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Survive Together -- Z Nation [Virginia & Traveler]

Roberta felt a pang of sadness for the girl. She was young, really; just a kid. At most she might have been Addy's age. "You're doing good. We all, we all lost people. But we found each other too."

From the side Addy shrugged. She had her spiked baseball bat on her shoulder and she was watching the houses, eager to find a place to stretch out and sleep. She had lost Matt, she supposed, but in the long run she hadn't been as attached to him as everyone thought. He was just nice to have around.

A few minutes later 10k opened the front door and walked outside. "It's good. Vasquez is shutting the last of the windows. The breeze was blowing curtains around, but there's nothing alive or dead in there that's going to bother us tonight."

"Well it's about damn time," Murphy said as he began to stride towards the house. His companion, Cassandra, gave the others a wide-eyed look before walking after him. Her attachment to him was very odd, and her half-Z appearance was a little bit disconcerting. 10k watched the two of them going into the house but he said nothing.

Roberta waved to the others. "Secure the vehicles and bring everything inside. Once we go in we don't come back out until it's daylight and we know it's safe." She gave Vasquez a nod when he poked his head out and gave her the thumbs up sign.

Doc was right behind them, his bags slung over his shoulder. "Let's go get some shut eye kiddos. Looks like we're heading to California tomorrow." He winked at Judy and 10k as he strolled past. "Land of sunshine and orange groves... there's nothing better than that, aside from the pot farms they used to have up on the Pacific northwest coastline. Man... those buds were screaming!" He chuckled and went into the house.

10k raised his eyebrows as the Doc passed by but didn't say anything. Instead, he quietly helped June with getting the rest of her things and bringing them in, along with his backpack. The inside of the house was dusty from neglect and having the window open for most of a year. The place looked deserted, as if it had been purposely left instead of having the inhabitants die off. Inside there was a master bedroom which Murphy promptly claimed, and three bedrooms, including a living room. There was only one bathroom, though, which seemed like it could be a problem. Still, with them traveling so much just having four walls and a door that locked was a good thing.

Addy, Roberta, and Doc claimed the last three bedrooms, with left Vasquez, 10k and June in the living room. Addy had invited Vasquez to share a bed with her but the ex-DEA agent shook his head and began looking through the kitchen pantry for food. He had heard what happened to the club-wielding girl's last bed companion, and he didn't want any of that bad mojo.
 
When the door opened, June's shoulders relaxed obviously. She took a few steps forward to meet him, facing lighting up a little. Not because the farmhouse was safe, but because he was alright. She helped make sure everyone had what they needed brought in, tagging along with them. She was too slow to get a bedroom, but it didn't matter all that much. She'd been sleeping in a truck for the last few months, being able to properly stretch out and move her elbows was already a nice thing.

With permission from the people who were going to be sleeping in the rooms (minus Murphy), the redhead took a few minutes in each room to dig around, looking for clothes that might fit or things she might need. She found a few shirts, and ended up shaking out a few things and setting them near the door so she could take them with.

The bedrooms probably could have been shared between people, but June still didn't feel comfortable speaking up about things that she noticed. Could have put Addy with Roberta, Doc with Vasquez, and then... well okay, that would have left her and 10k. Which was perhaps not the best thing, although... she couldn't really say that was something she was fully opposed to. Still, not every bed was fit for two and if those people had claimed the bedrooms for themselves, they could have the proper relaxation. "I didn't realize we had to run for bedrooms," she did comment softly, laying a blanket and pillow on the floor because she'd claimed it promptly, perhaps so the two men could have the soft chair and couch. "Logically there should probably have been more sharing going on, but I suppose everyone deserves their chance at just sprawling out on a bed."

She wasn't exceptionally excited to be sharing an area with Vasquez. He was in the top three people who made her uncomfortable still. Admittedly the other two were Murphy himself and the woman, uh, Cassandra or something. She didn't seem to talk, and she was really, really uncomfortable. She wanted to ask about it, but the way people looked at her, something had happened and it was possibly a sensitive subject. Still, the presence of 10k more than made up for it.

Letting out a tiny sigh, June flopped over on the blanket, letting out a tiny "oh the floor is hard" when she hit it harder than she had clearly been expecting. Still she smiled and seemed almost a bit amused by her decision.

People hung out and chatted for a while, but eventually everyone headed off to their respective sleeping areas. June curled up on the floor, tucking the blanket around herself, and murmured a soft good night. It didn't really last long, though. Every time she closed her eyes there were memories, and she couldn't make them stop. Eventually, a little hesitantly, she moved across the dark livingroom, stopping a tiny bit away from 10k. Not too close, because everyone was understandably jumpy in the apocalypse. "10k?" She asked softly, "can I curl up with you for a little bit?" That was forward phrasing, but she couldn't think of a better thing to say. "I can't sleep. I can't close my eyes without..."

((I always forget how old Addy is
Addy u old. I mean not really, but always older than I thought!))
 
The ex-DEA agent had slumped down in the chair, his rifle cradled across his lap like a dog. He was out like a light, but occasionally he'd crack an eyelid and look around before going back to sleep. It was odd.

That left the floor and the couch, though, and when 10k came back into the living room to find June on the floor and the couch empty he felt like he'd just opened a Christmas present. A whole couch just for him? It was a luxury. He almost wanted to ask June if she was sure, but she had flopped on the floor and seemed rather content. He looked back at the couch. It looked so comfy... he grinned. A couch. Just. For. Him.

