Jax watched Cass make his weird tuna meal. He actually didn’t mind many foods. It was just tomatoes. The acidic taste wasn’t his cup of tea. “Do you want me to make you guys something?” He eyed the tuna with distaste. “I can make venison if I can manage to kill a deer.” He figured there were still deer in the thick forest. His only issues were zombies and that he didn’t have any arrows. “Then I could just substitute that for lamb in one of my mom’s recipes.” Jax was sure Cass would say no. As far as he was concerned, Cass still thought he was sick. “And I would need to know what’s in your garden and this kitchen.” He knew he would have to improvise. They didn’t have much. Preparing deer would take a while, so this would be lunch or dinner rather than breakfast. “Thank you. For looking out for me.” He looked down at his clothing. They were work clothes now.
“And yes, I’m hurting a lot. My soul and heart hurt. I’m sure you understand.” Jax looked away for a few seconds, glancing out the window. “It’s been hard for five years, and now I’m tacking on six months.” He rolled his eyes at Cass’ joke. “Who said I would become a zombie?” He raised an eyebrow and shook his head in a light manner. “I’ve been alone for a long time. Not saying six months is a long time, but I mean the five years before I met my fiancée.”
Clovis keeps a hand on his gun, though not drawing it, and puts a hand in front of Onyx to push him back just a little, not applying enough pressure to actually move him, but applying enough to let him know to step back. Onyx only takes one step back though, interested in the girl and what was going on.
Onyx furrows his brow, catching her lie by her tone and the tremble in her voice. He stays still, staring off past her.
Clovis glares at first, then softens his gaze as she spoke.
She was out in the rain that whole time? She might have caught a cold by now. There’s three of us and one of her, the least we could do is bring her in and get her a drink and something to eat maybe. She looks exhausted.
He glances back to the forest behind her, then to Cherry. “Are you alone?” The answer seemed obvious, but this also wouldn’t be the first time someone had approached seeming to be alone and then ambushed him. It didn’t hurt to ask.
(haha no bc Cherry is so relatable! Id be talking to myself in the zombie apocalypse too :,D)
Jesse holds the gun with one hand and unhooks Ghabiun's chain leash from her pants when she hears a girls' voice.
Though when Cherry comes out into the clearing, she immediately drops to Ghabiun, grabbing his collar as the dog immediately lunges forward to try and attack her. She struggles to keep the dog from attacking her and hooks the chain onto the collar, making sure she was safe to do so since Clovis was there as well.
Letting out a deep breath, Jesse now holds the huge dog back as it still barks at the girl. Jesse picks up her gun, as she dropped it when she had to wrestle her monster of a dog, and aims it at her.
"Ghabiun. Heel" she says firmly to the dog while pulling back on the leash. The dog stops struggling and pulling against Jesse's hold but now growls at the stranger.
She doesn't say anything, as Clovis had already had it handled. Though she was tempted to shoot her anyway. She honestly wanted to get in the RV and drive off. Though she didn't have any gas….
-
Cass shakes his head with a soft chuckle, thinking it was almost comical that Jax was thinking about going out himself and killing, bringing home, and preparing a whole deer in the state he was in.
"It's okay. We should get you changed. I will do the cooking and the meals. I've been doing it all my life, its no different." he says, trying not to seem bothered by Jax's disgust for all of the food he's fixed so far.
"and besides, our semi-vegetarian diet has been working out fine. I've found out Ophelia will not eat meat if she knows it was once alive" he says, then motioning to the tuna "fish, for some reason is different to her. Maybe because i don't think she's ever seen a tuna fish in real life" he says with a shrug "It might be a sensory thing. I don't know. But im not going to force her to eat something she obviously is scared about" Cass explains softly.
"you can when you're better though. And of course i wouldn't mind"
Cassius looks over to Jax now "well you never know. You could get slowed down, then bit. It's far to easy to become one with the dead. How else do you think everyone's a zombie now and not just corpses laying on the ground?" he asks.
(<3)
Chernobyl's eyes trialed down to Clovis' hand which was on top of his gun. She couldn't blame him for that, in this world, no one was to be trusted, especially not her. Her eyes went from the gun to the kid behind him, another green flag- or so she hoped. The kid did make her a little nervous though as Chernobyl sensed by the frown that he knew something was off with her- that, or they just hated her right off the bat, rightfully so. She tried not to show her discomfort though.
As soon as the dog was let loose, Chernobyl took a step back, a terrified look on her face, ready to book it if she had to, but gratefully Jesse stopped the dog in time. The hostility sometimes got to Chernobyl, made her mental break down from the pressure of it all, she wasn't used to this, she wasn't built to survive harsh conditions yet somehow here she was, still in one piece…thanks to the sacrifice of others.
With the question being thrown her way, it catches her off guard, but she should have expected this question.
She inhales a deep breath before answering.
