Put on Your War Paint

Every day we smile and act like there's nothing wrong It's called putting everything aside and simply being S T R O N G

[fighterfrankie]

How Will We Fix Each Other?|| Frasse

[fighterfrankie]

Her bright hues lingered on his for a moment, unconsciously holding her breath as she waited for him to respond – either kick her sorry ass to the curb or scoot over to make more room for her. She ignored the fact that she breathed a little easier and already felt the heaviness of sleep weigh on her limbs when his voice drew her in. That was Jesse, for you. Always putting anything else aside for the people that he cared for, for the people that he loved. Even for those he didn’t love. That was why he had made such a good soldier. 

Clearing her throat, she closed the distance between them and hesitated for a second before slipping into the bed with him. Frankie laid on her back for a couple of seconds before sighing uncomfortably because fuck it, nothing was really satisfying her tonight. Not when the image played itself over and over again, not when she thought about what she should have done instead of what had happened. Glancing over at Jesse, she turned on her side and faced him, biting her lip distractedly.

“Jesse?” She whispered quietly, her eyes scanning his features. “I can’t stop thinkin’ about what the fuck happened today and I need you to distract me so I can shut my fuckin’ eyes for more than thirty seconds.”

Her eyes caught on his hair, on the freshly-woken look that he seemed to be working. Like an impatient child that demanded his attention, she ran her fingers through his hair and tugged on it gently, a light smirk causing the edges of her lips to curl. “Sorry, but you’re not sleeping until I sleep. That’s what happens when you get me as a fuckin’ roommate, love.” 

Slowly her hand dropped from his hair to cup his face, the smile becoming somewhat apologetic. “You have the option to put in a change of roommate request.”

[sergeanthart]

A subtle grumble laced with false annoyance escaped him as she climbed into the bed, strands of chestnut hair cascading across his face and the bed shifting with her motion before she finally settled down beside him. He watched her as she lay on her back for a moment, almost letting his eyes fall closed once more, before she was moving again, turning to face him. 

He let out a light breath, shifting his arm beneath the pillow and kneading the fingers of his other hand against closed eyes. “Nothin’ happened,” Jesse answered her in a drawl, nose scrunching as her fingers sifted through his hair before tugging against the strands. “You’re the worst,” he complained, smacking a hand lazily against her forearm before grabbing the blankets and pulling them back up over his shoulders. “Sleeeeep, it’s good for you and shit...” 

Truthfully he knew her worries were more rooted in what could have happened rather than what really did. Luca’s reaction wasn’t one that left a comfortable memory, but in the end nothing had really happened; they had all made it through, safe and sound, and Luca was well on his way to recovering...again. Jesse would check on him again in he morning and all would be well.  At least they still had Luca. 

“Mmmmhmm,” he hummed as her fingers cupped his cheek, eyelids cracking open the slightest bit to look at her with a skeptical glance. “Not too late?” 

[hartliam-blog]

Tick, tick, boom || Hart Brothers

[hartliam-blog]

Liam knew Jesse was a badass. He’d been a Marine, he’d probably saved both of them over and over again since the world went to hell (even if Liam still could not remember), and he was still alive, a fact that came as no surprise to Liam. But it was one thing to know his older brother was a fucking boss, and another thing entirely to see him in action. Fighting off clickers with nothing but knives, taking them out left and right and not even missing a beat at Liam called out to him. 

It was with considerably less grace that Liam turned to a clicker that appeared at his side and swing his bat at its head, kicking it hard in the gut before it had a chance to recover from the first blow. It was hard to imagine that he’d ever grown used to this in the months he’d forgotten, and yet – the longer he was out here, the more real it all began to feel. This wasn’t a dream, this was his reality.

He smashed the monster’s face in for good measure - he’d played too many video games to assume a body on the ground was truly down for the count - and took a step closer to his brother, a million times more confident with the older boy’s support.

“I’ve got some explosives, but we gotta get away from our people and deeper into the clickers!” He called out to his brother, nodding toward the mob of infected and wondering briefly if he sounded as crazy as he thought he did, before he swung his bat at another approaching monster. When this was over, he was finding himself a gun.

[sergeanthart]

It was probably because of the way Liam looked up to Jesse that he didn’t notice the misstep when his name was shouted, the near loss of his footing before he regained his composure and took out the Infected before him. The trip throughout the day had been exhaustive enough, taking out a herd of infected wasn’t the ideal next step on his ‘to-do’ list. But fortunately he wasn’t on his own here; he saw other survivors fighting at the corners of his eyes, retreating to the safety provided by the hospital. 

