Annihilation

Matter

I lay awake through the night, filled with worry that we'd be willingly separated once the sun rose. It didn't help that I found myself between Jungkook and Namjoon, unable to escape their back and forth snoring that kept the camper filled with purring.

When the slightest bit of light shone through cracks in the metal walls I was back outside, meeting Yoongi and Jimin by the limited spread of weapons in our stock. I was quiet, observing as they split munitions so that there would be three guns among them and other pieces to carry.

The others trickled out of the trailer as the morning wore on and we cracked open small cans of potted meat for those going out on the run to share. The rest of us could wait another day, but they'd need more energy for the trip.

I watched them part as long as possible, four silhouettes fading into thick brush. Taehyung looked on with an equal worry in his eyes, until Jin was at our backs, swinging his long arms around so that they hung over our shoulders.

"They'll be fine." His voice was light, without a shroud of doubt. "Let's see if we can get some fish out of this raging river."

Taehyung and I sat by the riverbank while Jungkook was handling a net, casting it into the flowing water only to come up empty every time.

"Come on Alena. Get in the water with me, you have to be better at this than Kook here." Jin belly laughed, refusing to let up even when Jungkook became visibly frustrated.

Jungkook was drenched from head to toe, always excessive about the immediate plunges he took into water. The eldest and youngest made fishing, scavenging and everything fun. While they gave the impression of calm I noticed the ways they checked over each other's shoulders naturally, falling into a mutual silence every now and again to scan for any unusual noise.

"You haven't caught shit either." Jungkook sneered, tossing the net so that it fell over Jin's head. He looked like a ripped man-baby emerging from the water, pouty and with his long-sleeved t-shirt clinging to every crease of his skin.

According to Jin's loose calculations we were somewhere in the latter months of the year, the state's weather a constant unpredictable mix of cold, rain, and the occasional ideally warm, breezy day. Today it was perfect though the water was still cool, Jungkook shivering as he reached for the blanket I'd brought along. He squeezed out the excess water from his clothes, setting his socks and shoes out to dry while Taehyung joined Jin in the water for another try.

Jin spent so much time in the river that his feet became wrinkly and prune-like in texture, with nothing to show for all his effort. The sun began to set as he trudged back to our campsite to start a small evening fire, cursing another night that we'd be without enough nourishment to matter.

"Let's hunt until sundown." Jungkook suggested. Jin immediately declined the invitation, defeated after hours of staring at a clean spear and empty net. I imagined he'd be asleep just as soon as he warmed up.

The day behind was meant for Taehyung to get some rest too and after having caught the only fish of the day, albeit tiny, he deserved it.

"Take a light in case it gets too dark." He passed two flashlights from his bag, knowing that I wouldn't leave Jungkook to go alone.

It only took us minutes to move from a light stroll into running with the most speed and determination we could. We loved the rush of wind against our faces, overgrown hair blowing behind us as we raced toward nothing. Jungkook's claim that he wanted to hunt was quickly lost as we got caught up in a mad dash that wasn't even a competition. I knew he could have dusted me if he wished but he kept with my pace even as trees blurred past with our speed.