The Suicide of the 4th Floor
Being tied to Jang Yeeun by the hand was somewhat inconvenient, but she didn't seem to mind, leading me along as she explained the community. "The 16th floor—the rooftop—is where the water tanks are kept. And there are always at least two people on standby there so we can send out distress signals."
I nodded vaguely. "Basically, everyone gets one room to themselves. A lot of the people who lived between the 11th and 15th floors have either left or become infected. So, there are plenty of rooms left."
"Then what should I do?"
Jang Yeeun shrugged. "Just pick any empty place and move in."
Hmm. In that case.
Hearing that, I walked toward Room 1102, placed my hand on the keypad, and pressed the buttons naturally. 1102.
Click—
The door opened.
...What the. So the settings I wrote down and then discarded for being "too much" are still in effect.
At that moment, Jang Yeeun looked at me with wide, surprised eyes. "How did you know the password?"
I realized my mistake instantly. "Ah... we're cousins."
"...You said you didn't have any cousins. You didn't mention anything like that when you were handing out rice cakes."
...I didn't set up details like that!
"A... actually, we're lovers!"
Jang Yeeun began to look at me with a strange expression. What is it this time?
"...But the person who lived next door was a woman."
"Oh... uh, that's..."
She suddenly burst into laughter. "It's fine. I don't really feel any aversion to that sort of thing. You don't have to hide it."
Jang Yeeun tapped my shoulder with her hand that wasn't tied to the string. My face flushed for no reason.
"Ah, right... well..."
That was a close one. Still, now that it's come to this, living next door to Jang Yeeun is the safest bet. Considering she’s a necessary figure to survive the zombie outbreak that will happen here soon, settling in next door is the best move.
But that thought was short-lived. As I tried to close the door, a problem arose. The door wouldn't close completely.
I looked down and saw Jang Yeeun's arm caught between the door and the frame.
"Ah..."
Only then did I remember our wrists were still tied together. We were still bound.
"What are you doing? Hurry up and let me pull my arm out."
My face burned. "Ah, I'm sorry..."
I opened the door slightly so she could pull her arm back, then closed it again. She grinned and said, "You should be a little more careful while we're tied together. If you do that, I won't tease you next time."
"Got it..."
The room went quiet for a moment. Jang Yeeun lingered near the door before stepping toward me. "By the way, what's your name?"
In an instant, my mind went blank. Name...? A name? My real name definitely existed. But it would be weird to say that name here. It’s a man's name, after all. What about the name of this body's owner? Since I was essentially a "pre-set character" here, I had never thought about a name.
"...Uh..."
I hesitated, flustered, before blurting out the first name that came to mind. "Kim... Kim Sehee."
Jang Yeeun stared at me for a moment, then nodded. "Kim Sehee, I'll be counting on you for today."
She smiled and reached out to shake my hand, but seeing the bandages on our wrists, she gave a bitter smile. "Ah, right. We can't hold hands. Anyway, nice to meet you, Sehee."
"Yes, nice to meet you too... Yeeun."
She muttered my name a few times and looked around the room. "Sehee... that's a nice name. It suits you well."
I gave a bitter smile to myself.
- Kim Sehee -
We searched Room 1102 from top to bottom and managed to find some food. Fortunately, we discovered a few packs of Ottogi 3-minute curry and some instant rice in the kitchen cabinets.
"This should be enough," Jang Yeeun said, examining the curry packets. "The expiration dates are still good."
It felt a bit guilty to eat someone else's food... but given the circumstances, there was no other choice. It’s not like common sense applies right now.
We hurried to prepare the meal and finished eating quickly. I put the instant rice and 3-minute curry in the microwave. It’s better to eat these moist foods quickly. I should save the calorie bars I brought from my own room for the very last resort.
After the meal, I did the dishes. The water hadn't been cut off yet, and the point where water-borne infection begins was still far off. However, by now, the virus must have started spreading via fomites. It meant an environment had been created where you could be infected just by touching something.
If so, the question of why zombies appeared in this survivor community is important. From what I’ve heard so far, there were no elements of infection. The survivors were thoroughly disinfecting everything, and I even saw them burning or scrubbing down zombie byproducts... yet, zombies still appeared.
As I was staring blankly out the window, lost in thought, Jang Yeeun quietly approached, threw an arm around my shoulder, and patted my back lightly.
