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Dear Sehun,
I hope everything is going well for you! The last letter you sent me only had a sentence on it, so I’m not really sure what’s happening with you. I figured it’s because finals season is approaching for you and you didn’t have time to write back to me — but better than nothing, right? ^^ I’m glad you took the time to respond!
…
…
…
Anyways, I’m coming to visit you soon, so please set a date aside for me! I’m thinking next next Saturday — I hope the weekend is okay for you! I thought that maybe the weekday wouldn’t be plausible because you have classes. I have a retractable rake that can fold into itself and I want to give it to you for your mini garden! I think it’ll be very useful and innovative for you. Please don’t lock me out this time! ^^
Love,
Jonginnie
The letter was a full page, front and back. Jongin had put so much effort into writing it, with neat handwriting and little emojis here and there. He wanted Sehun to know everything that was going on with him, so he rambled on about his cows and chickens.
Sehun and Jongin grew up in the countryside together and have been best friends ever since. While Sehun decided he wanted to study in the city for college, Jongin decided to stay behind and take over his family farm. He made Sehun promise to write back to his letters and let him visit from time to time. Sehun had done really well with replying to letters for the past few years, but this year was his last year of college, so his communication skills have gotten worse.
Jongin was now on the train, which was on its way to the city. He had Sehun’s reply in his hands and the amount of words on it was even less than his last reply.
Jongin,
Okay. See you.
Sehun
Jongin sighed. Why would Sehun waste a whole piece of paper just to write five words on it? He could have at least been more thoughtful and put it on a sticky note. The country boy was a little grateful that his friend at least had the decency to reply. If that letter did anything, it gave him the green light to visit him.
He looked out the window; the trees and landscape quickly turned to metal railings and train platforms. It wasn’t long before the train arrived at the station.
There weren’t many people on the train since it was coming from the countryside, so only Jongin and a few people were instructed to gather their things and alight. He made his way past the platform exit, through the main lobby, and out the station doors into the city.
But something was off.
Jongin remembered three years ago, when he first stepped out of the same station and into the concrete jungle. Everything was busy. Cars were zooming left and right, people shuttled quickly past each other, almost trampling him, and there was constantly noise in the background.
But right now, everything was eerily still and quiet.
Now that he thought about it, the station was the same, too. It was completely empty, except the people who had just disembarked the train with him. They, too, were now coming out of the station with confused expressions on their faces.
Jongin decided to not think about it too much and to start making his way to Sehun’s dorm. Even though it’s been a few years, Jongin remembered where to go. It was a really short 10-minute walk.
Cars seemed to be stuck on the road as if everyone was in a huge traffic jam. Some were stationary, but what shocked Jongin was when he saw that there were cars that rear-ended each other.
He had no idea what to do. It didn’t seem like the damage to each car was colossal, because there weren’t cracked windows or seriously dented cars — it was almost like all the cars were in a traffic jam and only reamed into each other by the driver softly letting go of their brake. It probably seemed chaotic and overwhelming to Jongin because this was only the third time he was exposed to the city and there were so many cars.
There were no other people walking around in the streets — it seems that everyone from the train station had gone their own way and disappeared. He also had no cellphone, so the first thing he thought of was running to Sehun to tell him what happened, because he’d probably have a better idea of how to help.
He couldn’t even see what was going on inside the dark-tinted windows of all the cars, so instead of trying to make out any people behind the black glass, he focused on making it to Sehun’s dorm as quickly as possible. As he rounded the last corner, where his destination lied just ahead, there were even some cars lined along the sidewalk.
As Jongin inevitably approached closer to one, he heard a loud bang coming from the inside and the car shook, startling him and sending him scurrying off to get as far as possible from whatever was inside.
When Jongin reached the dorm building, he expected to see someone at the front desk to check him in for his visit, but there was also no one there. No one was chilling in the lobby and he didn’t see anyone walking in the halls leading to the first floor dorms.
He stood there waiting for five minutes for someone to come, impatiently rocking back and forth on his feet and holding the retractable rake in his hands. Once he figured no one was coming anytime soon, he thought he might as well set off, since they would eventually let him come in anyway.
He made his way up the stairs to the fourth floor. Once again, the gathering room of floor was empty. He went straight down the hall, Sehun’s dorm being the fourth door on the right.
Knock, knock!
“Sehun, I’m here! Something weird is going on outside, you need to help!”