"I….I'm alone" She says softly, a bit of sadness behind her eyes. She brings her hands down now, the gun pointed at the floor so they knew she wasn't going to try anything. She seemed defeated in a way, her body relaxed and eyes downcast.
"I won't ask of you guys to take me in," She started. "But if you have anything to eat-" She stopped, looking up again. Was she really in a position to be asking others for food? The guilt rose in her chest, squeezing it as she tried to get her words out. "I'll take anything, and then I'm out" She promised. They probably need it more than you do. The voice came. She found that with time she had developed a little voice in her head that told her horrible things like she didn't deserve certain things because she wasn't anyone special. There were others that needed it more and it was wasted on her, but she needed to eat, she wanted to fight to survive too, and she wanted to see everything through the end as much as she could.
"Of course, I'm no one- you don't have to" She emphasized the last words. Interacting with others was difficult. She found, that at the start, everyone was a bit more friendly and willing to help each other out, but later those same nice people got killed. They were the first to go, with the rare exception, the strong exception. Now all that was left was distrusting humans who were wary of other people and even went out of their way to harm them simply because they could, who was there to tell them no?
Chernobyl took another step back, looking at the forest through the corner of her eyes. Did she really want to go back in there?
David turns around, walking back to his sleeping bag and backpack, slipping his notebook inside and rolling up the sleeping bag.
If they don’t wake up in thirty minutes, I’m going to wake them up. He thinks to himself, tying his sleeping bag to his backpack and slipping his computer in as well. He looks back over to Frenchie, then to Gabriel and Ryder.
At least we’ll have more manpower. I don’t need to like her.
The sound of rustling startled Frenchie awake but she settled when she realized it was just David. She squinted out the window to try and get an idea of what time it was and when she saw the sun she was able to determine it. Too damn early for this. But she was already awake, might as well start getting ready to go. The sooner they got moving, the sooner she could leave them behind. She had people waiting for her, she couldn't keep dragging her feet.
She stretched her arms over her head, listening to her shoulders pop before letting them relax. The mornings were always cold so she kept the jacket out to wear it as she checked to make sure her bag was all in order. Check, check, and check. Great. Now to deal with the others.
Jax had guessed Cass was going to say no. He could kill a deer and prepare it. It wasn’t that hard. He could do the same with a fish! Maybe he could catch a fish and turn it into a filet. He’d learned how to prepare any animal he caught. A perk of living on your own. Jax sighed. “Yeah, if I’m not going to be working, I need to get out of these disgusting clothes. Got any spares?” Cass was a few inches taller than him, but he didn’t know if he did have clothes that fit Jax. “If you’d like to do all that work by yourself, then alright. I’d just like to help. I don’t like sitting around.” He placed a hand against his cheek. “I’m not sick anymore. I don’t think.” Although, he felt weak from lack of sleep and good. But he barely looked after himself. He wandered into the living room to lay on the couch, suddenly regretting saying anything. It was always a curse. Jax knew not eating enough or drinking enough was catching up with him.
Jax peaked his head over the couch’s backing. “Semi-vegetarian? Interesting. The only thing I don’t have a taste for is tomatoes. I don’t like the acidic taste.” He knew he shouldn’t be picky in the apocalypse but couldn’t swallow a tomato if he tried. “Does this go with other fish too or just tuna.” He leaned against the top of the couch, resting his tired eyes. “I guess that’s fair.” He sank back down into the couch. “I don’t think I want to go outside anymore.” He hated sleeping in his jeans. It was painful. He’d rather have pajama pants than sleep in his uncomfortable clothes. “I don’t think a zombie will bite me indoors, Cass.” Jax wasn’t thinking clearly, and he suddenly felt fevered again. Though, he didn’t think it was from an illness but rather what lack of good sleep had done to his body.
Cassius pauses, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. His mind was everywhere and so was his life. It wasn't Jax's fault either.
Though Cass tried to see the best in the world. He knew he and his daughter had just lost his wife and haven't had time to grieve her as it wasn't even a whole month ago. But he still had his daughter. And with Jax's constant reminder, Cass knew that was more than Jax had. In a way he felt guilty for having a better life. Though Cassius could never feel guilty for having his daughter still with him. He reminds himself every day how lucky to have her he is and how better off they were doing compared to everyone else.
That they could make this work.
"I have clothes you can borrow until we can get those washed. We don't have any pajamas but we do have softer clothing." he says, continuing to fix the food. "you can help outside. But getting a hold of live animals for us in the state you're in shouldn't be on the table right now" he says bluntly. "if she's seen it alive. She wont eat it. I will though. So if you decide to stay even after you're better, i wouldn't mind at all if you went out and got a deer or fish for us"
He sets the bowl down and looks to Jax as he got up, sitting on the couch now. It was fast and sudden but he rolled with it with a shrug.
Cassius stays in the kitchen though, listening to Ophelia's foot steps upstairs as she runs around in the room, playing by herself with whatever she could find.
