"Of Course," Lucas Says, Kissing The Top Of Rae's Head. "You Go Clean Up."

Finally. It had been a long day. Survive the storm and night, get the run down of the town, meet El, see the Chop Shop, and now, finally, being shown where he's going to be living. It's a cool place. Big, a little fancy, and it's buzzing with energy even with quiet somber air. So different from his aunt and uncle's place.

Cameron showed him his room and where the supplies he might need are kept. Then he's let loose to wander and see what he can find.

He finds a common room with some couches and chairs. And books he steps in to see what kind of books might still be here, but then he freezes because someone else is already in here.

Adrien blinks because there's no way this guy is real.

Adrien's seen cute guys back home. But this guy? He's handsome, beautiful.

Adrien licks his lips. Then, he realizes the guy is looking at him. Talking to him.

"Oh. No, not mine. I don't have much that's mine anymore. Just my mini-tool kit. No books. Uncle Don didn't let us bring books on our family hikes. So it's fine if you read that."

He's feeling breathless under the guy's gaze.

"Hi, I'm... I didn't mean to stare. I just... well, you're..."

He shuts his mouth and swallows hard. Get yourself together, he tells himself.

He steps forward, wiping the sweat from his hand, then holds it out to the guy.

"Adrien. I'm new."

@patroclusblossom

LOCATION: colony house

The storm passed. Some were hurt, and a few went missing. Less died than he expected, but the gruesome sight was enough to send many into somber silence.

Sangjoon had finally settled into the Colony House thanks to Cameron and was clearing out a spot to sit. There was a book in his way and after a moment of deliberation, he picked it up. He wasn't completely sure what the rules were regarding property in this house and wondered if he was going to upset someone just by flipping a few pages. Still, after all the horror, it felt nice to read.

Escape for a moment to a safer world.

What pulled him back to the bleak present was a pair of eyes. Sangjoon, having lived the way he did, was always hyperaware of any attention on him.

Fortunately, the gaze did not seem unfriendly.

"Is this book yours?" Were you looking at this, or looking at me? "I should have not touched it without permission, sorry."

Task 002

Adrien lives in the colony house, so he doesn't have a set room or space necessarily. He roams around the house, enjoying the space as well as the company it allows him.

While he's impressed by what's already there, he does like to add his own touches here and there. Taking scraps from jobs at the Chop Shop that just weren't worth saving for practical use. Now, he brings them to the house to find new life as decoration or weird new purpose.

He also tends to just leave little things, particularly tools, behind as he works. Almost like a bread crumb trail of where he's been semi-recently. Sometimes, he'll even leave something behind because he'd set it down to pick up a different thing he'd left behind earlier.

He also tries to add some of his old farmhouse home to the areas of the house. He fixes or refurbishes things in the style he's familiar with, hoping it makes everything feel homey to everyone, not just him.

RAFAEL SILVA

Lucas listens intently, making sure Elm knows he's really listening to her, giving her space to talk about anything.

He quirks an eye up. If she felt the need to mention it, then it must be something to consider important.

"What was notable about the tree?"

ELM TAKES A MOMENT TO THINK ABOUT IT . " i was with bruna in the community kitchen ." elm shrugs . " we were doing chores together to keep busy during the storm ." a beat before elm admits, " i don't remember why i left . i don't remember leaving ... but i know they were there ." they wrap their fingers around their laces again and again, eyes on the motion before, " after that i woke up in the forest and walked back . my shoes were gone ." a pause before they tilt their head, meet lucas' eyes and add, " ... i remember a tree ."

where: town streets | when: midday | whom: open to all

Adrien groans as he slowly pushes the car down the street towards the Chop Shop.

He'd found this while doing a scavenging run with Muz yesterday, just to see what it's like. Everyone he'd talked to was busy today, so he'd worn his tank top, jeans, and sturdy boots today, got the car into neutral, and was slowly pushing it through town.

It had been fine for the first five minutes or so, but now he's mentally kicking himself for not just being patient and waiting for people to help him.

Lucas approaches cautiously, trying not to spook her like she's a deer that could leap into action at any second. His hands up to show he means no ill will.

"You can't really blame us for being cautious now, can you? We don't want you to get hurt. Or worse."

