Day 5 – Part 1

Joined Forces

        Himchan barricaded the door as Hwayoung limped to the dark corner of the room. They had found themselves a windowless room to hole up in. The only way in or out was being blocked by the boxes and chairs Himchan was pushing and stacking in front of it. They knew they couldn't get far with Hwayoung's twisted ankle and it wasn't safe to travel as it was anyway. They would stay in that room for the night and rest while hoping Hwayoung would be able to walk normally the next day.

        Hwayoung lowered herself to the floor, holding her breath and clenching her jaw against the pain she felt in her ankle. The feeling shot up through her leg and she winced but made no noise.

        Himchan took a step back from his hurriedly made barricade, admiring his handiwork with a satisfied smile.

        “Looks good to me. What do you think, Hwayoung?” Himchan looked back at the girl who had only started listening to him when he had said her name. She had been far too preoccupied with making herself at least somewhat comfortable. “Do you think it will keep them out tonight?”

        “If they make their way inside the building, the chances of them finding us are slim. My friends and I were able to sleep peacefully holed up in a place like this before without even blocking the door.”

        Hwayoung grimaced at the mention of her friends but she didn't know what else to call them. Himchan wasn't aware of what had happened to her and she had no intention of telling him. She didn't know how he'd react and if it sent him running she would be disappointed. As much as she didn't trust him, she didn't want to be alone. At least with him there she'd have someone to help her if the monsters came knocking at the door.

         Hwayoung studied him from where she sat and noticed that he looked a bit crestfallen. She cleared and added, “But, if they were to figure out where we were I'm sure that will keep them out.” If it wasn't the zombies trying to kill them it would be her 'friends'. If they figured out where she was, by some miracle, that barricade would be the only thing standing in their way. The thought wasn't too pleasing.

        “Great!” Himchan strode to Hwayoung and sat next to her. The girl scooted away slightly, not comfortable with his proximity. From the corner of her eye she could see him smile at her behavior. “So, what happened to your leg?”

        Hwayoung's dark eyes traveled down to her leg, she had it stretched out in front of her. It still throbbed from her having moved around so much but there really wasn't anything she could do about that. From the knee down, her pants were covered in dirt. She brushed it off then with the back of her hand.

        “I twisted it.”

        “How? Were you running from those zombies? I didn't hear any of them out there.”

        Hwayoung only shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. She wasn't going to tell him.

        “I bet you're tired. I'll leave you alone then,” Himchan said with a smile. Hwayoung watched him from the corner of her eye as he scooted away from her. She kept watching him until he was across the room, his head propped against the wall. “Goodnight.”

        Hwayoung didn't respond and didn't look away from him until he had closed his eyes. She sighed then and shifted around. It was almost impossible to be comfortable while sitting against a hard wall and planted on a hard floor. But she was tired and eventually her eyes closed and she drifted off to sleep.

        Hwayoung woke before Himchan. She stretched out her limbs, expecting to wince when she moved her leg but it felt fine, much to her delight. She made it to her feet and combed through her hair with thin fingers. She glanced down at Himchan's sleeping form. He hadn't kept his posture against the wall and was now spread out on the floor. He actually looked comfortable considering how hard the floor was.

        Hwayoung bent down and poked his cheek, testing to see just how deep he was in dreamland. He flinched but didn't open his eyes. Hwayoung stood and looked around the room. It was dark, with no windows in the room but since her eyes had adjusted well to the darkness she was able to find the light switch and flip it up.

        However, nothing happened. She grimaced. It had never occurred to her that power might not continue to work. With a sigh she headed back to the corner she had fallen asleep in. Her stomach growled but she ignored it and continued waiting for Himchan to wake so that they could leave that place.

        Himchan rolled over with a groan. Hwayoung's eyes lit up expectantly. At last, he woke and sat up, letting out a groggy moan and rubbing at his tired eyes.

        “What's the plan?” she asked.

        “Plan?” Himchan inferred, tilting his head to the side. His eyes searched the darkness but he couldn't see a thing. He rubbed at his eyes again and yawned. “Well, I guess we better get out of here. My friends are probably worried that I haven't made it back yet.”

        “Friends?” Hwayoung frowned; Himchan hadn't mentioned anything about having any friends waiting for him the night before. Guilt took hold of Hwayoung for not thinking about any obligations the man might have had.

        “Yeah,” Himchan sighed, scratching at his head. “I went out scouting for supplies. I was supposed to get back as soon as I could but then I met you.”

        “I'm sorry,” Hwayoung said, her voice hardly more than a whisper. She bowed her head.

        “Hey, it's okay. They probably didn't even notice I haven't come back yet.”

