Ash coloured skin peeled off a skeletal hand, revealing the bone hidden beneath the layer of blood and tissue. The boney fingers reached out and slid into the stomach of a dead body before grabbing a liver and pulling it out. Blood dripped from the still warm organ and rolled down the dirt covered arms, only for the hands to lift the organ up to a blood coated mouth and for rotten teeth to sink into the organ.

The mouth moved, all while releasing grumbles from deep inside the throat of the walker. The slam of a car door caused the walker to lift its head and release a throaty growl, only for an arrow to fly through the air and plunge into its forehead. The walker went silent and fell to the ground limply, the organ hit the ground and rolled a few centimetres, leaving behind a path of scarlet red.

Coffee coloured eyes lingered on the dead walker before flickering to the rest of the bodies littering the empty road. Two large trucks were parked on the side of the road with the dead bodies of the Woodburians sprinkled around the road and field. Some Woodburians had been shot in the head, while others were shot in the stomach or chest to bleed out, which left them to turn and feast upon the dead bodies of their companions.

Jungkook took in the sight with wide eyes and parted lips. He didn't understand what had happened to these people because he knew this wasn't the result of his group. His mind briefly flashed back to the governor and he immediately tried to find his black trench coat among the dead Woodburians, but he didn't see him anywhere. For a split second the possibility that The governor had done this, crossed his mind but Jungkook didn't believe that he would be that cruel to just spontaneously murder his entire group.

Jungkook took a few cautious steps towards a dead body, while Rick and Daryl killed the remaining walkers. The eerie atmospheres rose as the last growl cut out, leaving the group in silence. Jungkook analysed the blood dripping out of the hole in the side of the head of a girl and the way her body was sprawled across the road as if she was trying to run. He took a step back at the sight of her parted lips and empty eyes peering up at the bright sky.

"What do you think happened here?" A breathy murmur escaped Jungkook's lips as he turned away from the ominous sight to look at the rest of the group.

Daryl was standing with his back turned to one of the trucks as he observed the scene, while Rick placed his hands on his hips and released a deep exhale. Michonne remained lingering near their car, while watching them from distance, and Taehyung leaned his shoulder against the side of the truck and twirled his knife between his fingers.

Daryl shared a brief look with Rick before turning to answer Jungkook, but just as Daryl's lips parted to speak, a loud thud behind him made the group jump and raise their weapons in that direction. Jungkook's eyes widened as he saw a female staring back at them through the window of the truck. Her eyes were wide and filled with fear, and her chest rose and fell as she released harsh pants. The glass fogged up as her hot breath caressed it and her palms pressed against the glass, leaving behind sweaty hand-prints.

Daryl was quick to reach out and pull the door open. The woman gasped and quickly raised her arms up in surrender, her dark eyes jumped between all of them, only to tear up a second later. Daryl grabbed her by her bicep and ripped her out of the truck, the woman stumbled forward into Jungkook's direction, making the younger's eyes narrowed and gun lift higher.

The woman gulped and backed up before twisting her head around to try and keep her eye on each group member. Jungkook's eyes jumped up to Daryl as the older peeked inside the truck to see if anyone else was inside it before slamming the door shut and facing the woman. Jungkook looked back at the woman with a frown painted across his lips and the tip of his gun pointed at her head.

Rick rose a brow at her before lowering his gun and taking a step forward, "Talk."

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

After the Woodburians fled the prison and tried to return to the safety of Woodbury, The Governor stopped them halfway there by whirling his car in front of theirs. He had been furious as he stormed out of his truck and demanded for them to go back and continue their attack, only for the Woodburians to shoot him down with a firm no.

The no was the exact thing that led to The Governor raising his gun and firing it at everyone in sight. He slaughtered each and every one of them with no emotion, and even walked around the area and shot bullets in their skulls after everyone was dead. The woman, Karen, seemed to be the only survivor of the massacre. The reason why she escaped The Governor's rage was because a larger man fell on her when he got shot after trying to run away, which covered her body with his own. And when the Governor walked around and tried to shoot a bullet in her skull to stop her from turning, his gun released a small click- indicating that he had ran out of bullets.

