Gangnam, Ground Zero

Alert

Seungcheol wakes with a start, fumbling for one of his guns before his eyes have fully opened. But the sound that woke him isn't of something breaking in or attacking, it's not a zombie. It's his phone, still tucked safely into his jacket pocket.

"Yeon, wake up."

He urges, pulling the device out. Her head rests against his outstretched leg and he shakes it until she sits upright with a small sound of surprise. She glances at him, sighs, and then leans her head on his shoulder to look at the screen. It's red and flashing, so Seungcheol taps on it.

10:51: Service is reactivated within a five kilometer range of the barricade.

"Government alert. Any persons in the outer Seoul area are to evacuate. Those within twenty feet of the barrier will be detained."

She reads, voice thick and drowsy. For a moment it almost feels like they could've just woken up, sunshine filtering in through the hazy windows, things feeling vaguely normal. But nothing is normal, it's as far from normal as possible.

"Outer Seoul area? Like outside the barricades?"

"Oh God, our message got out. I think we started a riot."

Seungcheol gasps as his phone lights up with notifications for missed calls and probably half a million texts. His hands are trembling so badly that he drops the device into his lap. Taeyeon starts laughing, a startled and delirious laugh. It's like all her hope has just been renewed. Seungcheol is still shaking as he calls the first contact on his list.

"Cheol? Cheol!?"

"Jeonghan?"

"Oh my God. Guys! Oh my God!"

Hearing Jeonghan's voice, even though it's filled with tears, is the biggest relief in the world. It makes him want to start crying, but Taeyeon does not need to see that. It's not even on speaker, but he sees her hiding a smile at the assortment of shouts that echo from his phone in the silence.

"What the hell is all that noise?"

"The protest that Jun somehow managed to put together. I don't know how we did any of this but God, we did it."

"Protest? Where?"

Taeyeon turns to look at him, her eyes shimmering with delight. She rolls out from under the sheets and grabs her bat, waving him along as they head out of the room. Seungcheol follows, putting Jeonghan on speaker as Taeyeon lays out her map on the kitchen island.

"Where are you Jeong?"

"A little south of Guem-cheon. Where are you? Can you get here?"

Taeyeon points to an approximate spot on the map and Seungcheol nods before they each set out. He can't make himself hang up with a promise to see Jeonghan in a few hours. Hearing his voice, this real connection, was too much for him to handle emotionally. It was taking Cheol time to adjust and accept it's real.

"Seungcheol, focus. If we're getting there alive then I need you with me."

Taeyeon says, returning to his side. Her hand gently brushes his cheek and it draws him back to reality. In his imagination he was there with his brothers and everything was okay. But for now he's still trapped in this wasteland.

"Who's that? Cheol talk to me."

"I'll have to hang up Jeong. I can't afford the distraction. I love you guys, and I'll be there in a few hours."

"Don't. Please don't hang-"

Seungcheol feels guilty as he ends the call, stuffing the phone back into his pocket and giving his head a shake. Taeyeon's gaze is determined and Seungcheol does his best to match that as they set off, carving a route to the barricade. Hoping for a riot and a miracle.

He feels disoriented and off balance. Some sleep, but not enough to feel awake. Too much hope that it was distracting. They passed a small coffee shop and both paused for a moment, sharing a look. Doubling back around, they hurried into the store and Taeyeon immediately set to work. They both needed the hot, bitter liquid if they were going to stay alert.

"Is this what you look like when you're happy? It's sickeningly sweet."

Taeyeon taunts as she sits next to him, shoulder brushing up again his. It hadn't taken long for him to warm up to her. She was just easy to get along with. They felt natural together, like they balanced out one another without trying. Seungcheol traced the rim of his mug with a finger, focusing his attention there.

"When we're free from all of this chaos, will I still get to see you?"

"Why? Did you get attached?"

She sounds like she's just teasing, but when he glances over her smile is fond. Taeyeon wraps her arms around his neck and gives him a gentle squeeze. The gesture says enough. She's attached too. Thrown into hell their level of trust went from zero to a hundred in a matter of hours. When someone saves your life, it's an unbreakable bond.

11:14: Allies to friends.

"Let's keep going. I want to see you cry when you're reunited with your friends."

Taeyeon says and it makes him laugh as they set out again. They're each on high alert, travelling through Guem-cheon. Everywhere new is worth another layer of caution. It both delights and frightens them when they begin to hear shouting, a few blocks away from the barricade. Occasional spatters of gunfire are what's most worrying.

"They're shooting at the corpses."

"They're drawn in because the onlookers keep meeting their gazes. But the soldiers have to aim through the fence, they're not accurate."

"If we go out there we're more likely to get shot just by mistake."

Seungcheol's point makes Taeyeon turn pale. They're tucked behind a building, looking out at roughly two hundred feet between them and freedom. But it's incredibly likely that with the soldiers trying to keep the infected at bay, they're going to wind up shot. It's hard to tell from a distance what's alive and what's dead.

13:06: Apparent stalemate.