Annihilation

Return

With us out of the group's sight and them out of ours, Jungkook tuned in to every sound a few feet outside of the waterfall. He stayed still, but his eyes darted back and forth with every new noise and conversation he focused on, while I sent out a wish that they wouldn't spot us or our supplies.

We became masters of silence until ten minutes after Jungkook heard them leave, when he moved just as quietly through the water, pulling me along with him in a swift urgency.

"We have to get back to warn the others." He sighed with relief, his clothes having stretched over our bags enough so that they went unnoticed. As we tugged on our clothes I could see that he was panicking, jerking around to face me when I grabbed his arm.

"It's okay, they said they're heading west right?" I reminded him. "Plus they could be harmless."

The words were of no consolation as he pulled his shirt over his shoulders, shoving three water-filled jugs into one bag and the same into another. He draped them diagonally across his chest and handed me a backpack filled with four.

"Let's go." He said, gripping my hand and ignoring me to start a steady jog back into the thick of the forest.

The path was a little easier after having already made the trek, though my feet needed redressing and care. We moved just as in sync as we did during our morning jogs around the prison yard, and with just as much determination as when we started.

He didn't stop until we made it long past the shed. We must have sprinted for at least six miles before I stopped, his hand leaving mine with the force of his run. He was moving so fast that it took his feet another few seconds to catch up with his mind, and by the time he turned around I'd sank against a tree, digging into my bag for a sip of water.

"I'm sorry." He kneeled in front of me, his hands on his thighs as he caught his breath. He used one of the rags that hung from his pant pocket to dab at my sweat-coated forehead.

"Why are you panicking?" I asked.

He shook his head. "There were nine of them, all men, and it sounds like they weren't the only ones in their group. They were all carrying AK-47's and rifles. We only have a couple of those back at the prison." He was giving me his observations, the technicalities. He sighed when he looked up at me, providing the answer I was actually looking for. "Just trust me, Alena, they're probably not good people. We've lost more people out there to other groups than the undead."

I made him take a few sips of water before I stood again, stretching for the next seven or so miles we had to cover until we reached the bike.

My body was practically numb by the time we made it to where he hid the motorcycle among the brush. Jungkook and I groaned with fatigue, strapping the heavy bags we carried so that they were balanced on the bike.

"You good?" He checked in on me one more time. It was just past sundown, the sunset blending from glowy hues of orange and pink to incorporate a blanket of blue that moved toward the skyline.

I nodded even though I was looking forward to the moment we reached the prison again so that I could stop going, stop pushing through. When we pulled up to the fence of the prison Taehyung and Namjoon both stood outside, Namjoon stepping up to pull back the gate while Taehyung waved excitedly. 

Namjoon's dimpled smile appeared as he took my hand to help me off the bike, wrapping both of us in a hug.

"How is everyone?" Jungkook asked. Taehyung snatched one of the bags away from him as he tried to grab it and disappeared around the side of the building where we started fires to cook, eager to get the water boiling for purification.

"Better than you." Namjoon answered, putting his arms around our shoulders in a gesture that felt like one of friendship and understanding that we needed support to walk.

As soon as we entered the unit we were swarmed by the others, thankful that we made it back safely and for the essential resource we returned with. Jin and Taehyung were just outside, boiling the jugs one by one and letting them cool before bringing in cups that we slurped from with savor.

"We saw another group out there." Jungkook informed the group, everyone's heads shooting up in attention as he repeated the same information he initially gave to me during our break in the woods.

Namjoon sat up from where he leaned against his elbows, his brow raised as he was already adjusting his plans. "Even if they said they're headed west their path could change at any moment. We'll have to start patrolling more around the grounds." He stood, crossing his arms over his chest and pacing as he talked. "We have water now, but we're still low on supplies and fuel. As soon as we're strong enough to, it's time to make a trip to Rockville, where Alena lived."

"We will, but we need to get these two checked out before anything." Yoongi pointed back and forth between Jungkook and I. Jin stood immediately, taking long strides to his cell where he gathered medical supplies.

Jin reached out for my hand when we met him at the door to his cell, urging me to take a seat on the bed. "Check out Jungkook first. He got dehydrated and passed out for a long time." I kept my place just inside the door, leaning against the wall.

"I'm fine, we need to redress the cuts on your hands and look at your feet. I'm sure they're worse from the trip back." Jungkook countered.

Jin chuckled from where he knelt on the floor by his bed. "Alena you first." Jin waved me over, making me hold out my hands for him. "I'll check Jungkook's sensory responses but if there's something wrong with his head I can't do much. We'll just hope he didn't come back as an even bigger pabo." He winked at me.

His comment made me laugh so hard that the slightly healed split in my bottom lip reopened, Jin wiping at the blood and shaking his head. "Note to self, no more making Alena smile or laugh." I held the tissue there while he moved on to rebandaging some of the cuts on my hands and forearms.

I could hardly feel them before but when Jin pulled off my shoes I winced at the pain. The lining of my boots rubbed at the open sores on my feet and ankles, the bandages Jungkook placed having slid from their place with how much I ran. Jin kept his composure but Jungkook cringed as Jin had me turn, propping my legs at the end of the bed. Jungkook squatted next to Jin while he checked out the sole of my left foot, examining a cut that ran from the middle of my heel up into my arch.

"I should put a few stitches in this one." Jin observed, using a cotton swab to clean around the wound. He instructed me to turn my legs to the side, cleaning and wrapping the lesions at the backs of my ankles. While Jin stitched the bottom of my foot he shot out questions for Jungkook, testing his memory and cognition. He was gentle but there was still some pain and throbbing as he treated my injuries, but not enough to outweigh the exhaustion that pushed me to lay back in his bed and drift into a deep slumber.

The deep hunger in the pit of my stomach woke me and it took a minute to register that I was still in Jin's bed. It was so quiet and dark in the unit that I was sure everyone was still asleep, only wondering if I'd been out for a few hours or through the day into the next night. I put most of my weight on my right side, careful not to make too much noise as I went over to the food supply, nabbing a bowl of instant potatoes.

"Alena, let me get that for you." Namjoon's voice startled me, already too late as I combined the mix, water and seasonings that would give the food a slightly better taste.

"I've got it." I assured him, finding a spot on the floor to sit and spooning the potatoes into my mouth, my hunger making it feel like a steak and lobster dinner.

Namjoon sat across from me and as much as I was chewing on my food, he seemed to be chewing on his words. "I can't find the right words to thank you. Jungkook told us what happened out there. You saved him and all of us." He tilted his head down until he was bent at his torso in a grateful bow.

"You saved me first." I reminded him, lifting his chin and knowing that if it came down to it, I would save all of them time and time again.