Chapter 7: 7. New Big Brother Wu

The very first thing I did after I woke up was to race to the library. I didn’t have bus money, or directions, but it didn’t matter- the library was close by, and the streets were bustling. It was one in the afternoon-I overslept. I really felt like I would be run over at some point, especially since I wasn’t very tall, but somehow I made it through.

When I finally arrived at the library, some time had passed. It took me around thirty minutes to walk to the nearest one. Having bugged the policeman for several minutes about my town yesterday, I didn’t get lost in the slightest. I was happy to have safely arrived at my location.

It was a nice place. I snuck in behind one of the numerous parents going inside-I wasn’t sure if any identity authentication or documents were required. I had Grandma’s numbers memorized, but I doubted it would do any good. I hugged my backpack tightly to my chest.

I was in.

Libraries are great places filled with information. I gazed wondrously at all the large shelves filled with old books and dusty CDs. I looked at people using the tables and desks, sitting and reading. There were tons of people with backpacks like mine, jotting down notes on paper, doing things I had no idea of, and opening books. The sound of writing and clicking pens was all that could be heard.

I walked to the ‘Religion’ section first. As the shelves were all classified by number, I didn’t have a hard time. The books there were all thick and fat, just the way I liked them. Beautiful. Anytime my eyes felt drawn to a particular book, I opened it and checked its contents, however, there was little progress.

The next books I chose were two dictionaries, one in Chinese, the other in English.

“System.” I checked. There was a match, but the definitions weren’t very helpful. There were no mentions of disembodied voices. “Crafter : Someone who makes decorative objects with their hands, especially as a hobby.” It was as expected.

“World System,” I also checked. I found a definition, but I didn’t feel like that was quite what I was looking for. I could barely understand anything. “Apocalypse. Zombie.”

Now it felt like I was nearing a hit. Maybe. Did God really mean that the world was going to be overtaken by corpses revived by witchcraft in Africa and the Caribbean? It sounded only vaguely plausible, so I doubted it.

The library wasn’t as helpful as I had thought. I slumped in my seat, feeling tired. Was the apocalypse even coming? I wondered. Where would I find information on that subject? Were people aware of the apocalypse, and were they already preparing for it? I hoped so, though I wasn’t sure.

I closed both dictionaries. They had explained nothing to me, and now I was even more confused than before. I walked over to the librarian’s desk.

“Excuse me?” I asked as politely as I could. “I’m looking for books on how to survive a zombie apocalypse. Can you please help me?”

The man was busy arranging books. Hearing my voice, he turned around. He looked as if he swallowed something sour, I thought to myself. The man frowned.

“How old are you?”

I frowned in turn. “Why does that matter?”

“Aisle 2, Shelf 0034 and after is filled with light novels. You should find something zombie-related there, little girl.”

Aisle 2, Shelf 0034,” I memorized. Aisle 2 was on the far left side, so I would have to walk. A lot.

That aisle also happened to be filled with tons of people. It was by far the most crowded shelf in the entire library. I looked up and down to see books with the weirdest titles imaginable. Some even seemed offensive.

“The CEO’s Spoiled Sugar Baby,” I read. “Domineering Sword Emperor.”, “The School Goddess Asked me Out, Four Years Later I Ended Up with a Harem.”

What were these peculiar titles? Sugar Baby? Harem?

I found a book titled ‘Transmigrated to the Zombie Apocalypse.” The cover looked more playful than I imagined, however. Though the background situation of the novel was probably very serious, the book had two male characters staring into each other’s eyes. At the back was one of the male characters drawn in full figure. He was wearing very little clothing, and his chest was exposed. His face was colored red, as if he was angry, or embarrassed, for some reason I couldn’t fathom. Perhaps it was radiation, I speculated. Or overwork, or maybe it was just sunburn.

I opened the book, about to dive into the mysteries of the apocalypse, when I felt someone tap my shoulder.

I turned around. The person was very tall, with a slim but imposing figure, and eyes that looked like they could tear a hole through me.

I looked at my stepbrother quietly, curiously. His face stiffened. I had a feeling he wasn’t glad to see me. He looked down, towards my book, then made an expression as if he was wondering what life choices he had made to come to this point in life.

“What?” I asked him. “Do you need something?”

My brother hesitated. “Is that book ‘Transmigrated to the Zombie Apocalypse?” He asked quietly.

I checked the book title once more. It was.

“Yes.” I said.

“Are you reading that?”

“No.” I said. “But I am going to.” My brother’s face suddenly shifted from something between panic, confusion, and awkwardness. It wasn’t easy to figure it out. The man was too tall to see properly. Maybe my brother wanted the book too. Maybe he wanted to borrow it. I could give it to him afterward if that was the case.

My brother looked at me, then he looked at the book.

“How old are you?” He asked.

I beamed. It was the first time a family member had taken interest in me since Grandma died. “Eight.” I answered. “How old are you?”

Though my brother required my private information, apparently he wasn’t too keen on divulging his own information. It was rude, I thought, but what could you do about relatives? My brother looked at me quietly, then said, “And you’re reading this book?”

“Yes.” I said. I had already explained, yet he asked me again. This was getting annoying. “I need to research more about the potentially upcoming apocalypse. The one with the zombies.”

My step brother's face turned blank. “What?”

“The zombie apocalypse is coming after two years, so I need to prepare for it.”

Was it just me? I had a feeling my brother was doubting me.

“What is your name?” He asked.

“I’m Aby. I don’t know my last name yet, but since we’re family, it’s the same as yours.” I answered his question. My brother didn’t seem very happy. He looked sullen.

“It’s Wu.” He said after a while.