He laid his rifle against the wall and set his backpack nearby. The goggles, scarf, and gloves went on the coffee table, and he took off his jacket to use it as a blanket. His contented sigh sank into the old, soft couch as he laid down and smiled to himself. It was almost as nice as a bed. Certainly better than the back of a car! He was almost asleep when he heard June right next to him.

"Hm?" He rolled away from the back of the couch and blinked at her. Across the room Vasquez was watching them from the recliner. 10k ignored the man and concentrated on June. "What? Oh.." it had taken him a moment to sort out what she was saying. He turned around on the couch and nodded. "Yeah, come on," he scooted all the way back on the couch and onto this side to make room for her. She was scared. He got it.

Across the room Vasquez smirked and turned his back to the two. They were cute, but... he'd had his fair share of heart break in his life. Those two might find some comfort tonight, but it would just make it harder for them when one of them turned Z. It was unavoidable. They'd wind up hurt in the long run.

10k put his arm out for her to put her pillow on, and as she laid down he tried to help spread out the blanket. His half-asleep state kept him from thinking too much about what they were doing. In his mind it was just an extension of sleeping in the back seat of her parents' truck. It was innocent.
 
She watched as 10k grinned, and smiled slightly herself. More smiles from him had been the desired outcome. She did kind of wonder if Vasquez grabbing the chair after she'd claimed the floor was a gesture of caring towards the now second youngest member of the group, but she certainly wasn't going to ask. June would just assume it was and use that to make herself feel less comfortable with the man. She thought she could probably have fetched him a blanket, but he didn't seem particularly bothered by the lack of one. Plus she supposed he could get one for himself if he wanted to.

It sounded like he wasn't quite asleep yet, that was good. June had been a tiny bit concerned about waking him, not just because that was sort of how people got stabbed, but also because she knew it could be hard to get to sleep, and she didn't want to cause him trouble. When he said yes, she smiled slightly and went to go get the blanket and pillow so they could share them. She hadn't been expecting him to just push himself back and make room for her like that, but she could go with that.

It was easy enough to toss the blanket over him and then sort of fit herself against him. And she did fit. Very well. It just sort of felt like it was supposed to be. But June was a bit scared and very unsure, and only able to feel a trickle of the ocean of sadness she was still trying to shove back, so she probably wasn't the best judge of 'supposed to be'. Still, he was warm against her and it made her feel safe. Tomorrow she would be strong and do what she had to in order to survive, tonight she just wanted to curl up and feel protected. "Sorry you're probably gonna get a face full of hair," she said softly. She'd try her best to keep that from happening at least. His arm practically had to go around her, and it was a nice weight. Once they were all situated she let out a soft "sorry Vasquez," because she just kind of assumed he'd be woken up too. No verbal response, but a slight hand gesture in the shadows.

There were a few very quiet tears that night, but nothing particularly emotional. At least, no breakdown. Just a few silent tears and one or two of those sad hiccup-y noises and she fell silent, except for the sound of breathing, pressing her back against him and closing her eyes again. She did manage to fall asleep like that, which was a surprise and a blessing.
 
He let her lay down, and as she snuggled back into him he could feel the soft swell of her body pressing into his. At first he didn't think anything of it. Then she moved slightly and her body fit against his so perfectly that it sent a shiver down his legs, and then he felt himself reacting to her presence. In the darkness he blushed furiously, ashamed of the thing that he could not control. She didn't seem to notice, though, and so he wrapped his arm around her. He felt her hair against his face and inhaled the sweet perfume of the last shampoo she had used.

She apologized to Vasquez and 10k wondered if she was apologizing for not laying down with him on the chair. Was there...? He glanced over at the other man but saw no response. He sighed and laid his head back down, nuzzling into her and closing his eyes. In a few moments he was fast asleep.

Roberta stood over the two on the couch. She raised an eyebrow when Vasquez rolled over. "How long has this been going on?" She asked as he motioned towards 10k and June.

Vasquez shrugged. "All night."

"I can hear you," 10k murmured against June's hair. He held her tightly still, but at the sound of Roberta and Vasquez talking he opened an eye.

Murphy strutted into the room, Cassandra following behind him like a dog. "Well, look who got lucky last night!" He bellowed. He grinned and slapped the back of the couch. "I hope you used protection; remember what happened last time."

"To you," Roberta reminded him. "That's like the kettle calling the pot black."

"Who's black?" Murphy grinned. "I'm hungry. Anyone have some food around here?"
 
She and Vasquez had exchanged a few words at most so far. Sized each other up a little too, but barely interacted. 10k and Doc were the only two June had really spent any considerable amount of time with, and 10k the most. Which rather explained why she was so terribly attached to him at this point. He was all she had. And she kinda wanted to kiss the man, there was that too.

June was exceptionally thankful for the fact that her mother was all about cleanliness, and she'd had time to occasionally wash her hair and at least use some leave-in conditioner once in a while. The overall distractedness of having his warm, larger body pressed against her was just enough to keep the admittedly innocent teen from noticing any... changes. Even if she did, already starting to drift off as she was, she didn't really interpret it as what it was.

She slept well, and though the voices woke her up in the morning, June managed to ignore it enough that she didn't have to draw herself out of her state of rest.

And then Murphy.

Her cheeks flushed, and the young woman sat up quickly. "It wasn't... we didn't..."
"Yeah, they'd have to be pretty sneaky to while Vasquez was right there. And it'd be really rude." Addy added with the most serious tone she could summon up. June turned scarlet, apparently entirely unable to handle the teasing, and just let out a tiny, almost squeaking "but no". Murphy's question about food was a welcome distraction and she looked up. "I have what I brought." She wasn't actually sure if everyone knew or not, she'd just assumed. "We could eat that or me and one or two other people can go out and look? Sometimes overgrown farms still have crops, and I'm pretty good at finding edible plants." Carefully she slid off the couch and fetched her plastic bag with the treasure or dried fruits and berries within, which she handed to Roberta, because she knew the darker skinned woman was in charge. That meant she was in charge of food, too.
 
