry the bags.” he told Gwi-nam. the taller male just nodded, and slung the straps on his shoulders. the weight wasn’t so bad, considering his character structure.

just like they had known, the track had suddenly came to an end, but immediately an alternative-rock sounding song blared around the whole school.

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐗𝟐 - 𝐁.𝐀.𝐏

“fuck yeah.” Gwi-nam muttered proudly, satisfied with hearing his own songs blast with loud pounding drums, bass guitar, and the unforgettable sweet sound of electric guitar.

“yeah, this is my song.” he muttered to himself, bobbing his head to the beat. he was fascinated and immersed in the music. Cheong-san wouldn’t lie and say it wasn’t catchy as he too caught himself vaguely bobbing his head to the music.

“i didn’t know you listened to this type of music.” he told Gwi-nam.

“oh, trust me, Cheong-san, there’s a lot of things you don’t know about me.” Gwi-nam snickered. Cheong-san chuckled breathlessly as he felt somewhat humored. he didn’t feel bad about being around Gwi-nam. he felt kind of relieved he didn’t always have to play a certain role as he did with the group.

he even told everyone that he will stay around Gwi-nam if anybody else didn’t want to. he for sure meant it as a joke, but now.. was he really second guessing that “joke”?

he just felt like himself with Gwi-nam, even if it was sarcastic jokes or bitter remarks. Cheong-san couldn’t stay mad at him, though. it was just Gwi-nam being Gwi-nam after all. nobody could really change him if they wanted to. he didn’t even feel as hostile or violent towards Cheong-san, but when it came to anyone in their group or people he wasn’t familiar with, he wouldn’t change.

“oh, really?” Cheong-san dared to question Gwi-nam teasingly to test him. he squinted his eyes and displayed a cheeky smile.

“what?” Gwi-nam tried answering seriously, but was caught off guard when he saw Cheong-san’s face. his small smile gave it away that he wasn’t serious at all.

“nothing..” Cheong-san chuckled quietly under his breath. after some time had passed, the song from the crackling intercom had even ended.

“anyways, let’s test the molotovs.” Cheong-san cleared his throat.

“ok.” Gwi-nam said blankly, mentally beating himself for letting the atmosphere shift so suddenly into something unwanted.

the pair peaked outside the door before tossing a molotov to their left, where the speaker was blasting the music, and the flames spread like wildfire. the flames were thankfully not under a sprinkler for the fire alarm to go off, but the fire shouldn’t be able to spread around the entire building.

sure enough, the molotov plan had worked. the loud clank sound of the bottle breaking along with the fire spreading had alerted the attention of a few zombies that were already distracted. the undead ran into the flames as they burned slowly to a crisp.

“just like a moth to a flame.” Gwi-nam smirked. Cheong-san eyed him and rolled his eyes, but not in an annoyed manner.

“let’s go now, they’re distracted.”

“okay.”

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 : 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐌𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐰 - 𝐅𝐓𝐈𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃

“oh my god, yes. this is my song.” Gwi-nam said, halfly smiling. the guitar riff in the beginning of the song was replaced by awesome pulverizing drum beats.

“Gwi-nam? the plan?” Cheong-san noticed Gwi-nam was a little too lost in his own world, so he snapped his fingers to bring him back into the sad reality.

“oh, right. sorry.” he muttered, finally snapping out of his musical trance. he gestured with his hands to follow him. the boys scurried down the stairway and tried to reach out to the group, but a sprinting zombie had caught Gwi-nam off guard and bumped into him badly.

“fuck…!” he gasped. Gwi-nam remembered the little knife that Cheong-san gave him, and stabbed it in the neck. it wasn’t dead though, and he started panicking even more. the blade was still stuck inside the zombie, too. the motion of the zombie crawling towards him had the blade cutting through its skin even more.

Cheong-san quickly unsheathed his katana, and decapitated the zombie that was still on the floor. the head tilted away and stared into Gwi-nam’s eyes, the taller boy stared at it back with immense fear. the eyes were ghostlike; just a white, pale iris rolled up behind the eyelids.

“a little tip in a zombie apocalypse, always aim for the head.” Cheong-san said casually, taking the knife back with a squelching sound coming from the stiff nape. Gwi-nam just slanted his mouth while staring at Cheong-san with half-lidded eyes.

Cheong-san flinched the slightest, and broke eye contact. Gwi-nam steadily stood himself up, and wiped off dirt and grime off of his pants. his hands shook on his knees, almost giving up.

“okay, thanks i guess.” he shrugged.

Cheong-san nodded quickly; handing Gwi-nam the knife, and lead them back on track. another zombie came dashing into their way, so Gwi-nam impulsively grabbed a molotov from Cheong-san and threw it as far as he could to the opposite way.

the zombie’s loud growling alerted more of the other creatures, and they were drawn to the noise and the boys. when the bottle broke, the zombies turned their heads to the sound, and ran into the fire; paying no attention to anything else.

“come on, let’s go..!” Gwi-nam shouted lightly, backhanding Cheong-san’s forearm.

“okay! jeez.” he scoffed. the pair furtively hurried back to the recording room, as they were not far from it. they turned to the corner of the hallway where the recording room was located, but the music had suddenly stopped playing.

they halted only when they saw the zombies out of their intercom trance. they leisurely stumbled back hesitantly as their shoe’s creased and squeaked on the floor.

Gwi-nam reached out for a molotov without looking, but Cheong-san grabbed his hand and shook his head. Gwi-nam slanted his mouth and his eyes were dark. he shoved Cheong-san’s hand vehemently off of his protectively.

