DS Chapter 7

Afterward, I’d wait on the roof with the supplies while Logan fetched the dump truck to plow through the blocked roads and come back for me.

Logan raised the table again, using it as a shield. He was the perfect tank. I pressed my ear to the door, listening closely to the sounds outside.

“It’s quieter now.”

Had the zombies moved away? The stairs were to the left, not far away. It wouldn’t be hard to run for it, unless there were zombies on the second floor.

“Let me take a look.”

“You’re going to open it?”

“Yeah.”

“Hold on, just for a second.”

My mouth was dry. Adjusting the heavy bag on my shoulder, I looked at him. Logan glanced down at me and gave a small nod.

We opened the door simultaneously. As one, we darted outside and ran for the stairs. Logan took care of the zombies that lunged at us, while I kicked aside the chairs blocking our path.

I don’t even know how we managed to break through that chaos, but I do remember shoving the last few zombies down the stairs and slamming the rooftop door shut.

Unbelievable. Did we really just pull that off? We made it!

I was so overwhelmed that goosebumps rose all over my body. It was a catharsis that spread through me, similar to when I got accepted into college.

“Ah, we actually did it.”

“Huff, huff.”

Logan nodded as he wiped the sweat dripping from his chin.

After taking a brief moment to catch our breath, he set down the heavy bag of supplies.

But we weren’t out of the woods yet.

He still had to make it to the garage to get the dump truck, while I would stay here, listening to the pounding and screaming of zombies against the rooftop door, waiting for him.

“Be careful.”

“You too.”

We exchanged simple, dry words, though our feelings were anything but distant.

A sense of camaraderie surged through me, filling my chest to the point of bursting.

At the same time, a mixture of hope that he would return safely and a faint flutter of excitement I thought I’d forgotten long ago stirred within me.

Just as he was about to leap to the next building, I called out to him urgently.

“Logan!”

“…?”

He turned, one foot already on the edge of the rooftop.

“Thank you for saving me. If you hadn’t come, I’d already be dead.”

If he hadn’t woken me that day, I would have turned into a zombie by now.

There was something else I hadn’t told him yet.

‘I’m sorry for ignoring you, avoiding you, and not even saying hi. You didn’t do anything wrong—it was all because of my insecurities.’

Back then, we used to hang out together, but I started to feel jealous when it seemed like you were doing better than me.

And then you got that blonde girlfriend right after starting high school. You didn’t even tell me you had a girlfriend.

I remember when I got that nosebleed and fell backward, you cried, saying you’d take responsibility for me.

And I still wonder why you two broke up. I can’t help but perk up whenever someone mentions a girl liking you. For some reason, I’m always curious about your love life.

Logan raised his eyebrows at my fidgeting, then let out a soft laugh.

“Then show it.”

With that, he launched himself toward the neighboring rooftop.

My heart jumped in my chest as I watched him soar through the air. It felt like that moment when you’re on a rollercoaster, just before it drops. I clenched my fists tightly in suspense.

Thud.

Logan landed safely on the other roof.

He turned back to look at me, waving confidently, and I finally exhaled the breath I’d been holding.

I kept my eyes glued to his back as he moved farther away, nervously wondering if he’d fall or if a zombie would jump out at him.

Even after he disappeared from sight, I couldn’t stop staring after him.

‘Do I still like Logan?’

I placed my hand over my pounding heart, lost in useless thoughts.

* * *

The sky had turned a reddish hue before I realized it.

Dusk was settling over the ruined city. As the sun dipped lower, the eerie sounds of monsters echoed through the streets, making the city feel even more sinister.

I sat in the shade on the rooftop, staring blankly at the sky. I couldn’t bring myself to look down at the streets below.

I was too afraid of seeing the zombies—humanoid figures that were no longer human.

They were like broken dolls, twisted and wandering aimlessly, with neither direction nor soul. What created these strange beings? They bite humans, spread the virus, and turn others into the same monsters.

I wondered how long people who became zombies would survive. Do they feel hunger? Do their wounds fester or rot? Would eating human flesh let them live a little longer?

I should’ve studied science and biology more. Maybe then, I could understand at least a fraction of what was happening.

Logan had said the garage wasn’t far from here, but there was still no sign of him returning.

*Did Logan abandon me? Or did something happen to him?*

It had to be one of two things: either something had gone wrong for him, or he had left me behind.

If Logan never came back, I’d die up here on this rooftop.

Shivering with fear and anxiety, I started to mentally escape from reality. I looked up at the silver evening moon and began to ponder Earth and the universe.

Even with the city in chaos, the Earth still spins peacefully.

After all, what difference would it make to the planet if humans live or die? To Earth, we’re probably nothing more than parasites clinging to its surface.

We even have parasites living on our own skin, don’t we? Those little creatures that come out of our pores at night to mate, multiplying if we don’t wash properly and causing damage to our skin.

We must be something similar to Earth. That’s why things like this are happening. Even if tiny beings like us die and disappear, it wouldn’t matter to the Earth.

The sky grew darker, and night was fast approaching. My heart grew heavier alongside it.

‘Is this it?’

I guess, if the world were ending, I’d be the type to resign myself to it, not the kind to fight tooth and nail for survival. I didn’t seem to have that burning will to live, no matter what it took.

As the sky darkened, I sniffled, quietly thinking about my end. Drowning in despair, deeper than the ocean, I let the hopelessness engulf me.

Then, a loud crash broke through the silence.

Bam!

Boom! Bam!!

A series of noises stirred the zombies from their stillness. And shortly after—

Hoooonk!

The sound of a horn blared. I shot to my feet and rushed to the second-floor rooftop railing. There, I saw a yellow dump truck barreling down the street, plowing through the abandoned cars blocking the road.

It was a massive 25-ton dump truck, with huge wheels and towering height, so even with zombies clinging to it, it didn’t budge an inch.

‘It’s Logan!’

Logan didn’t abandon me—he came back! My face broke into a huge smile, as if the despair from just moments ago had never existed.

Hoooonk!!

He honked the horn again. Seeing the dump truck pull up in front of the restaurant, I tossed our bag of supplies over the railing. It was our precious food stock.

The bag landed safely in the truck bed. After I threw in all the bags, only one thing remained: me.

Gulp.

All I had to do now was jump down into the truck bed.

‘It’s higher than I thought.’

The mattress in the truck looked too thin and flimsy to cushion my fall. It didn’t seem like it would do much to soften the impact.

‘I won’t die, right? It’s only the second floor.’

As if sensing my hesitation, Logan honked the horn again, and the distant wails of zombies grew louder. From the far end of the road, I could see them swarming toward us.

Panic set in, and I didn’t even think to brace myself—I just hurled my body over the railing.

“Ahhhhh!”

‘Save me!’

The wind rushed past me as I fell, the same stomach-dropping feeling you get on a Viking ride. I clenched my teeth, hoping to endure the sensation.

I needed to land on the mattress! But it seemed I had miscalculated my trajectory.

I didn’t die, though—I tumbled onto the edge of the mattress and rolled painfully.

The impact was so brutal that I couldn’t get up right away, groaning in agony. *Ow! Nothing’s broken, right?*

Logan, seeing that I had made it into the truck, immediately hit the gas. There was no time to waste—the horde of zombies filling the street was terrifyingly close.

Thud! Thud!!

Our sturdy dump truck plowed through the abandoned cars blocking the way, smashing them aside as we noisily tore out of the downtown area.

‘We survived.’

My body felt like it was in pieces, but hey, I was alive. Tears and laughter burst out of me at the same time.

Once we reached a safe spot, I was definitely going to ask him why he took so long. I thought I was going to die up there, terrified and alone.