For his part, 10k just sat up and blushed. He didn't know what to say to the accusations. His hair stuck up in strange positions and he had an odd, happy smile on his lips, but it wasn't because they had done 'that'. He looked a the others and then busied himself putting on his goggles and then pulling on his vest.

"10k, why don't you and June go look for some scavanged food outside. Addy, you can help me look inside for any left over cans or non-perishables. Doc, you look for medical supplies, and Vasquez look for sources of gasoline." Roberta nodded in thanks at the offering of food and set it on the dining table. "We'll reconvene back here in half an hour."

"What do you want me to do?" Asked Murphy as he inspected his nails. Cassandra hovered, her face looking emotionless and haunted.

"You just be your normal sweet self and don't go anywhere." Roberta leaned her rifle on her shoulder. "Any questions?"

There were none. 10k wrapped his scarf around his neck and tucked his slingshot into his belt, then picked up his rifle. "Let's go." He glanced at June and then nodded. "Edible plants? Sounds good."

Murphy chuckled as he watched the two of them. "Ah, young love..." He grinned at Roberta, "It must be my bloody Valentine's."

"Shut up, Murph." She shook her head in disgust and left the room, following Vasquez out to the barn to look for gasoline or other supplies they could use.
 
His hair was cute all messed up like that. She wanted to reach out and smooth it down, but that was probably not the best thing to do right now. She didn't want to embarrass him or herself, and it was maybe a bit too... she didn't know. Physical? She'd just spent all night as the little spoon in a couch cuddle, so maybe it was somehow more intimate than that? She didn't know, so she just didn't do it.

Oh good, it was her and 10k again. By not suggesting a person to go with her, June had realized she left it open for anyone. But no, it was the one she felt comfortable with, and she wasn't sure if that why or not. Either way, full agreement with the decision. Moving back to where she'd been intending to sleep the night before, she put her belt back on, the weight of the machete new but a tiny bit comforting. It was bigger and better than her knife, after all. Still no gun, but perhaps eventually. Then again, she was the only one in the group except for Murphy and Cassandra, it seemed, and she was pretty sure Cassandra wasn't right in the head and that might have been why she didn't have one.

"Yeah. Unless you wanna find water and fish." She wasn't sure if there was water nearby or not, they could find out while they explored, she supposed. As they passed Vasquez, the redhead offered him a smile. She was hoping to get some kind of positive response, something friendly or something so she could move him out of the 'slightly uncomfortable' category. Instead she got an emotionless stare, and her face dropped. She didn't think she was going to try and get on the good side of Murphy (did he have one?) she didn't want to only have 4/7 of the group be fond of her.

Tugging her bag on, she let out a tiny sigh before they stepped out into the sunshine. "It's a nice morning," June commented after a morning, taking a moment to stretch. "Did you sleep well?" She hoped so, she'd sort of shoved her hair all up in his face all night and that was probably not the most comfortable thing for him.

"I'm hoping there'll be crops that ended up growing wild after things went downhill, but otherwise we may find things growing along the property lines. I don't know, I can't predict super well. At least not in areas like this." If it had been entirely wild she could probably guess better, but four years wasn't enough time for things to totally grow over. "It's... kind of weird being on a farm again. It's nothing like mine, but it still kinda hurts." Just because it was anything like home, she supposed. "Which is ridiculous." It felt like her emotions were being ridiculous. Then again her parents died yesterday, she had a free pass on pretty much every emotion right now.
 
The sun made him squint. 10k raised a hand to shield his eyes and scanned the front yard. He could see Vasquez over by the cars. The man glanced at the vehicles and then made his way to the large barn/garage to the right of the house.

"Do you miss your home?" The tall sharp-shooter followed June's gaze as she surveyed the property. "I don't think it's ridiculous. I miss 'before' too." He pressed his lips together, as if to keep any other personal admissions from spilling forth, and nodded towards the farmhouse garden. It was overgrown and had seeded itself at least once since the outbreak. Some scrawny corn stalks shot up from the mess, and a big, heaping pile of gigantic squash leaves hinted at possible fresh vegetables. Who knew what else might have been lurking under the leaves? Strawberries? Carrots? The possibilities were endless.

He slung his rifle and took out his slingshot. With the others looking around and searching for supplies he didn't want a a stray bullet hitting a friend. He followed closely behind June, his duty there to protect her while she hunted. As they walked across the overgrown lawn small stone monuments to dead pets poked up out of the gold-green weeds like little broken teeth. A child's baby doll laid discarded by a deflated soccer ball, and a loose door on the garden shed beyond creaked in the soft breeze. It was beginning to get eerie. He felt like the ghosts of the past inhabitants of the farm were watching them with hate-filled eyes.
 
If they didn't find anything in the garden, the wide fields would probably be the next best bet, though June was less than enthusiastic about the prospect of entering the high grasses and stalks. Too many things could be hiding there.

