Hari and his group took us back to the classroom. All the zombies on the third floor hallway and around my classroom had been cleared by the male students. At both ends of the stairs, tables and chairs were piled up to form a barrier, and there were boys armed with daily life equipments standing in groups of four at each end of the hallway.

I walked through the familiar hallway, on one side was a row of glass windows looking out at the storm outside, on the other side was a row of empty classrooms stretching from class 3A to 3E. The entire area of grade 12 classrooms was safe, but looking through the glass windows of the classrooms, the inside of these classrooms was empty, with no one there, except for class 3E at the end of the hallway, which was littered with corpses. Class 3D next door only had a few people inside, and two male students were standing outside blocking the door. Looking at the students in class 3D, their faces were all pale, someone was screaming from inside, banging on the door, begging to get out.

“What is this?” – I asked a male student in the group.

“After the recent attack, the corpses were temporarily placed in room 3E, while the bitten people were temporarily locked in room 3D.

Hari also asked the three of us to check for bite marks before going down to the 3rd floor. Luckily, Katashi, Rin, and I were all unharmed after the siege. Katashi walked next to Osamu, the leader of the boys and the class president of class 3E. I shyly followed him. Daisuke and Hari walked at the back to ensure safety. Rin stood far away from me, not even looking at me the entire trip. She must have been angry with me for selfishly leaving her and Katashi behind.

“Is there anyone else alive besides you guys?”

Katashi asked Osamu.

“I don't know. For now, confirmed alive people inside of the school are all here.”

We stopped in front of classroom 3A. Osamu pushed the door open for us to enter.

“The survivors who have not been bitten are gathered here.”

The door slid open to give me a clear view of the scene inside.

All eyes from inside the room were on us. Inside, there were people huddled together, some huddled, some sprawled on the ground, looking like a group of refugees after a natural disaster. Trembling in the darkness, there were probably fifty or sixty people.

Looking at everyone's faces, they looked like they had lost their souls. Some people saw me coming in and widened their eyes in fear, thinking I was an zombie.

A familiar face was walking towards me. It was none other than my homeroom teacher, Hibiki Sensei. He was only 26 years old and had just started his teaching career at the beginning of this year. Looking at his young face in a white blouse, if we weren't at school, we would probably call him ‘onii-san’ (older brother).

In the classroom, besides Hibiki Sensei, there were three other teachers, one was the homeroom teacher of class 3C and the other two were the two physical education teachers from the defense group on the first floor last night. Looking at their haggard faces from staying up all night, I guessed that perhaps they were lucky to have dropped by here during the evacuation from the first floor just now.

Looking at everyone in the classroom right now, it seems the one holding the highest power is Hibiki Sensei.

Hibiki Sensei looked at me sternly. His voice sounded displeased with me.

“Hana! You're the class president, why are you letting the class be in such chaos? Where have you been all this time?”

I lowered my head to let Hibiki Sensei continue to scold me. It's true that I'm the class president, but at times like this, my responsibility to the class is somehow forgotten. Hibiki Sensei continued:

“I was only gone for a while… but when I came back, the class was already in chaos. Many of you followed the crowd to the 5th floor, chased by a pack of zombies, life and death unclear. If it weren’t for Osamu from 3E, what would things be like now?”

Sensei was right, it was because I was absent that the class was in chaos, causing many students to follow the crowd and die. Luckily, Osamu, the class president of class 3E, united the people who stayed behind, so we were saved like this. Meiko and Sayo died because of me. If I had stayed in the class earlier and convinced them not to follow the crowd, then perhaps they wouldn't have died so unjustly.

“Sensei, it's not her fault. Just now, Principal Sai wanted to meet Hana on the rooftop, so Miyu took her there.”

Airi suddenly appeared beside me. Her fake face was disgusting to look at.

“What?” – Hibiki Sensei gritted his teeth, his face suddenly changed color – “That principal? Where was he all day yesterday?”

His attitude made Airi fearfully lower her head.

Hibiki Sensei lowered his voice and turned to ask me again.

“Hana, is what Airi said was the truth?”

I nodded slightly.

