Rings and Real Tears
I’d ended up inside a zombie apocalypse novel. Strangely, I felt like I’d gotten lucky. And for good reason. There were clothes everywhere. It wasn’t the fancy department store I’d pictured, and there wasn’t a single food court in sight, but the place was still packed with useful stuff. Better yet, the second floor had a solid electronics section.
“Let’s raid the jewelry store and grab some electronics while we’re at it.”
“Why?”
“You never know. They might come in handy later.”
“...?”
Noh Changhun gave me the what the hell are you on about look. It stung. It wasn’t like electricity was completely off the table. There were endless ways to generate power—generators, rumors that the plants were still running. A few devices could prove useful. But the bastard’s face was doing something weird again, like he was wondering what fresh nonsense I was about to spew.
“We can charge cameras and laptops pretty easily, can’t we?”
“Oh. That’s what you meant?”
“...Then what were you thinking?”
“Washing machines or something?”
“Do I look insane? Why would I suggest hauling those around!”
I felt genuinely wronged. How stupid did he think I was to jump straight to that conclusion? I’d only been thinking of snagging a Polaroid camera and giggling like an idiot on the way out. I wasn’t even sure the electronics store carried them. And even if they didn’t, USB drives would be amazing. I could collect all kinds of data now and sort it out once everything calmed down.
After I explained all that in great detail, Noh Changhun finally let out a long sigh.
“That’s a relief.”
“This son of a—”
My hand twitched. If I could’ve gotten away with it, I would’ve smacked him upside the head. But I’m a good person, so I held back. Besides, we had to watch each other’s backs in a fight. So I swallowed my irritation and headed for the jewelry store.
It was bigger than I’d expected. Honestly, I’d never seen a particularly large one before. Unless it had its own standalone building, the ones tucked inside department stores were usually no bigger than a school snack bar.
“Whoa…”
I couldn’t see much through all the blood and gore, but the pieces inside were unmistakably real. I’m no jewelry expert, but this sparkling gold and these diamonds were the genuine article. And the selection was huge. Couple rings, couple necklaces, couple lockets. It was basically a pick-your-poison situation.
“...”
Greed slithered up my spine. I even considered loading up on money rings. Yeah. We’d suffered enough. I wasn’t sure there’d ever be a chance to cash them in, but… they were perfect for feeding a little vanity.
“Changhun.”
“What.”
“Soldiers aren’t allowed to wear stuff like this openly, right?”
“Correct.”
“But civilians can, right?”
“Sure.”
Noh Changhun shut that down immediately. He said it would only invite trouble, so we should each take one ring and keep it low-key. I agreed. The items had no owners anymore, but getting robbed while carrying them around would be a massive headache.
“I read that part in your novel. Guys sneak in while people are sleeping with women, feel around for hidden stuff, steal everything, and bolt.”
“Huh.”
“I don’t want to deal with that kind of annoyance, so let’s just get wedding rings. They wouldn’t steal those… would they?”
“...Probably not. Though you’re remembering one detail wrong.”
“Yeah? What?”
“It wasn’t just the woman sleeping alone. The hunter killed the whole party, took the loot and the woman, and ran.”
“Oh. Now I remember.”
That scene had actually appealed to me. Most zombie apocalypse novels avoided heavy tragic beats like that. Part one was all blood and zombie fights, then part two turned into political drama among the survivors. That’s why I’d loved this guy’s story so much. He left the politics to side characters while the protagonist planned operations and handled everything else. The way the protagonist got emotional over a single can of food—it captured that raw apocalypse vibe perfectly. It had been really fun to read.
…I never imagined I’d be living it.
“But…”
“...”
“Which one’s the best?”
Noh Changhun didn’t answer. He just looked at me like it was my decision. I stayed quiet. It’s not like I had any experience picking couple rings. Come to think of it, neither of us had ever dated. Trying to choose matching rings with zero dating history was like trying to sprint before you could walk. What a pair of idiots. Thinking that, I gripped Beopbong tightly.
“Let’s smash first and think later.”
“Solid plan.”
“I’ll count to three and swing, so watch yourself.”
“Huh?”
“What are you doing?”
