Disclaimer: I do not own Walking Dead... But who doesn't wish they could.
Dante lands in Tampa from a plane from Afghanistan, he was in his mid twenties, 6'2 tall and was slightly muscular with a tan skin tone short black hair and brown eyes. He is of Hispanic descent and has a tattoo on both his biceps leading up to his shoulders and tattoos on his forearms. He walked along the airport and stopped for a moment to look at the T.V, the news was on so Dante walked closer to the T.V set to hear the news, he looked around him as the airport was a bit empty, they're were a couple of people sitting down looking at the T.V Dante was watching. Their was reports of people biting people and others were getting very sick, their was even reports that Dante didn't believe about some people coming back to life.
Dante scoffed and then chuckled. "They would say anything to get ratings." Dante said accidentally out loud.
A old man looks up at Dante and raised a eyebrow. "It is true… I have seen it."
The others around them chattered among themselves and looked at the two.
"It sounds like bums getting hungry." Dante said looking down at the man, he then ran his eyes around the room looking at the people around him as they looked frightened. "Their is no need to be scared people… I'm sure nothing is wrong." Dante said with a reassuring smile.
"You're a Marine aren't you son?" The old man said as he pointed at Dante dog tags.
Dante nodded. "Yes sir."
"You have missed out on a lot son… These reports have been going on for a couple of days now… People go missing others get bitten, it's hard to even get into the emergency room nowadays." The old man said with a frown as he looked away from Dante and went back to the T.V.
Dante raised a eyebrow and looked back at the T.V. "A couple of days?" Dante said softly, he then walked away from the T.V and left the airport, he then got in a cab and headed to his apartment. He got out of the cab and paid the taxi driver, the taxi driver drove off and Dante turned to the front door of the building, he let out a long sigh and smiled as he opened the door and walked into the building. He went into the elevator not noticing that the lobby was empty, their was usually a doorman but their was none today, Dante then pressed a button to send him up to the third floor.
Dante walked through the hallway and stopped in front of the door to his apartment. He exhaled sharply and dropped his bags as he smiled, he then knocked on the door, their was a shriek from the other side of the door. The door swung open and a woman looked at Dante with tears in her eyes, she then hugged him and held him tight, Dante smiled and hugged her back resting his chin on her head since she was shorter then him, she then pulled away from the hug and jumped up on him kissing him deeply and passionately, Dante eyes widen as he returned the kiss.
The woman hopped off Dante and smiled as she wiped her tears, the woman name was Maria she is Dante girlfriend, they have known each other since their freshmen year in high school, they were best friends but their feelings for each other became known during their senior year of high school ever since they have been together for seven years. Maria was also Hispanic, she is 5'5 tall with a athletic build, long curly black hair with blue eyes and a tan skin tone.
"Happy Anniversary baby." Dante said with a big smile on his face as he put a hand on her face and rubbed her cheeks wiping the tears off her face.
Maria kept crying and nodded with a smile on her face, she then wiped the tears off her face and tried drying them by waving her hands towards her face.
She then exhaled sharply and looked into his eyes. "What are you doing here? Your not suppose to be here until next month." Maria said as she sniffled.
Dante chuckled and picked up his bags, he thenwalked into their apartment and put his bags on the couch and he sat down next to them. "I asked my CO for a early leave and he let me go…. Plus I had to beg him letting him know it was my anniversary…" Dante said with a chuckle.
Maria sat on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I've missed you so much.. It's been so long." Maria said with a smile as she gave him a quick kiss.
Dante had his hands on her hips and he smiled. "How much have you missed me?" Dante asked with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.
"Very." Maria gave him a kiss. "Very." Maria gave him a longer kiss. "Much." Maria said as she kissed him passionately.
Dante kissed her back passionately and then picked her up after a couple of minutes of making out, he then kicked his bedroom door open and laid her on the bed, he then closed the door and they made love that lasted the whole night.
The next morning Maria woke up and put on her robe, she then walked to the kitchen after brushing her teeth and taking a shower. She started making breakfast for her and Dante, she made eggs with bacon and toast. Dante woke up to the smell of the food, he sat up and yawned as he stretched, he then took the blanket off him and went to the bathroom to brush his teeth and take a shower.
After brushing his teeth Dante made his way to the kitchen and hugged Maria from behind and he kissed her cheek. "Good Morning." Dante said with a smile as he looked down at her cooking.
"Hey you… Hungry?" Maria said as she smiled and continued cooking.