“let’s just go find another way. we can’t keep using the molotovs over and over.” Cheong-san whispered. Gwi-nam nodded dourly but understandably. the boys tried to sneak back down the stairs to go the other way around, but of course the school was nothing but a damn zombie fest.

they felt surrounded and dangered, but Cheong-san unsheathed his katana and held tightly onto it. Gwi-nam stared at him confusedly as his eyebrows narrowed.

“we’ll slash and dash our way through this, come on.” Cheong-san stated, running to the mob across from them. Gwi-nam was still for a moment until he realized that Cheong-san was slashing the zombies before him. he pinned a zombie to the wall, and sliced half of its head off, the bottom of its teeth still remaining on its body as blood oozed from it.

another trick of Cheong-san’s was slicing a dashing zombie’s neck, as it was a decent distance between him, and finally chopping it off. he then quickly caught his guard, and acted fast to pierce his saber through a sprinting zombie’s stomach, and gutted it repulsively. the hole through the stomach along with its insides sticking out was definitely not a piece of art. he threw the zombie off of his katana and continued his killing spree.

Gwi-nam took note to watch zombie related movies right after the apocalypse. that is, if he even makes it out alive.

‘fuck, why is he so cool when he does that?’ Gwi-nam thought, halfly smiling. he smirked as he watched how skilled the boy was. he squinted his eyes slyly. he had pulled out the small blade that Cheong-san had gave to him, and held onto it tightly.

‘ugh, here we go i guess. now or never.’ he got into a stance as he dropped the duffel bags on the floor to prevent them to hold him back trying to fight. as he was about to race after the zombies, the music had instantaneously started playing again.

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 : 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 - 𝐂𝐍𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄

a zombie heading for him had Gwi-nam knock the blade into its skull. he dug the blade from underneath its mandible as the head tilted to the side. its head cracked as he pulled the knife out of its body. Gwi-nam breathed consciously as he just stared at the bloodied weapon, his hands shook unsteadily.

“Gwi-nam! in front of you!” Cheong-san shouted. Gwi-nam jumped fiercely at the shout of fright and a scarce warning. he shot his head back up as a zombie was so close to biting into him. he swiftly shifted his whole body to the left as he was almost a course meal. the zombie stupidly stumbled forward, and fell down. the thud of the body had boomed across the hallway.

“yeah, thanks for the warning, moron!” he shouted sarcastically to Cheong-san, who groaned loudly at the nickname he was referred as. he just finished killing off a zombie, and dashed to Gwi-nam.

Gwi-nam looked frightened and panicked as Cheong-san was holding onto his sword and raised it with a stern face as if the last thing Gwi-nam would see was his katana.

“wait-wait-wait-i’m sorry! i’m sorry! I’M SOR-“ Gwi-nam quickly apologized, stumbling backwards and defensively covering himself. he braced for the kind of death he deserved. what seemed like he was going to die, Cheong-san was, in fact, not aiming to kill Gwi-nam, but instead, the zombie who had almost killed him. it was just above his head ready to eat his brains out.

Gwi-nam’s eyes were shut, and his fists clenched tightly around his head; his eye shooting open when he didn’t feel any pain in his body. Cheong-san took his saber out of zombie, and brought Gwi-nam back to his feet by lifting him by his forearm.

“you almost died. watch yourself next time!” Cheong-san shouted, pushing Gwi-nam away from him to seperate them from an incoming jaw snapping at them.

in Gwi-nam’s mind, the fact that Cheong-san actually considered him to be careful was… kind of meaningful to him. he wasn’t particularly treated with respect from his friends; they were just allies in bullying other kids, not caring for anyting in each other’s life. he didn’t have the best childhood and life either, but yet even in a world of impending doom among them, he still feels grateful to be alive right now, especially with his new… friend.

he snapped out of his thoughts, as he had no absolute time to waste around while on the brink of death. he huffed out and ran towards a zombie, and stabbed its head; the grimy liquid oozing out and dripping down its head. while in a zombie-slaughtering dance, he had took glances at Cheong-san’s skillful killing tactics and strategies.

he sliced a zombie’s head off with one clean swipe, it’s head rolling erratically. Gwi-nam “coincidentally” stood in his view from a distance as he finished stabbing the head of an undead, swiftly retrieving his blade back in his hand. all of a sudden, Cheong-san shot him an approving smirk at how he was slowly getting the hang of living as a survivor in an apocalypse; just like in a video game.

he felt as equally cool and badass as how Cheong-san was. a twin flame, is what he thought.

Gwi-nam mirrored his smirk, and nodded. Cheong-san had shifted his eyes and observed the 2 bags left on the floor where Gwi-nam had left them to kill off the crowd.

“the bags!” Cheong-san abruptly dashed to the duffel bags forgotten on the floor, and quickly handed them to Gwi-nam. he slung the bags on his shoulders, and tightened the straps to prevent anything from falling out or slipping out of his grip. Cheong-san lead them back in the hallway, but there was already too many to handle or even kill in such a time.

“let’s settle somewhere else for now.” he chanted, and pushed them both inside an unknown room.

Chapter Text

Gwi-nam had laid his head against the wall intently. his countenance was blank, as he stared at the roof of the building. he sucked in a breath attentively and exhaled out. his slightly clogged ears heard staggered footsteps in the hallway as he had heard no sound coming from the intercom either.

the speaker was not even crackling; the absence of the morning announcements echoing in his head. he would much rather listen to that than have dead silence linger eerily in the thick air. it was too quiet for his liking.

Cheong-san, on the other hand, was clinking his teeth, not as if he was cold, but something to stimulate and keep him distracted from his horrible thoughts and feelings. his leg was bouncing uncontrollably, and had his arms curled tightly around himself around his sweater vest.

“what the fuck do we do now?” he asked Cheong-san; he huffed air above his hair languidly, causing his spiky bangs to fly up.

