Unfamiliar Ceiling, Unfamiliar Sensation

Looking back, the reason she tormented me wasn't so simple.

It wasn't the clichéd stuff you see in stories like "just because," "your face pisses me off," or "you were an easy target."

It was an ill-fated connection.

Yeah, you could call it a stubborn, inescapable bad bond, couldn't you?

Her relationship with me was more complicated than you'd think.

Family matters.

The root of everything was my father.

He left my perfectly good mom to shack up with a young single mother.

And the problem was that the new family he shacked up with happened to be Ha Hui-ryeong's mother.

I don't know if it was karma, but my father didn't last long after starting his new family before dying young.

Being the piece of trash he was, he drove drunk and departed this life straight away.

I wasn't particularly sorry about it.

He was a bastard who deserved to die.

It was around that time.

That she began tormenting me, when she had never even paid me any attention before.

To be honest, I just felt it was unfair, but to her, my very existence seemed to be a stain on her life.

The intensity of the bullying grew over time, and at one point, it definitely crossed the line.

That day was one of those days.

A dark alleyway under the settling crimson twilight.

Smoking a cigarette, she had me play lookout like always, but for some reason, I was a bit rebellious that day.

You could say that was the first time I had the guts to clearly express refusal with a firm "no."

Naturally, my impulsive act thoroughly provoked her, and I got beaten worse than usual.

No lie, I got beaten almost to death.

I was even strangled.

That was the first and last time in my life I ever passed out, so that day remained a powerful trauma for me.

But, why now.

Why, of all times, was that memory surfacing now?

And why, when this is just a dream, does it feel like I'm actually about to fucking suffocate?

Just before losing consciousness, I caught the sight of her face filled with murderous intent.

*

"Keck...! Ka-hack... you fucking...!"

My eyes flew open, gasping roughly.

And then, the shitty convenience store ceiling I'd been staring at before I fell asleep filled my vision.

A dream?

Was it a dream?

"Ha, of all the fucked-up dreams to have..."

I chuckled emptily and tried to get up.

But for some reason, my body wouldn't obey me.

I couldn't move a muscle, as if someone was holding me down.

'What the fuck?'

I rolled my eyes, putting aside my bewilderment.

Then, my pupils shook like crazy.

'What is she doing here?'

The answer to why I couldn't move lay with the woman right next to me.

Sae-aek—sae-aek.

Ha Hui-ryeong.

She had wrapped her arms and legs tightly around me, clinging to me like a doll.

Truly, I was caught in the most awkward situation imaginable.

Judging by the deep breathing sounds, she'd definitely done this in her sleep.

But why we were this close was a mystery.

Didn't we fall asleep with a decent distance between us?

That meant she purposely came over to where I was... I was just utterly confused as to why she'd do something like this.

Of all people, you, Ha Hui-ryeong.

Thanks to this, my lower half was more fired up than ever.

If I lifted my head just a bit, I could see the tent bulging out.

The stimulation grew stronger every time her pale thigh brushed against me.

If this kept up, instinct might overtake reason.

After deliberating a while, I finally decided to wake her up.

"Hey, Ha Hui-ryeong. Wake up."

"Mmm..."

"Hui-ryeong-ssi? Excuse me? Can you hear me?"

I brought my head as close as possible and whispered.

But annoyingly, she showed absolutely no sign of waking up.

She must have been sleeping incredibly deeply.

Seriously, this bitch of an enemy, honestly.

I steeled myself and twisted my wrist.

Then, I tickled her thigh with my fingers, as if teasing her softly.

"Mmm... hee hee."

What's with the 'hee hee,' you dumbass.

The silver lining was that it was somewhat effective—the strength of the arms and legs holding me captive loosened, however slightly.

Good, this is my chance.

I'll pull away just enough and then act like nothing happened.

Just as I decided the time was right and started carefully pushing Ha Hui-ryeong away, that was the moment.

"Uhh... what..."

Of all moments, her firmly shut eyelids began to slowly open.

Ah.

"......."

A silence of several dozen seconds.

When our eyes met, she tilted her head, expressing her confusion.

As if asking, 'Why are you here?'

Then, she glanced back at herself and looked at my face with wavering eyes.

It didn't take her long to grasp the situation.

Her cherry-like lips parted reflexively, and she was on the verge of letting out a sharp scream.

"...!!"

I immediately shoved her down and covered her mouth and both hands.

Damn it, she must have been panicking, because she struggled fiercely.

