Chapter 66
After the Crash
It was already 8:31 in the morning.
The sky above the school had changed completely.
Only a short while ago, the morning had seemed strangely calm, but now clouds were gathering rapidly across the vast sky. Thick white and dark clouds had begun covering the blue expanse, slowly swallowing the sunlight. Their heavy appearance made it clear that rain would soon begin.
A cool, pleasant wind swept across the school rooftop.
The trees surrounding the school swayed continuously beneath the force of the breeze, their branches moving from side to side. Leaves rustled loudly as they were carried through the air, and loose pieces of paper and small bits of debris rolled across the rooftop.
But despite the beauty of the changing weather, nobody on the rooftop was paying attention to it.
Their minds were still trapped in what had happened only moments earlier.
The rescue helicopter had crashed.
The one thing they had been waiting for.
The one thing they had believed could take them away from this nightmare.
The one thing that had made them believe, even for a few precious minutes, that they might actually survive.
Now it was lying destroyed somewhere on the school grounds.
A thin column of black smoke was still rising from the crash site.
And that sight had planted a new kind of fear inside every person standing on the rooftop.
They had already been afraid of the zombies.
They had already been afraid of starvation.
They had already been afraid of what might happen if they remained trapped inside the school.
But now they had discovered something even more frightening.
Even rescue could fail.
The rooftop had fallen into a strange state of confusion.
Some people were sitting.
Some were standing.
Others were simply staring into the distance, unable to understand what they had just witnessed.
Afra and Sana were sitting together in one corner of the rooftop.
Sana still had one arm wrapped protectively around Afra's shoulders. Afra's head rested heavily against Sana's shoulder, as though she no longer had the strength to hold it up herself.
Hasnain's light-blue coat had been placed over Afra's feet.
Afra had fainted from fear during the crash, and although she had slowly regained consciousness, she was still extremely weak. Her face was pale, and her breathing was uneven.
Every now and then, her eyes moved toward the direction of the crash site before she quickly looked away.
She didn't want to see the smoke.
She didn't want another reminder that their hope had disappeared.
Sana gently rubbed her shoulder.
"It's okay," she whispered.
But even Sana's voice lacked the confidence it normally carried.
She was frightened too.
Not only for herself, but for everyone around her.
In another corner of the rooftop, Adam, Lina, Mary, and Jackson sat close together.
They weren't speaking.
There simply didn't seem to be anything left to say.
The others remained standing nearby.
Miss Selena was among them, along with Mr. Simit, Yaram, Hasnain, Michael, William, John, and the rest of the survivors.
Their faces all carried different expressions, but the emotion behind them was almost the same.
Fear.
For a few moments, nobody spoke.
Nobody knew what they were supposed to say after watching a rescue helicopter fall from the sky.
Michael was standing on the opposite side of the rooftop.
His eyes remained fixed on the school grounds.
The crashed helicopter could still be seen from there.
Black smoke continued to rise from it, twisting upward into the increasingly cloudy sky.
Michael stared at it for a long time.
He didn't blink.
It was almost as if he was trying to convince himself that what he had witnessed hadn't really happened.
Perhaps, if he stared long enough, the helicopter would somehow return to the sky.
Perhaps the smoke would disappear.
Perhaps this had all been some terrible misunderstanding.
But reality refused to change.
The helicopter was gone.
Michael clenched his fists.
The fear inside him slowly transformed into anger.
He suddenly turned toward Miss Selena.
"We're here on this rooftop because of you!" he shouted.
Everyone immediately looked toward him.
Miss Selena remained silent for a moment.
Michael's voice trembled with anger and fear.
"You told us to come here because this was our best chance of survival! We came all the way up here believing that maybe we would finally be rescued!"
He pointed toward the direction of the crash.
"But look what happened! The rescue helicopter itself crashed!"
His voice echoed across the rooftop.
Afra lifted her head slightly.
Sana looked toward Michael with concern.
Miss Selena slowly turned toward him.
She didn't look angry.
Instead, there was sadness in her eyes.
"Michael..." she said gently. "We didn't know this was going to happen."
But Michael wasn't ready to listen.
His breathing became heavier.
"If you didn't know anything, then why did you give us false hope?"
The question hung heavily in the air.
Nobody answered immediately.
Michael continued.
"We believed you! We followed you because you made us believe that we could survive!"
Yaram stepped forward.
His expression hardened.
"Miss Selena did that because she wanted to save all of us."
Michael looked toward him.
Yaram continued.
"If she had only cared about herself, she could have come to the rooftop alone. She could have saved herself first."
