It was a lovely evening, cold outside, but warm in Alexander's simple home. The fire was burning softly in the background as people gathered to converse and catch up. It was a small party, only Alex and Eliza's closest friends. Despite the cozy atmosphere, Alexander felt nerves run through his veins. He fiddled with his tie, taking a quick gulp of his punch.

A hand brushed against his own. Alex glanced up to see his darling Eliza giving him a soothing smile. "Honey, you have to relax. This is supposed to be fun."

"I know, I know." Alex offered her a small smile, "I'm just nervous…"

"You shouldn't be. Enjoy the party, love." Eliza brushed his hair behind his ear easily. "Unless, you'd feel better if we made the announcement now."

"Maybe." Alex said, nodding to himself, "Maybe, yeah. Okay."

Eliza kissed his cheek, before turning to the small crowd in the room, "Hey, everyone! We have something we'd like to say!"

Alex took a deep breath as all his friends turned to look at him. He took Eliza's hand and said, "You're probably wondering why I invited you all here. And, well, Eliza and I have been together for a long time now. This weekend, we decided to move forward in our relationship."

At this point, Eliza held up her left hand, announcing, "We're getting married!"

The room exploded into cheers and applause. Alex felt his muscles relax as he took in their responses. Everyone was happy, excited, even. He wasn't sure why he was so anxious about telling his friends this. But he's incredibly relieved that they took it well.

Eliza's siblings engulfed her in hugs, squealing loudly in Alex's ear. He shuffled away from them as they started admiring the small ring he got Eliza. As he was walking away, he heard Angelica laugh, "Damn, you snatched that one up as soon as you could, didn't ya?"

"Oh, absolutely!" Eliza replied, giggling.

John and Herc were with him in the next second, slapping him on the back and slinging their arms around his shoulders. They were grinning ear-to-ear, estatic for their best friend.

"Dude, you had a chance to escape." Herc joked, "Now you'll never be free of her."

"I don't want to." Alex beamed dreamily. He looked over his shoulder at the woman who would soon be his wife, "That's why I'm marrying her."

John snorted, but was happy nonetheless. "Well, shit, if Alex's getting married, we gotta follow suit. Can't let him think he's better than us, right Herc?"

Hercules gave John a funny look, lowering his voice a bit, "Are - are you proposing?"

John blushed and shrugged, trying to look nonchalant, "So what if I am?"

"You can't!" Herc shook his head, crossing his arms, "I was going to propose!"

Alex laughed at John's expression. The freckled man sighed and then gestured to his boyfriend, "Okay, well, propose then!"

Herc paused, and then shook his head once more. "Nah. I'm gonna surprise you. Wait til' you're not expecting it."

John rolled his eyes fondly. "This guy."

"As cute as that was," Alex said, pointing to himself, "let's talk about me."

"You're getting married!"

"I'm getting married!"

The boys cheered.

Alex took John's hands in his own, saying, "John, I want you to be my best man!"

"It's be an honor." John grinned, trying to hide the tears in his eyes. Alex squeezed his hands once before turning to Herc.

"And, Herc, I want you to-"

"Be the flower girl!?" Herc asked excitedly.

"Uh… no." Alex shook his head, amused, "Eliza and I wanted you to tailor our dress and tux."

"Oh, I can do that, too." Herc nodded, accepting a hug from Alex.

Before anyone could say anything else, there was a voice from behind them, saying, "I hope I'm allowed to join with you boys in the celebration."

Alex turned around and saw Washington smiling at him. He immediately pulled the older man into a hug, which made him chuckle.

"Congratulations, son."

"Thanks, dad." Alex mumbled so quiet that only Washington could hear. Then he pulled away and said louder, "I'm not your son."

Washington offered him a proud smile, saying, "I'm happy for you. Of course, me and the Mrs. are invited to the wedding?"

"Absolutely! Front row seats!" Alex nodded, "As long as you don't cry."

"I'll try not to." Washington said seriously. "How do you feel?"

Alex hid his blushing face in his hands, trying to contain his excitement, "I'm getting married! It feels like a dream!"

Alex blinked rapidly, groaning at the sunlight that shone in his eyes. His head was resting on something, but he couldn't tell what. Speaking of his head, it hurt like a bitch. He felt like crap, and his empty stomach contracted angrily.

"He's awake." A voice above him called. Alex tilted his head back, looking up to see Jefferson staring down at him, his expression mildly annoyed.