Cheong-san didn’t know. he didn’t even know how to respond. what exactly were they gonna do for the next couple of minutes, hours, days, or weeks until they get a response from the group? or even meet up with them again.

“i.. i don’t know.” he croaked. Gwi-nam let out a sound between a sigh and a scoff.

“do they want us to die or what?” Gwi-nam uttered. he clenched his bottom jaw, and made a pouting face.

“no, Gwi-nam. don’t think that. maybe they have some issues with the device or something.” Cheong-san didn’t want to stay trapped in this room, but they had no other choice. the room they were in was the theatre room, the curtains were dragged chaotically across the windows; looking ragged. there was blood prints almost everywhere in every crevice and corner. it smelled awful, too.

“i bet those fuckers used up the battery playing candy crush or some shit,” he said sarcastically, a brief laugh between said words.

“Gwi-nam…” Cheong-san rolled his eyes, and stared at him. what the hell was that guy even saying?

“well,” he let out a groan as he lifted himself off the wall he was leaning on.

“i’m not just gonna stay here and die.”

“where do you think you’re going?” Cheong-san furrowed his eyebrows in irk and confusion.

“fuck this, i’m out.”

“hold on, are you really willing to.. just die?! like that?!” Cheong-san roared, standing up defensively.

“no, but i can’t fucking stay still like this any damn longer! i don’t want to live in this hell of a world!” Gwi-nam spat back, towering over the boy, attempting to provoke him. Cheong-san didn’t even feel endangered, although the deliquent had just threatened him.

“well..! there’s nothing can do about that! it’s not even our fault this has happened!” Cheong-san slightly widened his eyes in emphasis. Gwi-nam looked taken back, so he slammed the desk where Cheong-san was beside; he slightly flinched at the sudden snap. his fists were dangerously balled up, but did not hold the feeling to punch or strike.

“fine.” he clenched his jaw tight. he seemed to relax as his shoulders were less tense and his balled fists dissipated. he sat back down slowly and cautiously, a skeptical demeanor on his face. he sat in front of a desk where Cheong-san was sitting across from as well.

Cheong-san breathed a tiny sigh of relief. he wouldn’t admit it, but maybe there were few times where Gwi-nam was a reason why he was even afraid in this apocalypse. his reputation was awful, and nobody ever approached him out of confidence or bravery.

could the delinquent suddenly betray him like that? he could. but he didn’t. he could really just stab Cheong-san right then and there and leave him to die, but he didn’t… or hasn’t.

“fuck, i’m so hungry.” Gwi-nam complained, his stomach churning loudly that even Cheong-san heard it. his stomach growled, too.

“damn it, me too.” he clutched his stomach.

“where’s the bag with snacks?”

Gwi-nam sat up and glanced around the room, and spotted the bag stuffed in the corner. he unzipped the bag, and a prank came up in his mind. he smirked as he stared at the unknowing Cheong-san. he stood up very slowly. and…

“think fast!” he turned quickly and threw a bag of chips swiftly towards Cheong-san, who failed and cowardly tried smacking the bag away. he was startled when he reacted too slow to the sudden action.

Gwi-nam bursted into laughter the second it happened. what a dumb bastard. Cheong-san furrowed his brows and rolled his eyes, ignoring the stupid remarks of how “slow” he was.

after a short while, Gwi-nam’s laughter had died down, and Cheong-san was able to eat his snack in piece. he ate it slowly; attentively as he stared into the big window where all he saw what used to be students that went to this school staggering and roaming outside in the big field. it was such a sad sight.

everyone and everything he knew was… gone. just like that, he wouldn’t be able to see anyone other than Gwi-nam or his friends alive. although he wasn’t comfortable with everyone still alive around him, he was still grateful to even be alive right now. if it weren’t for his skills and tactics, he wouldn’t even be in this room.. with Gwi-nam.

although the kid was just a narcissistic asshole, he had still helped, and Cheong-san couldn’t be more grateful to see how the delinquent has changed ever since they became the hunted.

out of the blue, Gwi-nam stood up with his curious and determined countenance. Cheong-san turned his head to the tall boy.

“what are you up to now?” he questioned tiredly. he gripped the table cautiously as if Gwi-nam would conspire something against him. but who really knows what runs through that sick mind of his?

“how many cocktail molotovs we got left?” he questioned, a little enthusiasm behind his tone.

“uhmm, this much.” Cheong-san opened the sports bag, and to say the least, there wasn’t a lot left, but also not too little.

“perfect, we just need to limit our uses on these things.” he said.

“wait, what do you mean? what do you have in mind?” Cheong-san asked for the millionth time.

“i want to use one to distract them so we can rush to the library or anywhere around the school to find other people.” he chanted. Cheong-san agreed, but he was too tired to continue the journey, and more running would just push him. what if he gets tired during the run and falls behind? what then?

“wow, how considerate of you to look for other survivors now.” Cheong-san said sarcastically; crossing his arms with a mocking smirk.

“so what? you still think i’m a piece of shit?” he bit back, grabbing the chair Cheong-san was sitting on, and swiftly turned it to make sure the latter would hear him.

“umm, maybe?” he shrugged; lifting his eyebrows and squinting his eyes in a “i dunno” matter. Gwi-nam gave a not-so-friendly smile to him, and tightened his grip on the chair, provoking Cheong-san. he then scoffed.

“well that may be true, but i’m not a complete fucking monster.” he grimaced; his ‘smile’ quickly shifted into a menacing frown.

“while you may think that, maybe you should watch your attitude if you wanna ‘change’ for the group’s sake.” Cheong-san tipped his head upward, clearly not wanting to deal with Gwi-nam’s bullshit.