Plus he had Liam at his side again. Anything could be done with the Hart brothers were together. 

Another knife was plunged through the temple of one infected before slicing the throat of another, a kick of a boot to the gut for good measure to knock it away as Liam revealed his plan. Jesse’s brows furrowed at the thought, shooting a skeptical glance to his brother before a shrug replaced it. “Whatever you say, boss!” 

This wasn’t his place of expertise but Liam’s after all; While Jesse had probably had more first hand experience with the explosion of bombs and the like Liam was the one who understand them to a far fuller extent -  how they functioned, how they were created. Jesse was just aware of their destructive power, maybe a bit too intimately. 

But what Liam said made sense, even if it sounded slightly suicidal. If they wanted this to work they’d need it to go boom surrounded by clickers and not their own men, women, and children. They hadn’t made it so far just to go up in smoke with all the others. He would save these people even if it was the last thing he did. 

“I’ll lead the way, then,” Jesse proposed before returning his attention to the flight at hand, downing Infected after Infected and carving a path for the brothers deeper into the monster mayhem.

[welovegarretthedlund]

[aidenholmvik-deactivated2016010]

better || jesse/aiden

( @sergeanthart )

The tussle with Eric had left her somewhere odd. Back to herself. In a weird way, the expelled hatred that led to the bruises blooming on her neck and cheek had reverted her back to herself. The self that she was most comfortable with. What had happened was a secret between herself and Eric and in the few days they had been residing in the hospital, Aiden had spent most of it exploring and trying to set up a home lab for herself. Try to get this place feeling like a home for everyone once again.

The council needed to meet again, to sort out what they were going to do, to brainstorm off of each other. That would come once they had settled in and everyone had been looked over. Right now, Aiden had brought a bowl of soup from the makeshift food hall and set is beside Jesse as she sat next to him. She would have done the normal, and passed herself into his lap to take refuge in the comfort of his contact, the safety found from him unsurpassed. 

Her bond to Jesse was a close one, her mind usually not too far from him and what he needed. In the passing days, he had grown to be the most important person in her life. While there were other people that she cared dearly for, none were so much as Jesse. Jesse was her person, the only person she trusted to partially uncover her secrets to, her worries, the insecurities that seemed to plague her like a bad dream. Her psychical touch was gifted to many in the forms of cuddles and supportive touches, her mind to many others, choosing to lift up whoever she could. She tried to see the best in everyone, to help them be the most of themselves, but that was not always possible. But Jesse, he had more of her than anyone else. He shared her heaviest burden, he was allowed to see her soul.

“You should eat more,” she said lightly and nudged him, eyes watching him carefully. With a little luck, he wouldn’t press too much on the new bruises and allow her to keep that business private. Eric, and what passed between them, was just that–between them. She would not allow the prejudices of herself taint anyone else.

[sergeanthart]

They had found a place that, while it may not have everything they once had in Fall City, it had been deemed relatively safe for them to take over and survive within. Upon arriving they had managed to clear it out of any lingering Infecteds and fallen survivors, surveying the place to base floor to rooftop and every place in between. The next project was to begin clearing it out, making it livable to the best of their abilities, to assign rooms, to make the kitchen workable, to set up an infirmary area, guard posts, schedules - to make life what it had once been and taken granted. The hospital wasn’t Fall City, but it was close. They could make it work. 

But now that the initial work on the new found home had been done, rooms cleared and assigned, entire building swept, setting up for a new life - Jesse knew what he needed. Exhaustion slipped into every muscle and fiber of bone, a sharp pain in his leg from over exertion that he couldn’t shake. He had resorted to lying down and attempting to let sleep take him, though his mind whirled and adrenaline still hadn’t stopped pumping, making the grasps of sleep nearly impossible. 

Soon they would have to meet to sort out what to do next, to reassure everyone that things would return to normal now that they had this place. Soon - but it was just about one of the last things Jesse wanted to deal with on his list this evening.  No, first everyone needed a good meal in their bellies, a place to sleep and recuperate, injuries mended....

Despite his attempts at sleep he heard with Aiden entered the room, cracked an eye open to glance at her as she approached before sitting himself up a little more upright when she set down the bowl of soup beside him and took the seat at his side. Jesse had grown comfortable in Aiden’s company, came to want her at his side more often than not. He had few people he truly cared about personally at this place anymore - namely Aiden and Liam. While he wanted the best for everyone here and considered it his job to make sure everyone was happy and healthy, he lacked in personal connections to most. 

