t/w - blood, child death (not described but hinted)

We reached the forest with ease, entering it with fallen sticks crunching under our feet.

Now, the tough part was getting to another safe shelter.

Sejeong tugged on my shirt, voice low. “I’m not sure how long the forest goes on for. I’m not sure if there’s something on the other side of this direction.” She whispered into my ear so the others wouldn’t hear. I kept walking, stepping over a fallen tree branch.

“If anything, we can just sleep on the ground.” I replied. Sejeong furrowed her eyebrows, giving me a worried look. I raised an eyebrow and she began walking faster to get back to the front of the group, leading the way. I held tightly onto the revolver in my hand and kept lookout for anything moving among the trees.

Doyeon was holding hands with Yoojung, the two had been glued together by the hips ever since we started moving again. You would’ve thought Doyeon was away for two years with the way they were acting. I didn’t blame them though. In a world like this, even just one day away was enough for you to be considered dead.

The horde we had encountered before was no longer there, I think I successfully managed to veer their direction entirely. The only confrontation we had so far had only been with seriously crippled undead, ones with half of their body gone. Sejeong would use her machete to take them out of their misery, a quick slash to their neck to decapitate the monster and kill it again.

Most of the girls would look away when she did this, except for Somi who would just gush about how disgusting it was. The girl was still innocently pure despite everything that was going on. She was still young so that youthful spirit was still alive in her. It’d be quite a sad thing to watch her grow out of it.

We continued on until the sun began to set and we had to pull out our flashlights. Six of us now had our own flashlights thanks to the marker we scavenged. We also got a few batteries to spare.

It got dark enough that our flashlights would only show a few feet in front of us.

“Can we take a break? I think we’re far enough.” Yoojung spoke up into the silent atmosphere. “Doyeon isn’t feeling too good.” She murmured as she held onto the girl’s hand with her hand that wasn’t holding onto her flashlight.

The girls looked to me for acceptance of this break time. I gave a gentle nod and the girls immediately sat down to rest their legs, groaning. Sejeong hushed them and in a second they were silent again. I walked towards Sejeong who slung the duffel bag off of her shoulders and placed it on the ground. “We have enough to give everybody something.” She said quietly, handing me a few bags of beef jerky to give to the girls and a couple water bottles.

After every girl was rationed some food and water, I sat back against a nearby tree and carefully set the revolver down next to me.

“Nayoung, are you hungry?” Sejeong whispered. I shook my head, eyes wandering over the dark treetops before I ran my flashlight over the girls, doing one last head count.

Sohye and Mina were cuddled against each other, already knocked out. I could see Somi laying on her stomach, talking with Chaeyeon and Jieqiong quietly. Chungha was sitting next to Somi, playing with her hair. Doyeon and Yoojung were curled against each other, talking under their breaths. I clicked the flashlight off and set it down on my lap.

My eyes met Sejeong’s in the darkness and we stared at each other for a few seconds before she quietly made her way next to me. “Do you want me to take first shift?” She asked me as I felt her hand graze my own.

“I’m not sleepy yet.” I replied, trying to keep my voice low as to not wake up the other girls who were already sleeping or were trying to sleep.

“But I’m not sleepy, either.” Sejeong whispered, letting out a smile and a small giggle. I had to take a moment to wonder in silence how someone could be so radiant at such a low point in their lives, how her smile didn’t seem to be lacking any sort of happiness. “I guess I’ll stay up with you, then.”

It was silent for a moment before we heard something rustling. I turned my flashlight on, shining it over in the direction I heard the noise in. I saw Chungha giving me and Sejeong a sheepish look, squinting at the bright light.

“I need a pad.”

Sejeong whispered loud enough for her to hear. “They’re in the first aid bag.” She gave us a thumbs-up before walking over the bodies of her members. I continued to shine the flashlight over in her direction so she could see, waiting until the girl successfully pulled out the pad. Unfortunately, even though the world ended, our periods did not.

“Thanks.” Chungha whispered. I clicked the flashlight off and Sejeong and I sat in silence once more. The buzzing of insects were the only thing we heard as she rested her head down onto my shoulder and took hold of my hand.

