By Zephyria 
Ha-jin’s bangs fluttered in the night breeze. Eden watched him, then reached out a hand to his chapped lips. Ha-jin felt the soft skin against his lips and gave a weak smile.
“Why are you smiling?”
“Um, just…”
“Just?”
He gently bit the finger that was tickling his dry lower lip, and the mischievous finger then went to his bangs. Feeling the warm touch that was arranging his tangled hair, Ha-jin blurted out the words that had been circling in his head like a satellite.
“I think we’ve failed from the start.”
Eden chuckled dryly at the brutally realistic sentiment. It was as if there was an invisible thread connecting their minds, and even without direct expressions, they could read between the lines of the omitted sentences.
“I don’t know. We’ll have to wait and see if we’ve failed or not.”
The hand that had been hovering over his face moved down and grabbed his wrist as if it were a habit. Ha-jin let out a trembling sigh at the touch that stroked his scarred wrist. It was as if the Eden from back then, who had violently dug into his body to confirm his feelings, didn’t exist anywhere.
He lowered his head and whispered softly in Ha-jin’s ear.
“I believe in fate.”
His voice, as solid as if it would never fall to any outside influence, resonated in his ear. Soon, a soft sensation touched his lips. Feeling Eden’s tongue gently parting his lips and entering, Ha-jin tightly closed his trembling eyelids.
His saliva trickled down his throat as Eden’s hot tongue explored his mouth cautiously. He lightly sucked on Ha-jin’s dry, chapped lips. It felt like all the nerve endings in his body were focused on his lips.
As his breathing gradually became rougher, Ha-jin, who had been passively accepting the kiss, couldn’t stand it any longer and grabbed his shoulders tightly.
“Umm.”
But the other party didn’t care and delved deeper into his mouth. Ha-jin’s hands, placed on his firm shoulders, turned white.
When their lips parted briefly to catch their breath, the two of them rushed back to each other as if they had agreed to it beforehand. They clung to each other, panting as if the other’s breath was the only salvation in this godforsaken world.
The many thoughts that had been circling in his head were being forgotten in vain in the humid night breeze and the wet kisses.
❖ ❖ ❖
The awning of ‘Hwajeong Hardware & Building Materials’, decorated with yellow gothic letters on a blue background, fluttered in the strong wind.
The wind that had been blowing all night was ominous, and eventually, a torrential downpour accompanied by lightning blocked the group’s path. It was a golden opportunity to move forward while avoiding the zombies’ eyes, but they couldn’t rashly continue their march when it was raining so hard that they couldn’t see an inch ahead, like today.
Ha-jin, who had taken shelter under the eaves of a hardware store next to a two-lane road with occasional sinkholes, took off the windbreaker he was wearing and shook it out. The waterproof windbreaker spat out the water it couldn’t hold.
“Samchon, you’re splashing water!”
“Oh, sorry.”
Ha-jin apologized soothingly to Byeol’s nagging and glanced to the side. Eden was also taking off the raincoat he was wearing. He turned to Ha-jin as if he felt his gaze. A meaningless, ticklish eye contact followed.
Mi-so, bent halfway, was looking inside the hardware store with the shutter half-closed.
“Shall we go in first to reorganize our weapons? The inside of the store looks fine too.”
Jeffrey raised the shutter all the way up and easily opened the door by manipulating the lock hanging on the doorknob. The group shook off their wet boots for the last time and entered the hardware store.
The store was much larger than the hardware store Eden and Ha-jin had visited sometime ago. The warehouse, which didn’t get any light, was divided into a total of four zones according to use.
There was no trace of people or zombies having swept through. There were more than enough usable weapons, so it took quite a long time just to take a quick look around.
In the meantime, a tremendous amount of rain poured down as if it would break through the roof of the store. Everyone frowned deeply at the sound, which was like a machine gun firing.
“Unni, Unni, this!”
Byeol, clinging to Mi-so’s leg like a koala, pointed to a large tool saw with his finger. The jagged, gruesome saw was ominous at a glance. A surprised Mi-so quietly lowered his small, outstretched index finger and shook his head.
“Ssh. Byeol doesn’t use things like that.”
“No, not me, Unni use it!”
