He was probably joking, but his voice was so frosty my blood threatened to turn to slush.
It was a joke… right?
“Oh, c’mon.” I quickly tried to loop my arm through his.
But, of course, this was one of those moments when my uncooperative muscles decided to stage a tiny rebellion.
Instead of a smooth, friendly gesture, it became this awkward business of just sort of shoving my arm into the general vicinity of his. Not my finest moment.
“It’s not like that at all!” I insisted. “I was just out for a walk, got totally lost, and this very kind gentleman offered to show me the way.”
“Ah, is that so?”
“Mhm, yup.”
“Then what were you two doing,” he murmured, his voice dropping an octave, “pressed up against each other like that?”
Suddenly, the playful glint in Yoan’s eyes vanished, replaced by something different. It was, without a doubt, the most terrifying expression I’d ever seen on his face.
Where was Derek when I needed him?
“Si—Mom!”
And just like that, as if summoned by my desperate plea to the universe, Derek appeared like a tiny, tow-headed savior.
See? The world doesn’t just let a girl die. Usually.
I greeted him with more genuine happiness than I think I’d ever felt.
“Oh… Dad’s here, too. What are you two doing out here? There’s a curfew, you know. We shouldn’t be wandering about. Let’s go back.”
“Son, guess what?” Yoan said, his tone gravely serious. “Daddy just caught Mommy having an affair.”
“Hey!” I hissed. “What kinda thing is that to say in front of a child?”
“He needs to know these things.”
“The hell? What a nutter,” Derek muttered.
A hushed, frantic argument erupted between us, our voices low enough that Zenon couldn’t possibly have heard.
“If that’s not it,” Yoan countered, “then explain to me exactly why you were pressed up against another man in a narrow alley at this hour. Because I’m having a rather difficult time understanding.”
“I already explained!”
“And you expect me to simply believe that?”
Wait a minute. How had this conversation twisted around until I was the one making frantic excuses, as if I’d actually been caught in the act?
Snapping back to my senses, I narrowed my eyes and glared at him.
It was only then that I spotted the faint, infuriating smile playing on his lips. “Yoan. Do you have a death wish?”
“Ah, you caught me.”
“Why would you pull a prank like that? You scared me half to death!”
“Good. Remember the feeling. This time, it ends with a joke. But if something like this were to happen for real, it would not end nearly so well.”
What a nutter.
I couldn’t help agreeing with Derek’s sentiment. No, there was absolutely nothing normal about his behavior.
I was about to ask who on earth he thought he was to say such a thing… but I had a distinct feeling I would lose that argument. I wisely kept my mouth shut.
“He’s already gone,” Yoan said.
“Huh?”
I followed his gaze. The alley where Zenon and I had been standing was now completely empty.
“Do you know him?” Yoan asked.
“We work in the same kitchen.”
“From the look on your face, there’s more to it than that.”
“It’s just… Let’s go back to our quarters for now,” I said, glancing around. “There could be eyes on us anywhere.”
The fortress was unnervingly quiet at night, a silence so profound it felt like its own kind of threat. I just wanted to be somewhere safe.
“Sasha.”
“Yes?”
“Do you even know the way back?”
“Ah, right.” The entire reason this mess had started was because I was hopelessly lost.
With a sheepish look, I stopped walking and shuffled over to stand beside him.
“Hand.”
“I don’t think we need to hold hands…”
“What if you get lost again?”
“But you’re right here.”
“Hand.”
He was so insistent that I finally gave in, placing my hand in his. The moment I did, Derek scurried to my other side and took my free hand in his own small one.
“May I hold your hand, too?”
You already are.
Stuck between the two of them, a human-zombie-human sandwich of sorts, I felt a profound sense of exhaustion wash over me.
Back in our room, I relayed the details of my conversation with Zenon, adding my own thoughts on the matter.
“So he did that even after learning your identity,” Yoan mused. “We’ll need to keep an eye on him.”
“Well, since I’m working in the same kitchen, you should leave it to me.”
“Can I trust you?”
“Of course.”
“No, I mean,” he said, a devilish glint in his eye, “can I trust you not to have an affair?”
That was it. My temper, which had been simmering nicely, finally boiled over.
I balled up my fist and clocked him right on the head.
Thwack!
“Ah.”
Uh-oh. Had I misjudged my strength? That sounded rather solid.
My bravado evaporated instantly.
“S-sorry. Let me see.” I knelt and leaned over to inspect his head. Thankfully, there didn’t appear to be any serious damage.
“That actually hurt,” he grumbled.
“Yes, sorry,” I said, and I meant it. It probably did.
I gently rubbed the spot I’d hit and, pursing my lips, blew on it softly.
Yoan’s shoulders shook with quiet laughter.
“Doesn’t hurt anymore, right?” I asked, smiling sweetly and using my kindest voice. Hitting him was wrong, after all.
Derek, who had been watching this entire display with a critical eye, piped up. “Sis Sasha, he deserves to be hit every once in a while. Otherwise, he gets it into his head to act up.”
“Son? It’s time for you to go to bed,” Yoan said smoothly.
“I told you, I’m sleeping with Sasha.”
“You’re far too precocious for your age.”
