by Logan Jacobs
The girl jumped up and raced over to join Oscar, who showed her how to feed the seals without getting her hand bitten. The little boy was left in front of us, and he squirmed in his spot as he watched his sister.
“You don’t want to do it?” Becka asked as she leaned forward.
The boy turned to face her, and he shook his head silently, but then he nodded.
“I don’t want them to eat me,” Issac whispered, and the blonde Brit smiled warmly.
“They only like fish,” Becka said in a soothing tone. “They think you would taste yucky. Why don’t I go over with you?”
Issac considered this for a moment as he studied his new friend, and then he got to his feet and stuck his small hand out toward Becka.
The beautiful blonde model stood up and accompanied the kid over to the seals, and she helped him step carefully onto the feeding platform.
I grinned as I watched Becka help the kids feed the seals, and Hae-won cheered with each fish that was chomped down. Whenever the kids laughed, Becka’s eyebrows crinkled in response, and she kept turning toward us and mouthing “oh, my god” like the adorable situation was too much for her to handle.
“She’s great with them,” Kat laughed. She had crossed her legs up on the bench and looked the most relaxed I had seen her yet.
“Yeah, she is,” I agreed. “It’s super cute.”
Eventually the seals became full, and one settled in to sleep on the rock as the others flopped back into the water.
The kids jumped out of the enclosure with Becka as Oscar locked the gate back up, and Issac gave Becka a quick hug by grabbing her legs. Then he raced off with his sister back through the viewing tunnel.
I stood up and grabbed Becka into a tight embrace as she returned to us, and she giggled as I kissed her neck softly.
“I think I’m ready for mum duties,” the Brit laughed.
“Oh, yeah?” I murmured against her neck.
“Yeah, I want five exactly like that,” Becka informed me.
“I’ll get right on that,” I chuckled, and I left a light bite on her shoulder before I finally released my hold.
“That was stinking adorable,” Hae-won agreed. “Becka, can you have my kids, too? Just three or ten who look just like Jason.”
“Oh, sure,” the blonde laughed, and she bent down to give the Korean a swift kiss on the cheek. “Anything for you.”
“Thanks for coming out, folks,” Oscar called as he picked up the empty fish bucket and headed for the tunnel. “The feedings make me forget everything for a few moments. It’s nice to share it with people.”
“I loved it!” Becka gushed. “Thank you for looking after the seals this way. It’s good to see.”
The young man gave us a wave and hurried back inside as the seals lazily swam off their lunch. I stretched my sore limbs a bit, and after the wild day we had, the comfort of the past hour had made me sleepy. We still had to collect our supplies and get back on the road, though, and I took a last look around the watery walls of the place while I tried to make myself want to leave.
“I guess we should--” I began, but I was interrupted by a loud buzzing sound which made all of us jump slightly.
The four of us looked around in complete confusion while the buzz grew louder, and then Hae-won slowly took her phone out of her pocket.
It was ringing.
“What the fuck?” I gasped as the Korean girl stared down at the device. “Someone’s calling you? How?”
“Who is it?” Becka asked, her soft brown eyes wide. “How? What?”
“That’s not possible,” Kat said with a firm frown. “All phone signals are down, there’s no way.”
“It’s my Dad,” Hae-won whispered. “No one talk, okay?”
I nodded as she hit the answer button before she slowly raised the cell to her ear. She pushed her ebony hair out of the way and took a deep breath before she spoke.
“Yeoboseyo?” she said, and then she flung her hand to her mouth as a male voice spoke back.
I watched in complete shock as Hae-won quickly spoke in Korean through the phone, and Becka and Kat just stared silently beside me.
The Asian girl spoke faster and faster as she got up from her seat, and she started to pace and make huge hand gestures as she spoke in her native language. Her cheeks flushed pink after a moment, and she laughed as tears fell down her pretty face.
“What the fuck is going on?” Kat asked under her breath. “How could her Dad be calling her?”
“I’m pretty sure her Dad is rich or something,” Becka replied, her eyes never leaving Hae-won.
