After tonight's fight, Perci became the center of attention at the resort.

Many people gathered around Perci, giving him praises and trying to befriend him.

"Perci! You're really strong! Wanna have a drink with me?" a person put his arm around Perci.

"No thanks, I don't drink. But I appreciate the offer," Perci smiled.

"What a cool guy! Maybe we should hang out sometime!" another person said.

"Haha, maybe…" Perci said.

"Your kicks were awesome! Like WAPOW! Please teach me your moves!"

The compliments didn't stop….

I can't even get close to Perci. There's too many people surrounding him!

One girl clinged onto Perci's arm.

"Heyyy…..are you single? You look really cute…."

Another girl held onto Perci and caressed his arm.

"You have such strong arms…"

"Hey! I found him first!"

"Hmph! That doesn't matter if he likes me better!"

The girls pushed their breasts towards Perci, trying to have him for themselves.

Perci just stood there with a shy embarrassed look on his face.

T-Those girls are shameless! What are you doing, Perci?!

I bet you're enjoying this!

Perci noticed my pouting face, then looked at both girls and moved them aside.

"Calm down girls," Perci said. "There's already somebody that I like, sorry."

He smiled at them and they let go.

"That somebody sure is a lucky girl…" the girl on his left said.

S-somebody that he likes? Who could it be? 

Maybe….it's me….?

I shook my head and held my face.

I can't just assume things….

"I can tell that you’ve fallen in love again. I’ve seen it seven different times, so I’m sure.”

Recalling Agnes' words….I feel like they might be true…

Even if I hate men……when it comes to Perci….it might be a different story.

Maybe I really do like him…

I still couldn't get any closer to Perci…the crowd's too deep.

Instead, I decided to watch the panda mascot breakdancing by the corner.

“Wow……”

"Hello, Ori," a voice whispered in my ear.

"!!"

Lucio looked me in the eyes and smiled.

"May I escort you to your room?"

"Why is a boy escorting me to my room though? Won’t people be suspicious of you?"

Lucio chuckled for a moment.

"It's no problem," Lucio said. "All the people here trust me. It's probably because I’m the resort owner."

"Y-you're the owner of this resort?"

"Yeah, don't you remember? I come from a rich and powerful family. After turning 18, they decided to entrust this resort over to me."

"Oh…right."

Lucio is the former student council president and the owner of the resort, but I believe it's not just because of his status that people would trust him.

It's his kind, easy-going and charismatic personality that truly makes him popular. He's a really nice guy to everyone. It's why I used to like him as a boyfriend.

But as of right now, I feel so vulnerable around him.

“Besides, I wanted to have a little chat with you, if you don’t mind.”

“F-Fine.”

Even if I was afraid of him, I still wanted to hear what he had to say. Besides, I didn’t have the heart to reject his offer.

We walked towards an elevator and waited for it to come down.

Most of the people were still having fun outside, so it was mostly quiet inside the building.

After waiting for a while, the elevator opened.

"After you, Ori…"

We both entered the elevator and closed the doors.

I gulped down my throat as we went upward in complete silence.

Being alone in an elevator with a boy….and it's Lucio….

It was unsettling. Maybe I shouldn’t have gone with him….

"Ori….do you remember the contract you made with me?" Lucio said.

My face began to sweat as he asked me the question.

I nervously turned towards his face…and saw that he was staring at me with a smiling face.

"Y-yes…."

He moved closer to me and I stepped back panickedly.

"L-Lucio…don't."

I felt my back against the wall as he continued to close the distance between us.

He placed his hand on the wall next to my head and stared deeply into my eyes.

I closed my eyes as I shivered from his presence.

"You don't have to worry about it anymore. I've terminated the contract."

I opened my eyes to see that angelic smile once again.

He patted my head and stepped away from me.

"I don't understand…why?" I said.

"It was you who taught me how to love. It was you who allowed me to experience what it was like. And I'm forever grateful for it. So I've decided to let you go."

"T-thank you…"

Lucio…was he really willing to let go of the chains he had placed on me?

It was hard to believe, but it was truly happening.

We left the elevator without any conflict and headed straight for the rooms.

As we were walking, a girl suddenly opened her room and tried to rush outside, but she bumped Lucio and they both fell to the floor.