Jungkook remained shocked throughout the entire story as Karen explained it to them. He knew that the Governor was close to being a psychopath, but he didn't think he would do something like this. Jungkook can admit that he has killed innocent people, but to just slaughter a whole group of them after they followed him in war and risked their lives for him? Yeah, Jungkook could never do something like that.

Fortunately, this little incident was the exact thing that convinced Daryl, Michonne, Jungkook and Taehyung that the Woodburians were just as much the victims as the rest of them. The group didn't want to kill any of the Woodburians, yet they still decided to head to Woodbury to see if the Governor and Andrea was there. Because apparently Andrea had left the town two days ago to head to the prison, yet she never reached the destination.

Dry leaves crunched underneath Jungkook's boots and the moonlight shone down on him, making his hair glint and eyes sparkle. The pale light slid over the slope of his nose and caught onto his raven lashes as they fluttered against his cheeks. Jungkook tilted his head down to see where he was going in the darkness, the grip on his gun tightened and his tongue slipped out of his mouth to run over his bottom lip.

"Careful, or you'll trip" Jungkook's head swung up and footsteps faltered, he stared at Taehyung's back with parted lips and wide bambi eyes. Jungkook couldn't comprehend the fact that Taehyung had just muttered something in Korean. He didn't know that the older knew Korean, but what he did know was that the familiar language created a nostalgic, warm feeling blooming in his chest.

After noticing that Jungkook wasn't following him, Taehyung stopped walking and turned around. The look of confusion washed away as he noticed Jungkook staring back at him with tears in the corners of his eyes and a small tremor in his lip.

"You good?"

"You speak Korean?" Jungkook dodged Taehyung's question and threw one of his own. He seemed to almost hold his breath as he waited in anticipation for the answer to his question.

Taehyung's lips stretch out into a boxy grin and a deep chuckle bubbled in his chest, "I don't know, bun, do it?" Taehyung teased back, choosing to answer Jungkook's question in Korean before turning around and walking after the group.

A small gasp stumbled past Jungkook's small lips before his face brightened and lips spit apart into a bunny smile. He quickly dashed forward to catch up to Taehyung, and only paused when he was walking next to the older. Jungkook's eyes glistened in the moonlight and the amazement gave them a spark of happiness as he staring into the side of Taehyung's face.

"Why didn't you say that you can speak Korean?" He asked giddily- practically bouncing in his step. It was a bit hard to speak Korean after such a long time, which resulted in a slight accent and an uncomfortable twist in his tongue. Jungkook's eyes never left Taehyung, who sucked in his cheeks to stop himself from laughing.

Taehyung released a deep sigh and turned his head to connect their eyes, "This isn't the first time I've spoken to you in Korean, you just never noticed." Taehyung muttered lowly, without looking away from Jungkook's eyes. The younger's smile faltered as a smirk tugged at the edge of Taehyung's lips before the older leaned in and breathed out huskily, "The second time was when I fucked you."

And with those words, Jungkook's foot caught onto a stray branch and his body stumbled to the side, while Taehyung merely smirked and continued to walk forward as if nothing happened.
Jungkook's eyes followed Taehyung's back before he huffed and straightened out, "Asshole." Jungkook spat under his breath, which earned him a loud laugh from Taehyung.

"I can hear you!" The older called out, making Jungkook's face drop and tongue stick out at the older's back. With his tongue still hanging out of his mouth, Jungkook's eyes bounced over to the Woodburian, Karen. The woman was peering back at him from over her shoulder, her eyes shone with confusion and a crease formed between her dark brows. Jungkook immediately pulled his tongue back into his mouth and ran after Taehyung with scarlet red cheeks.

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

After a few minutes of walking, the group finally broke through the line of trees and noticed the high walls of Woodbury. Just as they took  another step in the direction of the town, bright lights flashed on, illuminating the surrounding area, followed by gunshots filling the air and bullets flying towards them.

