10K was running through a forest. He was running as fast as he could. His lungs burned and begged him to stop, but he couldn't. It was getting harder to breathe and see. Black soot filled his lungs and eyes. The forest was on fire.

Warren and Addy were the only ones awake. 10K and the first to fall asleep. He was sleeping on top of his sleeping bag near the dying campfire. Doc was near him, as usual. He was about three feet from the teen on his own bag. He had a rough but usable blanket on him; he couldn't be in the bag to keep warm because it could limit his movements. Murphy laid away from them on the other side of the fire. Vasquez was even farther than Murphy. Warren and Addy were asleep in the truck bed. They usually had at least one person on watch, but they all fought through a giant horde the day before and were entirely exhausted. Addy rigged up a fence made of cans around the tree line so they would be able to hear the zombies if they attacked. In their peaceful sleeping silence, 10K's face scrunched in fear.

He tripped on a root but managed to regain his footing. He had to keep going. He could hear them following close behind him. He wouldn't be like them. His leg felt heavy. Why are they so heavy? He felt like he was trudging through mud. But he had to keep going. He wasn't going to become one of them, one of the undead.

A groan escaped his unconscious lips. It was covered by the popping of the fire. He curled into himself, No one noticed.

His legs were about to give out from under him. In the distance, he saw a cabin. Finally, something safe. He didn't hesitate to run to it. The front door was unlocked. He busted in, turned, and locked the door behind him. The dead began clawing at the door. That was okay. He could deal with that. He wasn't going to die. He turned back to the cabin. It felt familiar which was weird because he didn't recognize it. Everything was dusty. Picture frames hung on the walls, but a thick layer of dust covered the glass, so he couldn't see the photo. He walked into a nearby room. There was what looked like a couch, an armchair, and a coffee table covered in white sheets. An empty fireplace sat in the center. It appeared that no one had been here for years. At least that meant that he was alone… right?

He shivered. He had broken out in a sweat. He grumbled again. No one noticed.

10K decided to explore the cabin. He left what he assumed was the living room and walked down a hallway. The wooden walls, though dirty, just seemed so familiar . But why? There were three doors with two on the right and one on the left. He came to the first door on the right. He opened it, and then it clicked. It was his old bedroom. The bed, the picture he drew taped on the wall, the pile of unfinished math homework he had no idea how to do, it was all there, just dirty, dusty, and gray. He realized he was in the old cabin he lived in with his dad in Maine. But why was it so dirty? He wasn't gone that long, had he? Then he heard shuffling in the next room. His parents' room. He wasn't alone.

10K whimpered and tossed over. Doc's sleeping bag started to rustle.

He wasn't alone. He wasn't alone. He wasn't alone. Someone else was here. Was it more Z's? He wasn't sure. He reached for his back only to find he had no gun. Great. He reached for his boot for his knife, but it was gone as well. When he looked back up, he wasn't in his room anymore. He was standing in front of his parents' room. He heard his mother's voice, "I hate you!" He heard a gunshot.

Tears started streaming down his face.

His parents' door creaked open by itself. His mother, a thin pale woman with short black and stained brown housecoat, laid face-down, dead on his parents' bed. A gun rested in her right hand. A pool of blood streamed out of her head. A grunt caused 10K to peel his eyes away from her. A window lined his parents' wall. It was translucent. He could see silhouettes of zombies pounding on the glass. But what was worse was where the grunt came from. A dark figure of a tall and broad man stood in the room. It spoke, "Why would you do this to me? How could you do this to me?" It was his father.

10K whimpered, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

The shadowy man rushed towards him, "How could you do this to me, Tommy!?" 10K was tackled to the ground. Glass shattered behind him as the zombie finally broke through. The fire from the wood lit up the room. 10K could clearly see him- no it . This thing, this monster, that looked so much like his father was one of the undead with blueish rotting skin and a crossbow bolt in his chest. He wrapped his hand around 10K's neck and started choking him. The boy tried to fight back and pry his father's festering hands off of him, but it wasn't working. The corpse screamed as he drained the boy's life, "Why would you do this to me!? Why didn't you mercy me!?"

10K bolted up. He gulped air as he took in his surroundings. He was still in the camp. The fire was almost out. He ran a sweaty hand down his face. He tried his best to control his breathing. The reminiscence of the nightmare clung to his aching body. He didn't feel safe. He took a glance at the group and saw Doc. Doc was good. Doc was safe. And he was only a few feet away from him.

Nightmares were nothing new to 10K. He had them often after that fateful night when his mother had gone off the walls bonkers and shot herself with 10K's father begging her at the locked door not to do it. 10K couldn't have been more than seven when he watched the firefighters pry the door open to help the paramedics get to her body. His father tried to shield 10K from seeing her body, but it was too late. He saw everything, and since then, 10K has had nightmares. And every time he did, his father was there and sat beside him. Unfortunately, his father had been dead for nearly three years thanks to the apocalypse, so Doc would have to do.

10K got up and dragged his sleeping bag next to Doc. He plopped down on it. It felt better. Though it was away from the fire, so it was colder. 10K turned on his side so he was facing Doc. He closed his eyes to try to go back asleep. Then Doc asked him, "You okay, kid?"

