They caught up with the trader before noon. He ambled south, but the sand hadn't covered the tracks of his cart yet. When he recognized the two raiders still stuck with each other, a grin broke out on his lips.

"How's the boyfriend?" He smiled as he accepted the shovel back. He had known it was a fruitless attempt. There was no helping those who got swallowed by the desert.

Wooyoung averted his eyes. He didn't have the energy to argue with another stranger. If his mind got hung up on Yunho for too long, fresh tears welled in his eyes.

San traded the shovel for some canned rations.

"We're catching up to him," was all he said. He respected the distance Wooyoung needed from the topic.

Though the trader could tell why Wooyoung's shoulders hunched so miserably, he had no purpose in mocking them. He sealed their exchange and returned to his cart. The fiery color of his hair was a splash of unexpected joy in the otherwise bleak surroundings.

"A storm is brewing. Best find an overhang for the night," he suggested before he trudged away. San secured his loot in his bag and returned to Wooyoung's side. Together, they blinked toward the dark horizon, where the clouds bundled in threatening mountains. Sand storms could be vicious, so they would do best listening to the trader.

With a hand shadowing his eyes, San sought the far cliffs.

"We won't make it there within a day, but we might duck under the nearby rocks. Shall we?"

Once more, Wooyoung shoved the thought of Yunho's smile aside. He feverishly stared at San's throat wrapped in bandages, focused his every fiber on him.

"Let's go."

The tall dunes carried them toward the cliffs. Jongho snuck behind, but he didn't bother them. How much did he hear? Did any of this knowledge come in his favor? He seemed fond of the duo Wooyoung created with Yunho, but he also accepted San. His secret purpose couldn't be all that selective if he just needed any fighter nearby.

They marched through the day. Occasionally, they commented on their surroundings and ducked past the malnourished coyotes trailing the sand. The fungus didn't halt from any living being. Some of their fur was sickly discolored and sprouted tiny mushrooms as their flesh fouled away.

The holocaust left the world barren. No dangerous radiation lingered in this part, but people were reluctant to return to the life their ancestors led. Though they found once spectacular cities and fathomed inventions and art, a united world destroyed everything. Now that most of the population was wiped out and infested by illness, they preferred sticking to themselves. Few dared to have children in such a damaged world, without an open sky, and with the fungus gradually taking over every living being. San's antidote had been one of a kind. Though the humans shared little communication, the knowledge that no miracle would happen was universal.

Sometimes Wooyoung wondered what was beyond the deserts and the forests. Did people build cities in other places? Where were the descendants of those who survived the war in the grandiose bunkers they discovered buried in the sand?

Now that San was with him and their stories differed despite their similarities, Wooyoung wondered how others lived their lives and what purposes there were outside of having a lover to cling to. If Jongho were less mad, he might have asked him, as well.

When the wind picked up and sand whipped at their cheeks with sharp stings, Wooyoung and San hurried to the nearest assortment of rocks. The storm blocked their view and gathered into hoses beneath the water orbs, threatening all life to scurry. Thankfully, the rocks piled up near the cliffs. Though their hideout had a large opening on one side, Wooyoung found them a cave that covered them from three sides. They huddled down to wait out the storm and once more, San graciously shared his rations with Wooyoung.

They ate in silence and Wooyoung was busy checking his gun afterward. San stared out into the worsening weather that howled around the stone.

How would Yunho make it through this storm if he was alone and potentially hurt? No, if he dug himself out before Wooyoung returned, he couldn't be off that bad. Hopefully, he had made it to the cliffs already. Perhaps he was waiting there for Wooyoung, praying he was fine as well.

When his heart clenched in agony, Wooyoung reassembled his gun. An indignant hand yanked his jacket over his shoulders. His long hair bothered him, but at least it kept the cold from his nape.

"I'm sleeping early," he announced to San without turning around. Curled up around his legs, he hugged himself around his heart to soothe its ache. The cold biting through his clothes was most welcome as a distraction.

Fabric rustled when San checked on him. Finally, he discarded his place at the entrance to crawl closer to the wall. His larger body blocked the way out, but Wooyoung didn't doubt his intentions any longer. If anything, he reduced the wind.

The rumble of his voice behind Wooyoung was too intimate for his liking, but Wooyoung didn't scoot away. He was unafraid of San's peculiar appearance, and showing his shyness would only make the man smug. Reminding himself that this wasn't Yunho, Wooyoung grumbled to himself.

"Are you cold?"

"Can't call it warm," Wooyoung huffed. He adjusted when the buckle of his bag dug into his cheek, shaking his hair away. San carried a woolen blanket around, but Wooyoung had no space for such luxury. So far, the desert never turned so frosty that the couple needed more than one another.

"You can have my blanket. I can't sleep when I hear your teeth chatter all night."

Wooyoung rolled around.

"Excuse you-"

His outrage was met with the soft blanket to his face. It smelled musty, but it offered warmth. Surprised, he tugged it down.

San watched him with that permanent smirk as if playing with Wooyoung was his greatest joy. It crinkled his eyes when Wooyoung scowled at him.

"I don't want your pity! I do well by myself! Fuck off." With that, he shoved the blanket at San's unmoving chest. With his head supported by his arm, San stared down at Wooyoung's blush. The raider's solid chest didn't budge.