She hesitated, and then glanced back at him. "Yes. Very much. I got lucky, since I got to stay even after things went bad." Until they'd joined the caravan. "It's been a few months but things still feel all new and unknown. I mean, of course it's all one big unknown, but y'know. Little fish, big pond. That's also filled with zombies." June shrugged, and knelt down next to the garden, her knife pulled out, both to cut anything that needed to be cut and just in case anything jumped out. The first sweep of leaves yielded a rotten zucchini, which while inedible was at least a good sign that they might find something. Zucchini seemed to live through everything. If they could find one or two, they could make a fire and she could cook them. Potentially even fry if this house had oil. Maybe even use the stove if it was gas. But she couldn't get her hopes up too much.

"I'm not quite sure how well I'm going to do here," she confessed after a few seconds, pushing aside a few large leaves to look underneath them. "I mean, you guys are really intense. Like, a whole different level of survival than I'm used to." She'd been really, really lucky until very recently. "I mean, I'll be able to pull my weight more than Murphy and Cassandra, I assume, but that's because Murphy's got the big end game and Cassandra's clearly not right in..." she just obviously wasn't right in the head. "My dad would never let me dress like that." A pause, and then "well... I mean I guess I can dress however I want now." A longer pause, and then she started to cry. Even though it was an entirely impossible task given how close he was, it seemed like June was trying to hide it from him. She was still facing the plants she was looking at, trying her best not to make any noise. Even if she hadn't been sort of failing with that, the trembling of her shoulders probably would have given it away.

((June did you just start crying because of the freedom you have to wear ugly trashy outfits if you want))
 
He raised an eyebrow when she said that they were really intense. She was right about Murphy and Cassandra. The Z-Lord, (10k's secret name for the cyan-skinned nutcase), was only with them still and alive still because they needed him. 10k would have killed him a long time ago otherwise. Certainly when he did whatever he did to Cassandra and made her a half-Z psycho.

June commented on Cassandra's clothes and 10k let out a little scoff of a laugh."The real Cassandra would have never chosen to dress like that." He pressed his lips together and glanced away. He'd had a little crush on her 'before'. She was changed now.

After a moment of silence he heard a soft sob and realized that she was crying there, in the garden. She was trying hard not to show it but the shaking in her shoulders wasn't from laughing. He knelt down next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. "Hey... it's... it's okay. You're going to fit in just fine here, and we're not going to make you dress like Cassandra, okay? You can dress like, ah... like Roberta or Ally, or whatever you want to." He rubbed her arm and tried to make eye contact.

Women were so different. His mom had died when he was eight, and his dad had never had a girlfriend. 10k wasn't very sociable anyway. He didn't get to be around people much, so he didn't know exactly what he needed to do to help his new friend.

"No body here knows all about this farming stuff like you do. And you can swing a mean dagger at a Z - I've seen it. We'll stick together. Everything is going to be fine."
 
Hey, he was trying to kill ten thousand zombies. That was more than she'd seen. The number he was at was probably still more than she'd seen. And he made it seem effortless. His comment about the 'real Cassandra' was confusing, but June could half interpret the feelings (or the feelings she thought were there) and the redhead might have been jealous if she'd been capable of feeling anything but miserable right now.

She tried to laugh, but it didn't really work. "I can't tell if you're trying to be funny or if you're just really bad at this," June informed him, voice cracking. Then, just to make sure he didn't feel insulted, she added "either way it's kinda working." It was. She leaned against him, sniffling. She still wasn't quite ready to be functional, just have a good cry in the garden and then find food. There was an attempt to wipe the tears away, but they were still coming down and it was a completely useless gesture.

"It's my fault," she said finally. "Mom... it's my fault. And you... had to..." If she'd been faster and hadn't frozen up, her mother would be alive. She'd be here with them, warm and kind and June wouldn't feel nearly as lost as she was now. "I'm sorry." She herself wasn't even sure what she was apologizing for. The fact he had to shoot her mom? That he was stuck with her blubbering in the garden? Maybe both. Maybe that she'd kind of robbed him of someone who was already fond of him by not acting fast enough. He was so nice to her now, though. If he'd thought she was a bother, he hadn't shown it.

The crying did eventually get under control. It seemed like the weight was still on her, though. She had just been managing to keep it at bay until now. She'd slept well, but the eighteen year old still looked tired. "Sorry," she repeated, though this time it seemed like it had a direct reason, "I'm wasting time. People are hungry and I'm out here crying, and we'll have to eat the reserves I brought if I can't find anything."

Reluctantly she leaned away from him, and focused back on the plants. "They really liked you," she said softly. She didn't know why she felt like he needed to know, but she did. Moving aside more leaves revealed a small but ripe zucchini, and she twisted it off the vine and put it in her bag.
 
He knew that he couldn’t make her feel any better by telling her that it was okay. It wasn’t okay. It might never be okay. So he sat and held her, and when she was ready to start looking again he let her go. “I liked them too. Your folks.” 10k had stood back up and saw Roberta walking across the yard. He raised his hand to her and she nodded, but otherwise the farm looked rather quiet. Quiet was nice.

Murphy stepped out the back door of the farmhouse and lit a fat cigar he had found. As he puffed on it, Cassandra half-squatted nearby and kept a look out, kind of like his personal guard dog. 10k looked away and back at June. She was really different from anyone he’d met before. She was honest and she didn’t hid her thoughts. She wasn’t like Addy, who 10k felt was only out to benefit herself. No…June wanted to be a part of a team. She wanted to belong, not to step on others to make herself better off.

She wasn’t like Roberta either. Roberta was 100% in charge and all about business. She was about the mission, and her personal desires had to take a back seat to that mission.

But June was different. He felt like she might be a friend to him. “How do you eat those things?” he finally asked. “Is that some kind of cucumber?”
 