10K opened his eyes quickly. He looked at Doc's face to find the old man awake and very concerned. 10K whispered, "I had a nightmare."

Doc said, "I'm sorry, bud," he lifted the corner of his blanket up, "You look cold."

10K sniffed, wiped his face with his hand, and scooted under the blanket. Doc wrapped him in it. 10K buried himself in Doc's chest. He breathed in his scent. Doc was safe. He was safe. Doc covered his arm over the boy, "You're shaking like a leaf." 10K nodded in acknowledgment.

After a beat of silence, Doc quietly said, "What was it about?"

10K stayed silent. Doc tried, "Come on kid. I'm a certified psychiatrist. This is what I'm here for."

10K muttered, "Some Z's were chasing me through some woods. Everything was on fire," he took a deep breath before he continued, "They chased me back to my old house. And then I was in front of my parents' room. I heard my mom kill herself, again."

Doc said, "Again? I'm so sorry, 10K."

He shook his head, "Don't be. That happened a long time ago, it was pre-Z," he sighed and continued, "And then I saw my dad. He had turned."

"Kid…"

Tears started pouring again. They were soaking Doc's shirt. 10K tried, "He was yelling at me," his voice cracked, "He was so mad."

Doc asked, "What was he mad about?"

10K whimpered, "He was mad that I didn't mercy him," he sobbed, "At the beginning, he got bit. He told me to kill him. We didn't know you needed a headshot to mercy them. I shot him in the chest and left him. He's probably still there."

Doc rubbed the teen's back, "It's alright. You didn't know any better. Besides, maybe he didn't turn."

It was false hope, 10K knew, but he sincerely hoped that was the case. If not, he wasn't sure his father would ever forgive him.

Doc continued, "What else happened in your dream?"

He cried, "He tried to kill me."

10K buried himself deeper in Doc's chest. 10K didn't want to talk anymore and Doc noticed, though 10K wasn't sure how unless it had something to do with his pre-Z therapist job. They kept comfortable silence. It calmed 10K down. He stopped shaking and relaxed to their touch. He listened to their surroundings. The wind brushed the treetops and caused them to sway peacefully. He closed his eyes. He was safe, or as safe as you can be in the zombie apocalypse. He fell back into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, Addy was shaken awake. She cracked open her eyes and saw Warren. She yawned, "Good morning."

Warren replied, "Good morning. We gotta get up. They'll be puppies and kittens here before we know it."

Addy sat up and stretched her back. She climbed up, rolled her bedroll back up, and jumped out of the truck bed with the bag rolled under her armpit. She glanced around the camp. She saw Warren walk over to Murphy and wake him up as well. Vasquez woke up by himself at that same time as if he had a feeling whenever his prisoner moved. She shook her head and looked over near the now completely dead fire where 10K was- no, where he should have been.

She was going to panic when she looked slightly over to where Doc was, and her heart melted. She called back, "Warren! Check this out!"

Warren hurried over, thinking there was danger, "What is it?"

Addy point at Doc and 10K. She cooed, "Look how cute they are."

Warren looked, and a smile broke across her face. Doc and 10K were still sharing a blanket. They were facing each other. 10K was laying on Doc's arm. He just looked so innocent.

Murphy and Vasquez were up and about. They also looked to see what the hubbub was. Murphy groaned, "Come on people! I'm not about to become some Z chow all because you won't wake up the old man." He walked over to Doc and kicked his shoulder with his foot.

Doc slowly woke up, "What? Puppies and kittens?"

Murphy said, "There will be soon. Get up!"

Doc looked over at his number arm. He used his free hand to shake 10K, "Come on, kid. We gotta get moving."

10K groaned as he opened his eyes. He sighed before he sat up grumpily. He got up, grabbed his gun off the ground nearby, and walked into the woods to relieve himself. Warren helped Doc up as she barretted Murphy, "I wasn't talking about Doc, Murphy!"

Addy added, "Didn't you see 10K?"

Murphy shrugged sarcastically, "Yeah, I love watching other grown men sleep. It's my favorite pastime. No, I didn't see him! Or at least not closely."

Addy explained, "He looked so cute."

"Innocent," Warren added, "He looked young."

Doc was still standing there, "That's 'cause he still is, Warren."

Murphy grumbled, "Not this again."

Doc snapped, "He still fucking is, Murphy. He's only 17. Would you say you were a grown adult when you were 17?"

Murphy crossed his arms. When he thought about it, he wasn't, not really. He was still an acne-covered string bean whose voice only recently dropped. As much as he wanted to say he was mature, he would be lying. He tried to take the attention off of himself, "Why were you sleeping like that anyway?"

Doc answered, "Kid had a nightmare. Said it was something about his parents."

They all took a glance around each other. That wasn't good. They would have to keep a better eye on him.

10K came back and started to help Vasquez pack up the camp. Afterward, they loaded everything in the back of the truck. The rest hopped in their usual seats. Addy kept an eye on 10K in their shared truck bed space. He looked tired. She decided she would ask him about his dream later. She would also try to keep close to him the next night. She would be there for him like she should have been for her little brother if the apocalypse hadn't taken him away.