James arrived a second later, his expression aggressively annoyed. "Alexander! When was the last time you ate?!"

"Why're'you yellin'?" Alex groggily mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"Hamilton…" James warned, crossing his arms.

Alex sighed loudly, "I dunno! It's been a while, I guess."

James disappears out of sight, muttering to himself.

Alex let out a small huff, rubbing his temples as he tried to take inventory of his aching body. He really couldn't remember the last time he ate. When he was working, he didn't think much about it. And as they were on the run from zombies, it because a second priority. Sure, he had small nibbles of things here and there, but it wasn't like he had a full meal anytime lately. Alex hesitated, then looked up to Jefferson. He chewed his lip and asked, "How long have I been out?"

Jefferson shrugged and replied, "Two hours or so. Can you sit up? My leg fell asleep thirty minutes in."

Alex shifted his head, realizing the soft-yet-firm thing under him was Jefferson's right thigh. Blushing lightly, Alex sat up, releasing Jefferson from his imprisonment. "You didn't have to do that."
"I know. James made me." Jefferson said, gently massaging his legs. "Said I needed to rest or whatever, and wanted someone make sure you didn't die. I got the short stick, I guess."

"Oh." Alex nodded, "Right. Well, thanks anyway, or something."

James came back a second later, holding a water bottle and an Uncrustable. He shoves them in Alex's arms and says to Jefferson, "Make sure he eats those."

"You're giving him a full water bottle?" Jefferson scoffed, about to argue. James just shot him a sharp glare, which had the taller man shutting down. He closed his mouth and nodded, although he looked angry about it. As James turned away, Jefferson called out, "You owe me."

James just waved his hand dismissively, walking to the front of the bus. Jefferson sat back in the seat, crossing his arms over his chest. It was at that moment that Alex remembered that he wasn't wearing his binder. Heat rushed to his face as he frantically wondered how much Jefferson felt or - God forbid - saw while he was passed out. The man didn't seem to be treating him any differently, maybe he didn't notice.

"Hey, eat up." Jefferson elbowed him harshly, "Jemmy wasn't joking. And you gotta keep your strength up. Not that you have much to begin with."

Alex scowled as he undid the wrapper to the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Dude. I could lift you without breaking a sweat." Jefferson said, raising an eyebrow.

Alex swallowed hard, he mumbled, "That doesn't make me weak, it just makes you strong."

He shoved as much of the Uncrustable in his mouth as he could. He doesn't feel like eating, and he wanted to get it done as soon as possible. Jefferson sneered at the sight of him literally stuffing his face. Whatever. He didn't need Jefferson's approval.

"Well, you're also squishy." Jefferson said, rolling his eyes. Alex almost choked. "Don't worry, James is squishy, too. I gotta get y'all into shape, if you expect to survive out here."

Alex finished the rest of the sandwich quickly, unscrewing his water to sip from. "Thanks for the advice, but I don't do push ups."

Jefferson snorted, "Yeah. I can tell."

"Oh, fuck off." Alex growled.

"I can't. You're blocking the aisle." Jefferson gestured to how he was in the window seat. "And Jemmy said I had to watch you."

"You always do what James says?" Alex sneered. He may have said it in a patronizing tone, but he was genuinely curious. James certainly was in charge of this little operation, from what Alex had witnessed.

Jefferson's expression darkened as he said, "Look. You gotta watch out for Number One. James just so happens to be my Number One, and I'm his. I know he's looking out for me. So, yeah, if he says 'Jump', I'll say, 'Fuck off, but how high?'. I see no problem with it; if you do, you can get bit for all I care. As long as James makes it out of this alright, I'm satisfied."

Alex shook his head, muttering, "Whatever you say."

He didn't know what to say after that, so he took another drink of his water. The two were quiet for a few minutes. The air was thick with some strange tension. Alex could practically feel how tense Jefferson was next to him, and he found it hard to chew.

The more Alex thought about it, the more he felt a bit jealous of the two. Now that the world has ended, Alex has no Number One, except for himself. And yeah, he's been in this situation before, when he was growing up in the Caribbean and when he first moved to America. He certainly was his Number One. But that was ages ago. Since then, he met Eliza, John, and Herc. He's grown to know Washington, Angelica, Pegs, and even Burr closely. Hell, he might even throw James into that list, depending on the day. He's had two beautiful kids since then; angels that he'd do anything for. He's certainly come a long way from being the lonely orphan that he once was. Not even a month ago, he was surrounded by such loving, affectionate people…

And he had them all ripped away. Killed, no doubt. Leaving him alone.