"My dad is... was a good judge of character. It was part of why we made it so long. So even if I hadn't already been solidly convinced you were a good person, it would have been a lot of points in your favor." But June had already decided for herself anyway. Still, it had been nice to know she probably wasn't entirely off base. and 10k was continuing to prove her initial judgement right. He was someone she could trust.

Just having Murphy out and at all in the same area made June a tiny bit uncomfortable. It wasn't even about the whole 'blue and can do weird things with zombie' thing (mostly). He was just a darn unpleasant person to be around, and she didn't know how to deal with it. She was definitely a product of the sheltered life she'd managed to live; not as hardened as she would have been otherwise. It had to happen now, four years in, because she was exposed to the world at its worst instead of hidden away.

"You've never had zucchini?" She asked, sounding a tiny bit surprised. "It's a squash, so it's... I dunno. I'm not super sure what to compare it to. You can eat it raw, but it's not as good. I liked it in soup or fried. If we could find oil and flour I could.... actually, with oil, some water, and about half an hour I could still make it work. Otherwise, I'm sure there's something to do with it." Another tiny zucchini, was revealed, and she put it in her bag as well. She was perhaps a little bit vague about her plan, but delicious surprises were nice and it would kind of feel like she was doing something really good if she could manage it.

After a few more seconds of searching she glanced back up at him. "So," she started, tone a tiny bit playful, "are you actually here to help, or are you just being my stoic but sweet bodyguard?" She couldn't just stew in negative feelings, and the friendly (was it flirty?) teasing kind of helped.

((It is 11:30 at night and I just finished baking a cake, I can't tell if my life is out of control or pretty awesome))
 
“Yeah… I’ve never had one of these,” he eyed the long fruit in her hand and then shook his head. “I mean, it’s green, and I’ve had some green things, but unless it came in a can or you had to hunt it I don’t have much experience with things that grow like that.” He shrugged. “See? You go skills.” He watched her gathering her tiny treasures, but every so often he had to look around to make sure they weren’t being hunted by one of those Z-Blasters. Those things were crafty, and that made him nervous.

“Bodyguard?” He was drawn back to her by her teasing question. “I guess Roberta wanted me to keep you and those things safe.” He went closer to her and knelt where she was hunting around the ground for them. His hands moved aside the huge, primitive leaves, and after a few fruitless searches he found one. He reached out to grab it and got poked on the spiny stalk.

“Oh!” He jerked back his hand. “That hurts!” He cupped it and glared at the vine accusingly, as if the thing had purposely pricked him. “You didn’t tell me that they were pokey.”

He pressed his lips together and reached out more cautiously, and when he grasped the thick cylinder he twisted it the way he saw her do it, until the thing came off the juicy, prickly vine. He slipped the fruit into her bag. “I think that I’m better at watching for Z’s.”

Addy walked out to where the two of them were still searching for food. “So… any luck here? Or are we going to break out that dried grub of yours, June?”
 
"Well, hopefully you like them. I mean, not that liking things really matters that much anymore, but it's always preferable." Food was food and taste was kind of a bonus. "I'm not very good at hunting, so I suppose between the two of us we can probably put together something that seems like a real meal at some point." It sounded like a good idea to her. And a delicious one.

It wasn't the reaction she was hoping for. Admittedly June wasn't sure what she'd been hoping for, but something more fun than just an actual reason. "I like safe." After a moment, she added "and the company." Even if he wasn't going to help. When he knelt down though, the redhead smiled as warmly as she could manage at the moment.

His startled words drew her attention fast, a tiny bit concerned about what it was. "Maybe don't just shove your hand into a plant without looking?" She suggested with what was probably a giggle, though she sort of stifled it because she didn't want him to think she was laughing at the fact he'd been a tiny bit hurt by the plant. Reaching out, the young woman took his hand in both of hers and inspected it for a moment before letting go. "You'll be alright," she informed him with mock seriousness. "By the way, they're pokey."

She opened the bag for him, watching the zucchini fall into the depths. "If you want to. I certainly feel safer having you around." She meant in general, especially think about the night before, but it applied to just now as well.

When Addy spoke, she glanced up. "A few zucchini so far. We can eat them, but I can also make something if someone can find some cooking oil of some kind. If 10k and I can get a few more minutes I can probably find another zucchini, and if you can run the request for oil back to the group, we can see if things will work out?" She was a tiny bit hopeful. "If it's time to go head back in through, we've probably got enough for a decent bit for everyone." Not enough to eat to full, but when was anyone ever full these days?

There was something a little odd about Addy, but so far June liked her. She'd kind of wanted an older sister when she was young, and the woman sort of seemed like she could be that sort of person. Or she'd be someone to be a tiny bit wary of, June just couldn't tell yet. She was only a hundred percent confident in 10k and Doc. Roberta was pretty solidly safe as well, but she was pretty sure the woman would take more than a day or two to pass the same judgement on the eighteen year old.
 
“Zucchini, huh?” Addy stood with her hip to the side and twisted her mouth as she contemplated June’s haul. “I’d kill for some friend chicken and mashed potatoes right now, but I suppose zucchini will have to do. So I’m guessing that you want cooking oil, not car oil?” She turned to go back to the house with a smirk and a swing to her hips. “Don’t take too long. Murphy is complaining about the lack of food and booze in the house.”

10k watched her go, and then he turned his attention back to June. “What about those flowers?” He indicated several orange squash blossoms that were nearer the fence line. He had stood up and was shielding his eyes from the sun as he scanned the area. It still looked safe, which in itself made him nervous. The fields had been long overgrown with weeds, and it was probably a few years since any crop was planted purposely. Those that still remained were ones that reseeded themselves or somehow lasted through the season. In a few years it might be hard to tell that this was a farm at all.