He hadn’t had a good look at her yet, still shaking what little strings of sleep had managed to catch him as he got himself sat upright, a soft grunt in agreement to her words before he took hold of the bowl she had set nearby. “As should everybody,” he offered in response, a twitch of a smile at the corner of his lips as he stirred the spoon through the soup and brought a mouthful to his lips. Considering what they’d had to survive on over the past several weeks it wasn’t half bad. “Thank you...” 

It was only then that he really had a chance to look at her, resting the heated bowl against sore muscles of his thigh to try and calm the pain that had come to reside there.  Not that it mattered when he noticed the splotches of black and blue splattered across her throat and coloring her cheek and eye. “What the hell happened to you?” He remarked, suddenly far more awake than he had been moments ago. His free hand lifted to touch her chin, to turn her head so that he could get a better look at the markings across her cheek, thumb brushing just barely over the swelling.

[hartliam-blog]

Tick, tick, boom || Hart Brothers

@sergeanthart

It was selfishness that had Liam tearing out of the hospital to help fight off the horde of infected that appeared alongside a large group of newfound survivors from Fall City. He knew, without a doubt, that if Jesse was out there, he would be in the thick of things. Holding back the clickers as long as he could, until they were gone or they overtook him, all for the benefit of everyone else in his group. Because Jesse was a better person than Liam, whose sole concern as he ran straight into the throng of clickers advancing toward their refuge was to find his older brother.

Thank God the group he was stuck with had already started to settle in the hospital, though, or Liam would have been useless. As far as he could tell with his busted memory, it was his brains that had kept him alive this long, and he wasn’t content to be stuck with just a baseball bat for protection. Especially given that he wasn’t even sure how long he was going to be sticking around this place. The plan was to wait it out a few more days, see if Jesse showed up, and then bail to seek out his brother on his own. So he’d gotten straight to work, fashioning a couple of smoke bombs from rolled up newspapers and the ammonium nitrate from an ice pack, along with a couple improvised fireworks in that would hopefully blow some shit up if he needed them to. 

They were stowed in the outer pockets of his backpack as he ran outside, baseball bat swinging at a clicker that tried to get too close. The problem with his improvised weapons was that he needed to get farther away, needed to make sure they only hurt clickers and not the people who were helping to fight them. Liam just wasn’t sure he had the skills necessary to do that. 

Good thing he knew someone who did. 

His eyes had barely begun to skim through the chaos for a sign of familiarity when they caught sight of the very person he was hoping to see. A wide grin spread across his face in spite of the circumstances, in spite of the fact that his older brother was currently engaging a couple of the monsters. Liam pushed forward, managing to fight off another clicker with a couple swings of his bat until his brother was in earshot. “Hey, Sergeant!” He called out over the din of the fighting. “Wanna help me blow some shit up?”

[sergeanthart]

Jesse had NOT gotten these people this far just to watch them get torn apart one by one by the hordes of clickers that were converging in on them. Not Rebecca, not Ada, not Ivy - Not Logan, not Aiden - not even Lara. He had not made it this far with all of them to see it all ripped apart before his eyes. He’d seen that occur far too many times - friends torn to pieces, bullets ripping through flesh. This would not be one of those days, he was going to defend these people if it was the last thing he did. 

It didn’t matter that he was particularly ill equipped to deal with the approaching clickers - especially when he ran out of ammo and had to resort to knives to take care of the approaching hordes. He waved the rest of the group off towards the building in the distance, the hospital that loomed so close yet so far away. 

He took out one Infected, shoving the dead body back into one of the oncoming clickers before twisting around awkwardly to slam the blade into the temple of another one nearby. He had been doing well as far as travelling on foot had gone over the past few weeks but it was certainly wearing on him; he certainly wasn’t made to be trekking on food day in and day out.

                               “Hey, Sergeant!”

He didn’t need to look to place the voice that shouted at him, a bit of a smirk curving on his lips as he took out yet another clicker and fell back a few footfalls. “’Course, kid! What do ya need?” 

