Chae Rin's POV
As we walked to the mountains, my arm was grabbed once again, turning to the side I watch as Wu Jin frowns, eyes looking ahead as he continues to run behind his sister.
"It's coming" I whisper weakly at him, his movements stopping as he turned to look at me.
"What is?" he asks in a slight panic.
"Explosions" I reply, a few seconds later an explosion hits the school, startling everyone.
"On Jo!" I yell, grabbing Wu Jin's arm as I raced my best to On Jo, pushing Wu Jin down as I stood over them protectively, dirt and debris from the explosion coming our way in a fast manner.
Rocks hit everyone until I open my eyes, Ha Ri in the route of a metal pole.
"Chae Rin!" Joon Yeong shouts reaching for me but he's too late.
"Ha Ri!" I yell pushing her out the way, I could feel the pole go through me as I laid on the ground.
But I had no time to think about it for long as a debris came in strong, knocking me out.
3rd Person's POV
Waking up from the debris, everyone was a little shaken, dirt still flying around the air as it set on their bodies as they laid on the floor.
Nighttime had already settled when the students woke up one by one.
"Chae Rin" On Jo whispered as she crawled her way to her best friend who was still unconscious, a metal stick going through her stomach.
"Chae Rin" she called louder, shaking the girl's hand, not wanting to harm the girl any further.
The altercation caught the attention of the others, one by one looking at the two, On Jo let out a tear, imagining the worst, that is until the girl laying down groaned softly.
Everyone releasing a sigh of relief as they circled around her.
"Chae Rin, are you okay?" Joon Yeong asked the friend who had a scowl on her face.
"How long were we out for?" The girl questioned the group.
"A few hours at least... We just woke up too" The latter told the girl, looking around nervously.
"We need to take this out of you..." Ha Ri informed her, Chae Rin frowns confused as she looked down. Eyes widening as she sees the pole sticking out of her.
"Please knock me out first" She suggests.
"We can't, you might die if you're not awake. I'll make it quick" Ha Ri assured the younger girl.
"I'll do it, I'm faster, and stronger" Nam Ra imposed, the older nodding as the prez walked closer until she was kneeling besides her friend.
"Count until 3 please" Chae Rin pleaded the girl.
"Ok. I'll start now. 1, 2 -"
"Wait! Wait! Can someone please hold my hand" she closed her eyes tightly, only opening them when she felt a hand grip hers, On Jo by her side comforting her.
"Ok, ready? 1, 2 -" and before 3 Nam Ra pulled it out, the girl giving a blood curling scream of pain.
"Shit!" She cussed, sighing in relief at the end.
"Are you okay?" Dae Su questions the girl looking over Nam Ra's shoulder, Chae Rin smiles at him nodding.
"Much better, how's your leg?" She asks, Dae Su frowns looking down noticing his own wound.
"It's fine" He smiled back.
"Let's stay here for the night... leave in the morning" Ha Ri told the group who nodded complying to her idea.
As everyone began to close their eyes, Chae Rin's wound tingled, as it began to heal and soon after it had completely healed over, not a single scar there to watch.
She watched as her friends fell asleep before quietly standing up, looking around with every step as twigs snapped, and she stepped on leafs, thankfully not a single person waking up as she went down the hill.
In front of her was the building in construction they had just left a few hours ago, a few walls broken and debris everywhere, but the girl ignored it all as she made her way inside, trying to use her senses to smell either it was human or zombies.
But her senses didn't get anything, not a single thing at all.
Swallowing her tears she made her way up, going over the window they had been, watching the now dry blood of Cheong San.
A single tear falling as she climbed over the window, back inside and walking upstairs, look into each and every division of the building for any sight of her first love.
But everywhere she looked was empty, no smells were detected by her either.
"Cheong San..." She murmured as she looked around, her voice sounding more strained as she didn't want to sob.
Walking around more frantically she called out to the boy louder, hoping that maybe he just couldn't hear her.
Racing up the stairs she searched through every floor until she reached the very end of them.
Getting to the room she looked around for long before her eyes caught onto the droplets of blood on the floor.
Making her way to it, she eyed it carefully, the smells being confusing and mixed with the smell of both Cheong San and Gwi Nam.
She kneed on the ground as she looking around, carefully tracing every single drop of blood until it reached a fall where she recognized it to be made for an elevator.
She tried to look down, but every time she inched closer, her eyes closed on their own. Not able to face the reality of the situation as the building was vacant, not a single sound heard besides her sobs that just kept on growing louder.
Knees weak as she fell to the ground, body facing the elevator drop.
She hadn't even realized that she had fallen asleep on the ground as the sun rose upon the hill.
Dae Su now in more pain and On Jo who was anxiously looking around trying to see Chae Rin who had disappeared during the night.
