Song: Twenty-One Pilots - HeavyDirtySoul

Jonathan was dreaming. The only reason he knew was because Tyler was waving in the distance and his soul felt free for once. His dreams had been altering ever so slowly the past few weeks. Tyler was getting farther away and Evan was so much closer than he'd like him to be, but he couldn't push him away. He didn't really know if he wanted to anymore, it was a useless fight.

He could see his tall blue-eyed friend in the distance waving still, smiling, disappearing. Jonathan's heart felt heavy. The weight on his chest was suddenly overwhelming and he heard himself calling out for him as he faded with the crowd in between them. The air in his lungs left him in a scream and he couldn't catch it after that.

Jonathan ran, heaving heavy breaths, fighting back the dread and guilt that engulfed him. But he was drowning in it. Evan stepped into view and reached a hand out that Jonathan hesitated to take, but when he did a calm washed over him.

He woke up.

Lucah was half laying on his chest and he was still breathing a little heavy as he reached up to reassure her frantic licks to his face. He didn't quite know when she taken a liking to him, but every day he'd woke up in the hospital bed for the past week, she'd been there to keep him company.

"I'm okay, girl." He said with a hoarseness on the edge of his tired voice.

"Are you?" Evan asked from the chair in the corner of the dark room. "You didn't sound okay just a minute ago."

Jonathan rolled his head lazily. "It was just a dream."

"I know." He remarked quietly. "But you say his name a lot when you sleep. Even before all of this. Sleeping up in a safe house, you'd mumble, twitch in your sleep. I don't know how you'd get up and run everyday because it always seems like you're running in your dreams."

Jonathan could still feel the lingering drugs in his system when he let more words roll off his tongue. "It's different now."

"How?" Evan had his head propped up on his hand and he was observing him by the pale light coming through the window. "What's changed?"

Jonathan ran his fingers through Lucah's platinum fur and thought about it. "He's getting farther away. It scares me."

"You're afraid you're going to forget him." Evan stated and Jonathan flicked his gaze to his corner.

"Yeah."

"You won't." Evan stood and moved toward the bed, sitting on the edge and giving Lucah a pat. "Just like I'll never forget my dad, or the pet squirrel I had when I was ten. Tyler will always be there."

Jonathan watched Evan place one of his heavy hands on his chest. He felt his warmth spread over him just like in his dream and he bit back the urge to grab his fingers.

"He'll always be here." Evan whispered and he could feel Jonathan's strong heart beating beneath his fingers.

He stared up at Evan with a set of eyes that didn't belong in this world nor did they deserve to look so fucking troubled. Jonathan swallowed, "You know . . . . you're kind of turning into the kind of friend Tyler was to me."

Evan looked down at him, amused. He had to still be high. "Oh yeah? What kind of friend was he? A good one, I imagine."

Jonathan shook his head, "No."

Evan let his eyebrows rise up in fake shock, "A bad one? Come on, man. I thought we were better than that."

"He was the best."

Evan's heart did the thing where it literally felt like it had flopped over in his chest and began a beat that was faster than the speed of light. He felt the smile spread across his face and for a second Jonathan almost smiled too, but something made it go away. It was a typical thing for the runner to do. To admit something that personal and then bottle it back up seconds later. Just like he'd done when he admitted he considered him a friend and not just a guy he was letting tag along. He acted like he didn't care, like he didn't feel strongly about anything other than making sure the people in the tower survived. But Evan knew better.

"I fucking told you so didn't I?" Evan said and laughed when Jonathan rolled his eyes. "I told you that one day you'd be calling me your best friend and wondering what life was like without me."

"Oh my God." Jonathan groaned and shoved Evan's hand away then proceeded to flip him off.

Evan stood, a giggle still on his lips as the sky began to lighten outside. He leaned over him and smirked, "Why don't you give your bff a good luck kiss?"

Jonathan pushed at his face when he got too close, "How about you fuck off?"

But Evan persisted and Lucah joined the struggle. Evan laughed when Jonathan turned his head away as far as it would go. "NOOO!"

"Lucah, give him sugar! Give him nasty wet kisses!" And she did, licking his face from top to bottom as Jonathan started to laugh beneath her.

"Okay! Okay!" He chuckled and caught his breath after Evan pulled her back. "Jesus. My face is sticky now, you fuck."

Evan shrugged, "Yeah, well you should've let me kiss you instead, then you wouldn't be covered in dog breath."

"No, I'll take the dog breath, thanks." Jonathan sat up in the bed carefully and cut his lamp on, squinting in the light.

Evan moved toward the door. "I've got to get going, the sun's almost up. I might stay out there overnight, I don't know yet."

"Please do."

"Tired of me already?" Evan crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway.

"Always." Jonathan said and he added a small grin because he didn't mean it. Evan gave him a subtle smile in return.

"I'll be back later."

Before he walked out Jonathan asked, "You're not taking her with you?"

Evan glanced at Lucah lying comfortably in Jonathan's lap. "No. I don't think she minds keeping you company."

"I'm fine being alone."

"I know." Evan nodded. "But I don't want you to be. So she's staying right here."

Jonathan stared at him for a moment and tried not to let himself drown in how good those words felt or how warm the brown of Evan's eyes were. He licked his lips and took a breath. "I'm not gonna kiss you good luck, but be careful out there."

"Will do. Let me know if you change your mind and you ever want something other than dog breath." Evan gave him a cheesy wink and left the room, not giving the man time to retaliate.

Jonathan listened to his footsteps fade then looked down at Lucah and grabbed her face like a person. "Why is your dad so goddamn frustrating?"

She blew a quick puff of air out of her nose. It was almost like she was trying to laugh.

------

Scotty was slid up nice and close to his partner, laughing hard at something Marcel had said as Evan made his way off the elevator. Langley and Murphy were constructing some odd looking contraption out of metal and duct tape. It looked like a pressure trap and he didn't have the nerve to ask either of them how they had learned how to make it. One of the techies had been down in the lobby more often than not sitting with Ryan. The skiddish man always caught his eye and then looked away just as fast. Evan wanted to fix that.

