The Apocalypse [Dreamnotfound AU]

Can't Shoot Straight

Apparently the chapters are gonna be longer from now on so... have some karlnap :)

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Tw: weapons, anxiety

"Okay, we have a bunch of knives and that's pretty much it," Sapnap concludes.

Karl nods encouragingly. "Good start."

Sapnap shoots him a look as Bad and Skeppy join them by the small pile of weapons they've gathered.

"Actually, we have something else," Skeppy says. He pulls two shotguns out from behind his back. "Bad bought these a few years back, in case something bad happened. Don't ask me why he needed two though."

Bad blushes. "I only bought one, you muffinhead. There was one already in the convertible when we found it. And I wouldn't have used them, obviously. I bought one just to threaten a burglar or someone if they came into the apartment. But I managed to grab it before we left."

Sapnap's itching to try out the gun but... "Muffinhead?"

Karl ducks his head and whispers loudly, "Bad doesn't like to cuss so he says muffin for everything instead. You get used to it."

"What the fuck?" Sapnap says, and Bad immediately says, "Language!"

Karl giggles at the confused look on Sapnap's face.

"Whatever," Sap mutters as the temptation of the gun wins over his frustration. "Can I see it?" he asks, and Skeppy hands a shotgun to him carefully. Sapnap looks at it and suddenly feels like the main character in every action movie he's ever seen. He clears his throat as he examines it. This is so cool, he thinks and he's glad Dream and George are not here to make fun of him.

"What a nimrod," Karl says, breaking through his thoughts. "My man's more excited over a gun than-"

"Can you not ruin this for me?" Sapnap inrerrupts and Karl grins impishly. Apparently, Dream and George are not the only ones who make fun of him.

"Are we gonna be practicing on actual zombies?" Skeppy asks anxiously. "None of us have ever killed one before."

Sapnap frowns as he scans their surroundings. "We should set up a shooting range," he says, thinking back to the shooting range he and George had gone to years ago. "Practising on a moving target is a lot more difficult than shooting at something that doesn't move. We should start simple. We'll try with zombies later."

Karl looks uncomfortable for a moment, and Sapnap feels his stomach squeeze with worry. But then, Karl's face clears and he grins.

"Let's do it," he says, animatedly. Sapnap wonders if he's imagining it, or if the light in his eyes has faded a little. His enthusiasm feels forced. Who cares? Sapnap thinks for a moment. But the worry in his stomach squeezes tighter.

They gather a few square wooden planks. Sapnap finds a rock and scribbles a messy target onto them, colouring the center in white. Using some rope, they fix the makeshift targets onto a line of trees that split their prairie from a forest. Sapnap walks backwards until he's a distance away, then aims the shotgun. The world slows around him and goes silent as he fixes his aim. He shoots, stepping back with the recoil, and glances over the gun to see his mark. It's a bullseye.

He can't help the grin that spreads over his face. He drops the gun and shakes his head. Apparently George isn't the only good shot.

He's feeling good about it until he glances up and finds Karl staring at him skeptically.