AN: This is my first fanfiction ever so please bear with me. I'm not sure how this story will turn out because as you can see it is a work in progress. I will try to update at least once a week (sometimes more if I get the chance). For some reason I am not very good at working this site, but I guess I will get the hang of it eventually. Other than that, please enjoy and review! Feedback is always welcome
I dump my clothes from my bag, creating a pile of dirty and folding the clean. Most of it is surprisingly clean. I peal my clothes from my sweaty body and toss them in the dirty pile. I grab a pair of shorts and a loose gray tank top to put on instead, hoping it is cool enough in the relentless Georgia heat. I have to go out hunting today and it would be nice to feel like you aren't going to melt, but I don't think that is avoidable, unfortunately.
"Hey Lisa!" I call up the stairs of the house we have managed to stay safe in for the past month.
"Yeah?" she asks, leaning over the railing.
"Can you please do my laundry? I have to go on the hunting trip, but I swear I will do yours for the rest of the week."
"No problem," the young blonde agrees, swinging her legs over the railing and landing softly on a step. I roll my eyes, knowing I would probably kill myself attempting that. I hand over the pile and smile gratefully.
I turn and head down a hallway and knock on one of the doors to find Drew staring back at me once the door opens.
"Hey Ange, ready to go?" he asks.
"If you two are," I reply while catching a glimpse of Shawn tying his hiking boots on the bottom bunk and grabbing his bow and sling of arrows.
"Is Val coming too?"
"Is that even a question?" my twin sister asks, popping up behind me. I gasp, startled and turn to the grinning redhead.
"You really need to stop doing that," I groan, pushing past her.
"Sorry, I always forget how jumpy you are," she giggles, leaping onto my back. I let her stay on as I grab my backpack from the kitchen table. Her bouncy red curls tickle my cheek as she slides off. The weird thing about Valerie and I is that even though we are fraternal twins, our hair colors are complete opposites. You would think being any sort of twin would result in hair similarities, but no. She is a natural red head with curls and I am a natural blond with wavy hair. Our age is the only thing that hints we are twins. I don't mind because I like having a face of my own. I feel like it defines me more than just my personality. I want people to clearly know who Angela is and who Valerie is, rather than switch it up constantly.
The four of us head to a silver, 2012 SUV that is parked on the curb near the house. I clutch my gun and my knife is tucked away in a sheath that is strapped to my upper thigh in easy reach. I am an excellent knife thrower and not a bad shot with a gun.
There is no sign of any biters nearby, but we are still cautious. When our group found this neighborhood, it was crawling with the awful things. We used knifes and any pointy object to take out sections of them one at a time so that we wouldn't attract too many more with the noise of guns. Our hand to hand combat also improved drastically as did our number of ammo clips. We managed to clear out a whole street, but not without casualties. Our group of twenty dropped to twelve. It was devastating. From there we picked a house that would fit the rest of us and have been living there ever sense.
I slide into the passenger side while Drew gets behind the wheel. Since we are in a development, we have to drive a little farther to get to a good hunting area. It takes about fifteen minutes to get to a suitable place to get out and start looking for food. We have already scavenged what was left of the food in the houses that we cleared, but there wasn't much that was edible. Fresh meat is better than the canned stuff anyway.
"Whose turn is it to watch the car today?" Shawn asks.
"Mine," I say as we all climb out of the car. "You guys have an hour. Now go."
The three slip into the woods stealthily, Drew and Shawn with bows and Val with her knives. She's almost as good as I am with them.
I check my watch and note that they have been gone for twenty minutes when I hear a raspy gurgling noise. Two walkers have wandered onto the road. They haven't seen me yet so I crouch down, knife in hand. They are about fifty feet away from me so, keeping low to the ground; I move to open the passenger door. I hold my breath as I open the door, a soft clicking sound permeating the peaceful air. Luckily, the pair doesn't notice and I open the glove compartment without a problem. I take out the spare knife and straighten. The one with half of its cheek missing spots me and starts to lunge forward with jerky movements, its growls sounding eager. I act quickly and whip my knife forward, nailing it in the eye. The body drops to the ground with a thud and before the other idiot can react, I have implanted the other knife firmly in her skull. I hurry to the bodies and pull out the embedded knives. Then I drag the carcasses off to the side of the road so they won't be in the way when we turn around.