The group raised their guns and fired back a few shots, but mainly focused on dashing towards the cars lined in front of the entrance. They scampered behind the cars for cover and pressed themselves against the cold metal. The guns stopped shooting and silence wrapped around the area as soon as the group was out of sight.

"Tyreese, it's me! Karen!"

Jungkook's head snapped up as Karen jumped up to her feet with her hands raised in the air. Before she could say anything else, Rick grabbed the edge of her jacket and pulled her back down, "Get down!" Rick shouted in alarm, realising that if they had fired, they would have probably shot and killed her.

"Karen! Karen, are you okay?" Jungkook heard a Male call back from the distance. He glanced up and looked around the group in puzzlement, not knowing what to do about the situation. But the only answer he seemed to get was Taehyung's shrug.

Instead of listening to their leader and staying down, Karen pushed away Rick's hands and stumbled out from behind the car and into the open. She flinched as the bright lights shone in her eyes before raising her hands up in surrender and speaking once again, "I'm fine!"

"Where's the Governor?" The Male shouted back- his voice booming through the area until it reached their ears. Jungkook looked around in fear of it attracting walkers, but he knew they'd just take them down easily.

"He fired at us! He killed them all!" Karen answered in the form of a shout- gulping and shifting nervously as she continued to stand with her arms raised in the air and strands of raven hair falling into her eyes.

Tension filled silence followed after her sentence. Seconds turned into minutes until finally, the voice returned, "Why are you with them?"

"They..." Karen began, only to glance at the group and drag her eyes over each member before looking away once again, "They saved me!"

Jungkook shut his eyes and pressed his sleeve against his forehead to wipe away the sweat. He couldn't deny that he was incredibly anxious about this entire situation. One wrong move and a single bullet could kill someone he cared about, and Jungkook wasn't looking for any more grief. The small scare he got from Taehyung almost dying was enough for Jungkook, and now he realised that he needed to talk to Taehyung and get to know him before it was too late. Because there was no denying that Jungkook had some type of feelings for the older, yet he didn't know what those feelings incorporated.

Rick shifted next to Jungkook, his eyes stayed glued on the ground before he clenched his jaw and pushed his rifle around his shoulder, "We're coming out!" Rick called out and looked at his group with a determined nod.

"Wait what?" Jungkook straightened out with a gasp- staring back at Rick like he had lost his mind.

"Fuck that." Taehyung scoffed with an eye-roll, only for his eyes to widen as Rick raised his hands and stood up, "What the...the fuck" he breathed out through parted lips. Taehyung glanced behind him to see that Daryl and Michonne were following after Rick and slowly standing up, "Oh, for fuck sake." Taehyung hissed under his breath, while pushing his gun into its place and standing up with his hands raised in the air.

The bright light stabbed him in the eyes, making his head fall forward and hair fall in his eyes. He dragged his feet after the group and continued to glare down at the pavement before him. Yet Taehyung's head lifted and footsteps faltered as he watched the large wooden gate crack open to reveal two people and the street of Woodbury behind them.

Shock shot through Jungkook and he stopped walking as he recognised the two faces staring back at him. It was Tyreese and Sasha- the siblings who came to seek refuge at the prison, only for Rick to turn them away. Jungkook was a bit surprised to see them here at Woodbury, but another part of him felt glad because he felt like this was an opportunity to redeem himself.

Tyreese stepped forward and stared at Rick with cold gaze and a scowl, "What are you doing here?" He questioned the leader as he lowered his gun, allowing the other group to drop their hands to their sides.

"We were coming to finish this..until we saw what the governor did." Rick answered grimly, hooking his fingers around the waistband of his jeans.

Tyreese's face dropped and eyes glistened with grief, he momentarily looked down at his sister before inhaling a stuttering breath, "He..he killed them?" Tyreese managed to push out.

The group shuffled uncomfortably, allowing their eyes to drop down to the pavement and frowns to touch their features. Rick swallowed thickly and gave Tyreese a hesitant nod, "Yeah." he breathed out- the small word dripping with sympathy and guilt.

