San pulled on the door handle but it wouldn't budge. He stepped back, gaining a running start and angled his shoulder before crashing against it, knocking the door loose.

He grabbed it, swinging it open and immediately crouching down to inspect the gunshot wounds.

"Yunho?! Yunho, can you hear me?? Come on, stay with me! I'm going to save you!"

Wooyoung stood frozen, staring at the pool of blood.

The two laid against each other, hands still interlaced. The blood was pouring from their heads.

"WOOYOUNG! HELP ME!" San screamed, turning back, his eyes wide with rage.

Wooyoung looked down at the bodies.

They weren't moving.

Not even breathing.

"FUCK!" San screamed, starting compressions.

Wooyoung just watched in horror as Yunho's limp body shook under the force of San's hands.

"Wooyoung...help me, please."

Wooyoung finally turned, as Kyungsoon pleaded from the door. The gunshots coupled with San's shouting had brought a mass of zombies to the door.

Finally getting to his feet, Wooyoung took off to help, bracing his back against the door.

"WOOYOUNG!" San called, desperately.

"They're gone..." Wooyoung whispered, not even sure that San could hear him.

He jumped as he felt Kyungsoon hold his hand softly. He looked up at her, seeing tears in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry..." she whispered.

Wooyoung just looked back at San. He was practically bathing in blood.

Eventually he slowed down, sitting back.

"They're gone."

Wooyoung felt the zombies letting up and stepped away, moving towards San. He grabbed his arm, lifting him up to his feet and walking him over to a chair. He walked over to the sink, grabbing a few paper towels and running them under the faucet.

He grabbed a few dry towels and headed back, kneeling in front of San as he grabbed his hands, beginning to wipe the blood off of them gently.

"They're gone. I said not to worry. I didn't think...I never thought he would..."

Wooyoung just listened, massaging the deep crimson flecks from the basins of his fingernails. After he'd cleaned every inch of his hands, he moved to his face.

"You were right. We could've stopped him. Could've saved him."

Wooyoung shook his head, meeting San's eyes as he paused, the warm paper towel resting just over San's eye.

"It was his choice."

San's eyes were blank, looking through Wooyoung's.

"He's not allowed to choose. His life isn't something he can just..."

Wooyoung continued cleaning the blood, finishing as he dabbed at a spot on San's nose.

He looked down at his knees which were soaked with it after kneeling in it for so long. He knew there wasn't anything he could do about it.

Slowly he stood, grabbing the bloodied towels and tossing them in the trash. He stood by the bin for a while, just gripping the edges with both hands.

Yunho.

Mingi.

Fifteen minutes ago they were standing by his side.

Smiling, even.

How had everything gone so wrong so fast?

His face fell as the tears started up again, sinking into the waste bin below.

And Jongho.

Was he okay?

Was he still out there somewhere?

Or was he gone, too?

The only member he'd ever been able to care for like a hyung. His little brother.

Would he ever come back?

When they'd been in the bathroom, there were nine of them.

And now...

There were two.

How had their plan gone so horribly wrong?

He wiped his eyes, sniffling as he walked back over to San, pulling up a chair next to him.

"I'm sorry for yelling," San said quietly, turning to Kyungsoon who sat at the base of the door, her knees pulled tight to her chest.

"It's okay," she whispered.

San shifted his legs, swinging his feet back and forth. The dried blood crackled as he finally bent the stiff clothing.

They all sat in silence, unable to shake the horror in the ammunition closet. The door still remained open. No one was willing to do it.

Just then a static crackle filled the room, coming from the overhead speakers.

"Hello? Is anyone there? Can you hear me?"

San looked up, his expression still a bit hazy. He didn't really know what was going on.

But Wooyoung did.

He recognized that voice.

It was Hongjoong.

He threw himself out of his chair, running for the command board and pressing the button Kyungsoon had originally meant to press.

"Yes! Yes! We're here!" he cried, tears springing to his eyes.

"WOOYOUNG!" came Seonghwa's voice as he assumed he must have pushed forwards to the microphone.