[adabelcher-blog]

Exhaustion crept within her body, tired eyes making all effort to focus on the figure that stood in the shadows. The voice that resonated in her eardrums was familiar, but her memory was vague; not being able to pin-point it to a face. It was only when she really focused that the man came back in her memories. He was the one who had aided her with the birth. At the moment, Ada had wanted nothing more than get the baby out; the pain unbearable. It almost seemed like a dream, a weird daze she had gotten into but the slight pain she felt and the newborn she carried proved otherwise. This was all very real.

Ada tried to flash a smile, reassure the man that everything was alright, but lips hardly curled upwards. Instead, cheeks flushed as she was reminded of how exposed she’d been with the man. It was a silly thing to think of, mostly when it was just as natural as childbirth but still, Ada was one to be reserved; shy. 

But there was an urge to thank him, to reach out and say how much she appreciated his bravery and actions, despite possibly not knowing much on the subject. The smile finally came across her lips, gentle and reassuring nonetheless.

His offer though, was one to dwell on; unsure whether she trusted him enough to place the baby in his arms and take the rest she very well needed. He had already done so much without expecting something in return. Why not trust him? Then again, she did not know his name despite seeing him in Fall City various times. 

A moment was taken to contemplate the resting child, wrapped up in blankets, sleeping soundlessly with no worries at all. For her, the world was alright; here in the safety of the barn. “Thank you..” Hues looked up to meet the man’s gaze, genuinely thanking him for everything. Though, yet she had no intentions of handing her child to him.

[sergeanthart]

Truthfully Jesse hadn’t thought very much of the entire situation; he had just seen someone in need and assisted as best as he could. It didn’t mean much more to him than that - and maybe a little pride at the fact that he’d been a part of bringing a child into the world, in a way. If only the world weren’t so horrible, so filled with blood, pain, and death, for something so pure. An innocent little baby girl deserved far more than she was going to get here...but they were all doing the best that they could. The baby was going to come sooner or later whether they were prepared or not, it was just a matter of time. They just had to figure out a way to handle it now. 

He couldn’t begin to imagine how the young girl was feeling - exhaustion was set in her expression, worn in her face and posture. Caring for a baby was just about the last thing he imagined she wanted to do - a brand newborn at that - but here they were. He would happy take the child into his care for a few hours if it meant the girl got to sleep some - but it was also clear in her face that she wasn’t even entertaining the idea of allowing him to do so. 

After everything he’d done for her he would have expected a little more faith, but he wasn’t going to push her to do anything she didn’t want to do. It wasn’t as if they knew one another well at all; they were barely more than strangers. But he had cared for her so far, why would his intentions change now?

A brief nod was given in response to her thanks, a wave of a hand in a gesture that seemed to indicate surrender more than anything. No, he wasn’t trying to push her, it had just been a suggestion, but she seemed to make a point of dismissing it even in her thanks. “Just try and get some rest. You deserve it. You need it...” A pause, brief, before he takes a step back from where she rests, “sorry to have disturbed you.”  

[aidenholmvik-deactivated2016010]

shattering || jesse/aiden

[aidenholmvik-deactivated2016010]

I don’t know what to do from here. She moved her chin once again to rest up him and look up at him. “None of us have any idea what the hell we’re doing. It’ll come to us.” It was all so cavalier, the fact that their survival hung in the balance, and time was of the essence. The fact was, that everyone was too exhausted and fried to have clear cut path that would keep them all out of trouble and safe. Sleep was needed and when the rest had come, the brain would supply what they needed through some rest, with a little luck. It had never failed her before. Now would not be great time to start.

However, she was certain that they’d sort it out. They had a good group. Ivy was as adult as any of them, Logan, Jesse, herself–the new girl she still wasn’t certain of. Aiden doubted she would be a team player. More likely to slip off when things got tough, even betray them, and her skepticism was getting the better of her. She wasn’t normally like this, full of cynicism and distance from those she had never met. Within the walls of the city, she was bright and perky, trying to bring people in and tried to give them the benefit of the doubt. Here, though, here she merely wanted to protect the group that she had claimed ownership over. She was theirs and they were hers, together they could get through this, together they would work and survive.

Her mind flicked to the knowledge she had of the Infected. Of her creation, her terrible creation. She had been working on an accelerating agent to speed the healing. One part fungicide and one part catalyst. This way the holes that were left behind from the infection dying would not have to stay that way for long. In the rats, the ugly scar tissue had replaced the fungus, leaving most of them mentally challenged, brittle, vegetables. The early stages: runners and just infected, could be saved with minimal damage. Clickers were beyond help. Stalkers had their chances. They were left blind, with extreme mental loss.

