gonna be fine | so junghwan

thirteen

| Z+1 — THE SCHOOL'S ROOFTOP |

Lee Soojin froze in place, startled by her own actions, as she stared between her hand and the pile of zombies at the bottom of the staircase.

She bit her lip, choking back a sob as she tried to figure out what was happening to her. One moment she was shaking in fear, and the next second she was strangling someone.

I didn't want to kill Gwinam. I really didn't. But suddenly, I saw red, and I felt angry and I–

"Jinnie, hey." Junghwan held the younger's face, maintaining eye contact. "It's alright. You are fine. Cheongsan's fine too."

"I didn't mean to." Soojin's lips quivered, tears threatening to fall down her face. "I don't know why I did that."

Lee Cheongsan felt his heart break, realizing how scary everything must've been for his twin. From the zombie bite to the weird side effects she had, everything must've been overwhelming.

"It's okay," Cheongsan assured, patting his sister's head. "You saved my life; that's all that matters."

Before Soojin could reply, Onjo yelled out to everyone, making them run towards the rooftop door at her announcement.

"Guys! The door is open!"

The students ran out the door as quickly as they could, their hearts dropping to their stomachs when they saw the rescue helicopter fly away from them.

All this hard work to get there ... and they still couldn't be rescued.

Everyone collectively yelled, waving their hands as some form of way to gain the attention of the helicopter, which only went further in distance.

Junghwan and Suhyeok closed the doors, clicking the locks on, while Cheongsan held onto his twin, who still seemed to be a little disoriented from everything.

"Hey, over here!"

"Come back!"

"Please help us!"

The children were desperate as they screamed for help, falling to the floor when they realized the helicopter wouldn't be turning back to help them.

And just like that, they fell back to square one of trying to survive a zombie apocalypse.

Onjo approached the Lee twins, gently taking Soojin's hands in hers. "Let's go make the SOS sign," she suggested, hoping it'd help the elder take her mind off things.

Cheongsan nodded gratefully before walking towards Suhyeok, knowing his sister was in good hands. "Suhyeok-ah," he called for the elder. "Didn't Gwinam fall from the fourth floor?" He asked, confused.

Suhyeok looked just as confused as he nodded unsurely. "He did. I threw him," he answered.

"So, how did he survive?"

"Maybe he doesn't die."

"Or maybe he dies and comes back to life," Junghwan stated, getting their attention. "He's neither human nor zombie. Just like Namra and Jinnie."

Cheongsan shook his head. "But Namra's side effects are much more severe than Soojin's," he muttered. "They are completely different." He looked at his feet, not really wanting to come to terms with what his sister was going through.

Suhyeok and Junghwan exchanged glances, realizing how difficult it must've been for the younger. The latter furrowed his brows, contemplating how he was going to word what he wanted to say.

"Soojin is weak because she is fighting the bite and is still in control," Junghwan explained. "Namra is adapting to the bite, so she struggles a little to control her urges."

"That's exactly what it is." Suhyeok nodded in agreement. "The bite is affecting them in different ways, but all we know is that they are doing much better than Gwinam."

"We can't guarantee what will happen, though." Cheongsan heaved a breath, his chest tightening as he thought about his twin. "What if–"

"There's nothing we can guarantee right now." Suhyeok shrugged. "We don't know if we'll live or die. So, let's just focus on what issues we have at hand now."

The taller male walked away from them, immediately going to help the others as they found items to make their SOS sign. Cheongsan still seemed troubled, his gaze drifting off to his sister.

"She's gonna be fine," Junghwan assured, patting the younger male's shoulder. "Soojin is stronger than us, you know? She's alright," he stated, assuring both himself and his girlfriend's brother.

Cheongsan nodded, appreciating the elder for giving him the assurance he needed in the moment.

Gosh, he really hoped Junghwan was right.

| Z+1 — THE SCHOOL'S ROOFTOP |

After what felt like hours for the students, they finally completed making their SOS sign, sitting back as they looked at their handy work.

"Onjo-ya," Daesu called for the younger as he adjusted a piece of wood on their sign. "What does SOS mean?"

"It's a distress signal."

"I know that. But what does it stand for?"

Onjo furrowed her brows, realizing her brain was about to malfunction with the questions that would come her way. "It doesn't stand for anything. SOS is just SOS," she answered.

Lee Soojin smiled to herself upon seeing the duo's banter — the first genuine smile she cracked since what happened earlier. So Junghwan watched his girlfriend from afar, relief flooding into his system as he saw her smile.

It had been a while since she sat away from the others, and he didn't want to bother her. He knew she needed time for herself, and he gave it to her, hoping it'd help her sort out her emotions.

"What's wrong?" Cheongsan intervened, listening as Daesu explained his dilemma. "But it's true, though. SOS means nothing. She's right."

Soojin continued to watch the interactions between her friends, unable to even laugh as she watched Onjo kick her brother, making him fall to the floor.

Man, when are they gonna realize that they like each other?

She turned away, admiring the view. The cloudy blue sky had a beautiful orange hue to it, letting her know that nightfall was coming soon. She looked at the ground below, realizing the rooftop was pretty high.

What if I just–

Soojin's thoughts came to a halt upon feeling someone nudge her, turning to see who it was. Han Gyeongsu stood beside her, looking at the view with a smile on his face.

"You were going to jump, weren't you?" He asked softly, not making eye contact with the brunette. "You were thinking about it, yeah?"

The younger bit her lip, humming in response. "Mhm." She nodded, not seeing the point in denying her thoughts.

"Been there, done that," Gyeongsu muttered, causing the younger to raise her brows in question. "If you guys weren't able to stop the infection from spreading, I thought I'd jump out the window, too."

Lee Soojin looked away, getting a flashback to the day before and realizing how much had happened within a short span of time.

"Thank you for saving me, Jinnie." He nudged the younger again, smiling when she looked at him. "I don't know how, but I will do everything I can to save you, too."

Soojin smiled, nodding. "I'll trust you, then," she said, leaning against the male. "I'll trust you to save me, Gyeong." She looked straight ahead, hoping the elder couldn't see her teary eyes.

But can I really be saved for whatever this is?