As he waited on June he thought about the people he had met, and those he had lost ever since this Z plague had started. There were too many to name, but as long as his count of downed Z’s o outnumbered the count of friends he had lost he felt like he was doing something good with his life. “Hey…” he turned to June, “you told me before what you thought life might have been like if the Z’s never happened. Can you tell me more about that?” He started to follow her to the next area where there might be a bit of food. The thorny vine that climbed up the fence had a few blackberries clinging to it. He plucked them off and then held them out palm up, to her. "Here. There isn't enough to share. You should have these." As his eyes met hers he felt a warm tingle that was wonderfully unfamiliar. He'd felt it before, but it seemed like a life time ago.

"You know what I really miss, though? Pie. Do you have any kind of food that you miss?"
 
"Yes," June said promptly. "Cooking oil is preferable." As for Murphy, she sighed. "If he wants things to happen faster, he can help. Participation has to happen before people get to complain." She hadn't actually spoken up against anyone in the group so far, just kinda gone with what everyone was saying, but she really didn't like complaining. Still it got softened with a "but we'll work a little faster". She wasn't really a 'lay down the law' kind of person.

Her eyes followed his look to the flowers, tilting her head slightly. "Those flowers are edible. But it seems like a mouthful at best, so... you're probably talking about looking for more actual vegetables over there, huh?" She stood up, brushing the dirt off of her pants, and then headed over towards the flowers.

When he spoke, the redhead looked briefly surprised. It wasn't the sort of thing she was expecting, because talking about that alternate future that would never be tended to depress people. "Well I figured I'd do that fancy four years of high school thing and then go to college. I hadn't actually started deciding where, though. I had all four years of high school left. And then in college I would probably be all sorts of confused by the large amount of people. I... hadn't really thought about where I'd go after that. Getting a job would probably mean living at least a few hours from home. Maybe get myself a boyfriend, potentially try beer while underage, whatever else it is that college students do."

"There's always enough to share." Well unless there was just one. At least, when it was as small as a berry. So she took her half of one or two, fingers lingering a second or so too long as they touched his palm. June smiled at him almost shyly, briefly unsure of herself for reasons she couldn't place. "It makes things better anyway." Just like they'd told people in kindergarten. The berries were sweet and comforting in their familiarity. After a moment she knelt down, back to 10k, to look through the leaves, leaning forward onto her hands and knees for better reach. If there were flowers there was a decent chance of vegetables, and if she could provide enough for everyone to have a meal her first full day with them it would make her feel a bit more confident. It wasn't something she'd always be able to do, but still. A show of worth and friendliness. Plus, she just liked caring for people.

"Ice cream. And Oreos." It wasn't a hard thing for her to decide, it seemed. A lot of foods she'd liked she'd been able to keep eating, though a whole lot less often.
 
Her touch in the center of his palm sent tingles down his body. It was a lot like when he grabbed the electric horse fence at his Aunt Barb's, and the current made his teeth rattle, only this time it was actually pleasant. Very pleasant. He watched her slide the berries in her mouth and then savor the flavor, and as he passed his own through his lips it was easy to imagine that they were tasting the exact same berry. He felt the tart juice hit the sides of his mouth moments before the sweet followed, and it made him flinch slightly from the boldness of the flavors.

She turned and got down on her hands and knees to search further for more food. He couldn't help but look at her, and from that angle the prominent view was pretty nice. He felt a little guilty for looking over her body and enjoying the way her hips tapered into her waist, and he could see the soft swell of her breasts as she reached forward to feel under the leaves. He didn't realize that his jaw was beginning to hang open, though, until someone cleared his throat behind him.

10k whirled, his face flushing from embarrassment. Thankfully it was just Vasquez. The older man raised an eyebrow as his eyes followed the line of sight that 10k had likely been watching. "I don't think you'll find Z's looking at that." He put a hand on the young man's arm and gave him a long, hard look. "You okay? You look a little distracted." Then he grinned and smacked 10's arm. "Come on, kids - Roberta wants us to convene inside and eat, then make plans for our next leg."

He turned his attention towards June but he didn't say much. His gaze, though, was intensive. The ex-DEA agent almost looked like he was upset at the new girl. After the briefest of pauses he turned back to 10k. "Don't take long. She doesn't like to wait."

10k reached down to help June to her feet. "The boss calls. You found a lot, though. I think it's gonna be nice to have something fresh. To eat, I mean. Something fresh to eat."
 
It was definitely a treat worth sharing. While it did leave her wanting more (more contact or more berries?), she was definitely happy to have the experience be one between the two of them.

June hadn't realized the sort of view she might be giving her friend (was he that? She hoped). She was much more focused on finding more food fast, so that everyone would be happy. Plus, the more they could save the non-perishables, the better. And she'd maybe get to continue giving 10k things that would make him look cute, like he had she she'd first approached and given him dried fruit.

When she heard Vasquez the redhead sat up, the last skinny zucchini in her hand. She turned, making eye contact with the man though it didn't last long and her gaze dropped to focus on something else. Was he just not going to talk to her? She answered anyway with "I think we've picked up pretty much everything we're gonna get here." When he turned away, her face fell a tiny bit. She felt a little rejected. Taking 10k's hand, June pulled herself to her feet. "I don't think he likes me," she said softly.

She kept hold of his hand for a few seconds before letting go. "Alright. We'll see what all everyone has found too, I suppose. Maybe it'll be good." Or maybe it would be dreadfully disappointing.

