Chapter 1 Part 10

Could it be that someone came to rescue me even in this nauseating situation? If there was such a person, it would probably be Do Ji-hyuk. He is mature, just, and selfless. Thinking that way, I used the palm of my hand to wipe away the blood that was obscuring my vision. 

“…Damn, did you already die?” 

But in front of me was a man who was different from what I had expected, holding a fire extinguisher and gasping for breath as he looked at me. 

…It was Yoo Min-ho.

The voice that was spit out without any hesitation was trembling. He looked at me, who was lying on the ground, completely terrified, and then turned his gaze back to the zombie. The zombie was wriggling and trying to get up. How on earth could I stop this monster’s movement? Should I cut its throat? Should I burn it? But none of those options were currently possible. 

“Fuck… This is so disgusting. Is this a human or a monster?” 

Yoo Min-ho muttered in a voice filled with bravado, as if trying to overcome his fear. He repeatedly struck the zombie’s head with the fire extinguisher he was holding. Blood splattered everywhere, and the box cutter that was stuck in the zombie’s eye socket flew towards me. Why didn’t I think of that before? The fire extinguisher for commercial use was a more effective weapon than a stationery box cutter. Yoo Min-ho, who was nearly 190 centimeters tall, was young and had a good physique, so he had plenty of stamina. 

Even with a frightened face, he looked reliable as he unhesitatingly struck the zombie’s head. He seemed like a character who could survive until the end in this miserable movie. At least he appeared to have the courage and physical ability that were advantageous for survival compared to me. 

“Stop it and come inside quickly!” 

Do Ji-hyuk, who was holding onto the convenience store door, shouted. His words were right. We had to escape to somewhere before more zombies gathered. I grabbed Yoo Min-ho, who was still striking the zombie’s head with the fire extinguisher, and said, 

“We have to get out of here right now. There’s not just one of these things here.” 

“Ugh… It’s still moving. What the hell…” 

“Hurry!” 

“…Y-You. Are you Lee Chae-eun? Why are you here?”

“I’ll explain later… Ah, damn… Do Ji-hyuk, close the door quickly!” 

It was despairing. Just as I was about to pull Yoo Min-ho’s arm and head towards Do Ji-hyuk, the glass door next to the convenience store shook and opened with a loud noise, revealing a woman zombie in her thirties. And it wasn’t just one. As the door touched the body of the zombie at the front, more zombies followed behind in a line. Moreover, at the end of the corridor, more zombies that had gathered from the noise were coming closer, one by one, revealing their presence. In that moment, I had a premonition that there was no longer a possibility of survival in this episode. 

As I helplessly watched the increasing number of zombies, I silently took out my phone and habitually checked the time. 

20:19. 

…What? Why hasn’t the reset happened yet? I couldn’t hide my confusion at the number 19, which had surpassed the usual reset at 4. What could be different this time? I had to think. Was it because I met Do Ji-hyuk and Yoo Min-ho that time didn’t go back? But it wasn’t the first time I met the main characters. I had visited the real estate once before. How did I die back then? I tried to focus on my thoughts even in the urgent situation where the zombies were gathering. 

Just as the terrified real estate agent opened the back door, the zombies rushed in, and as always, I was torn apart and died. If I hadn’t shown up, the two main characters would have died just like in this round, trying to get to the elevator to close the deal. That was the moment I realized. 

“Damn it! Run!”

Yoo Min-ho suddenly grabbed my hand and started running in the opposite direction of the approaching zombies.

Yoo Min-ho’s running ability was as impressive as his long legs. It was not an easy task for me, who was heading towards thirty, to keep up with his pace. As I thought about it, I felt a sense of confusion. It was because in that intense moment of running away from the zombies, my own age naturally came to mind. That’s right. I died in my twenty-seventh summer, when the cicadas’ buzzing was overwhelming. When I tried so hard to recall it, my mind, which had been hazy like fog, suddenly became clear. 

As I almost felt like I was being dragged along, I glanced at Yoo Min-ho’s back as he ran, and then at our joined hands. In my mind, I came up with another hypothesis. In the end, a movie could only revolve around the main characters. Regardless of the genre, without the key characters, the story could not progress. 