“Huh?”
“Take that too, um, take this too!”
Byeol made a fuss, pointing to the tools scattered here and there.
“No, Byeol. Unni doesn’t need that much…”
Then Jeffrey grabbed Mi-so’s shoulder and pulled her towards him.
“Mi-so, this.”
“Huh?”
While Mi-so looked at Jeffrey with a questioning look, having received a wrench in a daze, a pair of red work gloves were stuck in her pocket this time.
“Hand ouch. Ok?”
Remembering the time when her palms were scraped while wielding a weapon, he was busy putting extra work gloves in Mi-so’s bag. Not only that, but he also randomly put in a tape measure or a cutter knife, which she didn’t know what to use for.
As the backpack on her shoulder became heavier and heavier, she chuckled helplessly.
“Jeffrey, I’m going to dislocate my shoulder…”
“No, Yun Mi-so. This better.”
Ha-jin, who had come to her side again at some point, grabbed Mi-so’s body and turned her around, took the heavy monkey wrench from her arms, and gave her a hammer instead. It was not just a simple hammer, but a weapon that could be used in many ways to kill zombies because one side was split into a crowbar shape.
Ha-jin rummaged through Mi-so’s half-open backpack and muttered.
“Oh, what is this? You only brought useless things. Take these out and put in a mini tool box instead.”
“Um…?”
The backpack on her shoulder began to be dismantled by Ha-jin’s determined hands. As he took out the junk and put it back on the floor, Jeffrey, who was watching, hurriedly stopped Ha-jin.
[What are you doing? Put it back in!]
“Unni, Unni. How about this? Isn’t it pretty because it’s pink?”
The three of them, who were standing next to Mi-so like cicadas clinging to an old tree, pushed tools into her arms and bag as if they were competing.
Ugh, it’s so distracting…! Mi-so, who was fed up, looked desperately at Eden, who was standing across from her. When she gestured as if asking for help, he, who had been watching the situation quietly, walked straight to Mi-so.
But contrary to expectations, Eden squeezed into the gap between the three and put a bundle of fluorescent climbing ropes into Mi-so’s bag.
“If you’re going to take it, take this too. Don’t forget how to make weapons with ropes, and take it out when you need it.”
“Ugh, I’m going crazy. There’s really no more room in my bag… Excuse me, everyone? It’s hot, so please… step away?”
Before she knew it, the group was united as one body around Mi-so. Just in time, Pie, who was shaking off the remaining water on his body, ran over and dug into the gap. Mi-so, unable to bear the weight, eventually collapsed on the spot.
As she fell on her butt, Byeol hugged her in his arms as if he had been waiting for it. The moment she hurriedly put down the short sword she was holding, Jeffrey wrapped his arms around Byeol and Mi-so at once. Ha-jin rushed in as if he couldn’t lose.
“Ugh, everyone. Let me breathe…! Jeong Tae-geon, don’t just look over there and take these people away…!”
Mi-so almost laid her back on the floor with a face that was hard to tell whether she was laughing or crying. She, who was huddled under the bodies stacked like hamburger patties, finally burst into laughter. Jeffrey, who was stuck in the middle, squeezed the bodies in his arms tightly as if he was joking.
“I’m going to explode, Samchon!!”
Byeol, annoyed, turned his head and grabbed Jeffrey’s hair.
[Byeol? Uncle’s hair, hair. Ouch.]
Woof! Woowoof! Pie, who couldn’t squeeze into the gap, wagged his tail excitedly, circling around the area.
“Ugh, I can’t stop you. Everyone, please get up…! Jeong Tae-geon, don’t just look over there and take these people away…!”
Mi-so asked Eden for help once again. He, who had been standing a step away and watching the noisy hug, walked over. Ha-jin, who was lying on top of Jeffrey, turned his head and looked at him approaching.
The moment their eyes met, a familiar warmth suddenly touched his back. As he blinked in surprise, Jeffrey’s sigh followed.
[That bastard is filling his personal desires even in the midst of this.]
Eden, who was hugging Ha-jin tightly, retorted shamelessly.
[Mind your own business.]
Mi-so, who belatedly grasped the situation, let out a hollow laugh and sighed as if she was groaning.