Chapter Text
Seoul, South Korea – 2019 – September, a month since the outbreak
The aisles had been emptied of all the supplies. There was nothing left anymore. Jeon Jungkook sighs as he eyes the shelves that were already collecting dust. The store, which was close to their house, had run out of supplies. He should've taken everything when he still could. His backpack is empty, and he hates going home empty-handed.
His mother was against him leaving home anyway, but if he didn't do it, they would die, he and his parents. They were staying at his parents' place. His dad and he had boarded the windows, and the front and back doors had multiple padlocks. The electricity was still running because of the backup generator, but who knows how long that will last?
Jungkook knew they had to move at some point, and he'd rather move now than wait longer. Their neighbourhood had emptied, and now it was just them left. Some of the families had left with their cars, and some had been attacked by the monsters. They were dead people. He called them walkers. There was a newscast on the day when it happened. There were videos of these monsters attacking people on the street. They had told everyone to evacuate or keep their doors shut. The military would arrive. They still haven't arrived.
The monsters had grey, pale skin, and it looked like it was melting. The hair was falling out, and their eyes had lost all signs of life and soul. They had a row of rotten teeth in their mouth that were letting out horrible gurgling noises. They bit people and ate their flesh. That's how it spread. Might be other ways it spread, too. Maybe scratches, but Jungkook isn't going to find out. He thinks this is because of a failed lab experiment, but nobody knows for sure. Some people suspect a disease that originates from animals. But what kind of animal spreads a zombie disease?
When a person gets bitten, the disease takes over their brain. Jungkook had learnt that the hard way when the old couple from their neighbouring house got attacked. He had seen through the window how they had been knocked down by five walkers, and had their intestines pulled out as food.
He also learnt that a person will turn if one doesn’t eliminate the brain. He had watched the couple get up after a while, with huge holes in their stomachs. They started to aimlessly wander around the yard, gurgling, searching for food.
Jungkook leaves the store empty-handed and returns home with nothing. It's afternoon, and he doesn't want to go further away because he hasn't cleared the other stores. He carries his crossbow with him. His father had forced him to learn some weaponry hobbies, and 15-year-old Jungkook had chosen the crossbow. He had also been forced to learn martial arts, more specifically taekwondo. He was good at both, but it didn't mean he wanted to do either. Now, however, both of them were good skills to have. It should've never come to this, still.
He knocks twice, pauses, and knocks twice again. It was their secret knock, and that's how they knew that it wasn't a stranger. The door is opened by his mother, who looks relieved to see her son. "Jungkookie, thank God!"
"I'm always alright, Mom." Jungkook swats her hand away from his face. "Don't worry about me."
"What did you get?" His dad's voice is heard from the living room where he's sitting with a rifle in his hands. Jungkook walks slowly in the living room, and his heart beats faster.
"I..." he starts, and can see his father's eyes get angrier when he's not taking out the stuff from his backpack. "It was empty. I got nothing."
His father gets up and leaves his rifle on the armchair. He's standing in front of his son, who looks scared. Jungkook's father raises his hand and brings a harsh slap to the side of Jungkook's face. Jungkook drops down to his knees and holds his face. He feels his mother press against him and caress his back. He hears her pleading for her husband to stop, but it's all muffled. Jungkook's ear is ringing. His mother gets up and tries to calm his father, but the man pushes the woman down to the floor. That's what gets Jungkook to jump up and slam a fist against his father's face.
He's never fought back, but he figures, at this point, what the hell. He's soon pushed against the wall with his father's hands around his neck. He feels himself being pushed up, and he can't feel the floor underneath his feet. He's gasping for air and trying to pry his father's hands away. His mother is yelling.
They're making way too much noise, but Jungkook is only focused on getting out of the grip. He starts kicking and manages a knee to his father's crotch. Jungkook drops to the ground, and his father lets out a yell. Jungkook coughs a few times and holds his neck. He gets up, teary-eyed, and grabs his backpack.
"I wish you were dead," he croaks out and feels the need to cry, tingle his throat. He leaves the house even though he hears his mother's pleas not to go. The woman is insane for staying with the mentally ill man. People like that shouldn't be fathers.
He goes back to the store where he always goes, and as he's sure there's still no one there, he leans against the back wall and slides down. His knees feel bruised, and the left side of his face still stings, and his ear feels stuffy. He brings his hand to it and concludes the eardrum hadn't popped because it's not bleeding. He lets himself cry then. Tears flow down his cheeks, which are flushed red with anger and embarrassment.
How could he have let his father always hit him? Why hadn't he hit back? He brings his knees to his chest and rubs them to ease the pain. His neck feels sore, and it's pulsating with red heat. He pulls down his loose T-shirt as he feels the panic and anxiety surrounding his chest.
He breathes out slowly and steadies his breath. He does that a few times until he feels better. He doesn't get up but instead sits on the cold floor of the supermarket. He can see outside from behind the shelves. It's empty, and the sun is throwing rays through the clouds. One of the rays reflected from a car's side mirror inside the store and into Jungkook's eyes. He shuts them and imagines the warmth on his face, almost feeling it. He relishes it for a moment and wraps his light windbreaker tighter around him.
It's only when the sun has set that Jungkook gets up and heads back home. He doesn't want to face his father, but he can't leave his mother behind. Maybe they could run away from the man at night. He smiles at the idea of leaving his dad behind. He could manage on his own. He's a good shooter and a fighter, so he'll do fine.
When Jungkook can finally see their house, his stomach drops when the door is wide open. His mouth feels dry, and his pace quickens. He's soon in front of the door, and suddenly he can't walk anymore. He doesn't want to find out what's inside. He swallows a lump down his throat as he calls out to his mom. There's only silence in response, and Jungkook can only see the empty hallway in front of him. He steps inside the house and walks quietly until he looks into the living room.
There lie his parents' bodies as two walkers pull chunks from their necks and stomachs. His mother's body is closer to him. She has a chunk missing from her neck as the walker is eating her insides. Her face is bloody, but her eyes are open, and it's as if she's staring straight into Jungkook's eyes. His father is next to his armchair, and the rifle is still in his hand. The other walker is also pulling out intestines and eating them. He can hear the wet sounds of his parents being devoured.
His hands shake, and the walkers sense his presence. They turn to him, and the gurgling fills the room as they reach towards Jungkook. He lets out a pained cry when he stabs the walker that was on his mom through the eye. The other is coming from behind the first and is kicked back by Jungkook. He pulls the knife out and stabs the remaining walker.
Now there are four bodies on the ground. He falls to his knees beside his mother and sobs. His eyes are already puffy from crying out before, and now he has to do it all again. His head throbs as he grabs his mother's shirt and squeezes it. He drops his head against her forehead and lets his salty tears drop on her face. The tears leave trails in the bloody canvas.
"I'm sorry, Mom," he tries to whisper, but it comes out as a cry. He grabs the knife and leaves a kiss on her forehead. He feels the wetness of the blood transfer to his lips. He lifts the knife above her head with both hands. He's biting his lower lip as he tries to find the courage to stab his mom's brain. He has to do it because he's not watching her turn into one of the monsters. His whole body is shaking, and he lets his hands drop to his thighs as he cries weakly. "I can't do it..."
He strokes his mother's cheek with his hand and looks desperately at her body, which is covered in blood and black gunk. He brings his eyes back to his mother's face and smiles a little. And without thinking, he pushes his knife from the side of her head, and chills run down his spine when he feels the bone crunch through the knife. He pulls it out, and blood oozes from her temple. He turns to his father with a cold gaze. His smile drops, but he's still crying. He crawls to him and lets his anger build up.
"You did this," he says sternly as he lifts the knife with both his hands and smashes it down with force right in the middle of his face. He brings it back up and repeats the process. "You did this!" His voice grows, and he cries aloud as he keeps stabbing his father's face.
Blood is gushing out, and it splashes on Jungkook's face. He keeps stabbing until the face is beyond recognition. One of the eyeballs is lolling on the side and hanging by a blood vessel. Everything else is just a bloody and fleshy mess. Jungkook sighs and relaxes to sit on his heels. He drops the knife and brings his hands to his face. He can smell the blood on his hands and looks down at them. They're covered in blood, and he can feel the blood on his face, too.
He gets up shakily and walks to the bathroom, nearly jumping at his reflection. He doesn't recognise himself. He hurriedly puts the faucet on and rinses his hands thoroughly, and then rubs the water against his face. The water is red when it goes down the drain. After a while, he's clean enough and he can't stay any longer in that house.
He grabs all the necessary items and shoves them into his backpack. This includes the remaining canned foods, all the medical supplies they have, a hoodie, and a thicker coat. He gives one last glance at his parents on the floor before leaving the house for good.
✦•··✦··•✦
Somewhere in South Korea – 2020 – September, a year since the outbreak
"Can I try that?" Jungkook asks as he sits on the couch while stretching his legs on the coffee table. He looks at his friend, Min Yoongi, who's practising his katana skills. The older man stops and looks at Jungkook warily.
"You know how to use one of these?"
"Well, no," the younger one shakes his head and gets up. "That's why I want to try it. Can I?"
Yoongi shrugs and hands the sword to the man. Jungkook carefully grabs the handle and makes sure there's space around them in the small cabin they're in. Yoongi takes a few steps back and crosses his arms. Jungkook's eyes glimmer with excitement, and he swishes the sword in front of him. He smiles and does it again. Then he does it one-handed. Then he tries his left hand. Then he spins it around on his side by the handle. Then he turns to Yoongi and is expecting praise. The older one just rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "You done?"
"Where did you get this again?"
"Stole it," Yoongi replies and reaches his hand to take back his property. "Found this museum-type of place where they stored all kinds of old stuff. I suppose it's authentic."
"Authentic or not, it works." Jungkook nods and hands the katana back. "So you learnt all that during this?"
"No, I knew this before."
"Why don't you carry around on your own then?"
"It broke pretty fast when it all began. It wasn't that expensive, so it was probably made for enthusiasts who play pretend with swords."
"Like you?"
"Sure." Yoongi smiles a little.
Jungkook smiles back and sits down on the couch. "I guess we should keep moving tomorrow."
Yoongi makes an agreeing sound. They had been staying in that cabin for a few days now.
Jungkook had run into Yoongi when he was at his worst. It was months after he had run away from home. He stayed in the city, which was the most dangerous place you could stay. Walkers were everywhere, and there was almost no cover unless you went to the top floors of the skyscrapers. Jungkook, however, had stayed on the ground floor and was staying in a small ramen restaurant when Yoongi found him.
