Sanders Sides AU August

What's Left [Prinexity]

AU: Apocalypse

TW: Swearing

WC: 2044

Date: 8/5/2021

"You're so crafty they said, you would be great to have around in an emergency they said," Virgil huffed as he continued to shift the trash to get to the parts that he needed. He was out looking for medical supplies, always a rare commodity, but he would settle for a few electronics he could strip. Honestly, Virgil had not been expecting to see the white plastic of a first aid kit buried in the pile he had been searching.

Pushing himself up the pile, he grimaced, his leg aching with the effort. Searching trash heaps wasn't always a safe occupation. He had done the best he could to patch himself up but he really needed some good bandages and maybe an antiseptic.

"What they forgot was that I have scrawny noodle arms!" Pulling things out of the pile was even more difficult without being able to put his weight on his leg, but he finally got the plastic container out, only for the pile to shift under him. He cursed.

In the past few years, the world had gone to hell. Turns out zombies were not only real but the virus that caused them could spread pretty fast. It was only Virgil's caution that kept him safe during the initial wave. The hoard spread quickly through society, especially towns like the one he lived in, but the infection also burned itself out pretty quickly. After taking its toll on the world, it faded into only a few cases, and those were fairly easily contained.

But society had suffered a destruction they couldn't easily come back from. Now Virgil was just trying to survive. He found a lot of what he needed in landfills, canned foods that could still be eaten, parts that could be used for purifiers, and a number of other things. It was disgusting, yes, but it kept him alive.

At least, it normally did. This time he had taken the risk and climbed a pile while his leg was still healing. Now, for his stupidity, he was either going to land on something that killed him, suffocate in a pile of garbage, or somehow survive but be miserable until he could find a place to clean off. Honestly, he wasn't sure which was preferable.

Virgil closed his eyes, resigned to his fate until he felt two muscular arms catch him and sweep him away from the falling trash. "You have to be careful there."

What was going on? Did he really just get saved? Maybe if he kept his eyes closed this would all go away. Other people were dangerous, they normally had an agenda and when life was on the line, a lot of scruples failed. Virgil took in a shaky breath, but the man did not go away. Slowly opening his eyes, he looked up at a man with dark skin and even darker hair. He had a gleaming smile and Virgil felt his heart skip a beat. He was handsome. His arms felt strong and protective, maybe he could relax just a little bit?

"Nope," Virgil immediately replied as he pushed himself away from the other. "Thank you for catching me, I'm off now."

"Wait," it wasn't a command, there was far too much hope and insecurity in his voice. "I was thinking we could work together for a bit since we're both here?"

"I work alone, Princey."

"Princey, do you think I'm a Prince?" Virgil could hear the smugness in his voice and he already knew playing with this man would be beyond entertaining, teasing him and messing with him, but Virgil wasn't going to get attached. He was trying to shake the blush off of his face. Being alone for so long apparently had made him weak to hot men with kind voices.

He didn't answer the other's question. He was just going to walk off and pretend this never happened, until he tripped again, his leg aching from the stress and strain. For the second time, he found himself caught by strong arms rather than the hard ground.