Italics = Korean
Normal = English

The house was actually pretty close, but we just so happened to come upon it from the back of the property where there was a fence that Ken couldn't really climb over unless we tossed him like a potato sack, but he was too heavy and there was the possibility of him landing on his ankle. So, plan B was to walk all the way around until there was an opening. Eventually we reached a gate near an open field and rested because Ken was freaking heavy. Nina went around picking flowers and skipping around as if we weren't running for our lives. I'm actually glad that I'm stuck with her, because I would have been very depressed otherwise. She helps me smile and forget about the cares of the world for a moment. Ken, though normally excited and funny from what I've seen of him in his idol life, has been practically silent and gloomy this whole day. I know there is the whole language barrier thing and him trying to adjust, but I'm actually very worried for him. I just don't know how to go about making him feel better.

I turned to him. "Ken?" He looked up at me. "Are you doing okay? Is there anything I can do?"

He smiled in appreciation. "I'm good." Then he seemed to be struggling to find the words to say.

"It's okay. You can say it in Korean if you want."

"Thank you." He sighed. "I'm actually not fine. How am I supposed to be fine when my brothers are somewhere else and I don't even know if they will be alright. They could be dead by now and I would never know, because they would look exactly the same as all the other zombies. I miss home and Korea where my friends and family are. I'm supposed to be dead and I don't even know how to properly thank you for saving me and not leaving me behind though you already have enough to deal with as it is. I'm making us go so slow that we are all probably going to die, but I'm too selfish to tell you to go on ahead, though you probably wouldn't do it anyways. How old are you anyways, 17? And plus I freaking keep on forgetting your names because I keep forgetting to ask and I am always spaced out when you say them. I can't even communicate with anyone and I don't know how to start learning English! But honestly I'm just so freaking hungry and tired."

I will be honest with you. I didn't understand a word he said. My minimal amount of Korean wasn't adequate to keep up with how fast he was speaking, but I was able to catch that he was hungry at the end. Of course Ken would be complaining about food. I'm glad he got to rant, because he seemed more comfortable around us now and not so gloomy. The emotion seemed to have revived him a bit.

"Well," I chuckled, "I don't know that I can help you with everything, but we can at least find some food. The house is bound to have some. Come on." I offered my hand to him and he took it, putting it above my shoulders like before.

"Nina, come on! We are going now."

She came skipping over and gave me a bunch of flowers of which I put one in Ken's hair for some laughs.

"Oh, he looks fabulous," Nina giggled.

The house was a bit old, but had been definitely lived in. There were clothes and other household items thrown haphazardly about as if they were in a rush to leave which would make sense given everyone's circumstances around here. The living area was fairly large, perhaps for a family of six, and to the left of us was a kitchen and dining room. I carefully helped Ken through the squeaking, mosquito net door and over broken glass scattered on the floor. Nina didn't want to enter at first, but I made sure she stayed near me at all times.

After we made sure that there was no rotting flesh walking around, I set Ken down on one of the kitchen chairs as Nina and I searched through the cabinets for any food. There was a lot missing, so I assumed that anyone who previously lived here took most of it. Cereal, onions, pasta, beans, corn, spices, and most other normal pantry items could be found. I checked the fridge, which was still working, and found some milk, carrots, juice, eggs, and cheese.

"Cereal it is, guys!" I pulled out Captain Crunch and Frosted Flakes and put the boxes on the kitchen island. "Here are bowls, spoons, and milk. There's juice in the fridge and water in the toilet. Help yourselves."

"Gross!" Nina scrunched up her nose.

"Well, I'm sure you could get it from the sink just as easily. Do you need anything Ken?" I turned around to see Ken already shoving spoonfuls of both cereals mixed together into his mouth. He paused to shake his head with cheeks puffed out and spoon raised in the air for another bite. My God, he looks like a chipmunk.

I quickly ate some cereal as well and chugged some water before going to inspect the house further. I left Nina with Ken, seeing as how she was eating so slowly and he couldn't walk. I swear she's a bird.

The living room was a mess, but I found a backpack filled with a few things already, like a flashlight, canteen, knife, rope, a first aid kit, matches and a lighter, an empty journal, and a deck of cards. I guess the family left it behind when they were packing probably in a hurry. Grabbing that, I went through some of the clothes. We all needed a change of clothes and Ken was practically covered in mud and wearing clothes unfit for travelling. My converse were also pretty trashed. There were plenty of plaid shirts and regular T-shirts around. I found a woman's tank top which I changed into (in the bathroom guys) and put a large plaid shirt on top, rolling up the sleeves since they were too big for me. I packed a shirt for each of us in the backpack and continued searching for shoes.