The next thirty five minutes are uneventful. I sit on the hood of the car, ropes in hand in case the need to tie any big game to the roof should arise. I get a little antsy when ten more minutes have gone by and the others still haven't showed.
"C'mon Val," I whisper. Relief washes through me when I see three approaching figures and I recognize them to be Val, Drew, and Shawn. They are all hauling a large buck. The game bag is slung over Val's shoulder and she looks like she is struggling with that and the weight of the buck so I race over to help her. "Awesome catch guys!" I squeal in excitement.
"Yeah, well, your sister is the one with the precise aim," Shawn praises warmly.
I raise an eyebrow. "Yeah?"
"It was her first time using a bow too," Drew grins at me.
I frown slightly. "You risked her missing the shot on this big guy on her first try?" I ask, not too happy about this.
"Well, she was actually aiming at a rabbit, but she missed and then she saw the buck," Shawn explains, still looking at her in awe.
"I can teach you how to use a bow, too if you want," Drew adds, looking at me eagerly. I smile and shrug, not really sure how that would work out.
"Thanks for the confidence in me, sis," Val pouts playfully and sticks her tongue out at me.
"Are you sure you're twenty-two?" I ask her and duck as a fist comes flying.
"Alright you two, lets tie up this deer and head back before my shoulder is ripped from its socket because Val keeps jerking this damn deer around," Drew laughs.
"Oops," she giggles and soon we have it tied and are on our way back home.
"Four rabbits," I think aloud. "Not too bad with the buck."
We pull up to the curb and out run Lisa and Camryn.
"Wow," breathes Lisa, impressed by the massive buck.
"I don't want to be the one responsible to cook that," Camryn says, putting her hands on her hips.
We all laugh, but I put in, "We can all help. Here," I toss the game bag to the eighteen year old, "Start skinning these." She makes a face, but walks back near the house to start the gruesome process.
"Get Luke to help you!" shouts Val, winking, but Camryn just blushes furiously and quickens her pace. I smack Val on the arm.
"Hey!" she yelps.
"Don't be so loud," I say through my teeth. She slaps a hand over her mouth and I mutter, "Too late genius," as we all cast nervous glances around. As we walk to the front steps of the house I remember to add, "Oh yeah, I killed two walkers that had found their way to the road, but they weren't a problem."
"That's because that had to deal with a knife wielding badass like you," smiles Drew. I just roll my eyes at the twenty-four year old and nudge his shoulder with my own. Shawn and Val drag the deer to the skinning pit in the fenced in back yard. The "skinning pit" is really a sand box, but we always douse it with bleach when we are done so we don't attract biters with the smell of any left-over blood and guts. We burn any inedible remains in the fire to also eliminate the threat of more biters. Drew and I walk into the kitchen just as the door opens once more. Bo, Mark, and Jesse are back from patrolling our street.
"Took out a few strays," Jesse updates us, referring to the biters.
"I'll go tell Sandy and Logan that it's their turn to patrol," Drew offers. I nod and turn to head for the stairs. Bo joins me.
"Where are you going?" she asks curiously.
I make a face and say, "Folding laundry."
"Can I help?" she offers and I smile gratefully.
"That would be great. If you are tired after your patrol though, why don't you go take a rest?" I suggest. Bo is always trying to help which is amazing, but I want her to think of herself too.
"I'm not tired," she murmurs.
"Are you alright?" I ask her as we attack the clothes spilled all over the floor. Four girls share this room, and today was laundry day so I decided to clean up the mess rather than let it just sit here. "I've noticed you and your brother haven't been talking much lately. Not to be nosy or anything," I add hastily to the end of my comment.