"After yesterday… Hell yeah." Dante said with a chuckle, he then let go of Maria and slapped her butt, she jumped up and rubbed her butt cheek with a chuckle.
Dante then sat down and looked at the day newspaper, he flipped through the pages and kept seeing the things he saws on T.V. He then put the newspaper down and looked at Maria. "What is up with this city? People getting bitten and hospitalized."
Maria started serving them food on their plates, she then placed Dante plate in front of him and she poured some orange juice for him and her, she sat on the chair and started eating her food. "I don't know… It started happening recently."
Dante sighed and ate his eggs, he then took a bite of his bacon strip. "It's weird.. What have the government said about it?"
"Nothing… They must be covering something up." Maria replied as she started eating her food, she then looked at Dante and chuckled. "Um Dante…"
Dante looked at Maria while he ate another bacon strip. "What's up?"
"Um… My little sister is coming today." Maria said with a smile as she looked into his eyes.
"Crystal? Why?" Dante asked with a raised eyebrow.
Maria sighs and looks down at her food. "Well… She is going to college in the fall and I thought that she could spend time with us until then… I miss my sister." Maria said with a smile as she looked back up at Dante. "Also…. She is going through some stuff…. Her boyfriend tried biting her… Good thing she ran away from him."
"Her boyfriend tried biting her? Really?" Dante asked with a raised eyebrow and a confused look on his face.
"Yeah… Their have been people doing that since this whole thing all started." Maria said with a sigh as she ate her food and looked up at Dante while doing so.
"So when is she coming?" Dante asked as he yawned and went back to eating his food.
Maria shrugged and ate another bacon strip. "Anytime soon."
"Great…" Dante said with a sigh. "I'm going to get dressed… I suggest you do the same." Dante said with a chuckle, he then finished his food and put the plate into the sink, he walked over to Maria and kissed her cheek, he then headed to the bedroom to put on some clothes.
A few minutes later he comes out of the bedroom and walks to the living room where he see Maria and Crystal. Crystal was the same height of her sister and had the same skin tone, she was 18 yrs old, she had light blue eyes a slim build and long black hair.
Dante raised a eyebrow and smiled. "Hey Crystal."
Crystal looked at Dante and smiled, she then walked over to him. "Hey soldier boy." Crystal said as she gave him a hug.
Dante smiled and hugged back. "Hey little girl… Look at you all grown up."
Crystal smiled and pulled out of the hug. "Well you have been gone a long time… Treating my sister right?" Crystal asked with a raised eyebrow.
Dante nodded and chuckled. "Yes Ma'am… I try my best." Dante replied with a smile
"Good or else I would have to beat you up." Crystal said with a wink and a smirk.
Dante and Maria chuckled. "So how our your folks in Atlanta?" Dante asked with a smile as he sat down on a chair looking at Crystal.
Crystal picked up her bags and put them on the couch, he then sat down next to them. "They're good…. A pain… But good." Crystal said with a sigh as she rested her chin on her hand.
"So what college are you going to?" Maria asked Crystal as she sat on Dante lap looking at her sister.
Crystal looked at the two and smiled. "I'm going to Georgia Tech."
Dante chuckled and smiled. "Who would have known the little brat that used to bother us is now going off to college."
"Who would have known that annoying guy that was with my sister turned into a Marine and still hasn't married my sister after seven years together." Crystal said with a smirk as she looked at Dante.
"Touché." Dante said with a light laughter while Maria cleared her throat and looked at Crystal, they then started making small talk and they decided to go out today with Dante to the mall and afterwards they were going to grab some dinner.
That night they made it home after Dante had a fight with a man trying to bite Maria and Crystal, they entered the living room and they all sat down.
"What the hell was wrong with that hobo?" Crystal said as she folded her arms and sat on the couch.
"I don't know but he wouldn't stay down." Dante said with a sigh as he sat down next to Crystal and looked at his bruised knuckles from the fight.
Maria locks the door to their apartment and sits down in between them. "I'm just glad you was their to fight him off… Who knows what kind of diseases he had and could have transferred to us." Maria said as she sighed and leaned her head on Dante shoulder.
Dante smiled and kissed her forehead. "Well I couldn't let my girlfriend and her sister hurt."
"My hero." Maria said as she grabbed his hand and smiled.
Crystal scoffed and rolled her eyes as she pushes Dante away from her. "Ew! Guys get a room." Crystal said as she got up and went to a nearby chair.