Taehyung watched the two carefully before finally choosing to step forward and part his lips, "Karen told us that Andrea hopped the wall to head to the prison." Taehyung informed the two, capturing their attention and making their eyes land on him. His eyes squinted in suspicion and lips tugged down, "She never made it, she might be here."

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

"This is where The Governor held Glenn and Maggie."

Jungkook lingered behind the group as they walked through the hidden building on the other side of the town. His eyes pranced around the wooden walls, the specks of blood and grime sticking to the wood, and even the flickering lights hanging above his head. Jungkook held onto his gun tighter and anxiously peered around his shoulder in case someone was looming behind him. But there wasn't anyone except the empty hallway.

"The Governor held people here?" Tyreese gasped in shock as he walked next to Rick down the hallway. He quickly turned around to share a look with Sasha, who looked equally shocked and horrified at the news. The two couldn't believe that they had been sleeping and eating here, while something so dangerous as the Governor was sleeping right next to them.

The group rounded the corner and noticed a single door at the end of the hallway. The light from the lightbulb fell onto the door until it reached the bottom of the door and illuminated the pool of blood sliding out from beneath the door.

Jungkook shifted on his feet anxiously with each step they took towards the door. His eyes stayed glued on the scarlet red pool of blood before bouncing up to observe the rest of the group. He noticed that the members were equally anxious and worried about what they'd find behind that door. Taehyung seemed to be the only one staring at the door with no emotion, yet what gave away how he felt was his clenched jaw and small twitch in his fingers.

The group reached the door- Rick standing in front of it and Daryl just behind Rick. Michonne and Taehyung hovered behind the two, staring at the door with narrowed eyes and steady breaths. Jungkook chose to look behind Sasha and Tyreese, who turned to look back at him and send him wary looks- both remembering their encounter with the younger at the prison.

Jungkook swallowed down a ball of spit and ignored their gazes, instead, he kept his eyes locked on the metal door as Rick reached out a hand and muttered, "One, two...three."

As the last word was uttered, Rick pushed forward and slammed the door open, revealing a large room with an empty chair in the middle of it, and a dead body of a walker laying in front of the chair. Jungkook's head cocked to the side as he eyed the room, only for a loud gasp to cut through the air,

"Andrea!"

Michonne scampered into the room and dropped her sword to the ground with a loud clink. Taehyung's eyes went wide as he saw a pale leg peeking out from behind the door and he quickly scrambled into the room. But no matter what Taehyung was expecting to see, his brain never allowed him to create the scene that was presented to him.

Andrea laid barely moving against the metal door. Her skin was a sickly yellow colour and was covered in a thick layer of sweat, dark blue bags were painted underneath her eyes and blood dripped down the side of her head. Her chest rose and fell as she released shallow pants and small wheezes, and her eyes barely managed to peel open as Taehyung and Michonne dropped down to the ground on either side of her.

"I...tried to stop him." Andrea croaked quietly, pushing her shaking hands against the ground to try and sit up straighter. Taehyung immediately leaned forward and helped her- not being able to hide the concern from showing on his face as his hands came in contact with her burning skin.

"You're burning up." Michonne said what Taehyung was thinking. Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth and breath hitched in her throat. Just as she was about to demand to take Andrea to a doctor to heal her, Andrea reached out a pale hand and pulled back the collar of her jacket.

Taehyung flinched back at the sight of a bite mark on the side of Andrea's neck. His mind went blank and his emotions dulled, he felt nothing as he stared at the bloody bite mark and came to a realisation that Andrea would die, "No." Taehyung breathed out- his voice cracking and becoming shaky. Even though the two weren't as close as Andrea was to Michonne, and even though she chose The Governor over them, he had still spent enough time with her to start caring about her.

"Judith, Carl...the rest of them..." Andrea murmured through a trembling frown as Rick crouched down in front of her and stared at the bite mark with glistening eyes.

"The rest of us." Rick corrected her firmly, reaching out and placing a gentle hand on her bloody one.

