World War Zayn • ZM

5 || Brothers

An hour or so after the dog show that happened earlier, all of them had settled around the bonfire, the burning wood emiting a soft glow in their midst. Jasper felt good, finally being able to rest easy, and every now and then, she would stretch her hands towards the burning flame, and the ice that licked fingertips would melt. It was such a satisfying feeling; a simple joy that brightened a supposedly hearltess world.

Long after Zayn and Louis had buried the carcasses and made a pet cemetery a few meters away from the campsite, Liam had stuck around to talk to her. She knew he didn't want to say it out loud, but he said it anyway.

"Thanks for earlier," Liam uttered, unable to look her in the eye. "I'm glad Zayn brought you with us, even if those dogs probably trailed you guys back here."

For what she was worth, Jasper tried hard not to give him a knuckle sandwich. Not once have they seen zombie dogs in the city, so she knew it wasn't their fault why they got attacked. Still, she wanted to keep the peace. Besides, Zayn would probably dislike it if she socked one of his friends. "Anything to help around."

Nodding, Liam began to prepare their meal for the night. Zayn and Louis had went out from the camp to gather firewood. They also made sure that nothing else was going to interrupt their peaceful night ahead. Harry busied himself by keeping guard, walking to and fro the camp and checking in Niall's tent every now and then. And Jasper, after making sure everyone's things were in place, made her way inside the sick bay.

Niall's usually dyed hair had grown out, and there was more brown to his hair than platinum blonde. He was shirtless as he lay down, red as a beat, and Jasper could tell why. The same thing happened to her sister whenever she tried not to cough out loud whenever she was having an asthma attack. "How are you feeling?" she couldn't help but ask. "I'm Jasper, by the way. Zayn--"

"Zayn told me about you," Niall croaked, and tried to sit up. She quickly pulled the backpack beside him to place it behind his back to keep him seated properly. Once he was comfy, he wheezed and popped his chest a few times with his fist. "Excuse me." He tried to stifle a string of coughs that broke from his mouth. "I'm... I'm Niall. Hi."

Jasper smiled. "Did you take the meds already?" she asked, settling herself beside him. Without asking for his permission, she put her hand on his shoulder, urged him to lean forward, and without another word, cupped her hand and proceeded to slap his back. "Cough the phlegm out. Don't swallow it."

Niall nodded, his face reddening even more, and both of them heard the thick gurgle of mucus from his lungs. Jasper clapped her hand harder, and after a few seconds of violent fits of coughing, Niall jumped from the sleeping bag and rushed out of the tent.

Jasper didn't bother following him, knowing he probably needed to spew the offending snot from his system. As she waited, she found the small face towel she tucked in with the meds, and poured a little bit of water from a drinking bottle to dampen it. When Niall returned, she quickly assisted him back to the sleeping bag and began to wipe his face and the corners of his mouth. His teary blue eyes gazed at her in gratitude, and she smiled at him in return. She poured a little bit more water in her hands and run her fingers through his hair. "Feeling better?"

"Much much better," he groaned. "It's been years since I've had an attack like this. I ran out of inhalers, so I guess I had this coming."

"Don't talk much," Jasper said, handing him the water canteen and he drank it up. "After you take your second dose of the salbutamol pill, let's listen to your lungs and check for improvement."

"Honestly," Niall whispered, trying not to use much of his voice. "Relieved you're here. It's nice to have someone who knows what she's doing." He put a hand over hers and smiled brightly. "You're not allowed to go anywhere."