Apocalypse: Apparently, I Can See Zombies

A moment of silence fell over the three youths, and it persisted for an uncomfortable number of seconds. It was only broken when Micah spoke up.

"I left the school so correct me if I'm wrong. Were you the one responsible for trapping the zombies?"

Jin-woo nodded his head but still kept his gaze lowered to the ground.

Micah clicked his tongue and said with slight disbelief in his voice.

"How did you manage that? Did you pull it off with your ability?"

Hearing this, Jin-woo couldn't help but raise his head and look at Micah with a confused expression.

"That's… Are you not mad at me?"

"Do you want me to be?"

Micah looked at Jin-woo with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

"If you threw a baseball at someone and they hit it through a window before running away, you're the type of person to stand there and apologize without giving an explanation to the homeowner. So, I know this virus isn't entirely your fault. If it was then how did it appear outside of the school as well?"

Jin-woo forced a smile and responded.

"But I was the one that carried the pill containing the virus to school, even though I wasn't the one who threw it inside the water supply, I'm still at fault for Yoon-min and everyone's deaths."

Micah paused and then said.

"Tell me what exactly happened and catch me up and everything else."

Micah motioned for Jin-woo to come over, but Jin-woo hesitated.

"I've gotten used to it so it's fine."

Micah said, with that, Jin-woo no longer hesitated and approached, sitting beside him.

Seong went over to examine Yoon-min, while Jin-woo explained his connection with the zombie virus, while including his mother and Madelyn's involvement. He also talked about how he trapped the zombies and everything that happened afterward.

Micah sat cross-legged and silently listened to Jin-woo with rapt attention. He would occasionally ask questions while also letting slip a few exclamations of surprise, especially when Jin-woo was explaining how he trapped the zombies.

However, a few times during Jin-woo's retelling Micah's brows would furrow deeply. When Jin-woo finished, he couldn't help but point out:

"What's with that bastard Ye-jun? Does he have a grudge against you or something?"

Jin-woo shook his head, but before he could respond to Micah's question, Seong beat him to it.

"No, he has a grudge against me."

Seong's body suddenly disappeared from Yoon-min's side and appeared in front of Micah which momentarily startled him.

This caused Seong to chuckle slightly before he explained his history with Ye-jun and why he was now targeting Jin-woo.

"He broke into your locker and switched your medication with drugs?! Is he a psychopath? Who does that?"

Micah was first stunned but then became angry on Jin-woo's behalf.

"He needs to be in prison, or better yet in a coffin. Maybe I shouldn't have hesitated and finished the job for you."

Micah's last words were aimed at Seong and his attempted murder in the past.

However, upon hearing his words, Jin-woo stiffened. He then asked softly.

"Was that when you went back to the gymnasium after being bitten?"

"Hm."

Micah responded with a hum but didn't elaborate further.

Jin-woo also stayed silent, but his gaze stayed on Micah.

Seong seemed to realize something, and his expression changed slightly as he glanced at Micah, a complicated look appearing in his eyes.

Seeing their reactions, Micah knew he couldn't stay silent, so he opened his mouth and said.

"When those four zombies came back to attack us, none of those people came out of the cafeteria to help us. They just stood there and watched as Yoon-min was attacked and bitten. Worse, that bitch Mai-sun who was saved by Yoon-min didn't so much as turn back to glance at us when Ye-jun was closing the door. So, after Yoon-min died and I was turning into a zombie, I kept repeating to myself over and over again that I needed to kill every last one of them for what they did, or rather didn't do. I then threw myself off the roof and landed on the gymnasium steps, I was hoping that my zombie body would linger around the area and bite at least one person. But maybe God answered my wish because when I opened my eyes after that I was fully conscious. Then I… I gathered a zombie hoard and have it surround the gym. A few people died when they tried escaping, and during the chaos, I got near Ye-jun to bite him, but I hesitated at the last moment making him escape."

Micah turned to Jin-wo before adding.

"I killed our classmates, and I don't regret it, so it would be hypocritical of me to solely blame you for this virus. Besides, I don't think you were responsible for Yoon-min's death, those bastards who didn't help and just watch are."

