We took turns staying awake to keep watch and sleeping close together so that we had a little warmth against the night breeze. Jungkook complained when I couldn't sleep, claiming that I breathed loudly with the intent of him knowing I was still awake just to keep him up.

"Say what's on your mind so we can go to sleep." He grumbled, opening his eyes when I rolled over from my back to face him.

"I'm worried." I confessed in a whisper. "We can't just be on the run. We have to find somewhere safer to sleep, more food and water, and clothes. Maybe if we keep along the highway we'll come to a rest stop that still has some maps. Then we can get some direction, find a place that's near a water source with just all of us again." I spouted every thought that crossed my mind.

Jungkook tucked an arm behind his head. "I should've let you sleep next to Namjoon. I'm sure he's thinking about the same thing." He chuckled, my silence leading him to continue. "We'll find somewhere."

We looked at each other through heavy eyelids, drifting asleep until Jimin woke us for a lookout shift. He insisted that we catch the sunrise from a thick branch at the top of a tree that gave the best view.

When there was enough commotion to let me know the others were awake I climbed down. Namjoon stood across from Shelby and Taehyung, talking with his hands while Yoongi stood next to him with his arms crossed over his chest. I watched as he took Shelby to the side, bringing a small smile to my face when I realized he was taking her for a beginner's lesson in weaponry.

Jin appeared by Taehyung's shoulder, peeking under the wrap around his chest and giving a satisfied nod. When he finished Taehyung watched Jungkook and Jimin do pushups at the treeline, a frustrated line in his forehead at being unable to join in until Namjoon summoned us for a brief conversation, leaving Shelby and Yoongi to start her training.

"We'll get out of here soon. We should focus on distance for a while until we feel safe from our proximity to Carolus. On the way we need to find a map of the state and food." Namjoon delivered the plan, not unlike the one I'd been working through the night before.

Five of us made quick work of breaking down our temporary camp, suiting up with crossbody bags and backpacks half full of gear to pick up on our journey. As with the previous day we kept along the edge of the highway, moving East. Jimin busied himself with talking to Shelby, giving her tips on distributing her weight so that she made as little sound as possible. I worried for her in multiple ways, increasing my step so that I fell into line next to Namjoon.

"We should avoid larger cities, look into areas that are more isolated and near water. Gideon might be dead and he might not, but if he's not he'll still be looking for her. Plus, I think it'd be better if we don't run into any more groups right now." I iterated, glancing up to assess his response.

It was simple, like he already knew everything I was thinking and all that we needed. "Agreed."

He kept his sight on the road ahead and our surroundings, recognizing signage that indicated we were headed in the direction of the state's capitol. Everything was quiet around us, no hint of life anywhere in proximity though we couldn't be sure, deciding to divert our route to put us in a Southeastern direction.

We walked until our feet were numb, Namjoon calling for another break since we didn't want to expend all of our energy. Just the same as the day before, we found an area out of sight and where we had a good view to rest for a while, rationing food and sleeping in small doses until we felt up to continuing, not letting nightfall stop the trek.

With only the moon to light the way we kept closer together, maintaining a steady march that sounded militant in the silence.

"Up ahead." Yoongi's voice stood out, the faint glow of white letters against a green background a welcome beacon that let us know there was a rest stop approaching.

The smell hit before anything else. The parking was larger than the small building next to it, empty outside of two semi-trailer trucks while limp bodies of the undead, now permanently dead, scattered from someone else's raid of the place.

I pulled a bandana from my bag, tying it so that it covered half of my face to mask the scent.

"There probably not much, maybe something from a vending machine if anything was left behind and hopefully a kiosk with a map." Namjoon observed, pointing to the side of the building when two vending machines came into view. Jungkook and Jin jogged over to them, pulling them away from the wall with a synchronized grunt. Yoongi peeked through the windows of the building to see if it was vacant, making a little noise as he opened the door to flush out any insiders.

Namjoon and I followed him while the others worked on fetching any food or drink left behind. We were quickly disappointed with the empty slots that would have been filled with available brochures and maps, Yoongi crumpling an old coupon book between his fingers.

There was a counter, behind which a service associate would have sat before and I climbed over. A large plastic cup of coffee that had long returned to black, more mold than coffee, sat half full on a cup holder and a wallet sized photo of a cute guy was tucked into the corner of the computer monitor, a memento for whoever adored him. I pulled open the drawers on each side of the desk, shuffling through documents to find a bag of chips at the bottom.

"Jackpot!" I exaggerated my excitement, knowing they would only carry a tiny amount of joy in only finding a bag of chips.

Yoongi scoffed while Namjoon let out a chuckle as I set the bag on the countertop with a crinkle, moving on to the small storage closet out of view from across the counter.

I'd acted without thinking and my body froze in the doorway when it opened, the tiny space and dark walls reminding me of the place where everything started. The dingy aroma brought me back to feeling unwanted breath on my neck, fingers that felt worse than bugs crawling over my skin and horror that I would never forget.

Apparently I'd been out of their eyesight for too long, Namjoon calling out for me while Yoongi lifted himself over the counter to get to me.

"I thought there might be supplies inside." I said but my words didn't come out right, my voice sounding shaky and broken.

He blocked my view and I hadn't realized I was crying until he pressed the pad of his thumb to my cheek. "Go to the front with Namjoon. I'll see if there's anything inside." He leaned down to make sure I processed his instruction.

Namjoon was immediately attuned to the emotion on my face, setting down the book he found and thumbed through so that I had his full attention.

"Alena, what happened?" He pondered, reaching a hand out but I flinched away from him, a noticable frown on his lips at the reaction. "Breathe with me." On the inside I was breathing too fast, too much, but on the outside I hadn't taken a full exhale since I opened the closet. Namjoon squatted across from where I sat on a rickety chair in the corner, inhaling and exhaling long and slow until I worked up to chiming in, finally meeting his heavy eyes.

I lost count of the number of breaths we took in sync and while I expected to go with the cliche ten count that was often suggested, he went beyond, continuing until he felt certain that I was fully present again.

Yoongi emerged from the back a moment later, scooching in next to Namjoon so that they were both in front of me. "You good?" He waited for my responding nod. "Look at us. You know you're always safe with us."

And that was exactly what had brought me back, because as much as the closet still haunted me, I'd never been more protected than in the first moment I met Namjoon's eyes.