The Sun was beginning to set over the city, but unfortunately not before it allowed the jeep to be spotted by a large amount of infected while making its way through a heavily-infested area. The next safe zone was not too far off, and they were going to be in the clear soon. That is, if they could get there alive. Hoseok fought to stay calm as he rammed into the vicious creatures and swerved around numerous obstacles laying on the road while working to get them out of there as quickly as possible. It did not help that the inside of the vehicle was a chaotic mess as his companions scrambled to keep the invading party off and out of their mobile haven.

“Can’t we go any faster?!” Taehyung asked anxiously, kicking away an infected that had grabbed onto the back bumper.

“Not if you want to risk us crashing,” Hoseok replied dryly, and then gasped as Yoongi took a shot across his face at another infected attempting to leap in on the driver’s side. “Uh, thanks!”

“Oh yeah, we definitely don’t want that,” Jin added, shuddering as he recalled what had happened on the way to Black Swan Resort.

“We really should have waited somewhere till it was dark before crossing this part!” Jungkook pointed out as he continuously swung a baseball bat at the creatures trying to climb in through the back.

“It’s not like we knew there was going to be a whole army of them here,” Namjoon answered while helping the younger out with an identical weapon. “Regardless, now’s not the time to regret anything. Please, focus on staying alive!”

“I second that,” Yoongi piped up before flinching in shock when an infected managed to grab him by the ankle.

He immediately aimed his rifle at it and pulled the trigger, but instead of the expected explosive sound and recoil, the gun only emitted the dreaded click. He cursed under his breath and flipped his weapon around, slamming the of the rifle into the creature’s head to make it let go.

Realizing that he did not have ammunition left on him, he urgently reached behind him to signal to the rest in the back. “Any more back there? I’m out again!”

Jimin pressed a magazine into the gunman’s palm. “I think this is all that’s left, make it count!”

“I’ll make it last,” the older replied as he reloaded his weapon just in time to open fire on a new wave of infected heading towards them.

The round of shooting produced several stray bullets, one of which hit and punctured the fuel tank of a battered-looking car parked at the side of the road before them. The occupants of the jeep who noticed it immediately tensed up and prepared for a blast which never happened. A few chuckles were then exchanged when they realized they had all forgotten for a moment that cars only exploded from such shots in movies. Ironically, they might as well have been in one, considering what they were currently dealing with.

The stationary vehicle did catch on fire, however, which quickly spread, engulfing the whole row of cars in front of it in flames. At least that blocked the infected from one side from getting to them, or so they thought. Just as many as before clambered over the cars after the jeep, not at all minding the searing flames that stayed on them after they emerged from the fire.

Jungkook turned to the front in panic. “I don’t know how, but we have to speed up. There are still a whole lot of these guys, and half of them are now on fire!”

“Whoops, my bad…” Yoongi muttered flatly, making it his priority to eliminate the flaming ones with his rifle before they could touch the jeep or anyone in it.

The possibility of them being overwhelmed by the unyielding horde was getting rather high, until the infected after them were suddenly pelted with a rain of bullets from above. The group then realized in pleasant surprise that this was the doing of the soldiers positioned atop the towering barrier surrounding Purple Light Park – the safe zone they were heading to. With the swarm taken care of, the gates to the area were rolled open for the jeep to enter and then promptly shut as soon as it did. Hoseok hit the brakes, causing the military vehicle to screech to a stop.

The brief moment of silence that followed sent an overpowering wave of relief over the seven. They had made it. They had actually made it out of that nightmare alive, and were finally out of danger for sure. They did not have long to process it all, however, as several medical and military personnel quickly jogged up to them to check if they were alright and safe to let loose within the safe zone, even keeping a few guns on them until they were absolutely sure that none of them were infected. The group was exhausted, covered in blood and dirt, and mildly injured, but otherwise fine.

“Recruit?” A medic attending to Yoongi inquired amidst the bustle, noticing his badge and clothing.

“Yes, Unit 57. We were deployed at Black Swan Resort. Has anyone else from my unit arrived here?” He asked.

