2018

She tucked her hair behind her ears as she glanced through the window at the playground. It was break time; the boys played football on the field. She peeked, adjusting her line of sight to spot the boy in a red house shirt. A smile lingered on her face, "Today, I will definitely tell him". The three girls turned around, walking to one of the classes at the end of the corridor.

***

"Why me?" he turned around to face her. She stood perplexed, the entire class looking on.

"Because, you are the only one I fell in love with", she replied with a frown.

"I would date you only if you were the last girl in the world", he said with a straight face.

The leader of the basketball team, handsome and cool by birth, he was the dream boy among the ninth graders.

She scoffed before finding words to speak, "right, I might have misunderstood. I'm sorry", she said turning around and walking out of the class. The class giggled.

***

"Didn't you say you liked Samairah? Then why on earth would you humiliate her like that?" Damian held Sowoon by the collar.

"I am used to simply admiring her from far. I don't know what to do beyond that", he said looking down.

"You don't know how to date, so you..", he tightened his grip on Sowoon's collar, "..you rejected her? You, universal retard!"

Damian stepped back, straightening Sowoon's shirt.

"Go apologize and ask for a second chance, right now!" he screamed.

A few days later

She stood by the wall near the cafeteria.

"Uh, excuse..", he spoke hesitantly standing behind her. She turned, startled at the sudden voice.

"I wanted to..", he spoke again before being cut off by her.

"Nope. I have a boyfriend", she said with no change in her expression.

"So fast?" he said, his eyes widening.

"Why? Did you think I'd cry over you for years?" she said walking away.

5 years later

"Samairah Choi...", the tall girl walked past 2 classrooms at the speed of light, heading towards her, "...how dare you steal my boyfriend". She moved aside, letting the girl tumble over her shoes and onto the ground. She pulled herself up and looked up at the epitome of beauty, dolled up like a Barbie. She sighed and got up, "at least wait until he breaks up with me", she felt the word *pathetic* run through her mind like an extended YouTube ad, while saying those words.

"Which one is it? David? Kim? Albert? Quick, tell me who. I can't date someone who dated a girl like you before", she flicked her hair to the side.

"Albert.." she said as she wailed sitting on her knees and cupping her face.

"Ah, I'll sure keep the name in mind," she said as she turned and walked away with the gang of 4 girls who looked like each of them competed for the shortest skirt at university.

****

"There's a rumour that she has dated every guy in our university", said the enthusiastic guy sipping on a Popsicle. Damien wasn't among the popular lot but managed to meet a minimum of six girls every day, thanks to his Student Council position.

"Then what are we? Girls?" He said, his eyes fixed on the girl at the far end of the field. She sat between a bunch of bouquets, snacks and gifts that the guys had bought her.

"Sowoon, I wish. That would have meant free snacks at least" he said before biting off the last bit of Popsicle and getting up from the bench.

"Damian", Sowoon called out as Damian started walking off. "Wait for me," he said as he grabbed his bag and walked with him. He stole a quick glance at the girl who seemed to have another guy proposing to her. He sighed as they walked to the main building.

"See you tomorrow", he said, hopping on his motorbike and driving off along the sloppy road. He pulled up beside his apartment.

The elevator door opened and he stepped inside. A pair of stilettos stopped the door just as it almost closed shut. Samairah walked in, standing farthest from Sowoon.

"I see, you live here huh?", she asked with a smirk.

"I do", he answered blankly.

"I have seen you a couple of times at the university, you looked awestruck every time I walked past you", she smiled, rolling a lock of hair on her finger.

"I didn't know you remembered every guy you walked past", he replied.

"Don't even be mistaken. I just have a good memory. Oh did you-" she stopped and looked beside her with her mouth half-open, "..did you think I'm interested in you or something? Not even if you were the last guy in the world, hah," she said. The doors opened and she walked out. He watched in disbelief at the sky-high arrogance he just witnessed, as the elevator doors closed in front of him.

****

2030

The windows were sealed shut. The black tint reduced visibility at night. She sat under the chair beside the window staring into the emptiness. Half the windows had been nailed shut with wooden bars.

The hallway bathed in the stench of blood and smoke. The marble tiles on the floor had turned black from the fire that was set off last week. Huge molten and solidified lumps rested on the floor. The last sign of life had burnt away in that fire. The rear end of the hallway was blocked with chairs and tables carefully aligned on top of one another.

She pushed the door open, the creak echoing through the hallway. The hinges had taken their fair share of trouble. The other end of the hallway led to a flight of stairs that opened to the main entrance of the school below. She walked to the room next to the classroom. It was still a fresh memory when the 20 of them had gathered here with all that they had managed to collect from the neighbourhood.

"We could last a year with these", someone had said. The well-stacked inventory of food still remains in the corner of the room. A young girl had bought kettles and rice cookers.