“Who?”
Jongin furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. That voice didn’t sound like Sehun. It must’ve been his roommate.
“Kyungsoo?” he asked, hesitantly, forgetting everything about crashed cars.
“Who are you?” Kyungsoo asked through the door in a more alert and aggressive tone.
“It’s me, Jongin!” the farm boy clarified. “Did Sehun not tell you that I was coming today?” He began to feel a little disheartened thinking that his friend probably forgot about his visit today — he didn’t even seem to be in his room right now.
“No…” Kyungsoo answered hesitantly. “Is it really you?”
“Who else would it be? Can you please open the door?”
“That was a yes or no question. Your answer is invalid.”
“What?”
“You answered my question with a question. That’s not how it works during times like this.”
“ Times like this? Kyungsoo, what?”
Pause.
“Kyungsoo?”
“Prove yourself to me. I’m not gonna open to door if you don’t prove that you’re actually Kim Jongin.”
“What? You’re being ridiculous. What is there to pr—”
“I’m not opening the door.”
“Okay, okay,” Jongin relinquished. “Let me think.”
Jongin racked his head for anything he could think of. He could tell Kyungsoo about how his cow just gave birth yesterday, because who else other than him lives on a farm and visits Sehun out of nowhere? But then again, Kyungsoo could think he’s just making up some random story.
Story.
“Ah!” Jongin exclaimed in excitement. “There’s this story that only you, Sehun, and I know — well, us three and this random girl.”
A moment of silence passed, but then Jongin heard Kyungsoo’s gruff voice say through the door, “Go on, I’m listening.”
“You told me this last time I visited. You were walking on campus when you saw Sehun skateboarding. He was doing more tricks than usual, so you thought it was weird, but then you saw him glancing at a really pretty girl from far away. He tried to do a running man trick, but then crashed into a pole and got a nosebleed.”
At first, Jongin didn’t hear a response, but then he could hear laughing.
“Will you let me in now?”
Before he heard a response, shuffling from down the hall captured Jongin’s attention and he turned to see what was making the noise. There was a figure making it’s way toward him, but it was far enough for Jongin not to recognize their face.
Not thinking too much about it, Jongin turned back to the door. “Do Kyungsoo!”
He began banging on the door to annoy the shit out of the other until he gives up and opens the door for him. He’s pretty sure he proved himself to him, so why has he—
Due to the shuffling and dragging noises, Jongin turned back to the figure down the hall, which was actually getting closer now, and was taken aback by its grotesque appearance. The humanoid figure seemed to be a male, but Jongin was starting to get scared to make any assumptions. The guy’s skin was extremely pale and his veins were prominent, but grey against his deathly pallor. Even closer up now, Jongin got a glimpse of the limping guy’s eyes — there were no pupils, his eyes a vast unending white.
‘Am I seeing a real life zombie right now?’ Jongin asked himself. He tilted his head, and squinted his eyes, trying to process what was coming towards him.
Then he panicked.
“Kyungsoo!!” he screeched at the top of his lungs, clawing at the door. “Open up!! Open up now!!”
The racket caught the zombie’s attention and Jongin’s heart froze when they made eye contact, if you could even call it that.
Behind the door, Kyungsoo couldn't block out Jongin's incessant screaming. It didn't occur to him why he was screaming, but the way he was pleading for the door to be opened made Kyungsoo think twice about walking away and ignoring him.
Half of Kyungsoo told himself not to trust anyone during times like this, but the other half was telling him that Jongin wasn't a zombie at all.
With his hand on the knob, he realized that Jongin wasn't screaming anymore. He was somewhat tempted to open the door and check what was going on to make the younger silent like that — he decided to open it a crack.
Jongin was still in front of the door, but he wasn't facing straight forward; it seemed like he was having a stare down contest with someone down the hall. Jongin then suddenly yelled again and turned around, he immediately did what his first instincts told him and rammed himself inside Kyungsoo’s room. He slammed the door shut, completely breathless.
When Jongin finally came to, he looked at Kyungsoo, who was waiting for him to talk and tell him what that was about. “What took you so long to open the door?!”
“I’m not gonna open the door for anyone during a zombie invasion!” Kyungsoo answered back heatedly. “But I guess you don’t look infected or anything…”
“What?!” Jongin exclaimed. “What are you talking about?! Was that really a zombie I just saw?!”
