Luka started freaking out even more now that Kas was awake. He didn’t meant to wake him up. Lilac held onto Mori tightly, brushing her fingers through his hair as she tried to calm him. Bean tightened her grip on Luka’s hand as Luka started gasping for air again. The youngest Rose was crying and he couldn’t stop it.
Kas swore softly and sat up, rubbing his head as he looked at Luka with a completely bewildered expression. He didn't know what he was supposed to do in this sort of situation. "U-Uh… you good? Sorry, that's… uh… kind of a stupid question since you're obviously not… um…" He stammered nervously, not used to being so unsure and anxious and concerned. He wanted to fix it, but he couldn't. "Breathe? Uh… y-you can hold onto me if that makes you feel better…"
Luka shakingly wrapped his arms around Kas, trying to calm himself. He was glad everyone was okay for now but he couldn’t help but imagine the worst. He started to try and take deep breaths, hoping to calm himself down before everyone else noticed. Bean looked back at Aspen with worry as Lilac tried to keep her eyes off of her panicking brother. If she didn’t pay attention to it, she wouldn’t panic either.
.jpeg)
Aspen nodded "good good, controlled breathing is good." She said giving Luka a thumbs up, while she gripped Beans hand so tight, her knuckles turned white.
Bean tried to reassure Aspen as Luka started to calm himself down again. Once Luka calmed down, he leaned against Kas, breathing softly. He was tired of everything…the pain…the suffering…He was done with it all.
"Um…" Kas was quiet for several seconds, fidgeting nervously with his hands. "D-Do you feel any better?" He asked awkwardly. "You're… breathing a little better now."
Aspen looked towards Luka and gave a understanding nod, she lead Bean back to the tree they were previously sitting against, she sat back down, loosening her grip on Beans hand, when the silence got to overwhelming she replied with "I think its your turn to say a word, then go" she paused "your description was beautiful" she whispered.
Luka nodded, smiling a little. "Y-Yeah…thanks…" he whispered, smiling. Bean turned to Aspen. "Unique," she smiled, liking the word she chose. "And thank you…"
Kas nodded stiffly and looked away, his cheeks very red. "Do you… uh… need anything?" He asked. "I-I mean, I can't walk all that well, but…"
Luka smiled softly. "I'm okay…" he blushed lightly as he sat up. "S-Sorry for waking you up," he sighed, feeling guilty.
"It's fine… I didn't really want to be sleeping anyway." Kas shrugged and hesitated before resting his head on Luka's shoulder, his face going a bit redder. Mori was still anxious as he watched, although more relaxed now that Luka was okay.
.jpg)
Lis stopped pacing when she saw a figure in the field ahead, bent over something. Upon closer examination, it was a zombie biting into the flesh of a deer. It hadn't noticed the group yet, but it was clearly hungry.
"Hey, there's a zombie over there," Lis said, a bit hushed, "It hasn't seen us yet, but I'm wondering if firing a gun would just alert more of them-?"
Tohru hissed under his breath.
"Well, you're not going to get close to that damned thing, right?"
Rachel unhooked the flamethrower from her backpack, grinning wickedly.
"I could burn it. That wouldn't attract zombies, right?" She asked, feeling her finger getting itchy.
It had been so long since she had burned something. What…a week? A few days?
Too long.
Earl glanced at Rachel, feeling some slight fear and worry creep into his heart.
"Or, I could stab it in the head with a knife? Faster, easier, quieter."
He unsheathed the blade, gripping the handle tightly. Just in case.
“Are you feeling better from earlier?” Luka asked, hoping Kas was going to be okay. He had been worried sick about the other boy and hoped he felt any better. Lilac held Mori close as she stayed silent. She didn’t know what to say.
Kas shrugged a bit and sighed. "Dunno… my leg still hurts. A little less than earlier, but I'm also not trying to move right now. And I'm a little nauseous…" He closed his eyes, humming weakly.
Luka sighed as he held Kas close to him. “I wish I could help more…” he whispered, looking away. He felt awful about this whole situation. “I don’t have anything on me that could help,” he added.
"Don't worry about it, Luka. I've been through worse than this. I'll be fine…" His face was still very pale, and he was swaying in Luka's arms. He obviously didn't feel well.
Luka went silent as he put the back of his hand on Kas’s forehead, feeling for any fever if possible. “I-I know…It’s just…” he muttered, pulling Kas closer to him. He was scared that Kas might get worse. He didn’t want that to happen.
Aspen watched the zombie tear into the deer's flesh with fear and horror, she squeezed Beans hand and Arlo fluttered on the ground, next to her boots, she scooped him up, putting him on her shoulder, she then looked at the others, observing their reactions.
Bean gripped onto Aspen’s hand, hiding behind the other girl. She was scared…and it seemed the others were too busy minding their own situations to notice the zombie. Luka was dealing with Kas and Lilac was trying to comfort Mori.
Kas's forehead was a bit noticeably warmer than usual, but wasn't super hot yet. "I'm sure I'll be fine…" He didn't seem to notice the zombie with the deer, too out of it to pay attention. Mori heard some noises from that direction, but he hid his face, not wanting to see what was happening.
Luka whimpered in fear before pulling Kas even closer to him. He muttered something about being scared…he was too quiet for anyone to completely make out what he said. Lilac turned to find the source of the noise, nervously holding Mori close.
Kas closed his eyes and sighed shakily, his breathing a bit heavier than normal. "We should probably get going soon so we don't get attacked while we're just sitting here in the woods…"
Luka nodded, standing up as he held Kas in his arms. He was glad he was able to do so, or else this whole thing would’ve been a lot harder. He sighed sadly, looking around to see if anyone else was ready.
"Let's just- ugh… Should probably just shoot the damn thing. We can't risk anyone else getting hurt," Lis muttered, "And if its little friends decide to come along, we won't be taken by surprise this time."
She pointed her gun at the ground and clicked the safety on as she checked to see if she had enough ammo to take it out.
"Let's just make sure everyone is ready to go before I shoot, in case it does stir up any more zombies."
Tohru scowled a bit. He'd seen enough of those guys to last a lifetime. And seeing one tear into a deer like that was just disgusting. Definitely not what he needed in his current headspace.
Aspen stood up, her bat in one hand, Beans hand in the other, Arlo rested gently on her shoulder, eyes averted to everything in sight that was moving, she then gripped Beans hand and gave Tohru a single nod, to let him know she was ready.
Bean nodded as well, which soon led to Lilac standing up as she carried Mori. All three Rose kids looked ready, despite their physical and emotional injuries. The oldest gripped onto Aspen’s hand as she tried to stay calm. She was scared…really scared.
Kas looked around blearily from Luka's arms, still pretty out of it, but trying to figure out what all was going on around him regardless. Mori clung tightly to Lilac, his heart racing as he looked around.
Luka looked around wildly, keeping watch as he held onto Kas. He didn’t want anyone to get jumped while he wasn’t looking. Lilac brushed her fingers through Mori’s hair again, trying to soothe the child. This whole situation was stressful, sure…but Mori definitely didn’t deserve it. No one did.
Rachel groaned. "You guys are no fun…" She mumbled under her breath, putting away the weapons.
This sucked. She STILL couldn't burn something. And Earl wouldn't even let her make a campfire…
Earl nodded. "Best course of action I guess." He put away the knife, careful not to stab himself like a certain someone.
Cough, Lilac, cough cough.
"Don't miss."