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I didn’t answer him. Wu Aby. That was a weird name, to be sure. Anyone who heard my name would never assume I was Chinese. But I couldn’t change my name. More than that, I didn’t want to.

“This book-” Brother Wu gestured to the book in my hands, “is not a real life story. It’s imagined. Fictional. For fun.” he looked at me carefully before saying, “Do you know what BL is?”

I shook my head.

Brother Wu immediately snatched the book from my fingers.

“I can always search words up in the dictionary.” I resisted stubbornly. Brother Wu looked at me as if I had just suggested a horrible idea.

“This book isn’t for children,” he said. “See? Thirteen plus.” Brother Wu pointed to the book cover. I shrank to the floor in my spot.

“So I can’t read it?” I asked numbly. “But I need to find a book on zombie apocalypses. I need to know how to survive or I may catch the virus, or fall to some other misfortune, and die miserably.” And not necessarily in that order, I thought silently.

Brother Wu looked to the sky, as if he was considering something, then sighed. His voice was filled with resignation as he spoke. “Forget it. I’ll help.”

I followed Brother Wu as he pranced through the library. He went to the kiosk and borrowed several books. I bounced alongside him, disarming my worries for just a while, curious on how he could help me with the supposed apocalypse. I wasn’t afraid of him scamming or kidnapping me. I was worth very little, and besides, he was seen right next to me when I exited the library. If he tried anything, he would be immediate suspect number one.

“So who told you about the zombie apocalypse?” Brother Wu said.

“God.” I said back.

Brother Wu raised an eyebrow. “I thought Grandma was Buddist.” he said it in a muffled breath, but I still heard him. To be honest? It was kind of weird hearing someone else call Grandma.

“Was she?” I said. “I had no idea.”

We soon arrived at a playground, filled with kids. Some were around my age, but I wasn’t sure. I looked down at my tanned skin, then saw the snow white skin the other kids had. I compared our hair, mine was platinum blonde, theirs were black. So different.

“Here.” Brother Wu said. He took out his electronic device before tossing it at me- it was his smartphone. On it was a Baidu search on ‘how to survive the apocalypse’.

“Wait!” I said, putting the phone back into his hands. “I need to get my notepad and pencil.”

I opened my backpack, took out some supplies, and started to write down the results. Brother Wu was quiet as I did so.

Astrophysist’s Guide to Doomsday Survival, Oh! I clicked on, ‘How to Cope with the Apocalypse, The Survival Guide.’

It was a long text about how apocalypses usually progressed. I wondered how the writer knew this information. Maybe this wasn’t humanity’s first apocalypse. I would need to dig around in the history section after this. I sighed. Maybe next week.

The text was divided into several groups.

The First Few Days, I read. Stock up on bottled water and canned food, and collect decent outdoor clothing. Well this didn’t seem to be too hard. I had been doing that before the apocalypse since I was a child, so no biggie.

Actually, what if I made a stockpile instead? What if I just gathered as many items as I could before the apocalypse in a safe location?

The First Few Weeks. View strangers with caution. Well, wasn’t that helpful advice? Of course people need to view strangers with caution. Even if it wasn’t the apocalypse, you would need to view strangers with caution. It was just a basic fact of everyday life that every child knew.

There would be no electricity, I read. So it would be like Grandma’s house in the countryside. Again, no problem. That stuff was expensive, anyway.

The First Few Months. Boil water before drinking to kill any pathogens. I jotted it down in my notebook. Alternative: use kitchen bleach or drink bottled water. Solar disinfection can also be an option. I wrote them all down. In other words, prepare a LOT of water prior to the apocalypse.

The First Few Years. Farming. I jotted down everything written in this area. Fertilization. Crop rotation. Nitrate, acid, phosphorus… I would need to learn how to farm, I thought in a daze. It wasn’t an issue of creating a stockpile. Food was a consumable, and more importantly, it would rot with time. I would need to secure a food source to replenish my supply.

Other than that, oil, a safe house, and a little chemistry would be needed. I jotted everything down. My head was starting to hurt.

“Done?” Brother Wu asked me, then, before I could answer, he yanked his phone away from my hands.

“I need to exercise.” I said. “And swimming, first aid, farming, and…” There was just so much to be done. And everything was so complicated, too. “I’ll need to implement an exercise routine as soon as possible.” My tiny self could never make it into the apocalypse in my current state.

Brother Wu made a cough, as if he accidentally choked.

I looked at Brother Wu enviously. More precisely, I looked at his arms. He was very big, I thought. He must exercise a lot. His arms were thicker than mine, and way longer, too. I touched his leg, and felt him up. Muscles, I thought. My arms and legs were way skinnier than his. Brother Wu stiffened, then kicked me away. I dodged.

It was a difficult dodge. I almost fell off the swing I was on.

“Big Brother Wu,” I said after a while, “Do you want to exercise together?”

The man blinked. “What?”

“Like jogging or something. I don’t have much experience, so…” I said it shyly. Big Brother Wu was smart, and he also knew the coming of the apocalypse. Judging from his calm demeanor, he probably also did plenty of research beforehand. Maybe he had his own secret stash and plans and everything.

I could piggyback on his success, I thought privately. As Grandma said: use whatever is in your vicinity. Brother Wu was in the vicinity. I should use him.

Big Brother Wu looked into the sunset. “No.” he said curtly. He shook his head. “Gotta stop reading those —--.” I blinked. I wasn’t able to hear the end part of his sentence.

“What?” I asked him.

Big Brother Wu didn’t say anything, instead he started to walk away. After observing him for a couple of seconds, I bounded off my swing to follow him.

It was five in the afternoon.

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