CFS I: Zombie Boi!

Summary: Taeyeon, a zombie, wonders how it feels like to become a human again.

Note: Hello, this is a special chapter I wrote for CFS. I'm currently writing CFS 2 and some requests AND lastly, the new story I posted (Love Frequency)  lmao. I figure out maybe I should release my special stories after some time instead of letting them sleep on my drive. I think I need some new friends... Can YOU be my friend? :D -KNURD

I.

‘I want to become human again.’

Year 3000.

The unrealistic expectation from the television about the zombie plague hits hard when it turns into reality. The people became so keen on improvement and ambitious wants on becoming super-humans and becoming immortal. It all started when a clumsy scientist dropped a vial of the virus in a secret laboratory. The infectious outbreak started, and the world became devastated.

But it wasn’t as what the Walking Dead on TV showed.

The virus damaged the brain’s cerebellum and cerebrum causing the humans to walk, talk and move slowly. The infected also developed a biting disorder called dermatophagia. The habit of biting one’s self and other people. The biting lessens when people learned to take innovative measures by selling the zombies biting toys to lessen their urges to bite.

As time goes by, people learned how to cope up with things. The infected zombies and humans learned how to live together. Some people learned how to accept the infected and some people avoid them like plague.

A decade after an outbreak, humans developed another vial as they claimed to be a miracle in healing the zombies back to their humanity. An advertisement could be heard from one’s television.

“Want to become human again? Be one of our test subjects! A new Zombie Boi vaccine for the infected is here to reverse the infection! Be a human again! Reach us at xxx-xxx-xxx-123 now!”

Taeyeon was inside her bedroom. She was watching her TV after a tiring day at work. She was once a musician, however, when a zombie bit her on her way to her home ten years ago, she became infected. Her ability to sing was robbed in an instant. Her friends avoided her like a plague. Her family stayed by her side, but it was Taeyeon’s choice to move out to avoid prejudice against her family in their neighbourhood. She now works as a teacher for zombie children.

She once again found her place in this world. Around with the school institution built by zombies who were once a human to continue their lives on. They developed somehow a sign language gesture for zombies to have the ability to understand each other. She found new friends. Yuri and Sooyoung. They are also a teacher at the school that Taeyeon works for. They’re both zombies too.

Taeyeon still remembered the first time she met the two:

“How did you become infected?” Taeyeon asked through zombies’ sign language while they’re eating their lunch at the school cafeteria. Raw food became the speciality for zombies. It just suddenly smelled so good when Taeyeon became infected. She suddenly understood why people loved Sashimi.

“I was sleeping when my sister who was a zombie, bit me,” Yuri thought hard before she made her sign language slowly to convey her message, Taeyeon and Sooyoung looked at each other unhurriedly. Sooyoung languidly shook her head, “That , you must be mad.” It took a long minute before Yuri answered.

“Surprisingly, I wasn’t. I mean, it’s my sister after all.” Though her actions were unenergetically done, Yuri’s eyes spoke much meaning. Taeyeon saw the sadness in her eyes. Yuri was once an athlete before she became a zombie but how could ever one become mad at someone they love?

‘The outbreak .’ Taeyeon thought.

Taeyeon saw Sooyoung nodded slowly before she carried her own story, it took an awful five minutes before Sooyoung finished her gestures, “The waiter bit me.”

Thank god for their two hours break! The perks of being a zombie are that they have longer breaks than normal people do.

Sooyoung was a chef before she became a teacher for zombie kids. She had to quit because of the discrimination that human sets on the infected when handling foods.

‘It seems like everyone has a sad story,’ Taeyeon sighed depressingly, she was slowly picking up her last piece of meat when Sooyoung beats her through it.

‘It took her a long five minutes to convey a four worded context but only a few seconds to steal my food.’

“Mm-mine.” Sooyoung slurred.

Back to Taeyeon who was watching the television, she thought ‘Can this vaccine cure us?’

She made her way to the bathroom to prepare herself to sleep. She saw her pale complexion on the mirror, violet lines of veins on the side of her face and her Sapphire eyes which were one of the effects of the virus.

‘I want to become human again.’

She looked at the calendar and saw the date for tomorrow, ‘It’s weekend.’ She texted the hotline and said, ‘I’m interested.’

The hotline sent her an address and a form to fill up. “Zombie Boi awaits for you!”

She sent a text to her friends, “Want to try the Zombie Boi vaccine?”

She received a reply from Yuri after fifteen minutes. “I’m okay, I don’t need it.”

It took Sooyoung an hour before she could type in a reply, “No.”

“Why not?” Taeyeon sent back a reply.

Another fifteen minutes came when Yuri replied, “I’m doing good right now.”

Sooyoung replied after another hour, “Me too.”

‘How could they feel good after this disease robbed everything away from us?’ Taeyeon could only wonder.

II.

“You know, some humans are worse than zombies.”

Taeyeon found herself standing in front of a huge building of a human pharmaceutical company called ‘Zombie Boi’. She’s willing to become one of their test subjects on their miracle vaccine.

The concierge was a human and tried to dismiss her quickly, he told her to go to the 30th floor to meet Doctor Z. The scientist who invented the Zombie Boi’s newly vaccine.