“maybe you should watch your ass if you know what’s good for you.” and just like that, Cheong-san’s serious tone suddenly dissipated. Gwi-nam smirked, knowing he finally got to him, and was able to make him fear him, just like before. Cheong-san didn’t exactly feel uncomfortable or any fear at that, but just disappointed to see how Gwi-nam was not even close to progressing in order to gain the group’s trust.

the (threats) conversation came to a stop when Gwi-nam finally let go of the chair, rocking it the slightest with the force he used.

but Cheong-san knew who’s fault it really was. he poked at Gwi-nam first, so he shouldn’t be complaining when he was on the edge of a narrow cliff; Gwi-nam just wanting to crush his puny fingers with his foot and send him crashing down to the pits of hell, aka the undead.

—————————

the room was uncomfortably quiet. the boys were completely lost in their own world, purposefully ignoring each other’s presence after what happened not too long ago. until Gwi-nam spoke up and broke the silence.

“i have a plan.” he said with no enthusiasm in his tone; just empty apathy.

“what is it.” Cheong-san replied, using the bitter tone against him.

“earlier, the plan. i-“

“Gwi-nam, please, can we just rest for a little while? the smell of blood is making me retch, and to make it worse, we’re sweating with exhaustion from dealing with those bastards outside from earlier. let’s just wait it out.” Cheong-san shut his eyes and laid his head down to rest on the table.

Gwi-nam didn’t even finish his sentence, but what would he be sorry for when Cheong-san didn’t hear what he had to say?

“all right, all right.” he sighed defeatedly, but he felt irritated. little did Cheong-san know, Gwi-nam had changed his mind about looking for other survivors, seeing it was just gonna hold them back from their escape plan. finding students that were either dead or just blatantly weak was a waste of time, so why bother trying to help people who don’t even know how to fight back?

—————————

after another short while, Gwi-nam stood up without saying anything. Cheong-san stared right at him, confused.

“where are you going?”

“come on, it’s getting late. the sun is already setting and we’ve been out more than we should’ve.” Gwi-nam slumped one of the bags over his shoulder, and grabbed his screwdriver. he picked up Cheong-san’s katana and tossed it to him. he managed to catch it, but did not catch the reason why Gwi-nam was rushing to leave.

“okay..” he picked up the molotov bag, but Gwi-nam walked over to him.

“wait, i wanna hold the molotov bag.” Cheong-san stared him down before vigilantly handing it to him. they traded bags, and they rushed outside.

of course, the zombies came rushing after them like a damn dinner bell.

“fuck..!” Gwi-nam was tired of running, especially from the undead. he was pretty athletic, but he’s done so much he felt it was even worse that gym class; he’d rather go back to that boring routine of stretches and endurance training, but he couldn’t.

next thing he knew, his mind told him to just ditch Cheong-san, just like that, and off he ran to make a getaway once the hallway was clearer.

“Gwi-nam!-“ Cheong-san shouted, slashing a zombie coming his way.

“what the fuck are you doing?!”

“fuck this, i’m not helping anyone!” he continued running, and Cheong-san chased after him; barely managing to dodge hungry jaws snapping his way.

“i thought you wanted to look for survivors!”

“no! fuck that! i lied!” he kept running away. Cheong-san growled and tightened his grip on his katana.

“hey! get. back. here!” he slashed every zombie that came his way, ignoring the ones behind.

the delinquent rushed to the library, where Cheong-san witnessed him literally push a kid off one of the tall bookshelves to feed the monster that chased after him. Cheong-san felt bad, but there was nothing he could do about it.

“you asshole! fucking traitor!” Cheong-san yelled, quickly sheathing his katana and climbed upon the bookshelf.

“well why did you even bother to trust me in the first place, huh?! look what your ‘trust’ in me lead to!” he spat back, carefully jumping from bookshelf to bookshelf. Cheong-san chased after him, and managed to trap him. the two fought dangerously on a small surface, the edge just increasing their chances of death, along with the swarm of flailing hands reaching out for them.

they fought, tumbling on top of each other. they both tried to push either one down to the ground, where death was imminent; grasping at them whereas only one could make it out alive.

Gwi-nam tried taking the sheath off Cheong-san, and threw it carelessly out of sight. Cheong-san was too late to reach for it, because Gwi-nam almost had shoved him off, but the boy kept his ground. all that was heard were grunts and shudders coming from both boys; anger, frustration, and fear mixing in altogether.

“piece of shit!” Gwi-nam smacked Cheong-san and attempted to throw him off the bookshelf.

“fuck you!” Cheong-san kicked Gwi-nam’s leg, catching him off guard, and…

he slipped.

Chapter Text

Cheong-san punched him down, and the delinquent fell into the undead pit. the zombies immediately went after him, biting all around him as he screamed for help. the adrenaline rushing in the shorter boy was nondurable, but heavily pumping inside of him. death was slowly trying more harder to get him killed.

“Cheong-san! please! help!” Gwi-nam tried reaching out, but Cheong-san was just staring at him. he gave him the look that read that he deserved it. he was watching him suffer.

“Cheong-san…!” he yelped weakly, still trying to reach out for him. his hand was damp with his own blood.

but the more Cheong-san was staring, the more strangely he felt guilty. why did he even feel bad? this guy was the worst kid in the entire school, yet… he didn’t deserve this. no, he did.

he wanted to look away, he really did, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. why was he like this? it was so conflicting for him. why was it so hard for him to just simply leave Gwi-nam to die? it bought him enough time to escape while the undead was focused on him, but he didn’t move. he wanted to be kind and considerate at most times, but this is Gwi-nam. why help him? or why should he not help him?