He winces at the memories of bodies. Especially those of newcomers who didn't know better or tried to deny the reality before them.

where : the edge of the forest / town with : open

— RAYS from the afternoon sun shine through the trees , melting away the remaining frost on the yellowing leaves and warming greer's near windburnt cheeks . though a chilly autumn was no irregularity for the detroit native , there was something sinister in the air , something she tries desperately to ignore , that makes the cold air seem to seep into her weary bones , inescapable no matter how many layers she may wear . despite this , her glove - less right hand remains outside of her coat pocket , a nearly finished cigarette held tightly between two pinkened fingers , orange lighter clutched in the palm of her hand . the unease only worsens the longer she stares into the woods , the shadows among the trees looking all the more ominous . she takes a deep inhale , the harshness of the cold air stinging her nose and throat as she does so , refreshing and punishing at the same time . as she exhales , she closes her eyes , cutting herself off from staring into the forest , and the dark , irrational thoughts that seem to cluster in her mind whenever she was near it . footsteps approach , the sound of gravel crunching taking away from the otherwise eerie silence , and successfully pulling the young woman from her reverie . greer's eyes remain closed for a moment longer , this time to contain an eye roll . “ i'm not running off again , you guys don't have to keep threatening to ‘ restrain me ’ . ” forever assuming rather than asking , disinterest and annoyance cloud greer's voice . her eyes open only to fall into a scowl as she turns to look at the one who interrupts her moping . “ what do you want ? ”

Lucas looks up and smiles at Ana, which quickly turns to a grimace at the mention of Cameron. Lucas has heard all about that rocky relationship, and he knows even making sure the town is okay isn't enough to fully distract from that.

"At least she's still here. Not everyone got so lucky. We found Kina and... yeah, I'm gonna check up on Rae later."

He looks back down at the supplies.

"We're okay for now. I just don't know how best to ration anything in case something like this happens again. Is it too much to ask for a semi-truck full of survival supplies to come into town?"

He gives a weak chuckle at the old joke they've shared probably a hundred times in the years since he became a sheriff.

The sky feels too bright for what last night was. It shouldn’t be this quiet, this deceptively calm. Anastasia pulls her coat tighter, as if that could keep out the weight of exhaustion. Her hands still smell faintly of rain and the damp clothes she sorted, her mind circling back to Cameron more times than she’d like. She finds Lucas by the sheriff’s post, bent over a table littered with supplies—medical kits, rope, lantern oil. Seeing his familiar face pulls a tired smirk from her, brief and fleeting. “Hey,” she says, stepping up beside him. She breathes out slowly, "I just came from Colony House." Her words are low but steady, like it’s a confession that only Lucas can hear. "Saw Cameron." She waits a beat, rubbing a hand over her face as the memory settles like stones in her gut. "It went... like it always does." Her voice softens, brushing against old wounds. "She’s holding it together. But she's fine, thankfully." The silence between her and Lucas is easy, a quiet understanding built over years of shared burdens. She glances down at the supplies, her gaze flickering across the bottles and bandages with the detached focus of someone always on edge. “How bad is it? I know we lost some people... How're we on supplies?” she asks finally, her voice edged with exhaustion. @patroclusblossom

Adrien sees the frayed cord and immediately jumps up excited.

"Oh, that's easy. Give me like twenty minutes. Take a seat."

He takes the fan from her, setting it on the desk, and then immediately begins to rummage for the tools he needs. He hums quietly until he has everything in his hands. Settling in at the desk, he starts to work.

"So how long you been here? What can you tell me about it?"

His gaze stays focused on the wires as he asks the questions.

a nostalgic sort of smile curls her lips up and she's reminded of something that she'd rather not be - the innocence of her son - before she shoves the thoughts away with a fierce push. "i have a fan that won't work anymore." she explains, holding the tiny electrical fan up. "it plugs into the wall but the chord recently has frayed..." she shows him the end that is obviously frayed. "sucker has been with me the entirety of my ten years here and i need it to last a few more, especially because i use it in the summer at the infirmary for people with heat sickness." looking hopeful, she sets the fan down in front of him. "think you can work some magic?"

Lucas gives him a dubious look, not really believing him at his word but not really able to call him a liar either.

Then he eyes the bench, wary. If he sits, he's not sure he'll stand back up any time soon. But getting off his feet sounds so nice.

He sighs and settles down next to Muz.

"If I fall asleep, you better wake me up," he says with a relieved sigh.

'Lucas, baby, what d'ya mean, man? Full twelve hours, me. Sleep the whole night through.' Twelve hours total in the four months since landing in this town, a bit more likely. But he lets a smile slip. 'Need your beauty sleep, man. Come sit for a bit. Gimme company.'

Lucas feels a slight ache in his chest as they walk hand in hand. He didn't realize how much he missed this. Walking with Rae. Being with Rae.

"Hey," he says, soft but firm. "You are important."

They turn a corner, and they can see their houses. Only a couple of other residents between them. It had been a little awkward at first after the breakup, but then they eased into comfortable. Being close was comforting.

"I know you can. I just want to help like I used to. Moving bodies around. I saw how many you still had to do. That will definitely take forever on your own."

for most of the walk he couldn't stop looking down at his hands, constantly making sure the blood hadn't returned. that it was just a figment of his imagination. sometimes rae wondered if it was the town or his own sanity slipping.

it's ok. it wasn't, but having lucas' hand in his helped quiet the constant urge to check. he spent the rest of the walk relatively fine.

“luc, i don’t want to keep you from more important things,” he protested. "and don't say what i know you're going to say. i can handle it on my own, today was just...tough."