The Chef Rules the Last Days

"Senior, why don't you take a seat? I haven't chatted with Senior Sister Chu in a long time!" Su Mo said, gently pushing Mo Yan back without continuing the conversation.

"Alright, I'll take you back after this," Mo Yan agreed without objection, holding the popcorn and cola, and nodded at her affectionately.

The dim lights of the movie theater shrouded the area, and Su Mo, seated, could distinctly feel the low mood of the campus belle next to her. She pouted her lips, thinking, 'This will annoy you.'

This disturbance had dispelled her interest in the movie. She just sat there, unable to follow the plot, idly chewing on the popcorn, her cheeks puffed out like a hamster.

Midway through the movie, as the male and female leads were embracing, the screen suddenly froze, then the whole screen went black. The beautiful music stopped abruptly, and the entire theater was plunged into darkness except for a faint green glow from a few exit signs.

The crowd inside the theater instantly erupted into chaos.

"What's going on?"

"What happened? Where are the staff members?"

"...."

People turned on their phone flashlights for illumination, and Su Mo was no exception; she was startled by the sudden change.

"Mengyao, Momo!" Mo Yan immediately left his seat and walked to their seats with his phone light on. Before Su Mo could stand up to speak, the woman next to her got up and clung to Mo Yan's waist, her voluptuous body pressed tightly against him, her shoulders trembling,

"Mo Yan! I'm so scared, it's so dark here" she said with a faint sobbing noise, and he quickly comforted her in a gentle voice.

Su Mo sat next to them, taken aback, thinking, 'Can't this senior see through her act?'

"Let's go out and see what's happening," Mo Yan said, patting the person in his arms apologetically and turning to Su Mo.

She nodded; after all, there was no point in watching the movie anymore.

The theater doors were opened by the staff, and they followed the crowd out.

Strangely, it seemed like the entire cinema had lost power; the situation outside was hardly different from inside, with people everywhere using their phone lights for illumination.

Something seemed off. She walked to the window and looked out through the cinema's window at the sky, then glanced at the time on her phone. It was only showing three in the afternoon, but it had turned to night outside; where was the sun?

"Senior, Senior Sister, we should head out; it's already dark," she pointed out the dark sky to the couple hugging in front of her.

Her voice wasn't very loud, but nearby people who heard it turned their attention to the sky outside. From the large windows of the cinema, the whole city seemed to be devoured by darkness, with only sporadic lights piercing the overwhelming gloom.

A plump middle-aged man pressed against the window and pointed not far away, exclaiming, "There's been a major car accident over there."

The crowd began to grow restless, everyone pressing towards the window to see what had happened.

Bright flames flared up in the streets, and cries for help came one after another.

"Bang!"

"Bang, bang, bang!"

"Ah, help, someone help!"

The sound of cars colliding uncontrollably, many people injured and lying on the ground, activated the darkness and echoed through the sky.

The scene before them had left everyone stunned.

Why did all the cars seem out of control?

Everyone began desperately pushing outward, even the cinema staff set down their work, intending to go home and check on things. This was too frightening.

Su Mo and the others were no exceptions. She led the way, and as Mo Yan was half-supporting Chu Mengyao down the stairs, they both tumbled and ended up breaking Chu Mengyao's foot.

"Are you okay?" Mo Yan quickly helped up the person who couldn't stand, and Chu Mengyao, in pain, couldn't speak but just shook her head with teary eyes.

Su Mo looked back, rolled her eyes, and kept walking down.

Once outside the cinema, the streets were completely chaotic, the pristine roads now littered with car wreckage and red flames shooting skyward.

Mo Yan, holding Chu Mengyao, stood outside the cinema and said to Su Mo, "Momo, come back to Southern University with me; it's safer to stay in the dorm."

"Yeah, Momo, you should come with us. You can sleep with me," Chu Mengyao said, her eyes red and voice trembling.

Su Mo shook her head and waved her hands to indicate that she could go home alone. "You and Senior Sister should hurry up and go. I'm only about ten minutes away from home by foot; I'll walk back."

Mo Yan was about to say something else when Chu Mengyao in his arms suddenly cried out in pain, and then, rolling her eyes back, fainted.

"..." Su Mo felt she owed the campus belle a cup of Biluochun tea. She raised her phone and reassured Mo Yan, "I'll definitely call you if something comes up, Senior, you better go quickly."

With no other choice, Mo Yan could only hoist Chu Mengyao across his shoulders. "Be careful then, and call me once you get home."

"Okay"

Once the two had walked far enough, Su Mo turned and left.

Clutching her small handbag to her chest, she kept her head down and jogged, trying not to attract attention. Now that traffic was paralyzed, she had to be cautious on her way home.

Along the way, she didn't know how many car accidents she saw, and the sight of human limbs only made her shudder more; she was just hoping to get home and bury herself in her blanket.

"Help, help me please, sister, save me".

A cry for help sounded not far away; Su Mo, walking with her head down, initially didn't plan to respond, but the woman kept begging her.

"Save my child."

"Sigh", she finally stopped, squinting towards the source of the sound by the light of the fire; it was a military vehicle with a red letter on the license plate.

The vehicle was overturned and burning, with a pregnant woman inside, judging by her belly, at least seven or eight months along.

After a moment, Su Mo approached the vehicle and shouted, "Hang in there, I'm calling for rescue." She hurriedly dialed the emergency number, but the reply from the other end was a constant busy signal.

As the fire continued to grow larger, it was clear that if nothing was done, the woman would be in danger.