"Even if you're not sick, treat yourself like you are for now. if you don't, you will be sick if you aren't already. this is for safety. You can help Fia and i out in the garden if you would like though?" Cassius offers
-
Jesse glares at the girl still, not taking her eyes off of the stranger, nor her gun. "Drop your gun" she orders, wanting to shoot. Not at her, but near her so she would run away and Jesse would gain another gun. It would be a win in her eyes for sure. Though she looks to Clovis and the look on his face.
oh no…is he going to want to give her food? She wasn't a stray dog
Unlike her, Jesse would definitely feed a stray dog. She just wanted to shoot this one or scare it off.
Who did she think she was? Asking for food from the strangers that were pointing guns at. She knew the second Jesse gave the signal, Ghabiun would book it after the girl.
"You have people? To get back to?" she asks, thinking of ways she could exploit her and use this as an opportunity. Maybe there were more people. Maybe they had supplies she could take. Jesse desperately needed gas, not wanting to part ways with her RV. It was a sense of security she held onto for both her and her dog. She wasn't ready to give that up. Not yet anyway.
Jesse also knew there was a very good chance that this girl didn't have anyone else. Looking at her in the shape she was in and the way she was begging for food even at gunpoint. So she never tried to get her hopes up too high.
Jax settled into the couch, putting his hands over his stomach. He was long and took up the whole thing, but he thought it was best to rest his pounding head. That is what Cass told him to do. He figured that until color returned to his cheeks, was able to keep up decent sleep, and his wound had healed enough, he’d be down for a while. “That’s alright. I don’t need pajamas. Softer clothes will work. I want to get out of this denim, it's not the best material to sleep or rest in.” Jax’s voice was lighter as if he’d forgotten what they were talking about a few minutes ago, but that same voice would never lose its grit behind it. He thought about what was outside other than zombies. Other people? Maybe. Animals? He loved them. Trees? Great to climb. “Um… so for Fia—is it that she’s seen it alive that freaks her out, or is it more the simple knowledge that it once was alive. Like if she saw it dead before she saw it alive. Sorry, I don’t want to sound intrusive. I just want to know that if I catch something in the future, your daughter has something to eat too.”
Cass might have had Jax under supervision, but he was also thinking of Cass and his daughter. It was mutual respect. Everyone needed food to survive, and as far as Jax knew, he was the only one willing to hunt and get down and dirty to provide food. He could even carve a spear to catch fish. “I’ll only leave if you want me to leave.” He assumed it was better to have others have your back instead of drifting with your head slightly above water. “I’m not a fan of laying around, but I guess I’ll take it as doctor's orders. I can help in the garden. I like gardening.”
"yeah i can get you them. Would you like them now?" he asks, knowing how itchy and uncomfortable that demin is. Especially if he's been wearing them for a while. "we'll have to go upstairs so you're able to change in privacy, but im fine with getting them for you"
Cass smiles softly, appreciating Jax trying to help in any way he can and trying to learn more about his daughter so she would be able to eat.
"Well. She doesn't like the fact that they were once alive. How it had a mom and it was once a baby. Things like that. Which really makes you think about it yourself-well…at least i do" he says with a soft chuckle "let's say we served her deer meat, or chicken, she wouldn't eat it. Because she would know where it came from. Animals she's never interacted with though, i think that's a little different. Like the tuna. She's never seen one in real life, only in the pictures. I don't know how her brain works but i guess that makes it okay? I would like for her to be able to, but i mean people were vegetarians and even vegans all the time." he shrugs "We're working on it though. And she's getting better" he finishes his rathe long ramble. "sorry. Moral of the story. If she knows that it was once alive, she freaks out. And uhm…" Cass pauses "thank you…for you know..taking the time to care about that. I appreciate it. And im grateful to have another helping hand. I dont want you to leave. Fia doesn't either."
