Annihilation

Water

I made a mental note that once we made it back everyone needed to incorporate dragging each other into our workout routines. I fell onto my butt with Jungkook leaned against me as I nudged the door to the shed closed behind us.

"We made it." I puffed, letting his weight settle on my torso while I regulated my breathing, wiping at the coat of sweat on my nose and forehead. When I'd moved from heavy huffs of breath to longer exhales that I felt in control of, I slid from behind him and removed his backpack, pushing it under his head before he could hit the ground. While I readjusted the bags with the things I needed to continue I talked to him and myself.

"Okay, I know I said I just needed you to make it to the shed but it would be really great if you could cool off a little and wake up." I muttered as I removed his shoes and socks, tugging his shirt over his head to discard in the corner of the building. I pressed two fingers to the edge of his chin and neck, feeling his quick, thready pulse. "I know you, Kook. You're too stubborn to go out like this. I'll go get water and when I come back you'll wake up. Just keep breathing for me." I sighed, pushing his hair away so that it didn't stick to his forehead.

I'm not sure what carried me through those hours of searching, but it was nothing short of a miracle. I sprinted out from the shed and through the woods, dropping off rags in trees along the way so that I didn't lose my path, flying past the undead who couldn't keep up with me at full speed, and until my legs gave out and I was begging for air.

Every time I collapsed with the burn of my muscles I prayed, to the universe, to the earth, to whatever creator was out there. My pleas started softly, but the further I ran across the withered land, the more angry and desolate I became.

"I pray to find water and for the strength to carry on for the seven men who have protected and cared for me."

"That there's water."

"For water."

"Don't you think I've been through enough already. Don't do this. Just let me find some fucking water."

"There will be water." I repeated my last call with every step I took, slowed to a walk and sure I was having an auditory hallucination as I passed through a thick of trees, having to slice the low-hanging limbs to get to the other side.

My hands shook, reaching out as the trees broke into an opening, a clearing that led to a short cliff where a small waterfall poured into a stream. I squatted at the edge of the flowing water, pulling a bit into my hands for a sip and tossing the rest over my face. I smiled at it being real, watching as a droplet of blood dripped from my lip to the water.

I was impatient as I ran water through the makeshift purifier Yoongi packed until there was a jug full. It had to be enough for now, just enough to get back to the shed and to Jungkook. I couldn't run anymore, but walked as quickly as I could in the direction I came, keeping track with the rags I left behind. I was racing against the setting sun, the soles of my feet screaming with pain as I stepped as fast as I could bear to avoid being alone in the dark.

The night was still sticky and humid, but without the beating heat of the sun. The full moon gave the slightest glow as I came upon the shed, almost hidden among the trees that grew around it.

Jungkook had changed his positioning, in the middle of putting his socks back on and seated underneath a small window carved out of the wood. His eyes were open more but you could see the limpness in his body as he tried to push up against his hands. "You went out alone." His voice was raspy and hoarse.

"And I came back with water." I tugged the full jug from my bag, kneeling beside him and supporting the bottom as he chugged it until it was halfway empty. Water dripped down his chin and onto his chest, moving up and down with the deep breaths he took.

I finally sat back, stretching my tingling legs out and taking a few gulps when he passed the jug to me. My arms slowly gave out and I scooted across the floor until I leaned against the wall too, drifting off to sleep with a final prayer for the other six men we needed to save.

A light stinging on my knee woke me at sunup, Jungkook's hand stopping me from scrambling to my feet. "Sorry, I thought I should clean these up." He pressed an antiseptic wipe to my knee again, looking up at me through apologetic eyes when I winced.

I looked down at the broken skin on both of my knees and at my hands, small cuts on my fingers and palms from ripping branches out of my way. Jungkook was gentle as he pulled my shoes off, my feet littered with blisters that he poured water over, bandaging the ones that were the most irritated.

"You're kind of a badass you know." He used a cotton swab to wipe at the dried blood around the crack in my lip, scolding me when I broke into a smile. "Stop, you'll make it worse." He laughed.

We shared a pork and rice flavored MRE and a little more water before heading out. We kept at a steady pace, the path a little less chaotic than the night before. It took just three hours, the sun near its highest point as we came through the trees I hacked through.

Jungkook let out a deep sigh as he peered out at the stream, stepping into the water until he was at waist level. "Do you really want to walk back with wet clothes?" I called out to him, dipping one of the jugs into the water to fill.

"If you want me out of my shirt again all you have to do is ask." He cackled, the complete opposite of the guy from the day before, though neither of us were completely rejuvenated. I squatted at the edge of the waterfall, filling another jug when he flung his shirt so that it landed on my shoulder. "Alena, come get in the water." He called out, so loud that I shot him a disapproving glance, leading him to repeat his statement in a whisper.

I rolled my eyes at him, moving on to the next jug when he grabbed onto my wrist, pulling me down with a splash. His smile was so big that it almost erased my annoyance and I pushed him backward, his laughter filling the forest as he floated on the stream.

"I told you I didn't want to get my clothes wet. We need to hurry up and get back to the others." I complained, standing on one leg to remove my shoes and tossing them near his shirt.

"We'll have more energy for the walk if we take a minute to breathe now. Plus we need our clothes to dry." He insisted, doing the same with his shoes and pants.

I sank into the water with every inch that I lifted my dress, making sure I was covered so that only my head and shoulders bobbed into view.

He grabbed it from me as I held it over my head, lobbing it by the rest of our supplies. "You don't need to do that." He stood directly in front of me, holding my gaze. "I'll only look into your eyes, I promise." He did just that as I stood, crossing my arms over my chest despite being covered.

I went over the plan for our return aloud as he scrubbed away the dirt on his skin under the waterfall. While I did the same he worked on filling more jugs and containers, testing out the weight of each bag.

"After we get back we need to make a plan to go further out. If we can make it to the next town where I lived–" My breath caught in my throat when he cuffed a hand over my mouth, pulling me further into the shadows of the waterfall.

He turned around to face me, alarm in his eyes as he pulled my dress over my head, both of us quiet, our breathing even silent as we listened to approaching voices.

"Finally, some water." A deep voice called out through the trees. I could tell from the way his brow furrowed as he listened that he was counting the number of footsteps, of people.

"Leon is crazy for having us out in these woods. We need somewhere to live if we're gonna keep following him." One of them chided. A second later there was the snap of something and a yelp.

Another voice sounded. "Don't disrespect our leader. He has a plan, we'll keep heading west."

It was hard to tell how many there were, more sounds of movement than talking. When I looked down Jungkook held up nine fingers, turning around slowly so that I was behind him. I hooked my hand around his bicep in an attempt to keep him from moving, but he continued walking so that we flanked around the side of the waterfall where he could see through.

He watched long enough to get the information he needed, easing his way back into the shadows with his body like a shield in front of me. There were a million things I wanted to say and do, but we stayed with our eyes locked on each other, still and noiseless with the threat of another group just meters away.