Chapter Text
That day seemed normal.
Or at least it seemed normal to me.
I had been in Atlanta for less than a week, so I couldn’t really say what “normal” was for the city. I was only starting to get used to the streets, the constant noise of traffic, and the humid heat that seemed to stick to your skin. But within the small routine I had managed to build in those few days… it was a day like any other.
I was sitting in a small restaurant near the outskirts of the city. A quiet place, the kind that survives more because of regular customers than tourists. The air smelled like coffee, hot oil, and toasted bread.
I was supposed to meet with Dr. William.
After one of my talks the day before at the AAST Annual Meeting, we had agreed to meet and talk for a while, exchange stories about medicine, hospitals… things like that.
It almost felt like a date.
But he was late.
Very late.
I checked my phone again.
Forty-five minutes.
He hadn’t responded to any of my messages since the last one he sent:
“Looks like there was an accident and traffic is moving very slowly. Sorry, I’ll be there soon.”
I sighed and left my phone on the table.
At that point I was already irritated.
The day had been awful.
My flight to Tokyo had been canceled that morning and no one at customer service could tell me why. No explanation, no new flight, no solutions. Just vague excuses and a lot of angry people waiting for answers.
Everything was overloaded.
I had tried to fix it for hours, because I had patients waiting for me. People who depended on me.
If I had known something like this was going to happen, I probably would have never accepted Dr. Hiroshi’s request.
Although, if I’m honest…
I don’t think I could have told him no.
And a part of me hated herself for that.
Riin… Riin…
The sound of the phone pulled me out of my thoughts. When I checked the screen, I saw the caller ID.
My boss.
I answered almost immediately.
—Sato Rin speaking.
—Rin, where are you?
His voice made me straighten in my seat.
Something was wrong.
Urgent. Tense. Desperate.
—Hiroshi… I’m in a restaurant in Atlanta. Why? Is something wrong?
I frowned.
Not only because of the way he sounded.
But because of the noise behind him.
People shouting. Things falling. Some kind of chaos I couldn’t quite identify.
—Listen to me carefully —he said—. I don’t know what’s happening… but people are changing.
Something slammed somewhere near him.
—They don’t stay dead.
My mind took a second to process that.
…Dead?
—Dr. Hiroshi, what are you talking about? Are you okay? What is all that—?
Dak-dak-dak-dak
The gunshots cut through the call.
Loud. Close.
My entire body tensed instantly. The blood in my veins felt like ice while my heart started beating too fast.
On the other side of the phone there was only chaos.
Screams.
Something breaking.
Running footsteps.
—Damn it… damn it… Listen, stay away from crowds! —I heard Hiroshi say between rushed breaths—. Nurse! Nurse Riuko, watch out!
A crash shook the sound of the phone.
Then…
Silence.
The call ended.
I stared at the screen for a few seconds.
The world around me was still the same. People eating. Silverware clinking. Calm conversations.
But something inside me had frozen.
I forced myself to breathe slowly.
Don’t panic.
I stood up from the table, left enough money to pay for the little I had ordered, and gathered my things. Outside, the air felt warmer and the sky was beginning to cloud slightly.
I walked to a small park nearby and sat on a bench.
I dialed his number.
Once.
Voicemail.
Again.
Voicemail.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Nothing.
I tightened my grip on the phone.
He had to be okay.
He had to be.
Before coming here I had made too many promises to him.
I couldn’t fail him.
Not him too.
I called again.
This time…
Click.
—Oh my God! Hiroshi, are you there? Ishii, damn it, answer me!
My voice came out louder than I expected.
—I’m here… Rin…
His voice was barely a whisper.
And that scared me more than the gunshots.
—What’s happening, Ishii? What is all that noise? Were those gunshots?
Heavy breathing.
—I don’t know what’s happening… shit…
A groan of pain escaped him.
I stood up immediately.
—What happened? Are you hurt? Where are you?
—It doesn’t matter… listen… —he struggled to breathe—. You need to find somewhere safe. As far as I know… this is happening everywhere. Do you hear me?
My stomach tightened.
—I don’t understand anything.
—Do you remember those strange news reports two weeks ago? The cases of aggression… cannibalism…
—Yes… they said it was a drug.
—It’s not a fucking drug —he said weakly—. It’s contagious.
The noise around him returned.
Something slammed nearby.