Jungkook had a cut on his arm that had gotten infected. He was hungry and thirsty and was lying on his side on the floor behind the counter. It was a miracle that Yoongi had found him because Jungkook probably wouldn't have lasted another day. Yoongi had made it better, wrapped his cut, given him water, and a protein bar. He had helped him up and dragged him out of the store, holding him with one arm. With his other hand, he was stabbing the few walkers with his sword. He had put Jungkook in his car, which he had jump-started only a moment prior. Jungkook was back to himself a week later. After that, they had stuck together.
They didn't have a destination, but they kept on the move. They were sure there was a community somewhere.
✦•··✦··•✦
Somewhere in South Korea – 2022 – July, two and a half years since the outbreak
They had found a community indeed led by Lee Sungho, a 35-year-old man. Jungkook wasn't usually afraid of anything, but Sungho made his skin crawl with uneasiness. The community lived in an area which was surrounded by tall walls. They had guards on the wall every minute of every day and night. Inside the walls were houses, like actual houses. They had a street and even vegetation just for decoration.
Jungkook and Yoongi had moved here a couple of months ago when Sungho's team had found them in the forest. They weren't in a bad way, but they took them in anyway. They weren't exactly forced to leave, but they didn't say they were free to leave. So, they stayed. Now they were looking for other people. Sungho said he wanted to save the people and make his community bigger.
Jungkook and Yoongi had stumbled upon a factory. They were hiding behind some bushes and trees and watching closely the people going in and out. Some guards were standing in the yard with rifles. Jungkook thinks the place looks like a good camp. There are crops in the yard, and the fence looks secure. There are even kids playing outside near the doors.
"They look to be doing fine," Yoongi whispers. "Do you think Mr Lee wants to know about them too?"
"Probably. Maybe we could trade with them or connect our camps?"
"Maybe." Yoongi doesn't look sure and keeps looking at the factory.
Jungkook can see a man with dark hair holding a rifle against his chest. His dark hair is past his ears, and he has a T-shirt sticking against his torso. He has light cargo pants on, and the sunlight is reflecting from the machete that's hanging on his belt. He can't see the man's face because he's far away. He turns his face towards where Jungkook and Yoongi are hiding, and Jungkook quickly gets down. He waits to see if he has seen them, but nothing happens.
They wait one more hour before returning to their community.
✦•··✦··•✦
"There's a factory with people living in it, Mr Lee," Jungkook informs Lee Sungho, their leader. "It's maybe an hour walk from here, so with cars it's...about thirty minutes maybe?"
Sungho nods and walks around the table in his office and getting close to Jungkook and Yoongi, who have their hands behind their back.
"Good work," he simply says and brings his hand to flick the younger's chin. Jungkook pulls back a little and looks somewhere behind the taller man. He then quickly brings his eyes back to Sungho's eyes and gives a small smile, steps back and bows at a ninety-degree angle. When he gets back up, he glances at Yoongi, who looks back at him with a puzzled look.
"Sir, what are you going to do with that information?" Yoongi asks and turns back to Sungho, who has returned to sit behind his desk. He brings his elbows to the table and laces his fingers together.
"They have armed men?" he asks, not responding to Yoongi's question.
"Yes. We saw at least five different men and two women. All of them were armed. There are children, too," Yoongi replies.
"I'm going to help them," Sungho states after a while. "Our community is more secure than their factory. We could use the factory for something else."
"Like what?" Jungkook asks. "Sir," he quickly adds.
"Like extra harvesting," he shrugs, and both Jungkook and Yoongi can sense the insincerity in his voice, but don't question the older man.
They bow when Sungho dismisses them, and they let out a breath once they're standing outside of his office.
"Is he for real?" Jungkook whispers when they're walking the long corridor. "I get the sense he's...not as good as he might say?"
"Maybe it's good to have those people here..." Yoongi suggests. "I mean, I'm not sure about his intentions, but trust is all we've got these days. If you don't trust anyone, then everyone is your enemy."
"What if this goes to shit?"
"Then we do what we have always done. Survive."
✦•··✦··•✦
Somewhere in South Korea – 2022 – September, three years since the outbreak
Before a thing like running was a mundane form of exercise. Now it means survival. If you can't run, you die. If you can't run, then you have to fight. If you can't do either, you might as well kill yourself. Rather than being ripped apart by rotten, stinky teeth. Things like killing didn't faze anyone anymore. That was the new mundane.
Kim Taehyung stares as the walker gets closer from behind the trees. Its gurgling was noticeable a while ago, and he had just decided to wait for it instead of looking for the pathetic undead. It speeds up its pace when Taehyung whistles shortly. He sighs and puts his weight on his other leg as he grabs hold of his machete's red handle. He pulls it out of the socket and spins it around a couple of times until the walker is close enough, and Taehyung smashes the machete straight on top of its head.
The walker stops moving and collapses to the ground as he pulls the weapon out. Taehyung grimaces as dark blood oozes out from the wound. He can see the brain. Taehyung wipes the now bloody machete against the walker's ripped shirt. The sun is warming Taehyung's already tanned skin, and he feels sweaty. His T-shirt is sticking to his body, and it's a bit wet from the sweat. His loose cargo pants were airy, and he felt glad that some of his clothes weren't clinging to him for dear life.
Behind the trees, Taehyung can see their base camp come into view. They had cleared an old factory which had a lot of space inside, fields outside for harvesting and a fence went all around the property. They had made the fences better with metal sheets and wooden planks. It had held up great, and Taehyung is grateful every day that the walkers can't climb.
Though he knows that at some point they're due to a mutation which gives them some new strengths, whether it's climbing or jumping or running or, god forbid, the ability to think. That wouldn't make them people, though. Taehyung would still blow their brains out without a second thought.
He's soon standing on the other side of the fence. He waves at Park Jimin, who's on the other side of the fence. The man smiles and finds the keys in his jacket pocket and opens the gate for Taehyung.
"Find anything good?" He asks as he tugs a few black strands of hair back under his dark blue beanie.
He's holding a rifle, and a handgun is hanging on his belt. He also has a sturdy knife stuffed through his belt. Jimin never takes chances and always carries a reasonable weapon. Even the first interaction they had had began with Jimin holding a gun against his head.
Taehyung was on a run with Kim Seokjin, his best friend, even from before, and they were looting an empty pharmacy. They hadn't even heard Jimin creep up to them until he cocked the gun and pressed it against Taehyung's temple. He hadn't said anything. He was just staring at Taehyung with intense eyes. He was covered in blood, not his, though. Taehyung had turned around, so his forehead was now pressed against the cold object. They just stared at each other until the smaller one had spun the gun around his finger and stuffed it in his holster, which was hanging on his belt. Since that day, they had been together, the three of them. That was until they met the others.
"Few canned goods. A couple of knives. Thought I could start showing others how to use them," Taehyung says and stuffs his hands in his pockets. "Hoseok around? Got also some gauze."
"Infirmary," Jimin states and nods as if to say goodbye to the other man, and begins eyeing their surroundings while gripping the rifle.
Taehyung continues his way inside the factory, which he now calls home. He passes by some children playing by the front door as their parents keep a close eye on them, a little further away. Taehyung nods to them too, and they reciprocate the action. He pushes the doors open and is met with the warmth against his cold skin. He didn't realise how cold he was until he was back inside. There's a hallway in front of him, which has faded grey walls which have a few paint cracks. It's not a homely welcome, but Taehyung ignores it. He walks through the hallway and opens another door, which leads to an opening. They had scavenged a few couches and chairs, even a carpet to make it more comfortable. He finds Kim Namjoon sitting on the couch with Jin.
Namjoon had unofficially taken the role of the leader. He was good at it, and people liked and trusted him. That's all they needed. Taehyung was sure he had been some kind of leader before and had asked what Namjoon had done before all this. 'I was a barista at a deadbeat cafe which was going under,' he had laughed. Namjoon knew how to fight, he knew how to lead, and he always made the right calls. He had offered if Taehyung would like to lead with him, but he had passed on the opportunity. He couldn't have so many people trusting his decisions. Taehyung acted on impulse, and sometimes the outcome was good, but sometimes it had proven to be disastrous. Taehyung was a fighter, not a leader.
Jimin, Jin and Taehyung had met Namjoon at their worst. They had been starving and without shelter for almost two weeks. The only liquid they had was dirty water from a nearly dried-out stream. Namjoon had been with a few others on a run when they had run into the three men. Namjoon, without a doubt, took them under his wing, and Taehyung never questioned why he did that. They could've killed Namjoon and his friends, and they were still taken care of. Namjoon had said it was plain and simple. As long as people do good things for other people, there's still humanity left. Taehyung knows Namjoon has done some terrible things to stay alive, but he doesn't let that fact ruin him. He's a good person, and Taehyung would trust his life with him.
"Kim!" Namjoon hollers and gets up from the couch. "How's it looking out there? I was worried about you going alone today. Everything was okay?"
"Yeah," Taehyung simply says. "Don't gotta be worried about me."
"I know. But I am," Namjoon places his hand on Taehyung's shoulder. "You're irreplaceable. I saved some dinner for you."
Taehyung thanks the taller man and nods to Jin, who smiles. Taehyung walks towards the door that leads to the kitchen. It was a break room before, but all the necessary things are there.
"Is he okay?" He hears Namjoon ask Jin. The candles light up the dark hall. "He's cold."
"He's always cold. Well...he wasn't before, but this changed him. Who would stay the same during all this shit show?" Jin contemplates quietly. "I wouldn't worry yet."
"He doesn't talk much anymore. Just a few words. I don't think I've seen him smile...well...since we met," Namjoon continues.
“Taehyung was always closed up. We're only friends because our moms were friends. Otherwise, I'm pretty sure he'd be alone."
"That's sad."
"I know."
Taehyung purses his lips and pushes the kitchen door open.
✦•··✦··•✦
Taehyung's eyes snap open when he wakes up late at night to the sound of cars pulling up outside. He's immediately alert because the sound of cars is a sign of something dangerous nowadays. He peeks out of his dirty window and can see at least five cars parked on the other side of the fence, their lights on. He can see figures standing in front, and he's out of his room before he can think. The others had woken up, too, because the hallway was filled with their people. He sees Namjoon, who's telling the non-fighters to stay behind. He motions to Taehyung to follow him. He does, and they're soon joined by Jin and Jimin. They all have their weapons out.
The night guards are already pointing their guns at the strangers. Overall, there are about ten of them outside, while the ones outside the fence have at least twenty people pointing guns right back.
"What do you want?" Namjoon yells and walks a bit closer to the fence, but keeps a safe distance.
"I came to help!" A man replies from behind the fence. Taehyung can't see well in the darkness, but figures he's the leader.
"You're pointing guns at us! Doesn't seem like it will help me."
The other man chuckles. "You're right. This doesn't have to end badly. Just surrender."
"What do we get in return?" Namjoon asks, but Taehyung knows he's not even considering surrendering.
"You get to live!" the man yells, and Taehyung can hear the grin in his voice. "You see, we want your factory."