Dante and Maria chuckle as they looked at Crystal, Maria got up from the couch still holding Dante hand. "Let's all get some sleep… It's been a long day." Maria then pulled Dante up and waved goodbye to Crystal as she lead Dante to their room. Crystal sighed and put on her ipod and started listening to music.
Later that night after making love to Maria, Dante got out of the room and headed to the kitchen to get something to drink. While pouring some milk Dante smelled a familiar smell, he finished pouring his milk and put the milk carton in the refrigerator, he walked with the cup in his hands to the source of the smell, it was coming from Crystal room, he slowly opened the door and saw Crystal sitting on a chair next to the window blowing smoke out the window.
Dante raised a eyebrow and his eyes narrowed. "Crystal what the hell are you doing?"
Crystal eyes widen as she jumped up and threw a joint out the window. "What? What are you talking about?"
"I saw what you was doing… Are you smoking pot?" Dante asked with a raised eyebrow as he put his cup on the night table and walked up to Crystal with his hands in his pajama pants pockets.
"Maybe." Crystal said as she looked at Dante and chuckled nervously.
Dante sighed and rubbed his neck. "Why are you smoking? Do your parents know?"
"Honestly…. No they don't… I'm just relieving stress… You know… My boyfriend trying to bite me and my parents constantly pressuring me to do things I don't want…." Crystal said with a sigh as she hugged her knees on the chair.
"I understand but…" Dante said as he looked at Crystal with a slight frown.
"But what? It's harmless and stress relieving." Crystal pointed out with, she then looked down to the floor still hugging her knees.
"Alright fine but….. Don't do it while your staying at our house.. If you want to do it then go outside… Like the fire escape and closed the window so the smell can't get in… If your sister found out then she would tell your parents… You don't want that, believe me." Dante explained as he smiled at Crystal.
"You use to smoke pot?" Crystal asked with a raised eyebrow as she looked up at Dante and tilt her head.
Dante sighs and rubbed his shoulders. "Yeah when I was around your age… Your sister knew and she didn't like it… Plus I had to quit if I wanted to join the Marines." Dante explained with a sheepish chuckle.
"You're a good man Dante… Why haven't you put a ring on my sister finger after all of these years?" Crystal said in a serious tone as she looked into Dante eyes.
Dante sighed and looked away from her and out the window. "It's complicated…"
"Why? What's the problem?" Crystal asked as she tilted her head at him.
"Geeze since when did the little girl that asked me to play with her and her dollhouse ask serious questions?" Dante said with a nervous chuckle hoping she would drop the subject.
Crystal shook her head and face palmed. "I'm not seven anymore Dante… I'm a grown woman now and I want to know why you don't want to marry my sister."
"Because If I die it's going to hurt her badly…. I don't want her to be hurt…. I want her to be happy…. I don't want her to be a widow." Dante said as he looked down to the floor and frowned.
"But you marrying her would be make her the happiest woman in the world, she would be on cloud nine. She loves you so much and has been wanting you to propose to her for so long… Stop being a wimp and marry my sister." Crystal said as she stood up and hugged Dante. "Plus…. I always wanted a brother and you're the closest thing I got." Crystal said with a smile as she looked up at him.
Dante smiled and hugged her back. "Thanks…. Fine… I'll propose to her… Want to go ring shopping?" Dante asked as he pulled away from the hug.
Crystal giggle and nodded. "Yes… Be prepared to buy a big rock." Crystal said with a grin.
Dante laughed nervously. "Great… Ok… Rest up and we will go tomorrow." Dante said with a smile as he ruffled her hair and left the room to go to sleep in his bed. Crystal smiled and went to sleep after a few minutes of staring at the ceiling.
The next morning Maria woke up Dante with a worried look on her face, Dante groaned and yawned as he rubbed his eyes and looked at her. "What's wrong?" He asked as he sat up and stretched.
"They said we need to evacuate Tampa, they said that Miami was safe. We have to pack our things and get out of here, they said that the biting has lead to something worse, to people coming back to life." She then frowned and hopped on the bed hugging Dante. "I'm scared."
Dante nodded and rubbed her back to comfort her as he hugged her. "Alright.. Wake up your sister and we will pack up… Pack as much important things in a book bag." Dante said as he pulled away from the hug and gave her a deep kiss, she nodded and started packing.
