Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



"I think this is the most I have ever heard you speak at one time," joked Liu Yu Zeng, but he was seriously considering Chen Zi Han's words. It was a completely different way of looking at their relationship with Li Dai Lu, but he wasn't wrong.

"Let me give you an extreme example and then you can work back from there," chuckled Chen Zi Han, realizing that while Liu Yu Zeng wasn't disagreeing with what he said, he still wasn't fully understanding it. "Pretend that the other two men in this relationship weren't your brother and his friend. Pick two close syndicate members if that helps."

"Okay," nodded Liu Yu Zeng.

"Now, say that one of them cheated on Li Dai Lu. What would you do?"

"I would string them up by their ankles and flay their flesh from their bones and then proceed to let them bleed out while I cauterized the worst of the wounds to make sure that their deaths weren't quick," said Liu Yu Zeng, already planning the murder of two random syndicate member.

"Now, say it was your brother that cheated on her," said Chen Zi Han slowly. Liu Yu Zeng froze at that idea.

"He wouldn't," he said, shaking his head.

"Let's say he did," stressed Chen Zi Han. "Are you thinking of an excuse for him or are you still ready to have him bleed out like a pig on our warehouse floor? Be honest with yourself, even if you don't say it out loud."

"I am denying it and coming up with excuses," admitted Liu Yu Zeng.

"And I am still planning murder," said Chen Zi Han with a shrug of his massive shoulders. He looked down at the sleeping beauty in his arms and gently kissed her head. "Even if it was you that cheated, I would kill you without a second thought. She is my center. No one else matters."

Liu Yu Zeng was silent as he thought about Chen Zi Han's words. He really wasn't wrong. If it was anyone other than the three men he considered to be brothers, he would have killed them without a second thought. But the very idea of his brother or Wang Chao cheating, and he hesitated.

That would have to change.

"Put her first. The other relationships will sort themselves out," he repeated with a nod of his head. He already considered her to be the center of his universe. Now he just had to understand what that truly meant.

"We train," said Chen Zi Han, bringing the topic back. "We become strong enough that we are an advantage for whatever she has going on in her head. We keep our mouths shut and we follow her lead. It is incredibly easy when you think about it that way."

Liu Yu Zeng simply smiled before standing up. "I think I am going for a run."

"Don't go too far," warned the other man. "It might be easier to sprint for short distances than worry about improving long-distance cardio. Besides, we don't know if there are more zombies around here. And knowing what their potential is…"

"Very true," agreed Liu Yu Zeng as he took off as fast as he could before stopping a few hundred meters from where he started. The high-intensity anaerobic training would be just as beneficial as going for a long run but in a different way.

Chen Zi Han watched the man he considered to be his only friend in this world, training for whatever Li Dai Lu was going to be facing in the future. He wondered what it would have been like if she had met the two of them first, and not Wang Chao and Liu Wei.

Not that it really mattered. She was currently sleeping in his arms, so whoever she met first was inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. All that matter is the outcome. She was his. Period. End of story.

-----

I woke up to the feeling of floating. Groaning, I opened my eyes to see Chen Zi Han look down at me. "Good nap?" he asked with a smile on his face. I grunted, the idea of speaking an actual sentence too much for me to handle right now.

"Liu Wei and Wang Chao found a cabana for us to spend the night in. Consider it to be our first vacation together."

I chuckled at that idea. "Traveling up and down the eastern seaboard doesn't count?"

"Anything zombie or end of the world doesn't count," smirked Chen Zi Han just as Liu Yu Zeng came up beside us, panting. Sweat dripped down his forehead and landed on the sand.

"Is something chasing us?" I asked, concerned. I mean, the only reason why I would be sweating like that is if something was chasing me. In fact, I might have a mug for that. I quickly vanished into my space, found the mug that I was looking for, and filled it with coffee before going back to the real world.

"No, nothing is chasing us," laughed Liu Yu Zeng as he saw me sipping from a mug of coffee. This one had a picture of a woman running and it said, 'I don't run. If you see me running, you better start running too because something is probably chasing me.' At the very bottom was the picture of a bear. I loved this mug.

"I am thinking I am going to start training again," he continued with his easy-going smile until he looked at me and dropped it for a second. I understood right away what he was referring to.

"I think that is a great idea," I said with an encouraging smile. I mean, success was pretty much guaranteed if I had someone on my side in the camp before I arrived. I trusted Rip, but I couldn't say for sure if he would be there when I needed him to be.

"Chen Zi Han is going to help," he pushed, studying my reaction to that news. I took it to mean that he told Chen Zi Han what he knew and the other man was on board.