He approached him and Bryce was the first to speak, giving him a wide smile. The guy was way too cheerful to be living in a zombie apocolypse. "Hey, Evan. How's Anjo doing?"

"He's better." Evan cocked his head to the side. "Ryan."

The man looked up at him and Evan could almost see the fear rising behind his eyes. He didn't blame him. Evan knew he'd been hard on him. "I want to apologize for being such an asshole to you. I know you didn't mean to do what you did and you couldn't have known that it was him that you heard on the walkie that day. You plucked up the courage to help even though I know you were scared out of your mind. I respect that."

Ryan just blinked, his mouth hung open slightly and Bryce had to nudge him to get him to speak. He cleared his throat. "I - thank you. Evan. I'm sorry about everything and I -"

Evan held up his hand and stopped him, "It's fine. We're good. Okay?"

Ryan nodded quickly, "Yeah. Okay."

The Asian turned and found Lui in a room to himself writing diligently on a piece of paper. Evan chewed at his lip as he waited by the door. "Please don't tell me that's my list."

Lui wrote down one final thing and stood, rereading it before he walked over and pressed the paper against Evan's chest. Lui grinned up at him, "It's your list."

Evan's head fell back and he whined, "Fuuuuuck. How did he do all of this by himself?"

Lui chuckled, "I have no idea. But now I don't know how he'd ever do it without you."

A grin was pulling at his lips. Just a little bit longer and Jonathan would be by his side again and they could figure this all out together.

Evan unfolded the list of supplies in his hand and looked it over. It was fucking outrageous but he understood that they had an infant that needed formula now and David was running out of the hospital's maternity supply. That took priority even more so than the threat of other people out in the city trying to get a cut of their stash.

Evan found his resolve again and pocketed the list. He checked the pistol on his hip, made sure his knives were sharp, and his bag was packed. Then he was out the front door and into the heat.

Because Jonathan was recovering, Oliver needed to eat, and everyone else was depending on him to run until the sun fell.

------

Jonathan watched from the window as Evan ran across the city, steering clear of the Southside markets for good reason. They didn't know who could be watching and waiting. He still didn't understand what they were hoping to get out of him. Evan told him the guy had been alone and that he handed him the key like it was nothing. But he also said that he'd gotten all the information he needed.

Jonathan didn't remember giving away a goddamn thing. So what else could they possibly want?

More questions with no answers. There was something that kept pulling at his chest the further away Evan got so Jonathan turned away. It got worse and he knew what he needed to do. He needed to get back out there.

He needed to run.

So he pulled himself into the hallway where he took slow steps with Lucah by his side. He moved until he was walking easily. The next day he tried to jog back and forth down the hall until the ache in his side had worked itself out. The muscles in his arms were tired but he pulled himself up using the doorway as a bar, building his strength again.

The next day, he was running up and down the stairs, dodging David and his hand that tried to smack him on the head as he yelled at him to rest. But he couldn't rest, not when there were people there that needed protecting from an unknown enemy with unknown intentions. He couldn't when Evan was out there running alone.

------

Langley had his clothes cleaned and his mask restored to it's former glory. She placed it all at the end of his bed in the quiet room and stood beside him as he watched the world from the window.

"I'm glad you're back." She smirked up at him when he looked over. "He was a fucking mess while you were gone and we all thought he was going to strangle Ryan when he told us he'd heard you call for help."

"Don't."

Langley wormed her way under his arm and wrapped her small hands around his waist and Jonathan loved how obnoxious she could be. She reminded him of his sisters and it made him miss them even more than he already did. "He flipped his shit. Like, it was so cute. Scary, but cute."

"Stop." Jonathan huffed and threw his arm around around her neck and pulled her to his chest in a loose headlock.

She laughed, "Evan has some serious feelings for you."

"He was just doing what he had to."

"He ran after you because he cares about you." She craned her neck up at him and he loosened his grip. She smiled when he didn't respond and reached up to tuck a piece of hair behind his ear. It had grown a considerable amount since the last time she'd cut it. "You know you care about him too."

He glanced out the window and sighed. Of course he cared, but he didn't want to. That was his rule, don't care and you don't get hurt. But here he was with Langley pulled against him like the pushy protective sister she had grown to be. There he was, every muscle in his body aching to be running beside that Asian again, to make sure he was staying alive and well and still cracking stupid jokes. There he was, caring more about these people that he considered family now than he ever planned to.

"How about we change the subject and you cut my hair instead?" He finally replied and gave her a grin that she returned.

"Alright." She pulled back. "Let me go clear the showers for you so you can be alone, then I'll cut that mop on your head."

"Thank you."

She walked out into the hall and said loudly so it echoed, "You're welcome. I'll let you stay in denial for now."

"You're almost as bad as he is." He called back and heard her giggle to herself.

------

Evan was gone for a week, but the drop zones stayed filled to the brim with full duffle bags and powdered baby formula. He was running, pushing himself to the limit so they didn't fall behind on supplies. They would still be good for a month or two if they suddenly had to stop running for whatever reason.

But they had to keep going. There was no reason for them to get behind. So he ran, staying out until the last drop of sunlight was gone and the screamers forced him to higher ground. Even then he kept going on the rooftops in the dark, searching the higher levels of the favela. It was paying off and he'd found a countless number of items, a plethora of canned food from a house that seemed to be hoarding them. It took him four trips, a few scrapes to his forearm, and eight heavy bags to get it all back. That put them ahead another month at least.

------

It was another clear sky night as he ran back towards the tower. He climbed up to the safe house that was just outside the gate and he pulled his shirt off, rubbing at the sore spots in the dips of his shoulders from carrying so many bags for so long. He was tired and he didn't remember falling asleep, but he woke up to the early sun and a silhouette standing in front of the window.

"Good morning, Princess."

Evan smiled while he rubbed at his eyes. "It's good to hear your voice, dude. This whole running alone in complete silence thing really isn't my style."

"I know. You probably developed multiple personalities to keep yourself company." Jonathan smirked. "But I hope that's not the case, because one of you is more than enough."