Jax sat up, looking at Cass over the top of the couch. “Oh please! I’d like to get out of these clothes. They’re so uncomfortable.” He tried to stretch out the bunched-up jeans. “I’m alright with going upstairs as long as I can get out of these.” His dislike for his gross clothing was growing stronger and stronger. He ruffled up his hair and smiled, his bright blue eyes glowing from the rays of sunlight. “Well, I know how to make some good vegetarian meals out of the Mediterranean. I’ve only been to Greece a few times to visit my grandparents, but let me tell you, I learned a thing or two.” Jax got up from the couch, walking over to Cassius. “And if you have a lot of vegetables, I’ve got you covered. Well—Fia covered. I’d rather you work on that with her, and I can make edible food. For the both of you.” He had a certain smile to him. A smile of please let me make you something. Something from Greece. His eyes twinkled, but he wouldn't plea with words. “Of course. Everyone deserves food, whether or not they’re vegetarian. If you’re going to take care of me, then I have every right to do things for you.” He made his way over to the stairs, feeling better now that he'd been awake for a little. “Then I’ll stay. I can hunt, I can garden, I can make wooden stakes…I can do a lot of things.” Jax started to make his way upstairs to wait for Cass. He stopped and called down. "Should I also check on my wounds? Like maybe redress them or something?" Jax made his way up the rest of the way, standing at the top of the stairs
It was clear who was the least hostile of the two adults and it was Clovis. He wasn't pointing a gun at her and for some reason that gave Cherry some hope, that there were some people that wouldn't just point at her for no reason…unless the other girl actually was thinking of killing her, though, if that were the case she would have done so already. That small detail also gave her hope and made her heart swell with gratitude, giving the girl a small warm smile, though that quickly faded when she ordered Cherry to drop her gun. She looked over at Clovis as if he could do something, hesitating. She really didn't want to drop it. She didn't know these people, why should she take orders from them? But then again, did she really want to risk making them angry? She had done that before with other groups and it never went well for her. They could hurt her just like the others had done, and where exactly would that get her?
Cherry's eyes drooped a little, sad that she had to give up one of her only forms of protection. Slowly, she set it down, but took another step backward, in case they were actually planning on killing her. If she needed to, she'd use her knife, though in a gunfight that was pretty much useless, it gave Cherry a sense of false protection and that's all she needed to not actually start shaking from the fear she was feeling right now.
Her attention was on Jesse's face, eyes searching for something, but found nothing, only met with angry eyes. Why? What had she done? She had only just arrived and yes, well, maybe spying on them wasn't the best move, could they really blame her? She was just looking for food and a better form of shelter.
"I did" She answered truthfully. "But I sort of got lost and I don't know where the camp is without the help of leaders who know where it is, they're the ones that knew it by memory, the rest of us just followed," She said, not exactly lying about getting lost, but leaving important information out.
"Sorry.." She said softly, barely above a whisper. Apologizing for her deceitfulness and for burdening them with her presence. She frowned again. She needed to stop thinking like that and be her usual self, though, that also seemed to backfire as she could annoy others rather quickly.
Cassius chuckles, trying to push aside his…slight control issues as he nods. "yeah you can make something for us sometime. Id appreciate that" he says, making his way up the stairs after Jax, making sure to stay behind him just in case he lost his balance.
They reach the top of the stairs and Cass opens Jax's door for him "wooden stakes? What are we killing? Vampires?" he jokes
"We'll wait just a little. It hasn't even been two days. If you feel any sort of burning or irritation like some allergic reaction to the cloth though, let me know" he says in reply to his last question. It would be a waste to redress his wounds this often and it wouldn't heal correctly.
The sunlight shone through the windows onto the two, making Cass's dark skin look golden and his eyes a nice orange. "here ill be right back" he says before turning away and opening the door to his room. Fia sat on the bed trying to crochet and actually not doing too bad. He smiles to his daughter "hey baby. What's going on up here?" he asks as he opens the closet door. The closet was small and thin but Cass made it work so he didn't mind.
"im making Jax something" Fia says, focused a little too much on the crochet needle.
"Yeah?" Cassius asks, pulling out a loose black t shirt and some old, thinner sweatpants. In case Jax did have a fever, he didn't want to make it worse by putting him in winter clothes.
"if i give him this he wont be mad at me" she says quietly, humming to herself.
Cass's brows furrow and he turns around to Ophelia, who looks up at him when she notices him sit down on the bed. "What makes you think he's mad at you sweetheart?" he asks
She shrugs "i don't know." she says, pursing on side of her lips to the side "i don't think he likes me."
"Did he say something to you?"
She shakes her head
"do you want me to ask him?" Cass offers
She shakes her head even faster now "that's alright. Ill just make him this" she says, holding up a tangle of old yarn in one hand and a small blanket in the other. Small as in, probably the size of Cass's whole hand.
Cassius stands, looking down at her now before leaning down and ruffling her hair "im gonna finish up with Jax. But then we're gonna do your hair because its a mess" he says, walking out. She looks back to her project "your hair is a mess too dad!" she calls to him before he shuts the door. Cass nods to her "oh okay. You can do mine too" he says, letting the door click shut before going back into Jax's room with his new change of clothes.
The sound of rustling startled Frenchie awake but she settled when she realized it was just David. She squinted out the window to try and get an idea of what time it was and when she saw the sun she was able to determine it. Too damn early for this. But she was already awake, might as well start getting ready to go. The sooner they got moving, the sooner she could leave them behind. She had people waiting for her, she couldn't keep dragging her feet.
She stretched her arms over her head, listening to her shoulders pop before letting them relax. The mornings were always cold so she kept the jacket out to wear it as she checked to make sure her bag was all in order. Check, check, and check. Great. Now to deal with the others.
