Chan rose to his senses as a gunshot startled him awake.

"What was that?!" he yelled, sitting up and moving to stand. But a hand patted his chest lightly.

"It's probably just some zombie kicking a gun around," smiled Seonghwa as he helped Chan to a seated position.

"How did the zombies get guns anyways? I can't imagine those were easy to come by. It's a really shitty waste of ammunition," Hongjoong joked, trying to lighten the mood.

But it did just the opposite.

It all came flashing back.

First, Minho.

Then Haewon.

Then Sungyeol's sacrifice.

"Aish!" Seonghwa grunted, giving Hongjoong a hard jab to the side. "What if that gun belonged to the girl he was with!! You can't be so insensitive, Joong!"

"Ow! Sorry...I didn't mean to say anything hurtful..."

"It's okay. You didn't know."

Chan turned to find Minho, giving him a weak smile. His face was pale and his leg was wrapped tightly with a thick strip of cloth.

He wasn't well.

But he was alive.

Chan finally felt a small smile tug at his lips.

"You're okay," he managed.

Minho nodded.

"Thanks to all of you reckless idiots."

Hongjoong took a dramatic bow and Seonghwa sighed, shaking his head.

"We had other plans but the zombies were clearly a bigger issue," Seonghwa said with a slight smirk.

"Other plans? Were you headed to the control room, too?" Chan asked and Hongjoong glanced at Seonghwa in surprise.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"That was our plan, too. Until..."

Chan trailed off and they all looked down, nodding.

"Was it just the three of you?" Seonghwa asked cautiously.

Chan didn't answer but Minho shook his head.

"No. There were seven of us...we had three other members and two fans. One of the girls got bit right when the zombies first broke through. The other members took off down the hallway so they should be somewhere safe. We'll meet up with them whenever the hallways clear out."

"Unfortunately, I'm not sure they ever will."

Minho and Chan looked over at Hongjoong in concern.

"What do you mean by that?" Chan asked.

"Well, now that the stage doors are busted, nothing's keeping the zombies out of the back of the building. We were only able to move around before because most of them got stuck in the music hall," Seonghwa explained and the two nodded, understanding.

"So what you're saying is...we'll probably be stuck in this coat check for a very long time?" Minho sighed.

"Yeah. But at least it'll give us plenty of material to keep your wound closed. And you could use the recovery time, anyways," Seonghwa said and Minho couldn't help but agree.

His leg had finally stopped gushing blood but it still hurt like a bitch. Every time he bent it even a little, it would rupture, causing the red spot on his bandage to grow.

He needed to lay off it for as long as possible.

But he wasn't sure it would heal without real medical attention.

How long before the bullet gave him some sort of infection? And did anyone really know how to care for a bullet wound? Or were they all just guessing and hoping for the best?

"Wait—do you hear that?"

Everyone went silent, listening for whatever Chan was talking about. But they didn't catch it.

"No, what do you hear?" Seonghwa asked quietly.

"Listen again," he whispered and everyone quieted down a little longer.

And finally, they all heard it.

Someone sniffling.

"We're not alone."

Minho shifted uncomfortably, pulling his weapon from behind his back and brandishing it before him. Hongjoong did the same. Seonghwa stood guarded, looking towards the sound.

"Don't do anything yet. We need to make sure it's not a survivor," Chan said, standing and motioning for the others to put away their weapons.

"And what if it's not? You'll get yourself killed!" Minho whispered, trying to stand. Seonghwa ran to his side and shook his head, easing him back to the ground.

"I've got a weapon if I need it. But I'm not walking over there with the intent to kill. Not until I know it's my only option."

"Don't be an idiot! It's a fucking apocalypse! Killing is hardly a last resort!"

"But it doesn't have to be. We're still human for now. The least we can do is act like it."

Minho didn't know how to respond so he closed his mouth. But he didn't like it one bit.

As Chan started making his way towards the sound, Minho motioned for Hongjoong to come closer.

"Can you follow him? Just to be safe?"

His voice wavered with fear and he looked away in embarrassment. He hadn't intended to let on how worried he was.

"Of course."

Hongjoong crept along behind him, his weapon hidden behind his back.

As he walked around the corner he froze, stepping back. There was someone crouched in the far corner behind one of the long trench coats. All he could see were their feet as they rocked back and forth with their knees to their chest.

They really weren't alone in here.

But how long had this other person been here?

They'd only just arrived about an hour ago and he was almost certain no one had entered after them. It gave him chills knowing someone had been hiding in here all along.

Even when he and Seonghwa had been having a private conversation.

He kept his eyes on Chan, staying alert as he continued behind him. Chan leaned down, gently reaching for the trench coat in front of her.

But as his fingers got close, the coat was knocked forward at him, sending him reeling backwards into Hongjoong.

"GO AWAY!" came a young girl's voice and as the coat settled on the ground, the two were finally able to see her face.

She couldn't have been more than eleven years old. And she was alone. Hongjoong felt his heart tighten as he noticed the Lightiny sitting in her lap.

She'd probably run all the way here from the auditorium. And yet, she'd kept it safe.

Did they really mean that much to her? It was just a glorified flashlight. At least, that's what he'd always seen it as. Not much more than an entertaining prop for concerts.

Yet she clutched it securely in her hands.

It didn't take long for her eyes to lock with Hongjoong's. They widened drastically.

"K-K-Kim Hongjoong?" she stuttered, pushing herself closer to the wall. Her eyes started watering and she looked like she was about to have a panic attack.

"You can just call me by my first name. Would you mind telling me yours?" Hongjoong asked as gently as possible, not wanting to startle her anymore.

