Annihilation

Resourceful

They met at different times, each during their first year as students at Harvard University. With only around ten percent of the campus's population made up of Asian students, they connected through a small organization formed to create a sense of community.

Namjoon was the president of the Korean Student Association, taking charge of heading the group after facing feelings of being an outsider for the first time, better accustomed to American culture than some of his peers but struggling socially as a student younger than the rest. He found support with the few other Korean students at the university, connecting with Jin and Yoongi in the same year.

Hobi enrolled the year after and they trickled through their undergraduate and graduate programs, Jimin and Taehyung starting in the same year before Jungkook, the last to join. He was initially reserved, studying by himself and rejecting every offer of a social invitation. It wasn't until Namjoon taught a class in his first year as a doctoral student that they bonded, Jungkook having a great admiration for Namjoon's intellect and the confidence he'd built over time.

The virus spread to Massachusetts from New York quickly, and when the school and airports shut down, almost every international student had been left behind, unable to reach their home country and with only the support of each other.

He told me stories of them fighting their way through the chaos, the undead and to safety. They were eventually pushed south, away from campus and into a world where for most people, survival was the only thing that mattered.

I could feel their bond start to change from one of schoolmates to one of family as he recalled nights where they slept as close together as lovers to keep warm, long treks when Namjoon's encouraging speeches were the only thing that carried them through, and moments that they fought over the best flavor of canned soup. They learned from each other through it all and from every person who they lost along the way.

I looked out beyond the building as he talked, appreciative that at least the sky was still beautiful. We witnessed each subtle change, from a navy coating dotted with stars into pitch darkness, tiny sparkles casting the only light over the land, and finally to the rising sun, coloring the horizon in breathtaking hues of orange and red.

"Jungkook!" A voice rang out just as sunrise passed. He sighed, leaning over the edge of the building to meet Namjoon's eye. I peeked out from next to him, his lip pressed into a tight line as he waved us down.

Jungkook climbed down the ladder and back into the prison first, calling up to me after making sure the hallway was still clear. By the time I shuffled down Namjoon was back inside, and Jungkook huffed as he escorted us back to the unit where they were meeting.

"You should know better than to disappear in the middle of the night." Namjoon reproached him as soon as we started our walk, his voice giving off an air of concern rather than anger.

Jungkook smacked his lips. "We were just on the roof, the same roof that I cleared yesterday."

"That doesn't matter. You know as well as me that anything could happen. We haven't even started showing Alena how to protect herself out there." Namjoon responded, always quick with his reply.

Just as fast, Jungkook proposed. "Then let me start teaching her. We need to begin with combat and you know I'm the one for that."

"You are, but give me a couple of days. There are still things that have to come before, and today we need your help with another task." Namjoon negotiated.

I'd been silent for the length of the walk, finally speaking up. "It was my fault. I asked if he could take me to get some air." I clarified with hopes that Namjoon would cut him a little slack.

He went quiet until we were back in the unit, turning to me as Jungkook took a seat by the others. "I don't want you to think I'm harsh. There are rules we have in place that keep us safe. We haven't talked about them yet so I'm not upset with you, but Jungkook likes to break the rules sometimes which is why I'm harder on him." He looked for my response, joining the others after I gave a curt nod.

Yoongi had a map of the prison spread onto the ground, the seven of them hunched over the plans. I found out quickly that if there was a ranking amongst the group, Yoongi was second in charge. "Namjoon and I are headed to work on the generators since we cleared the path to the basement. Taehyung, Jimin, and Jungkook work on disposal for today. Jin you already know your task and Hobi, I found a few maps of the area in one of the offices yesterday. We'll want to start building up our radius around the prison to go on runs. You can stay here and work on that." The way he cut his eye to where I sat cross-legged at the edge of the group indicated that his task was to also keep watch over me.

I remained still while they dispersed, Namjoon and Yoongi stopping in front of me for a word before they left. "I just want you to relax today, don't worry about too much. We'll talk more tomorrow." Namjoon put an assuring hand on my shoulder.

As everyone moved into action, leaving Hobi and I alone in the unit, I went to lie in bed, sure I would be able to sleep after staying awake for a full night. I couldn't take my mind off of Shelby, the only person I considered family, wondering if she made it out, if she stayed alive.

When I couldn't think of her anymore I ventured out of my cell, peeking over Hobi's shoulder as he drew on a map of the town, a large black dot indicating our location. He was outlining faint circles around the point and I put together that they were set at different radiuses in increments of four miles.

I traced the map with my eyes until I reached the area of my apartment complex, suddenly remembering that I'd left a crockpot meal warming for when I arrived home on the day of the riot. There wasn't much that held a lot of value to me, but I wondered if my lockbox was still tucked away at the top of my closet, holding the few possessions left of my parents.

Hobi started to explain, giving me a little insight into some of the methods they used to scavenge for supplies. "I'll start documenting from a one mile radius, just to see if there's an overwhelming amount of the undead in the area. Then we'll build further out, to find where there might be places that might have food, medicine, or whatever." I couldn't tell if he was talking to me or himself, his voice fading in and out as he muttered other small anecdotes.

"There should be a grocery store right around here." I tapped my finger on the corner of a crossroad a few miles from my house.

His eyes were wide with intrigue as he looked up at me. "How long did you live around here?" He asked, labeling the map in the exact spot I pointed.

"Around a month," I answered as he scooched over, letting me take a closer look at the map as I thought back to the errands I ran between the time I moved in and started working. "There's a convenience store I used to go to here, and a small pharmacy in the same strip as the grocery store." I pointed at different road names, tracing my finger down the route from my apartment to the prison and identifying potential locations for scavenging.

Hobi listened to me, making markings on the map with an eager smile on his face. When we finished, he moved on to another map that showed the inside of the prison, testing me to see how much of the building I had memorized and if I knew of any areas that we might find more food, medicine, or weapons.

"Namjoon's going to feel like an idiot." Hobi chuckled when we finished, every map we had notated with places I recalled. He sat back in his chair, tucking his hands behind his head as if he were relaxing, though his foot continued to tap in search of something to occupy his body.

"Why?" I replied, the murmuring  of a few approaching voices catching our attention as he answered.

He likely didn't know, but his words were exactly what I needed, erasing the part of me that felt completely useless. "Because he left our biggest resource without anything to do today."