“Get inside. We’ll talk there,” Rocky said.

  The bespectacled man unlocked the iron gate, and we stepped in. Inside, five of Rocky’s classmates—three guys and two girls—were gathered. When Rocky told them that the rescue team would arrive by nightfall, their faces lit up with relief. Well, most of them.

  One guy let out a sigh and turned to his girlfriend. “Seriously? The rescue team’s coming already?Damn, I didn’t even get a chance to take down a single zombie.”

  Rocky shot me a helpless smile. Clearly, this guy had no clue that if he actually went outside swinging, the zombies wouldn’t just stand there waiting to be cut down. No, they’d happily swarm him and give him a rather affectionate ‘kiss’ of death.

  I grabbed some bread and canned food from the stash. “The rescue team will be here soon. I’ll be taking some supplies—I doubt you’ll be needing them much longer.”

  Rocky hesitated. “Wait, you’re not staying to wait for the rescue?”

  I shook my head, stuffed the food into my bag and turned to leave. But before I could step out, the boastful guy from earlier scoffed. “Who said you could just take our stuff?”

  Rocky’s face darkened. “Altair! What’s your problem now? No one else cares. Why do you always have to pick a fight?”

  I locked eyes with Altair, gripping my iron pipe, and took a step toward him. "Oh? So I can't take it?"

  His gaze flickered on the bloodstains on my weapon. He shut his mouth, though his eyes still burned with resentment. I ignored him, walked to the door, and peeked outside—no zombies in sight. Pulling open the door, I turned back to Rocky. “Take care.”

  His expression was complicated. He hesitated before quietly saying, “Be careful…”

  With that, I crouched low, weaving through the abandoned cars littering the street, using them as cover while heading toward Ares’ apartment.

  Humming a little tune to myself,I was bent over, humming that my dodging skills were so good—it reminded me of the dodging skills in some game.

  But then, I heard something.

  A noise.

  It came from just ahead, near a blue car. My heart skipped. Could it be Sophie hiding there?

  Slowly, I crept forward, pressing myself against the car’s body. When I reached the hood, I pulled a classic spy move—jerking my head sideways to get a quick look.

  Big mistake.

  “Oh, hell no!”

  Right there, slumped against the hood, was a mangled corpse. Its neck hung at an unnatural angle, its body torn to shreds. And the worst part? I had leaned in way too close—almost face-to-face with it.

  Jesus Christ.

  The feeling was like… like spotting a woman with long, flowing hair from behind, her silhouette absolutely stunning. Your heart flutters, your body reacts instinctively—only for her to turn around and reveal the most horrifying face you’ve ever seen. Soul-crushing disappointment. Yeah, that’s what it felt like.

  Turns out, the mysterious noise was just the wind rustling a piece of newspaper stuck to the windshield.

  I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. Then, to shake off the horror, I started singing to myself. Sure, I probably sounded like an idiot, but whatever—it worked. Feeling slightly better, I pressed on, making a mental note: Never pull that kind of dumb stunt again.

  I mean, sure, I’ve played tons of violent video games. I thought I had a decent tolerance for gore. But virtual blood and guts? Nothing compared to the real thing.

  For a moment, I considered finding a car and driving. Plenty of vehicles still had keys inside. But then I remembered—

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  I’m a certified homebody. I’ve never driven a car in my life. If I tried now, I’d probably crash within minutes, get surrounded by zombies, and die in the most humiliating way possible.

  So yeah, my legs were the safer bet.

  Before long, I arrived at Ares’ apartment complex. Just like everywhere else, a few zombies wandered aimlessly in the distance. Carefully, I activated my enhanced reflexes—250% heightened response time, 330% increased movement speed—and slipped past them with ease.

  Reaching the front door, I found it locked. No big deal. I rang the doorbell.

  No answer.

  I rang again. Still nothing.

  Don't tell me this idiot has been killed...

  I rang a few more times before the intercom finally clicked on. Then, Ares’ voice blared through:

  “Hah! Nice try, dumbass zombie! You think you can fool me? What, you figured out how to use a doorbell now? Pfft. Get lost! If you’re too smart, come upstairs and eat me yourself!”

  Click.

  An than he hung up.

  I stood there, utterly speechless. Are you freaking kidding me?

