Apocalypse Ground Zero: Refusing To Leave Home-Chapter 64: A John Wick Wannabe

"So," Yuche said, his voice cutting through the background noise of my show. "Are you going to tell the class how you learned to shoot like that?"

I paused for a moment, my finger hovering over the middle of my screen. Clearly I didn’t think this one through. I was just pissed that...

Honestly? I don’t know what I was that pissed off for.

Sigh.

Whatever, I needed to come up with a reasonable excuse as to why a spoiled heiress who never had a hard day in her life not only had a gun but could shoot someone.

"I watched a lot of John Wick movies," I replied, making sure that my eyes never left my phone. Casually, I reached into the bag for another Cheezie, my fingers brushing against the neon orange powder coating the inside. "Keanu Reeves makes it look easy. I’m actually pissed that it hurt my hand. Like what the Hell... I didn’t expect that."

The silence that followed was thick enough to cut.

I could feel their eyes on me, tracking my movements, waiting for me to elaborate or correct myself. I didn’t. I just popped the snack into my mouth and kept watching the screen, letting the moment stretch until it became uncomfortable for them instead of me.

Sometimes the best lies were the short ones.

Jian Yuche shifted his position against the wall, his injured shoulder moving carefully as he adjusted his weight. His good hand came up to rest against his thigh, fingers tapping once, twice, then going still. "That’s interesting," he said slowly, his tone measured and deliberate. "Because the shot you took at Lu Chen hit him in the exact same spot mine did. Same shoulder. Same placement."

I shrugged, still not looking at him. "Stupid luck, I guess."

"Luck," Zhenlan repeated from his position near the window.

His voice was calm, almost conversational, but there was weight behind it... like it wasn’t the first time he equated me with luck. "Luck doesn’t account for consistency. You didn’t flinch. You didn’t hesitate. You raised the gun and fired like you’d done it a hundred times before."

I took another drink of coffee, letting the cold sweetness sit on my tongue for a moment before swallowing. "Maybe I’m just naturally talented," I offered with a shrug, my tone light and dismissive. "Some people are born with perfect pitch. I was born with perfect aim."

Chenghai leaned forward slightly, his elbows resting on his knees.

His eyes were focused, and way too analytical for my peace of mind. "The recoil on that gun isn’t negligible," he said quietly, his head cocked to the side. "You would have needed to adjust your aim, compensate for the weight, account for the kickback. You did all of that without thinking about it. That’s not talent. That’s training."

"Hidden genius arc?" I suggested, reaching for another Cheezie. The bag crinkled in my hand, the sound loud in the quiet room. "Character development and all that. Maybe I’m the main character in a drama and I never knew it until right this moment."

There was a soft snort before Lingyun’s voice cut through the conversation like a blade. "You didn’t hesitate."

I glanced up at him briefly, just long enough to meet his eyes before looking back at my phone. "You already said that." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"Because it matters," he replied flatly. His hand was still resting on the gun in his lap, his fingers loose but ready. "People hesitate the first time they point a weapon at someone. They freeze. They second-guess. You didn’t do any of that. You just pulled the trigger and hit what you were aiming at."

I ate another Cheezie, chewing slowly while I considered my response. The show on my phone continued playing, the dialogue washing over me in familiar waves. "Maybe I’m just really good under pressure," I said finally. "Some people panic. I thrive."

Jian Yuche’s eyes narrowed slightly, his jaw tightening as he studied me. "Where did you learn to shoot?"

"Too many movies," I replied without missing a beat while I balanced my phone between two neon orange fingers and shook it back and forth. "John Wick could drive a car without doors, down a highway AND shoot people between the eyes. I don’t even want to guess how many times I have watched that man kill people. Very educational. Do you think I can try killing someone with a pen next time? That seemed cool, too."

"How many times have you fired a gun before last night?" Chenghai asked, his tone still analytical but with an edge of persistence creeping in.

"Define ’before,’" I said, tilting my head slightly as if I were genuinely considering the question. "Are we counting video games? Because I’ve logged a lot of hours in Call of Duty, GTA, that stupid duck hunt game at one of my friend’s house. Not to mention there was all the YouTube videos. Those were actually interesting."

Zhenlan’s mouth twitched, not quite a smile but close. "I have known you your entire life. You have never once touched a video game, let alone a gun. When and where did you learn... and why?"

His voice sounded almost hollow, like he had somehow failed me. I looked at him then, holding his gaze for a moment longer than necessary. "No reason besides I wanted to fit in with some of the guys at school," I said simply. "If I ever wanted a boyfriend I figured I needed to learn how to play the games that guys liked."

Was I talking out of my ass?

Of course I was.

I never had time in my last life, nor did I have the money to buy video games, and I had no memories of this body before I took over to be able to match up my lie.

Hoping they would take the hint, I turned my attention back to my phone.

The room went quiet again. The men exchanged glances. It was clear that they didn’t believe me, but they also weren’t forcing the issue.

Finally, Yuche leaned his head back against the wall, his eyes still on me. "You’re not going to tell us, are you?"

"Tell you what?" I asked, my tone innocent and mildly curious. I reached into the bag again, pulling out another Cheezie and holding it up to the light like I was examining it. "I’ve been very forthcoming. John Wick. YouTube. Video games. Natural talent. What more do you want?"

"

The truth," Lingyun said bluntly.

I popped the Cheezie into my mouth to stop myself from scoffing at his entitled tone. When I finally swallowed, I set the bag down on the bed beside me and picked up my coffee, taking a long drink before setting it back down.

As far as I was concerned, the conversation was over. I wasn’t answering anything else.

They could keep asking questions if they wanted. I’d keep deflecting. Keep answering sideways. Keep giving them just enough to stay curious and not enough to be satisfied.

That was the game.

And I was very good at it.

No one spoke right away and the quiet held for another moment before Chenghai finally spoke, his voice low and even, not directed at anyone in particular but definitely changing the topic. "We can’t keep waiting," he grunted out. "And we can’t keep eating snacks... no matter what Rouxi thinks."

Zhenlan didn’t respond immediately, but when he did, his agreement came just as simply. "No. We can’t. We need food, but we also can’t leave Rouxi by herself. Three of us need to go into the kitchen, and one of us needs to stay here."

"Jian Yuche, Wei Lingyun and I will go after lights out. When they settle down for the night," Chenghai continued, already moving past the need for confirmation. "We can get to the kitchen quietly and get the supplies we need."

Zhenlan nodded his head in complete agreement and the other two men grunted yes.

I went back to watching my shows, trying not to roll my eyes.