David watches as she sits up and goes to stretch, but doesn’t keep his eyes on her long, turning back to his things. He leans his backpack up against the wall then stands, huffing. “We’ll go in a few.” He states, assuming the role of leadership already.
He approaches Ryder, deciding he didn’t wan tot wait thirty minutes, and shoves him with his foot. However, he didn’t account for Gabriel reacting, and jumps back with a sharp gasp when Gabriel lurches forward, grumbling lowly as he reaches towards him.
Ryder furrows his brow, rubbing his eyes with his wrists before opening his eyes. He calmly looks to David, ruffling Gabriel’s hair. “Hm?”
David glares, still tensed up, and wraps his arms around himself. “Get up.”
Frenchie had to smother her laughter when David jumped. For someone so smart and bitchy, he sure did scare easy. It was satisfying in a petty and vengeful kind of way. Not that Frenchie minded. But she brushed it off and went back to minding her own business. At least now she knew she could leave these weirdos in the dust soon. She had someone to get back to. Three someones in fact. And she'd be damned if these two idiots got in her way.
Jax hummed while making his way up the stairs, careful to take each step slowly. His leg still caused him pain, but he ignored it. He smiled. “Then I need to get to work drying out some spices. If you grow any. I have some of my own. It’ll be fine. I wish we had some avocado, but you could never find any in an apocalypse. ” He shook his head in disappointment. “A lot of food substitution to make something sustainable, but I can do. I am good at working with what I have. Jax let Cass open the door for him, and he made his way over to the bed. His gait had a limp. “Yes, Cass. We’re killing vampires because we’re in a vampire apocalypse. Why don’t we also go murder werewolves for more territory.” He said sarcastically. “Wood stakes for killing fish.” He played with his ruffled hair, parts of his undercut growing back. “Just making sure. You said to take care of myself, and I know some wounds can bleed heavily.” He shrugged, looking out the window. “Have you ever been to Greece? It’s a beautiful place in the Mediterranean. I know how to speak Greek and Latin.” His blue eyes appeared dull, reflecting his lack of sleep. “I’ll still be here when you get back.”
Jax hummed a little tune, glancing around the room. It was boring to him and could use a little spice. But a boring room was going to have to do. He got up and made his way over to the window, looking at the world drenched in sunlight. He frowned as he spotted zombies mowing around. They might have been slow, but they were dangerous. Was he dangerous? Barely. He kneeled down, placing his arms on the window-sill. He sighed, wondering how this outbreak started. How did the reign of zombies start, and how was he a survivor? Jax turned around to look at Cass when he entered the room.
Clovis doesn’t object to having her drop her gun, though he wasn’t a fan of how harsh Jesse was coming across to this kid.
She’s obviously terrified right now. And lost, whether or not she’s telling the truth about anything else.
He glances to Jesse holding in a glare, then looks back to Cherry.
I don’t think I can just offer her to stay, Jesse- Wait, we don’t have to stay with Jesse. Besides, it would honestly be helpful to her to have a group. And this kid obviously needs a group.
Onyx speaks up, since Clovis was taking a minute to think of what to say.
“We have some canned goods. And water.” He states, his voice monotone, but his words nice. He raises up his water bottle he’d just filled in the nearby stream, still staring off to the side. “Don’t worry, the dog doesn’t actually bite.”
Clovis nods, just agreeing with him. “Can I take your firearms? Just for now?” He offers, taking one step forward, now seeming a lot less defensive.
Onyx furrows his brow.
She’s lying about the majority of it. Did she even have a group?
Jesse raises her brows…so she was right! She did have others!
She celebrated a little in her mind before debating what she was going to do with the information. Looking to Onyx when he spoke, a bit surprised he did, she let him speak and didn't say anything against it.
it better not be my food. Hell if im giving her anything she thought to herself.
The plan she had come up with was this. If she could get to know her, talk to her and see where the group was, because Jesse didn't believe a word that came out of her mouth. Even the fact that there was a group at all could be a complete lie. But if it wasn't, there was a good chance they could find her group.
Jesse planned to use it against her and take their supplies and whatever else she wanted. Though she did have to take into account how big this said group was and how far away it was. This girl looked as if she had been in that forest for months. Who knows if they were even still alive? If they're not, that didn't mean their supplies were gone. She gets a big lost in her thoughts until another one of Ghabiun's barks snaps her out of them.
Jesse keeps her eyes on Cherry, glad Clovis had spoken up about her fire arms, annoyed that she wasn't on the ground already. Jesse had yet to realize now that she was in a group, not everything went the way she wanted it to.
She looks to Onyx, then to Cherry. "If i tell him to, he will" she says to them, grumpy about the whole situation and even grumpier with the fact that they tried to tell this stranger her dog didn't bite. That defeated the whole purpose of having him as a fear tactic if it was thought he was harmless. Which he definitely wasn't.
Jesse also didn't understand why they were being so nice to her, but she didn't go against it. She was obviously angry about it though.