—Listen carefully. No matter what happens… if someone was bitten… or you think they were…
He struggled to breathe.
—Don’t get close.
Silence.
—They can’t be saved, Rin. They don’t—
—WHO’S THERE?! COME OUT!
The shout wasn’t his.
Beep. Beep.
The call ended.
I remained still.
I tried calling again.
And again.
And again.
No answer.
That was when I noticed something strange.
In the distance.
Sirens.
Many.
Too many.
Then screams.
A car crashed somewhere on a nearby street.
People started running.
And little by little…
The chaos began spreading around me.
That day was especially hot, the sky barely had a few clouds. I knew it was dangerous to go out, but I was running out of supplies. I had looted everything I could reach in the building where I had been staying and around it… everything that didn’t have the dead in it, at least.
Even though all of this had been going on for almost two months, I still couldn’t get used to those things.
They were too unpredictable.
Some could barely walk.
Others seemed to react faster.
And some of them… seemed to watch.
That was what disturbed me the most.
I moved through the alleys that looked clear, guiding myself with a map of the city I had found in the building I had taken as a temporary shelter. My destination was a small shopping center that was a bit far away, but with the promise of enough supplies to make the risk worth it.
The landscape around me was devastating.
Destroyed places.
Papers rolling through the streets.
Abandoned cars.
Broken windows.
And no sign of human life.
Not since the bombing of the city about a month ago… maybe more.
Time became strange when every day felt the same as the one before.
When every day was about surviving.
And nothing else.
When you were alone.
—Alone.
I shook my head and kept moving.
Soon I would reach my destination, but the closer I got the clearer the sounds became.
Dragging feet.
Dry groans.
Metal hitting metal.
Dead.
I slowed down and pressed myself against the wall to avoid being seen. When I reached the corner I leaned out just enough.
My destination was across the street.
And my suspicions were confirmed.
There were quite a few walkers wandering around the entrance.
The glass doors were shattered.
The inside was dark.
Possibly infested.
Damn it.
Even though I had survived alone all this time… I couldn’t handle that many.
And even less with what I had.
Two knives.
Nothing else.
The only weapons I had left since I decided to abandon the gun.
I only had one bullet left.
One I decided to keep.
Only as a last option.
One that had been on my mind far too often lately.
The surrounding buildings didn’t look any better.
Closed windows.
Blocked doors.
But that didn’t mean anything anymore.
I only had two options.
Leave… and see what I could find on the way back.
Or try.
And in this city, trying something could end very badly.
I mentally checked my supplies.
A couple instant soups.
Some water.
Two gallons.
Three small bottles.
Water had become almost impossible to find in the city.
And wasting it… was a luxury that no longer existed.
A few granola bars.
Three cans of beans.
If I rationed the food, I could last.
The human body could endure hunger.
But water…
That was the real problem.
I could risk entering the shopping center.
Or check one of the nearby buildings.
Then I saw it.
A neighboring building.
It looked empty.
Only a few walkers wandered nearby.
The doors seemed sealed.
The downside was how close it was to the mall.
Only an alley separated them.
If I made noise…
If they saw me…
I could attract all of them.
And then everything would be screwed.
What should I do?
Leave?
Try?
If I stayed I could die horribly.
If I went back and found nothing…
I would probably die anyway.
Just slower.
I could go deeper into the city.
But I didn’t know what was waiting for me there.
Since the bombing I hadn’t seen anyone.
Communications had died.
As far as I knew…
No one was left.
Nobody.
I felt something tighten in my chest.
An uncomfortable pressure.
Tears started forming before I could stop them.
A sob slipped out of my throat.
I knew I had to stay quiet.
I knew it was dangerous.
But everything…
Everything was over.
Nobody.
I was alone.
Truly alone.
I had avoided thinking about it for weeks.
Keeping my mind busy was the only way to keep moving.
Because I knew that if I stopped…
If I thought about it too much…
I wouldn’t be able to stop.
I was always known for overthinking everything.
It had helped me move forward many times.
But other times…
Like now…
It didn’t help at all.
What was I going to do?
Was it really worth it to keep fighting?
Keep risking myself just to live one more day?
Another day hiding?
Another day hoping I wouldn’t hear footsteps behind me?
Maybe it would be easier…
To use the gun.
The bullet.
Just one.
Quick.
Silent.