The thing is, he doesn't want to be his own Number One. Aside from his career, Alex has always put others first. He was a devoted husband, a caring father, a great friend. And now, without his loved ones, he was nothing. Maybe that's why he hasn't tried very hard to learn how to shoot straight. Who does he have to fight for? Certainly not himself.

The silence was broken when Jefferson asked, "Did you have a James? Before all this?"

"What do you mean?" Alex asked. 'A James' could mean anything. Alex still wasn't entirely sure what Jefferson and James' relationship entailed.

"Someone you'd listen to without hesitation." Jefferson clarified.

"Who I took orders from?" Alex teased, but Jefferson just shrugged and looked out the window. Alex pondered the question. It took him a moment to reply, gaining Jefferson's attention once more. "Not … really. I had this best friend, John. We got in trouble a lot, and his husband, Hercules, had to fix all our problems. My wife wished I followed her lead more often. She was always so elegant and graceful. I probably would be a better person if I actually did what she told me to. I think … I think I was the James of the group. Only my ideas didn't always turn out well."

"Doesn't surprise me." Jefferson muttered, taking the water bottle out of Alex's hands. Alex watched as the man brought it to his lips, stealing a swig. He returned it to Alex, like it was nothing. "I'm getting this vibe from you. You know when mothers say to their kids, 'If your friend jumped off a bridge, would you do that, too?'. I feel like you're the kid that jumped off the bridge, trying to convince others to follow."

A laugh fell from Alex's lips, surprising himself. Jefferson seemed surprised, too. He looked up to watch Alex giggle. Alex averted his gaze, still smiling a bit, "There might be some truth to that."

Jefferson opened his mouth to speak, but the words never came, because Lee cursed loudly from the front. Alex stood up, moving to front. He could hear Jefferson following him, as he asked. "What's wrong?"

"The road's blocked." James replied as Lee cursed loudly.

Alex's gaze turned to the road before them. They were going down the right side of the highway now, since no one would head into a big city during the apocalypse. But there was a large pile up of cars sitting across the road, like a hasty attempt at a barrier. They couldn't go back and come back down the other side of the highway, because that part was bumper-to-bumper for miles. Alex could see a zombie or two wandering in the distance. They were sitting ducks, right on the edge of Albany.

"We need to get up that ramp." James said, pointing at just beyond the pile up. "It'll take us up and around the city."

"What if the road's destroyed?" Jefferson asked.

Lee shrugged, "Then we die."

"Surely they wouldn't blow up Albany of all places." James muttered to himself.

"Desperate times." Jefferson replied.

Alex's eyes widened as he realized what they were saying, "Wait. People were blowing up major cities?"

"What did you think those explosions were back in New York?" Jefferson scoffed, "Fireworks?"

Alex turned to James, "Why?!"

James shrugged, "Try and get rid of lots of zombies at once. I don't know. It was the military's idea."

"So the military's still functioning?" Alex asked, trying to think of some long term plan.

"Don't know." Lee replied. "Don't care. I wanna get off this road now."

James nodded, "Here's what we're gonna do. Two of us will have to push enough cars out of the way to fit the bus through. One person will drive the bus. The last one will be watching, with a gun, for zombies."

"I don't like that idea." Lee said, "Being outside the bus."

"Got any better ones?" James challenged.

"We could back track and find a new route, take some dirt roads or something." Lee said.

James shook his head, "That'd take too much gas. This is the only way we can do get through this."

Lee groaned, but a moment later, said, "Alright, fine. But I'm the one staying in the bus."

"Wrong again." James said, checking his gun.

"So," Jefferson asked, curious, "Who's on first?"

"What's on second." James gestured to Jefferson and Lee, "You two are the strongest out of the four of us. You're moving the cars. I'm outside with you, watching your backs. Alex is driving."

Jefferson shrugged, nodding. Alex wasn't about to disagree with this situation; he certainly feels the most safe. Lee looks like he's about to test his luck, but James already pushed the 'open door' button, stepping out into the street. Jefferson followed him, and after a moment of angry glaring, Lee parked the bus and then got up to go with them.

Alex took a deep breath and sat down in the driver's seat. He took a moment to appreciate how tall he was from this spot. He felt like he could see everything. The world was still big and vast, but he could see what was coming next, and it gave him a sense of security.