“Okay…” – The teacher grabbed my wrist and led me back to my seat in the classroom. He placed a chair in front of my desk, then propped his chin on his hands – “I need you to tell me everything that happened just now.”

I told the whole story from the moment I woke up until I was rescued by Osamu's group. Hibiki Sensei also recounted the teacher's progress. This morning he was assigned to go down to the first floor to guard, when the zombies outside broke the glass door and rushed in, he followed the crowd back to the classroom. Because the crowd was so chaotic, it was very difficult for him to get here. When he finally got there, everything had already turned out like this. Many students followed the crowd to the upper floors to save themselves, luckily Osamu from 3E gathered the people who stayed behind to defend against the zombies. Principal Sai was absent from school all day yesterday, but this morning he suddenly appeared on a helicopter to take away two excellent students. This despicable old man was out there all day yesterday. He probably knew more about this zombie pandemic than all of us in here.

“It’s okay now.” – Hibiki Sensei reached out and patted my head – “Sorry for being a bit hot-tempered, you’ve been through a lot, the situation is under control now, you should rest a bit.”

Then my teacher stood up and continued walking towards Katashi and Rin who were sitting at the other end of the classroom to ask questions.

I thanked Airi softly, even though I didn't like her, it seemed like Airi had just saved me from Hibiki Sensei's anger. From the back of the classroom, Airi's boyfriend from the next class kept waving at her impatiently, she said goodbye to me and returned to him.

I was finally free to look around. Hibiki Sensei was interrogating me about Principal Sai with such intensity that it was almost like he was forcing me to confess. I glanced around the classroom, hoping to find Miyu. Hopefully she had made it back to class in time during the chaos, or that Osamu and the others had saved her on their way to save us. But my hopes were gone. Outside the window, the demonic rain continued to pour down, despite the fact that we couldn't see anything outside.

I walked over to Osamu and asked him about Miyu, if she was locked in the 3D room with the other bitten people. He didn't answer, just shook his head in dismay.

I returned to my seat feeling sad. I glanced at Katashi and Rin. Hibiki Sensei had already gotten the full story from me, so he didn't interrogate them much, just asked a few questions and left. Katashi had gotten his unfinished novel back. Rin sat next to him, seemingly commenting on Katashi's novel. Katashi didn't seem happy, but they were chatting intimately as if they had known each other for a long time. Rin made him blush again. Well, at least there was someone who was comfortable here. I was happy for Katashi, because it had been a long time since he had talked to anyone this enthusiastically. Those two were both friendless, yet they had met and became close so quickly. I was glad that after all this time Katashi had a new friend who wasn't me.

I looked around the classroom for familiar faces. Besides Katashi and Hibiki Sensei, there was also Airi and her boyfriend from the next class. At the back of the classroom, the remaining girls from class 3B gathered around Akira, the baby-faced boy who failed to confess to me yesterday. It seemed like I had underestimated him, Akira looked very calm as he reassured the girls: “It’s okay, I’ll protect you guys.”

I felt a little sorry for myself yesterday. He was handsome and kind. Knowing he was such a gentleman, I would have accepted him regardless of class.

I also wanted to find Hari and Daisuke to thank them for saving me earlier. But after Osamu and the others took us back to the classroom. Those two disappeared somewhere.

Right now, class no longer has any value to me. The people I used to respect like Principal Sai are cowards who only think of themselves, while the people I used to consider as trash saved my life in my most desperate moments. Right now, there is no more arrogance in me. I crave love. Two years of standing on top of others has made me only see people by their achievements and ignore the value of the person inside. If this incident over and I return to my normal life, I will cherish others more… I will change to become my older self again, a fragile girl under Katashi's protection.

While I was still thinking, Katashi slowly approached me. I looked up and saw that he had his backpack ready on his shoulder.

“Hana, do you want to come with us?”

I was a little confused for a moment, but then I remembered Rin's plan. Katashi still wanted to leave the school according to her plan. It's just that we had just been saved and he was ready to leave right away. He doesn't know what rest is.

“Then let me ask Hibiki Sensei.”

I answered him.

“Okay, Rin and I will wait over there.”

