ODDS OF SURVIVAL - TAEKOOK

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

Jungkook woke before Taehyung in the early dawn, when the light was still low. He almost always woke before Taehyung, so that was normal, but he'd never woken with a mess of tousled orange hair right under his nose before.

At least not this particular mess of tousled orange hair. He lay there, eyes crossed slightly to stare down at the top of Taehyung's head, waiting for the wave of dread and regret to hit him, but it didn't seem to be coming.

But why should it? He and Taehyung fought a lot, but the animosity he used to feel every second he was in Taehyung's presence had started to cool a long time ago.

During his long drive the day before, he'd had plenty of time on his own to ponder over all the things he'd let himself avoid thinking about for months now.

He thought about his parents, and while it still hurt more than a broken bone to think about them, it also gave him some motivation. They would want him to survive and keep fighting, even on days when survival felt like living hell.

He also wondered about his uncle, and his parent's close friends who had been like an extended family to him when he was growing up. He wondered if any of them were still alive, and how likely it would be for him to see any of them again if they were.

Ultimately he decided it would be best if he never found out what happened to any of them. That way he could comfort himself by imagining that wherever they were, they were safe and comfortable, and far away from any of the horrors he'd seen.

He also thought about Taehyung more than he ever wanted to admit. He tried to consider what it would be like if he kept driving and never went back. If he just left Taehyung there with all the supplies and went off to make a new life on his own.

He couldn't, though. He would always worry about what might have become of Taehyung, and he wouldn't be able to write it off and imagine a best case scenario like he did with everyone else who's fate was in question, because in Taehyung's case he knew damned well what he left behind.

He knew Taehyung's worst fear was being abandoned because he'd seen how he reacted any time Jungkook so much as joked about leaving him behind.

If Taehyung didn't die within the first week of being alone, he'd probably go completely out of his mind with fear and loneliness.

Even toying with the idea of leaving for good made him worry about Taehyung. If Taehyung got overwhelmed or froze up again, no one would be there to help him. He could see the scenario playing out in his mind's eye, and it made his chest tighten with panic just to think of it.

There was no specific moment he could pinpoint where he first started to care about Taehyung's well-being, but at this point did it really matter?

He cared about Taehyung now like an extension of himself, and he couldn't stop caring any more than he could cut off his own arm.

He thought over his last words to Taehyung before he left, and the more he thought about it the more surprised he was that it had taken him so long to realize how important Taehyung had become to him.

So once he'd determined that he would go back, (had to go back, there was no other option,) he started looking for department stores along the road.

He found several, but most of them were pretty well raided even in the clothing and linen sections. It amazed him that so little was left in most stores he found when there were seemingly so few left alive to loot them.

He stopped at 6 different stores before he managed to collect enough clothing and bathroom linens that he was satisfied. He also picked up what soap and laundry detergent he could find because, if Taehyung was building a shower, it only made sense that the next step would be to develop a means to clean their laundry as well.