He watched as James climbed on top of a van that was off to the side. He looked through his scope and made sure the area was clear, before he started instructing the other two where to move the cars.

Silently, Alex thought that James would be stronger than Lee. He wondered why James always felt the need to be the one keeping watch. Maybe he felt some responsibility to ensure that everyone was safe. If someone else had that job, they might not do good enough, and someone could die from it. Or maybe James just liked being the one holding the gun. But that didn't sound much like the James Madison he knew. Maybe he just didn't want Lee to have a gun, when everyone else was preoccupied. That might be more right. He was probably looking too intensely into the subject.

It came to Alex's realization that this would not be a quick task. Jefferson and Lee were having some difficulty pushing the bigger cars, even when they were able to turn them on and put them in neutral. Although, it appeared as though most of them couldn't turn on, which only made the process longer.

Well, since Alex had the opportunity to, he was certainly going to enjoy the view. The three men before him weren't unattractive, by any means. Alex has always known he was bi; he didn't have some big realization or a gay panic. He remembers when he was a little kid, he'd pick flowers for both the cute girls and his buddies at recess. It wasn't ever an issue, and so he's grown to be very comfortable with his sexuality.

So, yeah, Alex ogled the pretty boys while they worked. He scaled them on attractiveness:

Lee was the least attractive, in Alex's opinion. Although, most of that just had to do with his personality, and the fact that Alex already worked with him for years. The guy's a dick, but he's at least a semi-cute dick. Alex admires his hair style - a long emo fridge and buzzed on the sides. He doesn't think that he could pull off the same look. It suited Lee. And Alex had seen Lee when he was stumbling and embarrassed before - that was a beautiful sight. The guy may not be attractive 90% of the time, but those few moments when he was failing at impressing his crush? That shit's adorable.

Sucks for Lee that his crush was already taken by Herc.

James was next. He was an unconventional kind of cute. Alex knew that he was smart, strong, and kind; but he also had seen him propose the most idiotic ideas, drop a ten-pound box of files because he didn't want to carry it, and flat-out ignore Alexander when he was trying to have a civil conversation. In this way, he was complex. There's nothing Alexander loves more than complexity. And as Alex has come to recently know, James thrives in a position of leadership. He takes on a certain tone of voice that makes even Alexander's thoughts halt for a moment.

Where Lee is ugly because of his personality, James is attractive due to his.

Alex's gaze slides to Jefferson, who was straining against a truck, trying to force it out of the way. Alex could see how his muscles contracted under his tight shirt. His sweaty hair stuck to his forehead as he worked.

And then there was Jefferson.

Physically, he was the most attractive man on the team. That went without saying, and yet, Alex felt the need to say it anyway. He was hot. Beautiful. A sexual god walking on earth, one might describe. His skin was so smooth, with a delicious color as an added bonus. His hair gave Alex the strange need to touch it. If they met at a different time, if Alex wasn't married, Alex would definitely try to coax this man into his bed.

But he was a stranger. Alex knew next to nothing about this man. He'd known Lee and James for years, but had just met Jefferson a few days ago. He was incredibly pretty; could be a model that doesn't use photoshop, easily. He was smart, as he'd shown in conversation with James. But also kind of clueless, Alex mentally added, as he thought of the condom thing. And that's really all Alex knew about him. Alex wasn't naive enough to believe his attraction for the man was anything more than physical. It's the kind of attraction that would fade the longer Alex spends around him; once he gets used to such a divine beauty. Like he said; eye candy. That's all it was.

However… There was more there; something that Alex couldn't quite put his finger on. But he was … curious. Intrigued. Something about Jefferson drew the eye. He was more than just a pretty face, Alex could tell. He just wasn't sure what the more was yet. But Alex loved a good mystery; and he's willing to figure this one out.

All those thoughts aside, Alex would never pursue anything with these men. They were stuck together as a team in a horrible situation and that was it. Alex was still devote to his wife - even if she died in Maine with his children. Besides that, they're fighting to stay alive, not trying to get into each other's pants.

Still, eye candy is eye candy; and Alex has a huge sweet tooth.

