Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



It was around midnight when Wang Chao's eyes flashed open. Looking around, he saw that the five of them were tucked into the bed of his and Liu Wei's condo in City A. Li Dai Lu was cuddled between Liu Yu Zeng and Chen Zi Han, enjoying some much needed sleep after they spent hours convincing her just how important she was to them.

As soon as he moved, Chen Zi Han's eyes flashed in the darkness as he stared at Wang Chao, almost daring him to wake up their woman. Wang Chao shook his head, reassuring the other man that he had no such plans. She needed sleep. Even more so now that they knew she was pregnant with twins.

However, there was something that Wang Chao needed to do while he was here, a loose end that needed to be tied up. And this was the perfect time to get it done.

Quietly slipping out of bed, he saw Chen Zi Han nod his head in agreement and pull Li Dai Lu even further into his arms. Liu Yu Zeng let out a moan of disapproval as he wiggled his way forward until he was once again plastered against his woman's back, his eyes never once opening, even though both men knew that he was awake.

'Need help?' asked Liu Wei from inside of his head. The man hadn't moved an inch, but he was just as awake as the others. 'No,' grunted Wang Chao. 'This is something that I need to deal with alone.'

'Call me when you want to end her misery,' shrugged Liu Wei as if they weren't talking about the death of a woman. Then again, there was only one person that was important, and she was in bed with them.

Wang Chao grunted softly, just realizing that he might need Liu Wei after all.

Taking a minute to appreciate the scene in front of him, Wang Chao sent up another prayer of thankfulness to whichever god was listening. This was his heaven on Earth, and he would do everything in his power to protect it.

He blinked out of existence and reappeared in yet another darkened room. This one, however, only held two occupants. He watched from the shadows, his red eyes glowing as he studied Yang Meng Yao and Li Shoi Ming. They were lying wrapped in each other's arms, much like Li Dai Lu and Liu Yu Zeng, the naked flesh of his soulmate practically glowing in the night.

Wang Chao cocked his head to the side. Why was it that both his and Liu Wei's soulmates were so eager to crawl into the beds of someone else? It was not like he particularly cared, but it was more of the principle of the matter.

She apparently had been reborn just to stand by her side, her love and commitment to him transcending time and space. And yet, she and her… lover… disappeared in the middle of the zombie tide of City Y, choosing their lives over anyone else.

He understood the decision. It was the most logical one. But at the same time, he couldn't see Li Dai Lu turning her back on any of them and running in the other direction simply because things got hard. She had proven over and over again that she was willing to stand beside them come Hell or high water.

The more he compared the two women, the more he wondered what he had done in a past life to deserve a soulmate like the woman in front of him.  Then again, given his past, maybe she was his punishment for not understanding or treasuring what he had before he destroyed it.

It had taken countless lifetimes to learn his lesson, but now that he has, there was no turning back. And the best way that he could show his wife his love and devotion was to sever his link with the woman in front of him.

He removed his handgun from its shoulder holster and screwed in the silencer. It didn't matter much to him if he was caught or not. What was the worst that could happen? War never died, and now, neither could he.

Walking up to the two sleeping figures, he waited for Yang Meng Yao to open her eyes. He wanted her to know who killed her so that when she stood before Hades to be judged, there would be no questions or misunderstandings.

It took her longer than he expected to realize that there was someone else in the room. Her instincts for danger were practically non-existent, her complacency in this day and age absolutely ridiculous.

She let out a startled gasp before realizing who was standing in front of her. "Wang Chao?" she whispered, the smile on her face revealing all of her thoughts. She was actually happy to see him, thinking that even after finding her in someone else's bed, he still wanted her.

He smiled and nodded his head, watching the hope and excitement rising in her eyes. She had completely forgotten about the other person in the room, too excited at the idea of ruling the zombies. "You ran away before we could talk," whispered Wang Chao as he crouched down in front of her.

"I'm sorry," she said, her eyes begging him for understanding. "Li Shoi Ming dragged me away kicking and screaming. If I had my way, I never would have left your side. You need to believe me. There is no one else for me but you."

"Do you truly feel that way?" asked Wang Chao, his face seemingly softening at her words. "Is there no one else for you but me?"

"Always," she promised, nodding her head. He might have even believed her heartfelt dedication to him if she wasn't naked, wrapped in another man's arms while she said it.

"What about him?" he asked, knowing that the other man was awake and listening to everything she was saying. Based on the rage coming off of him, Wang Chao needed to be worried that the other man would steal his kill.

"He is nothing, simply a way to give you some more connections in your rise to controlling the world," she said, shaking her head.

"And what happens if I don't want to control the world? What happens if I want to live a quiet life somewhere away from zombies and humans? Would you still stand by my side then?" asked Wang Chao as he searched her face.

"But why would you want to do that? Only you are good enough to stand at the top of the mountain, the king of the world, both zombies and humans. That is your destiny. And with me, you can achieve it," she said, not noticing Li Shoi Ming tightening his embrace.New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on N(o)vᴇl(F)ire

"Thank you," said Wang Chao out of the blue. He was truly thankful to the woman in front of him, but not for the reason she thought. "Thank you for helping me understand what a perfect, amazing woman I have. Thank you for making me understand the stupidity of putting anyone in front of her. If you hadn't just spoken, I might not know what future I want. But now I do. So, thank you."

Rising to his full height, he took one last look at the woman who was his future if he was too stupid to have kept going down the same path. Raising his gun, he smiled at the panicked look on her face as he quickly pulled the trigger once, twice.

Turning his back on the two humans bleeding to death, still locked in their embrace, he was startled to see Li Dai Lu watching him from the same corner where he had stood. Maybe Yang Meng Yao was not the only one to have developed a sense of complacency.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice little more than a soft sigh. Wang Chao dropped to his knees in front of her, his gun falling to the floor beside him. He crawled forward until he could wrap both of his arms around her waist, his cheek resting against her stomach where his children grew.

"I don't know," he admitted, closing his eyes and tightening his embrace. "There is a very big part of me that is scared that I am going to wake up tomorrow in my room here before the end of the world and without you in my life. I am scared that this is all a dream."

"Would it really be that bad if this was all a dream?" she asked, running her fingers through his hair.

"I think that that would be the worst thing to ever happen to me," said Wang Chao, taking in a shuddering breath. "To know that I had everything that I could ever want within my grasp, only for it to disappear…"

"So, you wouldn't go looking for me?" she said with a light chuckle.

"I would search to the ends of the world for you. But deep down inside, I would be scared that the woman I found would be your body before you came. And I don't want any woman other than you beside me," he admitted.

"Even if we looked the exact same?"

"Even then."