Katashi pointed his thumb back, pointing to the table across the classroom, where Rin was sitting.

You two became friends really quickly, are you already so attached to each other?

After talking to me, he returned to his seat. I didn't want to waste any more time, so I immediately left my seat and pushed the door open to leave the classroom. After interrogating us, Hibiki Sensei went out to stand guard with the boys.

As for my belongings, my school bag had been neatly prepared on my shoulder since this morning, since Miyu pulled me away.

I found Hibiki Sensei right in front of the main staircase from my class. He was holding a broken iron mop handle with a sharp point on one end, and two male students were standing behind a barricade of tables and chairs, staring at the stairs.

I gently approached and shook Hibiki Sensei. He took me to a corner and asked me what I needed.

“Me and two other friends want to leave.”

I bowed my head, waiting for Sensei's reaction. I was afraid he would get angry with me again and lecture me about responsibility.

But I was wrong, the answer I got was the teacher's gentle voice. Hibiki Sensei placed his hand lightly on my shoulder.

“If that's what you want, then I won't stop you. I'm here, so you don't have to worry.”

I was surprised. Hibiki Sensei was only 8 years older than us. Our teacher was usually very childish. He often quotes silly lines from anime characters to make his lessons more entertaining, but in the end, he turned himself into a laughing stock for the whole class. In the whole school, he was the teacher closest to the students, always joining in on the boys' jokes, and often acting as a servant for the girls at the shopping mall... He was like a friend to us, like a child who never grew up in the body of a 26-year-old teacher.

But now Hibiki Sensei stood before me, as caring as a father. My nose was stinging. Tears welled up in the corners of my eyes.

I quickly wiped away my tears.

“Come on, you don't want to make me cry, do you?”

Hibiki Sensei patted my head again, smiling.

“Hana is a bigger crybaby than Miyu.”

"I’m not…"

His gentle hand wiped away the tears on my cheeks, he advised.

“You look a lot thinner these days. Being diligent is good, but don't try too hard, you hear? From now on, you have to take better care of yourself.”

My parents always complained to Hibiki Sensei about me staying up late at night to program games. Although he didn't know my purpose, instead of reminding me, he took responsibility for it, saying that it was a school project that I had to do to cover for me. Only now did I realize that there were so many people who cared about me.

As I was about to turn back to the classroom, Hibiki Sensei suddenly called out to me from behind.

“Hana, wait.”

I looked back, the teacher had not returned to the guard post yet but was still taking something black out of his pocket.

"Catch!"

The teacher threw the black object towards me. Surprised, I quickly used both hands to catch the thing that was flying towards my chest.

I opened my palm to see what it was. Nestled in my palm, was a black key.

“The Jeep is in the basement parking lot in row B4. If you want to go far, you should at least have a car.”

Then he waved me in front of his forehead as if saying goodbye and turned away to leave. I quickly nodded.

I pushed the door open and entered, intending to inform Katashi that I had successfully requested permission, but the group now, seemed to include more than just him and Rin.

Around the table where Rin was sitting, there were three other people besides Katashi. All of them were familiar faces to me.

A girl with pigtails, a slender but handsome guy with an undercut, and a male student with a cute face.

It's Airi, her boyfriend, Yamato, and the guy I rejected yesterday, Akira.

Seeing me approaching, Airi quickly made a pleading face and looked at me.

“Hana… please, I don't want to be here anymore.”

What is she up to? Is she trying to use me to get away from here again? I looked at Rin to see if she would agree, but her expression said “Whatever”. After all, she let a detestable person like me come along, so there’s no reason she couldn’t bring Airi along.

I glanced at Yamato.

“No… I won't leave Airi's side for a single step… not even half a step!”

He hugged Airi tightly. These two have been inseparable since yesterday. It seems that in order for Airi to follow us, we will have to bring her boyfriend along.

“I want to try to go out there and find help!”

Akira's voice echoed from behind me. His eyes were filled with determination. His motivation was justified, so we couldn't leave him out.

“You still have a Harem to take care of! Stay!” – Katashi glanced at the girls of class 3B who were anxiously waiting for Akira's outcome.

