With a buzz, the TV screen flickered and turned blue.
The signal was gone.
All of us were stunned for a moment...
The living room fell into silence.
Yangyang stood behind me, whispering quietly with Rongrong.
The disappearance of the TV signal seemed to foreshadow that things were about to take an even worse turn.
Snapping out of it, my mind began racing.
The situation outside was already a foregone conclusion.
Judging from the news, it was almost impossible for things to be resolved in the short term.
There was no room left for me to cry or be afraid.
Taking a deep breath, I turned to Suo Tian and said, "I think we're all sensible people here. We all know what's happening out there."
I had decided to win over this man who claimed to be a police officer.
After all, it was too difficult for just Yangyang and me to handle everything on our own.
Especially now, with little Rongrong added to the mix.
"Right. Those who don't understand are out there." Suo Tian pointed towards the window.
"Then, since you were hiding in the hotel earlier, we're the same. We don't really know the specifics of what's happening outside. Like… how many people are still alive, and how many have died and come back to life."
I pointed towards the kitchen. "There's enough food in there. If possible... I mean, if you're willing, maybe we could team up?"
Suo Tian looked towards the kitchen, thinking for a few seconds before replying, "That might not be a bad idea."
"Then..." I extended my hand. "Welcome to the survival team."
"Survival team?" He extended his hand. "Quite fitting."
After lunch, I had Yangyang take Rongrong to the bedroom for a nap, and Suo Tian and I went to the balcony.
"During lunch, I'm sure you noticed, we don't have much water. The day before yesterday, Yangyang and I went to a convenience store not far to the left to grab some supplies, but the water was heavy, and I couldn't carry much."
Since we've decided to team up, I was ready to act immediately.
Suo Tian didn't say anything, but motioned for me to continue.
"In the past few days, my emotions have been... unstable. I don't have the energy to go out and get more supplies, and Yangyang is still young, so he can't help much. Since you're here, I think we should take the opportunity, before the streets are filled with those walkers, to gather enough supplies."
"Your consideration is indeed thorough, but... I don't think that convenience store will last us much longer."
"What do you mean?"
"Yesterday, if you go straight down that road, about a kilometer away, there's a big mall. We need supplies from there."
"No, that's too far. We can't make it. If we're surrounded by the walkers on the way, we'll end up nothing but bones."
"We might have no choice but to go," he pointed downstairs.
Four young people, two men and two women, each carrying two large bags of supplies, quickly rushed into the courtyard of the building ahead.
"Look, that small shop is probably already cleared out by the people around here."
I noticed the stairway window on the building ahead and saw that they had reached the fourth floor.
The resurrected couple on the third floor was nowhere to be found.
They may have left, or perhaps they had been taken down by those people.
"They're really clever," I said, feeling a bit disappointed.
It seemed we were still a step too late.
"No... they're not clever enough."
Looking at what the people were carrying, it was clear that the small shop had likely been emptied out.
I had no choice but to consider Suo Tian's suggestion.
Maybe we really needed to go to that supermarket.
This idea was confirmed the next morning.
Yangyang had a fever, 39 degrees Celsius.
Since he rarely got sick, we didn't have much medicine at home.
Watching my little brother lying in bed, his face burning red, I felt as if my heart was being torn apart.
"Suo Tian, there's a big pharmacy at the street corner, and it's very close to that mall. After we have lunch, let's go there. We'll get enough medicine and supplies in one trip."
Suo Tian shook his head. "No, we can't go today. We must wait two days."
"Wait two days? No way! I can't wait, we have to go today. Yangyang is sick, if we wait two days, it will make his fever worse."
"We can search the first floor for medicine, but it's best if we don't go out for the next two days."
"Why?"
Suo Tian pointed toward the floors ahead without giving an explanation.
By noon, I understood what he meant.
Not long after lunch, people suddenly rushed out from several buildings, heading straight toward the courtyard of the four people.
They smashed doors, climbed over walls, and quickly reached the fourth floor.
Then all we could hear were screams and curses.
It seemed like they were fighting over something?
Yesterday's food!
I suddenly felt a jolt of realization.
Were they fighting over food?
I instantly understood the last thing Suo Tian said yesterday.
They really weren't smart enough.
If they took everything from the store, what would the other survivors do?
What would they eat?
Nearly a week has passed, and it's likely that every household is already running out of resources.
The sound of arguing attracted quite a few of the walkers.
They seemed pleased to have found their lunch.
They roared as they rushed into the small courtyard in front.
The door was left open.
"The walkers are inside! Hurry and hide!" I urgently shouted toward the floors ahead.
No matter what, they were still humans, with blood, flesh, and thoughts.
They ate biscuits, not eating their friends or family.
My shouting attracted a portion of the walkers to the gate of my house.
The other floor became quiet, no more arguing, only the faint sounds of walker growls and nails scratching at the door.
Suo Tian pulled me inside the house, frowning.
"If you want us to be surrounded by walkers, then go ahead and shout a couple more times."
"If I don't warn them, they'll all die!"
Though I felt tense inside from the walkers finding us, I still didn't think my actions were wrong.