Noh Changhun was snipping something with scissors. I blinked. I couldn’t figure out why he was cutting wires along the wall. My question was answered when he suddenly drove his fist into the glass, smiling.
“What? When did you learn that?”
“From a criminal.”
“Huh?”
“Kidding. I learned it from a jewelry store owner. Different place.”
“Oh.”
It was for the best. A blaring alarm would’ve been exhausting. So I got ready to smash the glass without worry. Fortunately it shattered sooner than expected. I’d braced for bulletproof glass, but it turned out to be weaker than I thought. After breaking it, my head felt strangely clear.
“Hey. Changhun.”
“What.”
“Usually when they display stuff here… I mean, if I were the store owner—”
“Yeah.”
He smashed another case and started digging through the contents. I felt a flicker of annoyance. No, honestly. Even if we were pretending to be a couple, we’d come here to pick out rings together. These were supposed to be wedding bands we could actually use. He should at least listen to my opinion instead of just doing whatever he wanted.
“Yeji, you’re simple.”
“...So?”
“You were about to suggest we take the most expensive ones, weren’t you?”
“...! How did you know that?!”
“Ta-da.”
Noh Changhun carefully pulled out a single box. When he opened it, a pair of rings gleamed inside. They were breathtaking. Silver and gold woven together with diamonds—
“These… are new?”
“Brand new.”
“No, it’s a one-winged bird design…”
Gold for the tree branch, silver for the single wing, diamond for the eye. Even at a glance I could tell how meticulously crafted they were.
“The most expensive pieces are always displayed separately.”
“...How much?”
“Better if you don’t know.”
Noh Changhun laughed like he was already exhausted by me. When I kept pestering him he finally showed me the tag. Seven figures. Basically not meant to be sold—just there to catch the eye.
“I’ll put it on for you. Give me your hand.”
“Uh, yeah.”
It was nothing. Just sliding rings onto each other’s fingers for camouflage. Something that could be done, no big deal. Yet my hands wouldn’t stop shaking. I’d never done anything like this before, so it made sense.
Noh Changhun smiled faintly, took my hand, and slipped the ring onto my finger. Then he put on his own.
“Would’ve been nice if we could’ve washed our hands first.”
“Yeah. Don’t you carry any water, Changhun?”
“Using drinking water to wash feels wasteful.”
“True. Anyway, where are you going?”
Noh Changhun asked, but I didn’t answer. My chest was pounding in a strange way. It wasn’t love or anything like that. Honestly, he wasn’t as desperate as me. Unlike me—whose life depended on immediately proving I had a partner—he wasn’t in that position. So he hadn’t really needed to loot a jewelry store for couple rings. If he hadn’t helped, I would’ve come alone.
After today, I felt like I’d earned real recognition. Even though we’d been separated for weeks, he treated me like we’d been together the whole time. Having never received much acknowledgment in my life, even these small things felt overwhelmingly good.
It wasn’t like he had any illusions about me, either. Noh Changhun knew the real me better than anyone. In this world, he was my closest friend. Receiving a gift like this from someone who actually understood me made my eyes sting.
So I told him I’d be right back after a quick bathroom break and slipped away. If he saw me crying from being moved, it would only cause weird misunderstandings. He’d probably tease me about crying because I liked him or something. Better to cry it all out in the bathroom and return with dry eyes.
There was a zombie inside anyway… Using it as cover wouldn’t be hard.
“Graa…?”
“Shut up, you bastard.”
I smashed the female zombie’s head and draped her over the bathroom door like laundry. If Noh Changhun came looking, I could claim I’d been startled by the zombie and frozen up. Anyone would be too scared to stay calm if something dropped from above while they were busy, right? He’d probably buy it. He’d just chuckle and let it go.
So I squatted there for a long time, letting the tears fall. I never thought I’d have someone this precious in my life. Never dreamed I’d find someone as important as family. Because until now I’d never had real friends. I was always the afterthought—the one they called when they were short a player for an AOS game, or the one they messaged because adding a friend gave them an item.
I’d never experienced anything like this. And it felt so incredibly precious.
After sniffling for a while, I wiped my tears properly and stepped out of the bathroom.