The Survivors | BTS ✓

Chapter Twenty-Six

{x marks the spot}

"I would prefer not wasting any batteries on the walkie talkies, so seeing as Hoseok is parked right in front of us, I'll go meet up with him inside his van." Namjoon explained, turning to Tessa who was almost dozing off beside him, "I'm gonna stay with Hoseok for the night. Anyone can join if they want, if not, rest up." Namjoon spoke, sending a small smile in the direction of Taehyung and Jungkook as he rose to his feet, swiping a spare gun from the dashboard before heading towards the side door of the van. 

"Hang on!" Tessa called from the front, rubbing her hands against her tired eyes as she too rose to her feet, "I'm coming too." she said, pulling her loose blonde hair into a messy ponytail before making her way beside Namjoon. Gripping a hand against the door, Namjoon slid open the side of the van, eyes squinting through the darkness as a rush of cool autumn air flooded inside the van. Taehyung had to shield the candle lights with his hands to prevent the wind from snuffing them out. 

Confirming that there was no infected between Hoseok's van and his own, Namjoon waved them off, jumping out of the van with Tessa to quickly scurry over to the vehicle in front. Jungkook quickly stood from his place, shuffling over to the side door and swinging it shut, locking it for good measure. Walking over to the front passenger seat, he let out a sigh of pure relief as he sat himself down, sinking into the chair's comfy material as he gazed out the front windshield. 

Through the deathly silence of the night came haunting sounds. At first it was drowned out by the small chatter in the van, but now that Namjoon and Tessa had left, the sounds became seemingly amplified. The distant scrapping on concrete and ghostly shrieks made Jungkook realise how deep in enemy territory they already were. As he listened, all he could hope for was for the sounds to fade and die off. But they didn't. So he looked for a distraction instead. 

His eyes trailed up to the starry night sky, the only thing that had remained the same in this ever-changing world. Stars... they looked like fireflies only they burned brighter against the glowing black satin of the night sky. The night was so especially dark that the stars lit up with so much brilliance, they mirrored themselves from Jungkook's dilated orbs. It was so surreal, Jungkook would do anything to reach up for one, keep it in his hands for warmth and pocket them to bring them home in a jar.  

Loosing track of time, Jungkook felt a slight shiver run throughout his body. The temperature was beginning to drop to the point where Jungkook needed to find a blanket to keep his body temperature stable. Letting out a tired sigh, Jungkook swung his legs around to the side of the seat, standing to his feet as he turned towards the back of the van. And when he did, something surprising caught his attention. Kim Taehyung's form had fallen over the cardboard box, head resting peacefully against his scattered notes as his chest slowly rose and fell, drool threatening to fall onto his papers. 

Jungkook stifled back a laugh as he placed a hand on his hip, shaking his head in disbelief, "This guy." he chuckled, walking towards the sleeping male. Jungkook found himself reaching into a nearby box, snatching out a blue cotton blanket as he made his way back towards Taehyung's sleeping form. Slowly and carefully, Jungkook spread the blanket over the brunette, careful not to wake him before shuffling back to the front of the van, sitting himself down as he curled himself up in the front passenger seat, falling asleep under the watchful eye of the stars. 

----------------

The sound of rhythmic knocking came from the back door of the van. Usually Hoseok would raise the alarm at an unwelcoming sound, but due to his instincts, he could easily tell that this was the knocking of his best friend, one with tune, not one of the undead. Turning his head towards Jimin, Hoseok gestured towards the back doors, "Open them, it's Joon." he spoke, earning a nod from Jimin as he slipped his knife away, placing his hands against the metal door handles as he swung open the doors.