“Ji Hwan?” My jaw fell and I got to my feet. “Wh…how?” He jumped over Kangnam before scooping me in his arms. Ji Hwan was five years older than me, but we were incredibly close. When he left to study in Korea I thought he was leaving me personally.

“Haneul, what are you doing here?” He kissed my forehead before wrapping his arms around me again. “Grandmother…” A tear rolled down his face. “Umma and Appa?” I just shook my head.

“I was on the last plane out of there and we didn’t even make it.” Before he had the chance to ask I answered his questions. “The country was falling apart and mom wanted me to be safe. Grandma said that it was safe here, so I got the last plane out. There were too many people in the coach section but I was in first class. Someone back there was sick.

“We were about to land when the people in coach went crazy. We could hear them, but the hostess tried to keep them back. Then the pilot must have lost control and we went down.” He listened without interrupting. “They found me on the tarmac and brought me here. I don’t even know what is happening.” Ji Hwan looked around before leading me to the back corner. It wasn’t very far from the others, but it was far enough.

“We are still in the Incheon airport. Actually it was the plan to get on a plane that was leaving, hopefully going anywhere else.” The woman, Ahn Riah, met my eyes before quickly looking away. She was standing next whom I assumed was Kiseok and she looked miserable.

“Haneul, listen to me.” He turned my face back towards him. “Haneul, the world is over. This is the end of everything.”

“Explain like I am a child and don’t know anything about what has happened.”

“Yersunia Pestis took the world by storm. It evolved into a super bacteria and left mutated cells in its wake. Those mutated cells were half dead, they had no senses but were still functioning.” He took my hand in his like he did when we were children. “The remaining cells are put into fight or flight mode, usually fight. When someone is scared they lash out and attack those around them and right now it’s via biting.

“Any bodily fluids will transfer this super bacteria so the bite victims fell ill and took to hurting others as well.”

“So this virus is like making people into zombie like people.” He nodded and opened his mouth. “And almost everyone is a zombie and the rest are dead.”

“The bite victims can be cured though.” Ji Hwan gestured to Ahn Riah. “Her sister was one of them and we locked her in a room before giving her some sort of sedative. When it got through her system she was almost normal. She could talk and she even ate food with us. She stayed that way for four days. When we started to move she started panicking and bolted.”

“So its curable.” He nodded warily. “What is the catch?”

“I saw her sister again and she was just as bad.” Banging on the door startled me, but Ji Hwan ignored it. “They seem to understand who is sick because they don’t hurt each other. Unless there is a fight, then it is brutal. They don’t have much of a food source, so they will eat what they kill.”

“Ya Pupl.” Sims tried to call me before continuing in Korean.

“We’re powering down for the night. Come on.” We went back to where he was sleeping earlier and he offered me his cot.

“Will you stay with me?”

“Still?” He grinned when I nodded. “Yeah, I always did and I will now.” Whenever we would move somewhere new, I would sneak into Ji Hwan’s room and sleep with him. He never vocalized that it bothered him.

“Ji Hwan?” He laid down next to me. “Promise you won’t leave me? Even if I turn into a muncher?”

“I promise I wont leave you.”