"Stay here," Rick had told her when they had left the night before. "Glenn, Daryl, and Carol are all gone. Someone needs to be in charge."

Georgie wanted to argue that it was him who should be in charge, not her, but she had learned in the past few years with Rick that arguing didn't get her anywhere. She wished that at least Carl would have stayed back with her, that she knew he was safe too, but even he had managed to convince Rick to let him go on their mission to get Maggie to the doctor at the Hilltop.

Even if she was only a toddler, Judith could feel the tension going through Alexandria right now, almost like a band about to break. At least that's what Georgie thought, since the little girl would not stop crying no matter how much Georgie rocked her or read to her. Beth used to say Judith could sense people's needs. Maybe she could sense that Georgie needed to be by Maggie's side. If she didn't have to take care of Judith and the remainder of Alexandria, Georgie would be crying too.

Several news channels blared all at once, causing a wall of noise and panic rather than informing anyone. Georgie wanted to shut her door and ignore the commotion in the hallways but her roommate was running in and out of the dorm, trying to gather all of her things in a rush, much like everyone else was.

Her phone buzzed on her table as her roommate gave her a final, hurried good bye. The dorms were emptying out quick. Georgie checked the caller ID before answering even though only one person ever called her instead of just texting.

"Hey, Daddy," She said.

"Thank Christ, they're saying half the cell towers are down, I didn't know if I'd get you, sweetheart," Her father said on the other end. His deep baritone, normally steady and with an edge of his ever present cocky attitude was almost quaking. Georgie had only heard it like that once before. It worried her more than the news reports. "Where are you at? Are you safe?"

"I'm still at the dorms, I'm fine," Georgie said. "They canceled classes and everyone is heading home."

"They're goddamn right to," Her father said. "Now listen, Lulu, just get some of your clothes together. I got you a plane ticket back here."

"What?"

"Have you seen the shit that's going on? You need to come back home," Her father said. "It leaves in two hours. Everyone is trying to haul ass somewhere. It's the only flight I could get you on."

"There's no way I can get to the airport, Daddy," Georgie said. "It's chaotic out there. A lot of people who live out of state are going to the Red Cross centers. They say the army has it covered, it won't be like this for long."

"You'll get there," He said. "You gotta get home where you're safe, with me. They don't know shit about how to handle something like this."

"And you do?"

"Georgia Lucille, are you talking back to me?"

Georgie rolled her eyes. Not that she thought that her father would orchestrate this whole ordeal purely to get her back home, but he also had made a huge deal of her going away to college. He had really only let her because she had chosen the college her mother had gone to. When it came to her mother, her father didn't argue. If she was being honest, she missed her father, but he had always been overprotective. Now, she worried, he had a right to be.

"I'm sorry," Georgie said. "I'll find a way there."

"That's my girl," He said. "It leaves at seven from Hartsfield. Be on it. I love-,"

The line died, a dial tone replacing her father's voice. Ever the procrastinator, Georgie had even put off being scared, but that itself seemed like a bad omen.

"You're still here?" Georgie jumped at the sound. She hadn't noticed that nearly everyone in the hall had evacuated during the duration of her call. There was a girl in the doorway, a pretty junior with short brown hair who Georgie recognized as the RA but had never really spoken to outside of getting her room assignment.

"My dad just told me to head out," Georgie said as she got up to gather a bag. "He's a worrier."

"I got a daddy like that too," The RA said. "I'm going home now, I was just making sure everyone was out of here first. You got a ride home?"

"I've got to get the airport," Georgie explained. "I'm going back to Virginia."

The RA pursed her lips for a moment. "Which airport?"

"Hartsfield."

"I can take you," The RA said.

"You don't have to do that. I can find a way there."

"You ain't gonna find a taxi in this mess," She said. "It's on my way anyways, my family's farm is off the highway that direction."

"If you're sure-,"

"I'm very sure," The RA said, with a strong nod.

Georgie finished shoving a few things in her backpack and followed the RA out of her dorm room towards the stairs. As they passed the elevators, she heard the soft buzz of the emergency alarm from inside. But more concerning was the quiet groans, like something was trapped inside that couldn't even yell for help. "You're Georgia Campbell, right?" The RA asked, pulled her attention away from the elevators.

"Georgie, yeah," Georgie corrected as they hurried down the stairs. It seemed like such a normal conversation to be having when she could hear the commotion just outside the windows.

"Georgie, right," The RA said. She jumped the last two steps, opening the door to the afternoon light outside. "I'm right here."

The RA guided her to an old pickup on the sidewalk. People shoved Georgie as they tried to run one way or another. She climbed into the passenger seat, trying to distract herself from the sirens she heard in the distance.

"This is insane," The RA noted, almost under her breath as she started the car. "All this for some disease?"

"They're saying the sick people are attacking doctors and stuff," Georgie said. "I saw a video online, this guy bit an EMT who was trying to help him."

"I'm sure it's just all being blown out of proportion, like the swine flu or whatever," The RA shook her head, flipping on the truck's ancient radio.

"Reports coming in from all over the country about infected patients-,"

Georgie snapped the radio off again. "If you don't mind, I'd rather not hear about it."

"Me neither," The RA said.

They drove in silence, watching the chaos from the safety inside the truck. The airport was only a few miles from the dorms, but when they pulled into the drop off, it was packed with people, all trying to force themselves into the terminal.

"Looks like everyone had the same idea," The RA said. "I don't know if you'll be able to get in."

"I promised my dad," Georgie said, hoisting her backpack onto her shoulder. "Thanks for the ride, though."

The RA looked like she wanted to say something, but Georgie got out of the truck. She stood at the back of the crowd, spotting a man in a TSA uniform. "Excuse me," She said, grabbing his attention. He looked bored, as if this were any other day at his job. "I'm supposed to be on a flight-,"

"We're only taking passengers that're already in the terminal," The agent said. "Ain't taking the chance in case someone is contaminated."

"What?" Georgie said, her stomach sinking. "But I have to get-,"

"Everyone's gotta get somewhere, darlin'," The agent said.

Georgie was about to protest, but a piercing scream shut down any argument she may have had. "What the hell?" She said, stepping back from the crowd to look out onto the drop off. She felt stiff as she watched a woman, her neck bent at an unnatural angle, rip the ear off of the man in front of her with her teeth.

"Christ," The agent said, clearly no longer bored.

A car sped through the glass separating the mob from the terminal, shattering it with a crash, sending shards everywhere. People bloodied their hands trying to get inside, away from the deranged woman. Georgie heard her name, finally restarting her frozen body, finding the RA still in the cab of her truck, waving Georgie back to her frantically.

Georgie had no thoughts in her head other than to run, the image of the flesh hanging from the woman's teeth still fresh in her head. She hopped back into the truck as the RA peeled out of the drop off and back onto the highway.

"Did you see that?" The RA asked. "That woman, she just… She…"

Georgie nodded, her chest heaving. "Thank you, for waiting for me."

"Of course," The RA nodded. "I wasn't about to let you go into that. My daddy won't mind me bringing you home, we can find another way to get you back to Virginia."

Georgie nodded, staring straight out the windshield. The girls sat in traffic, the sound of horns and drivers yelling obscenities poking through the silence. Finally, Georgie said, "I know this is an awkward question seeing as you probably just saved my life, but I honestly don't know your name."

The RA laughed, the sound out of place in the situation they were in. "I'm Maggie."

Voices outside brought Georgie's attention back to the present. She stepped outside onto the porch, Judith on her hip. The Virginia sun nearly blinded her, but she could see everyone gathering by the opening gates. They were back.