I had seen Hibiki Sensei's Jeep before. It was a four-seater. But the six of us were all thin. If we arranged things properly, we could fit all six of us in the car.

I threw Hibiki Sensei's car keys on the table, surprising everyone.

“Hibiki Sensei has agreed, and there's also this parting gift.”

All eyes turned to Rin.

“Why are you looking at me?”

A male voice came from behind me, it was Akira's voice.

“My dad is a mechanic, I think I know how to operate this thing.”

“Let's do it then.” – Katashi tossed the key to Akira. So there were six of us in total.

Katashi pushed his chair back and stood up, adjusting his backpack and the katana at his side.

“You guys have five minutes to get ready, I'll be waiting at the end of the hall.”

“Aren't we going to use the elevator? I think it still has power…”

Akira spoke up, making Katashi stop slightly.

“Not safe…” – He shook his head – “During the chaos, zombies might have flooded in there. If you don’t want to cause trouble for those who stayed behind, it’s best not to open it…”

“Uhm.” – Akira nodded slightly.

With that, Katashi walked out the door, never to return inside again.

I also had my two shoulder straps ready, just waiting for the rest of the people.

Rin didn't even bother to bring her school bag, I don't think she's planning to go back to class 3C to get her stuff. She rested her chin on the table, thinking about something, and every few moments she'd look at her watch. It's best I don't bother her.

In the distance, Akira was saying goodbye to the girls in his class. He hugged and comforted each girl like a prince going to the battlefield. When he got to the last girl, he didn't hug or kiss her, but instead stood opposite her and talked to her for a long time. She must be the girl he was closest to. I tried to listen to what they were saying.

“Don't worry… I'll be right back…”

She placed her finger on his lips, causing Akira to stop speaking.

“It's okay Akira, we understand. Go protect the girl you like.”

“Uhm.” – Akira nodded – “Sorry, the last person I thought of wasn't you…”

So that was his real reason. Akira didn't believe in the rescue efforts and actually wanted to escort me safely to the car. So he still cared about me after all.

The scene was like something out of a romance movie. Akira was the male lead, and the girl was the one he couldn't have. I suddenly felt guilty towards Akira. If I could get to the car safely this time, I would tell Akira that I truly accepted him.

Suddenly, Yamato's voice broke the atmosphere.

That annoying Undercut and that Airi. I really can't stand those two.

“Ah… looks like five minutes have passed… I think we should get going, that Samurai doesn't seem willing to wait for us.”

Yamato scratched his head. He didn't look very ready.

I looked at Yamato and Airi with dismay. They were still in the same position.

“You two haven't prepared anything in five minutes?”

“Airi is my everything!” – He squeezed Airi tightly in his arms.

“Yamato too… Yamato is everything to Airi!”

“…”

I really don't know what to say to these two anymore.

Me, Rin, Airi, Yamato and Akira left the classroom. Before leaving, I was also wished good luck by a few classmates, especially the boys.

We walked to the end of the hallway where Hibiki Sensei and two other male students were standing guard. Katashi was already waiting for us there.

Rin walked over and stood next to him. They both stared straight ahead.

“Still the same plan?”

“From the back door of the cafeteria to the parking garage is only a short yard, it seems you don't need to draw any more maps.”

Hibiki Sensei signaled the two boys to push the tables that were blocking the way so we could run out. There weren't many zombies on the other side of the fence either. The boys had already cleared out the zombies from the previous attack, so there were only a few sluggish ones who had just come down from another floor walking around. This was the most suitable time for us.

“Are you ready?”

All nodded.

“Alright! Make way!”

As soon as the table was pushed aside, the six of us ran like bullets out of the safe zone. Katashi was the fastest, leading the way, swinging his sword from below to take down a few of the sluggish zombies around.

The first run to the fire escape wasn't too far. In a moment, the fire escape door loomed before us.

As Katashi pushed the door open for the group to enter, I turned back to look at the classroom hallway one last time. Behind the barrier of tables and chairs, I saw Hibiki's arm waving goodbye to us.

And then once again, someone's hand reached out, pulling me into the fire escape. Darkness fell and we continued our little adventure.