Haishi, torrential rain.
Chen Jianwei jolted awake from a nightmare. Outside the window, the rain was still pouring down in sheets.
The sky remained dark and overcast. As soon as Chen Jianwei unlocked her phone to check the time, she saw a message in the class group chat.
[@All Members Due to the heavy rain, classes for the entire school are suspended this afternoon]
With afternoon classes canceled, she could have gone back to sleep.
Yet Chen Jianwei lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. During her noon nap, she had dreamed a terrifying nightmare.
The nightmare had begun with a torrential rainstorm. On the night of a blood moon, a meteor descended, bringing with it an apocalyptic disaster.
Thinking back to the scenes in the nightmare, they were eerily similar to the current downpour.
A sense of unease gripped her. One moment, she worried that the rain might flood the dormitory, the next, she wondered whether the apocalyptic events from her dream would arrive after the rain stopped.
The alarm on the bed next to hers rang. Her roommate Luo Mushi reached out, turned it off, and began to get up with soft rustling sounds.
A minute later, Luo Mushi saw the class group message about class suspension and let out a scream like a squeaky toy.
“The school finally did something humane for once!” Duan Minmin muttered, who had just been about to get up, then flopped back down and continued sleeping.
Room 618 in Building 2 of Lanzhou Garden was a four-person dormitory, all of them students majoring in psychology.
Ying Ran, who served as the class life committee member, had gone to the fourth floor at noon to discuss class meeting activities with the class monitor and had still not returned.
After confirming that there were no afternoon classes, Luo Mushi and Duan Minmin went back to sleep. The sound of the rain made it even easier to drift off.
Only Chen Jianwei continued to toss and turn.
The rain kept falling, and the scenes from her nightmare replayed over and over in her mind.
Natural disasters. The end of the world…
If she said it out loud, no one would believe her. Instead, they would probably think she had some kind of delusional disorder.
Chen Jianwei pulled the blanket over her head, and the sound of the rain seemed to grow fainter.
Would there really be a blood moon tonight?
Would the meteor from her dream really descend?
Her mind continued to wander with these absurd questions, and then she began to think about how one would survive in an apocalyptic disaster.
But most likely, it was just an ordinary nightmare.
Unable to fall asleep, Chen Jianwei got out of bed and sat at her desk, turning on her computer. The latest news notification popped up.
[Haishi Meteorological Bureau: As of 14:00 on October 22, rainfall in Haitong District has reached 20 mm per hour. Citizens are advised to prepare for flood prevention in advance]
The world outside the dormitory had already blurred into a vast gray haze, like a scene from a movie where the apocalypse was arriving.
Her cursor moved to the search bar, and Chen Jianwei typed in the keywords “apocalypse survival guide.”
Natural disasters, tsunamis, zombies, diseases…
Different keywords appeared, along with survival guides compiled by netizens discussing apocalyptic scenarios.
“Home Survival Guide After a Zombie Outbreak”
“Natural Disaster Emergency Escape Guide”
“Apocalypse Shopping List”
…
Among the lists of household supplies, most recommendations were self-heating rice and self-heating hot pots.
Because once zombies appeared, water and electricity would most likely be cut off, and vegetables and grains would be impossible to cook. Clean water was essential for survival, and under such conditions, self-heating hot pots were more practical than instant noodles.
In addition, there were filling foods such as compressed biscuits, dried meats, and so on.
Natural disasters were one thing, but browsing through all this food made Chen Jianwei feel a little hungry.
At noon, she had only eaten a bowl of instant noodles. By evening, she was already craving a self-heating hot pot.
While she was staring at the computer in thought, Ying Ran, who had returned at some point without her noticing, silently drifted up behind her. “Apocalypse shopping list?”
“I just dreamed about an apocalyptic disaster,” Chen Jianwei said, resting her chin in her hand with a lifeless expression. “In the dream, there was this same kind of torrential rain, then a blood moon, meteors, and zombies.”
“This rain really is quite heavy,” Ying Ran said, looking out the window and sighing.
She mentioned that she had originally planned to play table tennis at the gym with classmates that evening, but now there was no way to go out.