Tears gathered in Andrea's eyes at what Rick said and a hint of a smile appeared on her lips, "Are they alive?" She questioned hesitantly, looking away from Rick to look up at Daryl, who was watching her from a bit further away, and to Jungkook, who was cowering behind Daryl as if the older would protect him from the harsh truth that Andrea was dying.

Andrea's smile never left her face as her eyes flickered back to Rick, "They're alright." The leader managed to push out before dropping his head forward and shutting his eyes.

Andrea nodded with a deep sigh before turning her head around to glance at Michonne. Michonne's face was scrunched up in pain and grief, tears slipped out of her eyes and rolled down her cheeks, and small sniffles left her.

"It's good you found them." Andrea breathed out, leaning against Michonne and allowing the dark skinned woman to wrap her arms around her and pull her into her chest. Andrea released another satisfied breath and turned around to look at Taehyung.

The raven haired boy was glaring down at the ground with raw furry. His eyes had darkened and turned murderous, and his jaw was clenched so hard that Andrea thought it might crack. But looking past his curled fists and deadly gaze, she could see a small wobble in his lip and crystalline tears sticking to his raven lashes.

Andrea's face softened and she reached out her pale hand to press her fingers underneath Taehyung's chin and turn his head upward. Taehyung continued to glare at the ground for a second longer before finally looking up at Andrea to connect their eyes.

The mask Taehyung had put on crumbled the second he took in the sight of Andrea's frail body leaning against Michonne's chest. The bite mark stood proudly against her skin and Michonne's tears soaked into her hair. Taehyung's anger washed away in a mere second and was replaced by the heart-wrenching pain of grief. Tears sprung to his eyes and his white teeth sunk into his lower lip to stop it from wobbling. The first tear slipped past his eye and rolled down his cheek until it touched his chin, and then the rest followed the path created by the first.

"Oh, Tae, it's okay." Andrea murmured softly, caressing his tan cheeks with the pads of her fingers. She wiped away the few stray tears before allowing her hand to drop into her lap, "Stay with them, they're good people." Andrea advised softly, watching Taehyung with a fond smile as he gave her a brief nod and allowed his head to fall forward. His hair fell into his face, shielding the tears sprinkled across his cheeks and the small sniffles leaving him.

"I just didn't want anyone to die." Andrea choked, turning to look at Rick and Daryl. She blinked away her tears and released a stuttering breath as she eyed the group, "I can do it myself." She grumbled with determination as she sat up straighter and looked at Rick expectantly.

"No!" Michonne immediately jumped forward, her eyes wide and frantic- clearly knowing what Andrea was indicating. Taehyung just wrapped his arms loosely around himself in self comfort and continued to stare down at the ground, while releasing choked breaths and barely audible sniffles.

Andrea pulled herself away from Michonne and pressed her back against the wall instead. She looked up at Michonne and sent her a grim look, "I have to." Andrea's eyes drifted away from Michonne and became a bit hazy as she lost herself in a memory before she shook her head with a deep breath, "While I can." Andrea muttered and turned to look at Rick, "Please. I know how the safety works."

A bittersweet smile curled around Rick's lips at the last sentence. He remembered it being the first thing he had said to Andrea when they met. Rick inhaled a sharp breath and reached down for his gun, his hand lingered on top of it for a few seconds before he finally pulled it out and placed it in Andrea's open palm.

"I'm not going anywhere." Michonne stated shakily, squinting her eyes ever so slightly in order to indicate that Andrea shouldn't even protest.

Andrea returned her words with a soft smile before dragging her eyes over each group member. She took in Daryl's stoic expression, yet the gentle understanding shinning through his eyes and the small bob of his head. She took in the way Jungkook hid behind Daryl with his hands connected against his stomach and eyes glued down on his shoes. And she took in the sight of Taehyung raising his hand and pressing his sleeve against his face to wipe away his tears before sniffling and looking up at her with red-rimmed eyes.