"For what?"
"Crops, walker storage...prison cells..." The man shrugs.
This won't end well.
"Doesn't sound like a good deal to me."
"Living doesn't sound like a good option?" The man shows fake confusion. "Well, there's always the other option."
The man snaps his fingers, and shots are fired. Taehyung immediately takes shelter behind a wall. Jin and two women are next to him. They're all looking at Taehyung, who looks just as clueless. He looks back at the yard and sees Namjoon on the ground. His anger rises, and he readies his gun.
"How about now?" the man yells, and Taehyung looks over on the opposite side of the yard where Jimin and the rest of their fighters are.
He nods to them, and at once they're all in the open again and shooting their guns at the intruders. They're caught off guard, and most of them immediately fall to the ground. And Taehyung doesn't stop shooting until he doesn't see any movement anymore. He holds his hand up to stop the fire, and when he's sure there's no movement, he runs to Namjoon.
Three women and two men run to the fence to check the intruders and finish off the job. Taehyung, Jin and Jimin are kneeling next to Namjoon, who had been shot in his side. He's grunting a little, and all of them sigh in relief when he's alive.
"We're gonna get you inside, okay?" Jin assures and wraps his arm carefully around Namjoon's side. Jimin does the same, and Namjoon lets out a long groan as he's back on his feet.
"Hoseok will patch you right up!" Jimin smiles, and they help their leader inside.
Taehyung makes sure they get inside, and once they're safe, he goes to the others who are pushing their knives through the skulls of the corpses. Taehyung goes to the leader and looks at him closely. He had been shot in his chest, his head and his leg. He smiles as he sees the man lying dead. He makes sure he stays dead when he bashes his machete through the man's face.
✦•··✦··•✦
The next night, Taehyung zips up his dark green jacket, and he feels the dried-up blood on his collar. It scratches his neck, and he rubs his hand there and tries to pick the blood off the collar. He gives up and grabs his rifle and heads out. He heads out into the cold night and releases Jimin from his shift. Taehyung always takes night shifts because he's always been a night person. He likes the quiet. Even though now even the daytime is quiet but at night even the birds shut up.
Taehyung likes to look at the stars, and he likes to be able to see the Milky Way because of the lack of light pollution. He doesn't think anyone in South Korea has seen the starry sky because of the lights. Now it was dark and quiet. Times like that, Taehyung feels slightly grateful for the outbreak, but he doesn't say it aloud.
He climbs up to the guard tower and takes a slow perimeter check. His eyes adjust to the darkness fast, but he still has a flashlight just in case. He also has a walkie-talkie, which connects to everyone who has one. Those include Namjoon, Jimin and Jin. Jung Hoseok doesn't have one. If shit goes down, he needs to stay back because he's the only doctor for now. He was a medical student when the shit hit the fan, but it's enough in a world like this. Hoseok belonged to Namjoon's group. If it weren't for Hoseok, Taehyung would've probably died because of an infected wound, which he had gotten from a rusty pipe while trying to break into a car.
His thoughts are interrupted by the leaves rustling somewhere on the edge of the forest. He immediately lifts the rifle to his eye and looks through the scope. He scans the edge of the forest. He sees nothing. He opens his other eye and looks with both eyes without blinking. He waits for movement or a sound.
Until there's both.
He sees something dark move, and the bushes are rustling close to the front gate. Taehyung aims the rifle and waits to see what it is. Then suddenly, a face pops into his view. A pale face among black clothes. His breath hitches, and his heartbeat quickens.
He silently gets down from the guard tower while keeping an eye on the stranger. He can't make out if he's carrying weapons. His clothing is way too dark to tell anything apart. Taehyung swings the rifle by its strap against his back and brings his handgun in front of him, finger on the trigger. The stranger is already out of the bushes and is now looking at the factory, not noticing Taehyung getting closer to the gate.
"Stop or I'll shoot," Taehyung warns, and he can see how the stranger flinches and goes to reach something on his belt. "Uh-uh!" Taehyung stops him.
The other one stops and brings his arm out slowly in front of him. He holds them up. Taehyung can't make out his features. But he can now tell that he was reaching for a gun that's on his belt loop.
"You have five seconds to leave, or you're dead."
"Wait!" the man says and sighs heavily. "We mean no harm."
" We? "
"It's just me and him," the man says and waves his hand, so the man behind the bushes gets up slowly, holding his arms up.
Taehyung looks the man up and down, but brings his eyes back to the first man.
"What are you doing here? How did you find us?" He asks, keeping his distance.
"The people yesterday..." The man starts but doesn't get to finish because Taehyung is stomping towards the gate, anger in his eyes.
"You're one of them!?"
"No, we...Yes, we were with them, but we're not like them. We didn't know they would do that," the other man speaks up. His voice is deeper than the first man's.
Taehyung looks at the men. They look his age. Both of them are wearing dark clothing. The first man has a crossbow hanging by a strap on his shoulder, and Taehyung also makes out a belt where a knife is hanging. The moonlight illuminates his pale face. It's the only thing he can clearly see in the dark. The other man has a katana hanging by a strap against his back, but he's holding a gun next to his thigh, finger on the trigger.
"You! The gun!"
The man quickly looks down at his hand, which is gripping the gun and lets out a breathy laugh. He loosens his grip and shows Taehyung that he's putting it back in the holster. "Force of habit."
"Not my call if you can stay here," Taehyung sighs after a while of staring and pointing the gun. He goes to open the gate, but keeps an intense eye contact with the man closer to him. His face is dirty, and there's a healing cut on his left cheek. "But if it were, I'd shoot you right here right now."
As the gate is open, Taehyung tells them to close it again.
"Drop your weapons," Taehyung instructs and flicks his gun towards the ground to point. "Now or you'll eat lead."
The men look at each other and nod shortly. They remove their weapons slowly and put them carefully on the ground. Taehyung's brows twitch while looking at the crossbow, impressed. He flicks his eyes back to the men. He gets behind them and pokes the gun against the back of the other one's head. He starts walking, and Taehyung can hear the air coming out of his nose.
"That really necessary?" the man asks with a breathy laugh.
"All the more necessary if you keep talking." Taehyung grinds his teeth and watches closely as the two men walk in front of him.
They walk past the cars from yesterday, which they had driven inside the gates because the others wouldn't need them anymore.
They reach the dimly lit hallway. Taehyung goes to close the door, but before he can do that, he feels his arm being pushed against the wall, and the gun drops from his hand.
The crossbow's owner had pressed his whole body against Taehyung's hand and is now swinging his right fist towards his face. Taehyung feels the pain in his cheekbone, and anger builds up. He bends down and wraps his arms around the slightly shorter one's waist. He pushes him down, landing on top of him.
He can hear the other man yelling something, but is too focused to care. He's probably telling them to stop. He's not going to.
Taehyung scrambles to his knees and sits on top of the other one's thighs. He gets two swings against the man's face until they're flipped, and now Taehyung is back against the cold floor with the other man sitting on top of him. He feels the man's freezing hands wrap around his neck, but before he can do that, Taehyung groans out and pushes them.
The other man lands on his stomach, and Taehyung is a few inches behind him on his ass. The man gets on his hands and knees, but Taehyung is already wrapping his head in a headlock. The man tries to reach for Taehyung's gun, which had dropped, but he can't reach it. Taehyung smiles in triumph.
He's not holding the man for long when he feels the back of the man's head collide with his nose. Blood gushes out of his now aching nose. Taehyung yells in pain, and he feels the man slip out from under him. His vision is getting blurry, and he grabs the other one's ankle before he gets to escape.
Taehyung is furious and grabs his knife from his belt. He reaches towards the man and slashes in every direction. He feels the knife make contact, and the other man yells and groans.
The man kicks his ankle and hits Taehyung's shoulder. The man's boot is heavy, and Taehyung's shoulder feels dislocated. He doesn't have time to dwell on it, however, because the man is standing up, cuts in his black cargo pants, and blood is trickling down the back of his thigh and shin. Taehyung jumps up and pushes the man roughly against the wall so that his head smashes against the stone wall. He whines out and shuts his eyes to endure the pain.
Taehyung's right hook makes contact with the man's bloody face, and his head is thrown to the left. And suddenly it all stops when Taehyung's knife is pressed tightly against the neck of the man. They both breathe heavily, blood dripping from their faces. Taehyung can feel his body aching, but the adrenaline is stirring too much inside him to worry.
They hear footsteps and soon Namjoon, who's already stable from yesterday, even though his side is sore, Jin, Hoseok and Jimin are pointing their guns at the two (mostly at the two strangers).
"Tae!" Hoseok yells out, and takes a step closer, but Namjoon places a hand on his chest to stop him.
"Kim, step back!" Namjoon says sternly, and Taehyung knows the angry tone is not aimed at him but the man against the wall.
Taehyung's eyes are on fire as he stares darkly at the man who's now shaking under his hold. He shoves him again against the wall and takes a step back, huffing angrily. Hoseok goes to take hold of him and pulls him back, examining him.
"Easy now." Namjoon points his gun at the man. "You attacked one of my own. You better start explaining, or I swear to God I will blow your head off right now."
"He was pointing a gun at me," the man breathes out.
"Should've pulled the fucking trigger, asshole!" Taehyung almost jumps at the man again, but Jimin and Hoseok grab his forearms and hold him back. "They're from yesterday."
"Is this true?" Namjoon asks, shocked.
"Yes," the other man finally speaks up. "But we're not like them, we didn't know that would happen."
Namjoon looks at the other man for the first time. "What did he tell you then?"
The man spreads his arms in desperation. "Nothing, really. He told us he would take you in and make the factory a place to harvest. We didn't really believe him, but what else could we do?"
"Take Taehyung to the infirmary. Fix him up." Namjoon ignores the strangers for a moment but turns back as Hoseok and Jimin are dragging Taehyung away, even though he wanted to stay and listen to what the men had to say. It's better to take him away, though, because he knew that if he stayed, he might've just finished the job.
"You two, over there," Taehyung hears Namjoon say before he’s brought to the infirmary.
Taehyung feels himself being seated on the examination table. Jimin turns to Taehyung, whose breath has slowed down to normal, and he's now feeling all the pain.
His nose feels numb. He hopes it isn't broken. He can taste the blood, and he spits it out on the floor. He looks at the clump of bubbly red blood mixed with his spit. His left shoulder feels off, and his vision is red. He can feel the arch of his left brow aching and feels blood trickling down from a cut down his face and in his eye.
"I'll pop this right in, okay? You're gonna feel a bit of pain," Hoseok warns, and right after he grabs Taehyung's arm and now all he can feel is insufferable pain shooting up his arm.
He groans and drops his chin against his chest. Suddenly, it feels all better, and he moves his left arm a bit. It's back in place.
