DS Chapter 25

I wanted to throw my arms around him… but my body wouldn’t move.

“Virus levels are at the threshold…”

The doctor’s words wouldn’t leave my head. And the memories hidden behind a thick veil—the ones I hadn’t yet recovered—kept holding me back.

I’m dangerous… to Logan.

Arms dangling, I just stared at his face.

He gently helped me sit up and pulled me into a firm embrace. Then, he wiped away my tear-streaked face.

“Why are you crying? Was it really that hard?”

I just shook my head with my lips sealed tight. His arms around me were so steady, so solid.

It wasn’t that bad. I was sedated—I don’t even remember what kind of tests they did.

It was just a blink of an eye. But even in that moment, being apart from you… it was terrifying. Why was it so scary?

I feel like I’ve turned into a child. The zombie virus must’ve been eating away at my smart brain. I used to be independent, clever, a top student who got into a good college…

Logan, I’ve become a kid who can’t be without you because I’m sick, right? Say it’s because I’m sick. Tell me it’s not because I love you so much.

Because if that’s love… I might have to give up.

Leaving someone you love is just too heartbreaking.

So I’ll say it’s because I’m sick. That way, leaving you might feel just a little bit lighter.

“…They said I might turn into a zombie soon. Did you hear that too?”

“That’s not for sure. You haven’t turned yet—what’s there to be afraid of?”

The nurse, watching us, wrinkled her nose in clear disgust, her face pale with revulsion.

Holding a disgusting zombie with such care—it was unthinkable. She didn’t say it out loud, but I could feel every ounce of her thought.

“The test results are in. The virus level came out even higher than before. Even if we continue prescribing medication, there’s no guarantee it’ll work. At this point, we recommend euthanasia.”

Euthanasia—that was the prescription they gave me. The doctor stepped forward to speak again.

“In this condition, we can’t approve your discharge. Even if you, guardian, are immune, the other residents could still be at risk.”

The doctor handed Logan a piece of paper. A ‘treatment/experiment’ consent form for the patient.

“If you don’t want to proceed with euthanasia, we’re happy to support continued treatment. It’s rare to see a case like this—someone still mentally lucid after being infected for over a year. It’s worth continuing. And of course, you’ll be allowed to visit freely, so please don’t worry too much.”

Logan took the paper with a dark expression. As the doctor continued explaining, my whole body turned to stone.

I realized then—they didn’t want to cure me. They wanted to keep me here, for experiments.

Without waiting for Logan’s answer, I grabbed his hand urgently.

Before he could sign that horrible form, before he could leave me behind in this disgusting place, I wanted to make my own choice about the end of my life.

“I want… euthanasia.”

“…What?”

Logan’s eyes widened as he looked at me. Even the doctor and nurse turned to me in surprise, as if they never expected someone already halfway to being a zombie to choose death for themselves.

“Let’s stop now, Logan… I’m so tired.”

My vision blurred. I couldn’t breathe, and tears poured out—not because I was afraid of dying.

‘If I die, I won’t remember anything anyway, so what’s there to be afraid of?’

It wasn’t the fear—it was the way Logan looked at me. That hopeless, heartbreaking face… it made it impossible to breathe. Tears spilled out like a flood.

‘Please… just let me go. I don’t want to fight anymore. I just want peace.’

“…You’ve done enough, haven’t you…?”

My head dropped forward. My tears soaked into the bedsheets as the medical staff quietly stepped away to give us space.

“…Then take your time. You can submit the euthanasia request at the front desk when you’re ready.”

Click. The door closed.

Now it was just the two of us in the room. This was our final moment together.

‘Thank you for everything. Be happy. Meet someone better. Live comfortably until the very end. Don’t forget me completely—just think of me once in a while.’

There was so much I wanted to tell him. This was the end—I should’ve said it all before it was too late.

But I was too busy wiping away the tears pouring down like rain. Logan remained silent beside me.

Our goodbye crept toward us, slow but certain. It climbed up from the soles of our feet, covering our toes, then our knees and hips, until it squeezed the breath out of our lungs.

‘Ah… I wanted to say it before it was too late. That I really do love you. That I’m so grateful for you. That you made me happy. That there were more good days than bad.’

But my throat tightened, and I couldn’t get the words out.

