The young boy is hiding behind the quite big bush. It covers him nicely and between its many leaves he still can observe how they pass by. He doesn't move, he barely even breaths as he knows that he can't make any sounds, he can't get noticed by them, they're too many. He just clutches tight his gun knowing it wouldn't help him that much with the current number of them.

He actually holds his breath when he sees the last one passing by his bush and going away from him. He relaxes a bit and smiles.

Oh, he's just amazing, outsmarting the danger once again when it's about three meters from him walking away very, very not prettily.

The three meters are growing into more and the boy starts breathing normally.

"Channie! I found the batteries! Guess where! In the phar-"

The boy gasps looking at his walkie talkie and it takes him a moment to turn the thing off. Only it's too late, they heard, they're starting to turn back to him, he's screwed, why hadn't he turned it off before the whole thing started, he knows it's happened a few times to his group already, so why couldn't he learn from the others' mistakes and turn the stupid thing off when they're nearby? Dammit.

So, yeah, he's got no choice now but to run like hell.

Chanshik stands up and without thinking much he rises his gun and shoots the one that's the closest. Then he starts running while quickly looking around and trying to figure out how to lose them. He sees that little park's end and then a few houses. He only hopes they're empty. Though, even if they're not, it's not like he's got a big choice with the thirty of them chasing after him. Thank God, though, that they're slower than regular people and, on the other hand, Chanshik's faster than regular people.

(It's part of the first rule, so, of course, he is. He follows the rules.)

As he's running out of the park, he takes a knife out of his pocket. He looks around to check if he can see more of them or someone from his own group. Fortunately, Chanshik sees nobody. Carefully not to drop it, he clutches tight his gun and with the other hand he makes quite a big cut in his finger, just to bleed a bit. Then, as he passes by the first house, he tries to wipe as much blood as he can on its door. He knows that will distract some of them for at least a few moments. He doesn't really stop, though, and just keeps running. He passes by the next few houses and runs into the one with closed door (the closed door makes it less likely for him to found them in the house. They do happen to open doors one way or another, but they're just not really into closing them).

As Chanshik's closing the door he sees them focusing nicely on the house he left his blood on. He just rolles eyes at his own genius mind.

He quickly looks around and sees a big closet covering the window and a couch standing close to the door. He doesn't waste time and pushes the couch to the door to make opening from the outside at least difficult.

Then Chanshik sits on the couch and puts the foldable knife back to his pocket but takes out that one piece of paper towels he often tries to have with him (the rule number 12) and wraps his bleeding finger (the first thought was to just put the finger into his mouth, but, nope, the rule number 48 says no). He listens for the any sounds in the house. If there were any of them here, they would definitely be limping to him right now and such a sound's totally hearable. And as Chanshik hears nothing, he relaxes a little.

And then he hears some of them bumping into the house's door. It's a sign that he should move. The door and couch can only stop so many for so little time.

Fortunately, Chanshik finds a back door and adorably empty garden. From there he sees just the place he yelled to his hyung to wait at as he was distracting them and wanting to take them as far away from the older guy as possible, so he could find what he was supposed to without any obstacles. Chanshik knows it's pretty much breaking the rule number 17, maybe the most important one, but he's always at this particular number. And, well, he's a genius and he can't just let them get his lovely hyung.


*


"!" is the first thing Chanshik hears after he gets into the Hummer, along with a smack to his head.

"Hyung!" Chanshik whines, pouting at Sunwoo.

"You know I hate when you do that." The older boy gives his best not to look at Chanshik. He knows the boy's aegyo can be dangerous and he's driving. "Seatbelts."

"I know, I know... But I had to." Chanshik looks at the backseat and sees a few boxes of various food, bottles and even a few new blankets that are still packed. "And it worked out in the end." Chanshik claps his hands happily.

Sunwoo only rolles his eyes. Only then he notices a piece of white paper towel with ladybugs printed on it wrapped around the younger boy's finger.

"What's that?"

For a moment Chanshik doesn't really know what Sunwoo meant, but then he notices the boy glancing at his finger.

"Well, I hid behind the bush and almost made it."

"And?"

"And then Chanyeol-hyung happened." Chanshik takes the walkie talkie out of his pocket to be able to glare at the stupid thing finally.

Sunwoo can't help but giggle. He knows it's dangerous and he shouldn't laugh and one day one of his group is surely going to die because of a walkie talkie saying something in the worst moment. But it's happened quite a few times ever since they'd found a box of those in a back room of an abandoned shop in an abandoned city and everyone's still alive. It actually happens almost during every bigger outing: someone needs to hide and he does and someone else decides it's a right moment to say something. Loudly. Because while running and hiding or just hiding one either doesn't have time to turn the damn thing off or forgets. Or both.

But they've been lucky for now, thankfully.

"So I had to improvise." Chanshik finishes as he decides to put the walkie talkie back to his pocket.

Sunwoo frowns at that. He knows Chanshik's pretty amazing with his ideas and for now those ideas have always worked and saved everyone many times, but he can't help but worry. Because, well, Chanshik's knowledge is mainly based on movies. Those many, many thematically relevant movies Chanshik'd seen have prepared him for these terrible times. And since Chanshik's a smart boy (and had been preparing for the terrible times since his very first thematically relevant movie from when he was little and his little mind thought that that's possible to happen one day), he can improve the movie ideas or make a few into one or just whatever he wishes with those. Sunwoo's kind of proud of him, but he also dreads the day the movie idea is going to be just plain bull and it's going to cost him Chanshik.

Too bad the window's closed and he knows better than to open it, because he can't spit or whatever one does when he's afraid his stupid thought might jinx whatever the thought was about. Sunwoo just hopes it doesn't jinx. Or the thought about jinxing won't jinx that. Or the next one, too. Or... Well, it's better to stop. Too many jinxing for already worried Sunwoo.

"Are everyone done?" Both the boys' walkie talkies speak at the same time, though Chanshik's quite muffled as it's hidden in his pocket again.

"Chanshik and I are just getting out of the city." Sunwoo says as Chanshik is being a nice, smiley dongsaeng and pushing the button and holding the walkie talkie close to the older's face. So the hyung doesn't have to bother with doing those... But he can bother with speaking, of course.

"Baekhyunnie and I are on our way, too." They hear Wufan's voice.

"Myungie and I are, as well~" Both the boys smile at Sungyeol's happy voice.

"Good. We are, too." Junhyung says, his voice sounding happier than during the question.

Once again Chanshik becomes this adorable puppy with a happy aura after hearing how all of his friends are fine and safe. Sunwoo only smiles wider.

Even when they see one of them walking on the road verge, it doesn't ruin the happy mood. Sunwoo just speeds up the Hummer and Chanshik opens the door, so that one gets hit quite badly and falls. After Chanshik closes the door, he doesn't really see any movement in the wing mirror, so it's even better.

"Stupid zombies~"