Next, he feels cotton being tapped against his cheekbone, brow bone and nose. He's getting dizzy. He lets out a dry laugh, and the action stops around him.
"What is it?" Jimin asks.
"No one's ever punched me dizzy."
✦•··✦··•✦
"Your names?" Namjoon asks the men who are tied up to chairs in the middle of a dimly lit room.
It only has three chairs, Namjoon is sitting in front of them, and a table next to the wall where Taehyung is leaning. He has his other arm wrapped around his waist and the other one resting on top of it and holding his chin. Jimin is also in the room by the door, clutching his knife just in case.
The man looks at Taehyung and smiles while poking his tongue against his cheek. His friend can sense the annoyance in the other one's demeanour and speaks up instead. "I'm Min Yoongi. He's Jeon Jungkook."
"Are you with anyone else?"
"No,” the other man, Yoongi, replies.
"Just you two?"
"That's what not being with anyone else means," the crossbow man, Jungkook, spits bitterly.
Taehyung pushes himself to stand properly and glares at Jungkook.
The tied man glances at Taehyung from under his brows. The light casts shadows under his eyes, and he turns to Namjoon with an annoyed look. "Yes. Just us."
Namjoon nods. "And this place where you come from..."
"It's a community. Lee Sungho, the leader, had built it. It's about an hour's walk from here. They have walls and houses. Roughly forty people were living there, and now that half of them are dead...about twenty are waiting for us to return," Yoongi explains.
"And I assume there are armed people too?"
"Yes, a few stayed behind. They're expecting our return any minute now."
"Hm," he hums and looks at Jimin and Taehyung. "Maybe we should check this out."
"What if they're lying?" Taehyung asks and stares at the men sitting on the chairs.
"It's a risk. We'll go by car and walk the rest of the way. Check the surroundings and then see what's a good approach." He turns back to Yoongi and Jungkook. "You two will be joining us."
Namjoon leaves the room without another word and leaves the door open for Jimin and Taehyung to follow him.
"Tae, you coming?" Jimin questions while holding the doorknob.
Taehyung is still looking at Jungkook. He has a bruise brewing on both of his cheekbones, and his right eye is swelling up and purple. There's a cut on his lower lip, and he has a little mole right under his lip. His hair is long and wavy. It reaches his shoulders, and some of it is tied in a bun on the back of his head. His bangs almost reach his eyes, but they're swept from the middle on either side of his forehead. He has a black coat on, which is open now and under it a black hoodie. His black cargo pants are dirty and bloody and have slashes from Taehyung's knife. His eyes are still dark as they look up at Taehyung.
"Yeah," Taehyung replies and backs away from the men while still keeping his eyes on Jungkook.
✦•··✦··•✦
The following morning, a bloody bandage is dropped into the bin when Taehyung changes the patch on the bridge of his nose. He leans towards the mirror and looks closely at the cut on his nose. It's deep, and the blood is still fresh around the cut. His nose is swollen, and he curses under his breath. He cleans the wound again and places two butterfly plasters on the cut to help the healing and a soft bandage on top of it.
He tapes it in place and leans back, and examines the rest of the damage on his face. His left cheekbone is bruised, and there's a cut on his browbone. Luckily, the cut wasn't on top of his eyebrow, so he won't have an eyebrow slit for infinity.
A few moments later, Jungkook and Yoongi are released from the chairs, but their hands are tied behind their back.
"Do you have any idea how uncomfortable that was?" Jungkook complains as he rubs his ass.
"Better that than being dead," Jimin states coldly as he pushes him out of the room.
Two cars are waiting for them outside. They're taking Sungho's team's cars just in case the people saw them and wouldn't immediately shoot.
Namjoon is driving an SUV while Jin is taking the wheel of a bigger van with windows. Yoongi and Jungkook are pushed into the backseat of the SUV while Jimin sits on the passenger seat with his gun pointed at them. Taehyung and five others are riding with Jin.
Hoseok wasn't sure if Namjoon was up for a run like this in the state that he is. Namjoon insisted that he was fine and ready to go. The bullet didn't touch his vital organs and only caused some pain when he moved or flexed his muscles. The bullet had also gone through, so it made the healing easier. There was a lot of bruising, but the stitches held together fairly well. They still packed some bandages just in case it started to bleed.
Namjoon thought it was dangerous to keep the two men because people were bound to get suspicious at Sungho's camp. They were surely already expecting them back.
They drove with Yoongi's instructions to the community in the van following the SUV. Drifting from the original plan, they decided to drive the cars to the front gate. Taehyung watches from the van and tries to press deeper into the chair. The guards on the wall yell, "They're back", and lower their guns.
Jungkook and Yoongi step out of the car and get closer to the gate, like they were instructed.
They say something to the guards, which makes them lift their guns right back up at the cars. They don't look pleased. There are about ten guards on the wall. Namjoon and Jimin step out, and the people in the van follow.
"They tried to kill us. Managed to shoot me," Namjoon explains and starts to lift his shirt to prove it.
"Why should we believe you?" one of the guards asks.
Namjoon shrugs. "I don't know what to tell you. The leader wanted our camp, and in return, he'd let us live.”
The six guards looked at each other, and then the gate was opened. They pointed their guns at them.
Sungho and Namjoon's teams were now face-to-face inside the wall.
"Were you there?" one of the guards asks Yoongi and Jungkook, who both nod.
"We didn't know he was going to try to kill them," Yoongi says. "It was clear that the rest of the team was informed. Were you?"
The guards don't reply but look at each other with unreadable expressions.
"We didn't want to kill them. They gave us no choice. Survival in this world means putting yourself first. I'm not sorry we did that, but I am sorry that you lost your friends. Now I'm asking if you'd look past that, if you didn't know they were going to try to kill us...We could team up," Namjoon asks hopefully.
The guard that's doing all the talking looks to the others, and they nod a little. Taehyung furrows his brows and examines the situation. The guard also looks at Jungkook and Yoongi, who also give a nod.
"You're the leader?" he asks Namjoon, who nods. "You'd be considering moving here, then? This is more secure than the factory. We have walls."
"I see that, and they're fairly good. We do, however, like the security of the factory."
"Do you want to look around and then make your decision?"
Namjoon smiles. "Gladly."
"Jungkook." The guard flicks his head to motion for him to follow them. "You rest can wait here-"
"I'd like Taehyung to join us, if you don't mind," Namjoon says, still smiling. Clearly, he's sensing something fishy, too.
The guard's lip twitches, but he nods understanding. "Sure."
The three of them follow the guard along the road. He's explaining the construction of the wall, the houses and the interior of them and the vegetation on the street.
They reach a bigger house, and the guard opens the door. "This is the 'main' house. Sungho lived here. I guess you would be moving in here then."
Namjoon, Taehyung and Jungkook step in, and Namjoon starts examining the rooms. The guard follows slowly. He looks at Jungkook as he passes him and walks behind Namjoon. Jungkook gives a short wink, and Taehyung suddenly feels uneasy. He wants to leave at once and make sure Namjoon leaves first.
As he feels his uneasiness grow, he goes to grab his knife, but he can see the guard raise his gun towards Namjoon, whose back is turned to them. Taehyung's eyes widen, and before he can even ready himself to attack the man, the guard has an arrow shot through the back of his head. Taehyung's eyes follow as the man's limp body drops to the ground and blood starts pooling from his head.
Namjoon turns in an instant and looks at the crime scene. Taehyung turns his head to his side to see Jungkook lowering his crossbow with a cold expression. He looks disgusted.
"Kill the other guards, too. They're waiting for the gunshot to start killing the others," he says before leaving the house and sneaking closer to the front gate without being seen.
Taehyung and Namjoon just look at each other, shocked, before following the man.
They can see the guards' backs facing them. All of them have their fingers on the triggers even though they're not pointing them at their team. Namjoon gets to signal them from further away, and it doesn't take long for the guards to be dead on the ground. People start gathering at the gate, and gasps are circling them. Some start crying, and some run away.
"Wait!" Jungkook yells. He had appeared from somewhere and was waving his hands around. "It's me!"
The people gasp once again, and the cries stop, and the runners come back warily.
"They're not evil. They didn't just come to kill the guards. They saved themselves, us and possibly you people too. Mr Lee and his team, who left days ago to 'help the people'...they're dead. And the agenda was a lie. He didn't want to help them. He wanted to take their camp, and in return, they would get to live. Doesn't sound fair to me. As they said no, Lee's team started to shoot. They shot their leader, and by a miracle, he wasn't seriously hurt. They had no choice but to defend themselves. There's no community here anymore. Not with a leader anyways." His voice gets quiet, but Namjoon is smiling brightly.
Taehyung curses in his mind that he's probably letting the idiot stay with them.
The people turn to the strangers around them and examine them. Maybe they're seeing if they look evil. Namjoon's blinding smile is helping the case against hating them.
"I knew there was something off with him." One of the people steps forward and bows to Namjoon. "I would like to come back with you, if you'll allow me."
Other people follow his lead, and soon all of them are packing their little property and stuffing it in the remaining cars that are still parked inside the walls. They just gained another twenty people on their team. Plus Yoongi and Jungkook, of course.
✦•··✦··•✦
Somewhere in South Korea — 2022 — October, three years since the outbreak
It's been a week since Yoongi and Jungkook, among people from their community, stayed with them. Taehyung still hasn't spoken with either of them. Namjoon thanked Jungkook a million times for saving him, and maybe Taehyung should thank him too. Jungkook did save his friend, and the best leader he knows.
Taehyung stands in the guard tower, the sun setting in the distance, and he looks at it like it is the last light he will ever see.
It is October, and it is getting colder and darker every day. There's so little light these days, and Taehyung doesn't only mean literal light as in sunlight and moonlight. He means people who give him hope and happiness. He thinks the only people capable of doing that are Namjoon, Jin, Jimin and Hoseok. The others at the camp aren't nearly as important to him as they are. Of course, he would fight for them, but he wouldn't die for them. For Jin, however, Namjoon, Jimin and Hoseok, he would. He would shoot himself if he had to.
He hears someone climbing up the ladder to the guard tower. Whoever that is, it sounds like they're struggling. Taehyung doesn't turn around but instead keeps his gaze on the horizon. He hears someone let out a breath and walk a bit closer to Taehyung. He quickly grabs his knife and spins around, pointing the sharp blade at Yoongi, who looks startled.
"Sorry," he says and lifts his arms.
Taehyung lowers his weapon and turns back to look at the forest.
"We haven't talked since..." he starts, and Taehyung feels his presence get closer until Yoongi is standing next to Taehyung. "I wanted to thank you. I know Jungkook would never thank someone, but I want to do this. I would've thanked you right away, but honestly, it seemed like you needed some time."
Taehyung doesn't respond.
