He sprawled on the bed, raising his phone to his face, staring at her name.
At Amelie's.
'...Right, I want to call her.' His thumb hovered over her contact.
'I do want to call her, right?' He exhaled.
'I don't even miss her that much.'
With a sigh, he dropped the phone onto his chest, staring at the ceiling.
'I barely know her. She gave me this phone and had Marcel wait for me outside the Zone. We barely talked... No, we CAN'T even talk, since she doesn't know Korean. The only things I know about her are that she's cute and French.'
'...'
His grip tightened around his phone.
'Right. That's all that matters anyway. She's cute. Isn't that enough?' He forced her image into his mind. 'I'll just call her.'
He raised the phone again, thumb hovering over her name.
'But then what?' His heartbeat picked up.
'Do I ask her out?' He swallowed hard, his pulse thudding in his ears. 'Do I Boogdle-translate what I want to say to her?'
'Is that what I do? That's what I need to do, right? That's what I SHOULD do.' He cleared his throat, staring at her name.
'...No. Fuck that. It's not worth it.' He let out a deep sigh, tension leaving his shoulders.
'Ahh. Goddamn it. It's just a phone number. Marcel just wanted me to thank her. Just fucking thank her. Why am I making this so difficult NOW?'
'I'll just text her... No, but I'm looking better now, so I can definitely win her over. I'm buff now thanks to the infection, and my face looks even better. Why am I even THINKING about it? Daniel probably didn't even hesitate before making moves on Eunhee under my nose—and he WON her over for it. Just...'
He pinned the phone against his eyes, clenching them shut in frustration.
'...Just tell her what you feel already.'
But instinctively, Eunhee's face surfaced in his mind.
'...Like you should've done. If you'd just said something months ago...' His expression tensed. 'Would you have told me something else, Eunhee?'
'Fuck. FUCK...'
He tossed the phone aside and stared at the ceiling.
"Haah... That tsundere hyung didn't even give me his phone number. Damn it." He rolled his eyes at Jang, as if he were in the room with him.
"Guess I'll go for a walk. Maybe scout the new school I'm going to."
With a quick push, he got up, ducked down to grab his phone, and left the room.
"Mom, I'm going out. Be back soon," Jiho said as he walked down the stairs.
"Oh? I thought you needed to lie down?" she asked casually.
"Uh... I need to clear my head. Just a walk around the neighborhood. I won't go far," he said as he neared the door.
"Promise me." Her voice came abruptly, her face still turned toward the kitchen. "And be back soon."
'The fuck's her problem!? I'm just going out, aren't I?!' He momentarily clenched his teeth.
"Fine," he muttered, opening the door and stepping outside, holding himself back from slamming it.
...And he felt bad for it.
'Why... was I so angry...?' Jiho stormed out of the yard, his steps quickening. 'Why am I angry for not bashing THAT FUCKING door in her face?!' His jaw tightened as his pace picked up.
'Just... everything's so FUCKED. That piece of shit hyung infected me with his anger issues, I bet.' Jiho frowned, shoving his hands deeper into his jacket pockets, his fingers curling into fists.
"Holy shit... You're right, it's really him!"
His head snapped up.
A group of teens loitered at a distance, their eyes locking onto him.
"He's ALIVE!"
'Ah... Those pricks are from my school.' Jiho recognized them instantly. 'I wouldn't forget any of your faces. Fucking bastards.'
His fingers tensed, pressing against the fabric of his pockets as they drew closer.
'Bring it on. You want to fight, right? Good. I've been dying to test this out on you fuckers before I take it out on Daniel.'
And yet—his pulse pounded in his ears. His breath felt too shallow. His body felt too light, too ready—like he was on the verge of bolting, not attacking.
'Shit... why am I so scared!?' His heart jackhammered against his ribs. 'Get yourself together! You fought hundreds of zombies back in the zone, EACH ONE leagues above these punks in strength!'
But his body wasn't convinced. The memories of getting cornered, the gut instinct of helplessness—it clashed against the logic of his new power.
They came closer. Jiho barely registered their faces anymore, only moving shadows, closing in.
'Get ready… Shit… GET READY—!'
His breath hitched. His fists clenched. His glare burned ahead of him, but his vision blurred, tunneling into nothing.
'I'm not scared of a fight anymore...!' Jiho repeated in his head, his breath shaking. His vision blurred as the memory seared into him—Daniel's slap, the sting of it, the way he could only call out Eunhee's name like a fool before they both walked away.
'I'm NOT...!' He repeated again, his legs locking in place as the group nearly surrounded him now.
"You—" Jiho's voice cracked, rising in raw defiance—
"Are you okay, man?"
The words hit him like a slap to the face.
