Blood, Gore, and all that good zombie stuff, please be weary if your squeamish

Human life is so pitiful. You finally get somewhere, and then your just free falling again. Like a roller coaster where you go up and up, and you are so close to the sky, fingertips reach up to meet the sun, but there's only so high you can go before you're shook back to reality at the stutter the coaster gives at the top. And its beautiful, its so beautiful and blue, and the air is clearer, cold and crisp at the top, but then you see the fall, and you smirk bitterly because good things can only last so long right? So you fall fast and quick, in an ugly fall that has your breath leaving and your eyes closing. That is life, that was the ride, and it was a ride you have rode multiple times because the high it gave you was addicting. But you also grow more numb to the ride, the feeling's not as intense as the first time, you’re more washed out with each go, but you're still just as afraid. That is life though, and Baekhyun doesn't think it's worth it anymore, so he free-falls one last time.

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He’s drifting and dreaming, and it’s so loud in his dream. Arms are grabbing at him, and he’s frozen and paralyzed with fear even though he wants to run. And it’s so loud, why is it so loud? Is he screaming? Why is he screaming? What’s grabbing him? He’s scared. Baekhyun’s really scared.

The black flashes and suddenly Baekhyun is startling awake as he realizes it was a dream. He's disoriented because it's loud in real life too, sirens are blazing, and alarm lights are dyeing the room in a terrifying red. Baekhyun haphazardly gets out of bed, and looks around bewildered and confused for a second before it hits him. This is like a replay of the night before, except, instead of loud raps on his door, the ship is officially in emergency state. This is serious.

This is real.

The lights mean an infection has spread on board, and it could be as safe as only one or two contained people, or it could be a death trap of uncontrollable numerous dead, going around and killing crew and passengers. 

Baekhyun is terrified.

How long have the alarms been going? He is so lost, he had only woken up with a start just a few seconds ago after being out cold since the previous night. 

His head still pounds, his eyes are still raw from his crying jag, and he feels a little dizzy. However, he shakes himself and takes a deep breath as he rushes to his closet and pulls out his fighter suit that usually just caught dust, and pulls it on. He also keeps an ear out for sounds outside that could tell him if there’s anything walking out there, and takes out the gun from the case under his bed. The crew was given guns for emergencies like these, and Baekhyun feels the weight of the weapon as he grips it like a lifeline and stands. He takes a final deep breath as he stands in front of his door, but Baekhyun can't find the courage to open it and leave.

Even though this is something Baekhyun was trained to handle at the academy. He knew what to do, what he had to do, if he was going to be on the Two Moons— a passenger ship that could accidently slip a person or two on board with an infection by accident— that he would need to be ready for this. He had gotten A’s in all of his shooting range practices, because he knew even though an onboard epidemic was rare and hadn't happened for over a decade on any ship now, the possibility was still there. 

So he presses his ear to the door and listens to see if he can hear anything outside, but it's dead silent everywhere, and only hearing his own breaths makes Baekhyun panicky. He thinks hard about his next plan of action, the ship is powered off and in emergency state, and now everyone is required to make their way to the other end of the ship where the shelter deck is. Baekhyun is unfortunately all the way on the opposite end where the crew dorms are, to make sure passengers are the first to make it to safety. However where is the other crew? He probably really had been knocked out the night before because the hall sounds empty. He guesses he was so tired and worn after yesterday’s crying jag that he probably hadn't woken up till a few minutes after everyone else had started evacuating. It’s probably because Baekhyun was a deep sleeper anyways, but after a night when he was really tired he was even worse to wake. 

He steps away staring at the button, then finally steels his nerves and runs forward pressing it, after that, he’s running out at full speed. His first priority is getting out, making it to the safety zone, and taking any possible stragglers left behind with him. 

He can't help it though, when he runs and keeps looking around so fast whenever he even thinks he hears something, he’s probably given himself whiplash at this point. His vision is fuzzing as he tries to keep calm, but he’s just so terrified. Baekhyun literally has no idea what is going on. Like why the ship is on emergency lockdown mode yet there's no one in sight, and Baekhyun doesn't know how many dead could be roaming around ready to attack. For all he knows all the ship could have been infected and turned into dead by now and he slept through it. He shivers and almost chokes up as tears start to sting at his eyes, but he pushes the thoughts away. No! They have to be alive.

But will he be able to get to them…

He still keeps half an ear out for the possibility of the others or even dead roaming around, but it's hard to focus, as the hallways get longer and darker, wrapped up in more of that sinister red. Shivers run down Baekhyun's spine, and everything feels too loud and silent at the same time. He turns right and left keeping his eyes out, his hands shaking, and his breathing is uneven, and it almost seems like shadows are standing at every corner. Baekhyun hasn't even gotten past the front end of the ship but he is already drenched in a cold sweat, with his hair sticking uncomfortably to his forehead. But he has to keep going, he needs to keep going.