"Didn't look like it so far. Is this what your boyfriend usually does for you? Keeping you warm?"

Scowling, Wooyoung rolled on his back so he could glare up at San. With those wide shoulders only clad in his worn shirt, he leaned over Wooyoung. The swoop of his dark hair fell over his eye, ruffled from today's wind.

"None of your business," Wooyoung grunted. He nudged the blanket away like a creeping scorpion when San subtly pushed it closer.

"So I'm right."

Of course he was.

Wooyoung rolled his eyes.

"I don't need to be babied by you. What will you do once we split up? Keep coming back to check if I can survive?"

"Let's worry about that once it's time. For now, I'd like you to take the blanket."

By stubbornness alone, Wooyoung wanted to refuse. Giving in now would make him look weak. But the corner of the blanket brushing him was warm and giving it up upset his freezing heart. If he couldn't have the heat of Yunho's affection, at least this could be his alternative.

San blinked at him with that unexpectedly kind expression. He had been nothing but helpful since Wooyoung met him and he hated how much he depended on that compassion in his moment of frailty.

"I hope you know I wouldn't accept this outside of my grief," Wooyoung threatened him. When San laid down by his side with a satisfied smirk, only his manners kept Wooyoung from drawing his knife on him.

"Absolutely. Get cozy."

Wooyoung rustled with the blanket, then spread it out. Instead of curling up, he distributed it over the two. He ignored how San craned his head at him, surprised. With warm cheeks, he scooted closer to the broad raider.

"Can't have you freezing for being a goody-two-shoes. Touch me and I will hack off your fingers," Wooyoung threatened. A moment later, he stiffened, words dying on his tongue. San had slung an arm around his middle, tugging them flush together. The weight and heat of his body made Wooyoung's heart stutter. It didn't hurt while it hammered so wildly. Guilt had him avert his eyes. He shouldn't be like this with anyone but Yunho. His loyalty would rather freeze.

But San trapped him in place with that smug smirk.

"Are you warm now?"

"Yes, I am!" Wooyoung snapped, overheated. He rolled around, turning his back to San so the man couldn't see his expression. It was his bandaged arm around Wooyoung's body, but not the fungus on his skin had Wooyoung tense with apprehension.

San chuckled, but he didn't tease Wooyoung any further. With a lighter heart and warm under their shared blanket, Wooyoung allowed his eyes to close.

He fell asleep shamefully quickly. Swathed by an embrace and the heat from another body, he was assured where the prior nights were plagued by restlessness and nightmares. Though the storm howled around the cliffs and whirled sand over their equipment, Wooyoung slept like a baby. No coyotes and fouls ventured outside in this weather. It was a short bliss during which he could pretend he was with Yunho instead of San.

His thirst pulled him from his dreams in the middle of the night. Though he refused his water bottle at first, he gave in after long minutes of pondering. By the time he reunited with Yunho, he would find another. He shouldn't let it go to waste.

Alone with the fear creeping up his spine, Wooyoung took a hearty gulp. He ignored how it was tied to Yunho, how it reminded him of his dread that San was right.

Yunho was definitely out there. Alive.

On cue, Wooyoung lifted his head to stare out into the storm. The sand stabbed at the rocks like needles, wearing it down with time. Tonight, it wouldn't crumble.

San slumbered by his side. He kept one hand near his gun, but the other one was still draped across Wooyoung's lap. It would be the perfect time to peek under his messy hair and see how far the fungus spread up his skin, but Wooyoung left it. It was the most foolish way to get a bullet through the head.

Scowling down at him and his handsome features that came into Wooyoung's life at the most unfortunate of times, Wooyoung put the cap back on his bottle. He slid it into his bag but hesitated before he laid back down.

Was Jongho still out there? He had chased them for so long and never discarded his task.

Careful not to wake San, Wooyoung crawled over him. He protected his face with his scarf as he stepped into the storm. Instantly, the sand stabbed at him as if with a million needles. He could see barely a few steps.

Still, he found the figure huddled to the side of the rock, plain out in the open. He was hunched over and wore his hood so the sand would leave him alone, but he shivered pitifully.

The wind whipped Wooyoung's hair into his face as he crouched before him.

"Jongho?" He called, making sure he was alive.

Instantly, the stalker's head snapped up. Wide, hopeful eyes sparkled at Wooyoung.

He said something, but Wooyoung didn't hear him over the rampaging storm.

"Come in before the coyotes eat you!" Wooyoung yelled back. He didn't trust that guy, but it was stupid to let a healthy human die to something as foolish as his desire to recruit Wooyoung.

Jongho sprang to his feet to trail behind him. When they returned, San was up and holding his gun in his lap. The pinch of his eyes eased when he spotted Wooyoung.

"Let me recruit you, please," Jongho pleaded as soon as they were inside. Wooyoung pointed at the corner.

"Sit there and be quiet. No one is recruiting anyone here."

Jongho complied hastily, but his eyes wouldn't stop shining. When Wooyoung laid back down, he couldn't sleep with the stranger watching him. Perhaps it was a mistake to allow him in, but Wooyoung was too exhausted to care about his vulnerable heart right now. Anything that distracted him from Yunho's loss was welcome. He snuggled into his corner of the blanket and got a few hours of dozing while San guarded the cave.