He gestured toward the others.
"But she didn't do that. She wanted all of us to survive."
His voice became firmer.
"And instead of thanking Miss Selena for everything she has done, you're blaming her for something she couldn't possibly have controlled."
Michael's jaw tightened.
"Everything is her fault!"
Yaram stared at him.
Michael pointed toward the crash site again.
"She gave us false hope and brought us here! And if she didn't know that the helicopter was going to crash, then why did she bring us here in the first place?"
His voice cracked.
"We're going to die anyway!"
A few students exchanged frightened glances.
Michael continued, his fear becoming more obvious with every word.
"If the zombies don't kill us, hunger will."
He swallowed.
"Or the cold."
His voice became quieter.
"One way or another, we're going to die here."
The words caused an uncomfortable silence.
Even those who had been trying to remain hopeful felt the weight of them.
Miss Selena looked at Michael.
She could see that his anger wasn't really hatred.
It was fear.
He was terrified.
Everyone was.
But fear could make people say things they didn't truly mean.
Miss Selena took a slow breath.
"Look at me, Michael."
He didn't respond.
"Michael."
This time, he looked at her.
Miss Selena spoke gently.
"I know you're scared."
Her voice was calm.
"I know everyone is scared."
She glanced around the rooftop.
"After what we just witnessed, nobody can pretend that they're not."
She paused.
"But don't let fear destroy your hope."
Michael remained silent.
"I believe we will be rescued soon," Miss Selena continued. "And until that happens, we have to stay together."
Michael shook his head.
"Your belief isn't going to change anything."
Miss Selena didn't interrupt.
Michael pointed toward the smoke.
"We just watched that helicopter crash right in front of us!"
His eyes were becoming wet.
"And you still expect us to believe that everything will be fine?"
He shook his head.
"Stop giving us false hope."
He looked toward the darkening sky.
"You don't even know what's happening outside."
His voice became quieter.
"You don't know how bad things have become."
Nobody spoke.
Michael's expression changed.
He looked exhausted.
"We're all going to die."
Mr. Simit finally stepped forward.
His voice was steady.
"No."
Michael looked at him.
"We are not going to die."
Mr. Simit looked around at everyone.
"We'll find another way."
His expression showed determination.
"We'll figure something out together."
William immediately spoke.
"How?"
Mr. Simit looked toward him.
William pointed toward the school grounds.
"How are we supposed to get out of here?"
He shook his head.
"Just look down there."
Everyone's eyes instinctively moved toward the edge of the rooftop.
The school grounds below were still filled with zombies.
Thousands of them seemed to move through the surrounding area.
Their bodies shifted restlessly as they wandered between the buildings.
William's voice trembled.
"The entire ground is filled with zombies."
He looked at Mr. Simit.
"Michael is right."
His shoulders dropped.
"We're going to die soon."
He looked toward the others.
"So stop giving everyone false hope."
Those words seemed to break something inside the group.
John's face turned pale.
His eyes filled with tears.
"I don't want to die..."
His voice was barely audible.
The words were simple.
But they carried the raw fear of a child who had suddenly realized how fragile life had become.
Lina lowered her eyes.
Mary moved closer to her.
Even jack, who had remained relatively quiet, looked toward John.
The fear spreading across the rooftop was becoming contagious.
One frightened person made another frightened.
One hopeless statement created another.
Soon, everyone would begin thinking the same thing.
There is no way out.
Mary finally spoke.
"Maybe they're right..."
Her voice was quiet.
Everyone looked toward her.
Mary swallowed.
"The rescue operation probably can't continue now."
She glanced toward the sky.
"The weather is getting worse."
Dark clouds were rapidly covering the remaining patches of blue.
"The wind is getting stronger too."
She looked toward the direction of the crashed helicopter.
"In weather like this, helicopters probably won't be able to come."
Her voice became quieter.
"So..."
She didn't finish the sentence.
She didn't have to.
Everyone understood what she meant.
The rooftop fell silent again.
Miss Selena looked at them.
For the first time since the outbreak had begun, something inside her snapped.
She had spent hours protecting them.
She had watched students become frightened.
She had watched people cry.
She had watched people lose friends.
She had watched Adam sacrifice himself for others.
She had watched Chen Zheyen become one of the infected.
She had led everyone through corridors filled with danger.
She had brought them to the rooftop because she believed it would give them their best chance of survival.
And now, after everything they had endured, she heard the people she had fought to protect saying that they were already dead.
Her expression changed.