When they got in, the teen stuck close to 10k, promoting a "the two'a you are attached at the hip in every way but the one he wants" from Murphy, which took a moment for June to understand. When she did she turned a little pink and glanced up at 10k out of the corner of her eye but didn't say anything. She was pretty sure no response was the best here. Addy tossed her a mostly empty container of vegetable oil without really making sure the short woman was ready. June fumbled it for a moment before managing to get a proper hold. "Um," she started, "if people don't mind waiting about half an hour and we can get a little fire started, I can make zucchini coins. Otherwise we can do the.... pan version of grilling or eat them raw." Which was the underwhelming option.

((I am looking forward to making Murphy obnoxious because June's an easy target. Plus he can kinda harass 10k at the same time))
 
10k turned to look at the blue-skinned 'package'. He frowned slightly, but it was more of a confused 'what the heck?' then a 'fuck you' frown. He didn't care for Murphy in the first place, so the man's attempt at a joke was not well received. "I'll help you cook," he started to offer, but Roberta interjected.

"No, Addy can help make breakfast. I want you to go with Vasquez and check out another building he saw on his patrol this morning." She pointed at 10k. Then she turned to Doc. "You and me have some work to do. Come on."

10k glanced back at June as he began to follow Vasquez. Hopefully she was in good hands.

Addy sighed. "Shit. Kitchen duty? Really?" She reached out and took the oil back from June. "Alright Betty Crocker, let's get this show on the road. How do we make those green things edible?" She swayed her hips as she began to walk towards the kitchen. "Let's get one thing straight - I don't do dishes."
 
Roberta cut off her hopes that June could just continue to stick with 10k. She shot the dark haired sniper a slightly helpless look. This wasn't optimal at all. Not only weren't they going to be together, he was going to be off somewhere where pretty much anything could happen and they wouldn't know until it was too late. She couldn't lose someone else she cared about, especially not this soon. But no, she told herself, he was tough. He'd be fine.

Still, when he glanced back she couldn't help the soft "be careful" that slipped out. Of course he would be, it was a useless phrase these days. It made her feel a tiny bit better, though.

She tagged along at Addy's heels a little like an awkward puppy. "You don't really need to do anything. If you just want to just hang out and relax, I can do it all no problem. I'm sure there are books or something. Plus there's no need to do manydishes. It's not like we'll take plates with us, we can just use them and leave them." Pans and knives should probably be cleaned because those had a lot more reusable value.

Much to her disappointment the stove was electric as opposed to gas powered, but that would perhaps have just used up all her good luck for the entire month. Instead she ended up sort of rigging the oven up into a makeshift fireplace by starting a fire that would be just big enough to cook with (so quite small, really). A teeny bit smokey, but not enough that it would even need to be vented out windows or anything. So it definitely wouldn't attract any kind of attention. That was the danger of using a fireplace, after all.

"I have these cattail roots," she explained, fishing them out of her bag as the pot with water heated, "I can get a kinda flour-y substance from it and use it to--"
"I don't really care." Addy didn't sound exceptionally rude, it almost came off as her trying to tell June she didn't have to explain. Though she did look disinterested enough that the potential for rudeness was there. June let out a tiny, awkward "oh, okay" and fell silent.

Things were quiet until around when June was removing the pot of water, and Addy spoke up again. "So you and 10k, huh?"
"What about us?" June wasn't trying to avoid answering, definitely not! "He saved my life. He's my friend. I think he's... cool." She took a cattail roots and started the process of extracting the starch by worrying and smashing them in the warm water. It was a good distraction.

((Do you want to make these separate scenes for us to kinda feels dump, or each use the other person who's interacting?
Or just skip to when 10k comes back and there's foooood))
 
10k followed along with Vasquez, happy to simply be there to look for danger and scout for things. In truth he wasn't a very talkative kind of guy. He preferred that comfortable silence you got when you were in the company of someone you trusted. The older man seemed to be of the same mind, and for a long time they simply walked across the untended fields, towards what looked like a long-abandoned and decrepit barn. It must have been built generations ago, before electricity had even come to the farm.

The young sniper's eyes constantly scanned the horizon. The weeds here were tall but dry. Anything that moved would create a rustling sound much as they were. Vasquez had found what appeared to be a deer trail, though, so their steps were not as loud as they might have been otherwise.

He reached up and pulled the scarf away from his throat to let the cool breeze reach his skin. He paused and shielded his eyes to squint at the barn. A glimmer of light was flashing at them, but from this distance it could have been a wily breeze playing with a piece of foil. A moment later he jogged to keep up with his partner.

"So. This thing with June..."

That was probably the last topic 10k expected to hear Vasquez bring up. "Uhm, what thing?"

"Don't think that no one has noticed. This thing, this joined-at-the-hip thing. You know that it can only lead to suffering don't you? She's not a survivor. Sooner or later you'll lose her."

"W- why are we talking about this?" He removed the goggles from his head and wiped the sweat off his face with his forearm, then slid the band back on. His hair stuck out at odd, bed-head angles, and he looked even more like an Anime come to life than before. "I thought we were scouting."

"We are scouting, but I'm also being a friend to you, 10k. The less you let yourself care, the less hurt you'll feel."

He shook his head and adjusted the strap that held his rifle on his shoulder. "I can't keep myself from caring. I wouldn't want to."

Vasquez gave him a long, hard look. Finally he turned and continued walking towards the barn. "Suit yourself. It's your heartbreak, kid."