Cheong-san hesitated and without thinking, he held out his hand in an attempt to help the delinquent. he knew this was wrong, but he couldn’t bear seeing people die anymore, not even his worst enemy. what did it matter if he died anyway, his friends meant the world to him, but it’s fine if they didn’t think the same way towards him. but why should it matter to him? no matter how many times he’d reach out towards them? there was no use of living in an apocalypse like this, so he deserves to join the undead… right?

as the delinquent was slowly sinking to death’s pool, he whimpered because of the excruciating pain, but still held onto Cheong-san’s hand. Cheong-san really expected for Gwi-nam to take him down with him, but… he didn’t. he just held on, and tried to climb back up; not even thinking of dragging the boy down. Cheong-san got a strange feeling of déjà vù, and remembered… this was exactly how On-jo felt with I-sak. gosh, he felt so horrible now, thinking about how he just separated those two good friends even when I-sak turned. and now, in the stale reality right before him, the exact same thing is happening to Cheong-san.

“i’m sorry… Cheong-san..” Gwi-nam let out through the gut-wrenching sounds of flesh being torn apart, somehow not evolved into the zombie state yet. Cheong-san doesn’t even know anything anymore. he feels so overwhelmed with everything, but he still doesn’t want to let go, not wanting to let go of the boy who hated his guts, but still never pushed him away just because he didn’t like him..

“i’m sorry too.” he replied lowly, a cracking voice croaking out. Gwi-nam gave him a small smile; a smile paralleling the remembrance of his mercy, and then suddenly let go. Cheong-san tried to reach back for him, but the zombie crowd had taken him down.

“no…! fuck… why!?” he cried out as the zombies were too focused on tearing Gwi-nam apart. Cheong-san let out a loud cry from his gut and ran away. he dashed to the hallways and avoided all the zombies charging towards him.

he ran through the hallways and climbed back up the stairs to the recording room. he slipped by and dodged zombies who were quick, but weren’t quick enough to reach him. when he arrived, his colleagues looked at his direction in shock and startlement. Cheong-san quickly made his way inside and slammed the door, heavily breathing from exhaustion and dread.

he was swarmed with questions coming from every single one of his friends. oh, no… he left the bag of molotovs behind, didn’t he? along with… Gwi-nam.

“okay, okay! please! calm down guys, i—“ he was interrupted when Dae-su had asked a question Cheong-san didn’t hope to hear.

“where’s Gwi-nam?” Cheong-san froze while staring dead at him. this fool, unaware of what just happened. he’d probably be glad that Gwi-nam wasn’t coming back, the whole group even. that boy didn’t mean anything to the group, they just saw him as a stupid small particle of useless, dry dirt.

“he…” he really felt exhausted, like if he was going to pass out. so much has happened since he… lost Gwi-nam. now he can’t even remember what else had happened before. everything was spiraling all over the place.

“he’s not coming back.” he answered truthfully, but sorrowfully. he didn’t want to say it, but it’s better than lying to everyone. On-jo looked at him with sad eyes, then looked at Nam-ra, who seemed a little pitiful.

“oh.. i’m so sorry, Cheong-san.” On-jo said, trying her best to comfort him, even the slightest. she placed her hand on his shoulder, but he gently shook it off; a polite decline of her consolation.

he walked towards the window with everyone’s eyes on him. he placed his hands on the windowsill, and looked out into the open. god, it was nothing but a zombie rave out there. he let out a scoff, but it came out as a gasp of distress. he covered his mouth with his hand. now Gwi-nam is one of them.

but wait! maybe he got out? no, he couldn’t have. the monsters had already held him down, biting into him and turning him into one of those things. there may have been a chance he’s alive, but who really knows? the whole group decided to just wait out for the military and hope for the best, not that hope is the thing that matters, though.

——————

a fly buzzed. a fluorescent light flickered.

Gwi-nam gasped loudly and his body shot up as if he was electrocuted back to life. his back arched upward and crunched, making his torso jolt up. the shock must’ve woke him. wait. how come he was still alive? he was moving and felt fine. he felt confused, and maybe lost. he positioned himself up in a sluggish manner, the sounds of bones cracking mixing with the croaks coming from the dead.

“am i.. am i dead?” he questioned to himself. impulsively, he reached his hand to touch one of the bite marks on his body with his fingers, poking at them. he winced, but weirdly enough, he didn’t feel as much pain as he normally would.

he groaned and grabbed the side of his head, feeling a small pulp. when he saw his hand covered in his own blood, he grimaced. when he looked up at his surroundings, a zombie came dashing towards him. he freaked out and backed away, whimpering as he tried his best to stuff himself in the books. somehow, even with the zombie so close to him; sniffing his scent, it didn’t attack him. it just sort of… twitched its head, and left him alone to roam in the library.

he breathed heavily in confusion and startlement. he grabbed his chest and noticed how the zombies ignored him. he sat back up groggily and examined the bites around his body.

“he-hey! aren’t you gonna eat me you zombie assholes?!” he shouted at the small crowd. when he yelled, their necks cracked noisily at his direction and came dashing towards him to observe. he defensively tried to hide or shield himself with his arms, but just like the other zombie had ignored him, the rest did as well. he was confused, as to why they payed no attention to him as he was alive (supposedly more likely dead) and breathing.

he stiffly stood up; bones cracking back in place again when he moved. he seemed to go unnoticed by the zombies, but he still didn’t know why they avoided him.

he examined a shattered mirror with pieces of glass scattered around the floor. he faced his head at the reflection staring back at him, and he couldn’t believe it.

what a monster he turned out to be. he looked and acted just like one. maybe he deserves it. just a lonely monster with no feelings and no empathy for other poor humans. nobody cared about him, and he didn’t care about anyone either… except one person, perhaps.

he felt and remembered how Cheong-san punched him harshly, and fed him to the zombies. he stared back at the mirror with sad puppy eyes and a vengeful look in his eye. he huffed in anger, but what was he angry about?

he couldn’t forgive Cheong-san for not letting him leave and punching him, but he still… helped, even when Cheong-san knew he couldn’t save him. his heart may have broke a little, despite him not actually having one.

he hovered his hand over his eye and flinched. one of the zombie assholes must’ve clawed his eye out, ouch. he poked it, but regretted it when it suddenly felt like a knife stabbing right through his eye. he let out a sharp yell in pain whilst grabbing it. he brushed it off after a second, and breathed; but not humanely, he was basically dead, so he wasn’t considered a ‘human’ anymore. he’s not considered anything at all.

he grumbled annoyingly. he tilted his head to examine it carefully.

