Apocalyptic

Chapter 21

Yamaguchi's POV
I opened my eyes, blinking a few times to see someone was in bed with me. I sat up and looked down before sighing. Oh, right.

"Hey you awake?"

"What? Oh, yeah.. Good morning Terushima." I mumbled, trying to be polite. He smiled and got up out of the bed and stretched.

"You're a heavy sleeper."

"I am?"

"Uh huh. You don't really respond to much."

"...Sorry." I said, confused on why he knew this. I shook my head and quietly got up as well.

"I gotta go. You coming on the patrol today?"

"I don't think so. Suga and Hinata seemed pretty busy, so, I think I'll stay behind today to help them." I said with a small smile. Terushima nodded with a shrug, grabbing his bag he tossed in the corner of the room. I watched him quietly as he got changed and pulled his jacket on.

"If you say so. I'll be back. Don't miss me too much." He said with a laugh, finally leaving. I shook my head. That was a new way to start the mornings. Like I said though, at least it wasn't as quiet anymore. Though, maybe the quiet wouldn't be so bad. Oh well.

I got changed as well before heading to the medic building. Hinata smiling at me when I arrived and asking what I was doing here. I explained that I decided I should stay here today to help him and Suga, so Hinata put me to work. Around the afternoon, there was some commotion going on on the ground level where Hinata was. I finished up helping the person I was currently with before heading down to see if everything was okay.

"Hey, what's going on??" I asked as I walked over to Hinata.

"See that guy?"

"Him? What about him? Is he infected?"

"No. I checked him. He said that on his patrol, he came across someone who was bitten."

"Well, that happens all the time though?"

"Yeah but he said that the guy said that the bite was weeks old." Hinata explained curiously. I stopped for a moment.

"Weeks old?"

"That's what he said."

"I'm gonna go talk to him." I mumbled, walking over to the man. He's been around here for a while, maybe 2 weeks. So I didn't really know him well.

"Hi."

"Hey."

"I'm Yamaguchi, what's your name?"

"Kageyama."

"Nice to meet you.. people are saying you came across someone with a... an old bite??"

"Well, it didn't look old. But the guy said he's had the bite for weeks. He isn't too sure how long it's been. I think he's gone crazy from that infection."

"What'd he look like??"

"Mm. Tall, blonde. He had glasses." Kageyama said with a shrug. No way. There's no way that could be Tsukki... I saw the bite on his arm over a month ago..!

"Did he tell you his name?"

"No."

"What, where, where did you find him??"

"He was somewhere along the southern trails." Kageyama said with a confused expression. I nodded and rushed off, but before I could get very far, someone grabbed my arm.

"Hey hey where are you going..!" I turned around, Suga looking at me worried.

"Kageyama said he saw someone with a bite. One that was weeks old.. and it was someone who matches Tsukki's description!"

"And you plan on going out to find him?"

"Yes!"

"Yamaguchi, it's dangerous out there and we don't know for sure that it was Tsukishima. It could have just been someone who looks a bit like him. And Kageyama is right, he could have just been going mad from the infection. We don't know what those bites do to the mind." Suga said with concern. I pulled my arm away and shook my head.

"If there's even a tiny chance that it's Tsukki, I need to go see..."

"Yamaguchi..."

"Please..?"

"Okay. But you can't go out there alone. We'll send a small group with you to go along the southern trails. Maybe you'll find him."

"Really?"

"Yes. But please... please be careful." Suga said, grabbing my hand. I nodded, giving him a hug before he pulled me along to go find Daichi. Once we found Daichi, he didn't seem very happy with the idea, but Suga managed to convince him. So, once a small group was formed, we left the settlement walls.

The southern trails were more dangerous.. The ones I had gone on were the northern ones. I was scared, and anxious, but hopeful and worried. I felt like I was experiencing every kind of emotion there was. Even if who we find isn't Tsukki, if they are telling the truth about a bite being old, then maybe they hold a cure. But, how would they get the cure???

"Hey, Ennoshita?" I asked, Ennoshita looking over at me.

"Uh huh?"

"If they do find someone with a cure against the infections.. how exactly are they going to be able to make a vaccine?"

"Well.. That's the complicated part. We can't just use the person's blood. The blood wouldn't do us any good. In fact, injecting the blood would just infect other people. We need to... get whatever part of the body that creates those antibodies and use it."

"...What part of the body would even do that??"

"Well, most likely an organ. A vital one. We aren't too sure since we've never been able to find someone immune yet. But we think it'd be made in the brain, like a defect or a tumor creating these antibodies."

"You'd have to take out the brain...!"

"In short, yes."

"But, that'd kill whoever is immune...!"

"I know... And none of us want to hurt another... But it's that one life for the rest of humanities." Ennoshita said gently. I bit my lip, keeping my head down as we walked. Now I was hoping that we don't find Tsukki... If he was immune, they were going to kill him. And there's nothing I can do to stop it.