Kyungsoo shrugged. “I’m not sure what you saw, but most likely,” he replied. “Look, I know you’re from the countryside, so you probably didn’t hear anything about what’s going on in your little farm bubble — if you did, you’re probably insane for coming here — but there was a broadcast announcement about terrorists bombing huge water sources with some kind of chemical. After that, everyone ran inside their homes or at least tried to get home to “safety”, but people who drank that contaminated water turned into zombies unless they’re either already dead or immune.”
While Kyungsoo explained all of that, Jongin almost blanked finally taking a good look at the guy in front of him. He was wearing all black — black shoes, black pants, black long-sleeved shirt, and a black hat — and with him looking so good in that outfit, he suddenly remembered the long-term crush he’s had on him despite just facing a near-death experience with said guy almost locking him out and leaving him to die.
That last part snapped him out of it and his eyes darted across the room. “Then where’s Sehun?” Kyungsoo’s explanation was a huge clue as to why the streets were empty and why the cars were jammed, but it didn't explain why his best friend was nowhere in sight.
The roommate’s expression morphed into one of unease. “Uhhh… he… may have disappeared this morning…”
“What?!”
“I don't know, I woke up this morning and… he was gone,” Kyungsoo explained. “No message or anything, and I found it strange because he never leaves his room on a Saturday. I also tried calling and texting his phone and there was no response.”
Jongin could feel the color drain from his face. Sehun, nowhere to be found during a zombie apocalypse? He never thought he'd ever think of saying that phrase, but this movie nightmare was starting to become a reality.
Sehun didn't even speak more than three words in his last letter to him. Jongin didn't even get to show him the retractable rake he brought for him for the garden box in the middle of his dorm room — which he gifted to him two years ago (Kyungsoo and the dorm RAs thought he was nuts when he installed it and almost forbade him from visiting ever again). He didn't even get to tell him that his cow and chicken defied all odds and got married to each other!
As Jongin internally wailed about all of these things, Kyungsoo's eyes furrowed and leaned forward as if taking a closer look at him. "Are you crying?"
The farm boy lifted his hands to his eyes and indeed felt something wet. "I'm... of course... he's my best friend and he might be dead, we don't even know," Jongin answered emptily.
"We can't become emotional at a time like this," Kyungsoo insisted gruffly. "We have to figure out our next plan of action and get a move on."
Jongin's eye widened. "Wait a minute, we're not gonna wait here? What if Sehun comes back?"
Instead of answering, Kyungsoo went to pick up a metal baseball bat and backpack that was lying next to his desk. He seemed to be making rounds through his room to make sure he had everything, as if packing up for going on vacation.
“Are you going to continue ignoring me? I asked what about Sehun?”
“Look,” Kyungsoo started aggressively. “We don't know if Sehun will come back, we’re not even sure if he's alive. I'm not gonna sit around waiting for zombies to congregate until we're completely trapped in this room. We’re going to starve if we don't get a move on. I'm sure there is a group of escapees forming and we need to find them if we wanna make it out of here alive. So if you wanna keep waiting here for Sehun, be my guest, just don't cry if I leave you alone here.”
Jongin frowned. He didn't know his unrequited crush could be so mean like this, but he somewhat understood that he must be like this given the situation and circumstances.
Also, he was right. They didn't know whether Sehun would come back or not, and Jongin needed to stay alive in order to take care of all the animals back at his farm.
An idea struck him.
“Kyungsoo, in the countryside, we weren't bombed or anything like that,” Jongin suddenly said. “I think it's safe there; I just got here by train, and maybe it hasn't left the station yet.”
Kyungsoo widened his eyes. “This is good, we should make our way to that station. It's the one that's ten minutes away from here, right?”
Jongin nodded, and that was all Kyungsoo needed to get a move on.
“We can make that. The attack was about an hour ago, there shouldn't be too many zombies yet.”
Kyungsoo looked Jongin up and down suddenly, as if checking him out. “Do you know how to fight?”
Jongin shook his head; he’s never gotten into a scuffle with another person in his entire life. He’s maybe wrestled one or two cows back into their pens (unsuccessfully) and the only thing he’s brawled with is the earth.
“No…”
Kyungsoo paused for a moment. “Just jab that thing you’re holding into the zombie’s face and I think you’ll be fine.”
“It’s a retractable rake.”
“Yeah, whatever, rake, pitchfork, scythe,” Kyungsoo dismissed. “We should go now though.”