Micah stopped talking and silence fell as neither Jin-woo nor Seong knew what to say.

After a minute or so, Micah sighed and said while getting up.

"It's getting late, you should probably head back before someone realizes you've secretly left."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Jin-woo got up, he was still silent, but before he left, he hugged Micah and said.

"My blood contains the cure for the virus. I wasn't planning on telling you, sorry. I didn't want to give you hope since I wasn't sure if it could work on Yoon-min."

Micah's body shook slightly and Jin-woo felt it.

"I'll come back with the cure to save you; I promise."

"Then I'll be waiting here. After all, I don't have anywhere I need to be, ha-ha."

Jin-woo smiled and stepped back. Patting Micah's shoulder he turned and walked to the stair tower to leave.

However, Seong suddenly asked Micah.

"I'm curious. Yoon-min became a second type of infected, but what type of illness did he have?"

Jin-woo paused, he had overlooked this detail. He turned to Micah to hear his answer.

Micah hesitated for a moment as he glanced at Yoon-min's body, but he soon turned back to Seong and Jin-woo and answered.

"It was a sensitive subject Yoon-min didn't like talking about, but I guess I can tell you… The illness he had was H.I.V."

Seong and Jin-woo paused momentarily upon hearing that, but Micah shook his head and said with a laugh.

"It's not like that, as far as I know, Yoon-min was a devoted virgin, haha. He only has the H.I.V. virus because his scumbag of a father got his mom pregnant without telling her, and his mother decided to have him despite the risks."

After having their doubts settled, Seong and Jin-woo said their final goodbyes to Micah before leaving the auditorium roof.

On his way back with Seong, Jin-woo was staring at the starry night sky. Neither he nor Seong spoke and just silently walked next to each other. However, the silence was filled with the faint sounds of crickets.

As Jin-woo was looking at the stars, for some reason a strange feeling suddenly washed over him. Then, in his vision, the stars began to pulsate while the cricket noises in his ears increased to the point it started to become deafening.

No…

This wasn't the sound of crickets anymore. It sounded more like the blades of a helicopter.

Jin-woo's vision of the stars blurred for a moment before refocusing. However, while the stars were the same, the blades of a helicopter appeared in front of him, rotating at fast speeds blocking the stars.

Along with this strange scene came the feeling of being weightless. It was a similar feeling to what he had when he was moving through the starry sky in his dreams.

This feeling of weightlessness and the sound of the helicopter blades rotating quickly became the only thing Jin-woo could hear and feel.

"Jin… Jin… Hey, Jin, what's wrong?"

Jin-woo felt a pat on his shoulder that quickly pulled him out of this feeling. He then turned to look at Seong who was calling him to see that he was wearing a worried expression.

"Ah, sorry, I'm fine."

Jin-woo responded but then glanced back at the sky. He placed a palm on his heart. Only now did he realize it was rapidly beating.

"Hey, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine really. What were you saying?"

Jin-woo hurriedly looked away from the sky to give Seong his undivided attention.

Seong looked at Jin-woo suspiciously for a moment, but he didn't pursue the matter. He instead smiled and said.

"I was asking you for the time."

"The time? It's, ah, 12:15."

Jin-woo said looking at his watch. Then glancing back at Seong he asked with a confused expression.

"Why do you keep asking for the time?"

Seong smiled in response and then said.

"Happy 16th Birthday, idiot."

Jin-woo blinked, then muttered softly.

"Oh."

Jin-woo had completely forgotten that today was his birthday, March 15.

Seong couldn't help but laugh and make fun of Jin-woo for forgetting his birthday. Though it couldn't be helped, given everything that had happened, his birthday was the last thing on Jin-woo's mind.

While joking with Seong back to the east wing, Jin-woo couldn't help but give the starry night sky one last glance.

That vision he just had of a helicopter here in the school signaled a bad omen for his birthday tomorrow.

He didn't know if this meant that the Marshal had lied to him and instead sent a single helicopter or not. Whatever the case, it was a future he had to face. He just didn't like the fact that the first vision he had in a while was so vague compared to the others.

Perhaps that in itself was what made him even more nervous.

Jin-woo looked away from the sky and entered the cafeteria backdoor before closing it behind him.