"...Don't be too disheartened. We're still alive."
I turned my head, startled by her words. Come to think of it, I had been staring out the window at the burning city of Seoul.
"...Ah, no. It's just..."
I stammered, pulling my eyes away from the window. But at that moment, the lights in the room suddenly went out.
"...What?"
All the electricity had been cut off in an instant. The room plunged into darkness, and my heart sank into my stomach.
"Electricity... the power's out?!"
I hurriedly looked out the window. Even the lights of burning Seoul were swallowed by darkness. The buildings and streetlights were all extinguished, leaving behind only the faint glow of embers and the silhouette of the ruined city.
"What is this..."
Jang Yeeun was flustered but tried to remain calm. "The water tanks are still there, and we prepared for the power going out, so don't worry too much. We're still okay."
Her words were meant to comfort me, but I couldn't bring myself to smile. I knew. Once the power goes out, the water will be cut off floor by floor, starting from the top. And... the next day.
One of the survivors becomes a zombie, and because of that, most of the people die.
"Yeeun, go tell everyone to go inside their rooms and lock their doors right now."
"Why? It's not particularly dangerous right now."
I quickly made up an excuse. "We shouldn't risk causing a fire or anything by wandering around. And it'll be a problem if our phone batteries get wasted. I think it's safer for everyone to wait inside their own rooms for now."
"That sounds like a good idea. It would be a disaster if people wandered around the dark hallways and had an accident."
Then, she added in a slightly playful voice, "But... could you come with me? It's a bit of a hassle to go around alone, and it would be good for you to get to know the people a little. Above all."
She shone her flashlight on the string connecting us. "Ah... yes, I understand."
"Then, shall we begin?"
- Duty -
Ah... did I catch a cold? My body felt heavy, and I felt like I was running a fever. My whole body ached as if I had come down with a bad case of the flu. Most strange of all, it felt like my nerves were slowly burning away. My head felt foggy, and every thought seemed to move in slow motion.
"...Ah..."
A short groan escaped my lips. My entire body throbbed and stung. It felt like something was moving beneath my skin. My fingertips were numb, as if frozen solid, and I couldn't even feel my toes touching the floor. The scenery I was looking at felt alien. The colors were fading, and the shapes seemed to be blurring.
"Ugh... ahh..."
I let out a groan as if to scream. But even that was blocked by my throat. And suddenly, everything went quiet. It felt like my senses were disappearing one by one. Starting from my fingertips and toes, a cold sensation seemed to spread throughout my entire body. I couldn't feel the air I was inhaling through my nose, and even swallowing the saliva in my mouth was difficult.
Yet, one sense became increasingly intense. Hearing. The sounds around me began to ring clearly, as if piercing my brain. The sound of a tiny wire scratching the floor, the sound of someone dragging their feet in the distance, and even the faint sound of breathing from beyond the door.
"Ugh... ughhh..."
I clutched my head. I couldn't bear the sounds coming at me, sharper and sharper. Everything was too loud. It felt like my ears were going to tear. My thoughts were slowly breaking off.
I stumbled to my feet. My vision swayed, and my body felt like it wasn't my own. A voice came from somewhere in the distance.
"Are you okay?"
The voice was familiar. But I couldn't remember whose it was. I just turned my head toward the direction of the sound, stumbling. The shadow in front of me wavered. And then, the sudden sound of breathing. Even the sound of a heartbeat from close by.
I licked my tongue. And I knew. That I... was changing.
I slowly turned my head toward the direction of the voice. The low breathing and the trembling heartbeat struck my ears. It's there.
At that moment, I felt my body slip out of control.
"Ughhh!"
With the strength exploding from the soles of my feet, I kicked off the floor, and my hands instinctively reached forward.
"What! Are you crazy? Let go, let go of this!"
My breath came out ragged. My mouth opened on its own. Even the trace of wanting to say something had vanished. My mind was emptying out, and only one thought remained.
Must eat.
I tried to think of a name while looking at the existence in front of me, but the fragments of thought shattered. Words lost their form, and concepts vanished into thin air. Person? No. Words? Don't know. Must eat. Must eat. Blood? Meat. Food.
Strength entered my fingers. The urge to grab the skin and tear it off consumed my entire body.
Stop... that's a person... a person.
Person? Don't know. It's food. Living meat.