Chapter 18: Questions
The moment we left the convenience store behind, the atmosphere inside the bus became... weird.
Not awkward.
Not tense.
Just weird.
The steady rumble of the engine filled the silence as Shizuka-sensei guided the bus through the abandoned streets.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody looked at each other.
And absolutely nobody was looking at me.
Well.
Nobody except everyone.
Leaning back against my seat, I turned my attention toward the window instead.
Outside, the city looked worse than before.
Smoke rose from several distant buildings, staining the sky dark gray.
Abandoned cars clogged intersections.
Storefronts stood shattered.
And every now and then, we'd pass a lone zombie wandering through the streets without purpose.
Sometimes there were groups even of them.
...
Just then as I was pretending admiring the scenery outside.
A faint shifting sound came from somewhere behind me.
Then another.
Then another.
I didn't even need to turn around.
"Kohta."
The movement immediately stopped.
"...Yes?"
"Stop staring."
"I wasn't staring."
"You absolutely were."
A brief pause followed.
Then—
"Can I see it?"
There it was.
I let out a sigh.
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
"Just once?"
"No."
Kohta looked genuinely heartbroken.
Honestly, if civilization hadn't collapsed a few hours ago, I might have felt bad for him.
Almost.
Silence returned to the bus.
For approximately ten seconds.
Then—
"Hiro."
The voice came from a few seats away.
I glanced up and found Saeko watching me.
There was no hostility in her eyes.
No suspicion either.
Just simple curiosity.
Which, for some reason, felt significantly more dangerous.
"When did you get a gun?"
And there it was.
The question everyone had been waiting to ask.
Immediately, every pair of eyes inside the bus landed on me.
Even Shizuka-sensei glanced over through the rearview mirror.
Wonderful.
Exactly what I wanted.
Attention.
My favorite thing.
I sighed.
"A while ago."
Nobody looked satisfied by that answer.
Shocking.
"A while ago?" Saya repeated flatly.
"Very descriptive."
"I try."
"Clearly."
The bus remained quiet.
Waiting.
Unfortunately for them, I wasn't planning on helping.
Takashi frowned.
"Where did you even get it?"
"You won't believe if I tell you."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only one you're getting."
Saya immediately pinched the bridge of her nose.
She looked like she wanted to throw something at me.
Fair.
Meanwhile, Kohta looked seconds away from physically climbing over the seats.
"Is it real?"
I stared at him.
"..."
"..."
"...Kohta."
"What?"
"You literally watched me shoot someone."
"That's not what I meant."
The man actually sounded offended.
"I mean, what model is it?"
Of course he did.
I should have known.
The apocalypse could end tomorrow, and Kohta would still somehow find a way to be a gun nerd.
"No."
"Aww."
A tragic loss for humanity.
My gaze drifted toward Rei.
She had been unusually quiet ever since we left the convenience store.
Actually, scratch that.
I couldn't remember her saying a single thing since we got back on the bus.
She simply sat there, listening to the conversation while occasionally glancing in my direction.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Though before I could investigate further—
"Hiro."
Saya adjusted her glasses.
A dangerous sign.
"Answer one question honestly."
"No."
"I haven't asked yet."
"My answer remains the same."
Her eye twitched.
Then she ignored me and continued anyway.
"Why did you have a gun?"
The bus became quiet.
Much quieter than before.
Even Kohta stopped talking.
Because unlike the others—
That was the real question.
Not where.
Not how.
Why.
I looked out the window for a moment before turning back toward her.
Then I shrugged.
"Seemed useful."
"..."
"In hindsight?"
I glanced toward the burning city outside.
"Pretty good investment."
Saya stared at me.
I stared back.
Eventually, she let out a long sigh.
"You are unbelievably suspicious."
"Thank you."
"That wasn't a compliment."
"..."
The conversation gradually lost momentum after that.
Not because anyone had gotten the answers they wanted.
Far from it.
Most of them looked even more suspicious than before.
But after asking the same questions three different ways and getting absolutely nowhere, everyone seemed to accept that I wasn't planning to elaborate.
For now, at least.
The bus continued down the road.
Outside, smoke still rose from the city skyline.
Inside, the questions finally stopped.
At least out loud.
While everyone else sat quietly, Saya's thoughts had already gone elsewhere.
The gun itself wasn't the strange part.
The strange part was where it came from.
No.
More specifically—
When.
There wasn't a gun shop inside the school. That would be weird.
There wasn't a police station either.
The group hadn't stopped anywhere long enough to acquire one.
And throughout the entire escape, Hiro had been with them almost the whole time.
Which meant there was only one possibility.
He already had it.
Before all of this started.
Saya frowned.
A high school student carrying a loaded pistol before the apocalypse?
That wasn't normal.
Not even remotely normal.
But that wasn't the part that bothered her most.
A more troubling question immediately followed.
Why?
Why would he bring a gun to school?
What had he originally planned to do with it?
The answer refused to come.
Because every possibility she could think of sounded absurd.
Or dangerous.
And somehow, that realization unsettled her more than the gun itself.
Because if Hiro had been carrying a firearm before the outbreak...
Then maybe there was far more to him than any of them realized.
Seated a few rows away, Saeko quietly watched the boy in question.
His answers didn't surprise her.
Not really.
If anything, they explained a lot.
The calmness.
The decisiveness.
The willingness to act when everyone else hesitated.
The way he adapted to violence far too quickly.
From the very beginning, she had felt that something was different about him.
Not wrong.
Just...
Different.
The pistol didn't reveal the mystery.
It merely proved the mystery existed.
Saeko's gaze lingered on Hiro for a moment longer.
Then she smiled faintly.
So that's what it was.
No wonder.
I knew there was something unusual about him.
The question was no longer whether Hiro had secrets.
The question was how many.
Thankfully, before anyone could start another round of interrogation, Shizuka-sensei suddenly perked up.
"Oh!"
Everyone looked toward the front.
"What?" Takashi asked.
Shizuka pointed ahead.
"We're here~!"
Immediately, everyone's attention shifted toward the windshield.
And then—
Silence.
Because beyond the gates stood what could only be described as a rich person's final form.
Tall walls.
Large grounds.
Security fencing.
A gate bigger than some apartments.
The entire property looked less like a house and more like a small fortress.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Takashi blinked.
"This is your friend's house?"
"Yep~"
...
Rich people were terrifying.
Another pause.
Then Kohta pointed.
"Is that a Humvee?"
I followed his finger.
Sure enough.
Parked inside the compound was a military Humvee.
...
Okay.
Now we were talking.
The bus slowly rolled toward the gate.
And as the property came fully into view, even I had to admit—
This place was ridiculous.
The walls alone would keep most zombies out.
There was enough space for supplies.
Vehicles.
Water storage.
Defensive positions.
And probably a dozen other things I hadn't noticed yet.
For the first time since the outbreak started, something resembling a safe zone stood in front of us.
Not a classroom.
Not a faculty office.
Not a bus.
An actual base.
A grin slowly spread across my face.
Technically, this was Shizuka-sensei's friend's house.
Technically.
A temporary issue.
Because as of today—
This place was ours.
End of Chapter 18
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