Jongin reluctantly looked through the room one last time, as if Sehun would pop up out of nowhere and scream that he was playing a huge practical joke on him, but everything was still and Kyungsoo had already made his way towards the door.
Before opening it and turning his head towards both sides of the hallway to check if the coast was clear, he realized something.
“Shit, I just remembered. A few days ago, I took a Buzzfeed quiz to see if I’d be able to survive a zombie attack, but I never thought it would actually happen?” Kyungsoo said aloud.
“Well?” Jongin asked. “What results did you get?”
“It said I wouldn’t even last 3 hours.”
“… Oh. That’s great.”
The zombie in the hallway didn’t seem to stay long after Jongin managed to worm his way into Kyungsoo and Sehun’s room. Kyungsoo deduced that maybe it really was like a stereotypical zombie from the movies where they don’t have a large attention span and only go after things that they can see.
They didn’t have a plan in motion because Kyungsoo was mostly an “I’m gonna wing it” kind of guy, and Jongin was a not-a-leader-but-a-follower kind of guy. They also had no idea how many zombies were in the dorm facility and how many more were outside. Their main goal was to make it to the train station and hop on the train or somehow find an escapee group.
“Are we making a run for it or tip-toeing?” Jongin asked stupidly.
“You really want to tip-toe the whole way?” Kyungsoo responded. “Of course we’re running, do you want your brain to become corpse cuisine?”
Once again, Jongin pouted at Kyungsoo’s brashness, but he couldn’t really say or do anything that would anger him because then he’d be all alone in a city that he was unfamiliar with. Right now, Kyungsoo was his protector and his guide.
Kyungsoo quickly rushed to the elevator down the hall with Jongin right behind, and he repeatedly jammed the elevator’s down button until the doors finally opened. They hurried into the elevator and rapidly pressed on the close button.
Just before it was about to shut, a pale hand jammed into the space between the doors and Jongin let out a frightened yell.
Because of the sensors, the doors opened again to reveal the ugly face of a zombie, rabidly trying to claw its way into the elevator.
While Jongin cowered in the corner, Kyungsoo stepped up and swung his bat at the zombie’s face, bashing it in with just one blow. While the zombie stumbled back, Kyungsoo struck its head with the bat again, decapitating it and sending its head flying out the door. After its body fell to the ground, Kyungsoo kicked it out of the elevator and away from the sensors.
Then the doors finally closed.
“Jesus Christ! Isn’t riding the elevator a horrible idea?” Jongin asked. “What if the doors open and there’s a horde of zombies waiting in the lobby?”
“Well, what are we gonna do? Take the stairs? It’s literally the same thing except more work,” Kyungsoo scolded him. “We should save up on as much energy as possible during this apocalypse.”
Jongin didn’t want to say it, but now he sees why the Buzzfeed quiz said that Kyungsoo wouldn’t last for more than three hours. “But we’d be trapped in the elevator,” Jongin argued. “With the stairs, we’d be able to run back u—”
“Whatever, I have my bat and you have your mini hoe,” Kyungsoo interrupted. “We can just beat our way through them.
“ It’s a retractable rake!! ” Jongin seethed.
“Be prepared for when the doors open,” Kyungsoo commanded, ignoring Jongin’s correction. “We either have to fight zombies or sprint straight for the train station, got it?”
Jongin obediently nodded just as he felt the elevator land on the first floor. Clutching onto his rake, he stood beside Kyungsoo right in front of the doors. The older pushed past as soon as they opened, Jongin following closely behind.
The lobby was empty — just like before when Jongin was stupidly waiting — but that didn’t stop Kyungsoo from moving fast. They were outside before Jongin knew it, and it was empty and quiet just as it was half an hour ago.
What stopped Kyungsoo was the sight of the cars all crashed into each other. However, unlike before, Jongin saw that some of the windows of the cars were cracked, but none were completely broken and no car doors were open.
“Hey, didn’t you walk through here before?” Kyungsoo asked, cautiously looking around and scanning the area for more clues. “Didn’t this seem weird to you?”
Jongin did a double take before answering. “I did! I was gonna tell Sehun, but forgot when I got too caught up in all of the zombie apocalypse stuff,” he admitted while frowning. “ But I don’t remember seeing any windows cracked or anything.”
Kyungsoo was too curious about this, because now he was slowly approaching the vehicles instead of scurrying towards the train station like the original plan had prompted.