While Maria was packing for the two and waking up Crystal, Dante was in the bathroom brushing his teeth, as he spat out the Scope in his mouth he looked up at the mirror and jumped back as he saw a dead version of himself, Dante punched the mirror and put his hands on the sink panting, he splashed some water on his face and sighed looking at his bloody knuckles, he then washed his hands getting the blood off him. Dante dried himself off with a towel and sighed again, he then walked out of the bathroom and helped Maria pack up.
After a half hour of packing clothes, medicine, a first aid kit, and a whole punch of water bottles, they ate a quick breakfast and left the building. They walked to Dante car, it was a silver 2012 Audi A3, they entered the car and put their seat belts on, Dante started the car and started driving with Maria right next to him and Crystal in the back. While driving Dante raised a eyebrow as he saw people he thought were getting jumped in alleyways, people were looting nearby stores, Dante quickly made his way to the highway and headed to Miami. Dante phone started ringing, it was his mother from Atlanta.
"Hello?" Dante said as he picked up the phone while driving.
"Hola mi amor, have you heard the news?" Dante mother asked over the phone.
"Si mommy, Maria told me, were on our way to Miami, they said it was safe there." Dante replied.
"Aye mi amor, your father is not feeling well, at work his co worker bit him for no reason and he has been sick ever since. I'm worried about your father Dante, he looks very ill." Dante mother said as she started to cry.
Dante froze up for a moment and tears came down his eyes as he looked for a way he can make a u-turn, Maria raised a eyebrow. "Dante what's wrong? What are you doing?" Maria asked as she looked him in the eye.
Dante stood quiet to his mother and Maria, he then finally made a u-turn. "Ma I'm going over to Atlanta to see Papi." He then froze up again remembering what Maria said to him about the bites leading to people coming back to life. "Ma!"
"What?" Dante mother asked as she sobbed over the phone.
"Ma you have to stay away from Papi!" Dante shouted over the phone, all Dante could hear was his mother sobbing over the phone.
"Aye dios mio! Why?" Dante mother shouted over the phone as she cried more and more. "Dante mi amor… Your father is dead."
Dante eyes widen and he started to cry. "Ma stay away from Papi…. He is going to come back to life! That's what they said on the news." Dante shouted over the phone to his mother.
"What?" His mother asked over the phone the crying stopped and their was a scream. "Aye dios mio… Dante he is still alive, he just sat up and looked at me."
"Mami no! Run away!" Dante yelled again as he started speeding to Atlanta, their was a scream over the phone and his mother hung up. Dante started crying as his eyes widen more as he heard the scream over the phone, he then hung up and started pounding on his stirring wheel.
Maria and Crystal raised a eyebrow. "What's wrong baby?" Maria asked as she put a hand on his leg.
"M-My… Father… Is… Dead." Dante said as he looked at her quickly and then turned back to the road.
Maria and Crystal gasped as they cover their mouths with their hands. "Oh… Oh god… I'm so sorry Dante." Crystal said as she put a hand on his shoulder.
"We have to go to Atlanta.. I have to see them… They said it was safe over their as well… You two need to be with your family as well." Dante said as he looked at Maria, she then wiped the tears off his face and nodded.
Crystal sighed and leaned back on the seat and folded her arms. "Man… I just came from their yesterday."
"Crystal we have to see Mami and Papi, to make sure their still safe… Right Dante?" Maria said as she looked back at Crystal and then looked at Dante.
Dante nodded in agreement. "It's a seven hour ride over their so get comfy… I hope my father didn't bite my mother." Dante said as he exhaled sharply and rubbed his head.
Seven hours later, they finally make it to Atlanta but they was still on the highway, Dante then noticed massive traffic up ahead. "What the fuck?" Dante said as he honked his horns not noticing it was a refugee camp. Dante growled and rolled down his window. "Hey move up! I need to get to Atlanta!" Dante shouted at the other drivers, some people were in their cars and others were outside talking amongst themselves, Dante cursed under his breath and stepped out of the car growling.
"Dante? Where are you going?" Maria asked as she stuck her head out of the window and looked at him.
"I'll be right back… Lock the doors and roll up the windows." Dante said as he kept walking and looked back at her for a moment, he then walked up ahead and saw a man with a woman and a little boy, Dante then walked up to them.
"Hey… What's going on here? Why is no one driving?" Dante asked the man as he tapped his shoulder to get his attention.
The man turned around and looked at Dante up and down. "Hey man… This is a refugee camp, the military is in the city taking care of the situation." The man said as he looked Dante in the eyes.