“But how is he calling?” I asked. “Is there any signal in this random bit of the aquarium?”
We all pulled our phones out, and I sighed as I was greeted by a blank screen and remembered I needed to charge it.
Kat shook her head as she attempted a phone call, and Becka tried to send a text, which was immediately flagged as not delivered.
Hae-won was deep in a hurried conversation, though, and I could hear the man on the phone’s deep, urgent voice.
“Maybe Korea still has phone service,” Becka suggested. “Or they’ve managed to get it working again somehow.”
“What does her Dad do?” Kat asked as Hae-won’s tone got more agitated.
“I have no idea,” I admitted. “From the skills Hae-won has, and the little she’s told us, I’m guessing he’s not exactly a model, law abiding citizen. She only told me he’s a businessman.”
“Business?” Kat arched an eyebrow. “That’s oddly vague.”
“He’s definitely into something dodgy.” Becka nodded, and she tried to send another text but was met with a sad whoosh as it failed. “I only learned how to do this whole badass apocalypse bitch thing when the dinos attacked, but Hae-won was already a hot-wiring ninja. She was ready for it before it even happened.”
“So, he’s still in Korea?” Kat asked. “He doesn’t live in the UK with her?”
“Nope,” I confirmed. “She came over here to study music, and her family are still all over there, from what I know.”
“Music,” Kat snorted. “That girl’s talents would be wasted on a music course.”
“You haven’t heard her play the piano,” I countered. “It honestly made me feel like I was in a trance.”
“Yeah, she’s too talented for her own good.” Becka grinned. “It’s honestly kind of rude.”
I caught the blonde in my arms while she giggled at my mock-stern look, but we couldn’t do much except stand and watch as Hae-won’s pacing steps grew faster. Her voice became more urgent and assertive, too, and while I loved hearing her speak in her native tongue, I wished I had some kind of understanding of what she was saying.
The seals beside us splashed and twirled as their post lunch tiredness wore off, and eventually, Hae-won’s tone softened again as she started to tear up. I wanted to pull her into an embrace, but I knew she needed to say whatever it was, and it was the first time in weeks she had heard the sound of her family’s voice.
The raven-haired beauty sniffed and then laughed before she slowly took the phone away from her ear and hit the end call button. She wiped her electric blue eyes, and we hurried over to join her next to the glass tank.
“Hey,” I said gently, and Hae-won flung herself into my arms with her face buried into my chest. I took a moment to cradle her, and I kissed the top of her head as she took deep breaths.
I could see that Becka and Kat were desperate to ask what had happened, but they stayed silent as Hae-won calmed herself down.
After a few moments, the Korean girl pulled back from my chest and smiled up at me with red-rimmed eyes.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Yes,” Hae-won sniffed, and Kat pulled a tissue from her pocket and offered it over.
“Soooo,” Becka said as she stroked Hae-won’s silky hair. “What the fuck was that? Has your Dad killed all the dinos in Korea with his bare hands yet?”
“Not quite,�
� Hae-won laughed as she dabbed her eyes. “But he did hack into the military satellite to make that call.”
There was stunned silence for a moment, and the only sound was an awkward splash as a seal plunged off the rock into the water to join its companions.
“Uh,” I managed after a moment. “He did what?”
“That’s impossible,” Kat scoffed. “There is no way a citizen could do that.”
“He has connections.” Hae-won smiled. “And he didn’t do it right away, he’s been trying to do it ever since the first attacks started happening. He just finally managed to make it work long enough to call me.”
“So, what did he say?” I asked as I tried to get past the whole military hacking thing. I had a million questions, and I knew the girls did, too.
“He wanted to send a jet to come and get me.” Hae-won said.
“A jet?” Becka blurted out. “An actual jet?”
“What does your Dad do?” Kat asked outright, and her hazel eyes narrowed.
“He’s a businessman.” Hae-won shrugged. “But the chances of getting the jet to Ravenscar are pretty low. It’s just too far.”
