| Z+1 — THE EMPTY CLASSROOM |
"I really want to live, Cheongsan. But if it's gonna be like this, what's the point?"
The classroom fell silent, no one daring to speak as they watched Lee Soojin cry.
Cheongsan could only hold his sister in his arms, unable to figure out what to do as he tried to console her.
And on the other side of the room, Onjo protectively crouched in front of their class president, trying to convince their classmates that she was harmless.
"Namra would have blood on her mouth if she bit him," Onjo muttered, loud enough for everyone to hear. "She's still fine, so she's okay."
The raven-haired female was mildly surprised, looking at the younger in confusion. "Why are you taking my side?" She asked. "It's weird. I thought you hated me."
"I still do. But what's wrong is wrong."
Junghwan took over Cheongsan's spot, patting his girlfriend's back while her brother checked out their best friend.
Despite their fighting, Cheongsan looked at Suhyeok, checking him for any sort of injury — lowly sighing when there was nothing.
"Are you okay?" Junghwan asked softly, brows etched with worry as he looked at the female leaning against him.
Soojin smiled, the tear streaks on her face now drying. "Haven't turned into a zombie yet, so I'm doing great," she answered.
The male winced at her words, frowning. "You know I didn't mean it that way," he muttered, pushing the hair out of his girlfriend's face.
(jisoos someone keep a track on how many bloody times i am making sure we all know soojin and junghwan are dating 😭)
"I know." Soojin gulped, chewing on her bottom lip. "I'm scared."
Junghwan knew where this was going, and he really didn't want the younger overthinking, so he used his best skill; the art of distraction.
"Me too." He nodded. "What if the zombies fall in love with you and try to take you away from me?"
Soojin chuckled, realizing what he was doing. "We might have to break up, then." She played along. "And I'll have to find a handsome zombie boyfriend." She smiled, feeling at ease as she saw him smile.
"I'd get bit by a zombie just to be your handsome zombie boyfriend, you know?"
Lee Soojin leaned forward, placing a small kiss on So Junghwan's lips. And just as she pulled away, he leaned closer, capturing her lips in another kiss.
It's gonna be fine. We'll still have each other, yeah? It'll be fine. I love you.
The words that couldn't be expressed were all conveyed in just a simple kiss.
| Z+1 — THE EMPTY CLASSROOM |
Junghwan and Soojin, along with Suhyeok and Namra stayed away from the others, not wanting to create any more issues between them.
Their worries were valid, and there was nothing they could do about them while trapped in a school amidst an apocalypse.
Junghwan opted to stay with his girlfriend, letting Cheongsan sit with Onjo, seeing as she was having a hard time controlling the others.
All she wanted was to make everyone feel comfortable, but she herself didn't have anyone to lean on ... except for Cheongsan, that is.
"Hey." Daesu looked around. "If Soojin and Namra are immune, does that mean they are okay even if they get bitten?"
Joonyeong nodded. "Probably," he answered.
"Fuck. I'm so jealous."
Jimin rolled her eyes. "But they still have zombie blood flowing in their veins," she grumbled.
Onjo noted the way Cheongsan clenched his jaw, tightening his fists in an attempt to stop himself from speaking.
He knew Jimin wouldn't listen to him no matter what he said. Heck, she would probably blame him for siding with his twin.
"They aren't completely zombies, though," Onjo quipped, speaking on behalf of Cheongsan.
"Namra tried to bite Suhyeok. How can you still say she isn't a zombie?"
"But she stopped herself, didn't she? If they were zombies, they wouldn't be able to control themselves like this when they are with us."
The class wasn't that big, so the others could clearly hear what their friends were saying.
The two girls felt uncomfortable hearing the others argue, not really wanting the others to fight because of them.
"Hey, Namra." Soojin turned towards their class president in an attempt to drown out the others. "How are you feeling?"
"Good enough for a hambie. You?"
"Kinda happy. Is that weird?"
