I own nothing you recognize, just my OC and plot.
Chapter 1
Lauren Hill sighed as she looked down the bar from her position at the sink. She hated this place but she had bills to pay and jobs were scarce. She had been working at Sal's for three months and the excitement of being a new face had finally faded. Thankfully, most of the customers no longer went out of their way to harass her or offer their "help" adjusting to a new town. Of course, there were still an annoying few, and one of them was the reason for her sudden drop in mood.
"Oooo-whee! Tommy we got lucky tonight! Big Booty Judy is working! Come on over sugar and show Ol' Merle how much ya missed him!"
Lauren rolled her eyes at his entrance and the nickname (her butt was NOT that big) while Tommy flashed her a smile and a wink before settling down at the counter. She hadn't seen either man in awhile and thought she heard a rumor that they were locked up for indecent exposure or something.
"Words can't even express my feelings about seeing you again, Merle. You guys want your usual?" She couldn't help but be sarcastic with such a loud obnoxious man.
"Hell no darlin'! Me an' Tommy here just got ourselves out of the clink on good behavior! We're celebratin'! Bring us a bottle of the best whiskey ya got!"
"I don't think you're ever on good behavior and I know for a fact that you can't afford the nicest bottle of whiskey so here." Lauren set the bottle of Wild Turkey on the bar in front of the two men along with two glasses.
Merle barked out a laugh, opened the bottle and took a swig before saying, "Damn girl, you haven't gotten any less icy since I last seen ya. D'ya need Ol' Merle here to warm ya up? I hear it works best if you're nekkid."
"Don't be such an asshole, Merle." She rolled her eyes again and turned to walk away, but not before Merle told her he was "just trying to help and would be available at any time."
The rest of the night passed slower than Lauren felt possible, with her running all over the bar to refill drinks and deliver food, all while dodging the grabby hands of the bolder patrons. The perverted comments from Merle didn't stop and his friend Tommy joined in once he had a few drinks, encouraging others to proposition her as well. Lauren's head was pounding and she was never happier when it was time for last call.
By the time all of the customers got into cars or cabs, it was 3 am. Lauren was exhausted; she was never here this late on a Wednesday night. She looked around at all of the clean up that needed to be done and decided to just do it before the bar opened tomorrow. Her boss wouldn't notice, and if he did, he wouldn't fire her. She turned off the lights, locked the door and started walking home.
It was late and it was dark and Lauren lived about a mile from the bar, but she wasn't scared. All she wanted was to get home and fall face first into her bed. She had had a few problems with drunks on the street before, but it was never something she couldn't handle. If all else failed, she was armed with a small handgun, though she hoped she would never have to use it.
Finally, she was at the door to her small rented house. She let herself in and without turning on any lights, found her way to her bed and was asleep before her head hit the pillow.
The next day, Lauren woke up with a start. It took her a few minutes to realize she was home in her own bed and to calm her blood pressure.
Must've had a bad dream. Wonder what it was about.
She shook her head to clear her thoughts and stood to go shower. Once she was clean and no longer smelled like spilled alcohol, she got ready to go back to Sal's and clean up from the night before. It was warm out and the Georgia sun was already beating down, so she grabbed a water bottle out of her fridge and started walking.
The street was eerily quiet, but Lauren shrugged it off as being due to the heat. She made it to the bar and went in through the front door. Sal's never opened before 4 pm, so she didn't worry about customers trying to come in. She looked around and frowned at the amount of work she had left for herself to do, but she was glad she went home and got some sleep. She dug out her headphones, put on her favorite Pandora station and got to work.
Two hours later, Lauren was cleaning and putting away the last of the glassware when she heard a crash and a loud, familiar voice yelling, "DARYL! GET YOUR SKINNY ASS OUT HERE WE'VE GOTTA GO!"
"Merle?" She asked as she ripped her headphones out.
"Judy? What the hell are you doin' here girl?" he asked looking a little panicked.
"Um I work here. What are you doing here? Who's Daryl?"
"Daryl's my baby brother, I'm lookin' for him so we can get the hell outta Dodge. He said somethin' 'bout comin' down this way but I haven't seen 'im. You looked outside today?"
"I've been in here all afternoon. What's going on?" Lauren was starting to get concerned about Merle's demeanor. She had never seen him look anything but salacious or drunk and it was freaking her out.
"There's no time to explain. You alone?"
Lauren hesitated, not sure if she should let him know that there was no one else with her.
"Ya answered ma question. Let's go." He grabbed her arm and began to pull her towards the door.
"Merle wait! Stop! What's wrong with you? What the hell is going on?" She said as she struggled in his grip. He ignored her and kept moving. Now that they were out from the side room and she didn't have music playing in her ears, Lauren could hear screaming. She stopped short.
"What the fuck. What is going on out there?"
"C'mon Princess. We ain't got all day. I gotta find ma brother and then we gotta get out of here. Less ya want to be one a them." He pointed out the window at a woman trapped beneath a man who was chewing on her neck. There was blood everywhere, and it was clear that the woman had bled out. A look down the street showed similar scenes.
"What is this, some bath salt thing? I'm not going out there with people going crazy like that. I'm going to call the police and wait inside until it's safe." She reached for her cell phone and saw that she had no service. What the fuck? I always have service here. Hell, I was just listening to Pandora a few minutes ago!
"How's that plan working out for ya darlin'?"
She glared at him.
"I tol' ya we gotta get outta here. Ain't no pigs gonna come and save us."
Outside, the noise was quieting somewhat as those with cars packed up and sped toward the highway. Others were not so lucky and were serving as a buffet for those things that looked human but couldn't be. Lauren hesitated, not wanting to leave the safety of the bar and catch the attention of the flesh-eating monsters outside. Merle's truck was sloppily parked on the sidewalk in front of the bar, but it still seemed too far.
Before she could gather her courage, her world flipped upside down. Merle had grabbed her around the waist and slung her over his shoulder.
"Put me down! Merle! I'm not kidding you filthy bastard! Put me the fuck down!" Lauren screamed and pounded on his back with her fists. Merle told her to hush and she snatched her purse off a front table before he carried her out the door to his truck. He opened the driver's side door and shoved her across the seat before getting in himself and shutting the door.
Lauren continued screaming and striking out at him; he had locked the door so she couldn't leave the cab. Finally he grabbed her wrists and held them in one hand. He looked at her and growled "Now listen here Missy, cause I'm only gonna say this once. Those things out there ain't human no more. They ain't. There ain't nothin' you or anyone can do ta help 'em neither. You gotta stay 'way from them cause one bite or scratch and ya turn into one. There ain't no time for pussying around right now. Got it? An' I just saved your ass so don'tcha dare think a hittin me 'gain. I ain't in the habit a hittin' womenfolk, but I've made exceptions 'fore an' I'll do it again. We understand each other?"
Lauren's eyes were wide with fear, but she nodded.
"Good. Now let's go see about my dumbass brother." With that, he released her wrists, started the truck and peeled out into the street, dodging the living and the non-living alike.
AN: Well this is the first chapter of my first ever fanfic! What do you think? Should I continue? Let me know!