He runs and runs past the rest of the crew dorms, and even the storage units on the ship. But it’s when he’s already reached the passenger’s section that he really starts to freak out. He still hasn’t seen anyone yet and it’s terrifying him. No dead, no passengers or crew, nothing.

He starts thinking of the worst-case scenario. Did they have to make an emergency evacuation, using the few escape pods the ship kept to leave in the middle of dead space and try to make it somewhere safe? Is he alone? Did they even make it to the quarantine zone, or was everyone just hiding in the rooms on the ship? Was there even an actual emergency or was this a false alarm, a nightmare maybe? Baekhyun had to pinch himself at the last one.

However, he is just running past a room when a dead, his flesh rotting and pungent smelling, groaned and speeded toward him. Baekhyun startled, but immediately gripped his gun and let out fire, shooting straight for the head like he had been told, and the dead dropped as Baekhyun gasped and shook. With his hands trembling, he shot twice more at the still body just incase, and then started tumbling over himself, trying to get away. Okay, so there was definitely something going on.

He picked up his pace again, panting hard and tears running down his eyes, because that was close, but he doesn't want it to be that close again, so he dries his eyes and continues. If there is one dead running loose, then there were bound to be more. 

Baekhyun’s almost out of section C in the passenger dorms, when he turns a corner and runs straight into another body. He falls back petrified, grabbing for his gun, but then he’s looking into Minseok’s wild eyes also holding a blazer and Baekhyun almost hugs him in relief. Thank god. It’s like all the fear, horror, and fright leaves Baekhyun almost immediately when he sees those pair of eyes, even though they are still out in the middle of possible danger.

Minseok relaxes immediately at the sight of him too, running over to help him up, “Baekhyun! Are you okay?” he asks, checking him over. “You aren't bitten are you?” he questions, and his sharp eyes look at him, but Baekhyun is just so thankful he’s even here. He shakes his head immediately choking up, and Minseok sags in relief, immediately grabbing his hand and running, “We are getting out of here.” he says, and Baekhyun nods even though Minseok can’t see. 

Just then he remembers, Baekhyun was so thankful to even see Minseok that he almost forgot to ask what was going on. “Minseok Hyung!” Baekhyun says as they run through halls and halls of passenger rooms, “How bad is the breakout?” and Minseok looks back at him quickly before looking upfront again. He is quiet for a minute before he finally sighs.

“Really bad. I'm not sure on an exact number obviously, but it could be anywhere from as low as a hundred, to as high as five-hundred.” He says, and Baekhyun’s hand becomes clammy in the olders. If Minseok and him happened upon a swarm of dead right now… they wouldn't live.

Minseok keeps going though, “I heard from those ing bastards what they did to you last night.” he seethes, “Yixing, Kris, Kyungsoo, and me, we were so worried when we didn't see you leave. But then I overheard Sunlee talking.” Minseok says glaring at nothing and the grip on Baekhyun’s wrist becomes tighter. Baekhyun doesn’t comment, instead keeping watch behind them and on the doorways as they move swiftly through the halls.

“It's okay hyung. I'm okay” He finally says when Minseok looks back at him, fear, and hurt crossing his face when he thinks Baekhyun might be mad at him for not catching this sooner. But Baekhyun gives him a calming smile and some of the tension seeps out of Minseok's shoulders, as the other sighs.

“I'm sorry Baekhyun.” he says, pausing and not saying anything for a while, “I knew about them. I knew and I didn't know what to say or do. I was hoping they would stop and let their petty childish anger go, but they didn't. And then I was scared they would bully you more if I did say something, and I’m just, I'm so sorry.” He says and Baekhyun sighs. Minseok isn’t at fault here and yet he is torn up and feeling horrible. “It’s okay.” Baekhyun just says again and squeezes his hand.

They have been running for a while and Baekhyun is panting tiredly at this point but he keeps up his pace, when a thought suddenly crosses his mind.

“Hyung? Why were you even all the way down here?” he asks, and Minseok ducks his head not answering, as realization suddenly dawns on Baekhyun, “Hyung!” Baekhyun looks amazed. “You didn't come... all the way back for me... did you?”

And Minseok looks at him for a second before he’s looking ahead again. It seems like that’s becoming a habit when they are together. “I couldn’t leave you Baekhyun. I can’t. I would never forgive myself if something had happened to you, and I had the chance to save you, but I didn't. Not a second time. I already let you down once, so I just. It would kill me. I had to come and get you.” He says