Andrew and the group he had helped were now gathered in the lobby of the office building.
The students were in a state of shock — some sat numbly on the floor, while others clutched their phones, desperately trying to reach their families. Even the teachers who had accompanied them fared no better. A few stood frozen, staring out the glass doors at the chaos unfolding outside, where people were being torn apart and devoured. One of the teachers vomited into a trash bin, while a female teacher broke down in tears. The rest were pale and silent, horror written across their faces.
After a few tense minutes, an office employee cautiously approached them, clearly alarmed by their sudden appearance and distressed state. "What happened out there?" the man asked, his voice unsteady.
Some of the teachers and students turned their attention toward Andrew. He felt a little uncomfortable under their stares, then the man of Korean nationality he had first spoken to addressed him. "At the bus, you said you'd explain later. Well… it's later. What's happening? Why are people acting like this?" he asked, avoiding mentioning the fact that people were being eaten, which was still happening just outside.
Andrew sighed and set the duffle bag down on a nearby table. Turning to face the group — which had now grown as more office employees came down to investigate the commotion — he began, "First off, what I know is that it's a virus. The main way people get infected is by being bitten." He paused, then quickly added, "Which reminds me — we need to check that no one got bitten while coming in."
A wave of panic rippled through the group as everyone began checking themselves. Thankfully, no one had been bitten.
Then one of the teachers asked, "How do you know about this?"
Before Andrew could answer, a student spoke up, "There've been forums talking about weird stuff happening like this for days."
The room fell silent as everyone turned toward the student. Another immediately snapped, "You knew? And you didn't say anything?"
"No one would've believed me," the first student protested. "You'd have laughed at me."
Before the argument could escalate, the Korean teacher stepped in. "Enough," he said firmly. Turning to Andrew, he introduced himself " my name is Jun-hyuk " then added, "Thank you for saving us. We'll need a little time to talk among ourselves and figure out what we're going to do."
Andrew gave a short nod. "No problem. Take your time."
Jun-hyuk thanked him again, then walked over to speak with a female teacher of Korean nationality .
Looking around, Andrew decided to head up to the rooftop to see how bad things really were. He grabbed the duffle bag — unwilling to leave it unattended, especially considering its contents.
Walking past the distressed students, most of whom were now trying to distract themselves from the horrors outside by calling their families or huddling together, Andrew made his way to an employee standing nearby.
"Is there a way up to the roof?" he asked.
The woman, pale and visibly shaken, pointed him toward a stairwell at the end of the hallway. "Through there. The stairs go all the way up."
"Thank you," Andrew said with a nod, then headed for the stairwell.
On his way up, he passed several open office doors. Inside, people stood pressed against the windows, watching the chaos unfold in the streets below — some with wide-eyed horror, others openly weeping or frantically making phone calls. The building, once just another quiet office space, had turned into a cage of panic and disbelief.
Andrew kept moving, wanting to see for himself just how bad it is.
Reaching the rooftop, Andrew set the duffle bag down beside a ventilation unit. The scene below was absolute chaos. People were abandoning their vehicles, desperately running for their lives through the congested streets. Some tried to fight back against the infected, while others weren't as lucky — caught and torn apart by the ravenous walking dead.
Overhead, helicopters cut through the sky, the distant thrum of their blades competing with the rising chorus of screams. Gunshots echoed through the streets, sporadic and frantic, as police officers tried in vain to contain the rapidly spreading violence.
Andrew watched the chaos unfolding below, his mind racing with thoughts of how to survive it all. Trying to leave the city now would be too dangerous — the streets were choked with panicked people, abandoned cars, and the growing number of walking dead. He realized he would have to wait for things to settle before making a move.
A commotion in front of the building caught his attention. Glancing down, he saw a group of people spilling out onto the street. Judging by their clothes, they were office employees from inside the building. Andrew figured they were heading out to find their families, though deep down he doubted many of them would get far.
After some time , the sound of footsteps coming from the staircase made him turn. Moments later, Jun-hyuk appeared, followed by the female teacher he had been speaking with and a handful of others.
Walking up beside Andrew, the small group silently took in the devastation unfolding in the city. In the distance, a dark trail of smoke rose into the sky .
Sensing the weight of the moment, Jun-hyuk spoke, hoping to ease the tension. He introduced the woman beside him as Young-nim. Grateful for the distraction, Andrew turned to her. Young-mi gave a small bow, thanking him for saving their lives. Caught a little off guard by the gesture, Andrew gave her a faint smile and replied, "I couldn't just leave all of you there. I'm glad you all made it out safely."
The others took the cue to introduce themselves. Two of them, a man and a woman, were Germans , Henrik and Anja , both visibly shaken
while the third — a younger man — spoke with a distinct European accent. He introduced himself as Erik, mentioning he was from Sweden.
Andrew introduced himself as well, and the small group of six slowly stepped away from the edge of the rooftop and made their way toward the staircase , Andrew following after grabbing the duffle bag . As they descended the stairs, Andrew broke the silence.
"What about the employees that left earlier?" he asked, glancing at the others.
Erik was the one to answer. "They went after their families," he said quietly, his expression grim.
Andrew nodded, not surprised. "I figured as much."
A few more steps down, Andrew spoke again. "And the front entrance — did anyone think to block it off?"
This time, Jun-hyuk responded. "We barricaded it after they left. Some of the others pushed furniture and filing cabinets against the doors. It should hold for a while."
"Good," Andrew said, relieved they had taken precautions.