"I uhm...I know no one exactly told us to stay, and we just came along, but I wanted to thank everyone for being okay with it. Even though I question your thoughts sometimes. And it's fine if you're not okay with it, but thank you for not killing us. Especially Jungkook," Yoongi laughs and Taehyung side-eyes the other man without saying anything.
"I don't blame you for hating Jungkook. He's a bit of a cunt," Yoongi sighs.
And to that, Taehyung lets out a little agreeing chuckle. Yoongi smiles at that and looks at Taehyung now. "We'll try to prove ourselves to be worthy of your respect, and I hope you won't be too hard on Jungkook either. He's only 26."
Yoongi doesn't say anything anymore. He just looks at the view with Taehyung, and he appreciates the silence. Yoongi isn't half as bad as Jungkook. Honestly, Taehyung doesn't even mind Yoongi's presence, and he enjoys his calmness.
"How'd he know they were going to kill us?" Taehyung breaks the silence after a few minutes, and Yoongi seems taken aback by the question.
"The look they shared. He gave the same look to us. I guess he thought we were on their side. It's a look that says 'we're going to kill them'," he answers.
"Lucky he was with us then," Taehyung comments.
"Yeah, really lucky. Maybe tell him that?"
"I'll pass." Taehyung smiles a little and earns a laugh from Yoongi.
He doesn't bother him like Jungkook does. Yoongi has quite pleasant conversations and even just company. Taehyung hates conversation, and Yoongi seems to be the quiet type, too.
However, he hasn't forgiven Jungkook yet for attacking him for no reason. And even if he would forgive Jungkook for attacking him, the guy just rubs him the wrong way. He's annoying and an asshole. He can't bother with him.
Yoongi stays silent, and Taehyung can tell he was nearly about to tap Taehyung's shoulder but stopped himself. For whatever reason, it may be. Maybe Taehyung comes off as scary, which he hopes is the truth, because he doesn't want to be warm towards anyone. If he does that, they die, and Yoongi doesn't need to die. Namjoon doesn't, neither does Jin, Jimin or Hoseok.
The other man stays with Taehyung for a while until he excuses himself. Soon Taehyung is left alone in the guard tower, the quiet surrounding him, as the last rays of sunlight disappear behind the horizon.
✦•··✦··•✦
"You're going on a run alone?" Jin looks at Taehyung, who's gathering his weapons on his belt, and swings a rifle over his head.
Taehyung ruffles his hair in front of the mirror and swats a few flyaways from his eyes. His hair is getting longer. It's now past his ears. The only good thing about it is that it gives extra warmth. He shoves a beanie on his head and turns to Jin with a confused look. "I always go alone."
"Yeah, and I've always felt really bad about it. You shouldn't go alone there," Jin explains and tugs Taehyung's quilt on his bed.
"It's good that I'm alone. No one else to take care of. No one else could die."
"Just you." Jin glares at Taehyung. "You're so stupid. You think no one cares for you here. We would fall apart without you."
Taehyung laughs at that but doesn't say anything. He grabs an empty backpack for the stuff he finds. The silence means Jin is expecting an answer, and his face says so too.
Taehyung spreads his arms and lets them fall again, dropping against the sides of his thighs. "What do you want me to do? Take someone with me?"
"Yes!" Jin rolls his eyes like it was obvious. "That's literally what I want you to do! Jungkook's a good fi-"
"No."
"Taehyung, it's been over a month. I think we're clear of the threat of them stabbing us in the back."
"We're never clear."
"Jungkook hasn't been outside since they arrived. I think it would be good to show him around," Jin singsongs, and Taehyung groans.
"I'm not his goddamn babysitter!"
"I know, and he definitely doesn't need one. I mean, I remember your face after the night you met." Jin covers his smile that creeps up to his lips. Taehyung turns to Jin slowly with a deadpan expression. "Sorry," he whispers and shakes his head to get rid of the smile. "Take him!"
"I..." Taehyung states, "would rather..." he leans close to Jin's face, "kill myself."
The conversation is over when Taehyung leaves his room, which isn't much of a room to be honest. It has a mattress on the floor with a quilt and a few pillows. There's a bureau against the wall and a mirror leaning against the wall on top of it. The window is dirty, which is why Taehyung hasn't covered it. Nobody would see it in any way. There's nothing else in the room, and Taehyung keeps it that way. No things to miss if shit goes south.
Taehyung flings his backpack on his shoulder as he rushes towards the exit. He couldn't possibly take Jungkook with him. Yes, it might be good for him to know the terrain, but someone else could show it to him. Taehyung has better things to do than teach Jungkook how to navigate. If it were up to Taehyung, Jungkook could migrate all the way to the opposite side of the world, but that's not an option.
He doesn't want to kill Jungkook. He just despises him. Turns out Taehyung hates Jungkook just because of his stupid, arrogant demeanour. He can trust himself with the younger man, but he can't promise that logomachy wouldn't happen.
Jungkook's death is pointless. He is a fair fighter, so they do need him if and when they have to fight walkers or people. But Taehyung doesn’t need the man trailing after him and bragging about his stupid achievement, or worse, he would be asking questions about Taehyung's life.
He is soon in the woods, and the camp is disappearing behind the tall trees. He could finally breathe. No walkers in sight. Just the multicoloured forest and the fresh scent of winter.
He planned on going to the city, which is fairly dangerous because it's riddled with walkers. The high buildings are also good hiding places for other people and snipers. There's still an area close by that he hasn't looted yet, and he hopes there's still stuff they could use.
Soon he might have to use a car to go further away. That takes away the enjoyment of walking in the woods and getting fresh air, other than the stuffy air of the factory. The air was made stuffy by Jungkook.
He hears a twig snap, and he spins around, rifle already pointing in the direction of the snap. It's not a walker. Someone's tailgating him. He purses his lips and readies the gun to shoot. "Show yourself."
It's quiet for another few seconds until he sees Jungkook step out from behind a tree. He has his hands in his pockets, and he looks calm. This is the arrogance that Taehyung hates.
"Oh, for the love of..." Taehyung sighs to himself and puts the rifle down.
He grits his teeth and drops his chin against his chest. He looks up at Jungkook, who's now walking towards him. "Jin?" he questions to confirm if Jin told him to follow Taehyung.
"Jin." Jungkook nods and is now standing in front of Taehyung. He places a hand on Taehyung's shoulder and gives a big, fake, but a big smile. "Show me around, Kim!"
Taehyung calms himself down because he can't lose his shit right now. Especially when Jungkook's favourite form of riling him up is smiling and acting like shit doesn't faze him. Taehyung's lips are a straight line as he turns around to continue walking. He can hear Jungkook's boots stepping over the leaves and twigs. He's not worried about making noise at all, it seems.
"What're we doing today?" Jungkook asks behind Taehyung, and he turns his head momentarily to see the younger man's hands still in his pockets, and his face is turned towards the sky to look at the trees, which are almost out of leaves.
Taehyung huffs at the carefree acting of Jungkook as if they weren't living in the apocalypse.
"The city."
"Isn't that place full of walkers?"
Taehyung nodded.
"Awesome," Jungkook states and continues following the older man.
Taehyung rolls his eyes at himself because God forbid if Jungkook knew he was annoying Taehyung, he wouldn't stop for the rest of the trip.
At some point, they encounter a walker, which Taehyung stabs with his machete. When he gets up from the ground and pulls his weapon out of its holster, he sees Jungkook, still hands in his pockets, looking at Taehyung with his head tilted with a little smile.
"What? You could've done it better?" Taehyung questions and walks closer.
"No. Well...maybe. You're just so excessive. It's funny. " Jungkook grins widely.
Taehyung nods and gets in front of Jungkook, wiping the bloody machete against the front of Jungkook's jacket. "You can do it next time."
Jungkook's smile disappears as he sees the walker's blood stain his jacket. He lets out a disgusted gasp, and his mouth hangs open when he looks slowly back up at Taehyung. The blood stinks, and the older man can't help but smile spitefully.
"Now, now..." Taehyung tuts and slips the machete back in the holster, "Don't wanna lose your cool, Jeon."
He turns around, proud to have gotten that stupid grin off of Jungkook's face. He hears the other continue walking after him, and maybe he should be worried about being attacked from behind, but he knows Jungkook isn't that stupid.
They don't talk much for the rest of the trip to the city. It's only when they reach the edge of the city that Jungkook lets out a little breath, as they already see a few walkers walking aimlessly in the street. "Idiots." He says and grabs his knife.
Taehyung stops behind a brick building, which is an old supermarket. He looted it a long time ago. There's an alleyway between the store and another building. It's narrow, and Taehyung listens to how many walkers there could be on the other side. He guesses three. Definitely not many.
He creeps up the alleyway, Jungkook right behind him. They now have a clear vision of the street. Four walkers are bumping into cars and gurgling a little.
"Well," Taehyung turns to Jungkook, and he places his machete in the holster. "All yours."
Jungkook looks startled as he stares back at Taehyung, who looks deadpan serious. "What?" he sputters out.
"You said you could do better. Go ahead then." Taehyung points towards the street and steps aside to give room for the younger man. Jungkook lets out a breathy laugh and puts his knife back.
Instead, he takes his crossbow and walks past Taehyung, bumping his shoulder. He shoots two walkers dead with headshots. He then puts the crossbow on his shoulder and watches as the two remaining walkers start reaching him. He then takes his knife and kicks the walker coming from the left. It hits the ground as the other one is grabbing his shoulders. Jungkook groans a little and pushes the walker back. He stabs the knife in its temple. The walker goes limp and drops to the ground.
However, it seems that Jungkook's knife is stuck in his head. He gets yanked down with the walker, and the walker he kicked earlier is now right behind him.
Taehyung watches as his shoulders are being grabbed, and soon Jungkook rolls on his back, the walker on top of him. It's snapping its jaw, and Jungkook is turning his face away from the creature.
Its chipped nails are pressing into Jungkook's shoulders. Jungkook could easily get scratched if it weren’t for the thick winter coat.
The younger man tries reaching for the knife that's still stuck in the other one's head, but the walker on top of him seems to be too strong, so he has to use both of his arms to hold him back.
Taehyung sighs, reaching for the rifle. It seems like he needs to help the helpless man anyway.
As Taehyung places a silencer on the muzzle, Jungkook looks to his other side, where his crossbow landed when he fell, and grabs an arrow. He squeezes it with his fist and brings it to the walker's head.
But at the same time, Taehyung pulls the trigger, and blood starts dripping from the walker's temple. It goes limp, and its head falls against Jungkook's neck.
He grimaces and pushes the monster off him. He's leaning on his hands, and he can feel the rubble under his palms. He looks to where Taehyung is standing, and their eyes meet when he lowers the rifle.
He is not worried or impressed. He just stares and walks over. He looks down at Jungkook, whose legs are spread, and there's blood on his face, presumably walker's blood. Taehyung is holding the rifle, and he's tilting his head while looking at Jungkook.