"Well," she sighs, folding one of Lisa's t-shirts and setting it off to the side, "I never had a problem with Sandy before, but ever since Logan and she got together, I just feel like he has been distant towards me recently."
"That's probably because they are in there "honeymoon" phase," I remind Bo, trying to be helpful. "He will snap out of it, believe me. That would happen every time Val got a boyfriend too."
"Have you had many boyfriends?" Bo wonders aloud.
I laugh softly, "Not nearly as many as Val." We finish folding the clothes and I pack mine into my bag. I always am prepared for that one day we have to make a hasty getaway so I want all of my stuff ready to go at a moment's notice. Suddenly, there is a lot of banging downstairs and plenty of shouting to match the amount of banging. Bo and I bolt upright and sprint down the stairs without thinking twice. Sandy is standing in the kitchen, talking quite loudly with a tear streaked face.
"We have to go," she chokes out, "They came out of nowhere and are headed this way." That's when I hear a frighteningly familiar scream.
"Val!"
I race outside to see chaos everywhere. Gunshots ring out as a hoard of biters come lumbering through, ripping down the fence. I see my sister, trying to free her foot from a hole in the ground with a few rocks that we had been meaning to fix, but never got around to. I am about to race to her side when Drew pulls her free and pushes her in my direction. I grab her wrist and haul her to the house, seeing Drew yanking Shawn by his shirt collar. Luke and Camryn have their guns out and we all run up to throw down our bags. Val slings hers cross body style over her and I just grip mine with one free hand while my backpack stays where it belongs.
"Got the front!" yells Luke.
"Covering the sides!" I shout.
"Bringing up the rear!" calls Drew. We make it out the front door to see the throng of dead bodies everywhere.
"How do we get to the car?" I ask, trying not to panic. That's when Mark squeezes past us and sprints for the vehicles.
"Dad!" Camryn screams as her father heads for the truck. He doesn't get too far before a mass of dead bodies envelop him and his pained shrieks are carried in our direction.
Camryn lunges forward, but Luke pulls her back, and tells her firmly, "He's gone, Cam, we can't do anything for him." Camryn sobs loudly and I hiss, "We need to get to those cars before we are permanently screwed."
"Just shoot and run," Sandy says in a strained voice. We take her advice and clear a path to one vehicle. Drew and Shawn reach the SUV first and immediately roll down the windows to open fire on the walking dead. Bo, who was previously gripping my wrist, lets go and starts to make a break for it down the road.
"Bo!" I scream.
"I'm finding Logan!" she screams back. I know it's pointless to race after her, but Sandy must not care because she books it after Bo.
"Sandy!" yells Val, dumbfounded. We are both yanked forward by a yelling Luke who shoves us into the SUV and slams the door closed. He, Camryn, and Lisa get into the Volkswagen behind us and start to drive. Val and I stick our bodies out the window to mow down a path for our car.
"Oh my god!" I gasp.
"What?!" Val asks, wide-eyed. "What did we forget?"
"It's not a what…" I trail off turning around. Jesse is sprinting to us, but gets caught by two biters who sink their teeth into her arm and back. Her wailing can be heard over the hungry growls. Val covers her face with her hands in disbelief. I am wracked with guilt. How could I let this happen? I am the leader! Our two cars break away from the pack of zombies and we floor it down the main street, nearly hitting another one.
"Jesus!" shouts Shawn. He gives Drew a dirty look that shoots him an apologetic one.
"It came out of nowhere," Drew tries.
"It doesn't matter, we missed it," I cut in, my voice strained. "We need to find a relatively safe place to pull over and plan our next move. About thirty minutes later, Drew pulls over on a cracked road with a few abandoned cars.
"I don't know how safe this looks," Val warns. Shawn comes over and puts an arm around her shoulders.
"It will have to do for now. We really need to talk."
Luke, Camryn, and Lisa all exit their car and join us as the hood of ours. I spread out a map and point to Atlanta.