“Sh-shouldn't we go,” Jongin stammered, getting nervous at the fact that Kyungsoo was getting so near to the car. He recalled earlier that there was a bang inside one of the cars and how it shook the whole thing.
Kyungsoo only ignored him and inched closer and closer, trying to see if there was anyone inside the car. What he noticed was the crack on the window was spreading, the lines reaching from the center of the glass towards the metal of the car until…
SMASH!!!
Kyungsoo couldn't hear Jongin’s screams over his own panic as he tried to wrench his way out of a zombie’s grip. The glass shards cut Kyungsoo’s arms, causing him to drop his bat, but he recovered by trying to use his now free hand to keep his hand away from the zombie’s mouth.
“FUCK! DO SOMETHING!” Kyungsoo roared at Jongin, trying to pull his hand towards himself and away from the car and the zombie. More of the glass was cracking and soon enough, a huge hole would form so that more than just the zombie’s arm could fit through it.
On instinct, Jongin dropped his rake and picked up Kyungsoo’s bat from the ground, bringing it down on the zombie’s arm. That dismembered it and it lost it’s grip on Kyungsoo’s arm, causing the guy to stumble back and fall on the ground.
He recovered in horror as he heard the glass of the cars all around them, slowly cracking and about to burst. Kyungsoo scrambled to get up, taking his bat from Jongin, who in turn picked up his rake. He grabbed Jongin’s hand and pulled him along.
“RUN!”
In the direction of the train station, they sprinted, not daring to look back. Running cut the 10 minute walk into 5 minutes, and soon they were inside the train station. It was only then that they saw that none of the zombies were chasing them.
“Do you think they can’t run?” Kyungsoo asked cautiously.
“I have no idea,” Jongin wheezed, not really used to sprinting for his life. Of course Kyungsoo was alright because he sprints all the time — he’s on his school’s baseball team. Jongin’s arms and legs were alright from all the work he did on his farm, but his lungs and heart were about to burst.
He knew that whenever he asked God for something, God was usually busy with more important stuff, but he’s pretty sure zombie apocalypses required a higher order of divine intervention. He just silently prayed to God, or whatever was out there, that zombies couldn't run, or at least couldn't run faster than him.
Kyungsoo didn’t spare Jongin a second, because he was already bolting towards the platform that was supposed to have the train that was going to leave for the countryside. Jongin breathlessly followed, not wanting to be left behind. When they got there, the sight that met Kyungsoo’s eyes filled him with disappointment and desperation.
The platform was empty with the sight of tracks with no train on it, a tell-tale sign that it was probably long gone.
“Noooo, the train left already!! Damn it!” Kyungsoo cursed, chucking his bat onto the ground out of frustration.
Jongin looked at his unofficial partner-in-crime uneasily. Throughout this whole ordeal, Kyungsoo seemed so level-headed and composed, despite facing (un)death twice. Now, that their Plan A has left the station, Kyungsoo felt lost to the point where he thought the only thing he could do at the moment was throw a tantrum.
“What… what do we do now?” Jongin asked, afraid that the older didn’t have an answer. Jongin didn’t have an education, nor did he have daily situations that tested his brainpower, but he was smart enough to figure that the train he got on was probably the last one to come into the city since it had left before the announcement, and that it probably dipped as soon as possible.
Kyungsoo stared at the tracks as if it would give him an answer. He was too preoccupied to notice anything going on in his surroundings anymore. It was when Jongin saw something behind them shuffle in the corner of his eye and heard low groaning sounds.
In one motion, he flipped out and extended his rake, spearing it behind him and right into a zombie’s face. Kyungsoo turned around and was shocked to see what Jongin had just done.
But apparently, the farmboy was also shocked at what he was capable of doing. It only took a moment for it all to sink in.
“Oh my God! I just did that!! I’m so sorry!!” Jongin frantically apologized and bowed to the already-demolished zombie on the ground.
Kyungsoo furrowed his eyebrows, not believing what his ears were hearing. “Did… did you really just apologize to that zombie for killing it? You just saved my life and that’s the first thing you say?”
“It was a human once, that had a human life and had a human family!” Jongin wailed.
“I,” Kyungsoo started. “I can't believe I'm stuck with a pansy…” he mumbled, then came up with an idea. “Alright, next time you encounter a zombie, think of it as that Plants vs. Zombies game that Sehun showed you a couple of years ago. Remember that?”