Evan sat up stiffly, trying to hide his pain. "But think of all the jokes I'd have."

"Exactly." Jonathan cracked a grin but it fell when he saw the skin that had been rubbed raw on Evan's shoulders.

"Are you ready to run?" Evan pulled his shoes on and was about to put his shirt back on until a hand stopped him.

"You're not going anywhere except back to the tower." Jonathan pulled his mask over his face and hopped out the window, leaving Evan no choice but to follow.

He grabbed his pack and climbed down after him, jogging to keep up once he was on the ground. "We need to keep going. Once we start running out of places to look here, we'll have to start moving out into the city day by day and that's gonna take time."

Jonathan slowed to a walk and let him catch up as they entered the gate. "Evan, you're tired and yes, I get what you're saying. I've been thinking about it for weeks and we'll have to come up with a plan. But you need sleep, you've got bags under your eyes. Everyone here can afford for us to stay in another day."

Evan wanted to argue as usual. "Yeah, but . . ."

Jonathan held the door open for him. "No. We'll talk about it after you get a shower, eat, and get more sleep. So keep your mouth shut for once and go."

Evan smirked at him, "I see you missed bossing me around."

"Go." Jonathan pushed at his back as he passed him. Evan stumbled slightly into the lobby, giggling.

"Your hair looks good by the way, just saying." Evan gave him a wink before he pressed the button that closed the door on the elevator.

Jonathan rolled his eyes and smiled beneath his mask and he was thankful it hid his emotion because everyone was staring at him, smirking.

He glanced around and crossed his arms. "What?"

Murphy snorted. "Oh nothing. Nice to see you two getting along so well."

"It's . . . he's . . . more tolerable that he used to be." Jonathan shrugged and bristled at the smug grin on everyone's face, even Bryce's. Jonathan huffed and stormed off toward the elevator when it reached the ground floor again. "Shut up. All of you."

Marcel smiled wide, "Nobody said anything!"

Lui cracked up when Jonathan flipped them off like a child and shut the metal doors. "I knew he was going to like him eventually."

"Yeah." Scotty chuckled against Marcel's shoulder. "I gotta admit, it's a little relieving to see them getting so close to each other. I never thought Anjo would let him."

"I think it's sweet." Murphy rummaged through a duffle. "He cares about him or he wouldn't have made him come back in for some rest. A few months back, he would've let him run until he dropped, just out of spite."

------

Jonathan waited a few hours until he knew Evan was asleep and not able to pester him. He waited and then he helped everyone move all of the newly acquired guns and ammo up to the next floor with their bunks. They stashed a few in the lobby in case of an emergency and took the rest upstairs.

"Someone could bust up in here and take all we have if we aren't careful. So move it all up." He'd said and no one argued. They never did.

He didn't know how he felt about having so many guns at their disposal now. But he knew he trusted every man and woman that called themselves a defender. So he put his thoughts to rest and took the elevator up and found himself some lunch to eat.

His meals were usually silent, but that had all changed when Evan came along. But Evan wasn't here and Jonathan was starting to grow a distaste for the empty air around him. The quiet crept in and his fork echoed each time it hit his plate. It only angered him to know that it was Evan's fault that he couldn't take the peace and silence for too long before he needed to hear a stupid pointless story or a completely ridiculous joke that wasn't funny in the slightest.

Evan made it funny.

Jonathan slammed his utensil down on the table and if it wasn't quiet in the mess hall before it was now. He was in a corner with his back to everyone so they couldn't pry at his face. It didn't mean he couldn't feel their eyes on him nonetheless.

He pulled his mask up, cleaned his dishes, replaced them, and then almost stepped on the same child that always ran up to him when a certain woman wanted to see him.

The young boy beamed up at him, "Hi! Nana Maria wants to see you! Come on!"

Jonathan let the boy grab his hand and lead him along through the small groups of people that still shied away just a little when be passed. They had opened up a lot more because of Evan.

Everything was because of Evan.

Jonathan sighed and followed the boy into the room full of children that kept themselves occupied with chalkboards, coloring books, and the rescue cat he and Evan had given them before.

"Nana." He greeted her and she gave him a warm smile as she cradled a small bundle of blankets in her arms.

"Come closer."

He stepped toward her and he really didn't want to hold the child that he hadn't seen since the day they saved him, but Maria was persistent and held the baby out to him. Jonathan held him in his arms and looked into his eyes that wandered. So green and full of life and it hurt knowing this boy may never grow up, or live in a normal world. He was so pure, too innocent to grow up in such a place.

"He's beautiful." Jonathan whispered and Maria nodded, watching him with knowing eyes. "He doesn't deserve to live in a world so cruel."

"No." She agreed. "But Oliver does deserve to have a protector like you."

Jonathan held his head up and he didn't know what to say. He looked back down at the infant and decided it was best that he handed him back. He wasn't the greatest with kids. Maria handled him gently and she gave Jonathan a warm squeeze on his hand.

"You're doing much better, my dear."

"What do you mean?"

"You're doing much better at letting people in. At showing that you really care. These people have looked up to you since the beginning and now you've begun to accept it. I can see it in your eyes." She grinned up at him. "Am I wrong?"

Jonathan opened his mouth, but he hesitated with what he really wanted to say. "No, you're not wrong. But I don't know why. The last thing I wanted was to get too involved."

"I think you do know why."

Yeah, he had an idea. But he wouldn't say it.

They didn't exchange anymore words. Maria went back to rocking her grandson and Jonathan left the room with a handful of coloring pages the kids had given him as a gift. His legs carried him to the elevator and down to the second floor where he took silent steps into the room where Evan was sound asleep, exhausted and breathing deep.

Jonathan took a seat on the bunk across from him and wondered. He thought about how he was going to give Evan his gratitude for finally getting the weapons they'd failed to retrieve the first time. He didn't want to use them, but now they knew there were others out there who were possibly after their supplies.