"Now I can last 5 years with these", she told herself as she poured some water into the cup of ramen. She slurped the noodles and sat down near the window. To think of it now, running out of tint by the time they reached this room was a blessing. The stars were shining bright, most street lights had gone off since the engineering students managed to reroute it from the main source to power the school generators. The view from the window wasn't much different from the tinted window. All that made a difference, were the stars and the moon.

The silence was eerie; 10 years ago she would have given anything to get a night as silent as this. But now, it seemed nothing close to peaceful. The constant fear of becoming like the rest of them, the constant fear of having to abandon this haven, all lingered on in her mind. The leaves below rattled, she looked down to see the dog she had once adored. "Gray", she muttered, as she looked at the vicious beast now hunting for anything that breathes. She got up and walked back to the room, taking the shovels and fixing them near the handle of the door before lying down.

Mornings. Mornings as quiet as the night. *I didn't think I would live up to a day with a quiet morning* she thought as she removed the shovels and walked out of the room. Taking a cold shower, she dressed in clothes she had managed to find in the neighbourhood stores. Most of them were looted before the situation got worse. No wonder, every now and then, the zombies show up wearing Gucci cardigans, Calvin Klein Puffer jackets and Burberry gowns. She had managed to get a few winter clothes from the godowns nearby. She put on a trench coat over the turtle necks and headed out to the roof.

In the mornings, it was a routine to check up on the neighborhood from the roof to see any sign of life. She sipped on the mango juice about two months past the expiry date. Thanks to the extended winter, the juices except milk products had stayed edible. While she waited, she looked at the packaging. The orange juice had always been her favourite.

She smiled as she thought of him. Her first love. Kim Sowoon. Thanks to Sowoon's rejection of her proposal, every guy, from then on was an attempt to get over him. He knew what he had done to her almost normal life back then, but, no matter how many guys she dated and ditched, Sowoon was oblivious to all of it.

"I tried so hard to get his attention", she smiled to herself. "Pathetic", she whispered to herself as she looked up to see a huge puff of smoke rising up not so far from the school. She grabbed the binoculars, looking as carefully as she can. Nothing. Just smoke and fire. Shrieks echoed in the air. The bellow of creatures that were set on fire resonated. It could have been an accidental fire or there must be someone who did it.

"A survivor?" She gasped, as she rushed down the stairs to the third room in the corridor. It was rarely opened, mostly because she rarely stepped out of the school for the past 10 years. She grabbed the backpack and packed in some food and water enough for a night, she figured it would take her until daybreak to reach the building. The flamethrower, a handheld chainsaw, a fuel can, a morning star, a shotgun and some ammo followed. Holding the morning star, she stepped out of the main entrance, making sure to block it with the broken metal gate.

The streets were as silent as ever, the shrieks and bellows had died down. The smoke still rose up, giving her a landmark. She walked as silently as possible; a shawl was wrapped around either of the shoes to minimize any sound that could be created. She stopped in her tracks as a tiny shriek followed by what sounded like a key chain being dragged on the ground.

She looked to her right. A half-open scalp, bloodied face and overgrown nails. It had been a while since an encounter with these creatures. She froze for a few seconds before breathing normally and silently again. Standing still on her ground, she waited to see if she would be spotted. Opposed to usual notions, they had no sense of smell or vision; it was all about the noise. The zombie passed by without sensing her presence.

*better to avoid than draw a crowd* she thought as she took careful steps.

Walking past the intersection, she reached the site of an accident. Cars toppled and turned, one on top of the other. It was as dramatic as in the movies. She carefully trod lightly, avoiding any touch with any of the metal scrap which could make noise. The last car was in sight. She slowly turned and slid through the tiny space between the two cars. At the rear end of the turned car, a bellow drew her attention. The nails at the tip of her bat screeched against the car.

Bellows intensified. She pulled through and stood on her toes to see a bunch of zombies heading her way, hitting the cars and rummaging through and above the cars. She emptied the can of gasoline along the end entrance of the street, using the flamethrower to set it alight. She took a few steps back towards the narrow street, looking back, she spotted the warehouse that was on fire earlier. Standing between the two fires, she watched the creatures collapse as they struggled to pass through the fire.

"Still a crowd puller I see", the voice startled her, she swung her bat as she turned around. It hit something like metal and stopped. She looked at what stopped the bat. It was a hand armour, made of what seemed like iron from the sound it made. She looked up to see a man in a hat and a neck gaiter balaclava. He pulled it down to reveal a familiar face.

"The last guy in the world" she gasped.

"Good to see you haven't dropped the attitude", he joked.

"I thought of you today Sowoon" she whispered.

"I still haven't lost my charm", he said proudly. Tears built up in her eyes.

"So you did end up the last girl in the world", he said as he patted her head.

They smiled and headed into a contemporary looking house nearby, with a high iron gate. It was a well-fortified apartment built by early survivors. They decided on making a few back and forth trips to the school to collect the resources. The earth still seemed desolate, but her world wasn't as lonely anymore.