“Yes… vaguely…” the farm boy replied cautiously, sniffling.
“Those zombies… will be coming after your farm!”
The farm boy’s eyes widened exponentially while gasping overdramatically. “Oh HELL no, they better not touch my petunias!” Jongin exclaimed.
Kyungsoo shook his head and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “I thought you grew food on a farm.”
“Well, they better not come after my corn either!!”
Kyungsoo sighed, then said, “Best come up with a way to defend your corn then. I have another plan to get us out of here.”
Kyungsoo had grabbed Jongin’s hand to bring him to the underground part of the station, where there were subways instead of railway trains.
“We can walk along the platform until we find a train,” Kyungsoo said. “We can maybe make it to the next city, and hopefully run into people along the way. If we’re especially lucky, there will be a train going to the countryside from there.”
Jongin only nodded, praying that this plan would work because it was basically their only hope now. He was grateful that they were able to get away from the city wide zombie car wreckage and that they haven’t had the misfortune of running headfirst into a complete horde of zombies.
The tunnel would have been dark if it weren’t for the lights lined up all around the sides. Kyungsoo may or may not have forgotten to pack a flashlight in his backpack, but that was a (hopefully) tomorrow problem to worry about.
Jongin wasn’t sure how long they had to walk — he knew now was not the time to complain, but his feet were actually hurting from being up and about all day. It was when Kyungsoo shouted out in surprise and ran ahead that he found the will to force-drag himself to wherever the older was going towards.
Jongin found that the end of the tunnel led to a station, one with a high ceiling. It seemed like it was the kind of station that was the first and last stop, because the tracks that they were going down terminated. What caught their attention the most though was that there was a train on the tracks, right in front of them.
“Wait, how are we gonna work this thing?” Jongin asked because he knew Kyungsoo didn't know a horse’s shit about how to drive a subway train.
“We're gonna get into the conductor’s car and just wing it. We'll take it out of the station and switch tracks so that we can continue in the direction we were going,” the baseball player explained as if it was as simple as that.
Blinded by excitement, Kyungsoo rushed towards the front of the train, mind set on getting them out of there. Jongin was reminded of the cars outside and before he made the connection, Kyungsoo was already prying open the door.
“KYUNGSOO, WAIT—”
It was too late because the older managed to get the door open. He quickly disappeared inside, ready to man the controls. Learning his lesson that it’s better to act and not to just stand there like a gaping goat, Jongin sprung to action and went after Kyungsoo.
“FUCK!” Kyungsoo cursed, when Jongin made it in. He saw the mutilated face of what seemed to be the train’s conductor — based on his uniform — probably from Kyungsoo swinging his bat at him already, but the zombie was still standing. Jongin took initiative and clawed his rake into the zombie’s neck, decapitating it when pulling it forward. The zombie fell on the ground and stayed still.
“Thanks,” Kyungsoo said gratefully, and Jongin nodded.
“Try to start the train now,” Jongin suggested and the older went to work, hovering over the control panel. The farm boy couldn’t help but take another look at the fallen zombie; the thought of it being in the same car as them while they’re operating the train made him extremely uncomfortable. His eyes widened in panic when he saw it’s fingers twitch even without its head intact.
“Kyungsoo, I’m going to move the body to the car behind us. I don’t like it being here with us,” Jongin said, intending to give the zombie the boot out the nearest door. Kyungsoo mumbled a form of agreement, completely focused on reading all the buttons of the train and figuring out which ones he should pull or press.
The farm boy opened the door, about to nudge the body through out with his foot (because like hell if he was gonna touch it with his bare hands) but immediately regretted it.
There were a lot more zombies in the car behind them.
“No!” Jongin cried out when a zombie’s hand stuck through the door before he was able to completely shut it, wanting to get its hands on fresh human flesh. The sound of Jongin struggling alarmed Kyungsoo as he finally turned around and saw what happened.
He immediately grabbed his bat and shot up from the conductor seat to help Jongin, aggressively poking the hands back through the door. Each hand he pushed back, three more got through and they were pushing hard to open the door. Jongin wouldn’t last long trying to keep it closed.
“It’s no use!” Kyungsoo shouted over all the groaning corpses. “We need to leave the door and get out of the train! On the count of three, let go of the door and run!!”
Jongin gave an apologetic look before nodding.