The barn turned out to be a bust. There was nothing there of use for anyone traveling, though the mystery of what had happened to the family was solved. A row of four graves, protected from the elements and dug into the ground in the barn, sat quietly inside. The body of the father laid next to them. He was still holding an old shot gun and it was apparent that he had blown his head off rather than live on without his family. How the others died was anyone's guess.

10k found a dusty canvas tarp that looked like it was remnant from the Vietnam war. He unfolded it and laid it over the deceased.

"Why are you bothering with that?" Vasquez almost looked upset at the gesture.

"He took the time to bury his family," 10k answered, awkwardly shifting from foot to foot. "I thought someone should at least cover him up too."

The older man made a sound that sounded a lot a snort. He shook his head and practically rolled his eyes. "Let's get out of here. They should have something ready for us to eat by now." He drew in a breath and let it out slowly. "You are something else, 10k."

"I'll take that as a compliment." He squinted at the sun as they emerged from the barn.

"Hey," Vasquez shut the door behind them and walked next to 10k on the way back. "If I kick the bucket, would you do that for me too?"

He looked over at the hardened ex-DEA agent, unsure if he really meant it or not. After a few moments he nodded and they continued back to the farmhouse.
 
It became clear rather quickly that there wasn't a whole lot for Addy to do. They probably could have heated up more water and given her a root to work with, but if that occurred to either woman, neither brought it up. Addy sat there at the dusty table, lazily explored the kitchen again, or tossed a few things on the fire to keep it going the way June seemed to want it. She couldn't exactly do entirely nothing, if Roberta found out, there'd be trouble.

"It's not going to work." June looked up, and then back down at the cattail root in the water, apparently assuming Addy was talking about that. "The only reason 10k doesn't get more attention is because he hasn't realized he's someone worth paying attention to." Maybe not the same kind of emotions Vasquez was trying to warn about. "The two of you will play house for a while, and he'll figure out he's got stuff going for him and sweet little vanilla farm girl's gonna be a whole lot less interesting." She tilted her head back, thinking for a moment, "man, I bet a guy ends up into in some weird stuff when he has all his big hormonal years during the apocalypse."

Okay so Addy was definitely coming at this from a different angle. More of a mixture of warning and teasing, and it definitely seemed to be flustering the redhead sitting on the floor. She'd turned a little pink and seemed to be focusing very pointedly on her work. "It... doesn't really matter," June said finally, "there's nothing going on like that so he can meet whatever kind of woman he wants whenever he wants and do whatever." She just didn't want to think about it because it might make her stomach knot up a little. "Would you please dust off a pan and some plates? I'm going to be moving on to the next step soon." And she didn't want to talk about this anymore.

Eventually June had a tiny puddle of a sort of tan substance that sat at the bottom of the pot like a very fine sand. June measured out a little of the oil and set the pan Addy had dusted off to heat while she worked on getting rid of the water in the pot. First she just poured as much as she could, and then used a towel that seemed clean to absorb more. Finally she had what she needed, and set about slicing the zucchini and then dipping the coin shaped slices of vegetable into her makeshift flour. It clung the way she'd hoped it would, and started putting the thinly 'flour'ed slices on the pan. Soon the soft sound of sizzling started, and she tended to them with a fork, flipping and removing ones that were done and piling them up on a plate to be divided.

It was a little hard to listen for things happening outside the kitchen while also focusing on not letting anything happen with the food, but June was sort of dividing her focus between food and trying to hear voices or the door opening. Addy definitely didn't look anxious, which meant the worrying was all her. So June tried not to worry about 10k and Vasquez, because they wouldn't have been sent out if they couldn't handle it.

She managed to stop worrying about Vasquez and worry a little bit less about 10k, and then she just felt a little bit guilty for so obviously caring about one person more than the other. It was a pretty natural thing really, but 10k was pretty obviously her favorite she could at least stop feeling like it would be less the end of the world (the end of the end of the world) if Vasquez came back without 10k and just a little stressed out at the thought of the opposite.

It was probably just a fact of life that people had to measure the values of different lives, but that didn't mean she had to like it.
 
Vasquez pushed open the door to the farm house and strode in, confident almost to the point of arrogance. He shook his head at Roberta and then walked over to the recliner he had slept on and slumped into it. “No luck. On either task.”

The leader of the group raised a perfectly curved eyebrow but said nothing as 10k followed the other man into the house. He stopped at the door and shut it, though, before leaning his rifle against the wall. He glanced back and forth from Roberta to Vasquez, but he didn’t add anything to the report. There was no more to be said.

He could smell the fried deliciousness coming from the kitchen and he let his feet take him there. He saw June bending over a pan and fishing little toasty circles out with a slotted spoon. He licked his bottom lip and moved forward, watching in awe as she dipped a green circle into powder and slid it into the sizzling oil. “That’s amazing.” He stepped up next to her to watch the process, completely ignoring Addy. “Those are the little green things we found today, huh? You’re making it into actual food.”

He looked at her and smiled. “These are just like those things you used to get in the freezer section, aren’t they? The ones that went in the microwave? I didn’t know people could make those without a factory.”

His mouth was salivating and he couldn’t wait for them to sit down to lunch. He shifted his weight slightly and then realized that he was still dusty from the barn. His eyes widened. “Ah,” he stepped back and glanced over at the non-working sink. “Maybe I should go wash my hands.”

“Why don’t you go do that?” Addy asked, waving a spoon at him. “Who knows what kind of germs you just contaminated our food with?” As he backed out of the room she crossed her arms and put her weight on one hip, shaking her head. “Geesh; boys – all dirt an mud, walking into our kitchen like that. Who does he think he is, anyway?”
 
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