“motherfucker…” he muttered in a growling tone.

————————————

everyone in the recording room stood and sat around helplessly as they whispered about Cheong-san. he was distancing himself, they could tell. anyone who tried to approach him, they were told to leave him be. they understood, but he seemed like the only person whom they could heavily rely on when things go bad, besides Su-hyeok. sure the guy is athletic and great, but he won’t be once he doesn’t have everything sorted out. Nam-ra remembered when he couldn’t answer a simple question when he was distracted in class moments before the ground zero outbreak had occurred.

everyone was practically starving, and there was not even any food. they also had to use the bathroom, but of course, they couldn’t go out even if they had to go badly.

Gwi-nam was gone, everyone else doesn’t know what to do, and Cheong-san is a mess. they were just a group of broken people, traumatized and running for their life until their life is taken from them. suddenly, Cheong-san, sitting on an office chair, stomped his feet as he stood up from where he was sitting and declared:

“i can’t stop thinking about what happened, i’m going to go look for Gwi-nam.” he tightened his grip on the strap of the sheath that was hanging on his back.

of course, his words had shocked everyone in the room. they seemed skeptical, and questioned his sudden behavior and determination to look for the apalling and dead delinquent. but didn’t he say before that he was dead? what was he even thinking?

“what?! why?” On-jo asked, uncertain astoundment in her voice. she stood up and walked towards him. everyone in the room suddenly shifted their attention to the pair.

“didn’t you say he was dead? why do you want to go look for him?” Su-hyeok questioned.

“well! i-… i don’t know, i just have a gut feeling that he’s somehow still alive. i mean… i know he was bit, but… i’m sorry i just can’t stop thinking about it-“

“why are you so obsessed with him?!” Ji-min lightly shouted, earning a surprised look from everybody.

“Ji-min..! don’t say that! that’s not nice!” Hyo-ryung said as she hit her softly to try to get her to stop and not fan the flames of the soon-to-be heated argument.

“why should i? this is wrong! why go look for someone who’s already dead? do you just wanna die trying to do something that could get you killed? nobody needs to fucking die anymore!” she continued bitterly. Hyo-ryung didn’t try to stop her anymore, as she viewed it as pointless to subdue her friend.

“it’ll be a waste of time, and besides, no offense, but you most likely won’t be coming back, at least not as a human. so don’t risk your own life for someone who we already know is dead!” she continued to violently stand her point in the argument. everyone watched everything with skepticism and disbelief.

“i’m doing this because i fucking care, okay?! it sounds like you don’t even want me to come back! if you don’t want me to go look for him then fine! maybe i won’t come back at all!” he shouted, not meaning what he had said. he was spouting that out of anger (and maybe a hint of sadness), but he had just realized what he said.

“Cheong-san, no! we can figure this out! maybe you can look for him, yes, and maybe some extra supplies since you had lost them previously! we’ll… he’ll be a good addition to the team too! we’ll need a lot more strength than what we have now.” Wu-jin butted in, trying to calm the storm.

“that sounds good, but find the supplies first! then come back as quickly as you can with him. we need you Cheong-san, please.” Joon-yeong reasoned. the mention of supplies had Cheong-san rethink to when he dropped his supplies but… the only thing was, he dropped it while running after Gwi-nam, just great. it must’ve stayed in the library, hopefully.

“Su-hyeok can go with you too!” he suggested. the group wasn’t so keen on sending Cheong-san back outside with all the zombies in every corner of the school, but if he was willing to die trying for the sake of him and his group, then so be it.

“yeah, i’ll go-“

“no. i’m doing this alone. i’m the cause of this mess, and i will face it and amend it.”Cheong-san cut him off, taking a risk for the brute that got himself killed trying to change.

“but what if you’re in danger and need help? you won’t be able to call for us.” Su-hyeok continued. if Cheong-san was a little less sympathetic, he would’ve thought that it seemed like an insult, as if he’ll need help because he can’t handle a few zombies on his own. has he even seen what he’s done when he was with Gwi-nam?

“Su-hyeok, it’s fine. i can handle some zombies, and i’m sneaky too, so i promise i’ll come back.” Cheong-san wouldn’t want to admit it, but he didn’t want to bring someone else along with him if he found Gwi-nam. god forbid how that guy will react if he sees someone else by Cheong-san’s side. after a moment, Su-hyeok inhaled a concedingly long breath and nodded unsurely, but understandingly.

“i’ll do it tonight, though. it’s going to get late soon, and hopefully i’ll come back with some supplies, and maybe Gwi-nam, by the next morning or in a few hours at least.” Cheong-san smiled lightly. so it was settled, he would leave alone tonight.

“but i can’t wait for food any longer!” Dae-su moaned uncomfortably, clutching at his empty stomach.

“we get it, tubby. we can’t let you eat first though because then you’ll end up eating all our rations.” Wu-jin joked, slapping at the bigger student’s stomach. Dae-su let out a huffed groan, and Joo-yeong eyed them and chuckled at their attempt at humor. Dae-su sent a quick prayer that Cheong-san would return, and come back with those delicious snacks and food he missed so much.