“They can’t climb ladders. Finding a sound in a locked place is hard. They use echolocation to find us. Like bats. In a place with no clear entry, they cannot figure it out. That’s why they always came through the gate, and never tried to climb the walls. The Navajo– they used to build homes into the side of a mountain, with ladders.” She furrowed her brow, realizing that none of that really helped, because there was no such mountain to build into, and how would they even? It had taken likely hundreds of years to build the ancient grounds in Arizona. But there were giant Redwoods, and they could build among the trees. “Could build an elaborate tree-top society. Call it Fall City in the Trees.” She laughed at the image. 

[sergeanthart]

That idea didn’t sit with him particularly well. It’ll come to us. All that meant was they didn’t have a plan or anywhere to go from here, they just had time that was slowly wasting away. The more time they spent sitting here without a plan the more their friends were distanced from them, the more Fall City was ripped away. He wasn’t good at sitting on his hands and waiting for a miracle, he had learned long ago that you have to make your own miracles for something to happen.

Still he didn’t argue her point - because he didn’t have any new suggestions to add. He didn’t know what to go, which meant sticking around here until they had something established was their best bet. Something that provided protection, safety, food, water. They didn’t have all of that here, not nearly. Of course taking the time to relax and rest was important for all of them. But he couldn’t stop his mind from over turning with every thought, every worry, every challenge. 

They weren’t safe here, they couldn’t stay here, they had no plan. 

He tried to force a bit of a smile at her teasing, chewing the inside of his cheek skeptically. “The Infected aren’t even the worst of my worries right now,” he commented vaguely, shoulders lifting in a slight shrug. They were safe from the Infected (for the most part) in the barn they had taken residence up in for the time being. He was more concerned with finding somewhere that could be considered home. Somewhere that they were completely cut off from an attack from the infected, somewhere where they would be comfortable. it was a fat chance, but there had to be something somewhere for them. 

[imogenashbury]

Noticing there was only a few cigarettes remaining in the small plastic casing, Lara couldn’t help but try and offer a gratuitous smile. It was big of him to share such a luxury with her; he certainly didn’t owe her anything. “It’s gonna suck when those run out,” she mused, before falling quiet. The taste of nicotine on her lips took the blonde back to before; neverending roads, the wind whipping through her hair when she drove with the windows down, endless gas stations and dive bars in countless states, the no strings attached policy that offered itself with freedom. The memory planted a bitter feeling of unwanted sadness deep within her, and as much as she willed it away, was unable. In some ways she was more free now than before, but constantly running and looking over her shoulder wasn’t a life. 

 Ashing her cigarette, Lara nodded slightly, fixating her gaze on the ground as she listened. Rest was vital. This group wasn’t much, but they were nothing when they were tired. Plus moving through the night was generally unwise. Evenings were too quiet to move undetected, and the moon didn’t provide enough natural light to see safely. “It’ll take a while to get clear of the bombing radius, they cleared out most of the forest. Cleared out what was left of my group in the process too, I think. No woods could be good for clickers, but it doesn’t provide much cover, or relief from the heat,” the blonde commented. She’d been walking for days and every one of them had been hot and humid; rain only making an appearance once. Feeling the temperature of the wind now, she predicted another blistering hot day come tomorrow. She hoped the group were prepared. “We’ll need to find water. I can run ahead and scout some. I’m guessing that you and I are probably the only people that are strong enough right now to hold our own against some unwanted visitors and you probably want to stay with the group.” She shrugged, dropping the cigarette to the ground and stepping on it to put it out. “Or unless you have a better plan…”

[sergeanthart]

“Every time,” Jesse mumbled, flicking ash off the end of the cigarette before drawing in another breath of the sweet addiction. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d run out of cigarettes - though it could possibly be the last. Who knew what was out there anymore or if they’d be lucky enough to stumble upon more. For now he would partake in what was there for him, enjoy the last sensation of calm that it left in his veins. 

At least they were lucky enough for the time being to have a shelter above their heads and be clear of the immediate threat of clickers and the like. The bombing had stopped some time ago and while smoke continued to rise from their former home it didn’t mean all was lost. They had each other, they had an end goal of surviving - they could make it out of here one way or another. They would. It just meant they had to find the next safe place to settle for a while.