I counted my heartbeats and got up to twenty before her voice rang out into the silence, louder because she was right next to me. “Are you okay?” She asked me softly.

I furrowed my eyebrows at the question. “Why wouldn’t I be?” The words had so much weight beneath them and I wasn’t sure in what way I should take them.

Sejeong lifted her head to look at me with her eyes laced with worry. “I just worry about you.”

“Don’t.” I said, squeezing her hand gently. Sejeong frowned, eyes wavering.

“I can’t help it.” Her hand slipped from mine, going to her own lap. Strings pulled inside of me. “I just worry.”

“I’m fine.” The words came out almost mechanically.

“That’s not what I want to hear you say.” Sejeong muttered.

“What do you want me to say, then?” I tried to keep my voice level low. “That I’m not okay?”

“I want you to tell me the truth.” Her eyes flickered back up to meet mine.

“I…” I was going to tell her that I was okay but I knew she wouldn’t take it. I gulped down the words and refreshed my brain, closing my eyes.

After a few moments, “I’m tired.” I mumbled, hoping that Sejeong would be accepting of these words that I was digging up from inside my heart. “I’m tired physically… I’m tired emotionally.” I opened my eyes to see Sejeong giving me a comforting smile. “I’m just... tired.” I whispered.

“That wasn’t that hard, was it?” Sejeong whispered. I blinked before looking away, over to the girls. I felt Sejeong’s hand come up to my cheek and automatically, I turned to look at her. A small gasp left my lips at our close distance. She gave me a small smile. “We’re all here for you, you know?” The hand on my cheek felt warm and soothing. “You don’t have to take on all of this alone. We’re a group for a reason.”

I nodded weakly. It was all I could do when Sejeong, the girl who always smiled brightly and would amp the mood up with her mere presence, was staring at me so emotionally raw. I closed my eyes instinctively when she leaned in, feeling her lips against my cheek, just next to the cut that was on my lip. She leaned back just as I opened my eyes, heart pounding in my ears.

“You can sleep first.” She smiled. “You haven’t slept in a long time. You need it more than I do.”

The selfless portion in me hesitated but Sejeong had already weakened me up. She reached behind my head and gently tugged the hair tie out of my hair. One last stern look from her and I was laying my head down on her lap, eyes closing.

-

Sejeong woke me up as soon as the sun began to rise. I sat up instantly, turning to look at her with wide eyes and a spinning head.

Note to self, don’t do that next time.

I shut my eyes, keeping myself from fainting on the spot. I could hear the other girls behind me waking up and gathering their things.

“Why didn’t you wake me up sooner?” I grumbled, feeling like a bad leader for sleeping all night when Sejeong could’ve gotten some sleep.

“You needed the sleep.” I heard Sejeong stand up. “It’s fine. I’ll sleep at our next resting point.”

I opened my eyes and saw Sejeong redoing her ponytail. I furrowed my eyebrows.

“Isn’t that my hair tie?” I asked with a dry throat.

“Yes.” Sejeong smiled widely.

Another voice joined in the conversation, the brightness of it making my brain naturally assume it was Somi. “Why do you have Nayoung’s hair tie?” She asked as she picked up her bag. I looked over to her and saw Jieqiong and Chaeyeon standing next to each other, already packed up to begin moving. Jieqiong’s hand rested lightly in between the hook of Chaeyeon’s bent arm.

“I took it out for her yesterday.” Sejeong replied, reaching a hand down for me to take. I curled my own around hers and felt the girl pull me up with strength I had no idea she acquired. I stumbled into her body, which made Sejeong giggle. She looked up at me as I froze momentarily. She cocked her head to the side slightly which made me snap out of my daze and gather my senses, taking a step back.

“Nayoung’s blushing.” Mina whispered excitedly. I looked over my shoulder, ready to glare at anybody and everybody - but of course, with my luck, my eyes met Jieqiong’s. I quickly looked away and crouched down to gather my things, picking up the revolver.

“Ready to move?” I asked the group before they all nodded. Sejeong passed by me to start leading the girl, not forgetting to shoot me a smile. Somi was next to pass me, in line behind Sejeong.

