As The Seconds Pass

09:00:03

When Jaebum woke up the next morning he was thoroughly confused. He was in some random room in a house he couldn't remember. He wasn't the type to sleep around, and definitely not with five year olds, so why the hell isn't he in his own bed.

Then it hit him. He hasn't been in his own room for months. The world is in a state of decay. Zombies and murders roamed the streets freely. He was in old friend's safe house with someone he met of the road named Mark.

Mark.

Mark kissed him on the cheek last night. Through this shitty life he now lives, he somehow met someone good. Someone that he wants to take care of and protect. Even though the boy could do it himself if needed.

He takes care of the older by protecting him. And the smaller male takes care of him in return. Even if that did mean Mark forced food into his mouth when he wouldn't eat enough on his own accord.

Thinking of eating made Jaebum realize he hadn't ate anything for about a day. He had gone more than a day without eating before in this world. But because of Mark feeding him so often, his body was starting to get used to being filled. His stomach growled slightly, causing JB to curse at Mark for being so caring.

He threw off the cover Jinyoung had given him and stood up. His back popped in multiple places as he stretched. It had been a long time since he slept in a bed. His spine wasn't used to the pleasant change.

Jaebum walked out of the bedroom and tried to find the living room. His brain was in a slight daze still, but the house was small enough he guessed he would find it sooner or later.

He passed by a tiny bathroom first. Then what seemed to be a dining room after. It was hard to tell what anything really was because of the house's size. It reminded him of a show his grandmama used to watch called Tiny Houses. But this was at least a little bigger than those.

After a minute or so, Jaebum got to the living room. Mark was still sleeping on the couch peacefully. It made JB smile, seeing him content. The older looked so carefree when he slept.

The curly haired boy sat down in one of the chairs occupying the rest of the room's space. He watched the older male's chest rise and fall as he breathed. He hadn't seen him breathe so slowly before. Not even when they were sleeping in the van. But he did only know him for what, a few days. He couldn't expect to know detail about him.

"Morning hyung. You creeping on Mark?"

Jaebum turned his head to see Jinyoung. His hair was slightly damp, and he had on different clothes then the night before.

"No, I didn't feel like staying in that little bedroom anymore. The colors hurt my eyes."

Jinyoung hummed before sitting in the other chair, "Yeah. My niece, Haeun, liked bright colors a lot. So my sister indulged her as much as she wanted."

"May I ask what happened to them?" JB questioned

Jinyoung moved his hand up to his lips, pressing two of the pads against them. He took in a small breath before nodding.

"The same thing as most. The dead took them away from me about a month ago. In the beginning it was us three. My other sister was with my parents last I knew, so they were all I had. I did everything I could to provide for them. Killed anything that came close to even harming them. But one day Haeun got sick, so I had to head out to a pharmacy a few miles away. When I got back the next day, I saw my sister holding Haeun in her arms."

"A geek bit Haeun while she was playing outside. My sister didn't know she was out there, she had put her down in bed to rest, and then went to the kitchen to try and make her something to eat. Apparently she slipped out of the house and was playing in the dirt out front. Then Sooyoung heard a scream and she rushed outside."