"Run!"
Bai Xiqin woke up abruptly, her face a mix of blood and sweat, a bitter taste in her mouth.
The bandages tightly binding her body pulled her back to reality.
Dreamed of past events again.
Three years ago, the world underwent a massive change, an unknown virus birthed new monsters. The family went out shopping, but only she survived.
The moment the monsters lunged, her parents could only lift her and her brother onto the wall.
The zombies, with hideous faces, roared and bit through their necks.
She watched as they fell in a pool of blood, then watched as they strangely crawled up, struggling towards her and her brother.
She failed to grab her terrified brother; he fell, and her parents roared, rushing toward him...
She jumped down, trying to pull her brother over, but it was too late; those hideous zombies lunged at her.
Purple lightning suddenly spread from afar, dense lightning struck the zombies to pieces, except for the icy needles barely visible on her parents' and brother's temples.
Through the flickering electricity, Bai Xiqin saw a distant, cold-faced man.
Three years later, she was ambushed by teammates while out for supplies, and when she woke, she was confined in this dark underground research facility.
Unexpectedly, she met the man who saved her back then here.
"Bang!"
A small sound echoed at her ear.
Bai Xiqin turned her head, meeting his icy gaze.
Leng Yebai got down from the bed, one arm hanging limply; he broke his own arm to shed the restraints.
Bai Xiqin felt a slight loosening on her body, the bloodied man cut through the bandages with a scalpel.
"Teacher Wang, are we really going to open their heads this time? It's... such a pity, my experimental data are still insufficient!"
A sound came from outside the door.
Leng Yebai squinted, using his one functioning arm to carry the lying Bai Xiqin, crashing through the window to leap out.
An ear-piercing alarm sounded, and a cold machine voice came from the broadcast.
"Attention! Attention! Experiment subjects One and Two have escaped, no survivors, shoot to kill on sight!"
"You won't get away carrying me." Bai Xiqin glanced at the deep corridor, "Put me down!"
Leng Yebai tightened his arm, didn't speak, only ran swiftly forward.
"That time — sorry, they were beyond saving." The man suddenly spoke.
Bai Xiqin's body tensed slightly, barely pulling a smile.
"Stop!"
A group of people in white lab coats appeared ahead, each holding a gun.
The stern man staggered and turned around, seeing another group in white lab coats behind him.
"Haha, was planning to happily dissect your brains today, it seems..."
A sinisterly smiling middle-aged man in a white lab coat grinned at Bai Xiqin and Leng Yebai.
Bai Xiqin struggled down from Leng Yebai's shoulder, her icy eyes staring at the people in lab coats, engraving their faces into her mind.
"Bang!"
A gunshot rang out, Bai Xiqin turned to see the man blocking her.
Leng Yebai grunted, blood slowly seeping from his abdomen.
"Why don't we die together!"
Bai Xiqin suddenly gave a radiant smile to the people in front.
Leng Yebai froze, his icy eyes softened for a moment, gently nodded.
Bai Xiqin closed her eyes, concentrating all her energy into her brain.
"What... is your name?"
Bai Xiqin heard a deep, hoarse male voice, but before she could answer, she knew nothing more.
In the third year of the apocalypse, there was a massive energy fluctuation in a relatively large survivor base underground, erasing half the base.
————
"Bang bang bang!"
"Xiao Niu, it's time for dinner!"
Bai Xiqin was startled awake by the door knocking, sat up abruptly, instinctively looking around, the bright scalpels and terrifying instruments were gone.
Bai Xiqin felt momentarily confused, everything she saw was pink, this was the place she grew up.
"Xiao Niu, stop sleeping, it's time for dinner! Your dad made your favorite braised pork!"
Bai Xiqin looked at her door, which was shaking from the person knocking from outside, seemingly about to crash down anytime.
Bai Xiqin's body suddenly shook violently, staring at the trembling door.
"Xiao Niu, get up already! It's already two in the afternoon!"
Her mom's candid voice came from outside the door again.
Bai Xiqin opened her mouth, as if someone seized her throat, unable to say a word.
She picked up the phone charging beside her, tried several times, finally tremblingly turned on the screen.
It's October 21, 2021 now.
Three months until the apocalypse on January 21, 2022.
Listening to her mom's carefree voice, Bai Xiqin's nose twitched, tears streamed down.
Scrambling out of bed, without wearing slippers, she hurriedly opened the door.
Outside, Wang Yiyun looked dazedly at Bai Xiqin with tears streaming down.
"What's wrong, daughter?" Wang Yiyun tentatively asked, "Got dumped again?"
Bai Anhai, who was serving food, heard Bai Xiqin's sobbing, quickly placed the food on the table, and trotted over.
"It's okay, it's okay! Being dumped is nothing! It's not the first time!" Bai Anhai gently patted Bai Xiqin's shoulder, "Dad made your favorite braised pork, come over and try it!"
Bai Yifan heard the commotion, grabbed the mop, and ran over, "Sis, what's wrong? Who dumped you this time?"
Bai Xiqin sobbed softly, wiped the tears from her face, "No, I just dreamed you all died."
Bai Anhai: ...
Wang Yiyun: ...
Bai Yifan: ...
"I see!" Wang Yiyun adjusted her expression, pulled Bai Xiqin's arm towards the dining table, "It's just a dream, we're all perfectly fine, it's okay, try the braised pork your dad made!"
Bai Xiqin nodded, but the tears kept streaming down.
In three years of apocalypse suffering, she never cried. Seeing her family, all the grievances burst forth, uncontrollable tears.
Bai Yifan silently placed the mop aside, sat beside Bai Xiqin, "Sis, next time you dream of someone dying, bring along my English teacher."
Bai Yifan, 16 years old, was a freshman in high school, known as a genius by everyone but his English teacher.
He meant no harm against the English teacher, just hoped to learn English somehow.
"What are you talking about!" Bai Anhai gave Bai Yifan a slap on the head, "Finish eating, mop the floor, then go study, university entrance exam next year, who knows if you can get into a college!"
"Dad, I'm a freshman this year, the exam is two years later."
Bai Yifan calmly filled Bai Xiqin's bowl with a heap of braised pork, then picked some for himself, eating earnestly.
"Doesn't matter when the exam is, you better do well!" Bai Anhai said righteously.
Bai Yifan gave a resentful glance at Bai Anhai, "Dad, I'm not good at English, can you help me with it?"
"Eat! Quit whining!" Bai Anhai glared at Bai Yifan, "I never let my parents worry when I was in school!"
Bai Yifan silently rolled his eyes.
He heard from his grandpa that his dad, back in school, never did homework and got punished thrice a day!
"Quiet down!" Wang Yiyun slammed the table, "Eat!"
Bai Anhai winked and smiled at Bai Xiqin, then went back to eating quietly.
The dining table suddenly became much quieter.
Bai Xiqin calmly watched the harmonious scene before her, feeling slightly dazed.
As if those three years were just a dream, a nightmare; waking up, she was still a college senior about to graduate.