As she thrashed, her legs, which I hadn't pinned down, kept slamming into my abdomen as she tried to break free.

But I endured the pain and pressed down on her even harder.

It ended up looking like I was the one pinning her down, but you could say this was the wisest course of action in the current situation.

If I had just watched her scream, the situation would surely have hurtled toward catastrophe.

"Mmph...! Mmmph...!"

Ha Hui-ryeong looked at me with pitiful eyes, her own eyes brimming with tears.

This made me look exactly like some kind of rapist.

I felt a bit wronged, but I could explain the details later.

"Calm down. Just calm down. I'll explain everything later, so just stay quiet for a bit."

At the earnestness in my voice, her resistance halted for a moment.

Had my sincerity gotten through? Her ragged breathing gradually subsided.

Though anxiety still lingered in her eyes.

"Promise you won't scream. Blink twice if you understand. Okay?"

Finally, calming down a little, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she blinked twice as I said.

Only then did I let out a deep sigh of relief, and after letting her go, I slowly widened the distance between us.

"...Wh-what happened?"

Ha Hui-ryeong demanded an explanation from me with a very wary look.

I hesitated for a moment before opening my mouth.

"I don't know what you're thinking, but it's a misunderstanding. You clung to me first."

"Bullshit! Why would I!?"

How the hell would I know that?

"It's true. When I woke up, I was in your arms. If anything, I'm the one who wants to complain. I slept here first, so why did you come all the way over here? Do you have some kind of sleepwalking disorder?"

"...."

This time, she hesitated.

She faltered as if it was an awkward topic, then soon mumbled in a small voice.

"...It was scary, okay."

"What?"

"I did it because I was scared! How could anyone sleep when corpses are swarming in every direction! Especially at such an early hour!"

Well, we did lie down in broad daylight.

For me, having just finished a night shift, it was the perfect time to go to bed, and to make matters worse, sheer exhaustion had piled up, so I'd passed out immediately.

"Fuck, everything's just one shitty thing after another, and you're sleeping like a log, and Mom suddenly isn't answering her phone... I swear, I felt like I was losing my mind!"

But it seemed the anxiety was worse than I thought.

From ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her perspective, having just slept well the day before and gone to work, even staying still must have been torture, let alone sleeping.

Anyway, she fiddled with her phone while I was asleep, huh.

Well, that's not what's important right now.

"So you lay down next to me?"

"Hey, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fuckhead! I didn't lie down! I didn't lie down! Well... I was near you, though."

I think I get the gist of it.

Unable to bear the anxiety, she swallowed her shame and stayed near me, then unconsciously fell asleep.

The thing about hugging me was probably a mishap from her sleeping habits.

I want to believe that.

Anyway.

"Forget it. I don't care anymore. More importantly, now that you're awake, let's get ready to move out."

"Ready? Ready for what?"

"We have to leave. We can't stay here forever."

Besides, you're the one who said you'd save your mom.

I slung my backpack over my shoulders and caught my breath.

I had tried hard to act nonchalant, but I was tense because leaving was actually happening.

Ha Hui-ryeong seemed to feel the same way, her expression hardening.

"Alright. Let's go."

The second day of the zombie apocalypse.

We stepped outside for the first time.

*

Creeeak.

The warehouse door opened with the sound of old hinges.

I just poked my head out a little to scrutinize the outside.

The inside of the convenience store was just as we had left it.

It was clean, which likely meant no one had forced the door open and entered.

Worth locking it up.

Good, let's secure food first.

"Pack mostly canned goods and anything we can eat immediately."

"Hmph, I was going to do that even if you hadn't said anything."

Ha Hui-ryeong followed my words faithfully, but at the same time, she seemed a little displeased.

Did she feel like the sandbag she'd bossed around was getting too big for his britches?

Well, whether that was the case or not, it didn't matter to me.

Because if I let every single one of her attitudes get to me, I'd just get more mentally exhausted.

We were just in a relationship where we used each other anyway.

Cooperate, but never get close.

Regardless, we started to pack the necessary items into our bags.

Starting with the canned goods I mentioned, then drinking water, basic medicine, and so on—the bags bulged as if about to burst as we packed, requiring some sorting out.

'We packed more than I thought.'

While I was organizing my backpack, she asked me casually.

"Hey, that's all good, but what's the plan now? You're not thinking of going out blindly, are you?"

"Of course not. First, we're going to my house."

"Your house?"

Ha Hui-ryeong looked dubious.

"Why?"