"I think Atlanta is our best shot right now. We can siphon more fuel from these cars if there is any left to make it for the journey there and back if we can't stay. I heard the city is supposed to be safe. It would have plenty of weapons, more food than we have seen in a month, and people." The last word makes our eyes widen. We had a fairly large group, but always being around the same people can get old when people start to argue over stupid things.
"And if it isn't safe?" Luke asks.
"Then we move on," I say simply. "I think it's worth the risk, how about all of you?" Everyone's head slowly nods, but Camryn finally speaks up from her stunned silence. Losing her father was completely unexpected.
"I don't know how I feel about this," she says, her voice sounding surprisingly firm. "It could be over run and then what? We lose more of us from those assholes, or other desperate people trying to make a life."
"It's a risk that needs to be taken. Right now we are exposed. More than before. We need to make some sort of plan to keep us moving so we can avoid the hoard of them back there. It will be dark in a few hours so why don't we go through these cars and see what we can find. Any weapons would be extremely helpful and we do need food." Right when I say that, my stomach rumbles. I give a halfhearted smile. "Let's do it."
Drew and Shawn start on the extra gas while the rest of us start going through the cars. It's strange because there aren't any signs of a struggle like blood or any other remains. The cars are clean of body parts and their doors are open wide.
"Maybe someone already went through these," Lisa mumbles.
"I don't think so," says Val, pointing to a red suitcase in the back of a truck. "This isn't opened. Whoever these people were, it seems like they just left."
"Why are there only seven cars though? Why isn't the whole street filled?" Luke asks. I just shrug and head to a blue minivan. Snack wrappers litter the floor and seats. I find a tie dye backpack and unzip the first pocket. It holds an unopened package of two chap sticks which I put into my own backpack. I find some spare pads, bug spray, an ace bandage, and two pillows. I pull the covers off the pillows, not knowing what could be on them. Someone in this car was my size because I pull out two t-shirts that fit me and a pair of jean shorts. I am mostly excited over a pair of fuzzy socks and some plaid pajama shorts. A two person tent is also packed in the back.
Val comes up next to me as I sort through more items. "It's so weird how all of this stuff was left behind, don't you think?"
"Yeah, but we need this. We lost almost everything back at the house. We are lucky we got our bags, but not everyone had our luck." She just nods and goes back to the car she was going through. "Hey, Val?" I whisper. She looks back at me questioningly.
"Do you think Atlanta is a good idea?"
"I think it's the best option we have right now."
We find some more clothes and Shawn is especially thrilled over a tube of Neosporin. We also find four pillows and three sleeping bags, along with a six person tent which is even better than the two-person. The only weapon found by Drew is a pistol with two rounds left, but we keep it anyway. Our dinner is going to be a can of corn, peaches, and green beans.
When we load everything into the back of the cars, we head off to Atlanta which is two hours away from here. The map lies on my lap as I direct Drew on which roads to turn on to while Shawn and Val sit in the back. I glance behind me to see that the two have fallen asleep. Luke, Lisa, and Camryn all follow behind us.
"It's going to be dark soon," I murmur to Drew. He sighs and honks the horn once to signal to Luke that we need to pull over.
"Why are we stopping?" Lisa asks, yawning.
"We need to stop for the night," I tell her. I take out my knife and start to open the cans. Drew goes to wake the others.
When we finish eating, we all sit in a circle on the road. "Looks like we will be sleeping in the cars tonight," Shawn points out. Camryn groans and I roll my eyes. That girl complains about everything.
"The back seats in our car recline back," I tell Val and Shawn. The two nod and stand. I get up too and stretch. "I'll take the first watch," I volunteer, hoisting myself up on the SUV.
"Wake me in a few hours," Drew says as the others head to the cars to sleep. I nod curtly and turn my attention to the empty road. I feel slightly on edge being so close to the woods, but I suck it up and try to stay alert and not let my mind wander. I couldn't sleep now, even if I wanted to.
About an hour later, I hear someone climb up to the top of the car. I tense, but relax when I realize it's just Val. "Hey," she greets softly.
"I thought you were tired," I respond.
