UNDER EDITING 𝐺𝑅𝐴𝑉𝐸 𝐷𝐴𝑁𝐺𝐸𝑅 | 𝐴𝑃𝑂𝐶𝐴𝐿𝑌𝑃𝑆𝐸 ✔︎

A Risky Plan

(Cooper's POV)

Making my way towards Carlos was quite a task.

I had to maneuver myself behind objects so the soldiers couldn't see me. I finally was able to sneak into his office without being seen.

Shutting the door behind me, I call out to him. "Psst. Carlos, are you in here?" I whisper. Suddenly, Carlos' head pops up from behind his desk.

"Cooper?" He stammers. I nod and he stands up straight. Before I can say anything, he runs up to me and gives me a large hug. "Woah, you okay?" I question awkwardly without hugging back.

He releases quickly and brushes off his actions. "Erm- yes. I'm fine. I've just been in here hiding for so long is all."

"You've been in here the whole time?" I ask. He nods. "I was going to try and negotiate with them, but then I saw them kill a bunch of people with no question so..."

I nod. "We'll be alright. We just need to find Lexi and the boys."

"What do we do after that? We aren't just going to let them have the community are we?" Carlos mumbles. I shake my head. "I honestly have no idea. I mean, what are we supposed to do? They are loaded with guns and have more people than us that can actually fight."

Carlos nods. "I guess you're right." I walk over to the window and peek out the curtain ever so slightly. Guards are everywhere.

"We may just have to wait until they clear away from this area." I conclude. Carlos glances out too and sighs. "Alright."

(Noah's POV)

Jasper and I are quieter than mice at the moment.

We can hear a man opening and closing doors every few seconds. Jasper turns to me slowly and gives me a look, like I'm supposed to know what he's trying to say.

His face is extremely serious and he leans into my ear quietly. "Here's the plan." He starts. I could barely hear his whisper, but at least the masked soldier won't.

"I'm gonna open the door when I hear him open a door far away from us. He'll see me and start to chase after me. If he's smart, he wont try to shoot me right away because he doesn't know if I'm apart of 'Denise's group.' When he chases me, you need to make your way towards Cooper's room and climb out his window that leads to the back yard."

I step back a bit and give Jasper a shocked look. "I am not doing that." I conclude. Jasper shakes his head. "I know it's hard-"

"No Jasper. I'm not. What if you- you know what." I start to tear up. "I already lost my Mom... I can't lose you too." I sniffle quietly.

Jasper gives me a sad look and pulls me into a tight hug. "Ashwell, I'll be fine. All I know is that if you can make it out and find Cooper, then we have a better chance of surviving. I'll kill that soldier with no problem... you need to go."

I wipe my eyes with the sleeve of my shirt roughly. Jasper kisses me for a while before releasing. He leans his head towards the door.

Another door in the house opens, one far way from us. Jasper turns to me...

3... 2... 1... He counts down with his fingers. Jasper flings the door open and stands in the middle of the hallway. I wait for a second.

"Hey!" The soldier yells. Jasper books it into the kitchen and the soldier chases him. My chance. I exit the closet with lightning speed as I run past the soldier and Jasper. The masked person didn't notice me since he was chasing Jasper around the house. I almost make it to Cooper's room before I hear...

"Shit!" Jasper hollers and I hear a thud. I turn around to see that the soldier had pinned Jasper to the ground. Their gloved hands began to choke him. No...

I look around the kitchen to see a vase filled with flowers on the counter top. Without thinking I grab it and run towards the masked soldier. Noticing my footsteps behind, they turn around. It's no use though, as I swing and smash the pot over their head, knocking them out cold.

Their strong grip on Jasper's neck is released and he lets out a gasp for air.

I make eye contact with Jasper who rubs his neck a bit. I let out a breath of relief and lean down, giving Jasper a hug. He seems to groan in pain. "Are you okay?" I question.

He leans himself up against the kitchen counter. "When I fell, I sorta.." He lifts his shirt slightly, which reveal a wide but not deep cut in his stomach.

"I fell on my weapon." He concludes. I nod. "Well that's gonna delay finding Cooper and Lexi.." I mumble.

I stand up cautiously and open a cabinet, grabbing a first aid kit. "C'mon, Jasp. We need to go to your room just in case anyone tries to inspect the house again."

Jasper nods and groans in pain as he stands up. We make his way to his room and I shut his door slowly and lock it. Jasper takes a seat in his desk chair and I set the kit down beside him.

Screams of residents are still heard from outside. We need to be quick.

"You're lucky that the cut isn't deep, that means you don't need stitches." Jasper seems to sigh in relief as I walk over to his desk and grab a pair of scissors.

He notices and jumps a bit in his seat. "Woah- uh... w-what are you doing?" He mumbles nervously. I glance at the scissors and back at him. "Oh, haha. Don't freak out, I'm just cutting your shirt with these."

Jasper leans back a bit and huffs a "Thank God."

I hurriedly walk over to him and cut through his shirt immediately.

While removing the fabric, I explain to Jasper what I'll do. "I need to apply pressure to the cut to stop the bleeding. As I said before, it's not a deep cut so that won't take a ton of work. Then I'll just apply antibacterial spray and wrap you up. Shouldn't take more than five minutes."

I ball up the extra t-shirt fabric and press it against Jasper's cut which causes him to jolt a little.

"I would normally need to run water over your injury but it's too risky to go to the bathroom now. We don't know if the guards will look for their missing soldier." I shrug.

Jasper huffs a laugh. "I forgot how good you are at this stuff."

I remove the fabric after awhile and grab for the antibacterial spray.

I take off the cap. "Uh... this may sting a bit." I warn. "Wha-" I spray his wound before he can protest which makes Jasper hiss through his teeth. "Fuck." He groans.

"..Sorry." I mumble. I immediately pull out the bandages and medical tape. "Stand up please."

I request for him to put out his arms and I immediately start wrapping. "I'm trying to hurry. Sorry if I'm taking forever."

Jasper shakes his head. "Don't even worry about it. Just focus on getting me cleaned up so I don't like... die from an infection."

I wrap the bandages pretty tightly to avoid anymore bleeding out. Jasper groans a bit, and I can tell the tightness of the wrapping is bothering him.

I wrap the medical tape around him tightly and finish up the little 'doctor's appointment'.

Jasper huffs a bit. "I can hardly breathe."

I roll my eyes. "You'll be fine." I say in annoyance. Jasper gives me a shocked look. "Is everything okay?" He inquires.

I cross my arms a bit. "I'm just a bit pissed at you... I mean... you were just going to let me leave you and sacrifice yourself! What if I didn't notice the soldier pinning you?! You would be dead! Sometimes I can't believe how irresponsible you can-"

Jasper cuts me off with a short kiss. "You're right, I'm sorry. I was just thinking on my feet. I was worried he would get to our door so I panicked. I love you." He apologizes. I nod.

"I love you too. It's okay."

"Thank you. Alright, let's go find Cooper and Lexi." He smiles.

A/N- I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!!