And everything would end.
The pain.
The uncertainty.
The questions.
Japan.
Hiroshi.
The hospital.
The last voice I heard before the call ended.
—WHO’S THERE?! COME OUT!
The memory came back so strongly that it made me shiver.
Another sob escaped my chest.
The air stopped entering my lungs properly.
My breathing became uneven.
Fast.
Too fast.
I leaned against the wall.
Everything started spinning slightly.
No.
Not now.
I hated when this happened.
It had been years since I had an attack like this.
Not since I lived with my parents.
I took my backpack off quickly looking for water.
But my hands were shaking.
And instead of opening it…
I dropped it.
CLATTER
Everything fell to the ground.
Bottles.
Cans.
Metal hitting concrete.
CLANK — CLINK — THUD
I froze.
Silence.
Then…
A distant groan.
Then another.
And another.
Shit.
I had attracted them.
I picked everything up as fast as I could, stuffing it back into the backpack with clumsy hands.
I peeked around the corner.
The walkers were moving.
But not all of them.
Many were still crowded in front of the mall.
And that left a gap.
Small.
But enough.
If I was fast.
Fast enough.
I could cross.
Reach the alley.
Find a back entrance.
Or a fire escape.
Even though my breathing was still wrong.
My hands were still shaking.
My chest hurt.
I might not make it.
The logical thing would be to go back.
But…
To hell with it.
I couldn’t give up.
I didn’t know anything.
Maybe Japan held out.
Maybe Hiroshi was alive.
I had to believe that.
I couldn’t give up.
He would be disappointed.
So I ran.
I ran as fast as I could.
I crossed the street avoiding debris.
I entered the alley.
And there they were.
Three walkers.
Eating something.
From the size…
Probably an animal.
My sudden entrance distracted them.
Their heads slowly turned.
Now I was the target.
I pulled out the knife.
I lunged at the first one.
THUNK
The blade went into its skull.
I shoved the body aside.
I threw the second against some trash bags.
CRASH
The third tried to leap at me.
I kicked its knee.
CRACK
The leg bent unnaturally and it fell.
The knife came down again.
THUD
I didn’t stop.
I ran.
I ran until I saw a fire escape.
It was too high.
I climbed onto a trash bin.
I jumped.
The ladder dropped violently.
BANG — CLANG — CLANG
Too much noise.
Too much.
I climbed fast.
One floor.
Two.
My legs burned.
I found an open window.
I peeked inside.
Dark.
Still.
I climbed in.
I turned to close the window.
It was stuck.
I pushed.
Nothing.
I tried again.
Nothing.
I shoved with all my weight.
SLAM
It shut.
The sound echoed through the empty office.
I collapsed against the wall.
The air moved in and out of my lungs unevenly.
My heart pounded so hard I could hear it in my ears.
My skin burned.
Everything felt heavy.
Hot.
Confusing.
Then the urge to vomit came.
I leaned forward.
HURK
The little I had eaten that morning ended up on the floor.
My breathing sounded loud in the silence.
When I managed to calm down a little, I searched for my bottle of water.
I needed to get that horrible taste out of my mouth.
I looked around.
Abandoned cubicles.
Papers scattered everywhere.
Overturned chairs.
Dead computers.
But…
Nothing else.
No dead.
For now.
After feeling strong enough to continue, I went back to the reason I had come inside: finding supplies. I started with that floor. I went through the large room checking drawer after drawer, desk after desk, searching for anything useful. Old papers, folders, dirty mugs, cables… nothing that actually helped. When I finished searching the entire place I only had a few bandages and a chocolate bar.
No water. Nothing truly useful.
The only water dispenser in the office was knocked over on the floor. The jug was empty.
Not a single drop.
A sting of frustration pressed into my chest.
So I walked toward the door that led to the stairs. I paused there for a moment thinking about what to do: go up or check the lower floor.
No.
It wasn’t worth going down. It was probably just the reception area of the building and it would be even emptier than this place.
So I decided to go up.
The door leading to the next floor was closed. I approached carefully and pressed my ear against the wood, trying to hear if there were any signs of walkers on the other side. Nothing clear. Just the heavy silence of the building.
I knocked on the door with the handle of the knife.
Tok. Tok.
I waited.
1
2
3
Nothing.
I pushed the door slowly and stepped inside carefully.
