IT'S THE APOCALYPSE, BITCHES

- apocalypse!au featuring seven adorable hunks requested by tykamin

"The sun is up!" An oddly cheerful voice yells, an uproar of complaints following shortly after the disturbance. You groan, smacking your face into your potato sack pillow a few times before forcing yourself to sit, fists rubbing at your eyes.

You squint at the harsh rays of sunlight streaming in from the open flap, the shadow of a man blocking most of it. You narrow your gaze in on the man, certain that he's the reason why you're awake so early, waiting until your vision clears to confirm your suspicions. Kim Taehyung stands at the opening, his hand over his mouth to conceal his snickers. He finally straightens, his smile faltering but still present as he scans the tent.

"Everyone alive?" Each person nods at him as his eyes meet theirs. You await your turn, hoping he spares you enough time so you can flip him off. Only his eyes widen when he reaches you, gasping in mock horror as he covers his eyes.

"Guys! I think Y/N's dead!" He yells, pointing a finger at you. Sighing, you pick your pillow up and lob it at him, smirking when he grunts from the impact, pouting as he holds his arm childishly.

"Thank you," Jimin sighs, promising under his breath that he was about three words away from inflicting pain upon the younger himself. You shrug, standing with a stretch and small smile as everyone talks amongst themselves as they get ready to move.

In times like these, it's risky to be camping in the same spot twice.

If you're counting correctly, four years ago, life as you know it was destroyed. The apocalypse came without a warning, sending the world into panic as only the best fought through the Stages to live on another day.

For you, everything was fine the day it came. You had an easy day at work and came home to relax with your cat and a couple of good books you had on your shelf. You had only just walked in when the sirens blared, announcements of an unidentified force heading towards Earth making it hard for you to breathe. You had only just managed to gather a few essentials when the earthquakes hit, sending you to the ground. Hiding under a table, you cried and cried, hoping and praying that your family and friends were all safe and all okay.

It's a shame that you still don't know the answer to that.

You met the boys during the third Stage of the apocalypse, more better known as the Scorch. You were so close to just giving up and letting yourself die on the floor until a pair of arms hoisted you up and dragged you into an air conditioned tent. After introductions and story sharing, they began to take care of you and fill you in on what they do. Shortly after that, it felt like you had always been with them, fitting in with them so quickly that for brief moments it truly felt like things were back to normal.

Safe, in other words.

The last and most recent Stage, however, involves a mind numbing disease. No-one knows the origins of it or how to cure it but as common sense suggests, everyone knows to stay away from it. Labelled the Savages by Taehyung, these once-human-shells stalk the trees in search of unsuspecting prey. Animal or human, they aren't picky. It only takes a bite for their toxin to enter your bloodstream, slowly infecting you until you're no longer yourself, roaming mindlessly in search of a human snack.

It's unknown how long it takes for the disease to settle in, the symptoms unnoticeable until it's too late.

You stand outside with your backpack, rocking on your heels as you close your eyes, finding the feel of the sun on your face and the cool breeze kissing your skin to be enjoyable and refreshing. You feel a presence beside you, cracking an eye open to see Taehyung occupying the space next to you with a lopsided grin, his head tilted back as he closes his eyes and enjoys the calmness of the weather too.

You find yourself staring at him, unable to deny his clear beauty. If things weren't as fucked up as they are now, one might even go as far to say that dating Taehyung has most definitely crossed your mind more than once during sleepless nights.

Only, that should be the least of your worries.

Clearing your throat, you catch his attention and quickly send your gaze to the pile of leaves at your feet, awkwardly tightening your grip on the straps of your bag. You hear a soft tsk then feel a warm hand wrap around yours, slowly prying your fingers off the strap before moving to do the next one.

"Don't do that. You'll end up damaging the bag and your hands," Taehyung mutters, patting your shoulders when he's done, brushing past you with a small smile to assist one of the boys with something.

You stand with your hands limply by your side, sucking in your cheeks to stop your mad blush from becoming noticeable. Luckily, Namjoon's booming call for everyone to join him has you distracted from Taehyung for a few seconds, your mind set on listening to his instructions.

"As you all know, we started our trip to the safe zone a couple of days ago and I'm pleased to say that we are just past halfway there. Our plan from here on is to continue to the safe zone and take minimal stops. The sooner we get there, the quicker we can forget about trying to keep ourselves alive and safe from those damned Savages. As of now, our stops are undecided but are set to be mandatory if one of us is at risk of falling behind. I'm not leaving any of you behind, got it?" Namjoon claps his hands together, jolting a few boys who had dazed off during the speech. You nod with a laugh, waiting for everyone to swing their bags over their shoulders and begin walking, trailing behind with Hoseok and Jungkook.

You notice Taehyung constantly look behind his shoulder, as if searching for something. It's almost comical the way he does it, his giant bag making it harder to see what's behind him. Furrowing your brows together, you step a little to the side, making yourself visible to him. He glances behind him, features softening when his eyes meet yours. You gulp as he slows himself down and walks by your side, smiling in a carefree manner.

"Hi," he chirps, flashing you his signature box shaped grin. You can't help but smile back, a dreamy sigh threatening to push past your parted lips, eyes widening in slight mortification. It's safe to say now that four years of harbouring feelings for someone is extremely hard. Thankfully, he doesn't notice your dilemma and launches straight into a conversation about what he plans on doing when he reaches the safe zone.

"Well, obviously, sleep comes first," he muses, nodding his head to his own statement. "Then food. God, I haven't had a good bowl of ramen in ages! After that, I'd spend all my time with you guys, marvelling over how we actually made it!"

You chuckle, smiling fondly at him as he pouts, asking about what's got you laughing.

"You," you reply. "You're a weirdo."

He scoffs, running a slow hand through his hair, aware of your eyes following the movement with your breath caught in your throat. In one quick movement, he tweaks your nose, scrunching his nose up adorably before going back to walking as if nothing happened.

"I know but you've got to deal with me," he hums mockingly, pulling the sleeve of your shirt to manoeuvre you out of a tree's way.

"I'm not mad about it," you honestly answer, looking at him with a smile that holds sincerity. "Your weirdness makes everything seem normal and it gives me hope that things can be how they were before. I'm glad you make the apocalypse feel like that because without you, I'm certain I'd go insane."

He laughs but places a comforting hand on your shoulder, your body subconsciously leaning in to it.

"We'll be fine," he murmurs, reassuring the unspoken truth behind your words. You offer him a stiff nod, feeling disappointed when his hand drops to his side, an odd silence settling in between the two of you.

It's only when his hand slips casually into yours, the cool of his skin as he intertwines your fingers with his making your heart race delightfully, do you find the silence to be warm and inviting like a hug.

Nudging your shoulder, Taehyung jerks his head towards the group with a sigh and quickens his pace, you having no choice but to follow, finding joy in the way he swings your hands in between you.