𝐋𝐔𝐍𝐀

 🍰 

I woke up around 6:30 a.m. and quickly washed up before Haewon had the chance to get up. By the time I finished, she was already up, picking out her outfit for after her bath.

"Oh! Hey! Morning, Nana!" Haewon smiled at me.

"Hey! Morning!" I beamed back.

"So, everyone's up already, except for Lee Know. He sleeps the most," she said, chuckling.

"That's one thing we have in common," I giggled.

"Can you wake him up, please?" she asked as she headed for the bathroom.

"Sure!" I nodded, giving her a thumbs-up.

"Thanks," she smiled at me before disappearing into the bathroom.

I finished putting my things away and glanced into the mirror. I was wearing a pastel pink hoodie with stars on it, paired with loose grey sweats. I slipped on my shark slippers and made my way to Lee Know's room.

"Lee Knowwww," I called softly, shaking his shoulder.

"Urgh, let me sleeeeeep," he groaned, barely stirring.

"Sorry, Haewon asked me to wake you up. I totally get it; I hate being woken up too. I love sleeping in late. But hey, orders are orders, and I'm too new here to say no," I said sympathetically.

"Okay, okay," he mumbled, giving me an adorable sleepy smile before sitting up on the bed.

He started wriggling his arms as if asking for a hug or some help getting up, whining all the while.

"Are you sleep-drunk?" I laughed out loud.

"Nhawwww, I'm hungry," he cooed, then flopped back down on the bed like a tired kitten.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Jeez, Lee Know," I chuckled, gently pulling him up.

"WAKE UP, LEE MINHO!" I yelled dramatically.

But he didn't move an inch.

"Aish, what do I do with this boy?" I huffed, running a hand through my hair.

I laughed softly, my eyes glancing over at Lee Know who was still sprawled out on the bed.

"Lee Know," I said gently, trying to be considerate of his sleep. "You really need to get up now."

He groaned, pulling the covers over his head, not quite ready to face the day. "Five more minutes..." he mumbled, his voice muffled by the blanket.

I tilted my head, unsure how to handle him. "Come on, you can do it! Haewon will get mad if I don't get you up."

He peeked one eye out from under the covers, his expression still groggy but somehow adorable. "I don't want to get up..." His voice was small, as if he hadn't fully woken up yet.

I smiled, amused but trying to hide it. "I get it. I'm the same, but you know... orders are orders," I repeated with a little shrug.

He sighed dramatically but finally sat up, rubbing his eyes. "You're mean," he mumbled with a sleepy smile.

"I'll take that as a compliment." I grinned, feeling happy, even if it was still a bit awkward between us.

Lee Know slowly got out of bed, still looking like he could fall back asleep at any moment. "You're lucky you're new here," he muttered, still half in a daze. "Otherwise, I would have kicked you out."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Good luck with that," I teased, then added, "Okay, I'm gonna let you get ready. See you downstairs, I guess."

"Yeah, yeah," he waved lazily as she left, and for a second, I thought she saw the tiniest glimmer of a smile on his face.

I went downstairs to find a full 5-star breakfast spread on the table.

"Woah, a freaking hotel breakfast! Is it like this every day here?" I asked, genuinely surprised.

"No cursing," Chan said, giving me a pointed look.

"Oops, sorry! Now I know the rules." I smirked, putting my hand up in mock surrender.

He laughed.

"You seem different from yesterday," Seungmin said, narrowing his eyes at me, as if he were suspicious.

"Well, I had to convince you guys to let me stay, so I played the cute girl," I grinned mischievously.

"But now that I'm part of the group, there's no way you're kicking me out," I smiled, proud of my master plan.

Hyunjin, Han, and Seungmin laughed warmly.

"I think I like you even more now! We could totally be crime partners," Seungmin smiled.

"Yep! I'm an expert at hiding bodies," I smirked, and we both laughed until our stomachs hurt and fist-bumped.

Lee Know came and sat down at the table.

"Oh, I see you succeeded in waking him up!" Haewon said, a mix of surprise and amusement in her eyes.

"What? How did you do that?" Han asked, shocked.

Everyone, including me, was curious.

"In all 18 years of friendship with him, I was never able to wake him up!" Han said, his eyes as wide as watermelons.

"Wow, I feel special now," I said, pretending to be amused.

They laughed.

"But seriously, you're the official Lee Know alarm now," Han smiled.

"Yes, sir. I'm going to give it my ALL!" I said, making a small salute, which made him laugh.

"Here you go! Iced Americano for Hyunjin and Luna, and iced tea for Lee Know!" Changbin smiled, handing us our drinks.

"Thanks!" I grinned.