He didn't know how to thank Evan for finding him, for saving his life, carrying him all the way home, for not giving up. How did he thank him for staying in the hospital room with him until he woke up? For telling him that he was so worried and scared that he was gone for good?

How did he thank him for being a friend when he didn't want him to be?

How did he push him away when he was already past the point of no return?

Jonathan sighed and rubbed at his sore eyes before he gave up and laid down, almost immediately falling into a restful sleep. It was rare that he slept so soundly and didn't have the same dream he usually did. This dream was peaceful, just him running over rooftops with the smell of the ocean in his nose and a breeze on his face, a familiar laugh flowing around him.

------

"So, how's it going Oh Intelligent One?" Langley burst through the door to the techie's room where Craig was sitting there still working with delicate wires with Bryce hovering over his shoulder.

Criag jumped when the door hit the wall. "Jesus fucking Christ, woman! Do you have any idea how fragile this is?!"

She gave a smug grin and shrugged, "I have no fucking idea, that's why I asked how it was going. So, how's it going?"

"It'd be going a lot better if you'd stop busting in here pestering the fuck out of me while I work!" Craig fumed and Langley just smiled even wider. It was borderline menacing.

Bryce held his hands up, "Guys, calm down. Can't we all just get along?"

"No." The other two remarked at the same time.

Langley stopped Bryce from speaking again. "You, my tall beautiful friend are a literal cinnamon roll and shouldn't be subjected to working with that cockwad over there."

"I volunteered."

"Ball of sunshine." Langley blinked, unmoved. "Too pure for this world."

"Can you guys please just get along until we figure this satellite phone out?" Bryce pleaded, his hands clapped together in fake prayer.

"I will never get along with a man who thinks all Asians are Chinese by default."

Criag audibly rolled his eyes. "Murphy still hasn't got over that?"

Langley stepped closer, a large flame in her eyes. "You told her to go back to China, you racist moldy fuck-cheese."

Bryce grabbed her by the shoulders. "Langley. Sweet, sweet Langley. He was totally ignorant to say that and I'm sure he knows and won't admit it, but is this really the most important thing at the moment?"

"I got it!" Craig yelled and stood, throwing his hand in the air, victorious. "I did it, holy fucking hell."

"Does it work?" Langley raised a skeptical brow.

"Not entirely. The transmitter is irreparable but all we'd have to do is climb up the nearest cell tower, do some more wiring and send out a signal that way. Whatever satellite is overhead should get any message we send and relay it to the nearest land-based link. Hopefully that will be outside of Rio and hopefully someone is listening." Craig sat back down and admired his work. He had to pull apart thirty radios for the right wires that were so tiny you could barely see them. He had to pick apart small circuit boards, patch weld and nearly singed his eyebrows off to pull this all together. Craig was proud.

"I'll let Anjo know that you fixed it but didn't really fix it." Langley turned for the door. "Good job, asshole. I mean that in the nicest way possible."

Bryce grinned down at him when Craig looked up at him incredulously. "It's an improvement, think of it that way."

"Yes. You're right. Going from a fuck-cheese to an asshole is a wonderful improvement." Craig muttered sarcastically and went back to piecing the phone back together securely, making sure it would stay on this time.

------

Jonathan woke up feeling better than he had in a very long time. He heard the click of a camera and opened his eyes to see Evan sitting cross-legged in the opposite bunk, grinning at the display on the device in his hand.

"Don't let that become a habit." Jonathan said, his voice a bit hoarse from sleep. He cleared his throat and stretched, hearing another click of the shutter. He glared at the other runner and showed him his middle finger when he went to take another picture.

Evan chuckled, "It will become a habit. This is one of my hobbies. Photography, black and white photography. It gives the picture a deeper feel and meaning. Gives it a story. I've been getting some pictures around the tower, the people, the lobby. You. I want to have evidence of all this. I want to have something to look back on if we ever get out of this."

Jonathan sat up and didn't argue anymore, just looked at the man with tired eyes as he zoomed in and snapped another picture of him sitting there. When Evan lowered the camera Jonathan caught his eye and said, "We will get out of this."

"Don't make a girl a promise you can't keep." Evan wet his lip and smiled at how unamused Jonathan was with his references.

He stood and looked down at the tickled Asian. "Well, don't be such a slacker and maybe I won't have to promise you anything."

Jonathan gave him a playful slap to the side of his face and walked into the hall. He grinned when Evan came running up behind him, ready to fight.

"Hey! I'm not a slacker. I scavenged a fuckload of supplies while you were out of commission, thank you very much." Evan held his nose on the air as he kept pace with him.

"Yeah. You did and I want to thank you for that." Jonathan slowed his walk until he was standing still trying to think of what to say and how not to sound like an idiot. "I want to thank you for everything, actually. For getting the weapons. For finding me and bringing me back. For taking care of everyone when I couldn't. Thank you for being there . . . even when I didn't want you to be."

Evan's mouth was hanging open slightly and he clamped it shut when he realized it was. "Um . . . hold on, let me get something to record this with."

Evan laughed at Jonathan's blank face and his slow blinks of patience. "Okay no, I'm sorry. What I meant to say was, you're very welcome and I'd do it all over again because I care. A lot."

Jonathan finally broke his stare with a nod and started walking again towards the elevator. Evan was quiet as they rode it up, but right before they reached their destination he glanced over just as Jonathan pulled his mask up, he asked him, "Do you remember when you said you couldn't help but like me because I made all of this more tolerable?"

"I remember."

"Do you still mean it?"

"I do."

"Good." Evan walked out as the door opened to the mess hall floor. He walked backwards and hooked Jonathan with a grin. "Because the feeling is definitely mutual."

Jonathan followed him into the cafeteria to the table that held their prepared running bags and he took Evan's, placing the contents inside his own bag. He slung the slightly heavier bag over his shoulder and answered the question on Evan's tongue. "Your shoulders are rubbed raw, don't think I didn't notice. I don't want you carrying anything until they get better. Come on."

Evan stood there in shock for a moment before taking larger steps to catch up to him. "Excuse me, Angel Boy, but who the hell are you?"

"Your friend."