His breath hitched, the darkness cluttering his vision easing just slightly.
"A... ah... W-what...?" His chest heaved as he struggled to process the moment, his surroundings sharpening bit by bit.
No resentment in their eyes.
Just confusion. Maybe even... concern?
"Jiho, right? Jiho An?" A girl stepped forward hesitantly. "That's you, right?"
Jiho's fingers twitched. His instincts screamed at him to stay on edge.'
His gaze flicked around, muscles still tense. Five people. Two girls. Three guys.
"...Ah... What do you want?" His voice came out hoarse, guarded.
"Shit, calm down, man!" One of the guys said from behind, reaching out and tapping Jiho's back.
A touch.
His vision whited out.
In an instant, Jiho whipped around, and before his brain could catch up—his body moved first.
In a blur, the guy was slammed against the nearby wall.
"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT FROM ME!?" Jiho roared, his fingers clawing into fabric, his grip crushing as he pinned the teen by the shirt.
"GAAH—!"
"Suho!" Someone shouted, panic in their voice.
"WHAT!?" Jiho's voice cracked with rage, his breath ragged. "HAVEN'T HAD ENOUGH CALLING ME NAMES BEHIND MY BACK!? WELL, NEWS FLASH, BASTARD—YOU WON'T GET ME SO EASILY THIS TIME! AHH!!? TELL DANIEL I'M NOT FUCKING SCARED OF HIM!"
His grip tightened, his muscles coiled with fury.
Suho choked, his hands gripping at Jiho's wrist as his feet barely touched the ground.
"Shit—!" The boy gasped, his face twisting in pain as Jiho lifted him higher, his arm trembling from the sheer force.
"Let Suho go!" A girl yelled, grabbing Jiho's arm.
"LET GO OF ME!" Jiho snapped, his instincts flaring too fast for reason to catch up.
Before he even realized it—his palm cracked across her face.
"Gah—!"
She stumbled back hard, her hands flying to her nose.
Blood; bright red, dripping between her fingers.
Jiho's chest tightened, his breath hitching.
"Shit—Cha's hurt!" Someone rushed to her side, panic rising.
"THE FUCK'S YOUR PROBLEM!?" One of the guys shouted, stepping between Jiho and Cha, glaring hard. "WE JUST WANTED TO TALK!"
Cha's hand trembled as she held her nose, her eyes glassy with shock.
"Shit... That's a lot of blood..." one of them muttered, fumbling for their phone. "Call someone!"
Jiho took one step back, then another. His stomach dropped. His fingers trembled. His pulse thundered in his ears.
"Call someone."
The words rang like a death sentence in his head. His breath sharpened, his whole body buzzing with dread.
'Haah... Fuck... Fuck...! DAMN IT ALL!'
Before he could process it—
He ran.
The world blurred around him as his feet pounded against the pavement. He didn't stop, didn't think—just ran.
He didn't know how long he kept going until his legs burned, until his breath came in choked bursts, and by the time he stopped, he was alone.
A bench.
The park.
The place where he, Eunhee, and Daniel used to hang out.
Jiho's gaze drifted to the sandbox. The one he used to dig holes in, piling up sand like it meant something.
'...Too bad I'm too old for this now.'
He let out a slow breath and sank onto the bench, leaning back as his eyes wandered up to the sky.
The cold air pressed against his skin.
A minute passed, then, he pulled out his phone.
"...Mom?" Jiho's voice came out quiet.
"Yes, baby? Is everything alright?" Her voice was warm. Like it always was.
Jiho pressed the phone against his ear, hunching over, resting his elbows on his knees.
"Don't... Don't open the door to anyone but me from now on, okay?" His voice wavered as he ran a hand over his face.
"Why, baby? What's wrong? Did something happen?"
"Just... I... Haah..." He froze.
'No... I can't tell her what happened. What if she's scared of me?'
His mind flashed back to Cha's wound, to the blood trailing down her fingers.
'Is... Is that girl okay?' In the distance, he heard it; The sound of an ambulance.
A lump formed in his throat.
"I should leave the house, Mom..." His voice cracked. "I... I don't want to hurt you..."
A pause.
Then, her voice came, steady and sure.
"...Baby, you can never hurt me. You know that. And I know that. Please... Just tell me what's wrong?"
Jiho clenched his jaw and hung up the call, his hand tightened around the phone as he shoved it into his pocket.
'You fucked up. You fucked up big time.' He thought as his nails dug into his palms.
'They'll probably involve the police... My life is over.'
His phone rang. Jiho stared at it - it was his mom again.
His thumb hovered over the reject call button.
"Tu devrais lui répondre." A voice called from nearby. Soft, familiar; yet decisive and steady.
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