This Time, We'll Make It (Cheong San X Su Hyeok)

Chapter 19: A Funeral of Promises

Author's: Hey everyone! SnivyLord here! So uhhh... warning? Emotional Damage. That's all I gotta say. Some people might be mad at me for the choices I made with what happened after the fall, but I'll explain myself after.

Everyone watched when Ho Chul crashed his helicopter into the roof in a bid to kill Gwi-Nam and they saw the pandemonium that happened after. In short, it was an absolute disaster. Everyone in the quarantine camp watched as the whole building caved in and the helicopter and everyone who was on that roof fell to the depths below. There was a loud crash and as soon as the helicopter hit the ground, it exploded in a rage of fire, debris, and smoke. No one could see who exactly fell, but since the whole roof collapsed, it was reasonable to believe that everyone had been taken. Everyone in that room watched as the grueling battle of fate came to a tragic end.

Onjo was the first person to say something after the complete collapse of the building, "We need to go. Now."

Everyone nodded mutely and Seon Mu ordered a search and rescue team for the site at Hyosan High School. It was surreal watching all fo the soldiers rushing around, preparing to move out, but all Suhyeok could do was just stand there in shock. What the hell did he just watch? He continued to just stare at the blank static screens in shock until someone shook him out of his thoughts. Suhyeok turned around to see Onjo looking at him with a pleading look, her lips trembling with worry.

"Suhyeok-ah... we need to go... we have to find out what happened to him." Onjo begged Suhyeok to step away from the table and come with them. Suhyeok looked at Onjo for a moment before looking to the rest of his friends and classmates: Namra, Gyeong Su, Daesu, Woo Jin, Joon Yeong, Isak, Hyo Ryeong, Jimin, and Nayeon. All of them were standing here because of Cheong San and now that very boy has fallen into the unknown with the collapsed building. Suhyeok opened his mouth slowly, the devastation and anxiety building in his body and the only thing he could manage was a shaky "Ok..."

Onjo nodded and she quickly took by the arm and led him down to where Hyeon and So-ju were waiting for them. They were all heading back to the school to discover the fates of all four remaining people at Hyosan High School.

Daesu got behind Suhyeok and rubbed his shoulders comfortingly, urging him to come with them. It was a gesture of confidence but to Suhyeok, it was a reminder that they were going to have to face the reality soon, "Come on Bare-su, let's go find the sixth member of our bro squad." Suhyeok looked to Daesu's determined face and he sighed heavily.

"Let's go then." Suhyeok sighed simply and all of them started to make their way back to Hyosan High School, this time with Seon Mu, the other adults, and the search and rescue team in tow.

The way over back to Hyosan High School was an anxious one and filled with dread and fears. What broke Suhyeok's heart the most was that Cheong San fought for so long and hard, he could feel Cheong San's will to live through the screen. The boy fought against going through death's door so many times and every time he got close, he just kept fighting. When Cheong San made that promise to him, the promise of coming back so Suhyeok could ask him out on a proper date, he meant it. He really meant it. Cheong San fell to his death when he tackled Gwi-Nam into the elevator shaft and now it possibly could have happened again as Cheong San fell off the school building with Gwi-Nam as it was collapsing. Cheong San was really trying to change his fate in any way he could for them, and now it's ended like this. Suhyeok tried to repress those emotions like a dam, trying to do anything he could to keep his mind off of the inevitable: watching the ashy trees, the scorched black ground, the gray skies, just trying to mute out everything.

When they got there, all of them stepped out onto the ruined grounds of their high school, the teenagers of this once normal high school traumatized by how it's come to this. Seon Mu looked back at all of them, saying nothing and he trekked ahead to the site of the crash, his lonely steps against the ground being the only sound. All of them soon followed and they saw the very building come up in the distance and the smoke that was coming from the helicopter. They had to step over the bodies of countless zombies, incinerated to oblivion. These were once people, students, family, and teachers. There was no comfort or consolation to be had. It was just devastation and an even bigger tragedy awaiting them. The helicopter site soon came up in their sights and they all hesitantly stepped closer to the desolate sight before them. The helicopter was ravaged and destroyed beyond all recognition. The tail end was missing and the rotor laid twisted and broken with nary a blade left on it.