Having a habit of hoarding like a squirrel, Chen Jianwei suddenly wanted to go out and stock up on food again.
There were still three packs of bagged instant noodles and two cups of instant noodles in the cabinet.
Since they occasionally cooked in the dorm, they also had firewood, rice, oil, and salt. Basically, they lacked nothing.
And in this heavy rain, it was impossible to go out anyway.
After waking up, Duan Minmin and Luo Mushi started playing an online game together.
Ying Ran set down her books after returning and also opened her computer to tinker with something.
The sounds of gaming and the rain blended together into a single background noise.
Chen Jianwei continued browsing the disaster survival guides. Around five in the afternoon, she noticed that the rain outside seemed to be gradually letting up. Perhaps they could still go out to the cafeteria across the street later to get some food.
At five in the evening, the rain stopped.
Ying Ran stretched her hand out from the balcony to check and asked everyone if they wanted to go to the cafeteria.
“You guys go ahead! Minmin and I haven’t finished this round yet,” Luo Mushi said, waving her hand.
Chen Jianwei did not feel like eating. Instead, she wanted to go to the Lanzhou Garden supermarket to buy a self-heating hot pot.
After seeing so many recommendations online, she wanted to try the highly praised beef self-heating hot pot.
“I’m going to the supermarket to buy something. Let’s go down together,” Chen Jianwei said, taking the umbrella hanging behind the door and heading out with Ying Ran.
The elevator for Building 2 of Lanzhou Garden was located near the staircase on the left side. To get there, they had to pass through the corridor.
As Chen Jianwei walked, she glanced at every dorm room they passed, feeling suspicious for no reason, as if a zombie might suddenly jump out from one of them.
“The flower beds downstairs are already flooded. If it rains again tonight, we’ll really have to pack up and evacuate,” Ying Ran said, looking out from the corridor with a sigh.
“There won’t be a blood moon tonight, right?” Chen Jianwei murmured thoughtfully.
Even after the rain had stopped, the sky remained a gloomy gray, covered in dark clouds.
There probably would not even be a moon tonight.
They parted ways downstairs at Building 2 of Lanzhou Garden. Chen Jianwei headed to the Lanzhou Garden supermarket across the street.
There were not many people in the supermarket on a rainy day. Chen Jianwei picked up a bottle of iced cola, then grabbed a box of beef self-heating hot pot from the shelf across from the beverage section.
After wandering around the supermarket, she also picked up a bag of egg rolls and a pack of sausages. After paying, she returned to the dorm with her haul.
Both Luo Mushi and Duan Minmin were the type who could not stop once they started gaming. When Chen Jianwei got back, they were still playing together.
Chen Jianwei did not really understand these mobile games, so she began preparing her self-heating hot pot.
The beef packet and the wet noodles inside the hot pot had a good texture. However, she did not like the vegetable packets that came with instant noodles, and this hot pot was no exception, so she set it aside unused.
She poured cooled boiled water into the noodle container until it covered the noodles, then placed the lime heating pack into the black outer box. After soaking the lime pack with cold water, she covered it with the lid.
Soon, bubbling sounds came from the hot pot container, and white steam began to escape from the vent holes.
Fifteen minutes later, when she opened the lid, a rich, spicy aroma rose up along with the steam.
Chen Jianwei gave the beef self-heating hot pot a five-star review.
The spicy hot pot flavor paired with ice-cold cola stimulated her taste buds in a very satisfying way.
After finishing dinner, Chen Jianwei went into the bathroom to take a shower. The warm mist of water helped her relax for a while.
“Ah Wei, want to play Monopoly? My Monopoly card set just arrived,” Duan Minmin called out after going out to get food and returning with a package.
Last week, they had played Monopoly on a mini program and felt it was not satisfying enough, so Duan Minmin had ordered a physical card set online.
By the time Luo Mushi came back with her food, Duan Minmin had already unpacked the set and spread the Monopoly board on the floor.
Monopoly was a great way to pass the time. The four of them went round after round on the board. Although the game was tense and evenly matched, everyone remained highly enthusiastic.