“Psst, lift your jaw off the ground.” She teased me with a snicker. I shot her a look but she was already turned around, giggling with Mina and Chungha. I trusted you, Chungha.

I waited for the rest of the girls to get behind the others before placing myself last, taking one last look of the forest floor to make sure we hadn’t forgotten anything before walking off. The journey was difficult as usual, the girls were tripping and stumbling over hidden roots and branches on the ground. Poor Yoojung had managed to trip right into a thorn bush.

“We’re nearing something.” Sejeong spoke up into the silence of the group, I looked over the heads of the other girls to see what Nayoung was talking about. Indeed we were nearing something. Staring into the treeline, instead of just seeing more trees, there was a light grey color behind. We were nearing a road or a city or something. “Nayoung.” She called out for me, sticking her head out to the side to look for me at the end. “Do you want the whole group to go?”

The girls all turned their heads to look at me. It wasn’t the first time they all had their eyes trained on me, not at all - but it still made my stomach queasy at how much they trusted me.

“I’ll go with a couple of people to check if it’s safe.” I decided after a moment of thinking, figuring it’d be too risky to send all eleven of us out there without knowing what was beyond. I scanned my eyes over the group, thinking of who I should take with me. “I’ll go with Yeonjung and…” My eyes skipped past Jieqiong. “Somi.”

Sejeong nodded her head and I walked in front of her, reaching behind her to take my hair tie back. The shorter girl just let her lips curve up as she stared at me. “Be careful.”

“As always.” I replied, giving her the revolver to hold as I tied my hair up. “Be prepared to run if we come back in a panic.” I mumbled under my breath so only she could hear. Sejeong hummed, handing me back my weapon. I looked behind me to see Yeonjung and Somi close behind me. Yeonjung still had that screwdriver whilst Somi had the bat.

“Ready?” I asked. Somi nodded and Yeonjung just gave me a blank stare. I took that as a yes and began to move forward, knowing they were following behind me just by their footsteps. As we got closer and closer to the end of the forest, I could see now that what we faced was a highway. I hopped over the guardrail and waited for the girls to do the same.

“This place has got to be riddled with infected.” Somi murmured. She was right. Places like this where people had gotten trapped trying to escape were always the worst places. So far, there wasn’t anything that I could see.

“Be careful when you pass by a car.” Yeonjung warned. “There might be some underneath.” I nodded and continued across the highway, going over another guardrail to get to the other side. Somi gasped and I nearly snapped my neck looking back over her.

“I told you.” Yeonjung mumbled as we all stared at an undead stuck underneath a turned car, hand trying to reach for Somi who had jumped back just in time. Yeonjung tugged on Somi’s hand and kept her going, not letting the girl stay frozen in terror for too long. My heartbeat returned to normal after that and we made it across the other lanes without another episode like that.

On the other side was more forest. The question was, do we go back into the forest or do we follow the highway and hope it could take us somewhere more resourceful? Yeonjung and Somi watched me, one with a hardened stare and one with a stare that resembled a beagle. “I think we should go back and ask the rest of the girls what they think we should do.”

Yeonjung seemed to agree with me as she nodded and turned with Somi still holding on to her hand. I followed the two back, constantly looking around to make sure there were no incoming hordes or gangs. The girls were all leaning against trees when we came back.

“It’s a highway.” I said to them. Some of the girls looked excited whilst the others look frightened. The majority just looked confused. “But the forest continues beyond it.”

My eyes moved from each girl to another. “I wanted to ask you all what you think we should do; follow the highway or continue through the forest?”

“That’s a big decision.” Chungha muttered, looking at me with a wrinkled forehead. I nodded. “Which is why I wanted to get the input of you girls.”

Yeonjung gave me a look of approval, something that I had never seen from her. She spoke up after a moment of silence from the other girls who were too scared to speak up their own thoughts. “I think we should follow the highway.” Everyone stayed quiet as she spoke. I waited for her reasoning, interested in what she had to say. “The forest probably leads to another portion of this same highway, don’t you think?”

The others murmured quiet agreements.

“If it’s a new shelter we’re looking for, going through the forest would be a waste of time when the highway could literally lead us to shelter.”