"Funny," he repeats Jungkook’s earlier words and looks away from Jungkook to scan the surroundings.
No other walkers had heard the quarrel. He heads down the destroyed road towards the unsearched area. There's a tank in the middle of the road and a bunch of abandoned cars. The cars are dirty and most likely useless. Couldn't even get spare parts off of them. There's rubble everywhere, and some buildings have a black coating on the surface because of the fires.
He looks back at Jungkook, who's collecting his stuff from the ground. He sees him pull the knife out of the walker's head as he holds the head in place with his foot.
Soon, he catches up with Taehyung, who's once again annoyed by the sound that the boy makes. He wants to tell him to shut up, and for what reason he has to wear those thick boots that could wake the whole earth when he walks.
It starts raining when they reach the area, and Taehyung listens carefully. He hasn't cleared this place, and it could be filled with walkers. He walks softly, dodging the cars. He crouches a little when he hears a sound in a nearby building. He ducks behind a car and sees that Jungkook is standing and staring in the direction of the noise. Taehyung grabs his arm and pulls him down. He glares at Jungkook and places his finger against his own lips to tell Jungkook to shut up.
"What? If it's a walker, can’t we just kill it?" Jungkook whispers, and Taehyung shakes his head.
"What if it's a person? What if they saw us and are aiming at us right now?"
Jungkook goes silent and rolls his eyes as he rises to take a glance at the building. He stares for a few seconds until nudging Taehyung, who peeks out too.
It's an old ramen restaurant. There are tall windows in the front, and there's no movement inside. There's sound again.
"Just a walker," Jungkook states as he stands up. They look at the lonely walker who's bumping against the tables inside the restaurant. "I'll get it."
"No," Taehyung denies and pulls Jungkook back by the hood of his jacket. "Not worth it."
"You're not gonna tell me what to do." Jungkook shakes himself off Taehyung's grasp and walks towards the restaurant.
Taehyung isn't surprised that Jungkook pulled this trick on him. After all, he thinks he's something bigger than he really is. Taehyung just watches and doesn't even bother to ready his gun. If Jungkook gets bit, tough luck. He tried to warn Jungkook, tried to stop him, but the idiot still went and got himself killed. Taehyung would gladly kill Jungkook himself now when there was a reason to.
Before he gets to relish in the idea any more, Jungkook is once again standing in front of him and is now wiping his bloody knife against Taehyung's jacket.
Taehyung steps back, and he can feel his jaw click because he's gritting his teeth so hard. Jungkook's smiling. He spins the knife between his fingers and blows on the tip as if it were a smoking gun. He slips it into his holster and frowns in a charade. He tuts. Taehyung's blood boils.
"Now, now..." He flicks Taehyung's chin, which makes the other one lift his head to get away from Jungkook's touch, "don't wanna lose your cool, Kim."
"You're dead."
"Aren't we all?" Jungkook shrugs and proceeds with their journey.
Taehyung looks down at the smeared blood on his jacket. He inhales sharply and trails after Jungkook, who's examining another supermarket. He points at it with a lifted brow. Taehyung nods, and the younger man is soon at the door.
Taehyung reaches him and goes for the doorknob when Jungkook is pointing his crossbow straight at the door. Taehyung opens it swiftly, and Jungkook walks in, scoping the store with his crossbow ready to shoot. Taehyung walks after him, machete in hand and in a ready position to hit someone.
No one's at the store. There's also nothing at the store. The shelves are empty. The only shelf that's fairly full is the condoms.
A breathy laugh leaves Jungkook’s lips as he grabs a packet. "Hey, Kim? Are you in need of some more protection?"
Taehyung looks over at Jungkook and doesn't react when he's waving the blue packet of extra-small condoms.
"Hey, they have your size," he says seriously, and Jungkook's smile drops, and he quickly looks at the packet.
Taehyung can hear the man scoffing and murmuring something to himself, probably getting defensive over the size of his dick.
Taehyung scans the rest of the store, but there's nothing useful. He whistles to Jungkook to let him know that they're leaving.
They scout for a while until they have to turn back. The daylight is slowly turning into dusk. He doesn't need them wandering the city at night.
They had managed to scavenge some medical supplies as a few rolls of gauze and medical scissors. Taehyung isn't happy with today's catch and partly blames Jungkook for tagging along. He could've gotten further away, but now that he had Jungkook to keep an eye on, he couldn't go as fast.
They reach the camp when it's dark. Taehyung's surprised when Jungkook hadn't bothered him with excessive questions or that he didn't purposely rile him up on the way back. It had been quiet, and they didn't even encounter that many obstacles.
Jin is on watch when they return. He freezes a bit when he sees Taehyung's expression. He isn't happy. Jin opens the gate for the two and nods to Jungkook, who's immediately rushing inside. Jungkook waves back, but only to Jin. He doesn't even look Taehyung in the eye.
When Jungkook disappears through the front door, Taehyung turns his head to Jin and waits for the other to start explaining.
"Well, you didn't kill each other?" Jin suggests with a little smile, but Taehyung doesn't find it funny.
"You're so lucky you're my friend. Otherwise, you'd be walker food."
And even though they have known each other since they were kids, Jin still seems to be afraid of Taehyung when his voice lowers to an almost growl and his eyes darken.
"It could not have been that bad." Jin shakes his head and offers a smile, probably to hide the fear. "Wasn't he useful?"
Taehyung shrugs. Maybe Jungkook did prove he has some fighting skills, but it definitely doesn’t mean he wants to start doing runs with the kid.
"He's cocky and temerarious. He takes stupid chances, and that's what's gonna get him killed."
"He's a good fighter. I wouldn't worry-"
"I'm not worried, for fucks sake!" Taehyung grunts and rolls his eyes. "I'm not taking him with me anymore."
"You're gonna have to find a way to live with him one way or another." Jin looks sadly at his friend.
"I am living with him, aren't I? And I haven't killed him. Isn't that enough?"
"In this world, you're gonna have to trust the people you live with. We're your family. Jungkook, want it or not, is your family."
"Over my fucking dead body," Taehyung chuckles as if Jin made a hilarious joke.
He doesn't listen to what the man has to say. He heads towards his room. He needs to sleep and forget today. He also needs to wash his jacket.
✦•··✦··•✦
Somewhere in South Korea — 2022 — November, three years since the outbreak
It's nearly December, and the air has gotten significantly colder. It's cold inside the factory, even though the thick stone walls stop the chilly air from entering. Stone isn't a warm insulator, so all of them have their jackets on even inside.
All of their camp residents are huddled up in the main hall. Namjoon is lecturing about the upcoming winter and the struggle it would once again bring. They had stayed one winter there before, and it was rough. Now there were more people and more people to feed. The last harvest was stored a few weeks ago, and now they had to survive until the ground was warm again to plant crops. They have stored canned food and other foods that haven't expired to the point of having a layer of mould on top of them.
Taehyung is sitting in the armchair and looks at the people around him. On his right are Jin, Jimin and Yoongi, who are on the small couch for three. They're pressed together like penguins, probably to survive the cold. On another couch next to them were the two families with one kid each. The kids were wrapped in blankets and were sitting on their mothers' laps. Only one of the families was whole. The other only had the mother and the child. Taehyung never asks what happened because he knows what happened. He doesn't need to know how it happened.
On the left side, there's a long L-shaped couch which holds five people. All of them had come to this camp alone. Three men and two women. They're not much of fighters. They can handle a walker if they come across one. That's about it. They can handle a knife and know how to use a gun.
The couple who found this place are sitting on the armrest of the couch. A few of them are sitting on the floor, that's three plus Hoseok. Some of them are standing behind the sofas and leaning against them. The space is still a lot warmer than it was a year ago because of the people who came from Sungho’s camp.
They're all looking up at Namjoon, who is in the middle of the space, looking around to give everyone eye contact. That's why people like him. He makes them feel included. Everyone here does something. It's not like the non-fighters are dead weight. Most of them handle the crops, help Hoseok in the infirmary or are on kitchen duty.
Across from him, behind Namjoon, Jungkook sits on the only other armchair. He's sitting crisscrossed and is leaning his head on his arm while looking at the leader. He has his hood up, and Taehyung can see his dark hair curl in front of his face. His bangs are hanging almost in front of his eyes, and they aren't swept to the sides like they usually are. He's biting his lips, and Taehyung can clearly see the little beads of blood forming on his pink lips. He licks the blood away and sucks his bottom lip into his mouth.
Taehyung grimaces.
Jungkook notices the other one staring. He lifts his eyebrow. Taehyung doesn't react. He leans his head back against the rest and slides his large hands against his thighs. He's not looking at Jungkook anymore and focuses back on Namjoon, but he still feels the younger's gaze on him. He tries to ignore the burning gaze and the urge to yell at him across the room. He doesn't want to interrupt Namjoon and have a lecture later about how he has to accept Jungkook living with them.
He looks down at his hands, which are still on his thighs. He shifts on the chair to make himself more comfortable and spreads his legs wider. His hands are rough and have different cuts on them. Some deeper, some only a few scratches. He doesn't know where some of them are from, but none of them are from walkers. He always checks himself for bites and scratches if he has a close encounter. They're probably from the branches in the woods and from his knife.
He looks up from under his brows, and Jungkook is still staring. His bottom lip is still being gnawed on, and there's a little bit of blood on the corner of his mouth.
He sighs and lifts his head and brows as if to ask what Jungkook's problem is. The latter looks for a while longer until dropping his gaze down, smiling a lopsided smirk and looking back up at Namjoon this time. Taehyung questions every day what this guy's deal is, but he's not sure he wants to find out.
"So I recommend sleeping at least in twos. Being alone in a cold room is uncomfortable, and hypothermia is no joke. So if you're not bunking with anyone yet, I hope you'll do it. Or at least sleep in warm clothes," Namjoon ends his speech and looks around for their reaction. Taehyung is certainly not sharing his room, and he doesn't think anyone would want to bunk with him. Except maybe Jin, because they had done so in university.
Nobody objects; instead, they all murmur, agreeing.
"That's all for this evening, make your own sleeping arrangements," he says, clasping his hands together, smiling at everyone.
They get up and start to disperse. Some of them go to their rooms, some stay, and some head towards the kitchen to make some evening tea.
"Yoongi and I could bunk together," Jimin then says after a little whispering with the former. Jungkook's head snaps in their direction. "The hell you are!"
Jimin blinks, offended, and Yoongi points his finger at Jungkook, who has straightened himself on the chair. "You snore, and you sleep wide! I am not going through that again!"
Jungkook slumps down on the chair and furrows his brows at Yoongi. He crosses his arms in front of his chest. God, how can someone be so childish?
