A soft, distressed crying forced Jasper to open his eyes. It took a few split seconds for him to process everything that had happened in the past few hours, but when he came to, Jasper forced himself to sit up. Sharp pains where his fresher wounds ripped across his skin made the man wince as he stood up shakily onto his feet. To his dismay, nobody had been keeping watch. At first the annoyance hit him, but he could try to make himself understand. These people were exhausted, and the building was relatively secure. Making a deal of things would only cause issues among the patrol.
The quiet shuffling came from a nearby corner, where Killian was curled up, asleep. The younger man's brows were furrowed, his muscles shuddering as a bad dream plagued his sleep. Carefully, Jasper made his way over and knelt down beside the other man. The distress in Killian's sleeping expression made Jasper's heart ache. As gently as he could, he set a hand on Killian's shoulder and nudged him. The other man awoke with a sharp jolt, sitting upright. A cold sweat broke out across his forehead, his breathing a soft pant. Killian's hazel eyes were brimmed with nothing but terror, widened and darting all around the room.
"It's okay," Jasper said immediately in an attempt to soothe Killian before he could accidentally wake the others. "It's okay," He added, more soothing this time as things seemed to even out and Killian calmed a little. "It was just a night terror. You're alright." Jasper insisted. He picked up his old jacket off of the ground, setting it around Killian's shoulders. The other man just nodded silently, pressing his face against the fabric and taking a deep, shaky breath.
What had startled Killian so terribly? Well, nightmares were common now, Jasper knew that. But he'd never seen Killian sit bolt upright and ready to sock somebody across the jaw so abruptly. Whatever it was, Jasper hoped that Killian was alright. As the other man calmed down, Killian managed to talk. His voice was shaky as he said, "You woke me up." His lips cracked into a big yawn. The sun was just beginning to rise as light poured in through the bar window, brightening Killian's eyes to a golden color and making the chestnut tint to his brown curls more noticeable. Jasper could even spot a few freckles dotting along Killian's nose and cheeks.
Admittedly a bit guilty, Jasper could only shrug for his defense and offer, "You were having a bad dream." Rubbing the back of his neck, Jasper avoided looking Killian in the eyes by turning to glance at Aubrey, Chris and Harley. "I didn't like hearing you so distressed...I don't ever want to hear you like that. So I woke you up." There was a silence hanging, suspended in the air. It was only broken when Killian sighed, and headbutted Jasper on the shoulder playfully. Without thinking Jasper ran his fingers through Killian's soft curls. He was going to stop, but then heard a more content sigh from Killian, rather than annoyed.
After a few moments, Killian pulled away first. "Okay," He relented, "We need to get going soon. Wash your shirt off as best as you can--I'm sure there's bound to be some sort of soap behind the bar over there."
Amused, Jasper replied with a simple, "Yes, sir." He snatched his bloody t-shirt off of the floor and smuggled a bottle of water from his bag as he headed over behind the bar. With the patrol stirring awake, they would have to get moving as soon as possible. There was no telling if any other groups would be out and about during the early morning, and if any might already know about the bar. Jasper already made a risky bargain choosing to camp there for the night, but he wasn't going to make the mistake of keeping everybody camped in one spot for too long.
The bloodstain on the shirt never completely washed out, but with some scrubbing of soap and whatever water was left in the bottle, Jasper managed to get the blood out of the fabric enough to wear it again. Slipping it over his head, the dampness of the washed shirt was uncomfortable, but he'd manage. There was no room for being picky in the world anymore. When he stalked his way back over to Killian and the other three, Jasper forced a small smile onto his lips. He couldn't show them just how much pain he was actually in. If a group was going to be strong, their leader needed to be even stronger.
Mossy green, soft eyes looked up at him as Aubrey skipped over. Wrapping her arounds around him, Jasper couldn't help but notice just how gentle she made sure to be, to avoid hurting him any further. "I'm glad you're okay." She said, pressing her face against his chest. "I was really scared, you know?"
"Then why didn't you come over to make sure I was okay last night?" Jasper teased, giving her a playful glare. "If anything, you just abandoned me." Sighing dramatically, Jasper feigned despair, "Left me to sleep, alone, in the cold and unfamiliar night."
"I will elbow you." Aubrey threatened. Not a moment passed before her serious glare was replaced with an impish grin, however. "But, I thought you'd be grateful. You know," Her smile broadened, a mischievous twinkle in her catlike eyes, "Having more alone time with hothead over there." Aubrey nodded towards Killian, talking with Chris and Harley just across the room.
