The apartment buzzed with a new energy. With Claire on board, the dynamic shifted, strategies formed quicker, conversations had more weight.
Ren noticed the difference almost immediately.
Her medical knowledge, calm demeanor, and sharp instincts helped ground their planning sessions.
But despite the progress, Ren's mind kept circling back to Brian.
It was during the training session, something felt like stirring in him.
It wasn't a sudden change, no flashes of power or dramatic shifts. It was quieter, subtler.
The way Brian's eyes sharpened when he assessed their surroundings, the way his hands moved with a precision that hadn't been there before.
Ren caught him more than once instinctively adjusting his stance or tightening his grip on whatever makeshift weapon was at hand, as if preparing for something unseen.
During their training sessions, this became more apparent. Brian's swings grew faster, more confident, not just muscle memory, but something deeper, something instinctual guiding him.
When Ren called out corrections or tactical advice, Brian absorbed them quickly, adapting in ways Ren hadn't expected.
One afternoon, after a particularly intense round of drills, Brian wiped sweat from his brow and looked over at Ren, eyes glinting with something almost fierce.
"I don't know where this is coming from," he admitted. "I feel like... I'm waking up or something. Like there's this energy in me that wasn't there before."
Ren nodded slowly, recognizing the feeling all too well. "You're not wrong. This world... it's changing us. The infection isn't the end, it's just the beginning. Some of us are evolving, gaining something new."
Brian's brow furrowed. "You mean like... superpowers?"
"Not exactly," Ren said, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "More like hidden potential. Strength, speed, senses. But it's raw. Uncontrolled. And dangerous if you don't master it."
Claire, who had been quietly listening while patching a small cut on Brian's arm, looked up sharply. "How do you know this?"
Ren's eyes darkened for a moment and decided to bluff his way through this.
His gaze drifting toward the cracked ceiling as if seeing something beyond the room.
"Sometimes… it feels like I've lived this day before. Like I've walked through the worst, died in it, and somehow come back."
Claire's brow furrowed. "That sounds like… deja vu? Or maybe trauma?"
Ren shook his head slowly. "No, it's different. Not just a memory. More like a thread breaking and weaving again.
Like fate giving me a second chance, but at a cost. I don't know how or why, but it's real. And it's why I see things others don't."
Brian swallowed, unease flickering in his eyes. "See things? Like what?"
Ren's voice dropped to a whisper. "The way this apocalypse moves. The patterns behind it. The moments when people's fate snaps... and they die. I can feel it. Sometimes I can even see it."
Claire's fingers tightened around the cloth she was using. "That's.. terrifying."
Ren gave a faint, grim smile. "Maybe. But it's also why I'm here. Because I have to stop it from breaking again."
A tense silence settled over the room, the weight of unspoken truths pressing down.
Ren's words hung heavy in the cramped room, but instead of the silence he expected, Claire let out a short, incredulous laugh.
"Threads? Fate? Survival beyond death?" Claire shook her head, eyes narrowing. "Ren, this isn't some fantasy novel. We're stuck in a nightmare, not a superhero story."
Brian scoffed, leaning back against the wall with a smirk. "Yeah, man. Resurrection? Evolving powers? Sounds like you've been hitting the zombie blood a little too hard."
Ren held their skeptical stares a moment longer, then forced a tired smile.
"Look, maybe it sounds crazy. Maybe I'm just spinning stories to keep us going." He ran a hand through his hair, shrugging. "But sometimes, when you're backed into a corner, you have to believe in something bigger even if it's just a joke."
Claire raised an eyebrow. "A joke?"
"Yeah," Ren said, nodding slowly. "If I can convince you there's a plan, a reason to keep fighting even if I don't have all the answers yet then maybe that's enough."
Brian let out a dry chuckle. "Well, it's better than nothing."
Claire smirked. "Just don't expect me to buy your 'second chance' fairy tale anytime soon."
Ren laughed softly, the tension easing a bit. "Fair enough. But when the time comes, maybe you'll see it differently."
For now, the truth stayed locked away. A 'joke' to hold them steady in a world unraveling at the seams.
The room settled into a quiet rhythm, the weight of Ren's words lingering but unchallenged.
Claire returned to cleaning Brian's cut with steady hands, and Brian tapped his fingers thoughtfully against the table.
Ren glanced at both of them, searching their faces for any cracks in their skepticism, but found none.
Maybe that was for the best. Hope was fragile here, and sometimes a well-placed bluff was the only thing keeping it alive.
"We should focus on what we can control," Ren said, shifting gears. "Training, gathering supplies, finding allies. The 'why' can wait until we're stronger."
Brian nodded, a new seriousness settling over him. "Yeah… If what you say is true, or even half true, then I want to be ready for whatever comes next."
Claire gave a curt nod. "I'll keep patching you both up. Just don't go thinking you're invincible."
Ren smiled, grateful for the small spark of camaraderie. "Not invincible. Just willing to fight."
Outside, the distant groans and the city's slow decay pressed in on their fragile sanctuary.
But inside that small apartment, a different kind of battle was beginning. The fight to hold onto hope, no matter how uncertain the future.
Ren stood, grabbing his sword from the corner. "Alright. Tomorrow, we start scouting for that base. If we want to survive, we need a place we can hold."
Brian and Claire exchanged glances before nodding in agreement.
Ren's bluff might not have won their full trust yet. But it had bought them something just as valuable..
Time.
And time was what they needed most.