"What do you mean why? We need a car. It's close, and it's been kept safely in the underground parking lot, so there shouldn't be much damage."

"You had a car?"

She looked surprised.

Well, it was pretty weird for someone my age to have a decent car.

Since she knew a bit about my financial situation, it must have been even more incomprehensible to her.

"It was inherited. Originally my mom's."

"Ah... where are your parents right now?"

"She's already passed away."

"...."

The mood instantly turned solemn.

Even she, of all people, must have had no way to handle that bombshell, as she clamped her mouth shut.

Bitter. This is why I didn't want to talk about it.

I sighed inwardly, as if I had no choice.

"Anyway, here's my plan. First, we get to my house and get the car. After that, whether it's saving your mom or whatever, we'll decide then."

"Uh... yeah, okay. Let's do that."

The Q&A was over.

Feeling the stifling mood, I moved my hands even faster.

After stuffing things in as much as I could reasonably carry, I slung the bulging backpack onto my shoulders.

While I was doing that, Ha Hui-ryeong was rummaging around near the parcel storage area.

What is she trying to do now?

"What are you doing?"

"What do you mean, what? No matter what, going out unarmed is a bit much, don't you think? At times like this... weapons are necessary."

Before long, what Ha Hui-ryeong pulled out was a metal baseball bat.

What's that? There was something like that in there?

While I had a dumbfounded, puzzled expression on my face, she twisted the corners of her lips into a refreshingly cool smile.

"Jjintta, you just be the pack mule. If something happens, I'll break through in front."

"Well... I was planning to do that anyway, but how long was that there? No, why is there even something like that here?"

"Why do you think? Working at a convenience store, you'd know, right? There are hella crazy bastard customers."

I know that.

I know, but isn't that a bit too extreme?

"Extreme my ass. For guys who don't listen, this has been the medicine since ancient times."

If you say so.

It was a bit flabbergasting, but this was one instance where her aggressive nature truly shined.

"So, everything's ready now, right?"

Ha Hui-ryeong nodded silently and handed me the key.

I carefully removed the bell hanging on the glass door and brought the key to the lock.

The street beyond the window was dead quiet.

There were still plenty of walking corpses about, but their numbers were clearly reduced compared to before.

We should be able to make it to my house with this many.

"Open it?"

"Yeah. Let's give it a go."

Click.

With the sound of the lock turning, the convenience store was finally opened.

That's how we took ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠our monumental first step out into the devastated outside world.

The day had only just begun to dawn under a dim sky thick with dark clouds.

The scent of blood hung thick in the air over the land that had been swept by a calamity.

'Seeing that the sun's starting to rise, I guess we straight up slept through an entire day. Well, thanks to that, I feel quite refreshed, though.'

The everyday routine no longer existed in this place.

Instead of people diligently going about their daily lives, the streets were overrun with corpses that had lost their reason.

Watching that scene, I felt it anew.

That the world had crossed a river of no return.

We would have to wander through these ruins from now on.

Though I don't know when the end will be.

"...Let's go."

At Ha Hui-ryeong's low urging, I moved my feet.

There was no need for conversation after that.

Clearly tense, we scrutinized our surroundings on both sides, moving forward while muffling our footsteps as much as possible.

I communicated locations through hand signals, and Ha Hui-ryeong followed my instructions obediently.

The position was her slightly in front, me behind.

Honestly, the distance to my house, our destination, wasn't even that far.

It was close as fuck, actually.

Because the apartment complex right next door was where I lived.

— 'Grrrrrrr....'

Occasionally, we'd make eye contact with the mindless corpses, but luckily, they didn't register us.

Do they lack eyesight?

That would mean they react to sound... maybe I could put that point to good use.

It was then.

While I was sorting out my thoughts.

—Wee-woo-wee-woo-wee-woo!!

A rhythmic, high-pitched wail echoed loudly from the apartment side.

The moment I heard it, I guessed it was a car anti-theft alarm, but that wasn't the important part.

The problem was the sound was so goddamn loud I could hear it all the way from here.

What's worse, given the rough location, it seemed to be going off near the building I lived in.

[Grruk?]

And sure enough, there was a change in the surrounding zombies' movements.

They all simultaneously turned their heads toward the source of the sound.

We're fucked. Fuck.

Gulp. As I swallowed hard, Ha Hui-ryeong and I exchanged looks as if it were the most natural thing.

We likely had the exact same thought.

"...Motherfucking shit, we're screwed! Hey, Jjintta! Run! Run like hell!"