        “That seems doubtful.” Hwayoung thought it impossible his friends could just forget about him. Himchan was kind of talkative and loud; it would be hard to forget him. He had that kind of presence.

        “Well, whatever. I'll get back to them soon.” Himchan stood then and headed for the barricade he had made. He stared at it in the darkness before remembering the bag he had had with him last night. He got on the ground, reaching his hands out every which way, searching for it. He was relieved when he found it and quickly dug through it to find a flashlight. Once found, he handed it to Hwayoung and instructed that she shine it towards the door. She did as she was told and then Himchan went about dismantling his barricade, doing his best to be quiet and not alert anyone or anything to their presence.

        Once it was all out of the way of their only exit, Himchan took up his bag and slung it over his shoulder. Hwayoung was still holding onto the flashlight, her grip so tight her knuckles had turned white. She was nervous about leaving that place. Not just because there were dangerous monsters out there but because she was nervous about meeting another group of people. Maybe she could ditch Himchan now that her ankle was feeling fine.

        “Coming?” Himchan asked. He stood in the doorway, looking back at her with a smile on his lips. Hwayoung's eyes widened at the question, her being filled with uncertainty.

        She took a step forward, setting aside her fear of strangers in favor of survival. She told herself that there was nothing to be scared of – not everyone was like the people she had called her friends. Maybe – hopefully – Himchan's friends would be a lot kinder than hers had been.

        The pair traveled in silence – mostly. Occasionally Hwayoung would have to remind Himchan that they were in the middle of a zombie outbreak and it might be best to not talk. He always agreed with a sheepish grin, would be quiet for a minute or two but then start up again. It was like he couldn't stand the silence and talking put him at ease. Hwayoung felt the same way but she rather be safe than sorry.

        All was fine, they were able to slip past groups of zombie's without mishap – until Hwayoung's ankle began protesting violently to her movements. She winced against the slight pain that would shoot up her leg every now and again and didn't bother informing Himchan of it. She hoped they would get to where they were going soon. She wasn't sure how much her ankle could take before she would collapse.

        Himchan passed her a sidelong glance and seemed to notice how she was moving slower and attempting to hide a limp.

        “We're almost there,” he reassures before facing forward again, slowing his pace to match hers. Hwayoung blushed, aware and embarrassed that she has become something of a burden. She never wanted to be such a thing. “Do you need help?”

        Hwayoung huffed and let out a defiant, “No!”

        The sound of feet shuffling in an adjacent alleyway brought Himchan and Hwayoung to a standstill. They glanced at each other, Himchan's eyes were alert and Hwayoung was trying to convey her apologies in that single stare. Without a word and as if on pure instinct, the two dashed down the alley, their movements in sync. Hwayoung had completely forgotten about her aching ankle but it was still slowing her down. To force her to keep pace, Himchan reached back and took hold of her hand.

        They turned a corner and were met by a barrier of vehicles. Himchan slowed and chanced a glance behind them. The sight made his heart leap to his throat and he urged Hwayoung forward.

        “We have to climb over the cars,” he instructed. “Think you can do it?”

        Hwayoung didn't respond, she went to glance behind her, to see what it was that Himchan had seen but he quickly grabbed her face and forced her to look into his eyes.

        “Just go!”

        Hwayoung nodded numbly and once he had released her, she took off, climbing onto the hood of a red car. She scrambled across its surface and then proceeded to the next vehicle, squeezing her way between a taxi and a bus. She kept going through the path of cars, sure she was going the right way since Himchan had not steered her in another direction. She could hear him behind her, his breaths coming in heavy pants that matched her own.

        Unable to bear it any longer, Hwayoung looked back. She almost tumbled over at the sight of the horde of zombies that had pursued them. There were at least ten of them, if not more. Himchan grabbed onto her arm and steered her to the left and towards a tall office building.

        Now that she was fully aware of the monsters pursuing them, she could hear their rasping breaths, their growls of hunger. She tried focusing on her own breathing to block out their noises. As Hwayoung and Himchan came nearer to the building the doors swung open, taking the girl by surprise. She slowed suddenly, causing Himchan to collide with her. The two managed to keep from falling by some miracle.

        “Get inside!” Himchan ordered.

        Hwayoung didn't have to be told twice. She rushed forward but the way was barred by a group of guys. opened and closed but words escaped her. They were all armed with blunt weapons and one even had a gun in his gloved hand. No one waited for her explanation, one of the boys pulled her into the room while two exited.

          She turned around, moving so quickly that her hair smacked her in the face. Her eyes frantically searched the road outside, trying to pick out Himchan amongst the swarm of bodies that had collected in the area. The boy who had pulled her inside closed the doors.

