The abrupt crash of ceramic against hard earth jolted the party of 3, sending silent chills sizzling between the tense atmosphere. A second dragged on. “Yi Fan? Is that you?” Barely a whisper.

A sudden murderous shriek punctured the silence, the shadow of a near skeleton lunged out, claws outstretched and going right at Zitao. Cans of food spilled onto the abandoned mall’s floor as the young man was shoved down. Horrified cries tore from his throat as quivering arms threw a few punches to the soggy rancid flesh atop him. The creature hissed and spat at him, claws that held Zitao down were strong as steel. It was the first time he had seen an infected this close since the apocalypse. A sickly greenish brown were consuming the space where the eye whites used to be, and sharp, sharp canines protruded out from the half ripped mouth.

“!” A much lower and deeper voice shouted. “Chanyeol, here!” The deadly weight was lifted off Zitao’s body just as the creature was about to purged its teeth into his flesh. It was carelessly thrown aside against the tile, a surprised and angry hiss emitting from the back of its throat. Before Zitao had the chance to prop himself onto his elbows, the creature picked itself up, unfazed and already leaping at Yifan with a roar. All could be seen in its eyes were the yearn for fresh blood and flesh. Raw teeth snapped at him; the baseball bat barely denting its skull as Yifan brought it down hard. It was no use, the creature was far too strong. With a chilling wail, it forced Yifan down with momentum and strength. Broad back met the ground. Sharp teeth sank into taut muscles.

“NO” Zitao cried, desperately scrambling up but someone was holding him back, dragging him away from Yifan. “Chanyeol let me ing go!” The zombie had Yifan pinned down, the latter’s agonizing cries echoing throughout the room. “Do something Chanyeol, do something!” Zitao cried, fingernails digging into Chanyeol’s shirt whilst tears sprang from his eyes. “F-, I – ”

A gun was pulled from the back pocket of Chanyeol’s jeans, quivering fingers aiming and pulling the trigger.

BANG

But it’s too late. It’s always too late.

*

Darkness infiltrates into shades of grey behind Zitao’s fluttering eyelids, sickening ruby red and haunting screams twisting into an abyss black and horrendously hard concrete. He blindly reached out his hand, searching for Yifan’s presence in the dark. When his fingers came in contact with something warm and solid, Zitao scooted closer to Yifan’s singlet clad chest, burying his head in the crook of the latter’s neck. He closed his eyes in brief relief upon feeling a pair of lips gently nuzzling the top of his head. Yifan’s large hand softly rubbed the small of his back as Zitao bit his bottom lip hard, trying to suppress the sobs that were threatening to suffocate him.

“Y-Yifan…” he softly mewled, lacing his long fingers with the material of Yifan’s dirty clothing, silent cries starting to wreck his lanky frame.

The older boy held his lover close, whispering words of comfort and reassurance quietly into Zitao’s ear, swiping away a few tears that spilled from the younger’s eyes with his thumb. “Nightmares again?” Yifan whispered gently, kissing Zitao’s forehead. Worry was evident in the older boy’s dark eyes. He knew that those haunting scenarios were frequent visitors to Zitao’s weak, defenseless mind, that Zitao couldn’t help but keep all the horror and screams in until it’s over and the boy was left shaking and sobbing in the aftermath.

“I-It got you, you were almost killed,” Zitao spluttered, his voice hoarse. Haunted eyes bore into Yifan’s soul, “There was nothing I could do but watch. I-I tried to save you but Chanyeol was holding me back and it, it just – ”

“Shh, I’m alright, I’m here. I’ve got you, you’re alright,” Yifan assured him softly, his lips caressing the back of his ear as he laced their fingers together. “None of it is real, relax. I’ll never let them get close to you, I promise.”

Zitao nodded slowly and wiped his face clean of tears, occasionally letting out a small sniffle. He’s once again reassured that Yifan would protect him at all cost; he’ll never let them get close to Zitao, but who’s going to stop them from getting to Yifan? Zitao isn’t stupid, he knew it all too well that by the time those infected creatures are through with them, not a single human will be left alive. Not a single one.

*

[A/N] Hey guys this is be a 3 shot (excluding foreword) It'll contain horror, violence, gore, angst and (maybe?) and character death. So yeap! This story is a zombie apocalypse AU so nothing is real and none of the characters are mine. I'll upload the first shot soon :-)