New Year Preparations
Once back inside the house, Kim Jun had to endure another scolding from Mari before heading back into surgery.
Mari clicked her tongue.
Just as Mari said, the sturdy arm guard Kim Jun had been wearing for so long had been sliced clean in two while trying to block the blades swung by the Jeilpa Thugs.
Eun Ji, who was assisting Mari, handed over the surgical scissors and medical thread she'd disinfected with antiseptic.
With Mari acting as the doctor and Eun Ji as the nurse, Kim Jun endured the painful procedure on his left arm without any anesthesia.
Mari removed all the old stitches, disinfected the wound with alcohol, then carefully stitched it up again with fresh thread before wrapping it tightly with bandages.
Mari looked genuinely shocked after treating him.
…
Mari and Eun Ji stared at Kim Jun with clear disappointment written across their faces. Eun Ji spoke up quietly.
After Eun Ji's birthday and that one time when everyone's mental state had collapsed and they'd hunted pheasants and ducks for a barbecue, Kim Jun felt rather indifferent about celebrations these days.
Christmas was supposed to be a nice day, but considering his current physical condition and the situation outside, he didn't feel much like celebrating.
And Mari wasn't the only one disappointed by his attitude.
The ones disappointed by Kim Jun's declaration of "let's just skip Christmas" were Mari, Rana, Nanika, Do Kyung, and the others.
What they all had in common was that they were the ones who had intense physical relationships with Kim Jun and relied on him heavily, both emotionally and mentally.
They had been looking forward to making tons of delicious food, throwing a party together, and then slipping into Kim Jun's master bedroom that night.
But after seeing his arm—which had barely been healing—tear open again and now being completely immobilized with cloth bindings, they could only shake their heads in resignation.
I wanted to spend it cozily, like a real couple…
I want it. I really want it!
No way. Who knows which girl will make the first move when the time comes!
Haa, Oppa…
Kim Jun, completely oblivious to the girls' flushed faces and heated gazes, quietly ate his meal with his right hand and asked,
Both Eun Ji and In Ah clapped their hands in delight.
In Ah and Eun Ji, having received Kim Jun's orders, looked at each other and nodded.
After the group including Madam Hwang moved out of Sosa-beol, there wasn't much left to do around the house, so their quiet life continued.
Whenever the smell of delicious food wafted through the air, it was mealtime. Otherwise, Kim Jun would step outside for a cigarette, checking on the warehouse and the running machinery from time to time.
[Vrrrr— Vrrrr— Vrrrrrrrr—]
After the two zombie horde attacks from before, Kim Jun had concluded that the camping generator was the problem. He built soundproof boxes to cover all the running generators.
Thanks to that, he could run the generators and solar panels at full capacity while attaching coolers to keep the hot boxes from overheating.
After his last trip to loot supplies, too much fuel had accumulated. He needed to bring in several drums and build an additional outdoor fuel storage, but that would have to wait until his body fully recovered.
He circled around the backyard, then entered the first-floor commercial space. Inside, the heater created spring-like temperatures, and he could see vegetables growing through indoor cultivation.
Kim Jun picked up a watering can and sprinkled water on each pot one by one. Then he stepped outside, opened the camper van, and sat down.
He rummaged through his pocket, pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and took a deep drag.
It was a peaceful moment—sitting in the warm sunlight, enjoying a cigarette on a lazy day.
Come to think of it, Christmas was approaching, yet the weather was strangely off.
There was no sense of winter at all. Ever since the zombie outbreak began, they hadn't seen a single flake of snow.
The temperature felt like early autumn, around 37 to 39 degrees Fahrenheit.
In movies and comics, when bitten humans turned into zombies, cold weather and snow would usually slow them down until they froze to death. But that never happened here.
Supplies left outside were rotting away, and the processed zombie corpses would eventually melt and disappear over time.
On top of that, the weather wasn't normal either—every day felt like spring or autumn.
Because of that, the zombies could keep moving indefinitely, and no one knew where they were coming from.
Back when the zombie outbreak first started, he'd asked the other girls if they'd noticed anything strange beforehand, but none of them had any information.
The only thing Nanika had mentioned was that there had been an unusual number of natural disasters—tsunamis, earthquakes, typhoons, and the like.
He muttered to himself, trying to piece it together, but while Kim Jun had a mechanical mind, he knew nothing about science.
And he had no idea what causal relationship there could possibly be between abnormal environmental conditions and dead bodies rising as zombies to attack humans.
After chain-smoking for a while, Kim Jun shook his head and stood up. He cleaned out the camper van, emptied the waste, and refilled the water tank.
