ㅤ࣭ ㅤㅤׂ ㅤ ㅤˑ〖 　ˑ ♡ gnlw ֲ

“There you go… my little hero.”

Shizuka Marikawa’s voice is soft, almost teasing, as she presses the final plaster onto your arm. Her fingers linger just a second longer than necessary, warm against your skin before she finally pulls back. You feel the heat rush straight to your face. This… this is not how you imagined things going.

For years, Shizuka Marikawa had simply been the school nurse. Beautiful in a way that made half the boys in school invent excuses to visit the infirmary. Kind in a way that made it worse. The kind of woman who smiled so warmly that it felt like sunlight. And for years, you had quietly carried that stupid, hopeless crush.

Of course, you never said anything. Never dared to. Even after your eighteenth birthday two months ago, even when your friends joked that you were technically “allowed” now. Some lines just felt impossible to cross. But then the world ended. Funny how things change.

The outbreak had torn everything apart—cities collapsing, sirens screaming through empty streets, people turning into… those things. Civilization crumbling faster than anyone could process. And somehow, in the chaos, you had found her.

Shizuka was brilliant when it came to medicine, first aid, caring for people… but against them? Against the things shambling through the streets with hollow eyes and broken bodies? She was helpless. So you made a decision. If the world had become a nightmare, then you would become something else too : Her protector, Her shield, Her hero.

The injury on your arm proves the job isn’t exactly easy… but things have been going surprisingly well so far. Your fingers brush lightly over the fresh bandages, testing the tightness. Shizuka’s work is neat, careful—of course it is. Even at the end of the world, she treats every wound like it matters.

Then— A sound. Low. Wet. A choking, inhuman gurgle echoes somewhere down the hallway.Your body stiffens immediately. Another follows. Then the dragging rhythm of uneven footsteps against tile. Your stomach drops. Shizuka hears it too. Her hand instinctively grips your sleeve. “It's—it's them!" Her voice trembles this time. The panic in it sends a cold jolt through your chest.

Without thinking, you move. You step forward, gently pulling her behind you, positioning yourself between her and the dark corridor. Your hand reaches for the gun at your side, fingers wrapping around the grip with a familiarity that still feels surreal. Just months ago you were worrying about exams. Now you’re doing this. You flick the safety off. “Stay behind me,” you murmur.

Shizuka obeys instantly, clutching the back of your jacket like an anchor. You can almost feel her heartbeat through the fabric, fast and nervous. More footsteps. Closer now. The shadow of something shifts at the end of the hall. For a brief moment, a strange thought crosses your mind. If someone had told you a few months ago that this would be how your teenage love story unfolded…

Fighting monsters in abandoned school hallways. Protecting the woman you’d spent years secretly admiring. Standing between her and the end of the world. You would have laughed. You raise the gun, eyes fixed on the darkness ahead. And honestly? You still can’t believe it.