Chapter 68: Look what I found!

Night had fallen completely, casting the wasteland into total darkness.

The heavy armored vehicle rounded a sharp bend along the mountain ridge, only to find the path ahead blocked by two collided buses. Ray slammed his boot onto the brake pedal, bringing the front bumper to a halt barely a meter away from the twisted wreckage.

"We’re stuck," Ray barked, flicking off the high-beam headlights.

Scanning the terrain through the faint reflection of the snow, he spotted a squat, grayish building perched halfway up the slope to the left of the road. Near the main entrance, an offset iron sign clattered noisily against the howling wind: Mistfall Town No. 3 Middle School.

"We’ll hole up here for the night," Ray announced, yanking his door open and jumping down. The rush of freezing air into the rear cabin sent a violent shiver down May’s spine.

Mitch was the absolute first to burst out of the back door, landing on his feet so fast he looked like he was escaping a crime scene. Without casting a single glance backward, he marched straight toward the school gates with his hands shoved deep into his pockets, his shoulders hunched tight, and the tips of his ears still glowing a deep, telltale crimson.

Ray scooped May out of the cab, bundling her up inside a heavy military overcoat as she hurried along behind him.

The rust-eaten lock on the school auditorium’s double doors gave way immediately when Jack kicked it in, sending the iron panels swinging wide open.

Inside, the temperature was noticeably milder than the freezing gale outside. A raised stage still stood at the far end, its red velvet curtains hanging in tattered strips, while folding chairs and moldy textbooks lay scattered across the dusty floor.

Ray kicked several chairs out of the way, clearing a wide space in the center.

"Theo, inspect the structural stability. Jack, sweep the perimeter for supplies. Ace, Mitch, seal the window frames. Alex—"

"I know, I know, start the fire," Alex muttered, already crouching near the stage edge with his lighter. The orange glow reflected off his warm brown hair as the flame caught. "Ray, you always hand this chore to me."

"Less talking, more working," Ray replied coldly.

Alex grumbled under his breath but continued feeding dry wooden splinters into the growing blaze.

Meanwhile, Ace pulled several compact, folded emergency flares from his pack, cracked their bases, and tossed them into the four corners of the hall. A brilliant white light instantly flooded the room, illuminating the space as bright as day.

Having finished sealing the final window pane, Mitch walked over to the furthest, darkest corner of the auditorium without a word. He sat down heavily, staring blankly up at the cracked ceiling as if intently counting every single fracture line.

May huddled close to the fire, warming her cold hands.

Recalling the absurd incident inside the vehicle earlier, her cheeks immediately flushed hot enough to fry an egg. Thirty seconds of mutual compliments... In her entire eighteen years of life, the most sickeningly sweet words she had ever uttered were all sacrificed to that ridiculous pink harness.

Even worse was her final line—"The way yours was pressing into me felt so uncomfortable... but I kind of like it." After saying it, even she had been stunned. It hadn’t been entirely an act; a tiny fraction of it had been honest truth. What Mitch was packing over there was... genuinely substantial.

"Stop daydreaming," Ray said, crouching down right in front of her to block her line of sight. "Why is your face so red?"

"It’s... it’s just heat from the fire," she stammered.

Ray stared into her eyes for two full seconds, choosing not to call her bluff. Unzipping his tactical coat, he laid it flat across the dusty floorboards and patted it, gesturing for her to sit down. May obeyed meekly, bundling herself inside the heavy military coat over his jacket until she resembled a fluffy pink ball.

Time trickled by as the fire crackled cheerfully.

After confirming the structural safety of the hall, Theo leaned against the stage pillar with his eyes closed, resting quietly. Ace sat cross-legged on the floor, meticulously wiping down a row of miniature explosive detonators. Alex hugged his knees by the fire, nodding off with his head dropping lower and lower.

Only Mitch remained frozen in that distant corner, sitting motionless like a stone statue.

"Ray! I’m back!"

Jack’s booming voice suddenly shattered the quiet from the auditorium entrance, followed by heavy, echoing footsteps. The towering seven-foot giant burst inside carrying a cardboard box, a broad, foolish grin plastered across his face as if he had just captured a prize rabbit.

Though the box was modest in size, he cradled it with utmost delicacy, as though it contained rare treasures.

"May! Look what I found!"

Jack covered the distance in three long strides, setting the box down in front of May before crouching down. His massive hands rummaged inside the box for a moment before pulling out a handful of bright, colorful little square packages.

"I found these tucked away in the back of the infirmary! They were hidden super deep, locked up in the innermost cabinet!" Jack held the boxes up before May’s face, shaking them like a proud retriever showing off a prize. "Look! Strawberry flavor, and even banana flavor! You mentioned you liked sweet things, so I knew you’d love these!"

The ambient air in the auditorium instantly froze.

Theo snapped his eyes open.

Ace’s hand wiping the detonators came to a dead halt.

Alex jerked awake from his nod.

The unlit cigarette dangling from Mitch’s lips dropped straight onto the floorboards.

Ray’s sharp gaze locked directly onto the little colorful boxes.

Printed boldly across the front of the pink box was prominent text: Ultra-Thin 0.01, Dotted Texture, Double Lubricated. Beside the lettering sat a cartoon strawberry grinning wickedly at everyone.

May’s face exploded into a fiery red heat.

"Jack," Theo spoke up, his tone unnervingly pleasant. "Do you have any idea what those actually are?"

"They’re candies, obviously!" Jack answered with complete sincerity, pulling a purple box from the stash. "There’s grape flavor too! I took a sniff earlier—man, they smell completely like fruit! Since May likes sweet treats, these are bound to suit her taste."

A heavy three-second silence gripped the room.