When Christmas Eve finally arrived, Kim Jun was greeted with an incredible feast unlike any normal breakfast or lunch.
Rana, Emily, and Do Kyung kept exclaiming in excitement as they set the table and arranged the food.
The dishes that In Ah and Eun Ji had made together—with help from Mari, Gaya, and the others—were revealed one by one.
First was the chocolate cream cake In Ah made using cocoa and skim milk powder.
Then there was the pizza made with the imitation cheese created from the cooking oil they'd brought back for Eun Ji's birthday, along with mushrooms, perilla leaves, canned olives, potatoes, ketchup, and ham.
And finally, they had used the remaining chicken from Myeong Guk's place to make deep-fried chicken with a spicy sauce, along with piles of freshly baked bread. The table was practically groaning under the weight of it all.
Pop!
Gaya struggled to twist out the cork before finally opening the bottle of wine. She poured the first glass for Kim Jun.
Even though he was injured, there was no way he could skip a day like this. As he raised his glass, everyone else filled theirs and lifted them high.
…
They clinked their glasses and enjoyed the meal, sipping wine as they ate.
They also turned on the TV—which they rarely used—and picked a Christmas-themed movie from their DVD collection.
It was the Home Alone series that Kim Jun had bought years ago from a street vendor as a 1+2 combo for about four dollars.
The old TV flickered to life, and as the movie played, everyone became completely absorbed while eating.
Even though the film was over twenty years old, they laughed until their stomachs hurt and shed a few tears. It was a proper Christmas Eve celebration in its own way.
In particular, the two girls sitting on either side of Kim Jun were Rana and Emily.
They were practically glued to his body.
Emily had quickly claimed his right arm, linking hers with his like a lover. Her chest kept pressing against him, and she seemed to enjoy it as she subtly pulled his arm closer.
Rana, unable to lean on his injured left arm, found another spot. She quietly lay down and rested her head on his lap.
Kim Jun watched the girl in hot pants with her hair in an updo. He twirled the side strands that covered her ears with his fingers or gently stroked her cheek as he watched the movie.
Mari and Do Kyung watched with clear jealousy, but it seemed they had no intention of giving up the spots they'd already secured.
While the others enjoyed the party, Eun Ji kept going back and forth from the kitchen, placing freshly made french fries on the table.
Eun Ji gave a gentle smile. Unlike the others who were being affectionate or watching the movie, she quietly focused on preparing food.
Later, she went up to the rooftop room and brought down the gifts she'd prepared for today.
These were the items Eun Ji had made by cutting into her sleeping time. She'd knitted several Santa hats, vests, gloves, and scarves out of red yarn.
Eun Ji handed out the gifts to each of the girls one by one, then turned to Kim Jun.
She had taken the sweater that had been shredded by blades, cut off the torn sleeves, trimmed the middle, added buttons, and turned it into a vest. She handed it to Kim Jun.
She placed one of the Santa hats from the table onto Eun Ji's head. Eun Ji touched it gently, even though she'd made it herself, and smiled softly.
When he tried to take her pale hands in his, Eun Ji unconsciously pulled away and headed back to the living room, saying she needed to make more food.
Left with an awkward, empty hand, Emily and Rana quickly grabbed it instead.
Eun Ji brought out a Polaroid camera, took photos of everyone, and wrote the date on each one with a marker before sticking them all over the walls. She said this was a day they could never forget.
While the others enjoyed spending time with Kim Jun, she seemed to cherish these group photos the most.
That night, everyone drank heavily—whiskey, wine, soju—and eventually went to bed.
Eun Ji and In Ah cleaned up the remaining dishes and finished tidying before heading upstairs.
Do Kyung and Gaya, who had gotten drunk earlier, had already gone up.
Kim Jun was about to open the fridge, grab a cold bottle of water, and head to bed himself.
At that moment, someone suddenly hugged him tightly from behind.
He felt the soft, voluptuous sensation against his back, and warm breath that smelled of wine tickled his ear.
Kim Jun immediately recognized her from the feeling against his back.
Apparently thinking of this as a holy night to commemorate Christmas, he closed the fridge and stood up—only for someone else to come running and throw herself into his arms.
This time it was Rana.
She was wearing a Santa hat, hot pants, and a tank top, giving off a sweet perfume. Having two top idols rubbing against him from front and back filled Kim Jun with pure bliss.
He wrapped his arms around them and let out a small chuckle before asking quietly,
It looked like whatever time was left would have to be spent on a very holy night indeed.