She stood over the hill, Su Hyeok approaching the girl, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"She made her choice. Let's go. Let's go, On Jo" He pressed on the girl who looked down, holding her tears.
"I can't just go like this. I'm sorry. Can you wait a bit?" she asked the boy as she made her way down, but stopped not even after taking a step.
"Oh, never mind. Go ahead. I'll catch up" She told him as she made her way down.
Nam Ra telling Su Hyeok that she would follow the shorter girl.
Su Hyeok soon going after the two who reached the building together.
Both unaware of what they would find, and as they reached the last floor, brick was all over the floor. Dirt covering the floor they stepped on.
"Chae Rin... Cheong San" On Jo called out.
"Chae Rin!" She yelled louder as she caught sight of the girl at the very end of the room laying down.
Su Hyeok running to her, shaking her awake.
Her eyes were red, but it wasn't hunger... they were filled with dry tears as she weakly opened her eyes, staring at the three friends.
"Cheong San, you jerk!" On Jo cussed, letting her tears fall.
Chae Rin too, choking up again as she began to sob once more.
"I don't feel it... I don't feel anything" She cried as On Jo and Nam Ra approached the girl.
"He's... it's like he's gone" she cried.
Nam Ra's eyes filled with tears as she watched the two girls cry over this boy, knowing just how hard it was for them both.
Su hyeok helped stand Chae Rin up, her hand still covering her face as she tried to stop the waterfalls.
"Let's say bye to Cheong San..." Nam Ra softly told the two who stared at her.
"And leave" she finished, containing her own tears.
Chae Rin sighed, as she let out a scream, On Jo besides her patting her shoulder, Nam Ra pulls the two into a hug.
Su Hyeok watched the interaction, although he wouldn't say it, he too was hurt by it.
Cheong San was in fact his best friend, and he too had to live on with the fact that he was now gone, and wouldn't come back.
"Let's go" Nam Ra patted the two.
"When did you get here?" Su hyeok asked, eyes on Chae Rin.
"Night... I just... I needed to make sure" She softly spoke, he nods understanding.
"I didn't know I had fallen asleep. I didn't mean to, I'm sorry" She whispered apologetically.
"It's okay, all that matters is that you're okay" Nam Ra assured her.
"Am I" she chuckled dryly.
"You will be. We all will" On Jo sniffed grabbing onto the girl.
Making their way back to their group, no one dared to speak a word, a comforting silence on the air as they walked through the fog until they met their friends a bit ahead.
"Let's go" Ha Ri told them, standing up from her sitting position on the floor.
Wu Jin immediately lacing his arm with Dae Su's to help him walk better without hurting his leg.
Su Hyeok soon moving to help the two move.
"The soldiers saw us at school. They left us there without helping us. Then they bombed it. Maybe they want us to die" Nam Ra opinionated, Chae Rin nodded from besides her.
"That can't be" On Jo argued back, but stood in silence.
"I think it's because of me. Because we were with zombies, they must think we're neither zombies nor humans, like me. Maybe that's what they thought" Nam Ra softly spoke, guilt filling her up inside.
"That's not possible. I'm like you. If they thought we weren't humans, they would've shot us dead for sure. I think they genuinely just got orders to do otherwise" Chae Rin pointed out.
"Is it okay for us to stay with you guys like this?" Nam Ra asked, mentioning her and Chae Rin's condition.
"It probably isn't" Chae Rin replied in a low tone.
"You're still our friend, you're the class president. And you're, well our crazy friend. We couldn't have made it this far without you two" On Jo tried to console the two.
"Still..." Nam Ra dragged out the word, unsure of how to explain her own feelings.
"Neither of you have turned, and you never will" On Jo confidently stated as she looked between the two, nodding assertively.
"Let's do that again later. It was my first time sitting around a fire with friends. We'll be able to do that again, right?" Nam Ra questioned the shorter girl out of the three.
"Let's do it tonight" the said girl replied, a smile of her own matching Nam Ra's and Chae Rin's.
"What the hell?" Mi Jin's voice sounded ahead of the group.
"What's wrong?" Hyo Ryeong questioned the older girl who turned around from the group to look back at the mountain, covered in fog.
"Shit. I think we're lost" Mi Jin admitted.
"There's no trail?" Hyo Ryeong panicked.
"There hasn't been a trail for a while. I feel like we're going in circles" The older replied unsure.
"Why did you come this way if there was no trail? We might end up back at Hyosan" Dae Su asked, in a calm tone although he was slightly panicking over the idea of going back to their school.
That was until Wu Jin removed his arm from Dae Su, Joon Yeong stumbling as he supported his friend's entire body weight.
Wu Jin walking closer to the edge calling for his sister.
