Strangers
A BPJD Soft Apoc Fic, because I’m on a roll.
“Deckerd.” Someone shoved his shoulder. “Deckerd, wake up.”
“It’s too early.” Deckerd pulled the covers over his head.
“There are people outside.”
Deckerd bolted up. “How many?”
“Three of them.” Azuki looked concerned as she stared out the entrance. “Men. One of them has a gun.”
“Stay inside.” Deckerd stood up and pulled his clothes on. “If they start shooting, run.”
He stepped outside and came face-to-face with the strangers.
The first one Deckerd saw was redheaded and covered with freckles. He was big, and he looked strong enough to wrestle a bear into submission. The second one, a blond, was leaner, and the third, a dark-haired, dark-skinned man with a shotgun, was leaner still, with a sharp figure.
“May I help you?” asked the brunette.
“I was going to ask you the same question.” Deckerd swallowed. “There’s a town to the west of here. If you want supplies, then you should try your luck there.”
“We’re not interested in a big town,” said the brunette. “Too many people.”
“Oh?”
“We’ve noticed there’s a spring here,” said the brunette.
“There’s a lake behind me,” said Deckerd.
“Springs make for better drinking water,” said the brunette.
“When are you going to get to the point?” drawled the blond. The redhead elbowed him.
The brunette rolled his eyes. “Look. We need a place to settle down. This is the best place. There’s not many of you. There’s strength in numbers.”
“I don’t know anything about you,” said Deckerd. “Why should I let you live here?”
“It’s not like you have a good sense of infrastructure here,” said the redhead. He glanced at the brunette. he nodded, and redhead turned back to face Deckerd. “Caves like that are good for food storage, but what happens when you need to store cloth? And when winter hits, it’s going to get cold. You need buildings. Especially if you’re staying here long-term.”
“What would you build with?” Deckerd looked them over.
“We have supplies,” said the brunette.
“Where?”
“With another member of our party.”
Deckerd furrowed his brow. “How many of you are there?”
“More than three,” said the brunette. “How many of you are there?”
“More than one.”
The blond snorted.
“Be that way,” said the brunette. “What do you say?”
Deckerd bit his lip and turned back to the cave. “We’ll need to talk it over.”
“Fine,” said the brunette. “We can wait.”
————
The next day, Deckerd woke up to see daylight filtering in through the gaps in the door to the cave. He stretched, dressed, and walked outside.
The three from the first day were there, along with a orange-haired boy who looked like he might be the blond’s brother. They were putting up posts. Deckerd was impressed with how quickly they’d gotten to work. As he leaned against the door, the redhead noticed him and waved at him.
“What are you doing, idiot?” The blond elbowed the orange-haired boy. “Walls up first.”
“I’m working on the walls!” The orange-haired boy smacked at the blond. “I’m just getting them build before we pull them together!”
“Why don’t you help work on the frames?”
“Why don’t you? You’re being lazy~!”
“Hey!”
“Would you two stop it?” snapped the brunette. “It’s barely daylight and you’re screaming more than the f!cking birds!”
“He started it!” The orange-haired boy and the blond pointed at each other in perfect unison.
“If you don’t finish it I’m going to finish—,”
“Morning,” said the redhead, waving at Deckerd.
The others whipped around and stared at Deckerd.
“Nice day, isn’t it?” Deckerd rubbed the back of his neck and tried to ignore the staring.
“Not a cloud in the sky,” said the redhead. He jerked a thumb at the wooden posts and walls. “We’re making good progress. We’ll make something livable first, and then focus on making it comfy. You should be able to move in within a week.”
“That fast?”
“That fast,” said the redhead.
Deckerd walked over to the house. It was made of good lumber, and it looked sturdy. He saw a tin can full of nails. They were all good-quality, and some of them looked machine-made.
“Why do you have all of this with you?” he asked. “Your village must need this.”
“They needed us out more,” said the blond.
“Why?”
“Why are you out here?” he countered.
“I asked first.” Deckerd’s throat felt dry.
“I asked you second.” The blond puffed himself up to his full height.
“Look.” The brunette walked forward. “We obviously each have our own reasons for being here. I honestly don’t give a sh!t what yours are, unless it’s something that going to f!ck us over in the long run.”
“Oh.”
“Well.” The brunette leaned over until he was inches away from Deckerd. “Are we going to have a problem in the long run?”
Deckerd felt his face heat up. “Not that I know of. What about you?”
“No,” said the brunette. He was still in Deckerd’s face.
Deckerd nudged him away and took a step back. “I’m glad to hear it. I need to go and take care of some things.” He side-stepped the brunette. “Excuse me.” He ran back towards the lake, hoping the water would be ice-cold.