“But what exactly did he say?” I asked.
“He has been trying to contact me since this began,” Hae-won sighed. “He wants me to go back to Korea, but I told him about you, Jason, and how you are protecting me here.”
“This is crazy,” I interrupted. “Hae-won, I can’t stop you from leaving if you want to be with your family.”
“No, I want to be with you,” the Korean girl said firmly. “I want to be with all of you. I told him that I wouldn’t leave without you three, and Becka’s mum. We are a family, a team.”
“Wow,” Becka murmured with a sad smile. “Are you serious? You would give up that opportunity just for us?”
“It’s all of us or nothing.” Hae-won nodded. “I won’t leave you.”
“I’m still confused,” Kat cut in as she rubbed her forehead. “Your Dad hacked into the military satellites to call you, has a jet at his convenience, and this is normal everyday life for you?”
“As normal as my family gets,” Hae-won snorted.
“Where exactly is he?” I clarified as my confusion mounted. “Does your family have some kind of nuclear bunker?”
“They’re on the island,” Hae-won said with a shrug.
“What island?” Becka cried, and she threw her hands up in the air with wide eyes.
“Jejudo,” Hae-won answered with a slight eye roll. “It’s the largest island in Korea, he’s at the family base there.”
“Base?” Kat asked, but Hae-won didn’t look like she wanted to continue our line of questioning.
I couldn’t help but laugh at Becka and Kat’s faces as they grew more perplexed with every sentence they heard, and Becka had her hands on top of her head while Kat just stared silently with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow.
“So… where does that leave us?” I tried once I reined in my chuckles. “Is your dad still going to try and come over?”
“I don’t know for certain,” Hae-won replied. “He said how difficult it would be to get to Ravenscar, and even more difficult to get us all back over to Korea. He kept saying that he will reach me, but I just don’t know.”
“This is fucking wild,” Becka said. “Hae-won, your Dad sounds seriously cool.”
“He actually is not.” Hae-won smiled. “He’s not a terrible man to me, but I would rather be here. I told him such.”
Kat checked her phone again, and I saw her screen light up with some contact details as she tried another call, but it didn’t connect.
“It’s getting late,” I said. “And I need to charge my phone up. It might not do much, but it’s good to have all of our GPSes working.”
“This place seems pretty secure,” Becka pointed out as she finally peeled her gaze away from Hae-won. “I mean, it’s underground, and unless there’s giant dino worms or something, we should be safe for the night, right?”
“I agree.” I nodded. “We can collect whatever supplies Matthew can spare and get a good rest before we head off early tomorrow.”
“Sounds good to me,” Kat agreed. “I’ve been sleeping in the jeep for the past few nights, and my back is killing me.”
I still had a thousand questions about Hae-won, but she looked a bit tense, and I felt like we all needed to take a rest and process what had just happened. If her Dad had managed to hack into military satellites, that could mean others had, too. Maybe we could find a way to communicate with our families, and I could finally know if my parents were safe.
I tried not to think about my parents too much, though. The deep sense of dread for their well-being was too heavy, and I knew there was no point in worrying until I knew for certain what their situation was. I had to keep my head on straight, especially now that I had three women to look after over here.
One of which was prepared to turn down a free pass out of here if it didn’t include bringing me with her.
“Let’s head back inside,” I said as I tucked a stray strand of Hae-won’s hair behind her ear, and the Korean caught my hand to snuggle her cheek against it for a bit. “Let’s see if we were able to get any supplies.”
The girls nodded, and then Hae-won and Becka led the way out of the seals’ enclosure and into the darkened tunnel.
Kat walked beside me, and I could tell she was still focused on Hae-won’s news. Her frown scrunched up her pretty features, and she pulled at a lock of curly hair as we walked.
“You doing okay?” I asked as we started to make our way back through the tunnel. My eyes took a moment to adjust to the low light, and I almost stumbled over a patient camped out on the floor.
“Yeah, I am, thanks,” Kat said as we stepped over a half-asleep man.