He rolled his shoulders to adjust his jacket, finishing off what last bit he could get out of the cigarette before dropping it to the ground like hers and snuffing it with the heel of his boot. Then his hands simply tucked into his pockets, scanning the horizon once more as if something may have changed. The weather was improving from the blasted winter months, perhaps it was a blessing that the wind was bringing in warmer air than a chill breeze. It was easier for them to survive in, at least, all things considered. 

I’m guessing that you and I are probably the only people that are strong enough right now to hold our own against some unwanted visitors... 

A slight smirk touched his lips at the remark, tossing a glance in her direction before nodding slightly, “Aiden and Logan, too. Ivy, probably - but she’s still young. I’d rather keep her out of immediate harms way if possible.” He’d rather keep all of them out of harms way if possible, but at this point that seemed slim to none. “We can scout tomorrow, in pairs. Logan and I already got a good look around the immediate area. We may have to scout out further if we anticipate finding anything of use. Maybe a river or something, if we’re lucky.” 

[drunkhedlund-deactivated2014082]

[ivyholloway-blog]

“ I’m doing just fine. ” That was a literal no. A no followed by an I don’t feel like or I don’t want to. She didn’t feel tired yet; her body was ready to run a marathon. “ I— ” No, she thought. Don’t talk about you. “ What about you? ”

[sergeanthart]

“It would do you good to get some rest,” Jesse commented vaguely, getting the sense that she was avoiding the question, “Or at the very least take a break.” At the same time he should probably take his own advice, but he was a leader in this group. He was responsible for taking care of them - so he would make sure they were all tended to before himself. “I’m doing just fine,” he answered in mirror to her words, the corner of his lips pulling upwards in a light smile. 

[itsloganwoods]

“You think there’s any other safe havens out there like ours?” He questioned nonchalantly, picking up the extra firearm previously mentioned and checking its ammunition before nodding at the plan. Knives with bullets as back up, head northeast. If he were in a taunting mood, he might just have saluted. “I’ll follow your lead.”

[sergeanthart]

Jesse didn’t know how exactly to answer Logan’s question. Did he think there were any other safe havens like Fall City out there? He couldn’t be certain - he and Liam had been traveling for quite some time without finding anything that stood out like Fall City had. That didn’t mean it didn’t exist - it was just harder to find. “There might be, somewhere. At the very least we should keep a look out for somewhere that we could build up and consider safe for the time being. A city, a town, a building - who knows. Anything we can defend and build up against attack.” He tucked his gun away and picked up one of the knives before nodding to Logan’s words. “Let’s go.” 

[ivyholloway-blog]

 She wasn’t exactly focusing on who was talking to her. She couldn’t focus on anything but the baby and Ada. “ Thank you —” she turned around for a second “ Jesse. ” She figured out next questions would be about her wounds.

[sergeanthart]

Jesse watched her a moment longer, just giving a slight nod in response to her thanks. It didn’t deserve a thanks; anyone could see she was being mature beyond her years, caring for a child when she was little more than a child herself. He ruffled fingers through his hair, looking her over. “So how are you doing, anyway? Have you had a chance to get some rest yet?” 

[sergeanthart]

{ from reclaimedasset }

[ ❄ ] Basics;

Name: Jesse Michael Hart Alias ( nicknames ): Jess, Sergeant Hart Gender: Male Age: Twenty-Seven Date of birth: September 15th, 1988 Spoken languages: English Occupation: US Marine (discharged), Council Member Criminal record: Clean Record Disorders:  PTSD Eye color: Blue Hair color: Blonde  Height: 6′2 Scars: Scars from gunshot wounds in left shoulder area and right side of abdomen, scarring from bomb explosion and shrapnel across right thigh and hip (limb ends just above the knee), a few other less prominent ones Burns: None

[ ❄ ] Favorites;

Color: Navy Blue, Turquoise, Green Song: - Food: Cheeseburgers Drink: Iced Tea Candy: Cookies & Cream chocolate 

[ ❄ ] Experiences;

Had sex: Yes Had sex in public: No Gotten pregnant: No Kissed a boy: No Kissed a girl: Yes Gotten tattoos: No Gotten piercings: No Smoked / drank / done drugs: Yes / Yes / No Had a broken heart: No Been in love: No Needed surgery: Yes Stayed up for more than 24 hours: Yes

[ ❄ ] Misc;

A virgin: No A cuddler: Depends A kisser: Yes Scared easily: Depends  Jealous easily: No Trustworthy: Yes Single: Yes In a relationship: No

Considered mean: Rarely Harmed themselves: Not intentionally Thought of suicide: No Attempted suicide: No Wanted to kill someone: No Have / had a job: Yes

[adabelcher-blog]

A corner of the barn had been claimed by the frail teen. One who, despite being in labor hours prior, still remained wide awake. But the exhaustion was clear on her vague stare, eyelids closing every minute or so; yearning for a little bit of sleep. The newborn in her arms wasn’t the cause of the lack of sleep, at least not for now. There had hardly been any crying, the majority of the time she slept. But the need to make sure she was safe kept Ada awake. It had only been hours since her arrival, one could only imagine how protective she would be of the child. 