Embarrassment heated up Jasper's cheeks, irritability jerking at his stomach. Was it really that obvious how he felt about Killian? What if Killian figured it out before he wanted to tell him? Would the other man reject his feelings? What would happen to their friendship if he did? "Relax, Army Man," Aubrey interrupted before Jasper's paranoia could get the better of him. "I'm the only one who's guessed, surprisingly."
Shaking off whatever worries that were building up in his mind Jasper snapped, "Okay, whatever. Thanks for being my wingman when I didn't need one." He admittedly felt a bit guilty, snapping at Aubrey like that. But from one glance, he could see that she was more amused than anything else. Shaking his head he muttered, "Come on. We need to get moving now, we're wasting daylight."
"The sun just came out-"
Ignoring her protests, Jasper made his way across the bar and over to the other three patrol members. Harley and Killian were locked in a deep conversation about their next stop, while Chris was listening skeptically. "If we keep moving without any stops, we can make it there by the next sunrise." Killian was saying, his arms crossed and brows knit together. He and Harley had set the map on the floor, looking it over. It was a relief to see Killian getting along well with one of the other patrol members, at least. Chris seemed to be the only one who was still wary of the other man, but he kept his worries to himself--for now. Hopefully he would come around, but Jasper wouldn't be surprised if he didn't.
"But we could move even faster if we take one more day," Harley said. "We're bound to get tired. Walking for that long will only leave us exhausted and vulnerable." The boy shrugged, his dark eyes fixed on Killian's. His voice was definitely oppositional, but it wasn't aggressive. At least one person in this group knew how to negotiate without getting too heated. "I know we're all worried about the group back home, but they can last a week without us."
Sometimes it took statements like that for Jasper to realize just how much the leaders of the group kept from the other people. Not telling them about the growing problem with the biters over the ridge in the forest was a bad idea, but Jasper wasn't the spokesperson of the group. Tom's reasoning for not telling them was a good one; not causing a panic. If everybody stayed nice and settled down in the farmhouse without straying too far, then the biters wouldn't take too much of a notice in them. Jasper's main concern was with the hunters of the group, though. Casimir and Samantha would be exhausted trying to feed the group on their own.
Finally making up his mind, Jasper crossed his arms and raised his voice, demanding the patrol's attention. "We're worried about the rest of the group, and rightfully so. We need to get the supplies and return as quickly as possible. But we also have to worry about ourselves, too." He shot Killian a warmer smile, hoping the other man wouldn't be irritable with him for siding with Harley. Much as he loved Killian, Jasper knew that the young man could be a bit too stubborn for his own good sometimes. "Without us, the supplies won't ever get to them. If we wear ourselves down, we could be taken out by another group, or even some more biters." Fixing them all with a hard stare he snapped, "We'll go as long and far as we can, without complaint, then rest for the night. Understand?"
The others hesitated for a few moments, but Jasper forced his gaze not to waver. Finally Aubrey said, "That seems like the best thing we can do." Chris nodded silently to add his support.
Harley was already in agreement with Jasper, leaving Killian. It took a lot of nerves for Jasper to look at the younger man, to meet his gaze with those beautiful golden-hazel eyes. Finally after a few minutes, Killian nodded. He looked away, but there was a small smile on his lips as he rolled the map back up and slipped it into his pocket. As everybody began to gather their weapons and packs, Jasper could have sworn he saw a blush on Killian's cheeks. What was that for? He'd directly disagreed with Killian's plan, but for whatever reason, Killian hadn't snapped like Jasper expected him to. He was well aware that Killian had a crush on him, but he'd never really seen Killian actually blush.
As he hiked his pack over his shoulder, Jasper couldn't help but keep his stare on Killian. He could feel the heat building up on his own cheeks, so he painstakingly ripped his gaze away. "You make a good leader." Killian said bluntly as he walked over, ready to leave. Jasper could barely hide his surprise, blinking. Did Killian really think so? Jasper had never thought of himself as a good leader. A follower? Yes. A leader? Not so much.
"You think so?" He chuckled, ruffling Killian's curls playfully.
Killian batted at his hand, shooting him a tough glare. "Yea." He replied, voice edging on annoyance. "I do. I think you're the only one who doesn't."
"If you say so, Boy Scout." Jasper mused. As the other three patrol members joined him and Killian at the entrance of the bar, he nodded to the others. "Everybody ready?"
"Ready." Aubrey said enthusiastically with a little hop.
Nodding, Jasper didn't wait for the others to join in, and pushed open the door of the bar and back into the unfriendly world beyond.