But instead of another open office, a long hallway greeted me, doors on both sides. All closed. The place looked even emptier than the previous floor. More abandoned.
Still, I moved forward.
I entered the first office.
The nameplate read James Miller.
When I opened the door the place was a mess, as if someone had left in a hurry. Papers on the floor, a chair knocked over, a drawer left open.
Maybe they tried to reach the “safe zone”.
Maybe they died on the way like everyone else.
I only found a rotten salad on the desk and a half-full bottle of water. I put it in my backpack without thinking much about it and left to continue checking the other offices.
By the time I left that floor I had a soda can, two packs of crackers, and a nearly full box of Pop-Tarts.
Not bad.
It wasn’t enough, but it wasn’t nothing.
So I continued climbing the building stairs as quietly as possible, the knife firm in my hand.
But it seemed like all my luck had stayed on that floor.
The next ones were practically empty.
Open drawers.
Overturned chairs.
Nothing useful.
The only thing I found was half a bag of rancid nuts that smelled awful.
In the end it really hadn’t been worth coming in here.
Only one more floor remained before reaching the rooftop.
It was my last attempt before giving up that day. After everything that had happened outside just to get here… it would be miserable to return with almost nothing.
I climbed the stairs and pushed the metal door to the final floor.
But I had to close it immediately.
Slowly.
Carefully.
There were at least ten walkers.
Damn.
I stayed still for a few seconds, thinking.
From the condition of the lower floors, the place looked abandoned for a long time. But if people had been here before dying… maybe they left supplies.
Maybe they decided not to go to the safe zone.
Maybe they barricaded themselves here.
Maybe there was something useful.
Maybe.
I took off my backpack and placed it carefully on the floor. I pulled out the other knife I kept inside.
I took a deep breath.
Relaxed my muscles.
Shook my arms.
And stepped in.
Two walkers were close enough that I reacted quickly. I took them down before they could make noise.
Thud.
Crack.
But I got distracted just long enough not to see the one coming from behind.
I felt a sharp pull on my hair.
—Ah!
The walker had grabbed me.
I tore myself free, leaving a few strands trapped in its rotten hand, and drove the knife into its head. Then I had to turn quickly to face the others already moving toward me.
It didn’t take long.
But it was enough to leave me covered in blood.
The rotten smell clung to my clothes, my skin.
It was disgusting.
God… how badly I wanted to take a shower.
Hot water.
Shampoo.
Soap.
All my products.
But I couldn’t.
I didn’t have water to waste on something like that.
So I went back for my backpack and pulled out the cloth I always carried to clean as much of the blood off as I could before it dried.
When I finished, I searched the place.
But I didn’t find much.
A small pocket knife.
A half-empty first aid kit in a small storage room.
An old tarp.
Some paper.
And nothing else.
Officially everything had been a waste of time.
I felt frustration rise through my chest like heat.
Useless.
Pathetic.
I kicked a shelf as hard as I could.
BANG
Then another.
Things started falling to the floor.
—SHIT!!! SHIT!!! WHY!!! WHY DOES THIS HAVE TO HAPPEN TO ME!!!
I hit the first thing I found.
Papers flew.
A box dropped.
CLATTER
Eventually I stopped.
Breathing hard.
And then I started crying.
Everything was over.
What else could I do?
I might not even be able to leave the building anytime soon. The walkers had followed me. The exits were probably surrounded.
I grabbed my things.
And decided to go up to the roof.
When I opened the door, the hot wind hit my face.
I looked at the sky.
It was later than I thought. The sun wasn’t as high anymore and some clouds were beginning to cover parts of the sky.
I walked to the edge.
I looked at the city.
Atlanta stretched out in silence.
Abandoned cars.
Empty streets.
Buildings open like wounds.
And no humans.
None.
If this city had fallen… what chance was there that other places didn’t?
Tokyo was enormous.
Too many people.
Too much chaos if something like this started there.
My hands began to shake.
I had been alone since the bombing.
And I probably would stay that way.
Because if in all that time I hadn’t found anyone…
With all the people that existed before…
Then it only meant one thing.
Nobody.
I was alone in a foreign city.
Alone in a language that wasn’t mine.
Alone without knowing if my country still existed.
I was only alive because of Hiroshi.
Because of his warning.
If he hadn’t told me before everything collapsed… I probably would have ended up in one of those fake safe zones.