Evan's heart spun in his chest because yeah, Jonathan was changing and he never thought he'd see the day where the man showed genuine concern for the pain his body had been in from running. He never thought he'd see him relax his shoulders, or pull his mask down and grin at something dumb he said. But there Angel Boy was in all his mysterious glory, letting him in slowly but surely.

It made the warmth grow in Evan's chest. It multiplied every time Lucah would jump up and put her paws on Jonathan's stomach until he leaned down and gave her a good pat and a kiss on the head. The warmth reached his fingertips when they were turning in for the night in a safe house and Jonathan pulled a medicated jar of ointment out and made Evan sit so he could apply it to his shoulders. The pressure he applied with his fingers to the still sore and stiff muscles was so good it almost hurt.

"Jesus." Evan muttered and relaxed, going slack as he leaned against the bed frame.

"Better?"

"Yes. You should rub the rest of my body while you're at it." Evan tried to joke but he was too tired and Jonathan's fingers felt too good. He closed his eyes then felt himself falling back on the bed and he heard Jonathan before he drifted off.

"Get some sleep."

------

"Hey, you two awake yet?" Langley inquired over the walkie and she heard a reply, covered in light static.

"We're up and running, why?"

"Got some news for ya. Craig got the phone working, but it's gonna take some manual work to send out a signal. Like, climb up a tower and do some wiring shit, manual."

"Alright. We'll come in early and talk about it." Anjo replied and the radio went silent.

"This is a big deal, dude." Evan remarked as they made their way into a shack. "This could be our ticket out."

"Maybe. It's gonna take some thinking through. The nearest communication tower is just outside of the boundary line near the city." Jonathan said mindlessly as they rummaged.

Evan stopped, "Wow. Okay, that idea is out the door then. We'll get shot if we go out there. Plus we have those other guys to keep an eye out for."

"Maybe not. Like I said, we'll discuss it later when we head in." Jonathan ended the conversation and they picked through houses for the rest of the day until the sun started to sink. He still wouldn't let Evan carry anything.

"You're so sweet." Evan grinned over at him, watching the muscles of his arms work with the weight they were carrying. He almost got distracted and tripped but he smoothly stepped up and over the beam in front of him.

"A sore, tired runner is a useless runner. So, I'm just looking out for the both of us." Jonathan kept moving forward and Evan was holding back a laugh as the alleyways darkened around them.

"Man . . . when are you gonna stop lying?" He sprinted forward and started working at opening the gate.

"I'm not lying. If you collapsed from exhaustion and we were being chased by screamers, I'd feel obligated to try and save you. Then I would get eaten, too. So, yeah I'm looking out for you because I'm looking out for me, too."

Evan rolled his eyes and let his head fall back dramatically. "Dude, you said I was like your best friend and now you're refusing to say you're looking out for me because you love me."

"I don't love you."

"Lies."

Jonathan shook his head and moved toward the front doors of the tower with a persistent Evan right behind him.

"Who doesn't love their best friend?"

An old memory flooded Jonathan's mind and he let the bags drop harder than necessary on the lobby floor and he felt his heart knock at his chest.

------

"Alright, if we eat this and die just know that I love you, dude." Jonathan laughed when Tyler cut his eyes at him.

"You better love me." He said seriously but then broke into a cheesy smile that always suited him so well. "I love you, too."

------

"What is it? What did I say?" Evan was asking with a semi-panicked look on his face as they rode the elevator up. Jonathan couldn't remember walking into it, to be honest. All he could think of was Tyler and the worst day of his life.

"Jonathan." Evan was in front of him, inches away speaking quietly. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you think about him, I'm sorry. Do you wanna talk about it?"

Jonathan took a deep breath and caught Evan's hand when he moved to touch him. He blinked, absent. "No. I don't."

He let his hand drop and headed down the hallway with Evan close behind. He heard him sigh in defeat as he followed silently. They made their way into the techie's cramped room where Craig and most of the defenders from downstairs were gathered. Everyone fell silent when they came in. Jonathan made room for Evan and he shut the door behind them. "Tell us everything."

Us.

Evan relaxed, grateful. At least Jonathan didn't try to shut him out entirely this time. But he pushed him away a bit, yet again, per usual. It didn't matter though. Evan always found a way back under his skin. He was getting better at it.

"Well, I fixed the phone but only just. It won't work unless someone manually wires it to a tower and sends a message out that way. The keys don't function either no it needs to be tapped out, Morse code. So it works, but it's gonna require some effort and knowledge." Craig instructed and Murphy was the first to speak.

"Well why don't you do it then? That way if something goes wrong, you won't be missed." She sneered and he cut his eyes at her.

Bryce groaned and let his hands pull at his hair. "Guys! We all need to work together on this! Craig, you called her Chinese. She's not, so man up and apologize. No one here has ever done anything to you to deserve your self-centered attitude."

Langley raised her hand like she was in class. Bryce sighed. "Yes, Langley?"

"Can I knock his teeth into the back of his skull first?" She asked hopefully.

"No."

"Fine." She crossed her arms. "As long as he apologizes."

Everyone's eyes were on Craig and he rolled his eyes and directed them at Murphy. "I'm sorry, alright? I don't mean to be so fucking grumpy and snappy. I just really don't want to be here in this situation and it's taken so god damn long to get that thing working and I'm just really tired and I feel like I've had all this pressure sitting on my shoulders. Everyone has been waiting on me to fix this. What if it doesn't even work?"

"Then we'll find another way." Jonathan stated. "Thank you for all that you've done. It's more than any of us could've. Bryce is right, we all need to work together on this. So, who can wire this thing into a cell tower?"

Bryce raised his hand. "I can do it."

"Who knows Morse code?"

"I do." Ryan spoke up. "My grandfather taught it to me growing up. I've never forgotten."

"Okay." Marcel nodded. "So when do we do this and where is the nearest tower?"

Jonathan glanced over at Evan who gave him an uncertain look but he squared his shoulders and said, "That's the only problem. It's outside of the boundary line."

"What boundary line?" Lui raised and brow at them.

