Takashi sighed, still dressed in his dirty shirt and shorts. He was in the room that Yuriko has generously given him, a ten-by-ten with a futon and pillow. There were dozens of other rooms like this in the Takagi house, and for those who missed out on the space, there were plenty of tents outside.

For the zombies to reach the tents, let alone the house, was out of the question. There was a solid wall encircling the residence. He had seen the monsters when he and the group had first arrived. They had struck and gnawed and pushed, but could not make a dent in the defenses. Apparently, it was forbidden even to open the gates with the barrel of a gun….as Yuriko had said, the helicopter was the only means of travel from and to the compound allowed.

The helicopter ride to the compound had been the first Takashi had ever had, and it wasn't nearly as exciting as he had once thought it could be. For the first time in days, he had allowed himself to feel truly tired. He had slumped forward and stayed that way, only dimly aware of Miku taking a seat beside him. He had not listened in on the other group members, but he had heard Yuriko loudly praising her daughter for staying so strong in spite of a broken leg, and Saya loudly protesting that it was healing.

Once the helicopter had landed on the walled-in land, the group had been led inside the house. Takashi thought some of the other survivors, the ones near the tents, had looked at them, but he could not be sure. In any case, he had not heard a peep from them.

Takashi looked up at the ceiling. He must have been sitting here for at least a couple of hours. The light from the window had slowly made its way over to him, and was now stretching across his lap. He noticed for the first time that it was orange. The sun was setting.

He did not quite lay down on the futon as flop down upon it, his head hitting the pillow regardless. He was asleep in seconds.

A few minutes later, the shoji-style door was slid open. Miku stood there, dressed in pajamas that she had gotten from Yuriko. She had not been able to sleep, and she did not know if this was the exact room, but she felt it must be close. She turned her head, searching through the darkness until her eyes had adjusted to it. She walked over to the futon and got to her knees.

She realized that Takashi had not pulled the blanket over himself. She paused, then slipped next to him and pulled the wool over both of them. Feeling Takashi's warmth, she lay peacefully before finally resting.

One and a half months ago...

"So he socked you just like that?"

Takashi sat on the curb of the street. His stomach had not felt a bit better since Tsunoda had punched him there earlier that day. Hisashi, and another of his friends, Imamura, were standing in front of him.

"Yeah."

Hisashi shrugged. He and Takashi were not running together as they had in the old days, but he knew well enough to trust him. "If anything comes up, I can vouch for your character."

"Same," added Imamura. The long-haired boy finished the last stub of his cigarette and tossed the butt away. He crouched to one knee, looking at Takashi directly. "So...you really think Tsunoda's the one, eh?"

"One of them." Takashi grimaced. "Tsunoda singled her out and she clammed up right away. I can't explain it as anything other than her being familiar."

Imamura nerved a mirthless chuckle. "I mean, plenty of guys would single her out, but…" He saw Takashi glowering at him and felt Hisashi's stare from above. He sighed. "Yeah. Sorry." He got back up again. "But anyways, she can't prove he's the one who did it, is that what you're saying?"

"...Yes."

"And she's coming to school from here on out anyways?"

"Seems like it."

"Damn…"

Takashi blinked. It seemed so absurd to wake up at around this time every day, around six in the morning, but even without his alarm and even with the end of the world it seemed that his body was on a schedule.

He began to shake his head, but found he could not move. His eyes blinked to the left. Miku was sleeping right next to him. Her head was set into the crook of his neck, and he could feel one arm draped over his chest. Most embarrassingly, he felt her thigh between his legs.

He gulped, trying to focus on her face. It was surprisingly peaceful, her eyebrows loose and her mouth hanging ever so slightly open. Takashi was lost for a little while looking at it.

Then, before he knew it, the face changed. Her brow furrowed and her teeth grit together. Sweat began to drip from her forehead. He could see already that she was having bad dreams.

Not knowing what else to do, he shifted himself on his side, as quietly as he could. Then he slid his left arm under her neck and his right around her waist. He pulled himself into an embrace with her. The girl tensed, and then relaxed.

Takashi managed a smile.

He did not know how long he stayed in that position, but eventually Miku woke up. She blinked as he did, her expression still.

"Hi...Takashi."

"Hi, Miku."

He allowed her to sit up and he copied her. She bit her lip. "Sorry if I disturbed you." She watched him wave his hand. "Not at all, not at all." She watched him, and scooted forward. She looked at him thoughtfully.

"I….guess….I didn't want to be...alone, you know?" Takashi did not stop her as she put a hand to his cheek. "And…" he felt the hand fall, going down the length of his body. "I guess...I just wanted to-to forget everything. Everything that's happened out there." She was frozen for a moment, and then Takashi felt the hand move again. This time, she started to push down the front of his shorts, then his underwear.

He moved away, almost too quickly, as Miku sat still with her hand outstretched. They stared at each other for a moment. Then Takashi tipped his head down at the futon.

"Do you want to sleep some more?"

"...Sure."

Story idea by CRed1988 and writing by Jerviss.