Sohye was next to speak. “But it could also bring us to bad people.” She was always the innocent practical one, the one who thought of the cons of things and brought us back to reality of the world we lived in. Yeonjung didn’t lash out as she would have had it been when we first took her into the group. She nodded and hummed, understanding Sohye’s point of view.

“You’re right. But the forest could do the same.”

“We live in a dangerous world now.” Sejeong intervened. “Let’s do a vote, then. Those in favor of going into the forest, raise your hand into a fist.” Along with her own hand, Chungha, Somi, Sohye, and Mina raised their fists, keeping them raised as Sejeong spoke again. “And those in favor of following the highway, keep your hand open.” The other girls raised their hands. Sejeong looked at me expectantly as I was the only one who hadn’t voted, wanting to see what the girls would choose for themselves.

It was all on me again. Even when I had wanted to have the girls’ voices voiced, it still came down to my decision. I took a deep breath.

“It’s too dangerous to follow the highway.” I said with a calm voice, remembering how Somi had nearly gotten scratched by one of the undead on the ankles. “Too many hidden undead, too little places to hide if we needed to.” I waited for at least one girl to speak up against me, mostly Yeonjung, but they all stayed quiet as I spoke, listening intently. “We’ll scavenge the cars nearby but we’ll continue on into the forest.”

The girls who voted for the highway option didn’t seem the least bit upset, not even Yeonjung. I nodded. “Please be careful when you are scavenging. They could be hiding under cars. Take what you can carry and stay in my eye of sight at all times.” I said before gesturing for the girls to keep walking.

As the girls rummaged through abandoned cars and other vehicles, I noticed Sejeong sitting on the ground. I kneeled down next to her, the hot asphalt practically burning my bare knee. “Are you okay?” I asked her worriedly.

“Yeah, just need a little rest is all. I’ll be up and at ‘em in no time, leader.” She grinned towards me. I gave her a skeptical look before standing back up and walking down the highway. I turned my head and saw Jieqiong staring at something, standing motionlessly with a blank face on. I walked towards her and slowed my pace when I noticed what she was staring at.

A little boy, no older than eight, was dangling halfway out of the car window. He was stuck because the window wasn’t rolled down far enough for him to actually escape, his frail arm reaching out for Jieqiong as his mouth let out groans. Jieqiong didn’t say anything as we stared. I sighed after a few moments of watching the poor thing struggle.

“Let’s get back to gathering supplies.”

“You aren’t going to…” She looked at me, eyes glossy. I bit the insides of my cheek, knowing what she was hinting at. My heart was already hurting just thinking about what I had to do.

“I will. Later.” I said, nodding softly.

“Do you promise me?” She asked me.

“Yes.” I knew she had a soft spot for the young ones. Jieqiong’s bottom lip quivered before she her heel and continued to search through other vehicles. I turned my attention back to the child and let out a shaky breath.

I went to ask Sejeong for the machete.

-

2 ┊ “You’re being oddly aloof with the group, Nayoung.” Yebin said to the older girl as they walked home together. Nayoung made a face at the word (it was just a twitch of her eye, really). “Why are you being so distant?”

Nayoung didn’t reply, just opened to let out a small sigh.

“It’s because of Jieqiong, isn’t it?”

It was spot on. And now, as Nayoung was sitting in her bedroom alone, packing up her things to head back to university, the words hit her stronger than ever. Her flight was early morning and Nayoung didn’t plan on sleeping anytime soon. The moon was only starting to come out.

She felt numbness in her stomach as she packed her things, ears zoning out the TV until she heard a loud clatter. The noise striked something as odd because she was watching the news channel - something that was often professional and not sounding like a ruckus.

She looked up to her TV, shocked to see a ‘Breaking News’ banner rolling over the bottom of the screen. Her eyes read the words but only a few were stuck in her head.

‘Stay inside and wait for help. Do not try to fight them off. Help is coming.’

Nayoung’s eyes widened in terror, hand reaching for her phone on her bed. She opened the group chat, already seeing the notifications pouring in from the girls. They all mostly consisted of ‘I’m scared’ and ‘What the hell is happening?’ and it made Nayoung’s pulse quicken. Her parents weren’t home, both at work somewhere in the main city whilst Nayoung was home alone.