“1!”
“2!”
“3!”
Kyungsoo darted out of the car and Jongin followed closely behind. The zombies were going to follow them out soon, too, so they needed to think fast.
At the time, climbing on top of the train seemed reasonable. They could wait it out until the zombies went their own way and they could regain control of the train again. Kyungsoo saw the flaw in that logic when the zombies were actually able to climb up after them.
“What the fUCK,” Kyungsoo cursed for the millionth time today. “They can’t open a door, but they can climb shit?! We could’ve just ran out of the station!!”
“We'd be out in the open, so probably would’ve died that way too, to be honest,” Jongin admitted.
Kyungsoo looked for another way out, there were zombies approaching on the left, and to the right was the end of the train, where there were zombies on the ground, too. Left, right, down, they were cornered. Except…
Up.
Kyungsoo raised his head to see bars and pipes lining the ceiling of the station.
“Jongin, I have an idea.”
“What is it?”
“Watch me and follow.”
Kyungsoo bent his knees, then jumped as high as he could before grabbing onto a pipe in the ceiling. He grabbed onto another bar to swing himself forward and away from the train. It was like monkey bars, but Jongin has never played monkey bars in his entire life.
He had good upper body strength, so he was able to easily follow Kyungsoo out from on top of the train, and they were both eventually dangling over the tracks.
“How long do you think we’re gonna have to stay like this?” Jongin asked, arms starting to feel numb after a few minutes. The zombies that were on top of the train tried to get to them, but with no intelligence, they just fell off the edge and onto the tracks. Even the zombies on the ground were making grabbing motions towards the ceiling, completely aware that their next meal was hanging over their heads.
“Until all of them clear out of the train. There are some still coming out.”
They probably hung there for half an hour when Jongin hands started building up sweat. He was internally panicking when he felt like he was going to slip, and he didn’t know how much longer he could hold up.
“Kyungsoo… I think… I’m slipping…” Jongin said, struggling to keep wet palms on the dirty pipes.
Kyungsoo looked uneasily at him, not sure what to do. “Try to pull yourself up and rest your upper body on the pipes,” he suggested. “I think I’m okay right now, and pulling myself up is hard work, so I’m f—nO!”
The sight of Jongin briefly slipping up and letting go gave Kyungsoo the shock of his life, but the farm boy managed to grab hold onto Kyungsoo’s waist before completely falling into the arms of all the zombies.
“CHRIST!! JONGIN, FUCK!” Kyungsoo spat, struggling more than ever to hold the both of them up. Jongin clung on harder, terrified for his life and not knowing what to do now.
“Kyungsoo, spare my life!!” Jongin cried and begged, his mind was going haywire to think of saying anything else.
“It’s fine, Jongin, just keep holding on!!” Kyungsoo bellowed. He mentally thanked himself for joining the baseball team and going through all the rigorous training to strengthen his upper body.
They stayed like that for a few minutes while Kyungsoo kept trying to think of a plan. “When the top of the train clears, I can try swinging you onto that,” he suggested to the farmboy. “Or, you can try climbing me and getting your hands back on the pipes.”
Jongin felt guilty that Kyungsoo was both the brains and the brawn of the two of them, he was everything to their survival, and he felt like extra added-on weight. It seemed as if the number of zombies coming out of the front of the train was proliferating endlessly; the whole station platform was starting to fill with the undead from the train. Kyungsoo was probably going to lose his grip anytime soon if he had to continuing carrying his own weight and Jongin’s, and they'd both end up falling. Ultimately, Jongin made a decision.
“Kyungsoo, I have something to tell you before I let go…”
“Let go?! Are you out of your goddamn mind?!” Kyungsoo shouted back. “Don’t you dare let go, and don’t tell me that something , because now’s not really the time, Jongin!”
“No, now’s the perfect time. I like you and I’ve liked you for a couple of years now, and I would regret it if I died during this apocalypse and haven’t said anything to you,” Jongin confessed.
“The fuck! You chose now out of all times to say that?!”
“Yes, it’s now or never. I have to let go because you can’t hold the both of us much longer. I’m probably seconds away from death, and if I turn into a zombie, I give you full permission to swing at my face.”
“Okay! I didn’t mean it like that, you idiot! You should’ve told me this maybe earlier , like years earlier, because then we could’ve been together this whole time!!”
“What? You liked me?!”
