Two weeks had passed since that fateful day. The group slowly regained their energy and spirit and went about their routine as usual. Ryan gave up on trying to find a way out of the city for now. He still hoped his other loved ones were alive and safe somewhere and kept them in his thoughts.

  He wanted to focus on making the most of his predicament alongside his new group of comrades. Once he fully recovered, he made sure to help out with the daily tasks around their headquarters and scavenge hunts on occasion.

  Ryan and Taylor took turns driving from place to place and learned how to cook certain recipes. Karin and Ryan tightened the security around the front gate perimeters. They cracked jokes about some of the other members and talked about their past lives.

  Sometimes, during break, he lounged around and did nothing, along with Yuna, or just drew on the wall. Mike even allowed him to join meetings and help with assignments he had trouble with. Ryan also had chances to bond with him over their love of zombie-related shows and movies in their spare time.

  Ryan couldn’t believe how much he was getting used to this new lifestyle. It felt unreal. He never could imagine being a part of this. He counted his blessings. It was better than being alone. Still, Ryan never thought he’d miss being back at his work cubicle, which was dull but safe. He was sure the others felt the same way?.

  Ryan's exploration of the school in his spare time led to a surprising discovery. While on cleaning duty, he found a box of walkie-talkies in the broom closet. Despite their age and the layer of dust that covered them, they still functioned like new. The novelty of these old yet functional devices piqued everyone's interest. They all tested them out in various locations, intrigued by how far they could communicate with one another. They all kept one in their pockets for safekeeping, should anyone get separated for any reason.

  One day, Ryan, Karin, and Taylor strolled around downtown on a scouting mission. There has been an alarming decrease in the number of zombies on the outskirts of town lately. Occasionally, ones lurked about from a corner, near a car, or just roamed the streets normally. These days, the trio hadn’t encountered as many zombies as they used to. Sure, some still roamed the streets, but the numbers were few and far between, and tended to mind their own business. Either the numbers were slowly collapsing or burning up, or they hid indoors instead.

  The group didn’t need to fight their way through, rely on self-defense, or run away from the zombies. Nowadays, they usually just walked around them or ignored them altogether, almost like it was a normal, everyday thing.

  They still needed to be quiet and not make too much noise to avoid attracting some to beckon closer. But other than that, with no other authority or cameras, they basically got to do whatever they wanted. It was a lonely feeling, but the group had each other, so it wasn’t too bad.

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  Ryan felt a little sick to his stomach. It felt weird that he was getting used to this endeavor as well. It didn’t seem right to treat something like this as normal or not a big deal.

  Granted, he and his friends knew not to lower their guards too much. Not fully paying attention to one’s surrounding could spell death. But Ryan still had an uneasy pit bubbling in his stomach, and he couldn’t pinpoint why that was. Did the others feel the same way? Were they hiding it better than he was? Would it be a bad time to bring something like that up out of the blue?

  Once the three of them finished their errands for the day and planned a route for tomorrow, they turned and started to head back to where they came from. Ryan stopped in place as something caught the corner of his eye. He recognized that bus stop anywhere and finally remembered the district they walked around in.

  Recalling that memory made his heart sink, but he also smiled. He wouldn't have met his new comrades if he hadn't checked the map that led to the unknown restaurant. Sure, it had given him false hope numerous times and almost killed him, but ever since he met Karin and the others, things had looked up, if only a little, but it was better than nothing.

  Hey, wait a minute. He stopped and pondered to himself. The map…

  Karin and Taylor took notice of his behavior and stopped in their tracks as well.

  “Hey, what’s the matter?” Karin asked.

  “Huh?” Ryan looked up, snapped out of his thoughts. “Oh, nothing.” He waved it off initially, but then paused, and looked over at the bus stop. “Hey, mind if we took a detour for a second?”

  “Not at all,” Taylor replied, hands on his hips. “If it’s only for a short while.”

  “Okay,” Karin said, not as confident. “But we'd better make it quick.” She looked up at the cloudy sky. “It’s getting late, and we don’t want to be out here at nightfall.”

  “And we don’t want to get scolded by Mike for being late, either.” Taylor remarked, chuckling to himself.

  “Fair enough. I don’t know which is worse.” She joked right back.

  “Uh, guys, maybe save the banter for when we’re closer to home?” Ryan suggested. He enjoyed watching their occasional banters, but it was not the time for that right now.

  Taylor scratched the back of his head while Karin held up a hand in front of her face.

  “Ah, right, sorry.” They both apologized.

  After looking both ways, Ryan ushered the duo to follow him across the street. The three of them walked under the bus stop and immediately spotted the messy map stand. Tons of used maps scattered across the floor, some torn, others stained with blood. Only one map sat on the stand in perfect condition, visible behind the glass for all to see. It displayed all the locations in the town district, including streets, specific buildings, and other smaller areas outside of Roburgh.

  Ryan nodded to himself. It was just as he suspected. He crossed his arms and hummed, content with what he discovered, while Karin and Taylor exchanged confused glances.

  “So, what did you want to do here?” It was Karin who broke the silence.