She took a deep breath.
Then she spoke.
"Enough."
Her voice wasn't loud at first.
But everyone heard it.
Miss Selena stepped forward.
"I thought all of you were brave."
Nobody moved.
Her eyes moved from one student to another.
"But perhaps I was wrong."
The students looked at her.
"You are frightened."
She didn't deny it.
"Of course you are."
Her voice became stronger.
"But are you really going to allow fear to decide your fate?"
Nobody answered.
Miss Selena's eyes became sharp.
"Do you think we know what will happen next?"
She pointed toward the sky.
"Do any of us know whether the rain will last for one hour or ten?"
She looked toward the school grounds.
"Do any of us know whether another rescue team is coming?"
Nobody spoke.
"Do any of us know whether there is another way out of this school?"
Silence.
"No."
Miss Selena's voice echoed across the rooftop.
"Because we are human."
She took another breath.
"We don't know what is going to happen next."
She looked at every person standing before her.
"And you know what?"
Her expression softened slightly.
"That is exactly why we cannot give up."
She pointed toward the students.
"Our job is not to predict when our last moment will come."
Her voice became firm.
"Our job is to keep fighting until that moment arrives."
Everyone remained silent.
"We don't know what is going to happen tomorrow."
She paused.
"We don't even know what is going to happen an hour from now."
The wind blew across the rooftop.
Miss Selena's hair moved slightly with it.
"But what we do know is that we are still alive."
She placed a hand against her chest.
"And as long as we are alive, we still have a choice."
Her voice rose.
"We can sit here and wait for death."
She shook her head.
"Or we can keep searching for a way to survive."
Her gaze became fierce.
"I refuse to accept that we are already dead."
The students listened carefully.
"Do you remember how we reached this rooftop?"
Nobody answered.
"You were terrified."
She looked toward the students.
"You were exhausted."
Her eyes moved toward Hasnain and Yaram.
"Some of you could barely stand."
She looked at the others.
"Some of you had already lost people you cared about."
Her voice softened.
"But you still came."
She pointed toward the rooftop beneath their feet.
"Together."
A long silence followed.
"The same courage that brought us here is still inside you."
Miss Selena looked at them one by one.
"So believe in yourselves."
She raised her voice.
"The same belief that helped us reach this rooftop is the belief that will help us survive whatever comes next."
Her expression hardened.
"And I don't want to hear any more of this cowardly talk."
Nobody moved.
"Do you understand?"
She looked around.
"Whatever happens next, we face it together."
Her final words were sharp.
"And if I hear anyone saying again that we're already going to die, I will not tolerate it."
Then she fell silent.
The rooftop became completely quiet.
Her words seemed to remain in the air long after she stopped speaking.
One by one, the students lowered their heads.
Not because they were ashamed of being afraid.
But because they realized something.
Miss Selena had been afraid too.
She simply hadn't allowed her fear to control her.
The only two people who didn't lower their heads were Hasnain and Yaram.
They stood firmly.
Both of them understood what Miss Selena was trying to do.
She wasn't pretending that everything was fine.
She wasn't promising that nobody would die.
She was reminding them that surrendering before the end would accomplish nothing.
For several moments, nobody spoke.
Then Afra slowly lifted her head from Sana's shoulder.
Her eyes were still wet.
She looked at Miss Selena.
"I... I'm sorry."
Her voice trembled.
Miss Selena looked toward her.
Afra wiped her eyes.
"I think I forgot something."
She took a shaky breath.
"You are the reason we're still alive."
Sana gently squeezed her shoulder.
Afra continued.
"You've been protecting us this entire time."
Her voice became more emotional.
"And you're human too."
Miss Selena remained silent.
"You must have been scared."
Afra looked down.
"But you never showed it."
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"And here we are..."
She looked around.
"We get frightened by everything."
She lowered her head.
"I'm sorry, Miss Selena."
John quickly spoke after her.
"Me too."
He looked ashamed.
"I'm sorry for misunderstanding you."
He glanced toward Michael.
"And for agreeing with Michael."
Michael remained silent for a few seconds.
His anger had completely disappeared.
He lowered his head.
"I'm sorry."
His voice was quiet.
Miss Selena looked at all three of them.
Then she smiled gently.
"You don't need to apologize."
Michael lifted his eyes.
"I know you're frightened."
She looked toward the crash site.
"Anyone would be after seeing a helicopter crash like that."
She paused.
"But we're not going to give up so easily."
Her eyes moved toward the others.
"We'll make another plan."
She smiled.
"And we'll find another way out of here."