It took her fifteen minutes to reach the ten-meter away elevator, she then bumped into someone.

A woman in black.

“Perhaps she’s a security.’ Taeyeon thought judging from the woman’s clothes.

“Sssorry” Taeyeon muttered.

“It’s alright.” the woman smiled as she pressed her floor on the elevator button.

‘She’s a human,’ Taeyeon thought.

“Which floor are you?” the woman kindly asked and Taeyeon appreciated the politeness and respect.

“T-Thirty.”

The woman’s face suddenly became unreadable.

“You’re here to see Doctor Z?” the woman asked and Taeyeon nodded. The woman looked hesitant before she asked another question.

“Are you sure about this? I mean, there’s nothing wrong with being a zombie.”

For a moment, Taeyeon was confused and she became quite annoyed, so she frowned.

‘Since she’s a human, she wouldn’t understand.’ Taeyeon kept that answer to herself just gave out her silence as her answer. The woman seemed to understand. The woman reached her floor, but she looked back at Taeyeon before she went off.

“You know, some humans are worse than zombies.”

Then, the elevator closed.

‘Why is she discouraging me?’ Taeyeon was lost in her thoughts until she reached her floor.

Once she came out of the elevator, she saw a lot of zombies waiting for Doctor Z.

“Zombie Boi awaits for you!” she heard someone said.

III.

“…What’s more important than becoming a human?”

Taeyeon found herself standing in front of Doctor Z’s room. She saw a lot of zombies waiting in the area too. But since she made an appointment, a bulky guy who she assumed was security as well let her in.

“Zombie Boi awaits for you.” He said as he scrunched his nose in disgust and slightly in fear of zombies eating his brain.

‘He doesn’t even have one.’  Taeyeon just looked down and slowly walks into the room.

Taeyeon saw Doctor Z inside. He seemed clumsy that he knocked his feet on the table. Doctor Z greeted her with an awkward smile.

“I-I’m sorry about…oh!” he dropped his nameplate on the table on the floor. When he reached it up, he bumped his head on the table. “Owww!”

“Yyou kay?” Taeyeon slurred an inquiry.

“My dearest zombie, you have come!”

Taeyeon was stunned, the doctor knows the zombie sign language.

‘It seems like I won’t have trouble speaking here.’

The doctor and Taeyeon had an interview and Doctor Z explained the process. Taeyeon needed to stay in the facility for two weeks for a few tests before they gave out the vaccine. Taeyeon worried about her work for a moment.

“Can’t.” Taeyeon crossed her hands.

“Nonsense! What’s more important than becoming a human?” Doctor Z conveyed through sign language as he flashed Taeyeon a video of happy humans on his computer.

‘How tempting.’ Taeyeon thought.

Then, she saw and heard a human singing on the computer. Immense sadness with motivation suddenly came into her. She faced Doctor Z to make a sign language.

“I’ll do it.”

IV.

‘This is taking quite long.’

It’s been two weeks since Taeyeon stayed in the facility. Shortly after the talks with Doctor Z, she informed her co-workers/friends that she’ll be taking a leave for the Zombie Boi vaccine but up until now, no news about the vaccine had been told to them. They underwent after series of tests, but no shots have been taken yet. The facility is highly secured. Once in, no outs. It was huge however has no television, no reception, no radio, just beds, cafeteria and hopeful zombies who wanted to become a human slowly flocking on the area.

From fifty to a hundred to a thousand. Taeyeon could only wonder why. She’s been living with food ration from humans and her urge to bite is slowly coming back due to lack of biting objects to satiate her needs. She’s slowly noticing that other zombies are starting to be struggling as well.

It took another hour before food ration for lunch was given and a lot of zombies crowded the cafeteria. Taeyeon became uneasy so she looked for a spot to be alone.

‘This is taking quite long.’ Taeyeon thought.

She saw a girl sitting on the indoor bench outside the cafeteria. The girl was alone, she had a huge backpack on her lap, she noticed Taeyeon, the girl was quite surprised to see someone, but she seemed to be friendly enough for small talks. She gave out a lazy wave.

“Heenloo” the girl said.

“Heenloo.” Taeyeon greeted back and observed the girl’s face. Pink eyes and red veins on her face looked quite odd but suits her pale complexion.

‘She looked familiar.’

Taeyeon gestured with zombie sign language, “How are you?” but the girl seems to be at a lost. She seems not to understand the zombie sign language and Taeyeon was confused however, being a zombie made her a bit lazy to put any effort into conversations so she just scratched the back of her head slowly and just shook her head.

“Errrr…”

‘Never mind.’

The girl texted on her phone then showed it to Taeyeon, “You’re here for the vaccine too?”

Taeyeon looked at the girl and nodded her head, the girl gave Taeyeon her phone to encourage her for a conversation. Taeyeon unhurriedly took it and showed her reply after a few minutes, “I think everyone is here for the vaccine.”

“What’s your name?” the girl typed in and showed at Taeyeon. Taeyeon noticed how quick the woman typed her text, ‘Do zombies typed like that? Maybe I just got used to Sooyoung for being a slow typer.’ she shrugged the thought and spoke to answer.

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