For more than ten days, Song Ge had kept track of when the monsters outside were most active, when they grew restless and quiet in turns, and when they were at their calmest. That information could help them choose the best time to make a break for it.
But her notebook recorded exact times.
Now her phone was dead, the basement had no clock, and the covered window made it impossible to tell the time of day. The notes were suddenly much less useful.
She could only estimate the time by relying on her body clock and listening to the activity outside.
There was something else she needed to do.
Song Ge tore down the newspaper.
Tong Xiangyu didn’t know why she was doing it.
“Take a look first,” Song Ge said. “You need to get used to it.”
“What do you mean?” Tong Xiangyu didn’t understand. Then she focused on the rotting flesh outside, crawling with maggots, and her stomach lurched. She covered her mouth and ran into the bathroom.
Even then, she remembered the water had been shut off. She didn’t throw up in the toilet. Instead, she rushed back out, grabbed an empty potato-chip bag, and vomited into it.
She hadn’t eaten much that morning, so all that came up was stomach acid.
Song Ge had anticipated this. She handed her a bottle of water with the cap already unscrewed.
Tong Xiangyu took it and rinsed her mouth. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Song Ge asked, “Feeling better?”
“Mm.”
“Then keep looking.”
Tong Xiangyu stared at her. Song Ge, couldn’t you be a little kinder?
Song Ge looked down at her. “Weren’t you asking why I wouldn’t show you what was outside? This is why. I was worried you’d lose your appetite.”
Tong Xiangyu looked hurt. “So you’re getting back at me…”
“Don’t flatter yourself. If we’re going to make a run for it, you need to get used to these sights. If we’re fighting for our lives out there, you won’t have time to throw up.”
But there was no way Tong Xiangyu could get used to the sight.
Especially with Song Ge making her hold a candle close so she could get a good look.
Whenever Tong Xiangyu saw the writhing maggots, she got goosebumps, and her stomach immediately turned. After throwing up at least three times, she was so weak she could barely get up from the bed.
There were still a few days left.
Song Ge didn’t expect the young miss to get used to it all in one day. She simply stopped covering the window with newspaper.
Feeling awful, Tong Xiangyu turned her back to Song Ge. Her voice was weak and full of grievance. “Even if we’re going to run, I don’t have to stare at all that disgusting stuff. I can just pretend I don’t see it. Why do I have to do this?”
“This is only part of it,” Song Ge said. “The bodies and severed limbs all over the street are worse.”
“I just won’t look at them.” Tong Xiangyu stubbornly pressed her lips together. “There were so many monsters that day. They were scary and disgusting, too, but I didn’t throw up then.”
“Had you prepared yourself?”
“Yes.” Tong Xiangyu turned to face Song Ge. “Don’t worry. I won’t hold you back. If I really mess up, don’t wait for me. Just leave me and get away. You run faster than I do, anyway.”
Song Ge raised an eyebrow. It sounded as if Tong Xiangyu still blamed her for running off without saving her that day.
As soon as Tong Xiangyu finished speaking, she frowned in regret. That wasn’t what she meant. Being around Song Ge had made her too blunt. She tried again. “I mean, I’m grateful you saved me at school. If you hadn’t, I’d have died in the classroom and turned into a monster. You’ve already helped me so much. I don’t want to put you in danger when it matters. If something goes wrong when we make a run for it, don’t hesitate. And don’t feel bad about it afterward.”
“We’re only classmates,” Tong Xiangyu added. “You’ve already done more than enough for me. I won’t blame you.”
Song Ge thought for a moment, then said, “Didn’t you want me to take you home?”
Tong Xiangyu stared at her.
“If you can make it out with me, I’ll take you home.”
Tong Xiangyu couldn’t see Song Ge’s expression clearly with the candle behind her, but her heart still stirred. After all these days together, she knew Song Ge hated making promises—but if she said she’d do something, she meant it.
Still, Tong Xiangyu felt a pang of sadness. “With everything like this, I don’t even know if my parents are home.”
“Then if you can make it out with me, I’ll take you to find them.”
Tong Xiangyu’s eyes lit up. She pushed herself upright, excited. “Really?”
Song Ge looked at the weakness still showing in the young miss’s face and the hope shining in her pretty eyes. She pressed her lips together before answering. “Mm. Really.”
The monsters never slept. They were most active in the morning and evening, but quieted down during the afternoon.
Maybe the virus couldn’t handle the heat. Kecheng’s summer temperatures often climbed past 108°F, so between one and two every afternoon—when Tong Xiangyu would normally be taking her healthy midday nap—the monsters were at their least active.
That didn’t mean there were none. A few zombies still wandered the streets.
The night before they left, Song Ge opened the drawer at the far end of the cabinet and took out a large bag of masks and some disinfectant.
Tong Xiangyu looked surprised. “Why do you have all that?”
“Kecheng gets heavy rain, and the water that collects on the ground is filthy,” Song Ge explained. “The disease-control center disinfects the whole city, but no one’s going to come all the way down to a basement like this. The landlord wouldn’t pay a disinfection company, either. If we don’t want to get sick, we have to take care of ourselves.”
Tong Xiangyu felt a quiet sadness. They were the same age, but Song Ge had to think through so many things and live such a hard life.
Song Ge didn’t realize the young miss’s kind heart was aching for her again. She opened a small packet of masks and handed one to Tong Xiangyu. “Wear a few. Who knows what kinds of germs those corpses are carrying? They might even be airborne.”
Then Song Ge added, “Even if there aren’t any germs, it’ll smell awful.”
Tong Xiangyu took the masks and nodded seriously. “Mm!”
After that, they got ready to rest and conserve their strength.
“Take the bed tonight,” Tong Xiangyu said. “You need to save your energy.”
“No need.” Song Ge went to sit on the little stool in the corner. “I’m used to sleeping on a stool. I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep without it once we get out. Maybe I should bring it along.”
She was clearly joking.
But Tong Xiangyu didn’t find it funny. Her heart felt inexplicably heavy. It was true: they were about to face everything unknown and terrifying outside.
Compared to that, the basement might have been cramped and shut in.
But it was also the safest place they had.