“Hmm? You’re the first. I’m sorry,” came the reply.

Yoongi was not at all shocked. He had been prepared for such an answer when he asked the question. It was safe to assume that none of them had made it at this point. They could be at other safe zones, but that was unlikely the case, considering Purple Light Park was closest to the one that was breached. He could hear the others he had come with stand to be taken to their temporary accommodation, and felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see the one the others referred to as ‘Jin hyung’.

“Hey, thank you, for everything.”

He nodded in acknowledgement at the expression of gratitude, and Jin gave his shoulder a couple of assuring pats before leaving with the rest. Yoongi watched them walk off, finding comfort in the fact that even though he could not save his own friends, he had managed to help keep another group of close ones alive.

The following day brought about a little more normalcy within the borders of Purple Light Park. Its current residents had settled in for the most part, knowing that they were going to have to make do with being cooped up for some time while the situation was being sorted out. Little to nothing was known about this virus at the moment, and the city had to be cleaned up. On the bright side, the park did not seem to be the worst place to be stuck in. The scenery was pleasant enough and the entertainment available was sufficient.

“Yoongi hyung!”

The lone individual seated at a picnic table had barely turned around when the one who called his name came into view and happily sat right beside him.

Yoongi was surprised to see him. “Jimin? What are you doing here?”

He was also about to comment about the younger being way too close to him when the remaining seats at the table were swiftly filled by his other five companions from the day before. A familiar Pomeranian was then lifted onto the table as well, and the group cheerfully started to chat among themselves.

Jimin turned to Yoongi with a grin. “We actually found you! You’re my hyung now since we’re still alive, right?”

“The personnel on duty said you were resting today, so we didn’t think we were going to see you around,” Hoseok added.

Yoongi glanced around at the rest in confusion. “You were looking for me? But why?”

“We thought you could use some company,” Jin replied. “It’d be good to make some friends around here since we won’t be able to leave for a while, so why not start with the guy whom we wouldn’t be here without?”

Yoongi shrugged. “It was a team effort, and I was just doing my duty, but sure, we can be… friends.”

“Great, because Tae needs some who aren’t totally insane,” Namjoon commented, earning a few interjections from Jimin and Jungkook. “But seriously though, if it wasn’t for the crazy stunts you pulled, we might not be alive either, so good job out there.”

Taehyung nodded gratefully at both his friends. “I know they’ll do anything for us. I can’t imagine what I’d do without them.”

“Explains why you ditched your own brothers to go stay in the same room as them here,” Jin remarked, earning a round of laughter from the group.

“I’m actually glad I did,” Taehyung answered. “Especially after hearing these two sing in the shower. How come I never knew how amazing you guys sounded after all those times I’ve been over?”

“You’re really good too, you know?” Jungkook pointed out, returning Taehyung’s compliment.

“Oh, come on, it’s not as if Jin hyung and I don’t sound good, right?” Asked Namjoon playfully.

“Well, maybe not in the shower for you, hyung. Sorry…” responded Taehyung awkwardly.

“I remember hearing him in the shower once when I was over. Kind of broke my eardrums,” Jimin joked.

“Jimin, when we get out of here, you’re no longer welcome over,” Namjoon retorted with mock indignance, causing the group to erupt in laughter again.

“Oh, but your rapping is amazing, hyung,” Jimin quickly stated in an attempt to rescue himself.

“Rapping?” Yoongi inquired, and suddenly all attention was on him, making him regret saying anything, but he reluctantly continued. “I… love rap, actually. I’ve even written some of my own stuff-”

“You’re kidding!” Hoseok unintentionally cut him off in excitement. “You’ve got to collab with Joon and I sometime.”

“Singing? Rapping?” Jin piped up. “Guys, imagine if we like, formed a band or something. I mean, this handsome face of mine is worldwide worthy after all.”

The group let out a third round of laughter at the seemingly-bizarre idea. Who knew? However, what everyone at that table was certain of was that they were going to be sharing much more joy and laughter together, and that the bonds they had built and strengthened with one another through that whole horrific ordeal were going to last a very long time.