I would probably be dead.
Although… looking at everything now…
Maybe that would have been the better option.
They didn’t have to deal with hunger anymore.
Or fear.
Or the constant uncertainty of whether they would wake up the next day.
The silence of the city became heavier.
The noises of the dead felt far away.
My thoughts were louder.
The tomorrow.
Was it worth continuing?
Was it worth all of this just to see another gray sunrise between dead buildings?
Smell decay in every street?
Feel dirty, sticky, sick from not being able to shower for weeks?
No.
It wasn’t worth it.
Nothing was.
I stepped closer to the edge of the building.
I looked down.
The concrete was far.
But not far enough.
It would be fast.
Simple.
Final.
I never really had anything.
And when I thought my life was finally starting to improve…
The world ended.
A gust of wind hit my face.
I closed my eyes.
I stepped over the railing.
My hands gripped the metal as I looked down.
This was better.
I was supposed to save people.
Help them.
That was why I became a trauma surgeon.
But there were no people left.
Only the dead.
I took a deep breath.
I closed my eyes.
I started to let go.
And then I heard it.
A murmur.
Not a walker.
Not those hollow groans.
Words.
Distant.
But human.
I opened my eyes immediately.
I moved clumsily back to the safe side of the roof, almost slipping in the process, and walked toward where the sound seemed to come from.
I searched.
Nothing.
I looked over the edge.
Nothing in the alley.
No one.
A knot formed in my stomach.
How stupid.
Just my mind.
—NO, NO… NO, NO, NO… GOD, NO!!!
Then I heard it again.
Clearer.
Not from this building.
From the shopping center.
The same place full of walkers I had avoided hours earlier.
There was someone there.
A man.
His voice was rough.
Desperate.
The sound of metal clashing repeated constantly.
CLANG
CLANG
He sounded trapped.
I couldn’t move for a second.
There was someone.
Another human.
I wasn’t alone.
I wasn’t the last person in the world.
My mind began running on its own.
If he was there…
Maybe there were more.
Maybe groups.
Maybe shelters.
Maybe someone needed me.
Maybe I still had a purpose.
Another metallic hit brought me back.
—I NEVER BEGGED YOU FOR ANYTHING!!! I WON’T START NOW!!!
He was still alive.
Before he could keep shouting, I leaned toward the edge and yelled, unable to contain the emotion.
—HEY!!! I’M HERE!!! ARE YOU OKAY?
Silence.
Only distant walkers.
And metal.
Maybe there was a door between him and them.
Then he was trapped.
—…Hey…! Damn it…!
I waited.
—IS ANYONE THERE?!!!
A huge smile spread across my face.
Human.
Not an illusion.
I stepped closer to the edge, gripping the railing so I wouldn’t slip.
But I still couldn’t see him.
Only pipes.
Shadows.
Structures.
—…Hey…! Damn… sons of…!
A metallic hit.
—Hello? Can you hear me?
Silence.
Then movement.
—YES!!! Yeah, I hear you! I’m up here, chained up. Who the hell are you?
Chained.
That… didn’t sound good.
But it wasn’t the moment to think about it.
There was someone alive.
I looked at the distance between the buildings.
Not huge.
But not safe either.
One bad jump meant instant death.
—I CAN’T SEE YOU!!!
—I’M HERE!!! Behind some damn pipes! I can’t move much!
I narrowed my eyes.
And finally saw something.
A shadow moving behind the pipes.
There.
But then I looked again at the distance between buildings.
How the hell was I supposed to cross?
My pulse started rising again.
I was tired.
Undernourished.
My muscles hurt.
If I jumped…
I could die.
If I didn’t…
That voice could disappear.
I started searching around.
Anything.
In my excitement I forgot to answer.
And that seemed to frustrate him.
I heard a dry laugh.
Almost delirious.
—Great… now I’m talking to ghosts.
I rushed back to the edge.
—NO!!! I’m still here! Sorry.
I couldn’t stop a small nervous laugh.
—I’m in the building across from you. I can’t cross yet. I’m looking for a way. Wait… please.
—Christ, woman… I don’t think I’m going anywhere. Hurry up.
His tone was arrogant.
Annoyed.
But I didn’t care.
There was someone else in this shitty world.
I wasn’t alone.
Not anymore.
And because of that…
I had to help him.