But the image of their home, burning down into ashes hardly left her mind. The bombs, the infected, all the deaths it brought. It made her feel faint once again, uneasy. Ada had been lucky to encounter Logan and have the company of Ivy to get safe and sound to where she sat. Without them, her child and her would most likely be dead or worse. 

Blue hues focused on her daughter’s soft face, to momentarily forget about the destruction that they would most likely meet outside. It was the most nice of distractions, a soft gentle smile grazing her lips. It seemed so unfitting, regarding the situation but it was all she had now. Her and Ivy - they were her family. The very thought of it made her think of all the friends they had left behind. Terra, Robert, Taeil and Hunter were a few of the many she had on her mind. She could only hope they also found shelter from the dangers of the outside. 

Eyelids closed slowly, her head moving from side to side as she unintentionally drifted down to sleep. That was, of course, until she heard steps nearing her; eyes quick to know who approached her. There were some she did not know that accompanied them, and she wasn’t quite sure she trusted them.

[sergeanthart]

The last few days were insane, and that was putting it lightly. Fall City had been blown up into bits and pieces, friends and families had been separated, and even more than that Ada had gone into labor in all of the excitement. The young girl had no idea what was going on, didn’t know how to handle the pain or how to deal with the birth... and Jesse had only done what he thought was right. Instructed her through it with the feeble bit of knowledge he knew on pregnancy and birth (which was very little).

He remembered when Liam was born, with little chubby, pink cheeks and glistening eyes. He was only eight at the time, but he helped out where his mother let him and of course, annoyed him endlessly. It had been a long while since he’d been around a newborn, but some things came naturally. 

The new mother had to be exhausted, for one thing. Hell, they all were. But among the survivors in their group Ada deserved and required the extra rest the most, so he had walked over to the corner of the barn which she had claimed for herself. He had thought she was still awake but once he’d almost reached her he noticed the heavy lids. With the baby resting quietly with her he was going to leave the two alone, but then one squeaky floorboard beneath his boot had her roused and wide eyed once more. 

“Sorry,” He apologized in a hush tone, forcing a bit of a sheepish smile on his face. “I’ll keep an eye on her a while if you want me to, so you can get some sleep.” 

[imogenashbury]

Watching him casually as he withdrew a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket, Lara raised her eyebrows in surprise when Jesse offered one to her. “Seriously? Aren’t you afraid I’ll burn your eyes out with it or something?” The blonde chuckled genuinely to herself then, for the first time in what felt like months. “I’m joking, although I have done something similar in the past…” She trailed off, feeling that disclosing the gory details of her past life was altogether unnecessary. She wasn’t ashamed of where her life had taken her and she had no regrets, but confessing to the group leader that she was - for all intents and purposes a professional killer before the outbreak was probably unwise. Plus someone had told her once that who they were before no longer held relevance. They were all survivors now, and that was the only thing that mattered. 

Accepting the offer. Lara leaned in to meet the lighter in Jesse’s outstretched hand, sighing with forgotten comfort as the cigarette lit in her mouth and smoke filled her lungs. She exhaled with a smile. “I haven’t had one of these in a long time,” the blonde mused. Probably not since San Francisco; definitely not since venturing here. She listened as he spoke, drawing in a breaths of smoke, holding them for a moment before exhaling again. From what she had gathered, Fall City had been huge. Casualties would be expected, but only eight survivors from the whole community seemed unlikely. But what did she know? She’d watched a whole city fall victim to the outbreak. Mass extinction wasn’t uncommon. Maybe they were the only ones left, after all. 

Lara glanced over at Jesse, silently puffing his cigarette. She wondered for a moment what his story was. If he had family, people he cared about in Fall City. She almost wanted to ask, but there were more pressing matters at hand. “So what’s the plan? You know we can’t stay here.”