"That has nothing to do with us. We can only try our best to protect ourselves. If they survive, then all the supplies we risked taking from the supermarket will be taken away! Hungry, scared fools have no sense of rationality!"
I fell silent, unable to deny that Suo Tian had a point.
I glanced at the opposite building.
At least twenty survivors were inside.
The walkers that had entered the courtyard were no more than a dozen or twenty.
Now all we could do was pray and hope they could hold on.
Suo Tian and I searched the first-floor rooms and were very fortunate to find a small medicine cabinet.
Inside, there was an entire box of fever-reducing medicine, which was exactly what I needed right now.
Heaven really wasn't being harsh on us.
The fridge contained many cans of cola and some vegetables and pork ribs.
I grabbed a large plastic bag, packed everything inside, and then we returned to the upper floor.
When Rongrong saw the cola, she was very happy.
But being so young, she understood from the TV that loud noises were to be avoided.
After spinning around in excitement for a few circles, she eagerly opened a bottle and began to savor it.
Yangyang took the medicine, and by the afternoon, his fever had finally subsided.
During this time, I kept an eye on the movements of the floors across from us.
It remained very quiet, with only faint growls echoing in the distance.
It seemed the walkers hadn't barged into the house.
The walkers downstairs had already scattered.
Outside, the emptiness was accentuated by the afternoon sunlight, making everything appear so quiet and peaceful.
Of course, this peace only existed if you could manage to ignore the piles of intestines and bloodstains on the road.
The cola tasted surprisingly good.
Sitting on the balcony, looking into the distance, I felt a pang of worry for my parents.
I wondered if they were facing the same horrors as us right now.
Unable to contact me or Yangyang, they must be really worried.
Mom must be crying again.
That night.
Yangyang had recovered from his fever and went to bed early.
I wasn't sure why, but Rongrong kept pestering Suo Tian to tell her a story to help her fall asleep.
Suo Tian couldn't refuse, so he stiffly started telling her a story about a murder and dismemberment case.
I remained sitting on the balcony, watching the building across from me.
How must the twenty or so survivors inside be feeling as they face this dark night?
Everything had fallen silent.
The moonlight bathed the land, signaling a good day ahead.
Early the next morning, Suo Tian woke Yangyang up and began teaching him the proper way to use a knife in the living room.
He even forced him to do fifty push-ups and a hundred sit-ups.
Though I felt a little sorry for him, I knew Yangyang had been studying for so long and had a weak physique.
In this apocalypse, I had to help him build a strong body.
After breakfast, I instructed Yangyang to take care of Rongrong while Suo Tian and I carefully planned our route to the supermarket.
Then, we grabbed our knives and headed out.
Suo Tian said that while those people were trapped upstairs by the walkers and too scared to come out, it was the perfect time for us to go to the supermarket and gather supplies.
Finally, we didn't have to wait another two days.
As soon as we stepped outside, we came face-to-face with an elderly walker emerging from the front yard.
The adaptability of humans is truly astonishing.
Ten days ago, if I had seen such a rotting "person" walking towards me, I would have been scared out of my wits.
But now, my heart was just beating faster.
My hands and feet no longer trembled.
Before I could even make a move, Suo Tian swiftly ended her.
From the way he handled it, I could tell he was definitely skilled.
We didn't dare hesitate and quickly ran toward the road.
There were dozens of walkers scattered around the street.
We had no choice but to retreat to a side path.
"What should we do?" I asked.
Suo Tian scanned the surroundings and pointed to a white car with the door open not far away.
"We go to the car. Move quietly and quickly. Don't alert them."
"But we don't have the keys."
"I have a way."
Crouching low, he moved swiftly toward the car.
Once in the car, I was pleasantly surprised to find the keys.
"Can you drive?"
Suo Tian nodded and, after scanning the surroundings, quickly started the engine, heading toward the mall.
On the way, we ran over several walkers who attempted to block the car.
To my surprise, I felt an odd sense of satisfaction.
Watching those monsters shatter upon impact, I almost couldn't resist clapping and cheering.
Though the bloodstains left on the car windows were rather disgusting.
Soon, we arrived in front of the mall, and Suo Tian didn't park too far away.
After getting out of the car, we headed to the nearby pharmacy.
Inside, after taking down a few ugly demons dressed in lab coats, I grabbed a large plastic bag and nearly emptied the pharmacy of all its medicines.
These things would be needed sooner or later, though I hoped we wouldn't have to use them.
We put the large bag of medicine in the car and then headed toward the mall.
"There may be a dense group of walkers inside, or maybe just a few scattered ones. But either way, the visibility in the mall isn't great, so we need to be extremely cautious. We can't afford any mistakes," Suo Tian reminded me on the way.
"Don't worry. I'm tougher than you think."
Suo Tian quickly glanced at me. "Were you really just an elementary school teacher before?"
"Of course... Quiet... We're here."
Through the glass, I could see only a few scattered walkers aimlessly wandering between the shelves.
Suo Tian made a hand gesture, and it was easy to understand.
"Cover him."