Evan dug inside the pack on Jonathan's back and pulled out his map. He spread it out on the table in the middle of them and they gathered around. The tension settled when everyone saw the red line that had been drawn in a wide uneven half-circle around them. "This is as far as we can go in any direction . . . before we're being shot at by the government. We don't know about the city yet, but we're sure we'll be stopped at some point. They have us quarantined." 

The room was quiet and Lui gave a small huff. "So we're really stuck here. What the fuck are we even trying to accomplish if they're just keeping us here like an experiment in a fish tank?"

Marcel cut him a look, "We're trying to survive, you know that. You even said it yourself the first day. You said you had a feeling it was biological warfare. If not that, then a government experiment. You knew we were stuck here the moment it happened. We both knew."

"Yeah, but I'm just now letting it sink in okay? I may be the peacekeeper and the guy that smiles all the time, but I'm terrified, too. I'd love to get out of here one day and see my family again. How do you get out of a place that's being watched by the eye of the government? Government is powerful, if they wanted to bomb the tower and kill us all, they could."

"But they haven't." Marcel tried.

"Why not?" Lui argued. "Have any of you thought about that? Why aren't we dead yet?"

Evan blinked in realization. "They're waiting."

"For what?"

"I don't know. Something." Evan shrugged. "Maybe they're waiting for us to kill each other off, a social experiment. Or they're waiting for the screamers to change, evolve, or die. Maybe they have another agenda, I don't know. All I know is that we can't get out of here until we try. Standing here arguing about why we're here isn't going to get us any closer to getting home. We're here, surviving and that's all we can do until we figure something out."

He could feel all eyes on him, including Jonathan's. "We could just sit here and mope all day about how we're stuck or we could get out there and try to establish contact with someone on the outside."

The room was silent until Scotty cleared his throat. "Well, I'm in. Even if you guys want me stand watch in front of the door with a gun. I'm in. I've got something to live for."

Marcel squeezed his fingers in his hand and grinned over at him. "Yeah, me too."

"You know we're in." Murphy said and nudged Langley with her shoulder. Her friend grinned and gave a nod of agreement.

"We're ready to go when you are." Bryce smiled and Ryan could practically feel the sunshine coming off of him.

"We've all got something to live for." Jonathan stepped toward the table. "So, let's make a plan.

"We're right back to when." Marcel started.

"Night time." Evan said without hesitation and Jonathan backed him up immediately.

"Yes, the screamers come out at night. So why would the military be watching for anyone along the boundary anytime other than the day? Night is best. We'll have cover of darkness. We can head down there when the sun is setting, get ready, wait, and when night falls we move. As long as we move along the rooftops, the screamers will be oblivious."

Evan nodded. "It's not difficult even if we have to run on the ground when it's dark. I've been doing it for the past few weeks when Angel Boy was down for the count. You just have to watch your corners, be quiet, and if it comes down to it . . . be precise."

It took an hour or two before they had a plan laid out and ready to go. Everyone learned their roles.

"One more time." Jonathan pointed at each of them. "Langley."

"Look-out on the rooftops. Hold a point between the tower and the mission tower. Wait for group to return to point. If no one returns, find a safe house until morning."

"Murphy, Scott."

"Tower guards, front gate."

"Lui."

"Tower guard on the roof. Long range rifle, watch for the unknown third party group while our defenses are thin."

"Marcel."

"Look-out at mission tower, take out any screamers in the area."

"Bryce, Ryan."

"Follow you until we are at the mission tower. Climb to the top, wire it in. Ryan sends the message. We get down, fall back with Marcel. If no Marcel, get to higher ground immediately until Evan or Anjo arrive. If no Evan or Anjo, find a safe house until morning.

Jonathan nodded, satisfied that everyone knew what they were supposed to do. "Good. Alright, let's eat a good meal and get some sleep. Just remember, if you don't know what to do . . . run."

"It's pretty effective." Evan said and broke into a grin when Jonathan gave him the look he always did, like he was an idiot. Then he opened the door and shoved him out into the hall. Evan laughed it off and called the elevator. They took it in two separate groups up to the cafeteria as not to weigh the thing down and possibly break it.

The room was crowded with civilians when they all entered and everyone stopped to stare, forks clinked against bowl and plates, a hush fell over the room. Jonathan ignored it like he always did and eventually the chatter picked back up as they found themselves some food. They took seats at a table in the very back of the room. Jonathan sat with his back to the crowd and he almost pulled his mask down like he was so used to doing when it was just him and Evan. But the entire group was here and not all of them had seen him. Just Evan, Langley, and Murphy.

He was staring at his bowl of tomato soup, watching the steam rising off the surface. When he looked up Evan was sitting across from him, chin resting on his hand as he observed his hesitation. Jonathan narrowed his eyes and Evan cocked his head to the side before he mouthed, "Do it."

Jonathan reached up, stopped for a moment, took a breath and pulled his mask down around his neck. He shut his eyes when he felt everyone else's on him.

"Well . . . I think we all just simultaneously got pregnant." Marcel said plainly and Jonathan burst out laughing with the rest of them, to the point where everyone was wiping their eyes. Everyone but Evan. When Jonathan calmed down he looked over at him again and he was watching him with a look he couldn't pin. He was grinning, observing him like he usually did when he took his mask off. But this was different, almost like he was lost in thought. Jonathan's smile faded and he stared back, catching the way Evan's gaze flickered down to his mouth before he looked up again.

This time Jonathan mouthed, "What?"

Evan smirked and shook his head before he turned his focus to his food, "Nothing."

Jonathan ate his soup, noticing the feeling of Evan's eyes on him anytime he wasn't looking directly at him. Jonathan couldn't help but stare at him, too. There was something off about the way he was acting. He was relatively quiet as everyone told their stories. Evan was never this quiet. The man never said a word as they took a quick shower and found fresh clothes. Jonathan was waiting for him to say something as they fell into a their bunks, but he never did. Not until it was close to midnight and they were both tossing and turning, restless.

Evan sighed loudly. "You said you had something to live for. What is it?"

