Quintuplets of the Dead

Chapter 1

Currently, Ichika is rehearsing her delivery lines for her upcoming lead role in a drama series. Suddenly, she hears a knock on the door, which startles her. She answers it and sees Sakuta wearing his casual white shirt and deadpan face. She greets him, “Evening, teach. I was just wondering when you would show up~” Sakuta says, “I had to beat up an old lady on my way here. Sorry for the delay.”

Sakuta then darts upon her massive chest and blurts out, “How amazing it would be if you took your clothes off.” Ichika pinches him on the cheek and scolds him, “That wasn't good, Sakuta.” Her demeanor immediately changes to a pleasant one, “Anyways, you may come in now.” Sakuta rubs his pained cheek and whines, “I was just curious.”

It began when they met by chance. The Nakano Sisters transferred to Asahiyama High School due to some unfortunate circumstances that happened in their previous school. However, their grades weren't exactly remarkable, to say the least. Their father decided to hire the five best-ranking students, who were also considered a bunch of outcasts in school, to help with their studies.

The Quints protested against the whole ordeal, but after some persuasion, they began studying. Since then, their relationship blossomed into something genuine.

Ichika heads towards the bathroom and says, “Right, I'm going to take a bath first.” Sakuta jumps in surprise as she says that out of nowhere. She peeks back and glares at him, “No peeking.” Sakuta composes himself into determination and says, “Don't worry. I can fill myself up with just the sound of the shower.” Ichika squints her eyes suspiciously as she points out the door as a warning.

Sakuta remarks, “Huh. Did the magnificent Kana Hanazawa tell her teacher to agonize outside? Wouldn't that be too out of character for someone who's an example of a mature woman?” Ichika shyly replies, “I-it's not like that…on the other hand, don't do anything weird!” Sakuta tilts his head curiously and says, “Anything weird?” Ichika puffs her cheeks and raises her voice, “Idiot! I don't care!” She slams the door shut. Sakuta chuckles, “She was cute just now.”

While waiting, Sakuta begins dialing a particular number. The phone speaks after the beep, “Hello?” Sakuta says, “Kaede, it's me.” Kaede greets back, “Hi, big brother!” Sakuta says apologetically, “Sorry, but I might go home late tonight. I'm at my tutoring gig with Ichika at the moment.” Kaede asks curiously, “Are you with Big Sister Ichika right now?” Sakuta smiles upon the given nickname and replies, “Yes. You can have instant noodles in the kitchen for dinner. Bear with me here, okay?” Kaede says, “Okay, big bro—”

Suddenly, the power shut off. Everything went dark. Ichika lets out a loud shriek from the bathroom. Sakuta quickly jolts from his seat and says, “Ichika! You okay back there?!” Ichika replies, “Y-yeah, I'm okay! What happened?” Sakuta examines the current situation and says, “Seems like the power went off. Shouldn't it be back right now?”

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

A blood-curdling shriek echoes from outside. Sakuta quickly bursts out of the room to investigate. His eyes widened upon seeing the sight. A woman is on the floor while a man hovers over her. Sakuta yells as he approaches them, “HEY! GET OFF OF HER, YOU FILTHY BASTARD!” He pushes the man off but is taken back upon seeing his face.

Veins popping out. Blood dribbled from his mouth. Violent eyes. Growling like a hungry animal.

Sakuta stutters, “Wh-what the fuck?” The man makes a small step forward before dashing upon Sakuta. He proceeds to head back to the room as the man chases from behind. As soon as Sakuta shuts the door, he immediately places some furniture as a barricade.

Ichika weirdly stares at him and asks, “What's going on?” Sakuta slowly glances his head in disbelief and stutters, “Z-zombies…” Ichika lets out a nervous chuckle and says, “Seriously, what's going on?” Suddenly, they hear a loud explosion. Sakuta steps out of the balcony and freezes on the spot. Curiously, Ichika joins in as both are completely speechless upon the sight.

The city is in total shambles. Burning buildings. Traffic collisions. Thousands of lifeless bears are running rampant. Tears dribble on Ichika's eyes as her legs drop on the floor. Sakuta remains frozen in fear. This current predicament only happens in fiction. But this is real life we're talking about!

Sakuta glances down to see Ichika sobbing with her hands covering her mouth. She says, “I-I have to go…” Sakuta holds her by the shoulders and says, “Wait a minute. You're not seriously leaving, are you? Look out there! You'll die!” Ichika says, “But my sisters. My family. I have to save them. I need to go now.”

Sakuta tries to hold her still from trembling out of fear. He says, “Ichika, we don't know what's happening. How will you save them?” She stutters, “I-I don't know. But I'll try.” As she tries to flee, Sakura raises his voice, “ENOUGH! There's nothing we can do now! We won't be helping everyone by simply dying! I need you to calm down, all right?”

Ichika sniffles as she reluctantly nods. Sakuta embraces her in comfort and says, “I promise, we'll make it through. We'll find everyone. It’ll be all right.” Ichika meets his eyes and says, “Okay…”

+++

28 Days Later
Sakuta knocks on the door, and Ichika quickly answers it. He's carrying two jugs of water and a pack of canned goods. They've been occupying the apartment for days now. They've searched for survivors and more supplies. However, there weren't any signs of survivors but supplies were lying around.

The worst part was that there wasn't any progress in searching for the others. Using the internet won't do justice as it was taken down. The power hasn't returned either, but Sakuta was able to activate the generator, which radiates the whole building. All thanks to his intelligence.

Despite the unfortunate circumstances, they discovered something vital regarding the zombies. They seem to be vulnerable to sunlight. The two used this to their advantage and roamed through the ruined city in search of survivors, supplies, and the others.

But they could only find more supplies. As Ichika helps Sakuta bring the food inside the storage, she asks, “Any luck?” Sakuta shakes his head and replies, “Not a single human soul.” Ichika frowns, “R-right. I guess we can try again tomorrow.”

“DAMN IT, YOU HIKIGAYA-KUN!”

To be continued…