Following Jun-hyuk, Andrew and the group stopped on the second floor, where the students, the rest of the teachers, and the remaining office employees had gathered. Everyone's attention was fixed on a television mounted in the corner of the room.
The news anchor spoke in a tense, urgent tone, reporting that for unknown reasons, people across the city had begun acting with extreme aggression. The anchor urged viewers to remain indoors and avoid public areas. But it wasn't the reporter's words that held the room's attention — it was what was happening in the background behind him.
On the screen, police officers and SWAT teams struggled to evacuate civilians while trying to hold back waves of the walking dead. It was obvious to Andrew that the authorities still hadn't realized headshots were the only effective way to stop them. Officers fired wildly at torsos, wasting precious time and ammunition as the undead kept coming.
A cold silence fell over the room.
Then, one of the employees abruptly stepped forward and turned off the TV. "I can't watch this anymore," she said, her voice breaking. No one protested.
Looking around, now that he finally had a moment to calm down, Andrew noticed the different nationalities of the students from the pins they were wearing — South Korean, Japanese, German, Swedish, and Canadian. Turning to Jun-hyuk, Andrew asked quietly, "How are they holding up?"
Jun-hyuk sighed, his expression weary. "It's hard for them," he admitted. "Even for us teachers… everything happening out there is more than we've ever imagined. But for now, we're managing. We moved up to the second floor — thought it would be safer, maybe avoid attracting too much attention."
Andrew nodded, his gaze sweeping over the group. He could see the toll the situation had already taken on everyone — fear, exhaustion, and uncertainty etched into their faces. Some students sat huddled together, while others stared blankly at their phones, desperate for news from home. The adults fared little better, clinging to a fragile calm , they like the students we speaking with their families on the phone.
Hours passed, and as night fell, a new problem arose. With no other option but to spend the night in the office building, the group began to think about their sleeping arrangements. The only available furniture were a few sofas , not nearly enough for everyone. Some of the teachers discussed taking turns resting while others stayed awake to keep watch, while the students were trying to make themselves comfortable on the floor with what little they had. The mood was tense, the uncertainty of what the night might bring weighing heavily on everyone.
After a bit of searching, they managed to find several fire safety blankets stored in a supply closet. Though not meant for comfort, their thermal insulation would at least help keep anyone from sleeping directly on the cold floor. The group spread them out across the carpeted areas, and both students and teachers began settling down for the night. The office employees claimed the few available sofas, grateful for something slightly softer. Andrew found an empty armchair near the corner of the room, placed his duffle bag beside it within easy reach, but before resting he checked to ensure that here is no way in for the zombies outside , after he finished checking he returned to the armchair and sat down, allowing himself a brief moment to rest, though sleep would be hard to come by.
Thankfully, the night passed uneventfully. At first light, Andrew, Jun-hyuk, the teachers, and a few of the office employees gathered to discuss what to do next. The first issue raised was food — everyone was beginning to feel the gnawing ache of hunger, having gone without a proper meal since the day before.
After a moment of thought, Andrew spoke up. "I have some canned food in my bag," he said. Faces around the group brightened with relief at his words — until he added, "But it's not enough for everyone." At that, shoulders slumped and the hopeful mood dimmed.
"But," Andrew continued, "I have more supplies in my car. We'll need to retrieve it if we want to feed everyone."
Hearing Andrew's words, everyone hesitated. The thought of going outside and facing those things filled them with dread. Noticing their reluctance, Andrew brought his duffle bag over and unzipped it. As promised, there were a few cans of food and bottles of water inside — but what truly caught their attention were the weapons he carried.
In silence, the group watched as Andrew calmly reached into the bag and began equipping himself: the chest rig , the gloves with the forearms protection, the hunting knife strapped to his belt, extra magazines loaded into a pouch , the Glock, which he checked before holstering , and finely the MP5 . The quiet in the room deepened, all eyes fixed on him as the reality of their situation settled heavier in their chests.
Once he was done, Andrew turned to them. "We need those supplies," he said firmly. "If we don't want to starve, we have to go get them. I need two volunteers to help me keep those things away and at least four more to carry everything. I'm not going to force anyone — but if we stay here and do nothing, we won't last long."
After a moment of tense silence, Jun-hyuk stepped forward, followed by a Japanese teacher who introduced herself as Yumiko. Andrew gave them both a firm nod, then looked around for volunteers willing to help gather the supplies. A few students, teachers, and office employees hesitantly raised their hands. Reluctant to put the students in direct danger, Andrew selected only from the teachers and employees for the retrieval team. The students, however, offered their backpacks to help carry the supplies, a gesture Andrew appreciated.
With that sorted, Andrew turned his attention to the two who would be standing guard with him . He knew that in South Korea, there was a mandatory military service period, so it was likely Jun-hyuk had at least basic firearms training. Deciding to arm him with the Glock, Andrew picked up the pistol and held it out. Jun-hyuk took it without hesitation, giving Andrew a small, resolute nod. Andrew handed him two spare magazines as well, wanting to be sure he was prepared.
Next, Andrew looked to Yumiko. He grabbed his hunting knife and asked if she was comfortable using it. Yumiko studied the blade for a moment before nodding. Without a word, she turned and made her way toward a nearby supply closet. Curious, Andrew watched her go, then turned back to finish preparing.
A few minutes later, Yumiko returned, a satisfied look on her face. In her hands was a makeshift weapon — she had lashed the knife securely to the end of a mop handle with duct tape, creating a crude but effective spear. Andrew gave her a grin and a nod of approval.
They were ready.