Jonathan laid there for a minute before he answered. His voice carried in the dark. "An old friend."

They sat there in silence for the longest time, he thought Evan may have fallen asleep. So he added, "And a new one."

Evan stirred but he stayed silent. Jonathan didn't know what the hell was wrong with him or what was bothering him but it was getting irritating. He liked Evan the way he usually was, not this quiet, brooding person that was stuck in his own head and didn't want to talk about it. Jonathan stopped his thoughts in his tracks because he basically described himself and he almost laughed out loud. He bit his finger to keep himself from doing just that. He understood why a chatterbox like Evan got so antsy when he wouldn't speak.

He felt wide awake and he was determined to make Evan come back. "And when I say a new friend, I totally mean Lucah and definitely not you."

Jonathan chuckled when a shirt landed on his face in the dark and he heard Evan give a light laugh, "Asshole."

"What do you have to live for?" Jonathan asked and he heard Evan hum.

"Other than my dog, there's not much." He said softly. "But I really like seeing the sun rise and set. I like to travel and experience new things . . . and I like running with you."

There were a lot of things Evan liked that involved Jonathan. Like his face, his smile. God forbid, his laugh. He liked how selfless he was and how broken his soul had been when he first met him. But he really liked how it seemed to be piecing itself back together again. He liked the way he tried not to smile because it made the dimples show in his cheeks. Jonathan was something to live for, but Evan was too scared to say it out loud. At least not to his face. 

Not yet.

------

They slept for as long as they could which ended up being a little after ten o'clock. Time dragged by once they were up and moving, waiting on the afternoon. It felt like days as they paced in the lobby and Jonathan groaned when he looked down at his watch only to read twelve o'clock. He ran his hand over his face and called the elevator down, tapping his foot while he waited. The doors opened and he stepped in, holding it and catching Evan's curious eye.

"Are you coming, Princess?"

Evan pushed himself off the floor and jogged to the elevator, Lucah at his heels. The Asian hid the excitement he felt rushing through him. Jonathan knew he would eventually follow him so instead of running and hiding, he decided to make it easy and invite him up with him to begin with. Evan and Lucah followed him down the hall and out onto the rooftops where the sun was beating down on them, but the breeze kept them cool.

Evan finally laid eyes on the colorful mural that was painted on the concrete waist high wall that wrapped around the roof. He'd only ever seen it in the dark so he stood there and admired it's beauty while Jonathan pulled the lid off a bucket and dumped all of his paints on the ground beside him.

"Care to join me?" Jonathan held out a little paintbrush for him and Evan smiled, shaking his head.

"I can't draw or paint for shit. I don't want to ruin your masterpiece." Evan said but he sat down beside him and took the brush anyway.

"It's art. Nothing is perfect. You could draw a stick figure and I wouldn't care." Jonathan shrugged and started mixing colors on a small plate.

It was a colorful mural. One that started out blue on the left end and slowly faded into beautiful purples and pinks, turning more orange and red. It looked like an abstract cityscape filled with crazy designs and graffiti. It was very intricate, much like Jonathan's mind and Evan was definitely in awe of it. To Jonathan's amusement, he watched out of the corner of his eye as Evan painted two little stick figures on the roof of a building. Then he connected their stick hands and giggled to himself.

"There, we're holding hands and we're best friends forever." Evan said in a babyish voice and sat back to admire his work. "Oh! I have to draw Lucah, too."

His impression of Lucah was enough to make Jonathan laugh out loud as he sat there and watched him paint a white circle with ears and a tail. Then he drew a cute smiley face on her and Jonathan was wiping his eyes as he laughed. "Stop!"

"You said it didn't have to be perfect!" Evan laughed.

"She looks like a dust bunny." Jonathan was trying so hard to stop but it wasn't working. He laughed until he was laying back on the ground wheezing and Lucah was attacking his face with her tongue.

Evan just sat there and watched, feeling his heart take off a bit more each time Jonathan let another giggle escape. That entire evening was odd. First he invited him up with him, asked him to join him in painting which was something Jonathan did on his own time to ease his mind, then he was laughing, smiling, loving on his dog and it was so different than what Evan was used to. He opened back up a lot faster than he'd expected after the Tyler incident the day before.

Evan grabbed the camera he always had around his shoulder now and took a picture of them both. Lucah was standing over him licking and Jonathan had his face turned in Evan's direction showing his beautiful smile as he squeezed his eyes shut to avoid slobber.

"Dude, you're in love with my dog."

Jonathan cracked a cautious eye open. "No, your dog's in love with me."

Evan pursed his lips and then laughed. "Yeah, that's true."

But she wasn't the only one.

------

"Where are they?" Marcel checked the time again. It was four in the afternoon and they had agreed to leave a few hours early to have plenty of time to get there and wait. But it was twenty after four and Anjo and Evan weren't in the lobby.

"There's the elevator." Lui pointed out and everyone had their eyes on them when they came out giggling to themselves. Evan had red paint smeared on his face and Anjo had blue on his cheekbone. They both had it on their fingers and everyone hid a smile as they passed by oblivious. The boys grabbed their bags and their weapons, Anjo shoved Evan and Evan shoved him back before running out the door.

"What the fuck is going on?" Langley quirked a brow everyone shook their head or shrugged, amused. They grouped up at the gate and stretched out their legs before they opened it and started out at a jog. Lucah took her place beside Murphy and watched them go, a small whine escaped her throat as the gates closed.

The group jogged for a solid thirty minutes before taking a break and parting ways with Langley who climbed up the nearest fire escape and up to her post on the rooftops as a look-out. "I better see you boys later."

They gave her a collective salute from below and continued on toward the boundary as the sun continued to fall, lighting up the alleyways and street with a deep and vibrant ominous orange glow. It set the mood and everyone was growing uneasy as their footsteps echoed around them in the dead town. The tower and their guaranteed safety was off in the distance now, but they had to do this.

