The road out of Shinjuku cracked and groaned with the weight of decay. The once-bustling overpass was now a concrete carcass, its rails twisted and asphalt riddled with gaps wide enough to swallow a car.
Kanami studied the bridge through binoculars. "That's a no-go. It's ready to collapse."
Takiya scanned the sides. "The tunnel below might get us across."
Godou-sensei nodded. "But we'll need to move fast. There's movement ahead—"
Gunshots echoed in the distance.
Then screams.
A horde of zombies surged around a wrecked delivery truck down the road. But behind them — worse — figures with weapons, corralling the undead like sheepdogs. Humans. Survivors.
"Ambush!" Takiya shouted, drawing her blade.
"Fall back!" Godou ordered. "Kanata! Serizawa!"
But it was too late.
The tunnel ahead shook violently. Concrete peeled from the ceiling. A section caved in between them — dust and smoke rising like a curtain.
"KANATA!!" Kanami screamed.
He couldn't answer. A wall of rubble had already sealed them off.
---
Underground Subway Ruins
Kanata pulled Serizawa up beside him. Her leg buckled.
"You okay?"
"I twisted my ankle," she muttered, biting her lip. "I can still walk—"
"You're not walking on that," he said.
Without waiting, he bent down and scooped her up. Her face flushed hot against his neck.
"Idiot. I said I could—"
"Shut up and let me be useful for once," he said, grinning.
The tunnels were cold and damp. Flickering emergency lights occasionally sparked to life, casting ghostly reflections in shattered glass. Tracks lay twisted, rusted, and wet.
Serizawa clung to him tightly.
"You're warm," she muttered.
Kanata blinked. "Thanks…?"
"Don't get cocky," she grumbled — but didn't pull away.
---
They found a broken supply room and camped there for the night — behind a makeshift barricade of chairs and crates. Kanata dug through a locker and found a few emergency blankets.
As the cold settled in, Serizawa's body trembled beside him. Her ankle was swelling.
"Come here," he said, patting the blanket beside him.
Her brows furrowed. "I'm not—"
"I'm not asking for anything weird. You're freezing. We need warmth."
A long pause.
Then she lay down beside him, stiffly at first.
Minutes passed.
Then: she moved closer.
Her breath slowed. Her hand curled around his jacket.
He stayed still, letting her adjust.
Then, in a voice barely above a whisper:
> "When we first met… I thought you were weak."
Kanata didn't answer.
"I watched you fumble. Fall. Cry when Takeshi died."
Still, he said nothing.
"But now I can't stop looking at you," she whispered. "Wondering when you'll disappear too."
The silence between them thickened, like the cold around their bodies.
"I'm still scared," Kanata said finally. "Every second. Every choice. But when I see you, I want to be strong."
She turned her face into his chest, her voice muffled.
"Then don't die. That's all I want."
---
Midnight
Kanata stirred slightly, his arm numb from holding her too long.
Serizawa was pressed close — her breath steady, her body warm.
Then she murmured in her sleep: "…Kanata…"
He froze.
She clutched his shirt tighter.
"…don't leave me…"
He wanted to say something. Wanted to reassure her.
But he just lay there, watching the shadows crawl across the concrete walls.
---
The Next Morning
Serizawa's ankle was still sore, but usable. She leaned on him as they pushed through the deeper sections of the tunnel.
Graffiti whispered from the walls. Arrows pointed in different directions — some marked "SAFE ZONE," others smeared out violently. Dried blood painted over maps.
They heard it before they saw it: the howls of the undead.
Kanata drew his knife. "Let's move."
Serizawa grinned through the pain. "After all that? You'd better carry me again if I twist it again."
He looked at her.
And smiled.
"Gladly."
---
To be continued