A week later, the government was still apparently discussing how to save the world, even though they believed that they had perfected the cure.

Personally?

I thought they should maybe hurry up a little.

Then again, I was pretty sure that the government’s whole M.O was ’hurry up and wait’.

I was sprawled across the couch with my upper body leaning against Yuche while some historical drama played on the television in front of us. The internet had been in and out all week, but for the moment, Netflix was still functioning, which meant civilization hadn’t completely collapsed yet.

Probably.

Lingyun sat on the sectional beside me, my legs and feet on his lap. He had started lazily massaging one of my feet while complaining dramatically every few minutes that he thought I was just using him for manual labor.

Which was ridiculous.

That was exactly what I was using him for and everyone in the room knew it

Chenghai was in the kitchen cooking dinner while Zhenlan sat near the front window cleaning one of the knives Yuche had started carrying around more frequently lately.

I didn’t know when my guardian got so blood thirsty that he was now always carrying a weapon around with him. But I had to admit, I approved. You couldn’t always depend on your powers. A backup plan was necessary if he wanted to keep breathing.

Mind you, the cores were working.

Slowly.

But they were working.

The men were stronger than they had been a week ago. Their bodies had become more somehow. More muscles, faster reactions, and even the way they moved had started changing slightly.

Like a kitten slowly growing into a jaguar.

They weren’t there yet.

But they were better than before.

I popped another piece of caramel popcorn into my mouth before leaning further back against Yuche’s chest. "If the government spends another week arguing about paperwork, the zombies are going to qualify for retirement benefits."

Yuche snorted softly above my head.

Lingyun looked up from my foot. "Pretty sure the zombies would work faster than the government."

"That is because zombies actually chase after things instead of holding meetings about chasing after things."

Chenghai laughed quietly from the kitchen. But he knew I was right. He had been in the military long enough to recognize exactly what it was doing.

The baby vine lifted its head sleepily from where it was curled around my stomach before settling back down again once it realized nobody was dying.

Lazy.

Honestly?

It fit right into the family.

A knock sounded at the front door and all movement inside the room paused immediately.

Before, a knock like that would have sent me in a tail spin. Now I was just rolling my eyes at the sudden intrusion.

Zhenlan rose smoothly to his feet and glanced through the security monitor before relaxing slightly. "It’s Wei."

"That explains why my survival instincts suddenly got annoyed," I muttered.

Lingyun grinned.

Zhenlan opened the door a few seconds later, allowing Wei Guang inside. The colonel looked exhausted. Dark circles sat beneath his eyes while tension pulled tightly across his shoulders like he hadn’t properly slept in days.

The poor baby.

"You," Yuche greeted calmly.

Wei nodded once before his eyes moved across the room and took in everything.

The drama that hadn’t been paused just because he came into my house. The multitude of snacks that were open and sitting on the coffee table.

My legs over Lingyun’s lap.

Yuche supporting my upper body like he was my own personal piece of furniture.

The baby vine sleeping against my stomach.

His eye twitched slightly and I didn’t bother to hide my smirk. I didn’t feel like my job was done if I didn’t have his eye twitching at least once when he was in my presence.

"We’re leaving tomorrow morning," Wei announced without bothering with small talk.

Nobody reacted much.

Mostly because it wasn’t really surprising.

The military had been growing quieter over the last few days... their confidence that we saw a week ago completely gone to something much more subdued.

Apparently saving the world was harder than expected.

Probably why I didn’t want to do it.

"What happened?" Chenghai asked as he walked out of the kitchen carrying a plate of grilled cheese sandwiches.

Wei hesitated briefly before answering. "The infected are evolving faster than projected."

I blinked once.

Projected?

Zombies apparently came with spreadsheets now.

"We’ve been ordered to regroup closer to the city," Wei continued. "The vaccine rollout is entering the next phase."

At that, I finally looked away from the television.

"Ah," I said slowly. "So we’re entering the ’make bad decisions faster’ stage."

Wei ignored that completely. "You should come with us."

Silence.

Then Lingyun laughed sharply.

It wasn’t a happy sound so much as someone who had just been genuinely caught off guard by the suggestion itself.

"Yeah," he said with a shake of his head. "No."

Chenghai snorted softly under his breath while Zhenlan didn’t even bother looking up from where he resumed cleaning his knife.

Yuche’s arm tightened slightly around my waist.

Wei frowned. "This area isn’t secure anymore."

Another short laugh.

This time from Chenghai.

Honestly? The guys’ reactions were kind of cute.

They looked almost insulted by Wei’s thoughts.

"We appreciate the concern," Zhenlan said calmly, easily dismissing the other man. "But we’re staying."

Wei looked at him like he was waiting for the real answer.

That was the real answer.

"The infected activity outside the city is increasing," Wei pressed. "There are more evolved variants appearing every day. Staying isolated out here without military support is dangerous."

I finally paused the drama on the TV.

"Look, Wei," I started patiently. "I hate to break it to you, but zombies don’t drink water."

The room went quiet.

Wei blinked once.

Then twice.

I watched the exact moment the thought landed.

It was a little horrifying that he didn’t understand everything the first time the scientists brought it up.

"The vaccine..." he started slowly.

"...is in the water supply," I finished for him. "Yes. Congratulations. Humanity has successfully vaccinated sinks."

Lingyun choked on his laughter.

Chenghai turned away completely, shoulders shaking suspiciously.

Even Yuche looked dangerously close to smiling.

Wei didn’t.

Because unlike the others, he was actually thinking about it.

"The infected consume blood," he muttered quietly.

"And people," I agreed.

"Not water."

"Nope. Want to guess the middle stage of the zombies consuming the vaccine? I’m sure we can do a whole circle chart. Want me to start?"

The room fell silent again.

Somewhere outside, military trucks rumbled faintly in the distance while the sun slowly dipped lower beyond the windows.

Wei stared at me for several long seconds before exhaling slowly through his nose.

"You knew this would happen."

It wasn’t really a question.

I shrugged one shoulder. "I know people are stupid. The rest kind of figures itself out."

That earned me another eye twitch.

At this point I was starting to think I might actually kill this man through stress.

"The scientists believe the vaccine still has potential long-term applications," Wei said eventually, though he sounded less convinced now. "It will stop humans from turning into zombies."

"Of course they do," I replied immediately. "Scientists never admit they’re wrong until the explosions start."

"That feels unfair."

I raised an eyebrow. "Did they or did they not dump mystery chemicals into the city water supply during the apocalypse?"

Wei stared at me. "That hasn’t happened yet. It is what the higher ups have been discussing all week. There is still time to turn around.’

The silence pretty much answered for him.

Eventually, he looked around the room again.

At the mansion.

At the men.

At me stretched comfortably across the couch like we weren’t discussing the possible collapse of modern civilization.

Then he sighed. "I’ll bring your concerns about the vaccine to the general. And if you change your minds about leaving with us, there will be room in the convoy tomorrow morning."

"Yeah," Lingyun repeated. "Still no."

This time Wei didn’t argue.

Maybe because he already knew he lost.

Or maybe because after spending weeks around us, even he understood there was absolutely no chance any of us were willingly leaving this couch behind.