         “What are you doing?” Hwayoung asked, her gaze still locked on the road. The doors were made of a sturdy glass and she could see the world beyond.

         Himchan was alright, one of the other guys had handed him a weapon and the trio were beating the zombies. The three men had formed a triangle, standing back to back and moving with ease, as if they were used to this already.

         Blood and brains splattered onto the pavement and Hwayoung flinched away from the scene, unable to keep watching. She turned around to meet two sets of eyes staring at her. The one who had pulled her into the room could see the fear that lingered in her gaze and he put on a bright smile.

        “It's going to be okay. They have everything under control,” he said in an attempt to reassure her.

        Hwayoung didn't feel the least bit better. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she turned back around to the scene outside. Bodies lay sprawled on the ground, finally at peace. One of the men, a muscular guy with full lips, brought down a bat on one of the monsters and blood sprayed up onto his arms, coloring him as if it were nothing more than red paint. He didn't even seem to notice as he moved on to his next target.

        Minute after minute passed and finally only a couple zombies remained. When there was nothing left to kill, the three men turned towards the building and started towards it. Their steps were deliberate and well paced; they were in no rush to get back to the safety of the building for they didn't think there was anything to worry about.

        Hwayoung shuffled her feet backwards, taking a few steps away from the doors. The door was pushed open by the man she had seen brutally beat one of the zombies. Up close he didn't seem so scary but she couldn't get the image of what he had done from her mind. She avoided his gaze when his eyes landed on her. She had seen the distaste there and she was certain she was not welcome there.

        She heard the doors close and then lock. The sound of something heavy being pushed across the room caught her attention. She looked up to see two of the boys pushing a heavy, wooden desk in front of the doors. She wasn't sure what good that would do considering the doors were made of glass but she didn't question them.

        “We were wondering what had taken you so long,” the boy who had pulled Hwayoung into the room said. His voice was high and cute; it matched his child-like features and curly hair. He was staring at Himchan with his lips pulled up in an immature half-smile.

        “Got distracted by a girl, huh?” someone else teased.

         Himchan pushed them each playfully, clearly a bit embarrassed with their comments. He took a few steps towards Hwayoung and carelessly wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She shifted uncomfortably and tried nudging him away but it did little good.

        “This is Hwayoung,” Himchan stated. He waved his free arm in front of him, towards the four other beings in the room. “Hwayoung, that's Yongguk,” he indicated the man she had witnessed beating the zombies, “Jongup,” the other guy that had left the building to accompany Himchan and Yongguk, “Youngjae,” a boy standing at the back of the room, pistol in hand, “and that kid there is Junhong, but we just call him Zelo.” The last to be introduced was the young man that had pulled her into the building. Himchan looked around, his eyes furrowing. “Someone's missing... Oh well. You'll just have to meet him later I guess.”

        Hwayoung bowed towards them, not sure what else to do. She waited a moment, bracing herself for the glares she was sure she would receive, and then she stood to her full height. To her surprise no one was glaring at her. Zelo was smiling still, seemingly happy with the newcomer and everyone else seemed to be on the indifferent side. She was just another person, another mouth to feed and another person to look out for.

        “I'll do my best not to be a burden,” she vowed whilst cursing her twisted ankle that still throbbed even then. She desperately needed to sit down and give it a rest in order for it to properly heal. She hoped her words would be proven true and she would not become a burden for them. She didn't want what happened in her last group to happen in this group. She didn't want to be zombie bait for a second time.

        “Yeah,” Yongguk said, his voice gruff. “You do that. We're not your knights in shining armor. Everyone here needs to look after themselves.”

        “He doesn't really mean that,” Himchan said out of the side of his mouth, his voice low. “We all take care of each other here.”

        “Kim Himchan!” Himchan stood straight, as if he were a soldier being called to attention. Yongguk approached him, his steely gaze locked with Himchan's. “What did you bring back?” His tone had softened considerably and his full lips had pulled up into a smile. Himchan visibly relaxed and unshouldered his bag, handing it over to the gruffer man.

         “See, he's not scary at all,” Himchan said. Hwayoung couldn't help but notice that there was still a twinge of fear in his eyes which made her laugh. He laughed too and disengaged his hold on her to follow Yongguk into a room further in the building.

        “Hey, Hwayoung. I'll give you a tour of the place,” Zelo offered, strolling up to the girl. Hwayoung only nodded and let him lead her away from the open foyer. She cast a glance over her shoulder but the streets outside were clear; not a single zombie in sight. She wondered how long that would last.