————————————

the emptiness and the ambience of the blood-tattered library was boring. since Gwi-nam felt pretty much immortal, he hesitantly shifted his legs to hop off the table.

he roamed quietly in the hallway whilst in the midst of croaking zombies around him, unbothered as he now knew they weren’t going to attack him. he was on top of the food chain now.

he just ended up walking carelessly around the school until he slowly made his way outside, and stumbled upon the gymnasium. he examined the building, tilting his head and poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue. he walked into the building, where he met more of the measly undead staggering in the gym.

he had came across a door, leading to the backstage of the gymnasium, and opened it. there, he found blood splattered here and there, and even torn clothes and some old sports equipment scattered upon the ground.

after a little while of roaming around the gym, he found himself coming across the sports equipment room. he eyed it skeptically, and latched his hand onto the doorknob. when he realized that it was locked, he tightened his grip on the knob and forcefully broke it off. he must’ve surprised himself, as he stared at the doorknob in his hand that he ripped off with ease. he carelessly threw the doorknob out of his sight and kicked the door open, and to no surprise, there weren’t any zombies in there. it probably stayed locked.

he had observed the room he was in, until he double glanced at a somewhat clean white jacket hanging on one of the metal storage cages. he raised his eyebrow intriguingly, and displayed an approving look as he lightly nodded. he took off his half torn and disheveled jacket and threw it on the ground, long forgetting its existence as he held his attention to the jacket in front of him.

he had carefully clothed himself in it, and zipped the zipper all the way up. he threw his hands in the pockets, and smirked darkly, admiring the wear and spinning on his toes to leave the room.

he slowly exited the gymnasium, and just simply decided to roam the school of the undead without a worry in the world. the zombies wouldn’t attack him, and he was much faster and stronger than a puny human with a strong will to live, but a high chance to die.

he strolled into the school, and in a moment, he heard something clang and clatter in a far distance, but due to his heightened sense of hearing, he heard it as clear as day. he twitched the corner his upper lip in vague anticipation. he must’ve heard something, or most likely someone, trip on something. then just now, he caught the scent, and he inhaled deeply. satisfied with the smell, he displayed a blood-curdling grimace.

he lightly smacked his dry and cracked lips. he wouldn’t mind having a small snack right now.

————————————

once it was dark, Cheong-san quietly and quickly woke everyone up from the group to give them the “OK” that he was heading out now. they all gave him tired responses, later struggling to go back to sleep thanks to their subtle awakening. Cheong-san lightly apologized, but turned his attention back to his mission and opened the door, cautiously peaked his head out in the hallway for any zombies, and swept himself outside.

he quietly moved, and never let his guard down as he shifted from hallway to hallway while making the least minimal noise possible. he went down the stairs, and barely dodged the sight of one of the stragglers. he found what looked like a small piece of broken concrete by his feet, and grabbed it and threw it over the zombie’s head to clear out the rest of the zombies in the way.

he double glanced out in the hallway where he was at the 1st floor, and advanced to the direction of the library. what he hadn’t noticed that a zombie roaming in the lockeroom of one of the entrances of the school had followed his sound, and growled as it charged its way towards him. he turned his head and gasped in slight fright, and briskly opened one of the doors to a random classroom. he managed to close the door in time as the zombie’s nail grazed slightly against his sleeve.

the zombie seemed to alert a few more nearby, and Cheong-san quickly looked around the room to find something to block the door with before they could get in. he spotted a long table, and ran to it to push it to the door. it would hold, but not for long, and he had to worry about the other exit or entrance to the door on the right. he grabbed another table and struggled to move it to the other door.

he knew that hiding wouldn’t do him any good, and if he fought back, he would just attract more of the undead with the sound. when he looked up after gaining his composure, he realized that only the right side of the double door looked like it was clear, and no zombies were in view.

he groaned at his ignorance, but he quickly dashed to that side, pushed the table out of the way with all of his might, and rushed up the stairs before a hand came swatting at him. he ran up the stairs and farther into the hallway. he ran to another corner classroom by the stairs, and saw that as an opportunity for his escape later. he opened the door and noticed it was the theater room with drapes to block out the outisde view. to his surprise, there were no zombies in the classroom and empty hallway, and shut it closed.

he immediately went to close the drapes and keep himself from being spotted from zombies on the outside. he had forgotten for a moment that he had his katana on him, but if he was being honest, it was kind of heavier than he imagined, and given that he’s tired would probably lead him closer to death. using strength and energy to swing it continuously would tire him out, so it may have been a good thing he did not use it now.

he felt exhausted, too fatigued to move any table for any compact defense. he slumped himself on the floor, and tried to regain his dexterity. when he realized he failed to attain his supplies again, he let out a annoyed and groaning sigh, balled up his fists, and landed it on the ground.

‘fuck, i’ll have to go back down later.’ Cheong-san thought, letting his head thud on the floor in exasperation as he breathed in and out. he was already weak with insidious hunger and using most of his strength to fend off the stragglers a moment ago, but it looks like he’ll be looking for the supplies tomorrow.

————————————

as hours passed and the morning sun barely came shining up, the group grew more anxious about Cheong-san. there was so many possibilities that could’ve happened. was he dead? did he make it out alive? is he going to ditch them? what if Gwi-nam, who is presumed dead by them (they are still under the impression that Cheong-san was lying about Gwi-nam being “alive”), or other zombies got a hold of him and already turned him into… whatever those things were? who really knows?

“i’m getting worried.” Su-hyeok announced, breaking the silence in the crowded room.

“me too, i wish we could go look for him without leaving the room.” On-jo added, rubbing her lip sensibly with her thumb. her statement brought Joon-yeong out of his seat, attracting attention to some of the few students who were not asleep.

“hmm, we actually could. we could use a drone, i’ve been working on one during science class. if we gather the right materials and tools, i could.. maybe fix it up!” Joon-yeong suggested.