"What? Are you serious… I need to get in there man… My parents are in there." Dante said as he looked the man in the eyes and then looked down with a frown.
"Aw man… I'm sorry…. Listen I know a way to get to the city." The man replied as he put a hand on Dante shoulder. "I'm Shane, this is Lori and little man over there is Carl." Shane said as he pointed at the woman who was Lori and the little boy who was Carl.
Dante nodded and smiled. "Thank you Shane, I'm Dante." Dante said as he put his hand out for a handshake.
Shane gave him a firm handshake and smiled. "Alright man… Do you have any weapons? Those walkers are too dangerous for you to be going in there alone." Shane said as he let go of his grip on Dante hands.
Dante sighed and shook his head no. "No I don't have any weapons…. Wait… Walkers?"
Shane head over to his car and pulled out a baseball bat and handed it to Dante. "Yeah man… Walkers, their the undead, if you get bit you turn into one of them eventually."
All Shane did was made Dante more worried about his parents, he took the baseball bat from Shane. "Anything else I need to know?"
"Yeah… Aim for the head." Shane said as he sighed and looked around.
"Shane you sure you should be going out there? What about me and Carl?" Lori asked as she put both hands on Carl shoulders.
"Don't worry Lori, I'll be right back, I'm just going to show him the way to the city and come right back." Shane said as he looked back at her and gave her a reassuring smile.
"Please be careful." Lori said as she looked at Shane and then looked at Dante a bit mad.
"Alright I'm going to get my girlfriend and her sister, I'll be right back." Dante told Shane as he ran off to tell Maria and Crystal his plan, Dante then looked back and saw Shane and Lori talking to each other with Carl talking to a little girl sitting with her mother.
Dante finally made it to Maria and Crystal and explained to them the situation, Dante then heard jets above them, he looked at the direction they were going to and gasped as they Napalm Bomb Atlanta to purge the Walkers.
All three of them gasped and watched the fire over Atlanta. "No!" Dante yelled as he started crying again as he thought about his parents and them getting burned alive. Maria and Crystal got out of the car with Crystal crying and hugging Maria as they both looked at the fire, Maria started crying because Crystal was.
"Maria….. Mami and Papi…. They can't be dead." Crystal said as she started sobbing and buried her face in Maria chest.
"I don't know Crystal….." Maria said as she tried to be strong for her little sister, she wiped the tears off her face and sniffled.
Dante continued looking at the city burn, it then died down, he looked at Maria and Crystal and wiped the tears off his face and had a firm grip on the baseball bat Shane gave him. "We have to find them…" Dante said not thinking straight and not thinking about the danger Shane warned him of these 'Walkers'.
"Are you serious? Is that safe?" Maria asked as she continued hugging Crystal and tried making her stop crying.
"I'll keep you safe…. Both of you… We need to find our parents and leave Atlanta… Maybe head up North… I'm sure they have Washington D.C safe… The Government have to be up to something to stop this madness." Dante said as he walked up to them and hugged them both as he rested his chin on Maria head.
Maria nods and looked up into his eyes. "I'll follow you anywhere… What about you Crystal?" Maria said as she pulled away from Crystal and had her hands on Crystal arms. Crystal nodded and sniffled as she tried wiping the tears off her face. Dante exhales sharply and nodded, he then grabbed Maria hand and she grabbed Crystal hand as Dante lead them to Shane.
"Shane… Let's go." Dante said as he looked at Shane seriously, he then looked at Crystal. "Go get the book bags." Dante commanded her to do, she nodded and ran back to the car, a few seconds later she came back with their book bags struggling to carry them, Dante and Maria took their book bags and put them on.
Shane nodded and looked at Lori. "I'll be right back." Shane said with a reassuring smile, he then walked off over the rail and into the forest.
The forest was clear of walkers, Dante was being extremely aware looking around constantly, it was nothing new to him, he had to constantly watch his back and the backs of his fellow Marines. Shane then leads them a little further but then stopped and looked at Dante.
"Alright man just keep on heading north and you should see the city… Be careful man and good luck." Shane said as he put his hand out for a handshake.
Dante nodded and smiled as he shook Shane hand. "Thanks for the help and be careful out there." Shane nodded and left them going back the way he came. Dante then exhaled sharply as he started walking in the direction Shane pointed out with a firm grip on his baseball bat looking around as Maria and Crystal followed him.
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