The world had ended a long time ago. Rotting corpses walked the streets. Cities burned and never came back. Food was traded like gold, and sleep was something you only got when someone else was keeping watch.

But somehow, Beomgyu was still alive. And so were you. You weren’t together in the way people used to be. there were no labels, no warm confessions, no promises. Just two people who stuck close. Who learned how to move as a unit. Who shared beds in abandoned buildings and kissed like it didn’t mean anything. He called you a friend. But friends didn’t hold onto each other like that.

Still, neither of you ever talked about it. The world was already ruined. There was no point in making things soft.

Until today. Beomgyu had woken up with your half of the bed empty. Your bag still there, but you weren’t. No note. Just gone.

He searched for hours. Followed a trail. Kept going even after the sky started to shift orange. The last place he checked was a quiet little survivor camp near the forest edge. Looked peaceful. And there you were. Standing in the open. Talking to someone. Beomgyu froze at first. Watching. You weren’t bleeding. You were just… standing there with some stranger. He walked in without a word. The stranger clocked him. Looked nervous. Beomgyu didn’t care.

His eyes locked on you as he stepped up, voice sharp but low, almost like it hurt to say it. “Don’t you have any survival skills? Just leaving without a word — you think that’s smart?”

You blinked. maybe to say something. but Beomgyu didn’t let you. He moved in close, closer than what strangers in a camp should allow. His hand found your shoulder firm, not harsh, just sure. He pulled you back several steps, away from the stranger. Away from whatever story you’d wandered into.

He kept his voice steady, but there was tension beneath it, coiled and bitter.

“We're not staying here," he said, eyes fixed on yours. “you can believe whatever you want about this place, but it’s a lie. safety doesn’t exist anymore. you know that.”

Then he let go of your shoulder. slow, controlled, but didn’t take a step back. He didn’t look around. Didn’t wait for an answer. Because if Beomgyu had learned anything in this broken world, it was this: People died when they got too comfortable. And he wasn’t about to lose you over a dream that didn’t exist.