‘I’m home alone.’ Was all Nayoung typed into the group chat before tossing her phone to the side and sitting on the edge of her bed, running her hands through her hair. She kept her eyes trained on the TV. This had to be some sort of joke, right?

“Officials are saying this is the worst virus outbreak they had ever seen.” The anchor man said with a serious tone though it was clear to every viewer that he was scared just as everyone else was. His eyes said it all. “The virus is transmitted through contact with blood and cuts. Scratches from the infected as well as bites will infect you.”

Nayoung’s head was racing.

“Those who are infected have no concept of pain and are hostile. Do not try to control one. They do not understand what you are saying.” He was reading off of a paper, his voice getting shakier with each word. I could hear the panicked voices in the background. He looked up to the camera despite the background noises. “Stay safe, everyone.”

And that was when the channel went off the air.

The silence in the room enveloped Nayoung all too quickly.

Hostile. Infected. Bites. Scratches.

What?

Nayoung felt frustrated and all she really wanted was for her parents to come home and for them to come home soon. That was when her phone rang. She picked it up without even looking at the caller ID.

It was her mom.

“Sweetie? Sweetie, I want you to pack any necessary things. Food, water, clothes.”

“Mom?” Nayoung wanted to cry.

Her mom didn’t even reply to her, continuing with the lists of all the things she should pack for herself. Nayoung could hear screams coming through the phone from her mom’s side of the call. She gulped as her mom stayed silent for a few more moments. Then she heard a loud pounding and could hear her mom’s harsh breathing in the call.

“Nayoung. Nayoung, I love you.” Her mom whispered, breaking down as she stared at the monster pounding at her car’s glass window. Stuck in traffic, she had nowhere to go. “Nayoung, I love you.” She cried quietly as the monster cracked the window.

The call ended before Nayoung could even say the words back.

She was crying as she ran to the basement with her backpack, gathering water bottles and canned foods as well as a flashlight her father had them use whenever the power went out. She stuffed what she could in there before running back upstairs. She clothed herself in light clothes but packed sweatpants and threw on a sweater. The tears were running down her cheeks without end as she opened her drawers frantically, looking for anything she could use.

Her heart broke when she saw an old picture of her and her friends back when things were so much simpler. She didn’t look at it for long, going to reach for the journal Jieqiong had gotten her years ago but she had never used, thinking it was too pretty for her ugly handwriting. She threw it into her bag before zipping it up, wiping her face with the palms of her hands. Her parents were gone and she knew it. It’d be suicidal to stay where she was waiting for them when they weren’t ever going to come back.

The quicker she realized that, the more chance of surviving she had. And Nayoung planned on surviving.

With a panicked mind, she rushed out into the kitchen and opened a drawer, pulling out the biggest knife in there. She gulped as she held it in her hands, rushing to put on her sneakers. She opened the door and was greeted by darkness. She pulled out the flashlight and turned it on, not bothering to close the door behind her as she left.

Her footsteps sounded louder than ever as she hurried down the sidewalk, scared out of her wits. She planned on going into the nearby forest, the one just behind her old high school. She and her friends used to explore the woods there and had found out it eventually led to the next town over. Nayoung just needed to head somewhere that wasn’t crowded with people.

She froze when she heard a scream coming from her neighbor’s house. Half of her told her to keep walking but the other half of her told her to go save the person. The more uninfected the better. Nayoung’s feet moved by themselves as she rushed up the front stairs and opened the door. She delved further into the house, hearing loud noises coming from down the hall. Nayoung ran and noticed what used to be her neighbors.

Her eyes widened as they looked at her, heads tilting in an inhumanely manner. They stumbled towards her and Nayoung nearly ran away but she mustered up all the strength inside of her and whacked the man on the head with her flashlight once he got into the position she wanted her in. With the hit, he knocked over his wife and they stumbled down the basement.

Nayoung closed the doors and rushed towards the bedroom door they had been knocking on. It was their daughter’s room. Nayoung knocked on it hurriedly.

“It’s okay. I’m not infected.” She said loud enough over the girl’s cries. “Please open the door, I want to help.”

There was a moment of silence before the door unlocked, revealing her neighbor, Kim Sohye.