We were clearly cornered.

Yuki gripped her gun tightly, but the nervousness in her eyes was obvious — that trembling glint of someone who knows this might be the end. The room had no windows. The only way we could escape was through the secret passage. But even there... we'd still be trapped. Just with more space to die. The situation was anything but favorable.

I drew my gun and spoke low, almost in a whisper, to Yuki:

— We have to go down... it's our best chance. There's more space down there. Here we're trapped and we'll either die or become one of the infected.

The silence was heavy. They were there, standing still, staring at us. Those smiles... the damn black slime dripping from their mouths. It was disgusting. My heart was practically jumping out of my throat — one wrong step and it was over.

And then, as if they were one single thing, they all spoke together. Multiple voices merging into one. Absurd synchronization. Inhuman.

— You are not my new brothers.

It was like a snap. They lunged all at once. A swarm of soulless bodies, inhuman and determined. The only thing we could do was run — and run fast.

We raced down the stairs. The wood creaked under our feet. Every step was a risk. Slippery, wet, stinking of mold and leaks. Yuki lost her balance and fell. One of the infected grabbed her leg and, in reflex, she pulled me down with her. We both went down.

The world turned to chaos.

On the floor, the infected tried to bite Yuki. But she reacted first — pulled the trigger. A sharp shot. The infected dropped dead before it could infect her.

That's when I saw it.

All the others... stopped. Went rigid. Panicked. They started crying. A real, desperate, suffocating cry. As if they'd all felt that single shot. As if they were one.

And then they said:

— That hurts, it hurts so much... you want to hurt me too... you're evil!!!

I got up quickly and pulled Yuki. Adrenaline burned in my chest.

— Let's lock ourselves in that room... — Yuki says, panting and panicking.

I didn't like the idea. Everything in me screamed that it would go wrong. But with them behind us, there was no choice.

We ran to the medicine room. We toppled shelves, shoved furniture to block the door. The pounding came right after. Strong. Rhythmic. Insistent. It wouldn't hold for long.

Yuki started searching the room — opening, knocking over, pushing everything — looking for an exit. But nothing. We were locked in. No escape route. And they were about to break in. In other words: we were definitely going to die.

I closed my eyes. Tried to breathe. Think. Keep my head straight. I needed something, anything. Then I remembered.

Their reaction to the shot. How they'd all felt the pain. Maybe that was a weak point. I looked at Yuki.

— I have an idea, but I don't know if it'll work. — I say, determined.

— What's the idea?

— Open the door.

— Are you insane?! If you want to kill yourself, do it alone. — Yuki says in desperation.

The pounding grew more intense. The door's wood cracked. It wouldn't last much longer. I looked at her. Yuki was scared, that was clear. But she still had that steady gaze. She always does.

— Yuki, when you shot that infected, I think they all felt it. So if you hit one in a really painful spot, it might give us a small window to escape.

— What makes you say that?

— Gut feeling. Got a better theory?

Yuki paused, looked at me in disbelief, and just said:

— If we die, I'll get you in hell.

I lit a cigarette. Took a deep drag. It was like my lungs screamed in response.

— Seriously, you're going to smoke now? — she said, almost ready to lunge at me.

— Might be the last time I ever smoke.

She made a face that said it all: fair enough.

And then, the door was smashed open.

The infected came in first. Looked us straight in the eyes. There was something there that wasn't human. It was hunger. It was hatred. It was... emptiness.

I gripped my gun tightly. I was frozen. But Yuki, even scared, was cold. Cold enough to shoot first. The bullet went through one of the infected's heads. Instantly, the others screamed. Agony. Pain. Desperation.

That was our opening.

We ran.

But I wasn't fast enough.

One of them grabbed me. Pulled me back. My body... well, three years of alcohol, cigarettes, and sleepless nights do a hell of a job. My physical condition was a joke.

And you know what's funny?

When you live every day wanting to die, thinking you're ready for it... when death finally shows up, right in your face, the only thing you think is:

I don't want to die.

And that's exactly what's going through my head right now.

I don't want to die.