"Taehyung! Wanna bunk together like old times?" Jin asks from the couch and smiles widely. Taehyung thinks to himself. Even though he would rather just sleep by himself, Jin is the only person he would allow to see himself in such a vulnerable state as sleeping. He nods in reply, and a smile forces its way onto his lips.
"Namjoon?" Hoseok gets up from the floor and gets an approving sound in return.
"Oh– what about Jungkook?" Jimin asks. They turn to the man who's still pouting over Yoongi's complaint about his sleeping.
"We'll make it work," Jin assures. "My room's big enough for three."
Taehyung looks appalled. He doesn't object because it's simply too overwhelming to pick the right words for this moment. He has so many insults to Jungkook and so many ways to express his hatred that he can't pick. He's not the only one who looks terrified of this idea. Jungkook is shaking his head, eyes wide and gripping the armrests.
"I might sleepwalk and accidentally kill this kid," Taehyung chooses to say, knowing Jungkook gets ticked off if someone calls him that.
"Fuck you!" Jungkook curses and jumps up from the chair, storming towards Taehyung. Namjoon, again, immediately steps in front of him and grabs him by the forearms and pushes him back.
"You two need to get your act together. Maybe sleeping in the same room is good for you. Jin's gonna be your personal babysitter."
"I regret suggesting this," Jin sighs.
✦•··✦··•✦
The night falls among them, and Jin's room is only illuminated by the warm light from the three candles by his bed. Well, his 'bed' is just a mattress on the floor. There are quilts and sheets stacked on top of the mattress, which they had stolen from nearby houses and apartments a while ago. Dragging actual bed frames would've been too difficult. It's 160 centimetres wide, which means three people can sleep fairly snugly. Jin is in the middle because Jungkook was going to throw a tantrum if he had to sleep next to Taehyung.
Taehyung isn't going to say it aloud, but he's happy that Namjoon made the call about bunking together. The night was cold. The air was sneaking in through the cracks of the windowsill, and they were rattling whenever the wind hit it at the right angle. They all had jackets on, and Jungkook even had his beanie on. They had taken their own covers and were now all under them, lying down in the silence.
Jin had already fallen asleep, and Taehyung could tell by the soft breaths beside him. He wasn't sure about Jungkook, though. According to Yoongi, Jungkook was a snorer and a wide sleeper. Taehyung didn't want to find out if that's true.
He looks up at the ceiling's grey stone, where the paint has chipped in some parts. Small dots appear all over his vision when he keeps staring without blinking. It is only when Jungkook shifts that he blinks and looks from the corner of his eye at the side where Jungkook lies. He can see Jungkook's thumbs circling each other as his hands are crossed on his stomach. He tries to be as still as possible because if Jungkook found out they're the only two awake, he might start something Taehyung is too exhausted to do.
Fighting, that is.
So, he turns his gaze slowly back towards the ceiling, but when he hears Jungkook's head turn on the pillow, his eyes slam shut. He tries to breathe as slowly as possible. Luckily, Jungkook doesn't say anything, and soon his head turns away from Taehyung. It takes only a few minutes for Taehyung to hear Jungkook snoring softly. He rolls his eyes and turns his back towards Jin and Jungkook. He folds the pillow over his exposed ear and tries to drift to sleep.
✦•··✦··•✦
Somewhere in South Korea - 2023 - January, three years since the outbreak
January's weather is nothing to joke about. It's even colder than December, and it has become a struggle to survive. All of them were thankfully alive, but it was sadly only a matter of time before the children would either freeze or starve to death. Taehyung hasn't found anything on his runs. Sometimes he goes alone, and sometimes he drives with Jimin or Jin a little further away.
Taehyung and Jungkook haven't made any progress on their rivalry. They haven't really talked since the run a few months ago. That is, if you don't count ' fuck you 's as a conversation. They've only sent glares at each other and a little roll of the eyes when they switched shifts at the guard tower. Taehyung thinks it was a bad idea to let Jungkook into the guard tower, but Namjoon thought Jungkook was skilled, and he was one of them now. Taehyung disagrees and lets Jungkook know his disapproval with his harsh looks and small scowls.
The sleeping arrangement has been a success to everyone's surprise. They haven't killed each other, and they take it as a win. Simply Taehyung or Jungkook can't be bothered to quarrel with the other at late hours because their agitation level is very low.
Taehyung is waiting for Jungkook at the bottom of the guard tower. His shift is ending, and Jungkook's is about to start. Namjoon probably wants their shifts to be next to each other because he thinks this will make them friends. Truth be told, it has the opposite effect. Jungkook is always late, and Taehyung doesn't love waiting around for the arrogant ass in the cold.
Finally, the aforementioned appears through the doors and is walking towards Taehyung with his hands in his puffy coat. He blows smoke out of his mouth like he's smoking a cigarette and smiles a shit eating grin when he's in front of Taehyung. The older one doesn't look pleased.
"Why so sour, Tae?" He pouts.
"Don't call me that. You're late," Taehyung states bluntly with his arms crossed.
"Sorry, nap went long."
Taehyung takes a deep breath, and the cold air tickles his nose, which makes his eyes water. He keeps his cool even though Jungkook deserves a punch to the face for purposely making Taehyung stand in the cold longer than was necessary.
Jungkook chuckles as he goes past Taehyung to start climbing the ladder, but he's soon pulled back by his jacket and shoved against the guard tower. Taehyung grips the front of his jacket and pushes him against the cold stone.
"Okay, jeez, sorry for being late..." Jungkook rolls his eyes, but Taehyung isn't looking at the shorter one.
He isn’t even listening to him. He just shushes the boy against the wall and looks towards the forest beyond the gate. Jungkook's eyes follow Taehyung's only to see a walker herd wander towards the factory.
Taehyung feels panicked for the first time in a while, and he turns to Jungkook, who has the same panic in his eyes. He lets go of the man and is now running inside to warn the others. He doesn't hear Jungkook following him, which makes him look back and see Jungkook staring at the walkers from the spot he had left him.
"Jeon! Move!" he yells and regrets it immediately because it agitates the walkers.
He doesn't stop to make sure of Jungkook's safety because it's not his priority.
As he's inside, he yells as loudly as he can.
"Walkers! Namjoon! Jin!" He runs into the common area where he had seen Namjoon last. He's still there, but Hoseok's with him. "Walker herd coming towards us! I don't think the gate will hold!"
Both of them look terrified, but Namjoon doesn't take a second to think. "We defend our home! Only retract if it goes to shit. Hoseok, get the others. Taehyung, are you okay to go-"
"Yes, yes! Jeon's there too. We...We're gonna try..." Taehyung breathes out and can't believe he's partly happy Jungkook is there too, because he's not denying that the man can fight.
He runs back outside, now loading his rifle. He stops as soon as he's standing in the cold and aims. He makes headshots in a row.
The bullets end abruptly, and Taehyung digs bullets from his jacket pockets and reloads his rifle. He shoots again. Reloads. Shoots. Reloads.
Jungkook is shooting arrows from his crossbow until he's out of arrows. He takes out his handgun, and now two guns are firing in the air. Taehyung can only think that this racket will bring more of them. A bunch of walkers are dead on the ground on the other side of the gate, but it seems like it hasn't even made a dent in the herd. They're now pushing against the fence so hard that the walkers in front are being squeezed through the fence. Their eyeballs are popping out of their heads, and the fence is digging through their rotten skin.
Namjoon, Jin, Jimin and Yoongi have appeared behind him, and they're all shooting.
"Hoseok's getting the other's safety!" Namjoon yells. "He'll join us soon!"
"It's not looking good, Joon! The fence won't hold!" Jimin worries as he keeps shooting.
"We'll defend as long as we can!"
Taehyung looks back and sees at least twenty of their community's residents running out and shooting. He thinks this fight is pointless. He's out of bullets on his rifle, so he spins it around by its strap against his back. He takes a breath before grabbing his machete and running straight towards the herd that is nearly inside the fence.
"Kim!" he hears Namjoon yell, mixed with yells from Jin, Yoongi and Jimin. He runs past Jungkook, who looks shocked at the man who's probably gone insane.
Taehyung is pushing his machete through the holes in the fence to kill the walkers. And it's working. The fence is hovering over him, where the walkers are pressed against. He doesn't think when he keeps stabbing the heads. He's not alone for long when Yoongi and Jungkook join him. Jimin is also soon by his side. Jin and Namjoon are still shooting with the others who came to help.
For a moment, it felt like it could work. Yoongi's sword was long enough, and he was strong enough to push it through two heads at once. Jungkook was using his knife, and his arm was at a 90-degree angle as he stabbed the walkers' foreheads.
It lasted for a while until the fence gave out. All of them step back, Jungkook stumbling on his ass. Yoongi and Jimin are running back, and Taehyung is going to as well, but he pulls Jungkook up by his collar before the walkers roam in over the fallen gate.
The following moments were all a blur to Taehyung, and he doesn't know how it happened. The ground is frosted, which makes it slippery, and running is harder now. It feels like the walkers are faster, and the front yard is soon filled with them.
He catches a glimpse of Namjoon running behind the building with Jimin behind him. He has no sight of Yoongi or Jin, or Jungkook. A few of the people who came to help were bitten and are now screaming as a handful of walkers are around then tearing their flesh. His panic grows, and he doesn’t know where to go. This is why he didn't keep anything important in his room. Because if and – like he had feared – when everything would fall, he could just bail.
He has his weapons and his clothes. He didn't have the luxury of a toothbrush or medical appliances, but he had to just survive. He runs as fast as he can and occasionally stabs a walker that comes in front of him or kicks it down.
He was now climbing over the fence on the opposite side of the factory. There are no walkers on the other side as the herd had come from the other direction. Besides no walkers, he saw no sight of his friends or even Jungkook. He didn't have time to think when the growls and gurgles were behind him.
He jumps down from the fence and runs, and he doesn’t stop running until he simply can't anymore. The sun had started setting, and the cold was getting worse.
Taehyung stops running, bends down and throws up. It wasn't much what came up, but it felt better after. He wheezes and tries to catch his breath. It's all silence around him. He's in the middle of the forest on a cold January evening, night about to fall and nowhere to go. He has no one with him, and he has no water or food. He looks back and sees or hears nothing. He can't dwell on his misfortune now. Not now, when the night is coming. He starts walking and hopes he'll come across some kind of shelter.
And he walks for what feels like almost an hour. It's almost dark now. The sky is dark blue, and the night clouds are floating over a few stars. Taehyung looks up and begs silently for something, anything. He doesn't know what he wants, but he wants something. He needs something.
A twig snaps on his far right. He spins around and points his rifle at whatever is in there. He knows there's no ammo, but they don't need to know that. He stares at the outlines of the trees and the dark abyss that stretches into infinity behind them.