By sticking close to such an important character… I wondered if I could not only understand the intended message of this story, but also recover my lost memories. When I think about it, it was when I discovered the main characters at the real estate that I first remembered that this world was a movie. 

“You’re so damn slow! Do you want to die? Run faster!” 

“I’m updating my personal record in life right now. Ugh, huff. Where are we going?” 

“I don’t know, but if you don’t want to die, you better run!” 

We were running at a speed so fast that even breathing was difficult, but before we knew it, the zombies behind us were getting closer, as if they were about to catch us. Damn it. I needed time to think. Information kept pouring in, but the situation was overwhelming, making it impossible for me to gather my thoughts. I gasped for breath and managed to say. 

“For, for now! Let’s go back to the real estate! Most of the other shops are locked!”

“That damn building. It was a good idea to sell it to Do Ji-hyuk. Damn it!”

Yoo Min-ho said that, pouring out a battle cry-like spirit and increasing his speed even more. Crazy, it felt like my joints were going to dislocate. Fortunately, the back door of the real estate was wide open. I couldn’t tell if Yoo Min-ho and Do Ji-hyuk had left it open when they came out, but the best option for now was to go into the real estate and lock the door. 

As soon as Yoo Min-ho reached the back door, he grabbed onto the wall of the shopping complex and used the recoil to push me into the real estate. And in an instant, he also entered and locked the door from the inside, then collapsed as if he had lost all strength. I quickly got up from the floor and pulled a bookshelf to cover the empty part of the window, blocking the view. 

But this time, the zombies persistently pounded on the door of the shopping complex. Since all the shops in this building had glass walls facing the corridor, they were vulnerable to impact. Every time the glass behind me shook, I felt a creepy sensation. I was terrified that the glass would shatter like the glass wall in the cafe and the zombies would pour in. 

As I gasped for breath and looked inside the real estate, I finally saw the worn-out table. Hopefully, there wouldn’t be a real estate agent turned into a zombie inside, right? Even if there was, it wouldn’t be any stranger than the chaotic situation we were in. Everything was a mess. 

“…Is that… it? …Zombies?” 

I looked at Yoo Min-ho as he spoke with a trembling voice, and he, too, was staring into space, breathing heavily. Why the hell did this bastard come out of that convenience store? I could understand if it was Do Ji-hyuk, but it didn’t make sense for him to come out to save me.

Yoo Min-ho, who was arrogant and selfish, was practically the ultimate villain in the movie. He used people as bait to survive, and as the movie progressed, he transformed into a ruthless killer who brutally damaged and killed both humans and zombies. It was said that his mind was completely broken, and he lost his sanity. Thanks to Yoo Min-ho by my side, I suddenly felt scattered fragments of memories slowly finding their place one by one. 

“You should have stayed quietly in the convenience store, why did you come out?” 

“…And why did you save me?” 

I couldn’t find the right words to reply. The current me is Lee Chae-eun, and the thought that I am your stalker crossed my mind, but I didn’t say it out loud. As I breathed heavily, he muttered to himself as if talking to himself. 

“Yeah, why would a stalker risk their life to save someone? You should have just stayed in the convenience store, eating a chocolate bar and waiting for rescue.”

 “…..”

I swallowed my words as I watched Yoo Min-ho speak his mind freely. The movements of the zombies seemed unsettling. Even though I blocked their view just like before, I couldn’t understand why they didn’t just leave this time. I didn’t have enough information to make judgments about the zombies in the first place. I let out a sigh and looked outside through the shutters. The familiar cityscape looked alien to me.

“Damn, they’re fucking banging on the door so aggressively. Are those assholes trying to eat us?” 

“…Uh. They really love meat.” 

“…This fucking sucks.” 

“Why are you shaking so much?”

“Damn, aren’t you scared? They’re obsessed with feasting on our bodies.” 

“…I’m scared. I’m scared too. Really… scared.” 

But what’s even scarier than the zombies is the thought of going back to 19:21 when I die. The endless cycle of this madness. Not being able to live or die, going insane in the end. That’s what scared me the most. Maybe I didn’t even realize that I had already started losing my mind little by little. 

In that moment, something warm and soft wrapped around my hand. Curious, I looked down and saw Yoo Min-ho holding onto my hand tightly.