They also took turns going to shower. Feeling a bit hungry, Luo Mushi even cooked herself a fried egg and made egg noodles as a late-night snack.
The dormitory curfew at Haishi University was 11:30 p.m., and the students gradually prepared to go to bed.
Except for night owls.
Perhaps because they had slept too long during the noon break, none of them felt sleepy that night.
Room 618 remained brightly lit as they continued their Monopoly game until they practically bankrupted the game bank.
The next day was Thursday, and there were no early classes.
It was not until around one in the morning that Chen Jianwei went to wash her face and brush her teeth, then prepared to hang her damp towel on the balcony.
The moment she pushed open the balcony door, she felt an abnormal atmosphere.
The dark clouds had dispersed, leaving only a blood-red moon hanging in the sky.
A blood-red moon, as if dyed with fresh blood.
Torrential rain. Blood moon.
At that moment, her nightmare had become reality.
Burning streaks of light tore through the clouds, falling faster and faster toward the earth.
Chen Jianwei did not dare linger for even a second. She hurried back into the dorm, slamming the door shut as if something were chasing her.
“What’s wrong?” Luo Mushi had just set down her cup of water when she saw Chen Jianwei’s panicked expression and asked in surprise.
“I just saw the blood moon…” Chen Jianwei said, clutching her chest in fear. She quickly turned to Ying Ran for help. “Xiao Ran, you remember what I told you this afternoon, right? The heavy rain in Haishi, the night of the blood moon, and the falling meteor.”
Luo Mushi touched her own forehead, then Chen Jianwei’s. “You don’t have a fever.”
Ying Ran remembered that Chen Jianwei had been talking about apocalyptic disasters all afternoon. In disbelief, she pulled open the curtain and glanced outside. Sure enough, she saw the blood moon and meteors falling from the sky.
She had always been rational. Although she would not fully believe in things like zombie apocalypses or natural disasters, she would not completely dismiss them either. She searched online for information about the blood moon and meteor that night.
Duan Minmin and Luo Mushi, on the other hand, were simply curious and also went to the window to look outside.
“I’ve seen blood moons before, but they were always more orange-yellow. This is the first time I’ve seen such a true blood-red one,” Luo Mushi said, her face full of excitement, as if she had finally broadened her horizons. She found the phenomenon extremely shocking.
Duan Minmin, however, looked thoughtful. “I think this blood moon feels rather ominous. I’m going to do a tarot reading.”
Luo Mushi grabbed her. “Don’t do tarot readings in the middle of the night.”
Duan Minmin waved her off. “It’s fine. This celestial phenomenon will end by tomorrow anyway. If it’s ominous, then so be it.”
As psychology students, although they advocated for science, Duan Minmin was someone who liked everything except her major courses, and she was a bit of a mystical enthusiast.
Her two greatest hobbies were gaming and divination.
Seeing that Duan Minmin had already set up a six-pointed star spread on the table, Chen Jianwei curiously moved closer to watch.
Duan Minmin most often used a 1+3 card spread for readings. After shuffling the deck, she began asking questions and drawing cards.
The guiding card was [The Tower], upright.
The three cards were [The Chariot], upright, [Death], reversed, and [Ten of Swords], reversed.
As a devout believer in tarot, Duan Minmin’s mood instantly plummeted.
It was a pain like being pierced through by countless arrows.
“The apocalypse is coming. Everyone go wash up and sleep,” Duan Minmin said gloomily as she gathered the cards and called out to them.
Ying Ran had also found news reports about the blood moon and meteor.
“The meteorological bureau released news about the blood moon at ten tonight.”
“As for the meteor… thirty minutes ago, the observatory reported that a meteor entered the atmosphere at a speed of 12 kilometers per second. It is predicted to land in the sea about 200 kilometers from Yaobei District in Haishi.”
Chen Jianwei’s nightmare had come true.
Her roommates were now fully alert and asked Chen Jianwei to describe her nightmare in more detail.
T/N: If an apocalypse struck and you were stuck in a dorm with your friends, how would you survive?
I’m especially excited about this one since it has a different vibe from my usual projects. Hope you all like it!