“Yes, stupid!” Kyungsoo seethed, through both the pain of holding on and the frustration of Jongin’s obliviousness. “I’m the one watering the plants inside that garden box in our dorm room! I’m also the one convincing Sehun to let you visit!!”
“Oh! Well, wow, I thought you hated me this whole time! I’m glad we established our feelings for each other before getting my brain and limbs feasted on. If you manage to make it out to the countryside alive, please take care of my pigs, horses, chickens, and Moora — she's the cow—”
“Don’t say that! There’s still hope that we can—”
Kyungsoo’s abrupt burst of positivity was suddenly interrupted by Jongin’s grip on him sliding down, along with his pants. His boxers were now out on display for all of zombiesus to see.
“Never mind, I fucking hate you, I take back everything I just s—”
He was cut off once again from hollering coming from behind them.
“WHEEEEEE-HOOOOOOO!!!”
Kyungsoo and Jongin whirled their heads around, trying to find the source of the whooping, but could not find anyone. However, in the corner of his eye, Jongin saw something hurtle towards the zombies.
“What was th—”
BOOM!
The force of the impact was enough to sway them in midair, but they weren’t hit or hurt. Kyungsoo dared to look down to see smoke everywhere and before it could clear out, two other objects were hurtled into the space.
BOOM! BOOM!
Kyungsoo and Jongin continued to hang in confusion, until they saw two tall figures making their way through the smoke. From the way they were walking, it didn’t seem like they were zombies. Kyungsoo even swore that he heard a familiar high-pitched laughing.
Eventually the smoke was whisked away and the two of them saw the mass damage caused from overhead. All the zombies that were standing and shuffling around before were now on the ground, still and unmoving.
They were saved.
Jongin and Kyungsoo — with his pants now intact — eventually managed to make it safely down from the ceiling of the station, wanting to meet their saviors. Upon getting closer, Kyungsoo recognized one of the men was his blasted roommate.
“Oh Sehun?!”
“Sehun, you’re alive!!” Jongin exclaimed, running straight into his friend and hugging him.
"Oh Sehun are you fucking kidding me?!” Kyungsoo exclaimed, trudging up to his roommate. “You were alive this whole time?!”
“Uhh, a ‘you’re welcome’ would’ve been nice. You don’t seem that happy to see that I’m fine,” Sehun said, hugging Jongin back.
“Why didn't you answer your fucking phone?!"
"There isn’t even any service here,” the taller answered like a smartass before Kyungsoo shot him a glare. “Okay, it died before the terrorist bombing! I was gonna go back to our room to charge it, but I almost got attacked..."
This made Jongin hug his best friend tighter, grateful that nothing happened to him.
“I was in the mood for a doughnut and coffee after I woke up, so I went out to the nearest doughnut shop. That’s when everything went down and I met Chanyeol,” he gestured to the tall guy with him, who waved at them friendlily. “He’s good at making homemade bombs.”
"So you’re telling me you went and found yourself a refugee squad and you were gonna leave me for dead?!"
"Well, I can't save you if I don't save myself first!!" Sehun defended himself. “How am I supposed to know you didn’t turn into a zombie?”
“You would know if you answered your fucking phone!!”
Jongin pulled away to interrupt their squabbling. “To be honest, if you were in Sehun’s situation, you would do the same thing,” he accused Kyungsoo. “You weren’t willing to wait for Sehun in the room either.”
This made Sehun raise his eyebrow at Kyungsoo, who nervously smiled and mumbled to Jongin through gritted teeth, “Thanks for throwing me under the bus.”
“Okay, it’s fine,” Sehun acknowledged, ready to forgive. “What matters is that we’re all here right now, alive and together again. We’re still gathering weapons and looking out for survivors, and we’re still planning a way out to the countryside.”
Kyungsoo and Jongin had retrieved their bat and rake on their way down from the ceiling, Chanyeol had his homemade bombs, and Sehun had them all to protect him. Chanyeol and Sehun guided the two newcomers to their hideout among the underground tracks, where more people were waiting, making plans to get away.
“By the way, nice underwear,” Sehun commented, chuckling.
Kyungsoo knew he hadn’t imagined that high-pitched laughter. He raised his bat to pretend to hit Sehun, who flinched while laughing; Jongin was just glad that they could still joke around. He also knew that he and Kyungsoo still had to address their feelings for each other properly, but that was also a tomorrow problem.
Humanity will see another day.