Ken's Pov.

Elena left me with her friend, Nina I think, who was still eating her cereal. Wasn't she complaining about being hungry earlier? How is she taking such small bites? She was adorable though. I was tired of sitting and relying on other people to just move around. Maybe my ankle was better, so I tried standing up and walking around for a little which hurt like hell.

"Shibal!"

Nina looked up in concern at my exclamation. Thank God she doesn't understand Korean.

"Don't move around so much. Your ankle is still injured isn't it?" She made me sit down again.

*Sigh*

I unwrapped Elena's shirt sleeve from my ankle to inspect it. The swelling had gone down a bit, but it was bruised and tender.

"Do you need anything?" I forgot she was just standing there. How do I ask for ice in English again?

"Do....have cold...water?"

She looked puzzled for a minute. "Ice?" I nodded, so she went to the freezer and found an ice pack. I think she dropped it like three times on the way back even though it is only five feet away. She just giggled every time and skipped over to me, hitting her foot against the island on the way. She truly is something else.

As I was icing my ankle, Nina chatted to me about everything that came to her head, though I understood none of it. I don't even think she knew what she was saying, but it calmed me down and was definitely entertaining to watch.

"....I think Sokka is my favourite character. He's just so funny and has all the lines. But Toph is also really great though....I'm ten, but I'll turn eleven in November this year. I'm going into fifth grade this year!....I wonder what's taking Elena so long. She's been gone for a while."

As she was talking I heard footsteps coming toward us from the living room, but they didn't sound like Elena's. They were heavy and seemed to drag along the floor too much. Fear built into the pit of my stomach. I put my hand above Nina's mouth to stop her talking and motioned for her to be quiet, bringing her with me behind the kitchen island. Thankfully she understood, but started to tremble with fear. Before I could even grab a knife a zombie appeared. It didn't see us, but Nina's little squeal alerted it to our presence. It started walking faster in our direction. I started walking around to the other side of the island keeping Nina behind me. We kept going in circles playing this game of cat and mouse until I tripped on Nina of course and the cat had caught the mouse.

I was trying to grab a knife from the kitchen counter, always watching the zombie before us, when suddenly an ax split the back of its head open from behind. The mangled body fell to the floor with a thud, ax still embedded in its skull. Elena stood behind it panting for breath while Nina and I just stared open mouthed at her.

What the hell?!

Elena went right past me and picked up Nina, checking her all over panicking to make sure she was fine. "Are you hurt, Nina? You're fine right?!"

Wow thanks for worrying about me. I rotated my ankle and thankfully it wasn't worse than before. Finally Elena seemed to notice me on the floor and looked concerned at my ankle.

"Why did you take the fabric off?! Just wait here." She went back a few steps to retrieve a backpack and a pile of clothes and shoes. Actually she had already changed into different shirts and what appears to be thick combat boots. She took out some bandages and started wrapping them around my ankle tightly. Thankfully they weren't as awkward to walk in as her shirt sleeve was.

"Gamsahamnida."

Elena smiled at me. "You're welcome. Here, I found you a different shirt and jacket. These shoes also looked about your size. Try them on."

She handed me a black T-shirt and a jean jacket my size. She and Nina turned around for me to change shirts. I hadn't even noticed how much mud I was covered in until I saw my old shirt. God I smelled terrible. Elena had also gotten me combat boots which fit a little big on me, but they fit well enough to still be comfortable, plus they supported my ankle better.

We all then started packing some food that wouldn't spoil on the way. Thankfully there was still everything we needed here. One cupboard was literally full of what Elena called Alphabet Soup. She seemed to think it was funny and insisted we take at least one along. Oh well.

When we had gotten everything, Elena tugged the ax out of the zombie's skull and cleaned it with a rag. It sounded disgusting and she even looked ready to puke.

Elena turned to me. "How do I carry everything? I have a backpack, a bag with food, an ax, and you." She gestured to everything we had gathered on the floor.

"I don't know. The girl is too small to carry anything. I could try walking."

"How about," Nina joined, "I carry the bag of food as long as you put some of it in the backpack. Why don't we try to find some sort of walking stick for Ken?"

"Actually, Nina, that is the best idea we have had all day. At least one of us has kept our brains." She started transferring some of the heavier foods into her backpack while Nina went to the front door to find a stick. Surprisingly there actually was one. How the hell did we find everything we needed in one house? We three made one weird group, but we made it work.

5:23 PM      August 19

Vocabulary:

Shibal = Fuck/Shit
Gamsahamnida = Thank You