"I..." Taehyung began, looking apologetic as he made eye-contact with Andrea before glancing at Rick and Michonne, "I can't." Taehyung whispered through trembling lips and teary eyes. Before Andrea could reassure him that it was okay, Taehyung pushed off of the ground and stumbled out of the room, leaving behind the group with concerned frowns on their faces.

"Look after him." Andrea twisted her head around to look up at Michonne and plead with worry. Michonne's lips barely managed to twitch into a plastic smile before they dropped back down into a scowl.

"I will."

Rick swallows thickly and pulled his hand away from Andrea's, "We all will." The leader spoke confidently as he stood up and walked through the door- following after Taehyung, and leaving Michonne and Andrea by themselves.

Daryl and Jungkook followed after the leader, but not before Jungkook finally managed to make eye-contact with Andrea and send her an apologetic grimace. Andrea wordlessly nodded at him and watched the group leave until the door shut behind Jungkook.

The silence felt heavy. Jungkook wasn't sure if it was from the tension, or anticipation, or perhaps even grief. But he knew he didn't like it, nor did he like the way Taehyung stood at the end of the hallway away from everyone. His shoulder was pressed against the wooden wall and hands seemed to be pushed against his face. Taehyung's once confident, straight posture was now hunched over and slumped against the wall. Jungkook could hear small sniffs coming from the older and could even see him wiping something away from his face with the sleeve of his shirt.

Jungkook's gaze didn't stray from Taehyung's back as he moved his legs forward and allowed them to lead him over to Taehyung. The silence haunted and taunted him from behind, making his body tense and hair stand up on the back of his neck. Jungkook gulped as he continued to walk, but just as he reached the middle of the hallway, a loud gunshot cut through the air.

Jungkook flinched and froze, his fingers found their way to the hem of his shirt as he stood still in the middle of the hallway and came to the realisation that a few seconds prior, Andrea's life ended with a loud gunshot. His tongue felt heavy and feet felt like they were glued to the ground. He barely managed to look up just to catch a glimpse of Taehyung's shoulder's shaking slightly as he pressed his hands against his face and tried to sink into the wall.

The glue on Jungkook's soles vanished and his legs lifted to lead him over to the older. Jungkook didn't stop moving until he finally stood behind Taehyung and was able to hear the muffled sobs and choked whimpers coming from the ravenette's lips. Jungkook's heart clenched and tears gathered in his eyes from the obvious pain the older was in.

"Tae."

The gentle utter of words was what made Taehyung freeze and straighten out, "Go away." Taehyung's breaths were still choked and harsh as he clenched his jaw and spat back at Jungkook without even looking at him.

Jungkook didn't flinch or back away, instead of saying something, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Taehyung. Taehyung froze at the feeling of Jungkook's hands gripping him tightly and the younger pressing against his back. Taehyung held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut- trying to control his emotions and prevent himself from breaking down when the younger was so close.

"It's okay." Jungkook breathed out, placing his head against Taehyung's shoulder and shutting his eyes tightly as they both listened to the silence hanging in the air.

The words carried so much more meaning than anything else Jungkook could've said. It's okay to cry, it's okay to feel grief, it's okay to let it all out because he's not alone, and it's okay to not be in there with Andrea and Michonne when she took her last breaths. And even thought Taehyung wasn't okay right now, one day he would be able to say that he was okay.

Those two small words and the feeling of Jungkook's warm heat surrounding him, was the exact thing that made Taehyung crack. Taehyung cried. He didn't cry only for Andrea, but he cried for everything that he had tried to suppress and keep inside in these past couple of months. He finally released the pent up pain from spending each night running away from the ghosts of his past and then having panic attacks whenever they caught up to him. He released the anxiety and fear from being surrounded by so many people after spending so much time with only Michonne. He released all the exhaustion from keeping up the facade of the lighthearted, careless asshole, while the entire group kept away from him and looked at him with distrust. Every single thing and emotion that Taehyung had felt, yet forced himself to push away, finally gushed out in the form of heart-wrenching sobs. And for the first time in his life, Taehyung didn't feel alone or judged when he stood wrapped in Jungkook's arms.