Deiji hit the elevator door several times, hoping it would open even though she knew it was impossible.
She immediately looked back upon hearing a familiar scream and cries of fear from behind her. Cries full of pain and terror from people her age who they had encountered earlier.
She could hardly breathe when she saw the nightmare she had hoped never to see again—people being bitten and turning into zombies.
"Zanya!" Deiji heard a loud voice from the other side.
She saw a woman, who seemed to be her age, looking terrified. Deiji followed her gaze and saw a child in an elementary school uniform not far from her.
Her heart raced when she saw a zombie approaching the child, so Deiji ran and kicked the zombie.
The zombie and Deiji fell together. When she tried to stand, a zombie's hand grabbed her foot. She kicked it repeatedly until it let go.
She managed to stand and saw the girl hugging the child while both of them were crying.
When she saw the zombie she had kicked earlier getting up again, she quickly pulled the two away.
"Save the hugs for later. It's dangerous here," she murmured, trying to avoid the zombies.
"Ahm... thank you for saving my sister," said the girl who seemed to be her age.
Deiji glanced at her and saw the happiness in her eyes, so she just smiled back. They stopped walking when suddenly a person, still alive but covered in his own blood, collapsed right in front of them.
"Help me!" the stranger called out, reaching for them helplessly.
Deiji squeezed her eyes shut. She wanted to help, but she knew it was too late for him.
They stepped back when suddenly a zombie appeared in front of them—the one responsible for the man's condition. Deiji almost froze when she saw how big it was. Tall and muscular, its body covered in tattoos. The zombie looked like a bouncer.
They almost jumped when it started walking toward them. Among all the zombies Deiji had faced, this was the most masculine one she had encountered. She wasn't expecting it, and it made her heart skip a beat.
Unexpectedly, a man with a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire hit the zombie on the head repeatedly until its skull was almost crushed.
"You can't kill them just by looking at them," the man said arrogantly after finishing his attack on the zombie.
The three of them looked at him and saw a man wearing a jersey from a well-known school in the area. Five other men in jerseys were with him, holding baseball bats, and two women in uniforms were behind them, clearly being protected by the group.
"He's just too big for me," Deiji replied bitterly.
"Yeah, right! Come to us if you want to stay alive," the man said again, his tone almost philosophical.
She remained silent and followed the new group she had encountered.
They used the stairs because each hotel elevator and room required an employee ID or a member card from the guest to access it, or at least a passcode known only to employees.
"I want to go home," the child with them suddenly said.
"I want to too, but we can't," replied one of the women with the group of six men.
"Sshhh!" A guy with red hair signaled for them to be quiet as he heard a strange noise from the other door they were about to enter.
They all quieted down and listened carefully.
When Deiji heard familiar voices, she pushed the door open and saw her friends fighting zombies.
"Deiji!" Noah called out when he saw her quickly.
There were too many zombies, so Deiji ran to them and helped fight off the zombies, while the other group she had been with helped too.
"Let's go to a VIP room. There's food there," Yuki suggested while keeping her distance from Myrna, who was holding Zebby.
"Find a room already, Yuki. Noah, assist her," Glenn ordered while trying to protect everyone with the help of Deiji's group.
Yuki ran toward the nearest VIP room while Noah followed her.
Yuki entered the passcode and successfully opened the door. She and Noah called out for the others to come in.
Everyone was exhausted. They had no energy left and almost collapsed once they were inside the large room.
"Thank God," Yuki muttered as she rubbed her palms together, thankful to be safe.
"How did you open it?" asked one of the men from the other group.
"I'm one of the keepers of this hotel," Yuki explained, then looked at each member of the other group.
She walked over to Deiji and hugged her.
"I knew you were safe," Yuki whispered.
She was scared something bad might happen to her friend after what happened to Michael.
"So, who are you?" Glenn asked the new group.
"I'm Gavin, Gavin Monteverde," the man who had saved them from the big zombie earlier introduced himself.
"I'm Gabby Monteverde. I'm his little sister, and this is my boyfriend," said the petite woman, pointing to the man beside her, who was clearly her boyfriend.
"Ricci Forge," the boyfriend introduced himself, smiling at everyone.
The couple didn't seem to be flirting; they looked more like siblings. Gabby held Ricci's arm, not to be clingy but as if shy, hiding behind him.
"Anita Ramos," introduced a woman, crossing her arms and avoiding eye contact with them.
"Steven Bernabe," said a guy with glasses and a smile.
"Carrelio Gapo, and this is Ruphert Salvez," said the serious-looking man, pointing to the quiet guy beside him.
"Ahm... I'm Zenia Hontolan, and this is my little sister, Zanya," Marivic introduced herself and her sister when she noticed everyone looking at them.
Glenn and Noah's group introduced themselves to Gavin's group to form a stronger bond by sharing their names.