​​Chapter 12​​

"What? This is the ladies..."

"Together."

He suddenly clamped a hand over my mouth and pulled me inside.

"Are you crying?" I saw tears glistening in his eyes.

"Sister, I... I can't stay with you till the end."

What?!

No, impossible!

Standing on tiptoe, I cupped his handsome face in my hands, whispering frantically:

"Where? Show me..."

Slowly, he extended his right hand. Tears spilled over.

A clear puncture wound marked his right thumb.

What do I do?

I panicked!

I'd never felt such utter panic before.

To lose him before I'd even truly had him?

"Let me suck the poison out."

"Don't be foolish, you'll get infected. Sister, I just came to say goodbye."

He stroked my cheek, his gaze full of tenderness:

"Some things... I never got the chance to say."

"Xiao Chu..."

I covered my mouth, stifling a sob.

Suddenly! Frantic banging on the door.

"Dai Mei! Trouble!"

"Get out here!"

I wiped my eyes and burst out. Qiu Ze and the others had the lean man pinned face down on the floor.

"He's changing! Hurry!"

Much of the lean man's hair had fallen out. Bloody scratches were clearly visible on his scalp. He thrashed and roared, his eyes turning milky white.

"Kill him!" We all attacked together, breaking his neck.

I turned around. Xiao Chu was climbing the filing cabinets.

"Xiao Chu! Where are you going?" The plump man asked, terrified.

Xiao Chu turned back. He gave me one last, despairing smile and crawled into the ventilation duct.

At that moment, something inside me shattered with an audible crack.

I knew. He didn't want me to kill him. He wanted to leave with dignity.

I pulled out the phone monitor, staring fixedly at the feed. If he entered the supermarket, I should see him.

If he returned as a zombie, we'd have to kill him together.

Minutes ticked by. Five. Ten. He didn't appear.

Twenty minutes. No unusual sounds.

Something wasn't right.

They were attacked at the same time. Why did the lean man mutate immediately, while Xiao Chu remained conscious enough to leave?

I had to find out.

As I moved to climb into the duct, Qiu Ze grabbed my arm, demanding to know what I was doing. I punched him hard in the temple. Before the others could react, I scrambled up and disappeared inside.

Headlamp on, I crawled through the duct. Finally, at a bend, I saw him.

Xiao Chu's body was curled tightly into a ball, motionless.

I didn't dare approach immediately, observing him from a distance. His hair remained thick, black, and intact. His skin was flushed, not pale. No black veins crawled up his neck, but it was slick with sweat.

"Xiao Chu."

No response.

I must have been insane. I inched closer, bit by bit, until my fingers touched his neck. His carotid artery pulsed rapidly; his temperature felt at least 103°F.

I checked his wound. His entire thumb was swollen like a light bulb, weeping clear fluid.

I tugged his hair. It didn't come out.

Looking closer, his eyelashes were still long and dark.

"Xiao Chu! Can you hear me?!" I shook him, calling his name near his ear. Finally, a faint groan escaped his throat.

"Don't sleep, Xiao Chu! Wake up!"

He struggled to open his eyes, looked at me for a second, then closed them weakly.

"Xiao Chu, I'm taking you to the Finance office!"

He was heavy.

Thankfully, the duct interior was smooth. Barefoot, I braced against the sides and dragged him back with sheer force.

"Xiao Chu, we need to get down."

I stepped onto the filing cabinet and reached back to pull him down. Off-balance, we both crashed to the floor.

Thankfully, he didn't hit his head. My back screamed in agony; I nearly blacked out from the pain.

I made my decision. I would stay by his side. If he turned… I would kill him myself.

"You need to get better. You need to tell me your name yourself."

"When we get out of here, I want to watch you play basketball."

"You look good without your glasses."

"That day in the truck, when you held me… I really wanted to kiss you."

"Get better fast. I haven't had the chance to say… I like you..."

...

An orphan like me, long accustomed to the harshness of the world, was usually silent.

Even after Qiu Ze pursued me relentlessly and we got together, I never talked to him this much.

I never believed in gods or buddhas. Yet now, I prayed silently, countless times, to all conceivable powers: Please, protect him...

Exhaustion claimed me. The headlamp died. I fell asleep.