As they neared the line, they split. Marcel took shelter in the building across from them while the other four men ducked into the housing across the street, taking the stairs up a few floors. They were to stay out of sight until night fell and then head up to the rooftops to scan the area and assess the situation. Ryan and Bryce stayed below while Evan and Jonathan ventured up to the higher floors to check for danger as they waited for the sun to drop and the screams to ring out.

"It's all clear." Evan said and took a seat in a random room by a window, watching the sunset. Jonathan sat on the bed and leaned back against the headboard, pulling his mask down, picking mindlessly at the paint beneath his nails with a knife.

Evan stared and he couldn't stop the question. "Are you Hispanic?"

Jonathan's eyes looked up and caught his. "Partially."

"Well." Evan grinned. "That explains your gorgeous . . . everything. I bet you have a fun family."

"I did." Jonathan grinned to himself and went back to picking at the paint. "My mom is white and my dad was Hispanic, so you know any holiday on his side of the family was always a good time. Music, dancing, amazing food, lots of culture. But one day he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Killed by a drunk driver the day before his birthday. Tore my mother's heart to pieces . . . for the longest time. My older brother stepped up and as far as I can remember, he raised us when she couldn't."

"I'm sorry."

Jonathan shrugged. "Not your fault."

"Did you get your mother's eyes?"

"My mother's eyes, my dad's hair, and a mix of their skin."

"It's a beautiful combination if you ask me." Evan smiled crookedly at him and turned his gaze back out to the water in the distance as the sun started to sink. Jonathan watched the sun cast shadows on his face as it disappeared and he thought that Evan was kind of beautiful too.

------

The first scream rang out and Bryce and Ryan came into the room, ready to get the night started. They waited a while longer as the purple sky faded to black and the stars began to shine.

"Let's get to the roof." Jonathan pushed himself from the bed and led them up the last flight of stairs and out on the rooftops. The looked down at the streets to find it empty and quiet, which felt wrong, but maybe they were just lucky. Jonathan clicked his flashlight at Marcel and he received a flash in return. "Alright it looks clear for now, come on."

They headed for the bottom floor and come out on the street and started sprinting for the boundary line. Jonathan came to a stop at the corner of the building just before the line and threw a dummy bag out into the open, waiting to see if someone was going to shoot. The night was silent, no bullets, no sounds. Just the dust that the bag had stirred up. He looked up at the blinking light of the tower and he could hear the faint buzzing of the backup generator that kept it online. It wasn't enough noise to draw any screamers, he hoped.

"Ready?" He glanced back and all three men gave a nod. He handed Bryce a walkie. "Take this, we'll tell you if something is wrong. Get it done as fast as you can."

Jonathan ran across the street, across the line and behind a line of bushes just beside one leg of the tower. The other three followed suit and he and Evan watched the two men climb as fast as their legs would take them up the tall tower.

"Let's head back. I'll stay down low and you go up high, get a good vantage point from above." Jonathan suggested and Evan gave him a quiet nod. They ran back and set up, Evan on the roof, Jonathan on the ground and they waited as screams continued to echo in the distance.

"How's everything going up there?"

The walkie clicked on. "It's good. Wiring it in now."

Jonathan relaxed against the wall behind him and glance back and forth in both directions and he knew something wasn't right. It didn't feel right to begin with. But maybe that was just his way of thinking. If it was going good, then it was going to go bad.

Evan felt the hairs stand up on the back of his neck the longer they waited. His heart was starting to work a little harder and he didn't know why. But it was too quiet and that's when his eye caught something at the base of the tower. Small blinking lights at the base of each leg. They hadn't been blinking before or he would've seen them. His heart was in his throat as he jumped the side of the roof and hit the fire escape and took the steps as fast as he could. He hit the ground and rolled, sprinting for Jonathan who was holding his hands out to slow him down.

"Call it off! They have bombs at the base of the tower, tell them to get down!" Evan heaved and Jonathan didn't even question him, just put the walkie to his mouth and held a handful of Evan's shirt in his fist.

"Bryce! Ryan! You need to get down, right now! No questions, just move!"

"We're in the middle of tapping the message!"

"Get down!"

They glanced up, watching them scramble and head down the ladder. But their luck had run out and Jonathan pulled Evan toward him and shielded him on instinct when the explosion rang out leaving a sharp ringing in their ears. Dust shot out around them as they crouched down against the building. Jonathan kept Evan's face covered against his chest until the wind swept it away and they could breath again.

The tower swayed and slowly leaned further in the other direction, into enemy territory. They watched the two men cling to the ladder but just as the tower started to fall, they jumped on the nearest rooftop and ran until they were out of sight. There was shouting in the distance and a warning shot, then silence.

Evan was breathing heavy when he felt a hand on his face, gripping his jaw. "Are you okay?"

Evan couldn't answer, their friends were either dead or captured and it was he who had convinced them all to band together and try.

"Evan." Jonathan shook him.

"Yeah." He finally responded and took a deep breath. He wasn't going to choke again, he had to deal with it. They could figure it out, they always did. "We need to run."

Jonathan agreed as the screams flooded the streets and a sea of green glowing eyes began to show. "Marcel! Fall back!"

They watched him take off on the rooftops just as bullets began hitting all around them. "Fuck!"

Jonathan pulled Evan by the hand until he was running at full speed beside him down the road, back into the city. Screamers kept cutting them off and sending them in alternate directions. They never had time to stop and bust open a door to hide. But the tower was growing closer and Marcel was still above them on the rooftops, yelling something they couldn't quite hear.

But they found out as the gate came into view. It was open and waiting for them, but Murphy, Scott, and every other defender had a gun pointing up at something. That something was Langley on a rooftop with a knife at her throat, held by a man he had only seen in the dim light of the dark confines of the prison he was kept in.

Evan felt the hair stand on the back of his neck, but then he felt Jonathan's hand on his back as they slowed to a jog. His voice was in his ear, deep and serious and it reminded him of that day in the police station when he held him close and spoke in his ear.

"We'll figure this out. Are you with me?"

Evan turned his head and caught his steel gaze, their hands brushed and he felt all of the uncertainty fade. "I'm always with you."