"So, do you like bacon with your eggs?" Hyunjin asked.

"Yes! I love bacon and eggs!" I said excitedly.

"Really? Me too!" Han smiled, and we high-fived.

"Then here you go," Changbin said, passing around eggs with bacon for the group, minus Hyunjin. His eggs were bacon-free.

"You don't like bacon? For real?" I asked Hyunjin, shocked.

"Yeah, it tastes like pig," he scrunched his nose.

"Wah! What a sad life you've got there, friend," I said, patting his back, while Han almost died of laughter.

Hyunjin side eyed me and I almost died of laughing too.

"Stop bullying meeee" he whined.

"Ok, ok, I's sorry" I said, giving him puppy eyes.

"Your forgiven" he chuckled. 

"Did you all finish?" Chan asked, beginning to put everything away.

"YES!" we all responded in unison.

"Alright, we're going to gather resources. We'll split into two groups, okay?"

Chan organized the groups: me, Hyunjin, Lee Know, Jeongin, and Haewon in one group, and him, Changbin, Felix, Han, and Seungmin in the other.

"Group 1 will head south, and my group will go north, got it?" Chan said.

We all nodded.

"We'll meet back here at sunset," he added, and we headed off in our respective directions.

"Uh..." I muttered as we started walking toward the neighborhood they had warned us about.

"What?" Jeongin asked, turning back to face me.

"Isn't this the area you guys said was dangerous?" I asked, my voice small, eyes wide with concern.

"Is it?" he asked nonchalantly, looking unbothered.

I felt my nerves starting to get the best of me. My heart raced, and I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes.

I think Lee Know noticed because he slowed down to fall in step with me at the back of the group.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his brown eyes full of concern.

"Yeah, I'm just really scared," I whispered, barely able to get the words out.

"It's okay to be scared," he said gently. "But just know that we'll protect you, no matter what happens. I'll protect you if anything happens, I promise" he finished, putting out his pinky.

"Thanks," I smiled, lacing my pinky to his.

He smiled back, his warm expression helping ease my tension.

Just then, a group of zombies staggered into view, heading straight for us.

The group froze as the zombies approached, their decayed, groaning forms stumbling toward us. My heart pounded in my chest, my breath caught in my throat. The air felt thick, suffocating.

"Stay calm," Hyunjin said, his voice steady, but I could barely hear him over the rapid beat of my heart.

Suddenly, one of the zombies, its bloodshot eyes locking onto me, started moving faster, its limbs jerking unnaturally. It was heading straight for me. When he jumped on to me me, I jerked back.

I panicked. My legs felt like lead, but my body screamed at me to run. Without thinking, I turned and bolted, sprinting through the streets, my breath ragged and my mind a blur of fear. The sound of shuffling footsteps behind me only spurred me on faster, adrenaline surging as I pushed my legs harder, not even sure where I was running, just knowing I had to get away.

Behind me, I could hear the others shouting my name, but the sound of my heartbeat pounding in my ears drowned everything out. I ran faster, only stopping when I couldn't catch my breath anymore. My eyes blurred with tears as I leaned against a crumbling wall, feeling completely alone.

A few minutes passed, but it felt like hours before I heard footsteps. The familiar sound made my heart race again, but this time it wasn't fear.

"Luna?" Lee Know's voice, soft and full of concern, broke through the chaos in my head.

I didn't answer, not wanting to face anyone, not wanting them to see how scared I really was. But his footsteps came closer until he was standing right in front of me, crouching down to my level.

He didn't say anything at first, just took a deep breath, his eyes scanning me for any signs of injury. His gaze softened when he saw me wipe my eyes quickly, trying to hide the tears.

"Luna, we were so worried," he said quietly, his voice firm.

I finally looked at him, but I didn't say anything. I couldn't. The tears just kept coming.

Lee Know's expression faltered, and without another word, he pulled me into a hug. It wasn't tight, but it was enough. "I'm sorry," he whispered, his voice shaky. "I should've been watching out for you. I shouldn't have let you run off like that."

I could hear the guilt in his voice, and it made my chest tighten. "No," I muttered, pulling back slightly to look at him. "It's not your fault. I... I was just scared. I didn't know what to do."

He stayed silent for a moment, his eyes still filled with regret. Then, he nodded slowly, brushing the hair from my face with a gentle hand. "Still, I should've been there for you. I'm sorry."

I smiled faintly and wiped away the last of my tears. "It's okay," I said quietly. "Really."

Lee Know didn't say anything else. Instead, he took a deep breath, his hand resting protectively on my shoulder as we both stood up.

"Let's get you back to the others," he said, his voice firm, but still full of that underlying concern.