Undead's Embrace. (Woosan)

10. Outside the Gate

The boys finished up their meals and began talking more about their plan for tonight.

"We are running low on ammunition from this morning's battle. Luckily, we know exactly where to find some. We've been getting supplies from the Armory about 3 miles west from here. San knows the lock combination. It's a great place to get weapons for yourselves instead of using the spares in the shed." Hongjoong said.

"Start packing a travel bag guys, we should be home after sundown. Be sure to take food and water with you, it's a rough way there." Jongho added.

All of the boys went to their rooms to pack their supplies, and the first ones ready were Wooyoung and San.

San looked at Wooyoung and smiled once again.

Wooyoung smiled back only halfway. "Now he wants to be my best friend or something? I guess it's better than the knife to my throat."

"Sooo, what all did you pack?" San asked awkwardly.

"Oh. Just some knives, food, and water. Yeosang is packing the medical supplies in his pack." Wooyoung said softly.

"You should probably pack some medicine for your cut on your shoulder. I'm sorry about that by the way. Really sorry." San said with empathy.

"Yeah, no worries. I'll grab some from the first aid."

Wooyoung went back inside to Yeosang's room and grabbed some pain-relievers from his pack. Yeosang snatched them back in an instant.

"Why are you taking the whole bottle of pain pills? If you need some you can ask."

"San said I should probably get some. Sorry for barging in and taking them."

"Wait...SAN? So all of a sudden he cares about your wellbeing?" Yeosang said with a confused laugh.

"Yeah. It's really weird. I'm just going along with it at this point. I don't want to be back on his bad side." Wooyoung sighed.

"Well that's true. Just grab a few of them. We have to save as much as we can." Yeosang gave Woo a couple of small white pills and Woo swallowed them.

"Thanks Yeosang."

Wooyoung walked back out of the house and saw Mingi and Yunho talking with San and Jongho.

"I guess they're getting along just fine as well." Wooyoung thought.

Hongjoong, Seonghwa, and Yeosang came out a few minutes later as well. Hongjoong made sure everyone got that they needed, including weapons for all. Since the ammo was low, they stuck to melee weapons.

Hongjoong had Yeosang's bat, but it was completely covered in old barbed wire. Hongjoong handed it to Yeosang with a wink. Yeosang grabbed it and was in awe of how cool it looked. It was much more efficient as well.

Jongho and Mingi were armed with huge machetes, both pretty cool looking as well. Wooyoung was armed with an old axe. It wasn't much but it could definitely do some damage. San  had a dagger with his name carved into it.

"Badass." Mingi told San.

Seonghwa and Hongjoong both had pickaxes as their weapon of choice. Pretty sharp on the tip too.

Now that they were armed and ready to go, Hongjoong unlocked and opened the gate. The boys walked outside the gate and Hongjoong  closed it behind him and locked the padlock on the outside of the large metal door.

The journey was through the woods, and it was basically a hike just to get there. There was no trail or openings for a path. It was rough.

San had decided his buddy for the journey would be Wooyoung. Wooyoung didn't know if he was just trying to make up for his past mistakes or what, all he knew was that it was beginning to get a little annoying.

"So, where are you from?" San asked.

"Goyang-si. And you?"

"Namhae-eup." San replied.

"Wow. That's quite a difference." Wooyoung smiled.

"I moved to Seoul for my military service, and left my family behind. But yeah, I'm originally from Namhae." San said with a sense of pride for his home.

Wooyoung looked at San's face, relaxed and smiling. He couldn't help but notice his hair perfectly fall into place, and how sharp his jawline looked. His eyes were dark, but had a sense of comfort. His skin looked soft and pale, except for the dark line across his cheek that was his scar. He looked heavenly.

"What the hell? What is going on with me?" Wooyoung thought to himself.

San began more small talk with Wooyoung, talking about their favorite foods and colors, what hobbies they did before the outbreak, all that stuff you'd talk about when getting to know someone.

The woods were quiet except for the birds in the trees singing all around them. And, of course, Wooyoung and San's conversation.

Yeosang was talking with Jongho.

"They seem to be getting friendlier by the minute. What the hell did you say to get him to switch up?" Yeosang asked Jongho.

"We reread his father's autopsy report. Word for word and line by line. To prove to him that what happened isn't anyone's fault, not his, not Wooyoung's, and not anyone in that operating room. We went through the steps of the surgery as if we were there. Eventually, he got it in his mind and he calmed down. He was overwhelmed with guilt though."

Yeosang was impressed. Jongho must have been a true friend to be that dedicated to helping his friend.

The boys heard Hongjoong up ahead yell, "Hey! I think we found it!"

They all rushed to the tree line and saw a large building through a fence, which looked high tech but very secure. The fence was broken, most likely from infected damaging it. It would open just enough for people to climb through.

San went ahead of all of them, looking both directions in case there was any sign of infected. A group of them were herded to the left across a small roadway. San turned back and put a finger over his lips telling them all to be quiet.

"Group of those things to the left. If we go quietly, we can avoid them. But, once the door is opened it'll set off an alarm. It'll definitely get their attention, so be ready to fight." San whispered to Hongjoong and Seonghwa.

Hongjoong nodded and gestured all of the boys over to him to circle up.

"Alright. We all need to be as quiet as possible. Tiptoe if you have to. Once we get to that door right there, San will unlock it but the infected will hear the alarm and come straight for us. You can't straggle behind. Every needs to get in the door as soon as it's opened. You got it?"

The boys silently nodded or gave a thumbs up. Wooyoung stayed behind and held the fence open for the rest of them.

Hongjoong and San led the way, and Wooyoung was stuck in the back. They all walked slowly, watching every step they took. Debris and bottle lay on the ground in the parking lot, and a lot of it. Tiptoeing their way through what seemed like an obstacle course, San reached the door first.

Hongjoong and Seonghwa got there a little afterwards, and that's when San began to put in the code. Jongho reached them as he put in the numbers, with Mingi, Yunho, and Yeosang quickly catching up. The door opened, but a loud alarm began to go off. Wooyoung was still really behind. Yunho was stepping inside as the infected's footsteps and groans began rushing to the door.

"Wooyoung!! Run!" Yeosang yelled.

San held the door open for everyone. Wooyoung began running as fast as he could to the door. He heard the sounds of creaking bones and heavy breathing right next to him, but all he focused on was getting to San... I mean the door.

An infected reached out and grabbed his shirt as he was only feet away from the entrance. It pulled him back and threw him to the asphalt. He looked up and immediately saw a figure kicking the hell out of the zombie that pulled him.

San put his arm down to help Wooyoung up, and they ran to the door. San pushed Wooyoung in first, and shut the door as fast as he could. San fell against the door and sighed, resting his head on his fist.