(Guys im sorry Jesse's a literal butthead)
-
Cassius sets the clothes on Jax's bed and looks back to Jax, then out of the window.
"hm…i need to take care of those as well. I know a heard is most likely coming this way. I need to redirect it. I don't have any forms of transportation to be able to affectively direct it though" he says, crossing his arms.
He tried not to worry about it too much, as there was only so much they could do to stay safe.
"anyway…" he takes a deep breath, stepping away from the window "I can certainly have a look at your wounds to see how they're doing if you would like? Though redressing wont be necessary unless you tore your stitches on your arm. Since the other one wasn't as bloody as it was infected. If that makes sense" he calmly explains to Jax. "How have you been feeling? There's no other wounds you're keeping from me are there?" he jokes.
Jax looked at Cass sternly. "I wouldn't go outside if I were you. You can't die from a herd of zombies. It's better to stay inside until everything is manageable. You can't take more than you can chew, and since I'm restricted from doing much— you have almost no help. Unless you have a better plan." He stood up and wandered back over to the bed, sitting on the edge. He hadn't checked on his arm wound since it was stitched. "Everything will be okay, Cass. Worst come to worst when zombies are knocking at the door. I can see the worry on your face." Jax stuck out his arm, trying to look at the arm wound. He scrunched up his face when looking at the reddened wound. "Go ahead and look at them. Everything is just red and puffy at this point." He shook his head slightly. "But yeah—I thought the one on my leg would be a bit bloodier than it was." Jax studied the stitches. He knew some stitches disappear, but this was goddamn fishing line. "I'm okay. This morning was a bit hellish. I was as dead as a zombie, barely able to say good morning. Jax shrugged. “Mornings always make me slightly crossed, but I just keep it to myself. Don’t want anyone dealing with my crossed-morning self." He giggled a bit. His eyes held a sleepy look to them. "And I shun away from the sun like a vampire, but it just hurts my weary eyes. I guess I need to fix my sleep somehow, but I don't know how to avoid nightmares." He shrugged.
Jax waved off his tales of the morning, and felt his jaw. "My wounds are sore, and my jaw is sore. But other than that, I feel fine. Defiantly much better now that I've been awake for a little." He paused. "And no, no more wounds. You could search me from head to toe, but you would only find scars. I’m surprised I never got rabies or something.”
Cassius raises his brows at Jax as he spoke, deciding to not listen to him and dismiss it. "yeah" he says, stepping beside him to look at his wound. He didn't want to argue with Jax so he found it best to stay quiet about the whole situation and deal with it himself. He's dealt with worse alone.
He knew he did have to do something if he wanted to protect his child and this house. And worse comes to worse, which was what is going to happen if they don't steer them away is the zombies break into the house and everyone rots and dies in the attic because the house would be surrounded.
The zombies weren't smart by any means, but with the numbers, weight, and strength, they could easily break down fences, doors, windows, and any other points of entry and they would be trapped. It didn't take much to drive away zombies, redirect them. A horse would be best to use but a car would do as well. Though neither of those he had. So he was stumped for now.
It was okay because he could be wrong about the heard and they could have gotten mixed up in the storm last night and changed directions.
He hoped so but that all had to do with luck for the most part. And luck wasn't something you could rely on nowadays.
As Jax talked about the mornings, he thought back to his daughter saying something about Jax being mad at her.
Well if he's cross in the mornings, that would explain it. Though he says he keeps them to himself…maybe he said something to her today?
Cass thinks about it a little too hard for a few seconds, shaking his head "if it makes you feel any better.. i don't get good sleep either. It's the end of the world. What're you gonna do" he says with a shrug. Cassius's mood was a bit bleak and depressing at the moment and he knew it. But he also knew he wasn't required to be in a great mood so he wasn't apologetic for it.
"we should have iced the wound when it was hailing last night. Your jaw i mean" he starts again "im glad you're feeling better though." he finishes, looking at the stitching. The fishing line was holding it together well. It was definitely red and he knew it had already gotten a bit infected. He tried his best to not let it get any worse, and by the looks of it, it was already getting better. "Now, i put less fishing line stitches in your leg but there are still a lot" he explains, though still looking at his arm. He rewraps the bandage on his arm and steps away. "here ill let you go ahead and change. The less we mess with the wound the better. I tried to get softer fabrics for you but i dont have much of a wardrobe nowadays so" he shrugs.
Jax could see that Cass wasn’t a fan of his idea. Maybe it was for the best. He could get everyone killed unintentionally. Not again. Did he still blame himself for everything? Yes. “I don’t want you to get yourself killed.” He didn’t want to challenge Cass’ thoughts on what was best. He had no idea how Cass was going to do something like this with his own body. Cass didn’t have much. Jax decided to shake off the thoughts, letting Cass poke at his arm wound. He yawned and hung his head. “It may be the end of the world, but when I can’t function, I could be killed. I don’t want to die.” Jax hadn’t eaten much over the past day. It had caught up to him, and he felt his muscles couldn’t hold himself up anymore. He noticed the change in Cassius' mood and wondered if he could make him feel better. Jax didn’t have hope that he could, but he stood up steadily and hugged Cass.