[sergeanthart]

“I’ve been through worse,” He answered simply, though an eyebrow lifted curiously as she mentioned a similar incident in the past and half withdrew the pack in a teasing manner. Once she took one for herself he tucked the pack back away which only carried one or two more cigarettes, before lighting his own and offering the flame for her. “Lucky find,” he said by way of explanation with a slight shrug of his shoulders. He’d run out of his own supply long ago but had had relative luck bumming them off fellow survivors. Supply was short at hand nowadays - and withdrawal was a real bitch. 

A hand passed over his face, rubbing forefinger and thumb against tired eyes. He didn’t have a plan, not really. He knew there had to be others out there, he knew Liam was somewhere - but aimlessly traveling about didn’t seem like an advantageous way to find anyone or anything.

“Not much of a plan,” He offered, “We can’t stay here long, true, at least through the night to give everyone some time to rest.” That was the most important thing right now, getting everyone rested up so that they could move on from here to - well, wherever their next stop was. “I figure we move north, keep an eye out for anything secure enough to stay in a while.” 

[ivyholloway-blog]

“ I know what it looks like —- but she’s fine. Lily is fine.  ”

[sergeanthart]

“That’s exactly what it looks like,” Jesse commented in a soft voice, his shoulder resting up against the door frame as he watched Ivy tend to the newborn. “You and Ada are taking great care of her.” 

[lostbecca-blog]

No one is alone || Jesse & Becca

[lostbecca-blog]

Jesse didn’t notice her right away, and Becca made no move to alert him to her quiet presence. If anything, she liked it better this way. Maybe, if she tried hard enough, she could make herself completely invisible. If she stood still enough, if she breathed softly enough, and then nothing could hurt her. It would be as if she’d disappeared, but it would have been her choice to do it. Would that be better or worse than if it happened on its own?

Regardless – that wasn’t going to happen to day, because Jesse was looking down at her, offering a kind smile that she returned with no hesitation. He had taken her away from Toby, but Toby had not come for her. If she had not been carried away on Jesse’s shoulders, she would have been killed. 

Though there was a small part of her that wondered if that would have been better. If Toby was gone, if he was with the rest of their family now – why had Becca once again been left behind? What could she possibly offer to this group of survivors who were all so much stronger than she was? What could she ever hope to be to them other than a burden?

The most she could hope for was to make her presence as unobtrusive as possible – and try to express that she was grateful to be among these people at all. If she had to be alive, at least she was not entirely alone. 

But that was a difficult task when her voice refused to function, when she could answer his question with nothing more than a small nod. Thank you, she wanted to tell him, but recent events made her voice feel even farther gone than it had been before. So she fell back on the signs Toby had been teaching her, even though she doubted Jesse would understand. The sign for thank you was a simple one; her fingers touched to her lips, and her palm pushed forward, and even if Jesse could not understand the words she was trying to communicate, maybe he would grasp some part of the sentiment.

[sergeanthart]

There was a moment of thought spared towards considering the young girl that stood beside him. He knew very little of her, hadn’t even seen her around the city more than once or twice that he could recall - and even then she was ever silent, always silent. Not a word had leaked from her lips since the terrified scream when she was chased by Infected. Maybe it was just who she was; silent, unassuming, small, in her head.  She lived happily in a world where noises were minimal, where voice was unnecessary. She didn’t need communication, she just needed to be in the presence of others to feel more comfortable. 

She gave a nod, confirming that he had her name right. At least he managed to get that right, otherwise it seems like she may not have been able to otherwise inform him. A part of him wondered if her silence was by choice or something else - if she had always been this way or if something (say, the apocalypse) had caused her to close in on herself. 

But she was lucky, then, to have people around that cared for her. Or to have had them, at one point. Jesse hoped that her loved ones were somewhere looking for her. In the mean time it was his responsibility to take over the care. 

He watched the motion of her hand as she touched fingers to her lips and let the hand fall forward. He recognized it as sign language, though he had never had the time to learn what they meant. The gesture, though, was accompanied with what she intended to convey, a thankfulness in the gesture and the presence. 

A nod was given in return, chewing on the inside of his lip before he leaned against the small workbench he had been standing at, turning to face her a bit more head on. “Have you slept? Hungry?” He offered, wanting to make her as comfortable as she possibly could be in this new found home of theirs. “We’ve got a few cans of soup, some plants Aiden found that are edible. Not exactly a five star meal...but better than nothing.”