Her voice became reassuring.
"So don't worry."
She looked at them carefully.
"As long as I'm alive, I won't leave any of you alone."
Those words changed the atmosphere.
It wasn't a magical transformation.
The zombies were still outside.
The helicopter was still destroyed.
The sky was still becoming darker.
Nothing about their situation had actually changed.
And yet, something inside the survivors had changed.
A little courage returned to their faces.
A small smile appeared here and there.
It wasn't happiness.
Not really.
It was something smaller.
Something more fragile.
Hope.
Lina suddenly stepped forward.
Without saying anything else, she wrapped her arms around Miss Selena.
Miss Selena was caught slightly off guard.
Lina's voice came softly.
"You're so kind."
Miss Selena smiled.
"Okay, okay."
She gently placed both arms around Lina.
"That's enough."
A faint laugh escaped from a few students.
"For once, don't praise me too much."
Lina smiled against her shoulder.
For a brief moment, the rooftop almost felt normal.
Almost.
But the sky above them continued to change.
The clouds became darker.
Thicker.
Heavier.
The remaining sunlight slowly disappeared behind them.
The pleasant breeze became stronger.
The trees surrounding the school bent beneath the growing wind.
Leaves flew through the air.
Loose objects on the rooftop began sliding across the concrete.
Nobody spoke.
Everyone looked upward.
Dark clouds now covered almost the entire sky.
The atmosphere had become strangely cold.
It looked as though a storm was approaching.
The survivors stood quietly, watching the clouds gather above them.
Then—
BANG!
Everyone froze.
The sound had come from somewhere nearby.
They turned toward the rooftop's small storage room.
The storage room was the only room on the rooftop.
Until that moment, nobody had paid much attention to it.
It was a small structure built against one side of the rooftop, with an old metal door.
Usually, it was nothing more than a place for keeping school supplies and maintenance equipment.
But now, under the darkening sky, it suddenly seemed different.
Miss Selena stared at it.
"Did you hear that?"
Nobody answered.
Then another sound came.
BANG!
The metal door shook.
Everyone's eyes widened.
Someone was hitting it.
From the inside.
The sound echoed across the rooftop.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The door trembled violently in its frame.
A wave of shock passed through everyone.
Lina immediately stepped closer to Miss Selena.
Sana tightened her arm around Afra.
Adam stood up.
Jackson looked toward the storage room with a tense expression.
Mary's breathing became faster.
John took a step backward.
Michael stared at the door.
William's face lost its color.
Yaram and Hasnain instinctively moved forward.
Mr. Simit looked from the door toward Miss Selena.
Nobody knew what was inside.
That was the terrifying part.
They had already seen what happened when people became infected.
They knew the sounds zombies could make.
They knew how dangerous a single infected person could be.
But there was another possibility.
Perhaps someone was trapped inside.
Perhaps one of the students had somehow been locked in there.
Perhaps there was something else entirely.
Another loud bang struck the door.
BANG!
The entire rooftop seemed to hold its breath.
The metal door shook again.
The wind howled around the building.
Dark clouds rolled overhead.
The first faint drops of rain began to fall.
One.
Then another.
Then another.
Nobody noticed them.
All their attention was fixed on the storage room.
The banging continued.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Miss Selena slowly stepped forward.
Her expression became serious.
She raised one hand, signaling everyone to remain where they were.
Nobody moved.
Her eyes remained fixed on the trembling door.
Whatever was behind it was still alive.
Or at least—
something inside was moving.
The survivors exchanged frightened glances.
Only moments ago, Miss Selena had told them that they could not surrender to fear.
But now, standing before that mysterious storage room, even she felt a cold uneasiness spreading through her chest.
She didn't know what was waiting on the other side.
And neither did anyone else.
The wind grew stronger.The sky became almost completely black.
The trees below the rooftop swayed violently.
And then the storage-room door shook once more.
BANG!
Everyone flinched.
Miss Selena took another cautious step toward it.
Behind her, the survivors stood completely still.
Nobody dared to speak.
Nobody dared to look away.
The crashed helicopter had destroyed their hope of immediate rescue.The approaching storm threatened to trap them on the rooftop.The zombies still surrounded the school.
And now—
something was trapped inside the only room on the rooftop.
Miss Selena stopped only a few steps away from the door.
Her eyes remained fixed upon it.
Another violent blow struck from the other side.
BANG!
The door rattled.
The survivors held their breath.
And for the first time since the helicopter crash, a new question filled every mind:
Who—or what—was behind that door?