James shouted something that Alex couldn't really hear, but he thinks it was 'Move forward', so Alex started up the bus and slowly crept forward the little path they'd made for him. It was narrow, and Alex wasn't used to driving such a big vehicle, but he knew he had to make it work. James was on top of one of the vans on the left side, watching as Alex tried to make it through the passageway. Jefferson and Lee were struggling to hold a car out of the way, hissing curses as they pushed. When Alex was about halfway through the carnage, he heard the sharp crack of bullets flying through the air. He twisted around, looking at James, who was shooting behind them.

"Keep going!" James shouted, his expression furious. Alex looked through the rearview mirror to see something that made his stomach drop. It wasn't just one or two zombies. Not even a dozen. Alex hadn't seen this many disgusting, undead monsters since New York. Alex has no idea where they manifested, but they were only two hundred meters behind them. And they were running, right towards them.

Alex pressed down a bit more on the gas, speeding up his movement as well as he could. Jefferson let out a shout, and Alex looked over to see Lee was no longer beside him. Jefferson struggled against the car he was holding by himself, his veins popping. Where the fuck was Lee?

Alex jolted at the sharp pound against the bus door. Expecting zombies, Alex tensed when he glanced over, but it wasn't an undead violent monster, it was a selfish idiot.

Lee pounded on the bus door, stumbling to keep moving with him. He looked over at the approaching zombies, shouting at Alex.

"Let me in! Open the door! Open the door!"

To open the door, Alex would have to stop the bus, which means they'd be stuck even longer. Alex shook his head and kept creeping forward. Lee glanced between him and the zombies before cussing louding and sprinting ahead of them. He ran away from the bus, away from the zombies, towards Albany.

Not a second later, Alex made it out of the pathway, into the open. He threw the bus door open, watching as the zombies grew closer and closer. His heart was pounding with barely-held-back panic. Lee halted as he heard Jefferson let go of the car, sending it crashing back in place. He turned back around, and after a second of hesitation, sprinted back to the bus.

James was standing by the door, quickly ushering Jefferson inside. He climbed on after, and immediately shouted, "Close the door!"

"But Lee-" Alex started.

"Fuck Lee!" James smashed the 'Close Door' button and shouted, "Drive!"

Alex obeyed, slamming on the gas. Jefferson was thrown off-balance, crashing in the aisle. James held onto Alex's seat as they burned rubber. The first zombies had just reached the back of the bus when Alex sped away.

Lee jumped out of the way of the bus, only to immediately run after it, waving his arms and shouting. Alex glanced in the rearview as Lee's steps stumbled on debris. He fell to the ground and curled up in a ball. Alex looked away as his body disappeared in a pile of zombies.

Alex drove them up the ramp, heading north, around the city. From their spot above, they could see the utter wreck that was once a New York's capital. Nearly every building was partially, or completely, destroyed. There were burn marks on the walls that survived. The place appeared deserted, aside from the occasional zombie bumping around the rubble.

James had turned to help Jefferson stand up, checking to make sure he was okay. It appeared as though everyone in the bus was fine, no injuries or bites. They were all just exhausted and a bit shaken.

Alex's body felt numb, his mind unnaturally blank as he tried to focus on keeping the bus straight. His knuckles were gripping the wheel so tightly they were shaking. He doesn't even know why he was so upset. He didn't even like Lee. And yet.

"Was- was that necessary?" Alex finally asked, far too long later.

James and Jefferson didn't make it that far into the bus, too exhausted to move. They were sitting in the first two seats, right behind Alex. James' face was hard and emotionless. He spoke clearly, leaving no room for argument, "He wouldn't have made it in time. The zombies would have reached the bus first. It was him or us."

"But-"

James stood up, gripping Alex's seat, he nearly shouted, "Lee was a coward, he would rather run and save his own ass than help the rest of us! He deserved what he got!"

Alex wanted to twist around and argue, just for the sake of arguing. Because he was good at arguing. It was something that he enjoyed doing. But there was no fight in him right now. He just swallowed and grit his teeth. Hell, a part of him even agreed with James. But in this moment, so soon after the affair, it didn't feel right. And Alex couldn't quite place why.

James ran a hand over his face, turning and stalking to the back of the bus. Once he was out of earshot, Jefferson leaned forward a bit. Alex noticed the other man's hands were shaking violently as well, his eyes a bit wide.

"I told you." Jefferson said, his voice a bit breathless, "Number One."

Jefferson slowly got up and followed James to the back of the bus. Alex swallowed hard and wondered when they'd decide he was too much hassle to keep around. Would he receive the same treatment as Lee? Or would they grace him with a bullet?

Tell me what ya think!