Hae-won and Becka were talking in low, hurried voices, and none of us stopped to look at any of the sea creatures which swam around us. When we reached the rock pool room, Matthew spotted us and hurried over with a white drawstring backpack.
“I got you guys some supplies,” the nurse said as he held out the bag to me. “It’s not loads, but it’s all we could spare comfortably, and it should at least help.”
“Awesome,” I smiled as I looked inside at the bandages and rubbing alcohol. “We’ll take what we can get. Hey, we were thinking of spending the night, if that’s okay. We could do with a proper rest until morning.”
“Sure.” Matthew nodded. “There’s a pile of blankets over near the stairs, just camp out wherever you can find space. A couple of the team are in charge of food, they bring out some hot meals at about eight. There’s charging points over there, and just try not to make too much noise when people are asleep.”
“That sounds amazing,” I sighed. “It’s been a while since we had a hot meal.”
“Don’t get too excited,” the nurse said. “It’s usually always pasta with tinned tomatoes. Maybe some frozen peas mixed in if we’re lucky.”
“Sounds good to me,” Kat said. “If we haven’t resorted to eating dino meat yet, then I’m happy.”
There was a loud groan from across the room, and a young man in one of the makeshift beds threw up onto the ground.
“That’s my que,” Matthew sighed, and he hurried off to help the patient.
“Okay,” I said. “Well, we have a place to sleep, hot food on the way, and a few supplies. Should we set up some beds?”
“Actually,” Becka hummed. “I’m going to try and help Hae-won contact her Dad again.”
“I don’t think that’s possible,” I countered as I furrowed my brow. “Unless you recently took a satellite hacking course without telling us.”
“Alright, mister smarty pants,” Becka sighed and stuck her tongue out at me. “We’re just trying to work out what happened and see if we can get on anything internet wise. Try email again, zoom, skype, Facebook.”
“I mean, it seems unlikely,” Kat pointed out. “But I suppose there’s never any harm in trying.”
&nbs
p; “You guys grab some bed stuff,” Becka insisted. “Find a place for us to sleep. I’m going to sit with Hae-won for a while.”
“Can you put my phone on a charger?” I asked as I pulled my cell out and handed it to the blonde. “Maybe Hae-won’s dad will call back and teach us how exactly to make a phone call during the apocalypse.”
“Sure,” Becka chuckled. “You and Kat go enjoy the peace, find somewhere to get cozy.”
The Brit winked at me, and I noticed Kat’s face turn pink.
“You guys don’t want to come?” I asked with a skeptical glance between Becka and Hae-won.
“We’ll catch up,” the Korean said in a cheery tone. “Go on! Enjoy some time with Kat. Make sure you find us a nice, secluded spot to snuggle up in, okay?”
“Let’s do it,” I agreed, and when I turned to the pretty soldier, she nodded with a smile.
Becka and Hae-won made their way over to the charging point and sat down with their backs against the wall as they chatted. I smiled while I watched them for a moment, and I admired how loyal Hae-won had been to us. She could have taken the chance to be rescued by her father, but she would rather stay with us.
And with me.
“So… blankets?” Kat asked.
“Yes,” I responded as I turned back to the curly-haired Corporal. “Let’s find somewhere with less noise and vomit for the night.”
“Oooh, high standards,” Kat whistled as we made our way over to the wide staircase we had come down earlier.
Beside the bottom step was a large pile of sheets and a few thin pillows. I picked up the corner of a blue blanket and sniffed it, and then I grabbed two blankets and folded them up while Kat picked up two pillows and checked for any suspicious stains.
“I hope these got washed,” I muttered. “Smells okay, let’s take enough for all of us and head upstairs.”
“Upstairs?” Kat asked as she glanced back to the rockpools. “Shouldn’t we stay underground with everyone else?”
“I think I saw another staircase that led down,” I said as we started to climb the steps. “Over on the other side of the lobby. There might be a storage space or something that’s a bit more secluded.”