And Taehyung thinks his luck can't get any worse when Jungkook limps from behind a tree, holding it for support. "I know you're out of ammo. Don't point that thing at me."
Taehyung blinks and lowers his weapon slowly. Jungkook's face is red, and he has blood on his face. Taehyung probably has too, but it's so cold he can't feel anything on his face. Jungkook doesn't have gloves, and his hands are pale and shaking. He has his hood up, but Taehyung can see that his hair is open, which is rare because he usually has a half-up, half-down hairstyle.
"It's not like I'm happy to see you either." Jungkook groans a little as he starts walking again, but his foot is clearly aching. "I didn't want it to be you."
"You followed me again?" Taehyung asks, and his voice is hoarse, which catches him off guard. The screaming from earlier took a toll on him, and he hasn't spoken since. He feels the raspiness tickle his throat, and he clears it.
"Kinda. I didn't know who I was following. Was kinda hoping it would be Yoongi, but the thing is..." He looks down at his foot and sighs. "I'm kinda in a bad way..."
"Shall we wait for the carriage to come and pick you up?" Taehyung asks and looks around as if a ride would appear.
"Listen, as much as I'd like to fight your face off...It's freezing, and it's night. My leg feels like shit, and I think my hands will fall off if I don't get them in something warm soon. So if we could save all this for tomorrow, that would be great." Jungkook points between them as he looks annoyed.
Taehyung hates to admit it, but Jungkook is right. "Can you walk, or do I have to carry you myself?"
"Fuck no!" Jungkook scrunches his nose. "But a bit of support would be ni-"
"Absolutely not." Taehyung shakes his head and searches the ground for a branch, which he finds. It's sturdy and long enough. He hands it to Jungkook and doesn't say anything else, hoping Jungkook gets the hint. Jungkook takes it just as quietly and smiles. Clearly, because he doesn't have to lean against Taehyung.
Taehyung removes his other glove and gives it to the other man, who looks surprised. "Let's hope only one of your hands will fall off."
"Jerk," Jungkook mumbles as he leans against the branch whenever he steps and follows Taehyung into the dark.
They walk for a while. It must be almost another hour. They're deep in the forest and haven't encountered any shelter yet. Taehyung thinks they have to build a treehouse soon because the air is getting colder, and it's pitch black now. He can hear Jungkook groaning and struggling with his stick, but he doesn't bother looking back and helping because he's too busy looking for a place for them to stay.
He's exactly what he feared he might become. He's Jungkook's babysitter. Because if a walker stumbles onto their path, it's Taehyung who has to defend them because Jungkook is too injured to help. Or Taehyung could just start running and leave the younger man at the mercy of the walker. However, he hopes it wouldn't come to that and that their path would be clear of trouble.
The branch finally gives out under Jungkook and is now lying on the ground, snapped in half. They both stare at it, and Jungkook's mouth is agape as he looks helpless with only one glove. His left leg is bent, so he's not putting any weight on it, and Taehyung feels the frustration boil inside him. He lets out a sigh and looks around desperately searching for an outline of a house.
"Wait here," Taehyung orders and continues walking.
His pace is quicker now that Jungkook isn't there to slow him down. He takes long strides and is looking all around him to see something, and he hasn't walked far when he sees a little cabin. It's wooden all over and has a porch. There are two stairs going up, and they're a little beaten down. There's no light coming from inside, and it's dead quiet, too.
Taehyung slowly walks closer and tries to open the door. It's open. He steps inside the cabin, and the stuffy air hits his nostrils. Dust is floating in the air and is glowing in the moonlight coming from the window. There's an open space right after the door. A little hanger for coats on the left, but it's empty. A kitchen table is on the right, surrounded by four windows. A kitchen is behind it, and next to the kitchen are stairs going up into an attic. On the left, after the hallway, is a small living space with a TV and a small couch. Next to the living room are two doors, and Taehyung figures it's a bathroom and a bedroom. He's correct when he checks the two rooms. They're both empty and surprisingly clean.
It looks like no one has lived here for a while. Even before the outbreak, that is. It looks so clean except for the dust everywhere. There are no supplies anywhere. Just the kitchen table with three chairs, a bed in the bedroom, a couch and a TV on a little wooden table. Taehyung checks the attic and finds it empty.
The cabin will do.
He quickly returns to Jungkook, who has found a spot on the ground against a tree. He looks over at Taehyung and goes for his knife, but when he sees the familiar face, he relaxes. He starts to get up, and Taehyung can see his struggle. He helps him up by pulling the man roughly up from his jacket.
"There's a cabin just a short way from here. It's empty," the older man explains and starts walking back to where he came from. He looks back, though, when he hears Jungkook practically jumping on his right leg.
Taehyung rolls his eyes and reverses back to the other. He wraps his right arm around the younger's waist and pulls him up easily. Jungkook lets out a surprised noise, and his left hand goes to grip Taehyung's left shoulder.
They move faster now that Jungkook can lean into Taehyung, and there's significantly less amount of pressure on Jungkook’s left foot. Neither of them says anything, and Taehyung hopes he can forget this interaction ever happened.
They arrive at the cabin, and Jungkook sighs in relief. Taehyung helps Jungkook up the two steps and then immediately lets go, which makes the younger stumble a bit. Taehyung walks first into the cabin and waits for Jungkook to limp inside too. He shuts the door after him and slides a chair under the doorknob to make a makeshift lock.
Jungkook sits on the couch and is now taking off his left shoe. He lifts his pant leg and examines his ankle. It's a little swollen and red. Jungkook groans and massages it.
Taehyung pulls the curtains shut in the living room, and he coughs as the dust flies off the fabric right in his face. He waves his hand in front of his face and slumps next to Jungkook on the couch. The moonlight from the kitchen window still lights up the room a bit.
Taehyung looks at Jungkook's ankle and lets out a breathy laugh. "How'd you manage to do that?"
"While jumping down the fence. Didn't have time to properly get down because of the walkers. They were grabbing my foot from the other side." Jungkook wiggles his toes and tries to see to what extent his ankle was hurt. "It twisted as I landed."
Taehyung just hums. He is too tired to snarl back at Jungkook. He had been so desperate to find a place that he hadn't thought about what had happened. He feels his lower lip quiver, but stops it immediately. He would not show weakness in front of Jungkook, or the other man would never let Taehyung live this down.
"You didn't see the herd coming when you were up there?"
Taehyung's head snaps towards Jungkook as he hears the other one ask. He has a little accusatory tone in his voice.
"No. And if you had just arrived on time and gotten your ass up there earlier...then maybe we wouldn't be here right now," Taehyung is snarling at Jungkook even though he doesn't have the energy.
But he will not have Jungkook blaming him. Taehyung can blame himself all he wants, and that's probably what he will do for the rest of his life, but Jungkook isn't the person to tell him that.
"Oh, so it's my fault, right..." Jungkook rolls his eyes. "You could've stayed up in that guard tower until I climbed up!"
"I was expecting you to arrive shortly, so I wouldn't have to stand in the cold!"
"Boo-freaking-hoo!" Jungkook mimics crying, rubbing his eyes and makes a pout with his lips.
Taehyung's nostrils flare, and he shuts his eyes. He lets the anger flame inside of him, but when he opens his eyes, his expression is calm and cool. Jungkook's face falls, and Taehyung feels victory when he can wipe that stupid look from his face once again.
"I don't care," he sighs and gets up from the couch.
He walks to the bedroom and feels Jungkook's eyes on him. He grabs a pillow from the bed, takes the pillowcase off and comes back into the living room. Jungkook is still looking at him, and he looks a little confused.
He probably didn't expect Taehyung to stop fighting him.
The older rips the pillowcase from the sides. It is now just a big piece of fabric. He throws it on Jungkook's lap. "Wrap your ankle. I'm gonna need it to heal soon. We can't stay here for long. I need to find the others, and I'm going to look for them in the morning. You stay here because if you walk out there, you might, and you will worsen it."
"You're going out there? Alone?" Jungkook says as he begins to wrap the fabric tightly around his ankle.
"I've done it before. You saw the woods; there were no walkers."
"There were also no signs of others."
Taehyung glares at Jungkook, who keeps wrapping his ankle.
"They aren't dead."
"I know."
Taehyung doesn't reply and just looks as the younger one finishes tying the fabric. He pulls his sock up over it and pushes the hem of his pants back down. "I will be taking the bed because of my leg, then."
The older one just rolls his eyes and scoffs. "And does your majesty want anything else?"
"I feel like you've gotten more annoying..." Jungkook rubs his chin and pretends to think. "Or were you always this much of an asshole?"
Taehyung barks a laugh and runs a hand through his messy black hair. It feels dirty. It's the least of his problems, though. "I might be an asshole, but at least I'm not arrogant."
"How the fuck am I arrogant?" Jungkook asks with an offended smile.
"Of course you wouldn't see it." Taehyung rolls his eyes. "You're rude, you think highly of yourself, and you think you're better than everyone."
"Well, if that's the definition, then it looks like we're two arrogant assholes then."
Taehyung's lips twitch in a contemptuous smile. He doesn't reply after that. He walks closer to Jungkook and flicks his head towards the bedroom. "Go, then. I'm tired."
"You're actually letting me sleep there just like that? No fight?" Jungkook's tone is surprised, but he gets up. They're now facing each other almost chest to chest.
"Your leg." Taehyung grits his teeth. "Don't make me change my mind."
"No, no, I'm not asking for your permission. I was and am going to take the bed. Just surprised not seeing my face all bloodied up cause you lost your temper."
"Yeah, I'm the one with the temper problems," Taehyung laughs again. "For an arrogant asshole, you've got surprisingly funny jokes.”
Jungkook smiles sarcastically and squints his eyes. He moves his gaze from Taehyung's and heads towards the bedroom.
"Can you wake me if you hear something?" He asks in a quieter voice before he enters the room. He has his hand on the doorframe, and his head is slightly turned to the side so Taehyung can see the man's side profile. His silhouette is contrasted with the light coming from behind him from the bedroom window. His lips are parted as he waits for Taehyung's answer.
"Yeah," he simply answers.
Jungkook nods and goes into the bedroom and leaves the door ajar. Taehyung looks after the man for a while until he sits himself on the couch and lets out a long sigh. He places his still-empty rifle on the coffee table along with his machete and handgun. He removes his jacket and shoes. The coldness isn't as bad inside the cabin, but he still keeps his hoodie on. He throws the jacket over himself like a blanket and lies his head on the armrest.
He can smell the dusty old couch, and it smells like before. It doesn’t smell like death and suffering. This cabin has been left untouched by the walkers or by other people.
It’s not long before Taehyung's brain shuts off and he drifts to sleep. Not a very deep sleep because he has to be wary of the surroundings and the possible sounds coming from outside, but it was quiet. All except Jungkook's soft snoring, coming from the bedroom.