  Shaking my head, I rang the doorbell again. This time, before he could speak, I growled, “Ares, you idiot! It’s me!”

  Silence.

  Then, his voice returned—this time, with an unmistakable tremble. “G-George? You… You turned into a zombie and came back to haunt me?! Bro, that’s messed up! How could you do this to your best friend?! Just go, man! I don’t want to see you like this!”

  Click.

  He hung up. Again.

  I was this close to exploding.

  To make matters worse, my delay had attracted attention. Two zombies rounded the corner, instantly locking onto me. They let out guttural screeches and charged.

  “Oh, for the love of—!”

  No time to complain. I gripped my iron pipe and lunged forward. I had to take them out fast—if I dragged this fight out, more would show up.

  My body kicked into high gear. Ducking under one zombie’s outstretched arms, I swung the pipe hard, crushing the skull of the second one. Half its face caved in as it collapsed. The first zombie lunged at me, jaws snapping—but there was no way in hell I’d let it get a bite.

  With a quick backstep, I flipped the iron pipe and rammed it straight into its gaping mouth, shoving it down its throat. The zombie twitched violently before dropping to the ground, spasming like a cockroach doused in insecticide.

  From above, I heard a familiar voice muttering, “Damn. George was so weak when he was alive, but now he’s a total Superman. Guess death really changes a guy…”

  My eyes twitched. I slowly turned my head upward.

  There he was—Ares, hanging halfway out his window, watching the whole thing like it was some kind of action movie.

  “Ares!!! You absolute moron!! Do I look like a freaking zombie to you?! You have three seconds to open this damn door before I leave your sorry ass behind!”

  Ares blinked. “Wait… Holy crap! George?! No way—you used to be weak! What happened? “This has to be a trick. Yeah! You must be a monster in disguise! A shapeshifter, maybe!”

  I let out a dry laugh. “Oh, so now I have to prove I’m me?”

  Ares paused. “Well… yeah. Answer this one question correctly, and I’ll believe you.”

  I sighed, rubbing my temples.

  "Proof? You big idiot!" I cursed loudly, glaring at another zombie sprinting toward me in the distance.

  "Huh? That really sounds like George's way of cursing... Could it really be you, George?" Ares muttered to himself, his tone suddenly serious.

  I swear, I was on the verge of breaking down... if I ever met this guy face-to-face, I’d beat the hell out of him.

  "Curse me a few more times, let me make sure you're really George!" Ares said earnestly.

  "Damn it... Ares... You big idiot. At a time like this, you’re seriously asking me to curse you?" I was furious.

  "Whoa! That tone of voice—it’s really you, George! Hold on, I’ll open the door right away!" Finally, the idiot was letting me in. I sneered at the approaching zombie, feeling smug. A moment later, Ares’s voice rang through the intercom in his signature flamboyant tone: "George, did it open?"

  "Hurry up and open the damn door, stop playing around!" I snapped.

  Ares whined, "I already pressed the button! George, hang on, I’ll come downstairs to get you."

  I sighed... This guy was going to be the death of me. I turned to the zombies in the distance—there were now two instead of one. At that moment, I heard the sound of a door opening from inside the building, followed by frantic slippered footsteps rushing down the stairs, then—

  "AAAHHH! Damn it! Zombies!!"

  More frantic footsteps—this time running up the stairs—accompanied by the growls of zombies. BANG! The door slammed shut.

  I was speechless. Gripping my iron pipe, I turned to face the two zombies closing in.

  Above me, a window creaked open. Ares stuck his head out and shouted, "George! I can't open the door! The zombies are right outside my place now!"

  "For fuck’s sake! Why are you yelling so loudly? Do you want to get me killed? Do you have any rope? Hurry!" I growled.

  Ares ducked back inside to find some rope. Meanwhile, I dealt with the two zombies trying to "kiss" me.

  A moment later, Ares poked his head out again. "George! I found some yarn! I'll cut it into four pieces and drop them down for you!"

  I glanced up at him, then at the layout of the building. Wait... I can jump onto that platform and get inside through the second-floor window!

  With a running start, I leaped, grabbed the edge of the platform, and hoisted myself up. But the window was shut. Without hesitation, I kicked the glass in and climbed through. Meanwhile, Ares was still inside, fussing over his yarn. Hang in there, George! I’m working hard on untangling this yarn...