Don't Be Scared

S.1 E.12 ~ ML (Ch. 91)

Warren ran off back into the valley of boxes that Doc and I hadn't touched while the rest of us did our assigned jobs with ease. 10K helped move Cassandra further into the back seats. She was now resting behind the passenger side.

"Rule one."

10K stood beside me as we both stared inside the occupied vehicle.

Rule one? What was rule one again?

"Don't be scared, right?"

A heavy hand fell on top of my left shoulder.

"It's a weakness. Don't show it."

Don't show it; don't show it. I took a deep breath of the dusty oxygen, feeling my shoulders begin to relax under his warming touch. He's got such a protective aura I can't help but to obey him.

I feel s--I think everyone in the group feels safe whenever he's around. I know I do.

"All aboard!" Doc called out for me, indirectly.

Way to go, Doc. I can do this. Releasing the breath I used as a hostage, I carefully stepped into the van's long back end and sat down closest to the door. 10K nodded his head in satisfaction before backing up and moving out of my sight.

Panic sat in the moment his form wasn't seen. Breathe. Breathe. You're fine. Don't be weak; don't be weak. Warren jumped in at the same time 10K pressed the red button for the metallic garage door to open up.

The groans from outside became louder and more courageous once they knew the bell for their meal was rung. Warren stopped for only a second so 10K would be able to have a ride out.

"Go!"

Then, 10K was slamming the doors to the white van shut. I jumped at the loud noise, not liking how closed off I was. I don't like how far away from the ground I was. I don't like how the banging of the undead as they slam their bodies against the side felt.

Nothing about this was likable to me. Not a single thing. 10K got on one knee while his right hand pressed against the side of the van to keep himself balanced. I was right beside the door with my knees against my chest.

"You're fine. Don't think about it."

"Don't think about it? How do I do that?"

"What's your middle name, (Y/N)?" Warren asked, peeking at me through the rear view mirror.

I took a deep breath, staring up into 10K's dark blue eyes. They must've changed when we were in the building.

"(M/N)."

"Favorite animal?" Cassandra asked, helping out like Warren.

"I like (favorite animal), but I've always been more of a puppy person."

"Hold onto her." Warren gave me a warning, but I failed to remember at the time we had to go through a locked fence.

We'd have to literally crash into a fucking metal fence.

"10K.." I trailed off, looking away from his face to the front window of the van.

10K changed positions so he was on both of his knees and placed himself in between my legs. I could feel his hips at the top of my kneecaps. My face flushed at the touch, but it was pretty hot in there anyway.

"Get your head down." He ordered, placing a hand on the back of my neck.

Obeying him like I was the best trained puppy in the world, I placed my temple on his collarbone. Warmth vibrated off of the arm that was wrapped around my shoulder. Breathe in, breathe out.

Heat flushed against my whole face at just the fact I've never been this close to anyone but Warren, Charlie, Addy, and Mack. His left hand pressed against the metal behind me so he could stay as balanced as possible.

"Hold on!" Warren ordered as she suddenly gassed the machinery.

Fuck. Fuck! Fuck! I grabbed the sleeves of 10K's shirt to press my body closer against his as we slammed right into the gated egress. Our bodies jerked against the back entrance of the van, but thankfully, it stayed closed against the weight of our bodies.

The sound of metal rubbing against metal echoed out vibrations as we slid between the two doors. I grunted, not liking this whole trip. Like at all.

"Remind me to never get in a vehicle that Warren is driving." I mumbled, leaning my head back against the uncomfortable siding.

10K was still in between my legs with a hand beside my head. When I looked up from being covered in his smell, I didn't really think about how close we would really would be.

"Everyone good?" Warren asked after the whole ordeal had been completed.

We had just released a lot of various breeds of Zs. Great.

I looked down, coughing awkwardly, trying to get him to realize how close we were. The warmth of his breath was falling against my chin, but when he finally got the hint, he was away from my legs and against the wall in front of me.

What could only be explained as lava flooded against my face like it was prehistoric times and the volcano had just erupted.

"Y-Yeah, I think so."

Thanks to 10K.

"Why are you so scared of vehicles? Mommy and daddy get in a crash?" Murphy mocked my past as if he knew any of it.

I shrugged my shoulders lazily, rubbing the back of my neck where 10K's hand had been pressed against.

"You don't have to tell us right now, (Y/N). Murphy is just bein' an ass."

"No, it's fine. It's nothing serious or anything like that. It's just when the apocalypse first began, Mack, Addy and I went to our separate houses to check on our families and stuff like that. Our parents weren't home so we just changed clothes considering Mack was in the middle of a hockey match when this all happened.

"We left the house and went to Addy's since she had given us her address. Then, we ran to the closest military support group. There were a lot of people on this military truck, but we were just thankful we had made it.

"I don't know if the driver was sick, or if someone was sick and the military failed to realize it but we crashed. I still don't know how. No seat belts were there to save us, either. There was really nothing keeping us in our seats.

"I got knocked out, and when I woke up, there was smoke everywhere around me. I couldn't see clearly. I was still trying to comprehend everything. My head was pounding and I had blood all over my hands."

I looked down at my already bandaged wrists and my calloused fingers, imagining all the scraps and scratches I had on my palms. I'm surprised I didn't break anything that day.

"Then, Mack and Addy came out of nowhere from the smoke. They kept moving their lips, but I couldn't hear anything at all. Just a ringing noise that would not stop. Addy helped me up while Mack used a gun to clear the path.

"Where he got a gun is pretty much clear, but the way he knew how to use it scared me the most back then."

|| And suddenly, it wasn't that big of a deal anymore ||