"Hyung," Wooyoung croaked, his excited smiled slipping away as he started to sob.

"What happened? Is everyone okay? Who all is there?" Hongjoong asked but Wooyoung couldn't speak.

San looked over at him and started to come to his senses. He approached, hesitantly leaning over the mic.

But as he was about to speak, his face contorted into a sob and he had to turn away, grabbing onto Wooyoung.

"Hello? Woo? Are you there?"

Kyungsoon placed a chair under the door handle before rushing over to their side, taking control of the mic.

"Hi, I'm Min Kyungsoon. I'm just a fan but they found me hiding here and took care of me."

"Kyungsoon, what happened? Where did Wooyoung go?" Hongjoong asked.

"He's—he's still here. He's just—we've been through a lot."

The other line was quiet for a moment.

"What happened?"

Kyungsoon bit her lip.

"We lost a few members."

The other line went silent.

"Who?" Seonghwa asked cautiously.

"Well...we don't know everyone for sure. But...we lost Mingi and Yunho."

She heard a thud as someone on the other end sank to the ground.

"How...how did it...happen?" Hongjoong said so quietly she almost didn't hear it.

She felt herself wanting to cry but she needed to stay strong. Wooyoung and San still stood by her side, unable to say a word.

"Mingi was bitten. And Yunho took him to another room to say goodbye...but it was the ammunition closet. Mingi must've been afraid of turning so...and...Yunho...I'm sorry we don't really know what happened...it was only a few minutes ago..."

Her voice cracked as a tear slid down her cheek.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, wiping it away.

"Only...a few..." Hongjoong whispered.

"I'm sorry," she repeated, not knowing what else to say.

She could hear tears on the other end and it took everything in her not to break down. But another voice took over the mic.

"Did...did you see anyone else?"

It was Stray Kids' Minho.

She took a deep breath, calming her shaking hands by pressing them against the table in front of her.

"Yes. Jongho was here before but he went off to help the others...we haven't seen him since but I'm sure he's okay."

Minho paused a moment.

"Anyone...from Stray Kids?" he said quietly.

Kyungsoon glanced over at Wooyoung and San. She knew they had talked about another group but they'd never really said who was in it. If Seonghwa and Hongjoong were in another part of the building, the others might've been other idols.

Wooyoung took a shaky breath, wiping his tears. He stepped up next to her, leaning over the mic.

"Yes. Changbin, Felix, and Jisung."

They could hear cries of relief on the other end as two other voices joined, likely other members who had survived.

"They were supposed to come after our group but they haven't arrived yet. They had Yeosang with them, too."

Though Seonghwa and Hongjoong weren't able to respond, Minho asked questions on their behalf.

"What about San?"

"I'm here," San said, attempting a smile.

They could hear Seonghwa and Hongjoong breath in relief but they were still recovering their ability to speak.

"Where were they coming from? We can track the cameras in the hallway and keep an eye out for them," Minho said, and Wooyoung quickly answered.

"The bathroom. Hongjoong and Seonghwa know the one. We were all hiding out there together before we split up to find the control room."

"Okay, I'll look now. Do you guys have access to the cameras?" Minho asked.

Wooyoung and San glanced around, finding only a few smashed computers. The zombies before must have wrecked everything.

"No, I think they're all destroyed. Let us know as soon as you see someone. We have ammunition now so we can go after them."

"No. You three stay put."

Wooyoung was startled at hearing Seonghwa's voice again.

"He's right. You three need to stay safe so we can keep an eye on what's happening over there. The cameras in your control room are all shattered so we don't have connection," Hongjoong said, and they could hear the rasp of his voice from crying.

"But what if they're only a few doors away? We can't just sit here, hoping they'll make their way here safely when we're better equipped to fight," San said, his eyebrows knitting in concern.

"We'll decide after we see where they are, okay?" Minho said, likely confirming the statement with the two older members rather than with San and Wooyoung.

"Okay," San replied anyways, sitting down to wait for information. Wooyoung pulled up a chair beside him and Kyungsoon walked back over to the door.

Now all they could do was wait.

But at least...they knew that they weren't alone.