"Look" he pointed, everyone turning to follow his finger, pointing at a yellow strip tied on a tree branch.
"There's something there" Mi Jin pointed out, everyone following the two seniors as they reach the strip.
"It was tied here" Ha Ri mumbled.
"Who did something this nice? Maybe a ginseng digger?" Mi Jin smiled.
"What's a ginseng digger?" Hyo Ryeong asked her confused.
"I see another one" Ha Ri says, following down the mountain to reach the yellow strip.
On Jo's eyes fall to the side, a lantern laying on the floor, picking it up and reading the label.
Chae Rin stayed besides Wu Jin as she watched On Jo squat down sobbing softly as she craddled the lantern into her chest.
Chae Rin's head facing the floor, Wu Jin rubbing his hand on her shoulder as Joon Yeong sighed.
The girl keeping her quiet as to not make it about herself, knowing fully well, how much On Jo was going through worse.
As the group followed the yellow strips, the group finally managed to reach town, seemingly abandoned, the fog too thick to be able to see things far away.
Chae Rin walked besides On Jo, Hyo Ryeong to her left as Nam Ra was on On Jo's right.
Mi Jin and Ha Ri at the front and then the 4 boys at the back, Su Hyeok and Wu Jin helping Dae Su as Joon Yeong walked besides them.
"Didn't he say we should go to Yangdong?" Dae Su recalled, speaking loud to the group.
"Do you think the zombies are here too?" Hyo Ryeong wondered.
"No way. They probably evacuated the city because it's next to Hyosan" Su Hyeok excused.
"Ya. I'm getting a bad feeling about this" Mi Jin muttered from the front, grabbing the sharp wood stick tighter on her hands.
"Why is it so empty?" Chae Rin muttered confused, animals laid dead on the road, signs that it had either been affected by the explosion or, the zombies had eaten the animals.
"It's okay here" Ha Ri assured them.
"Why? What's okay?" Mi Jin asked her confused.
"There are no broken windows, and there's no blood on the streets" Ha Ri explains.
"It wouldn't be this clean if the zombies had been rampant" she finished.
But Chae Rin's body convulsed, Nam Ra stopping on her tracks alongside the other girl.
"What is it?" On Jo asked Nam Ra.
"Hold on"
"We need to leave. Now!" Chae Rin spoke loudly.
"Why? What is it?" On Jo questioned her sudden behavior. Nam Ra turning to face behind.
"What is it? Is something here?" Su Hyeok question, leaving Dae Su to Wu Jin and Joon Yeong's care.
"Zombies" Nam Ra muttered. The two girls focusing on their distant growls getting closer within the second, steps running towards them.
"Where?" On Jo pressed on.
"Everywhere" she stated.
"Are there a lot of them?" Hyo Ryeong asks, Nam Ra begining her count.
"It's too many, we can't take them all. Stop counting. We need to go" Chae Rin rushed the taller female.
"Chae Rin, don't scare us" Joon Yeong muttered in panick.
"(...) Eleven... Run!" Nam Ra gives up on the count, listening to her friend and rushing to send the friends away into safety.
"Go!" Chae Rin hurries them, staying behind them to help keep the boys safe.
But the 3 soon fall.
Chae Rin hurriedly runs to them, helping to lift Dae Su and Wu Jin as Joon Yeong and Su Hyeok grab onto shovels.
"Take Dae Su and go" Su Hyeok ordered, but no one listened.
"Forget it" Dae Su hissed, getting up and grabbing a shovel of his own.
"What are you doing? I told you to run away" Su Hyeok scolded.
"I said forget it" Dae Su counterbacked.
The others reaching into the place they had taken the shovels to grab their own weapon of choice.
Chae Rin smirked, looking at her options before she opted to use the end of a metal pole that laid besides a blue box.
"On Jo, stay behind me" Chae Rin told the smaller girl.
"I can fight them"
"I know you can. I believe you. But I'm not losing you too." she whispered to her softly grabbing the girls shoulders, she nods looking her in the eyes.
"I have a feeling It'll all end here" Mi Jin mumbled.
"I'm not losing anyone for that matter, not even you Mi Jin. So again, you're in trouble. Call for me? Got it?!" Chae Rin announced, her tone turning venomous as she felt her eye twitch, hand cracking as she prepared herself for a battle.
"Stay behind me" Wu Jin told his sister standing in front of her but she grabbed his arm pulling him behind her.
"Stop messing around. Stay back" she told him sternly.
The roads were silent, not a noise to be heard until from the ends of the fog there were growls, and finally, the silhouettes of the zombies appeared.
Crazily running to the group who stood together reading to fight.
Chae Rin being at the front with her pole and Nam Ra at the back of them all.
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