“It’s alright. I don’t mind the soreness. It’s not affecting me too much.” He clung to Cass before letting go and settling back down. He felt the hug had gone on for too long, and Cass would have probably thought it awkward. “Thank you. For fixing up my wounds. ” He smiled softly. “That’s more than you needed to do for a stranger. And, uh, you’re going to need to pull out the fishing line later. Won’t you?” Jax looked displeased by that thought. “These will do. I can’t be too picky. I really only have the clothes on my body other than some socks and a hoodie I could fit in my satchel.” He shrugged and picked up the shirt laid on his bed, waiting for Cass to leave before he did anything.
"i can always knock you out again" Cassius jokes in reply to his comment about sleep, not trying to lighten the mood but he wasn't trying to dampen it any more than he already had.
He goes to step back, but doesn't move when Jax gives him a hug, slightly uncomfortable but he tries not to let it show it. He never minded hugs but he definitely wasn't used to them anymore. The only one's he was used to was from his daughter and his late wife. It was still odd thinking about his wife as late but he knew he had to accept it sooner or later.
Pursing his lips together, he takes a breath "yeah sure. But uhm, i'll remove the sutures in about 2 weeks. Maybe longer. It depends on how your wounds heal." he says with a small shrug. He definitely wasn't looking forward to removing the fishing line either, but if he got lucky, Jax would pass out from the pain and he wont have to knock him out. He didn't enjoy it but he wouldn't have much of a problem doing it again.
"yeah and once you're changed, i can take your clothes. There's a stream we can get them cleaned….well as much as we can anyway. It'd be nice to show you around the area as well. It's not all as dangerous anymore." he says, his hand on the door handle.
He opens the door and slips out, not wanting to make anything else awkward.
Jax looked up at Cass with a little smile. “Knocking me out worked so well last time.” He giggled, then an idea came to mind. “I know how to make a soothing tea!” He could feel the tension in the air when he hugged Cass, letting go to ease it. He definitely wasn’t trying to make Cass uncomfortable. Jax felt like everyone needed a hug, and he liked the scent that clung to Cass. It was warm. The scent that clung to Jax was the bittersweetness of rain. A scent he hated. He pushed aside his thoughts on their scents, and he looked irked. “I’ll try not to pass out, but I will not be happy when these stitches have to be removed. Or worse, if I break them.” That thought brought pain to his face. “I’m sure the wounds will heal fine.” Jax was sure he could handle the pain of having sutures taken out. He handled the pain of receiving the wound. “Sounds good. I don’t think much can be cleaned, but try your best. And I would love to see the area. I like to wander around outdoors. It’s peaceful.” He watched Cass leave and slipped off his shirt, putting on the loaner. Jax did the same with his trousers, opening the room with his mess clothes in hand and the pair Cass lent to him on his body. He made his way downstairs.
Cassius nods softly "well you can make the tea with that meal you wanted to make as well" he replies, shutting the door behind him.
Cass waits patiently as Jax changed, looking out the window now. The soft glow of the sunlight bouncing off of his white blonde eyelashes and orange brown eyes as they focus on the details within the forest. The unseen details he could remember when he was there, within the forest. Though now the details slowly drift away and pathway that led him here with Ophelia on his shoulders and his wife by his side, now overgrown. Forgotten.
The wind blows through the foliage of the trees and the overgrown grass surrounding his house rippling like the waves in the sea. His eyes don't stay in one place, flitting from one object to another like a kid's eyes in a thrift store for the first time.
His fingers fidget with one another as he gets lost in thought. Thinking about how hard it was to find this place and everything they had to endure before that. When the apocalypse started he, Eleanor and Ophelia was shacked up in a base of some sorts. The town they were living in had to be evacuated to a military base. But the men there started to fight, steal food, turn on each other, and soon a community turned into a bloodbath filled with greedy human beings and deceit.
As the camp fell apart within only a single month, he decided to take his family away, unaware of the dangers outside of the camp but didn't think it could get any worse.
Sometimes he wonders if they had stayed…if he didnt leave and take his family with…maybe everything would be better and maybe his wife wouldn't be dead.
Cassius tried to convince himself that they were better off out here with their own place here and that camp never did get better. He felt horrible for almost hoping it. Only for his own peace of mind. Only so he can justify leaving there to himself so he could say it wasn't his fault his wife was dead. But it was. There was nothing around it. If he were presented in front of a judge in court and they were left to decide who was guilty, he would be slapped behind bars without even a second of thought to it.