"Ouch…." the girl said. "A-Ah! Lucio! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!"

Lucio got up from his feet and just smiled.

"Don't worry about it. Accidents happen, people make mistakes, so it's all right!"

Lucio picked her up from the floor.

"L-Lucio!" the girl was shocked.

He put her back on her feet and patted her head.

"There you go."

"T-thanks Lucio…I'll be going now."

We watched the girl go and moved along.

He's still acting like a good boy as usual…..

Out of all my exes, he's probably most similar to Perci.

Both had differences in their appearances and personalities, yet both acted like kind-hearted gentlemen towards everyone.

We made it to my room and stopped by the door.

"Here's your room key card," Lucio said.

I took the card from his hand and opened the door.

W-woah, king-sized bed! Smooth wooden floors! Clean bathroom!

"A-amazing….."

"I'll be taking my leave now," Lucio said. "Good night."

"Good night."

I slowly closed the door.

"Someday….you'll realize how much you need me. Then you'll come running back to my arms," Lucio muttered.

Once the door closed I took a sigh and removed my shoes.

There’s no way I’m coming back to you, creep.

I jumped on the bed to rest and I sprung up in the air.

“Ah. It’s quite bouncy.”

I continued to bounce around on the bed for a couple minutes.

“It’s like I’m a child again, hahaha!”

I couldn’t help but play around such an amazing bed!

“Ori….don’t jump on the bed!” a woman’s voice said.

“H-huh?”

A beautiful red-haired woman appeared in front of my bed. Her appearance was quite similar to my own, but looked a lot older and more mature. Unlike me however, she didn’t wear a ponytail and her hair looked longer on one side.

She was the prettiest woman I’ve ever seen.

“You’ll never get a boyfriend if you keep acting like that!” she giggled.

“S-shut up…mom….”

Suddenly, the woman disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Damn it, I’m gonna cry again.

I planted my face on the pillows.

“I-I miss you, mom….please tuck me in and tell me good night….”

………………..

Rise and shine.

I woke up from my bed and let out a big yawn. 

After doing a few stretches on the floor, I went out of the room to eat some breakfast.

On my way there, I came across Agnes.

“Ori! Let’s go together!”

Me and Agnes went on the elevator along with several other girls. 

Once we made it to the ground floor, we walked over to the restaurant and looked at the selection of foods.

“Wow….how much food supply do we even have?” I wondered.

“I’m not sure, but I’m too hungry to care..” Agnes held her stomach.

While I was taking up some servings from the food attendants, I noticed Damien sitting alone at the corner looking depressed. Lucio noticed this and sat next to him, trying to comfort his feelings.

I wonder if Damien could ever be happy without me…..

“Found you.”

Perci walked over to me and smiled.

“Good morning, girls.”

“Morning, Perci.”

The three of us sat together and ate our meals.

“Ahh! It’s been a while since I’ve had a good meal!” Agnes said.

“The food is surprisingly delicious,” I said.

“This place….it kind of feels like an utopia,” Perci said.

“Hmm? What do you mean?” I asked.

“Think about it. Look how peaceful and happy this place is. We get to swim as much as we want, sleep in comfortable beds, eat a decent meal, have some drinks, make some new friends and party all day. The best part is that we don’t even have to worry about the zombies anymore. It’s like a dream.”

Now that I think about it…this place is like paradise in the apocalypse. Sure, it may get boring overtime, but at least we’re safe here. 

“It’s hard to believe we’re in such a perfect place. I mean, what else could be missing?” I asked.

Agnes opened her mouth as if she had thought of something.

“Agnes? What’s going on?”

She whispered into Perci’s ear.

Hey….why are you keeping it from me?

Once she finished, Perci cleared his throat and looked at me.

“Um, Ori? Agnes suggested that we go on a date.”

My face turned into a tomato at the thought.

“D-date? Today?”

“Of course!” Agnes said. “That’s the only thing missing in this place. Having a good date. I already had mine with Perci at the mall so…..now it’s your turn!”

“Ehh….well…”

Agnes inched her head closer to me and nudged my shoulder with her elbow.

“Come on….just do it!”

“Ah, jeez! All right! Let’s go on a date, Perci!” I said, looking away.

“Let’s do it,” Perci said.