Valerio didn't speak.

Danilo thought that he didn't believe him, so he raised his voice and said, "She even told me this morning to stay out of her way! And I've been keeping an eye on her door ever since. She never left."

Then, the sounds ceased outside my door.

It was a long time later before I heard Valerio's voice again. He sounded hoarse.

"Got it."

Danilo left afterward. Meanwhile, the entirety of my back was drenched in cold sweat.

A short while later, a thunderous banging on the door erupted at once.

"Gemma! You're in there, aren't you? I've been waiting all day out here! Why the hell are you pretending not to be home?"

Valerio's voice was completely devoid of the usual gentleness. Instead, he sounded urgent and even a little ruthless.

It was a massive hullabaloo outside my door.

Paolo wouldn't stop cussing me out. He was also the loudest of the bunch, and his words were very ugly and derogatory.

"What the hell? She's been playing us for fools, I see! How dare she not open the door for us when she was home the whole time? Who the hell does she think she is, looking down on us like that?"

"Bitches these days are rude and arrogant as hell," Quinto added.

"Watch as I go in and teach her a good lesson!" Paolo yelled again.

I retreated away toward the end of my hallway, my back firmly pressed against the wall as I stared at the metal door.

Just then, a strange sound suddenly came from the direction of the stairwell. It was sticky and sounded draggy. Every step was slow and hesitant, like something heavy was being dragged across the floor.

It was accompanied by the chilling sound of grinding teeth.

My blood ran cold.

The zombies were here, lured in by their commotion!

Danilo, who was just about to head up after going downstairs, bumped right into a zombie and immediately let out an ear-piercing scream.

There was then the sound of liquid splattering and bones shattering.

Lasagna trembled violently in my arms. I buried her head into my chest, covering her ears.

However, the sounds could still be heard.

"Damn it!"

Someone cursed outside the door. It was Paolo. "Boss! What should we do?"

"Shut up!" Marco's voice was still low and suppressed, but this time, I could hear the trembling in his voice.

Quinto didn't say a word, and neither did Valerio.

Then, the door was pounded on even harder and more desperately than before until it rattled and shook the whole apartment.

"Gemma Barletta! Open the fucking door!" Valerio screamed, his voice distorted as it was filled with fear and urgency. "You heard that sound just now, didn't you? Open the door and let us in!"

I still didn't move from my spot. I suddenly recalled all of the live comments I'd read earlier.

"She's dead as soon as she opens the door for them! Paolo will snatch everything he sees, Quinto will throw open all the windows to attract the zombies, and Marco will force her into giving up her supplies at knife point!"

"And when they eventually kill her dog in the end, that good-for-nothing Valerio will still be too damn scared to even make a peep!"

However, if I didn't open the door for them, all four of them would die outside my door.

"Gemma Barletta!"

Valerio pounded on the door again. "The zombies are right outside! You heard them! Hurry up and open the door!"

Paolo also threw his weight against the door, making the door shake and rattle even more loudly than before.

"Open the door! Open the door now! Those things are going to get us!"

"La Signorina," Quinto's low, threatening voice was heard through the door. "You heard what happened to the other guy just now. If you don't open the door, you're going to die right after us!"

They then stopped throwing themselves at the door and began targeting the door's weakest spot—the door lock.

They kept attacking the door lock now as it was the most likely to break first, and their hammering only grew louder and louder with each strike. The lock visibly began wobbling.

"It's working!" Paolo shouted. "This stupid lock won't hold anymore!"

"Move aside. Let me at it," Marco suddenly said, his voice sharp and forceful.

There was a muffled thud. The lock emitted a piercing metallic scraping sound, and I saw a thin sliver of light shining through the keyhole.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out down the hallway, and someone outside yelled angrily at them.

"What the hell are you all doing at Gemma's apartment?"