He jumps, snapping out of his thoughts when Jax opens the door, clothes in hand. He turns around and watches as he walks down the stairs without any words. He would have offered to take the clothes off his hands and he could put it with the other clothes they had planned to wash when they got the chance. Actually, he was surprised he didn't see Ophelia in the backyard playing in the mud right at this moment. He smiles at the thought but pushes it away to follow Jax down the stairs.
"when it dries up, maybe tomorrow we can go out. The three of us" Cassius finally speaks up once they reach the base of the stairs. "I can take the clothes if you'd like. We need to make a trip anyway. Today is just too muddy" he shrugs
Jax smiled. He couldn’t wait to make some tea. He had the leaves he needed, and he was sure it wouldn't be hard to find the other things. Jax carefully slipped off his white shirt. He laid it on the bed, now looking at how dirty it was. Jax was doubtful that Cass could actually lift the grime. He used to think that by dipping your clothes in water, they were instantly clean. He was a curious child. Climbing trees, playing in the mud, catching small animals, and making forts out of fallen sticks. He still enjoyed doing a few of these things, but now for survival. The clothes on his back were all he had left after the fire. He had spent many of his teen years gathering and fighting animals as competition. A gatherer and hunter lifestyle. Jax had never gone feral, but he managed to meet a girl that would reintroduce him to society. But he hadn’t missed it. Curious how I caught someone’s attention. He shooed away the thoughts of his teen years. There was not much you could draw from them than a boy raised by animals story. But if someone tried to write his story like that, he would call them out on staging his life as he had raised himself. His ability to survive also surprised Jax. How did I survive? His biggest question.
The shirt fit fine enough. Cass was two inches taller than he was, so the clothing shouldn’t be affected much. There was the possibility that the sweatpants would hang off his hips, noting how thin he was. Jax was nearly underweight for his height, considering the lack of food. He tried to keep his head bobbing above water regarding his food situation, but it was only slightly. Jax unbuttoned and slipped off his jeans, carefully rolling down the denim on his injured leg. He put on the sweatpants, pulling on the drawstring to make them fit tighter on his hips. The clothes felt better and lighter—well, to him. It will be wonderful not to have denim bunch up and leave marks on his legs. Jax let one more thought fill his head. How will he strive to protect Cass and Fia after he had failed to protect the others? He didn’t know but would try.
Jax exited the room without noticing Cass and made his way downstairs. He set the clothes by the front door, put his arms on the wall, and hung his head. He was seeing double, feeling weaker. Jax let all his body weight go to his arms. He jumped when he heard Cass’ voice, tearing himself from the support of the wall. His body weight redistributed, and he seemed as if he might topple. “I’m sorry! I didn’t see you standing outside my door. That sounds nice. I used to play in the mud as a kid. I find it to help cool skin off.” He readjusted his weight to one leg. “Please, I’d appreciate it. We’ll see if the mud dries up.” Jax still seemed awfully sick even if he tried to hide it.
(haha i love Jesse though, she's a very cool character)
Cherry stares at the bottle longingly. When was the last time she had anything to drink? Her mouth felt dry as she swallowed, looking at Onyx and Clovis. She still didn't know if they would actually do something to her, but if she wanted to survive, she would have to take a gamble. That's what people did nowadays right? Took a chance and hoped it worked out for the best…and if it didn't? She looked over to her gun, wanting to reach for it. Well, she wouldn't go down without a fight, no matter how weak she may be or looked.
At the mention of the dog being harmless Cherry let out a sigh of relief, the tension leaving her body, though, that was short-lived when Jesse spoke up again about the dog being not so harmless. She narrowed her eyes at Jesse. Ah yes, the prickly character, being prickly. Though the defensiveness did make her smile some, it was amusing to Cherry, how people would do anything for others to think they were intimidating when a few moments ago she was being the sweetest person with the dog, that, she wouldn't forget.
Cherry nodded at Clovis to take the gun.
"If you promise not to hurt me" She spoke. That was never guaranteed, they could say one thing now and completely switch on her later. Gah. Too much thinking, too much thinking. She just had to roll with it now.
When he took a step towards her though, her body screamed at her to run while she could, her heart accelerating some. She took in a shaky breath, crossing her arms and rubbing at one of them as if she were cold, she was just anxious to be on her own for the first time and had no idea what she was getting herself into.
"In exchange for food and water, I'll tell you what I know, you don't have to believe me, but I just-" She looked away. "There's no way I could have survived on my own if that makes you feel any better." She said a bit bitterly, hating to admit she was completely useless.
"There are a few at our camp, but not a lot" Not anymore.
"We haven't been together since the beginning. I met them…" the words died on her tongue. When exactly had she met them? Time was an illusion at this point and she couldn't exactly pinpoint when she had met them, everything was too foggy. She shook her head.
"I can't remember but I met them recently, or at least, I think I did, it feels like it's been a while though" She rambled on, hoping she was being helpful in the least bit, she needed to be helpful for this to work.
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