"I can't sleep when I don't feel safe."
"I know the feeling," I tell her. There is a small silence that stretches out between us, but it's comfortable.
"Do you remember when we would all go camping as a family?" she asks suddenly.
"Oh my gosh, yes!" I giggle, remembering when we all came back with poison oak, except for my little brother Cody.
"I remember when my old boyfriend Jack came with us," she laughed.
"That was so embarrassing when he walked in on me changing! How do you not remember what color your tent is?"
Val's smile stretches wider. "I dumped his sorry ass when we got home. I knew he didn't forget which tent was ours. He just wanted to see a girl naked." For the next two hours we just sit and reminisce about the good times. Drew eventually takes our place.
I wake to the sound of arguing outside the car. I hear Camryn tell Drew, "Why does it matter if I stay? Take care of yourselves and leave me out of this. I'm not going to Atlanta."
Drew's voice comes floating through the glass window as he says, "Cam, we need you! Atlanta could be good for us!"
"You don't need me and I certainly don't need any of you!" That's all it takes for me to swiftly exit the car. I go stand next to Val and Shawn who fill me in. Camryn just really doesn't want to go to Atlanta with us and would rather risk it on her own.
"Please Cam," Luke pleads, reaching for her wrist. She yanks her arm away before he can get a hold of her.
"Don't touch me. My choice has been made. I'm leaving." Lisa stands off to the side with tears streaming down her face. Lisa and Camryn had been best friends even before the apocalypse.
"I-I'm going with y-you," she stutters.
"No Lisa, you need to stay with the group. You need to be safe."
"Why do you get to run off then?! I WANT to go with you! But you just want me gone." Camryn sighs and goes to give her a hug, but Lisa pushes her away. "Don't talk to me ever again," she hisses and marches to her car and slams the door. Camryn shakes her head sadly.
"I'll get my stuff," she whispers. I walk with her to the back of the car Lisa is sitting in, still bawling her eyes out. I wordlessly hand over the pistol we found yesterday. "I have one," she mumbles, but I still hand it out to her.
"I filled it with more ammo. Use it wisely. You might need it. I also have another map for you. Sorry we don't have any more food." Camryn just looks at me with her mud-brown eyes. They glisten with tears and she nods, knocking a few loose strands of hair from her bun.
"Angela..." she trails off.
"Luke will want to say goodbye," I tell her softly and she nods once. Camryn and I were never close and even though her complaining always bothered me, she was still part of the group whether she is leaving or not. I turn to watch her and Luke embrace and say a few inaudible words. He leans over and kisses her cheek sadly. Everyone else says goodbye and Camryn walks back over in an attempt to say goodbye to Lisa, but Lisa won't have it. Shawn and Drew clean out a car in the middle of the road and hot wire it so she can drive it. They give her some of the siphoned fuel.
We all get back into our cars and follow Camryn down the road until there is a split in it. She takes a left and we continue straight. She honks once in a final farewell. Now it is just the six of us.
About an hour into the journey, our stomachs growl in hunger.
"Hey, look," Val points toward the looming city up ahead. "We are here."
Cars are all crammed together on the road leading out of the city which I think is weird. The road going into it is almost completely clear.
"Were they evacuating?" Shawn asks in disbelief.
"I have a bad feeling about this…" I say, my stomach clenching in fear. "Is that horse crap over there?" I point, furrowing my brow in confusion.
"Who the hell would ride a horse into a city?" Drew wonders aloud.
"Look, I know we will be crammed, but I want all of us in the same car right now," I tell them. There are three seats in the back, they just have a crap ton of stuff. Val leans back to shove more of it in the very back.
"Make sure I can see out of that back window," Drew warns her. We manage to clear out one seat and pull over.
"What's going on?" Luke asks. Val and Shawn get out to make room.
"We are all piling into the same car. Get your stuff," Shawn tells them. Val and Shawn make a few more adjustments and soon we have everything and everyone inside.
Suddenly we hear loud, echoing gunshots ring out from the eerily quiet city.