“that’s actually… a great idea! let’s do it!” On-jo agreed, lightly smiling as Joon-yeong nodded his head.

“ugh! don’t get me started on that creepy science teacher! he ruined my favorite subject, god he’s disgusting…” Na-yeon crossed her arms, scoffing.

“damn it, Na-yeon, we don’t even know for sure if he did anything nasty to that girl. stop acting like if what rumors you heard were true.” Gyeong-su gave her a look, the girl mirrored the same one back, only more scrunched.

“what the hell is with you always butting in when i’m talking, huh?!” Na-yeon lightly shouted, rising up from her seat (as if that’s going to change anything).

“because you always fucking look down on me when i never did shit to you!” Gyeong-su yelled back at her, approaching her fiercely.

“hey, hey, HEY! break it up guys! now is not the time to fight!” On-jo tried to get between them and separate them, but Gyeong-su reached out his hand in an attempt to slap Na-yeon, only missing when she backed off.

“it’s exactly the right fucking time to fight! i can’t stand her!”

On-jo fell forward when Na-yeon retreated out of Gyeong-su’s range. Su-hyeok rushed to her to help her up. Nam-ra simply eyed the two with a blank and unreadable face.

“can you guys shut the hell up? what is wrong with you?! you want to attract more zombies and end up dead?” Su-hyeok barked, insinuating that his statement was directed towards the two. he held onto On-jo’s arm protectively, and Nam-ra couldn’t help but just stare at them. her face appeared to become more dark, but no one noticed as their attention was fixed on Su-hyeok, On-jo, Gyeong-su, and Na-yeon.

Gyeong-su just huffed in annoyance, and fixed his tattered uniform in a pseudo manner. he silently stormed into the recording room out of blatant anger.

“Gyeong-su…” On-jo called out for him, not wanting for anybody to isolate themselves. it didn’t work, and he just slumped in the office chair that was in the room.

“okay, can we please get back on topic and fetch the supplies from the science lab in order to complete the drone?” Joon-yeong clasped his hands together, not wanting any argument to get in their way for their escape.

“yeah, let’s do that.” Su-hyeok left On-jo’s side.

“what about Gyeong-su and Na-yeon?” On-jo questioned, more concerned about those two than figuring out a way to reach out to Cheong-san.

“they’ll be fine, On-jo. they’ll make up soon.” Su-hyeok said, patting her arm in an attempt of consolation. she nodded slowly, but she didn’t seem convinced due to the volatile pairs’ ongoing fued with eachother.

“On-jo, you can come with me. we’ll use the makeshift fire hose rope to climb up.” Joon-yeong approached in front of her. she nodded in agreement, and opened the window.

“i’ll go first.” she said, looking back to Joon-yeong. he quickly nodded and urged her to climb up. she seemed to struggle trying to find one of the holes for her feet, but Joon-yeong grabbed it so it stayed in place.

“be careful guys.” Dae-su told them, lightly furrowing his eyebrows in worry.

“yeah, come back safe.” Wu-jin added, consciously rubbing his hands on his knees from where he was seated.

“we will.” Joon-yeong answered.

“come on, come on, come on…” Joon-yeong silently muttered to himself, wanting On-jo to already climb up to the science lab. once she was inside, Joon-yeong threw the backpack over his shoulder for the materials and tools to use to finish the drone.

he quickly tried to reach up to the science lab, but that caused one of his feet to miss one of the holes and he slipped. everyone below and On-jo watched in worry.

“i said be careful!” Dae-su shouted, earning a smack on the back from Hyo-ryung.

“shut up!” she hissed, scrunching her face at him. he just ignored her and focused on Joon-yeong caught between the tie of falling or living.

“i got it…! i got it, i got it.” he muttered while nodding, physically shaking as his foot finally got caught in one of the holes. as he reached the top, On-jo reached out her hand to help him up. he thanked her and everyone below cheered lowly as he succeeded.

“okay, i know at least what tools and materials we’ll need, so you gather whatever tools you can and put them in the bag and i’ll find the parts, here,” he handed her the bag, and she nodded determinedly.

she turned around and started to collect some tools that seemed useful. she didn’t know whether to gather all of them, as all of the tools would take up space, but she had lightly remembered what she learned during that class. she remembered most of the tools that were necessary, and gathered them.

meanwhile, Joon-yeong seemed like he was in a rush as he was collecting a lot of bolts and important parts. he wanted to rush in order to keep the zombies from somehow finding their way inside the science classroom and the lab.

once On-jo let Joon-yeong know she gathered the necessary tools, he nodded and dumped the parts inside the backpack, but also left to get an extra tool that On-jo forgot to pack. she decided to be the one to carry the bag, and slowly made her way down the rope. she was silently rushed again by Joon-yeong, who was bouncing his leg anxiously. he knew that they’ve made a significant amount of noise inside, and was sure there was zombies outside trying to get in the lab.

when she finally reached the room, he rushed down the rope again (like he’s not supposed to), and instead had his hand caught stuck in one of the holes. the crowd watched as they were soon preapred to haul him down. once his foot touched the windowsill, Dae-su and Wu-jin reached out for Joon-yeong’s legs to bring him back inside.

suddenly, he started to yell “cramp”, and the boys immediately brought him to the ground to somehow stop his cramping. they laid him down on the floor, and started to push down on his foot with his leg up. Gyeong-su looked from the window of the recording room, and smirked, lightly tittering at the scene.

after Joon-yeong had eased the cramping pain in his leg, he immediately got to work on the drone to complete it and look for Cheong-san or any available help. he would hope he would at least reach out to any of the military or special forces for help, but first, their main priority was to locate Cheong-san and make sure he’s okay and alive. they’re really hoping that Cheong-san is still alive out there… somewhere.