Namra smiled for the first time in a long time, shaking her head as an answer. "Not really," she replied. "You've always been the happy one, after all," she added.
Lee Soojin was the first friend Namra made when she joined Hyosan High. It was really surprising to see people from two ends of a spectrum be friends — but hey, opposites attract, okay?
And then again, it's really hard to not be friends with Soojin.
Suhyeok turned to his best friend's sister, a look of guilt on his face. Even before he could get the words out, Soojin patted his leg, smiling knowingly as she nodded.
"When we get out, you better give me all your Marvel figurines."
The male only laughed in reply, nodding. "They are all yours." He smiled, ruffling the younger's hair like he usually did.
The four remained silent for the next few minutes, perking their heads up once they heard Jimin speak; sadness filled in her voice.
"My mom and dad... came to the school to save me, but the cops... and firefighters never came," she said. "Everyone abandoned us. All of them. I swear, I'll make you pay. Mom. Dad. I'll stay alive and get revenge. I'll get revenge on the zombies... and everyone else, Mom."
Seeing the camcorder in Jimin's hand, Soojin looked down at her lap, taking a deep breath.
If there was one thing she hated in this world, it would probably be crying — especially in front of people.
And as she already cried once in front of her classmates, she really didn't want there to be a second time.
Thankfully, Daesu came to the rescue with a song of his. "Chicken tastes better fried in olive oil. Pork tastes better than soy meat." The students chuckled to themselves, hearing his lyrics. "Strawberry cake tastes better than plain strawberries."
And then Soojin heard her brother's voice.
"Mom. It's me. Dad, you're okay too, right? I'm... I'm doing okay," he paused for a moment, glancing at his sister. "Soojin's fine too. I know she is. I'll do everything I can to protect her, okay?"
Soojin scoffed, fighting back her tears. "Don't try to do something you can't," she joked, loud enough for everyone to hear.
"Oh, and by the way, Mom, your dream finally came true," Cheongsan added. "Jinnie and Hwanie are finally dating."
A round of gasps along with knowing and surprised smiles went around the class, not even knowing why they felt this happiness for their friends despite the situation they were in.
"Wah, little moo-moo," Suhyeok exclaimed, a genuine smile on his face. "You finally did it. I'm proud of you!"
"What do you guys mean by 'finally', huh? How long has he been talking about me?"
"For Hwanie's sake, I won't answer. I can't embarrass my boy. It's the bro code."
Lee Suhyeok enjoyed teasing So Junghwan despite everything, but little did he know that he was next.
Onjo came with the camcorder, letting the banished ones record whatever messages they wanted to.
Not really knowing what to say, they just kept it at the table, silently sitting amongst themselves.
Namra suddenly spoke. "You know how I said I wanted to bite you earlier?" She asked.
"It's okay." Suhyeok shook his head. "Don't say things like that."
"It felt like I was dreaming," Namra continued. "All I could think of was that I wanted to eat you. Then I heard your voice."
"My voice?"
"Yeah, your voice woke me up. It was the first time you called me by my name."
"I know." Suhyeok sighed, looking nervous. "I was afraid you'd find out if I called you by your name."
Namra's brows scrunched in confusion. "Find out what?" She asked.
"That I like you." Soojin winced, feeling Junghwan's excited grip on her hand. "I don't get good grades, and I hung out with the bullies in tenth grade. But you're a model student and get good grades. And you're pretty."
Junghwan grinned. "Can't believe this is happening right in front of us," he muttered.
"Baby, I'm not even here." Soojin shook her head. "I'm just a hallucination."
By the time the Jung-Soo couple finished making jokes amongst themselves, they diverted their attention back to their friends — only to see them kiss.
"Oh, my ... I'm going to puke." Junghwan overreacted, apologizing immediately when his girlfriend knocked the back of his head. "Sorry, guys. Continue, I guess."
"My goodness, Namra," Soojin gasped playfully. "How scandalous."
The four classmates teased one another, smiling along as they forgot about their worries for the time being.
After all, staying positive is also a good way to survive.