He had never imagined people would care about fame in times like this. Being famous didn't mean he was any more immortal than anyone else.

"J-Jieun—but K-Kim Hongjoong you n-need to get out of here! You need to leave!" she said frantically, pushing herself further in the corner.

"We're not going to hurt you, Jieun. We want to help. You're not alone anymore," Chan smiled, kneeling down to make her feel less crowded.

Hongjoong didn't know what to say. It was all so startling. First, seeing one of his own fans—a child at that—who had seen true horror. Knowing this little girl watched the people around her get torn apart. Knowing she'd seen more gore than he had.

And knowing she had come here to see him.

This little girl...

Everything that had happened to her.

It could've been avoided.

If he'd never agreed to add this stop to the tour.

It was supposed to end two days ago but he wanted to make Atiny a surprise dual concert event with Stray Kids. After he'd reached out to Chan, the two agreed and they'd set up the extra date for the end of the tour.

And now little girls were watching the world burn.

"No! Stay away! Don't touch me!" Jieun shrieked, striking Chan back with a hanger she'd grabbed off the floor.

She hadn't hit him very hard but it startled him so much that he almost fell over as he pulled away.

"Hey, Jieun. I know you're scared. I am, too. But you don't have to worry anymore. We're going to protect you, okay?" Chan said reassuringly, keeping his distance to respect her wishes.

Hongjoong finally snapped back to the current situation and felt like there was something they were missing.

He knew the girl had every right to be a bit shaken up. But she wasn't telling them to just leave her alone. She was telling them to leave.

"I don't care! Get out of here!"

"Jieun—we can give you some time but I can't leave you all by yourself now that I've found you. I'm not leaving you," Chan said firmly.

"Please! I need you to go! H-Hongjoong! You're going to get hurt! I don't want to h-hurt you."

Hongjoong finally figured it out.

"Chan. Go help Minho. We need to relocate. Now."

Chan stood and turned to face him, eyes intense.

"What are you talking about!? We can't leave her here! Whether or not she wants our help, she needs it!"

"It's too late," Hongjoong whispered, not wanting her to hear them talk about her.

Chan's eyes widened.

"What are you saying? How could you possibly know?"

"Chan. Look at the way she's sitting."

He turned his head, finally realizing she had been tucking her left leg behind her right.

"Jieun, could you show me your leg?" he asked slowly.

Her eyes filled with tears and she shook her head.

"Please don't make me hurt you," she whispered.

Hongjoong turned to get the others' attention, rushing back to Seonghwa and Minho.

"She's been bitten. We're not safe here. We need to leave, now," he said quickly, looking back to see where Chan was.

But he hadn't followed.

"Chan! Get over here! We need to help Minho up!" he called, grunting as he tried to perform the task by himself.

Seonghwa quickly grabbed below Minho's other shoulder and the two hoisted him to his feet. They each grabbed their respective weapons and gathered their things, waiting for Chan to hurry up.

"Come on! We need to go!" Minho called, starting to get worried.

"I'll go talk to him," Seonghwa said and walked over to the far side of the coat check.

"Chan, we need to—"

"P-Park S-S-Seonghwa??"

The voice was so soft and angelic. He looked down at the young teenager, his chest tightening as he saw the smile forming on her tear-streaked cheeks.

"Y-you're my bias," she said sheepishly, laughing to herself.

Seonghwa felt tears form in his own eyes as he watched her adjust her leg. Though she wore long black jeans, her foot was covered in dark black veins. They must have covered over half of her leg at this point.

If she'd been here for over an hour...they could be closing in on her brain.

She was dangerous.

But he couldn't help but stay put, just a moment longer.

He reached forward and took her hand, even though she had been so afraid before. She seemed to have calmed down. Tears still flowed from her eyes, but they looked up at him like he was her whole world.

"Jieun, that's a beautiful name. I'm so grateful I got the chance to meet you," he smiled as a tear fell down his cheek. He quickly wiped it, looking away as his eyebrows pressed together in pain.

Her expression started to change as she pulled her hand back suddenly with an involuntary jerk. Seonghwa flinched back as he heard her bones crack.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I don't want to—I don't want to hurt you!" she sobbed as she cried out in pain, another sharp crunch of bone sounding as her shoulder shot much higher than it was supposed to.

Seonghwa finally remembered his task and grabbed Chan's shirt pulling him away from the girl.

"Wait!"

Seonghwa turned back, unable to just ignore her after seeing the pain she was facing.

"I'll go."

Seonghwa stood still, not knowing how to respond.

She quickly moved past them, breaking out into another round of sobs as she tried to keep a brave face.

He wanted to stop her. He wanted to tell her no. Because it wasn't safe. She would be attacked. Ravaged.

But he couldn't do it.

Because as much as he hated to admit it, it was the best option for them.

Minho could hardly walk without wincing and having an open wound would make it all the more likely he would be infected. And with the situation outside as crazy as it was...four people without injury would hardly stand a chance.

It was their best option.

As fucked up as it felt.

"You're just going to stand there!? We can't let her do that! She's been through so much already! I can't let anyone else sacrifice themselves for me!"

Seonghwa barely had time to turn his head before Chan had taken off after her, running straight for the door.

She saw him coming and quickened her pace, not wanting to be stopped. She'd made up her mind.

She knew she was already dead.

"Jieun! You don't have to do this!" Chan yelled, breaking into a sprint.

Hongjoong moved to chase him but hesitated, looking back at Seonghwa.

But Minho didn't.

He saw everything before it happened.

He even saw that he couldn't stop it.

But he ran.