“What? You’re the one with the dirty mind!”
“I have a super idea,” I announced. “Why don’t you two just sleep together? I don’t sleep anyway, so I’ll stay by myself.”
“That’s not happening.”
“That’s not happening.”
They said it in perfect, irritating unison.
The pointless squabbling continued for a few more rounds after that.
I considered just knocking them both out. It would certainly be more peaceful.
With a long sigh, I slammed my fist on the floor hard enough to shut them both up. I wasn’t imagining the small crack it left behind.
“Just leave me alone!”
Then I spun around and disappeared into my room.
***
Lying alone in the dark, I replayed the scene I’d witnessed in the alley.
I shouldn’t have just turned back. I should have followed them.
Were they capturing zombies for some sort of biological experiment? The thought sent a wave of nausea through me as memories of what Valdes had done surfaced.
It wasn’t about pain; it was just a disgusting, creeping feeling.
Still, I’d learned something important on my first day. Starting tomorrow, I could begin my investigation in earnest…
Lost in thought, I heard the door creak open. My head turned automatically.
Yoan strolled into the room as if he belonged there. Blinking as I tried to process this, I sat up. “What is it?”
“I can’t sleep.”
“You’re not a child, barging into someone’s room just because you can’t sleep, are you?”
“Sasha… You’re getting colder, you know?”
It’s not that I’m getting colder. You just insist on being so weird every time you’re near me.
“Lie down,” he said. “I’ll just lie here with you, that’s all.”
“You’re so strange.”
“What is?”
“The very idea of trying to fall asleep next to a zombie is fundamentally strange.”
Letting out a small laugh at my words, Yoan folded his hands behind his head and lay down on the narrow bed. “I don’t think I’m normal, either. But what can I do? It’s as if I’m drawn to you by instinct.”
“Drawn to me?”
“I guess I like you.”
My brain just stopped.
The nuance was a little ambiguous, but did Yoan just confess his feelings to me? He likes me, even though I’m a zombie? For real?
Woah. Now what do I do?
Unfortunately for me, a girl with approximately zero experience in matters of the heart, that one sentence left me completely flustered.
I tried to wiggle my toes in confusion, but of course they wouldn’t move the way I wanted them to. I had no idea what to say, so I just stared blankly at the ceiling.
Do I like Yoan, too?
I’d never really considered it that deeply, but there was certainly no reason to dislike him.
He was a handsome young lord who was also incredibly capable. Who in their right mind would say no to that? Sure, his personality was a tad problematic, but still.
Suppressing a ridiculous little flutter of excitement, I carefully began, “S-since when?”
“…”
After mustering all my courage to ask, I was met with absolute silence.
“Yoan?”
Looking over, I saw that he was fast asleep, breathing softly.
“‘Can’t sleep,’ my butt,” I muttered. “What a liar.”
Stirring up a person’s feelings like that. The absolute nerve of him, sleeping so peacefully.
I found myself just watching him for a while, this ridiculously handsome man. His messy blond hair, the long eyelashes resting on his cheeks… it was all charming. A handsome face was always a pleasant way to pass the time.
“It’s as if I’m drawn to you by instinct. I guess I like you.”
His words kept replaying in my head.
Well, tomorrow is another day. I’ll just have to ask him for more details when he wakes up.
“Good night,” I whispered, gently patting his chest.
***
The next morning, I was summoned much earlier than I’d expected.
“Oh, my goodness, Sasha! People who work in the kitchen have to be up earlier than everyone else. That’s how we get the meals ready,” Deborah chirped as I hurried in.
“Were you nervous on your first day? Did you oversleep? You have such dark circles under your eyes.”
By the time I arrived, she and four other people were already rushing around in a flurry of activity. The dark circles under my eyes weren’t from a lack of sleep; my makeup skills were just nowhere near as polished as Kira’s.
“I’m sorry,” I said with an awkward smile, looking around. Is Zenon not here yet either?
“Hey, Sasha, for today, just run some errands. In a little while, you can help Zenon with the deliveries.”
“Okay.” I could handle that without messing anything up. Best of all, it was a natural opportunity to be alone with him.
After helping with the tasks I was given, Zenon finally appeared. Just as Deborah had instructed, I set out with him to deliver the meals.
I was fast, of course, but Zenon was also remarkably fast on his feet. Thanks to that, we finished the deliveries much quicker than I’d expected.
I was just starting to look for the right moment to bring up what happened yesterday when Zenon beat me to it.
“What’s with the looks?” he asked, his tone level. “You curious about where the zombies they caught yesterday were taken?”
So he was just going to throw the bait out there right from the start.
His gaze was unwavering; he had already figured me out and was calling my bluff. Well, in that case, there was no reason not to bite.
“Of course I’m curious. I thought this place was about protecting people from zombies, but secretly capturing them seems suspicious. Do you know something?”
“If I tell you,” he countered, “will you tell me the real reason you came here, Sasha?”
“No. I don’t even know who you really are.”
“Who I am.” Zenon’s indifferent violet eyes met mine. “My real name is Zenonian Faldin. I ran a small organization before I came here.”
“A small organization…?”
“Something like a guild.”
Aha. So that’s what he was.