Instead, Logan—quiet until now—spoke up first.

“I’m sorry I made things so hard… Just wait a little longer. I’ll come back.”

He slowly let go of my hand. Then, with his big palm, he rested it gently on top of my head. That cool touch calmed the heat burning through my mind.

Without saying anything else, he turned and left the room. He was probably heading to the front desk.

As soon as he left, the temperature in the room felt like it dropped five degrees.

I wanted to call out, to grab him again, to shout that I still had something left to say—but I only clenched my fists tightly.

‘All that would be left is regret. If I said I love you now, it’d just become another burden to him. Better not to say anything at all. I’ll leave like this—as the selfish girl who only ever thought of herself.’

‘It’s done. This is right. Now I can finally rest.’

I closed my eyes and solemnly accepted the end.

‘I won’t have to trouble Logan anymore. I won’t put him in danger. And I… I can die still human.’

‘I just hope Logan won’t be too lonely, too sad without me. I pray… that he finds warmth again. That he’s okay.’

With all my heart, I hoped he would be okay.

* * *

There was no window to see outside, no clock to check the time, but I could instinctively tell—it was a chilly night.

One by one, the lights in the hallway went out, and a still, suffocating silence settled in.

‘Is the euthanasia scheduled for tomorrow? So they’re not doing it right away…’
‘Dragging this out will only make my thoughts spiral.’

There was no way I could sleep with death looming so close. I knew I wouldn’t get a wink of rest tonight. I just lay there, staring up at the patterns on the ceiling when—

Click.

The hospital room door opened.
‘Are they… here to kill me in the middle of the night?’

Confused, I turned my gaze to the person who walked in without even knocking.

“Logan…?”

He had come back.

So he didn’t go home. Had he stayed to be with me until the very end? It was enough to make my nose sting with emotion.

He raised a finger to his lips, motioning for me to be quiet, and silently approached.

“Shh.”

I tilted my head, not understanding what he was doing. When he reached the bed, he pulled a towel from his pocket.

‘What’s he doing?’

“Mmph…!”

Logan stuffed the towel into my mouth. Then, he forced the restraints back onto me—the very ones he’d gone out of his way to remove—and tightened them so I couldn’t struggle.

I didn’t even have time to resist. I just stared at him with wide, stunned eyes.

“Whh-mmph?”

“Stay still, okay?”

Without understanding why, I instinctively nodded at his quiet command. Logan hoisted me over his shoulder like a sack of grain and slipped out of the hospital room.

When we nearly ran into someone in the hall, he ducked toward the emergency exit.

‘Is he… breaking me out right now?’

Then, when he placed one foot on the second-floor window ledge, I realized what he was about to do.

‘Because they said I couldn’t be discharged…’

I was dumbfounded.
‘Even so, how could he try something like this?’

Escaping without a doctor’s permission? There’s no way this ends well. Zombies are the greatest threat to humanity, and if someone smuggles a potential zombie out without clearance, they’d face serious punishment.

We might never be allowed back into the civilized society humanity worked so hard to rebuild.
‘Logan doesn’t need to ruin his life over me.’

“Mm-mmph!”

I thrashed the moment I realized this wasn’t right—and then, we were flying.

‘W-We’re falling!’

The feeling of a straight drop from the second floor to the ground level hit me hard. A flash of memory surfaced—the time we’d jumped from the rooftop of a restaurant into the back of a dump truck.
‘We’re doing this again?! No plan, no nothing?!’

Thud.

The impact of his landing jolted my entire body. My stomach slammed down onto his shoulder hard.

‘Ugh… I’m gonna throw up.’

Nausea surged through me, my head spun, and my gut ached from the force of the landing. While I was still dizzy and disoriented, Logan sprinted toward the parking lot.

He threw open the car door and tossed me into the back seat. Then, he jumped behind the wheel.

He still hadn’t removed the towel from my mouth, so I couldn’t even speak to him.

‘What the hell is he thinking?! Where are we even going?!’

TL/N: Hello guys, Sorry for such a long break. I was tryna clean up my mess. Anyways, here are 5 free chapters, and more will be locked. But they will unlock after next week, same day so please don’t worry. Also, this novel was only 1 volume, and although I cut chapters equally, I did not see how short the novel was so its complete now have fun!!